Is your clothes closet overflowing with clothes and
yet, you feel like there's nothing worth wearing? Here are some tips for getting your wardrobe back on track.
1. Commit to decluttering what's not serving you. First off,
when your clothes closet is packed full, choosing clothes is not a fun experience, but rather a frustrating one. So, one of your first plans of attack should be to commit to getting rid of the clothing that's not really serving you so that you're left with the pieces that fit your body, your fashion style, and your needs well.
2. Empty your entire closet out and then focus on one item at a time. Put all the clothes on your bed or the floor. One by one, pick up one of those clothing items and decide if it's worthy of keeping. It has to look good on you. So, if you're not sure, try it on.
If you like the way it looks, it fits your body well, is comfortable, and it fits your lifestyle (as an example, don't keep tons of business attire if you're retired and not planning to go back to work), then it's a keeper. If not, put it in the "donate"
pile.
3. Bring everything in the donate pile to the donation center. Everything you're keeping should then be in your closet; everything you're donating should be placed in
large bags, and driven (yes right now...or at least put it in your vehicle for tomorrow) to the donation center.
4. Take a break. At this point, do something
nice for yourself. Go for coffee, read a book, or just lay down and take a nap. Come back to the next step later or tomorrow.
5. Determine how many outfits you can make out of your
current wardrobe. Try on. Take photos of yourself in full outfits so you can determine your needs...and so you have something to reference when you're trying to decide what to wear.
As you're doing this, when you determine that you have some clothing needs, add them to a list. For instance, maybe you donated a white t-shirt you love that no longer fits you. Write "new white t-shirt" on your list.
By the way, when you go clothes shopping, don't go with the goal of filling up your closet, but rather with the goal of buying ONE pair of jeans, ONE shirt, or ONE outfit you're very happy with in any one shopping trip.
Buying too many clothing items at once can send you over your monthly spending budget and is rarely a good idea. Most people who do this in haste end up with the same problem they started with...lots of clothing clutter that goes unworn.
Building a nice and functional wardrobe takes time and patience. Enjoy the process.
