TOP TIPS On How to DE-CLUTTER Your Wardrobe

“I’ve NOTHING to wear” – probably one of the most common statements us girls utter at least once a week. It’s time to de-clutter.

Do you have a wardrobe full of clothes and feel like you have nothing to wear? Do you stare at your wardrobe every morning (as if you expect it to speak to you!!) hoping some sort of enlightenment will come over you and you will miraculously and easily pick the perfect outfit for the day? Are you tired of just picking the same clothes everyday? If this is you – then you are alongside most women (and men!) who share the same dilemma and have the urge and need to de-clutter their wardrobes.

So, I’ve compiled my TOP TIPS on how I go about to sort a clients wardrobe (and my own) and what works best in my experience.

• First and foremost and before you conduct a wardrobe de-clutter/analysis – ensure you go for a good and correct bra fitting. You would be amazed at the amount of us who are wearing the incorrect bra (around 80%) which makes a huge impact on how our clothes look. If you are wearing the correct and most comfortable size and fit – your clothes will look and feel 100% better which makes a difference when you also get to the stage of shopping for some new key wardrobe pieces.
• Invest in good quality hangers. I personally love the slim, suede ones which you can purchase in a lot of home stores these days – the suede texture makes it difficult for the clothes to slip off and if all your hangers look the same – your wardrobe looks more streamlined and clean.
• Also invest in some plastic sealed boxes to store clothes which are not for the correct season, vintage pieces that you may not wear a lot of the time and expensive items that you are unsure of but still want to hold on to as there may be an emotional attachment. As we are heading into the Dubai summer here – put away your ‘winter’ clothes and woollies in another wardrobe or in one of those plastic sealed boxes. Good tip is to store them under the bed.
• It’s a good idea to conduct a wardrobe edit at least twice a year and put away clothes, shoes and accessories which are not needed for the current season – this will also free up a lot of space in your wardrobe and make it easier to have a functioning, working wardrobe.
• When starting your wardrobe de-clutter – give yourself ample amount of time – this is not something that will take half an hour. You will probably end up with a mess in your bedroom – so be aware this is time consuming but it will be worth it in the end.
• Start by emptying out your wardrobe and drawers on the bed and making space for three piles:
  • Keep/Love Pile (I like to call this my “Does it spark joy” pile!).
  • Give Away/Donate/Sell Pile
  • Maybe/Try On Pile

• If you have items that are totally out-dated, that don’t fit, stained, looking worse-for-wear and damaged – these 100% need to go. There’s no point in holding onto them unless there is a huge emotional element and you plan on getting them fixed up at a tailors.
• If you haven’t worn something in the past 6 months to 1 year – think hard – are you really going to wear it again? This applies mainly to the ‘Maybe’ pile.
• Be ruthless – make a promise to yourself that you will only hang clothes in your wardrobe that you love. If you don’t wear it – DON’T HANG IT!
• I like a nice looking, neatly organized, colour-co-ordinated wardrobe. I think it looks aesthetically pleasing to the eye and clean. My must-do when organizing your wardrobe – is to keep all your tops hung together, dresses, jumpsuits, jackets etc and all colour-blocked which makes it easier when you are looking for something to wear.
• Keep the pieces you love and wear regularly accessible such as work shirts, casual dresses, tops you wear with jeans, shorts etc.
• Separate your trousers into sections:
  • Coloured
  • Neutral/Formal
  • Denim

• Clip hangers are good for trousers – I personally like to fold my jeans as they can sometimes be quite heavy to hang. It’s a good idea also to fold shorts (we all own a couple of pairs here living in the UAE) to minimise wardrobe space.
• When it comes to knits and cashmere – ALWAYS FOLD. By hanging – you will drag the wool and the knit will start to sag.
• When it comes to special occasion wear – these are pieces that you may not wear all of the time so to maximise use of your working, functioning wardrobe – try keep these in another wardrobe if possible. I’ve stolen one of my kids wardrobes for this!!
• When it comes to shoes – if your wardrobe doesn’t allow enough space for them to be on display under your clothes – I suggest keeping them in their boxes and when you have time – take pictures of the shoes and stick them on the box which saves you time going through every box to look for the correct pair. I’m a fan of a shoe wall – if you have a spare wall (ha, ha) in the bedroom, landing, wherever – why not turn it into a feature wall, put up some shelves and display your shoes.  Most of the time, our shoes are way too pretty to be hidden away in boxes! Somehow I convinced my husband to give me this wall (see below) in our bedroom to display my shoes (only some of them I might add!!). I find it much easier to put outfits together when I can actually see what I have.

• Take notes of what you have and what you need. The worst thing you can do is go shopping and double up on items you already have.  Be aware of the gaps and have an idea of what items you need in order to work with your current pieces.  Take a look at a recent post I did here on Sassy Mama –  my Top Wardrobe Essentials.
• When shopping – ensure you shop for the current season, taking into account classic styles that won’t date and will work well with what you already have.
• Lastly – another big tip I have and something which I LOVE to do – is again – space permitting – get a clothes rail (IKEA have super-cheap ones) and plan your wardrobe for the week ahead – the night before you go back to work, back-to-school drop-offs and pick-ups etc.  Place your ‘go-to’ everyday items on the rail and mix and match them with something different that works, from your wardrobe. This is an extra functioning wardrobe tip. Sometimes when our wardrobes are quite full (even though organized) it’s nice to have your outfits planned as life is busy enough. By doing this, it allows you to switch up your looks and experiment with different pieces. Try it – it makes such a difference.

Hope you picked up some good tips – having an organized and well-structured wardrobe is such a good feeling and really sets you up for the working week/day as well as any social and causal events in your life.

Remember – “Out of clutter, you find simplicity”

Until next time, take care and Happy Shopping,

Irene xoxo