How to finally clean out your closet

Behind the closed door of my closet lies a world of possibilities. Give me a few hours to clean it up, and maybe I'll finally become someone with a neat, coordinated wardrobe instead of someone who wears four different black turtleneck sweaters that I hate for four different reasons.

I know there can be real value in cleansing. Having better and fewer options makes it easier to get dressed, and being able to see what you already own means you're less likely to overbuy. Search too She suggests Uncluttered living spaces may reduce stress.

However, there are shoes that I love despite the pain they cause, office clothes that I've stuck to even though I've worked from home for four years, and an expensive, impractical dress that I can only assume I bought while away somewhere. Hypnotic trance.

Cleaning out your closet can be emotionally charged, says KC Davis, a licensed therapist and author of How to Maintain a House When It's Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing. A person who grew up with scarcity may worry about getting rid of something in case they need it later. Someone whose body has changed may find it difficult to shed sizes that they may never wear again. But no matter how guilty or stressed you feel about something, “there's no reason to store it in your closet if you don't really wear it,” she said.

I asked Ms. Davis, along with several other professional organizers and designers, how to get past the overwhelming emotions and make the cleaning process more rewarding.

Enter with a vision

Most people dive into decluttering without a plan, says Shanice Jones, a professional closet organizer whose clients include singers Normani and Michelle Williams. “You don't have a strategy, you don't have a vision. You just say, 'Let me get all this stuff out of here.'

Instead, take some time to think about your current style and how you might want to change it. In the days before you start decluttering, make a note when someone compliments something you're wearing to help you decide which pieces you might want to hold on to.

Ms. Jones suggested creating a Pinterest board of outfits that speak to you, saving items to an online shopping cart or wish list or flipping through magazines or catalogs so you have reference points when you decide what to keep or get rid of. “It makes it easier to think, you know, this piece doesn't fit this look I'm going for,” Ms. Jones said.

Make it easy to review what you have

Depending on the size of your closet, a thorough clean-out could take up to four hours, said Chilly Carlson, a Los Angeles-based fashion designer. She recommends taking out one category of clothing at a time — tank tops, then T-shirts, etc. — and starting with the category you wear most often.

While it's fine to just lay out clothes on your bed, Ms. Carlson said she prefers to use a mobile rack — you might be able to borrow one from a friend or neighbor — and hang each category of clothing as you go. Creating this show is “so powerful, you can't ignore it,” she said. “You might have five or six black shirts. What does that tell you? You should stop buying black shirts.”

Then, go through each item individually, pulling each one off the shelf to hold it, touch it, then try it on, Ms. Carlson said. “Ask, 'Is this okay? Does this feel good?'

What to do with the “maybe” pile.

If you're on the fence about an item, San Francisco-based fashion designer Mary Gonsalves Kinney suggests trying to design an outfit around it with other items you keep. If you can't do it, “you should go,” she said.

Ms. Jones recommends “tagging” any items you're still undecided about with a safety pin. If the safety pin is still there the next time you declutter – meaning you haven't worn the item in that time frame – it's time to part ways.

“This cleanse does not have to be a one-off as all your decisions are final,” Ms Davis added. You can temporarily put the things that are difficult for you to part with somewhere else. Store them in the hall cupboard, or in an airtight storage box or bag and visit again in a few weeks. “You can still achieve the goal of a compact, easy-to-maintain closet without feeling like, 'Oh my God, you're not making the wrong decision!'

Ashley Piper, sustainability expert and author of Give a Sh*t: Do Good. Live better. “Save the planet,” he stressed the importance of making a pile of reforms. If you still love an item, but the zipper is broken, for example, “think, ‘How can I get more life out of this item?’” instead of saying, “Oh, it’s kind of worn out, I need to replace it.”

Follow through

For the pieces you decide to keep, create a system that makes sense with your routine, Ms. Jones said. If you work out in the morning, place your workout clothes in the top drawer of your closet or on the rod closest to your closet door.

To be able to “shop” your wardrobe at a glance, Ms. Carlson says she likes to organize by category and then by color — tank tops from light to dark, then T-shirts from light to dark, for example.

For accessories and small items, resist the urge to buy fancy storage solutions, Ms. Piper says, and try to reuse things you already have, like shoe boxes. “A container is a container,” she said. “You don't need to go out and buy something new that says 'socks'.”

And to ensure you don't need to do this again for a while, don't shop and shop at the same time, Ms. Gonsalves-Kenny said.

“Once you're cleansed, try sitting on it for a month and not buying anything,” she said. “You buy with intention rather than reckless abandon.”