It’s that time of year again, spring cleaning! I’m a freak of nature and LOVE to declutter/reorganize, so I’m pumped about it. I’m highly affected by my environment, so there’s no better feeling than a clean and tidy home. Many people get overwhelmed when it comes to spring cleaning and don’t know where to start. Since I usually start with my wardrobe, I thought I’d give you all my tips and tricks to effectively declutter your closets/dressers.

Prep

So you might be thinking, “Well, Jordan, what could I possibly prep? Don’t I just start getting rid of stuff?” Yes, but the best way to be successful is to start with a clean slate. Here’s how you prep.

1. Do all of your laundry and put it away. You’ll need to see how much you actually have.
2. Clean your room. Sounds dumb because you’ll be making a mess, but it will help you think.
3. Have your trash bags ready.
4. Have a charity/donation bin in mind. That way, when you’re finished, you can take the clothing there and get it out of your space.
5. Try to time it so you’re doing this right before trash day. The sooner you get clutter out, the better.

Designated areas

Before you start, you’re going to need to make three designated areas; Keep, Donate, and Trash. Make sure there’s a good amount of space in between them, you wouldn’t want to accidentally throw away your donate items.

Purge!

This is the fun part! Or, if you’re emotionally attached to your things, the not-so-fun part. This is where I used to get overwhelmed, so I do it in steps.

#1 Pick a category.

Pick the spot that needs the most help. Do you have a t-shirt drawer you can’t close all the way? Do you brave an avalanche of clothing when you open your closet doors? Start there, get the worst bit out of the way. Personally, I always start with my t-shirt drawer. Everything from the drawer goes onto my bed, and I start making piles.

#2 Get selective.

I mean REALLY selective. We all have those items that we never wear, but yet we still keep them. Why? I 100% guarantee that you won’t miss it, so let it go! Only keep things that you LOVE and that you feel good in!

#3 Try things on.

While this will take up a lot of time, it needs to be done. How many times have you gone into a store and seen something you loved, then tried it on and totally hated it? That can happen with your own wardrobe too. Tastes change, clothing loses shape, people change shape. How do you feel when you wear it? Do you feel amazing? Do you feel frumpy? In a sense, people are like clothing; If they don’t make you feel good about yourself, why keep them around?

#4 If it doesn’t fit, it goes.

How many times have you said, “Oh, if I work out, I’ll be able to wear this again!” I need you to be really honest with yourself right now. What are the chances you are actually going to fit back into it? If you are really committed, and on a fitness journey, then keep one item as an inspiration piece. Same things go for items that are too big. Just get rid of them! Unless you’re talking maternity clothes, keep those if having another baby is on your mind.

#5 Put things away.

As soon as you’re done with a category, put the “keep” items away. Immediately put them away so they don’t get mixed up with the other piles. Put your trash and donate piles into trash bags and tie them up really tight. This will keep you from trying to look through them later.

Storage

Storage can be tricky, and a lot of places aren’t equipped with good spaces to store things. Here are some of my tricks.

1. Avoid boxes with lids. Especially if you can’t see through the box. You’re less likely to look in a box if it has a lid on it.
2. Store your seasonal clothing. Do you really need your ugly Christmas sweater collection taking up valuable drawer/closet space?
3. Use vacuum storage bags. These are a lifesaver! Not only can you fit a ton of clothes in them, but they’re so thin when you vacuum the air out. They’re perfect to store clothes under your bed or on the top shelf of your closet.
4. Use velvet hangers in your closet. Not only will your clothes stay on them better, but they’re thinner than an average plastic hanger.
5. Use an adjustable hanging rod. you can hang it from your regular rod and get double the hanging space! All these things will be listed below.

Extra tips

1. When organizing your closet, separate your clothing by type. For example jackets, shirts, tanks, dresses, etc. Then sort those sections by colour. It’s kind of extra, but going the extra mile really makes a difference.
2. When you find items that you want to keep, but also need to be altered, put them near your front door. That way you don’t keep forgetting about them. The sooner you have them altered, the sooner you get to wear them!
3. If you’re still tight on drawer space, after getting rid of clothing, roll your items. Rolling them takes up less space.

 

I hope my method helps you! Stick with it and your wardrobe will be tidy in no time! Click the links below to shop some of my favourite organizing tools!

 

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