The birds are brightly chirping, your windows are wide open, and your closet has a settling layer of Winter dust. It’s time to Spring clean your wardrobe!
But Spring cleaning sounds so overwhelming when you have an entire house to deep clean. In that case, your closet is perhaps one of the last places on the list. But refreshing your wardrobe can actually launch you into a more productive Spring because you’ll start your day in an organized space.
Curious why you haven’t cleaned yet? Here are 3 reason why you don’t clean.
Have thirty minutes or an hour to spare? That’s all you’ll need for this project! Turn on your favorite tunes or engaging podcast, and let’s get started Spring cleaning your wardrobe.
1 – Gather all of your clothes together.
Let’s be honest, not all of your clothes are contained within your closet, or your dresser, or even your bedroom. Before you can clean up your wardrobe, you need to get all of the items together in one place.
Well, your closet probably isn’t big enough for all of your clothes – although that’s awesome if your closet is large enough! So just gather things into your closet, dresser, or bedroom. You’ll want a bit of space to sort through everything in the following steps.
2 – Take inventory.
Winter is a time for storing up and huddling in. Spring is the complete opposite! Unleash yourself into freedom with a refreshed wardrobe. But first, set aside at least 30 minutes to complete this step.
Now that everything is gathered into one place, take inventory. Do you have 10 pairs of leggings? 2 bras? 4 tank tops? 27 socks? (Who knows where that missing sock could be!)
If you thrive with lists, write down the categories and quantities. If you’re a visual learner, group like items together and look at what you’re working with.
This isn’t the time for decision making. This is simply where you take stock, observe what you have, and just look at the facts. Once this step is complete, you can move onto step #3. Hint: it’s the step where you’ll make decisions and take action!
3 – Make decisions.
Step #3 is where you’ll do the bulk of the work to Spring clean your wardrobe. Ready to be more organized than a brand new teacher on the first day of school? Let’s jump in!
Grab a laundry basket and a garbage bag. You’ll toss unwanted items into one of these places; the laundry basket for items to be donated, and the garbage bag for things that need to be trashed.
Look at your inventory and ask yourself:
- What items have I not worn within the past year?
- Do I have duplicates of items? Do I need multiple of the same piece?
- Do I reasonably foresee that I will wear this within the next year?
- Is there someone I know who would appreciate this hand-me-down?
- Is this piece your style, or do you only wear it because it’s in your closet?
- What image do you want to portray through your fashion?
In all reality, you may either feel like a selfish hoarder or a complete minimalist. Strive for a balance. You need more than 4 shirts, but you don’t need 100. You need more than 1 pair of pajamas, but you don’t need 12.
Hint: consider how frequently you do laundry. If you wash clothes more than twice per week, you don’t need as many items. If you wash less than once per week, then you may need a few extra pieces in your wardrobe.
4 – Take action.
Bravo Mama! You purged unnecessary items and took the time to consider. Step #4 has two parts:
- Put away all of the clothing items that you intend to keep. Fold like items together in your drawers and hang up similar clothes next to one another.
Hint: Hang your hangers backwards in your closet. After you wash something, hang it back up the right way. After a few months, you’ll notice which items you have not touched because their hangers will be backward.
- Toss that trash bag into the garbage can and don’t look back. Sort through things in your laundry basket. Have a bag for general donations (like Goodwill), and separate bags for items you’ll pass along to friends or younger women. Go put the bags in your car right now, and set a time this week when you will deliver these donations.
Hint: You can sell your clothes from your closet and make money!
5 – Jump into Spring.
Your closet isn’t brimming with dust. Your clothes racks and drawers are no longer sagging under the weight of unwanted clothes. Your wardrobe is refreshed and lighter thanks to your Spring cleaning!
Struggling to hop into Spring with energy? This might help:
How to make money selling clothes (from your own closet)
Spring clean your makeup bag in 7 easy steps
Your 10 day Spring cleaning challenge and checklist
8 Key pieces to give your Spring fashion some oomph