Do you want to know how to downsize your wardrobe?
Let me take a wild guess. You probably have:
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- A tiny house,
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- A lot of new clothes,
- Lot of clothes you can’t live without.
This checklist will help you declutter your clothes fast.
It will help you have a clutter-free home.
So that the next time you are going to open your clothes closet, you won’t get intimidated by the number of clothes that exist in there.
If you want to learn how to simplify your closet, keep reading.
Tip 1: Store Seasonal Items
Storing seasonal items can be one of the biggest problems when you are trying to free up space in your house.
And, especially if you have a smaller wardrobe, storing seasonal items is the first thing you need to do.
Simply put, there is no point keeping your T-shirts, long-sleeves and other seasonal items in your wardrobe since you are not wearing them half of the year.
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My advice here is this: every spring and fall, half of your clothing should be stored.
This will change the look of your entire house.
To store seasonal items and clothes like T-shirts, long-sleeves or jackets, you can buy cheap storage boxes, like the ones IKEA is offering.
The DRÖNA collection is ideal.
However, we’ve found the TJENA collection to be good for clothing storage as well.
No matter the storage box that you are going to use, I highly recommend that you store your seasonal clothes so that you free up some space in your wardrobe.
Tip 2: Get Rid of Clothes that Don’t Fit Anymore
When was the last time you got rid of clothes that don’t fit anymore?
Maybe last year? Or maybe two years ago?
I know that getting rid of clothes that don’t fit is tough, but you need to do it.
Simply put, your high school skinny jeans may not fit you anymore:
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So, what’s the point of keeping it in your closet?
Besides, you have many new items, new clothes that you can wear instead of old clothes that don’t fit anymore.
Let me clear about something:
This is one of the biggest problems people have when they are trying to downsize their wardrobe.
But, if you want to be serious about downsizing, you need to have less clothes in your wardrobe.
And, to have less clothes, you need to get rid of clothing items that don’t fit anymore.
Plus, this way, you are going to wear your new stuff more; which, of course, is excellent.
Tip 3: Get Rid of Clothes that you Don’t Wear Anymore
I want to be clear about something:
You have to be ruthless with clothes that you don’t wear anymore.
You know what I am talking about.
That black dress that you bought when you were in Paris for vacation:
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Which you don’t wear anymore.
It’s not wrong to accept that you don’t wear certain clothes, and let me give you three reasons why:
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- This way, you’ll give more space to your new stuff,
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- You’ll need less time to decide what to wear,
- You’ll have a clutter-free home.
All three reasons are important.
And, let me give you an interesting hint:
The reason why successful people wear the same clothes every day is to spend less time every day making decisions that are not important.
To quote former US President Barack Obama:
“I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.”
Or, as the founder and CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, put it:
“I really want to clear my life to make it so that I have to make as few decisions as possible about anything except how to best serve this community,”
Let’s move on to the next tip I have for you.
Tip 4: Sell your Clothes for Cash
Selling your clothes for cash is a great way to have less items in your wardrobe, and more money for your current clothing needs.
I know that you might be wondering:
“Where can I sell my clothes for cash near me?”
That’s a fair question.
What you can do, is visit one of the many online trading and clothes selling websites, and place your Ad for free.
These are some of the places you can sell your clothes online for cash (in the UK):
Make sure to take a look, and find the ones that fit your needs.
Keep in mind that the clothes that you are going to sell, have to have good quality; otherwise, no marketplace will accept them.
Tip 5: Host a Clothing Swap
Hosting a clothing swap is another exciting way to:
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- Free up some space in your wardrobe,
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- Hang around with like-minded people,
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- Get rid of clothing items (i.e., shoes, clothes, accessories) that you don’t wear,
- Get new clothes, without having to spend a lot of money on shopping.
But, first, let me give you an explanation of the term.
According to Wikipedia:
“A clothing swap is a type of swapmeet wherein participants exchange their valued but no longer used clothing for clothing they will use. Clothing swaps are considered not only a good way to refill one’s wardrobe but also are considered an act of environmentalism.”
Simply put, clothing swaps are social gatherings focused on exchanging items between the participants.
Participants can bring clothes they no longer need—so as the host—and exchange clothes of equal value.
Some other options you should consider are:
1) The Marks & Spencer recycling initiative called Shwopping
M&S Shwopping is a way of recycling your unwanted items to one of M&S store, by placing them in the “Shwop Drop” box:
2) H&M Clothes Recycling
H&M collects and recycles clothes that people don’t use anymore, and it rewards them for their action.
In 2017 alone:
“H&M collected more than 17,771 tones of textiles—the equivalent of 89 million T-shirts.”
By giving in a bag full of clothes, you get a voucher of £5 off £25 spend.
Sounds good, right?
Thus, as you can see, there are many ways to swap your clothes nowadays.
Find the one that works best for you, and get rid of clothes that you no longer use.
Tip 6: Get Rid of Clothes that Don’t Add Value to your Life
I’ll keep this one short.
There are some clothes that:
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- You no longer use,
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- Don’t fit you anymore,
- Have no particular use (i.e., work clothes).
These are the clothes that you need to get rid of right away.
Why?
Because as we grow older, some of the clothes are more important than others.
Your college denim jacket may not add so much value, now that you are in your 40’s, following your career goals and raising a family at the same time:
Image Source: Unsplash
You’ll notice that as you grow older, some clothes are more important than others.
For example, work clothes might be more critical, as they represent a part of your life that is utterly important.
Thus, you need to keep them in good condition and leave clothes that no longer add value to your life right away.
Good luck with that!
Tip 7: Change your Laundry Habits
Here is another very critical point.
Most people wonder why they can’t downsize their wardrobe when their entire house is full of unwashed clothing items.
The truth is that the problem is not the number of items you have in your closet; you should fix your laundry habits in the first place.
My advice here is this: come up with a laundry schedule.
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Choose two days in a week when your schedule is not full, and make sure to wash all of your clothes in these two days.
This way, you’ll have clean clothes, and you’ll know precisely how many clothing items your closet can take.
It might sound easy, but it’s not.
Unless you change your laundry habits and come up with a schedule.
Tip 8: Give Clothes to Charity
You always have to remember that there are people with clothing needs.
You may have clothes for every situation in your closet, but some people can’t afford to buy new stuff.
Thus, I would suggest that you consider donating some of your clothes to charity.
This way, you will:
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- Help someone who needs your help,
- Thin out your closet.
One of the best solutions here is Oxfam, a global movement of millions of people who believe that poverty shouldn’t exist and that we can all help to cut it.
You can find more information about it here.
Having less items will not only make you feel better but will also make someone else happy.
Tip 9: Adopt a Minimalist Lifestyle
Adopting a minimalist lifestyle is one of the most important tips I can give you.
Afterall, it is where everything ends up to.
Adopting a minimalist lifestyle is a great way to make your life simpler, by having fewer items (including clothes).
Who says that you can’t be more with less?
Image Source: Unsplash
Many people who have adopted such a lifestyle insist on the effectiveness of it.
In addition to that, if you are having a hard time downsizing your wardrobe, you can challenge yourself using the “Project 333” challenge.
What is the Project 333?
It is a challenge that helps you simplify your life, by using the following framework:
“Commit to only 33 clothing items for 3 months.”
This can become your Capsule Wardrobe, and, if you are up for the challenge, it means that you are on a good way towards becoming a minimalist.
Note: The credits for this challenge go to GoDownsize.com.
Tip 10: Consider a Door to Door Storage Solution
This is the last tip I have for you.
You can find this tip to be useful in the following cases:
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- Your children have grown up, and you want to keep their baby clothes somewhere safe
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- You are involved in outdoor activities (i.e., ski), and you want to store your ski clothes
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- You have clothes that you inherited, and you want to keep them safe and dry for your future needs
- You are between moves, and you want to store seasonal items and clothes before you get into your new home
If one of these cases sounds familiar, then you are probably going to need a door to door storage solution.
If you want to know more about it, you can read the guide I wrote a while back.
You can find it here:
Door to Door Storage: Everything you Need to Know
Final Thoughts
How does a minimalist wardrobe look like?
Now you know!
Because you’ve just read the best closet declutter checklist online.
I am sure it helped you understand how you can simplify and downsize your wardrobe.
So, the next time you want to downsize your wardrobe, make sure to take a look at the great tips I’ve just shared with you.
And, if you have any additional tips for those having a hard time to downsize their wardrobe, feel free to share them below.
Good luck!
Some additional resources you might find useful:
