This question was a burning one that was let dwindle and snuff out. I am mid-way through a spring/summer wardrobe overhaul, and my wardrobe room is SO not ready for its close-up. Today I decided to sit down and write my tips anyway. Even though there would be no photos of my robe to accompany* because keeping edited wardrobe matters to me. Lots. Maybe it would inspire me to finish that clean-up and clean-out sometime soon. Who knows.
Keeping an edited wardrobe comes in a few stages; buying less, regular cleanouts and saying goodbye to items you no longer wear. If you own the system rolling over and over, you will always have a slimline wardrobe {in theory, let’s not talk about mine today} with pieces you often wear, form the basis of a stylish wardrobe and avoid double-up purchases. The gaps for wardrobe purchases required will be obvious. This sounds technical to say that you’ll know what you have when you have it and where it is. Got it? Right.
Right! The first step I mentioned was buying fewer clothes.
This is probably the key to the entire process. It would help if you stopped buying clothes you don’t need, want or are not going to wear. If you’re building a wardrobe, you may have a few more hits and misses than someone maintaining a closet, but the concept is the same. Stop buying so much stuff!
My problem these days is the number of samples I received as content for the blog. Often way more than one girl could need. Like, ever. So it becomes an ongoing thing to clean out the wardrobe, host sales {if the brands are okay with me doing so}, swap items or re-gifting them. So don’t let the excuse that you aren’t buying them or don’t know how the oversupply happened to stand in your way. Get active and get some items moving OUT the door.
Regular cleans-outs were next on my list.
I think seasonally is a good idea. It keeps things fresh; you get a good idea of what you have ready for the impending season and what will need to be replaced. What is now a laughable joke and what can be worn again {hello trend items!}. Keeping an edited wardrobe doesn’t mean you never get to repurchase a new season. It means you must part with some of the old before the new can come in.
I move around my jumpers and knits, swapping them with my swimmers and beach dresses. I rotate them in and out of a simple-to-access storage box. This prompts me to start moving things around as the weather changes and gets me ready when the new season releases are advertised. AND if I’m not reaching for the box for an entire year, then it’s simple, I don’t need them; they’re gone.
Don’t even OPEN that box.
That could also be the key to step three, saying goodbye. Put items you are considering getting rid of but not yet ready to part with in a storage box or container in another room of your house. If it remains untouched for some time, then it goes. No questions asked. These are not items you are reaching for daily. It’s time to go…
There are many reasons people continue to hold onto clothes after they are no longer being worn. They could be a one-day set, a memory holder, or maybe you are still planning to get up the guts to wear it just that once! Well, the time is now. Either wear it or throw it away {I say throw it away, this can mean sell it off, donate it or whatever works best for you}.
If you have a sentimental reason for keeping it, consider turning it into something extraordinary. I plan to frame a couple of event shirts to hang in my robe room: nothing tricky, just an Ikea frame and some double-sided tape. I love the idea of blankets made of pieces of fabric and things like that too. Consider a method to display these sentimental items so they can be appreciated.
And if you follow these three easy steps, you will soon have a considered, edited wardrobe. SURE it might take a few throw-out rounds before you part with that threadbare t-shirt you wore as pyjamas in high school, but you’ll get there. Take your time, be a little brutal and remember, no new stuff comes in unless some old stuff goes out. Make it your unique personal rule. Good luck!
*Oh, and you might notice photos of my robe room included. I finished that clean-up. Finally! And boy, does it feel good to have it cleaned out. I’ve got a short list of items that will move on next time if they don’t get worn to bring it back again. You’ve got to be a little brutal when you want an edited wardrobe… No man who gets left behind can not survive here. Haha.
Right, over to YOU. Any questions for me?
Have you got any tips that work for you when it comes to editing your wardrobe?
Hi! I’m Melissa Walker Horn. Around here, they call me Suger. I’m the Chief Blogger and doer of all the things here at Suger Coat It. Blogging since 1901; I love a casual ootd, taking photos, and writing about things that irk or inspire me. I love wine and cheese, long days at the beach and spending time with my family. I make stuff for the internet over at Chalkboard Digital. You know, living the sweet life.
thanks for sharing Suger! now i just have to get the motivation to redo mine lol
I wish I had a wardrobe room! My wardrobe is literally a foot wide right now (I have a lot of things in boxes).
One tip I’ve found is to have a list of the things you need to add to your wardrobe, and a list of the things you really don’t need. You have to have the discipline to stick to it (sometimes that pencil skirt in the shop is just so much different from the five you already have at home!) but it helps when you’re shopping for the off season and can’t remember how many of your winter dresses survived the cull.
(I’ll help you get rid of samples! I promise not to tell the brands 😉 )
It’s the best. To have some room to just spread out, see what you have and be able to plan outfits and other ideas etc {especially doing what I do here}.
YES! The list thing is one of the key points in my eBook. You NEED to know what you need in your wardrobe {and that comes from knowing what you have} so you can grab them on sale, off season or when you see them rather than buy more items you already have. Nice one!
Haha Shelby, re: the samples, you may need to join the queue. 😉
You’re welcome! Send me a pic, I’d love to see it.
HA! Loved it. Thanks for sending them through and for the chat today. 🙂
be carefull what you wish for i have just sent you through over 20 pics lol
I did this with my clothes in September, halved my roomrobe! Now i need to cull my necklaces, they are ridiculous!
Nice one! Such a great feeling. And maybe save me some of those necklaces, I need some with colour… Keep me posted on this one.
Will do! 🙂
Awesome!
I’ve been waiting for this post. A clean out is so invigorating. I no longer have trouble editing my wardrobe but it took a friend to literally walk me through it, hours of taking out each item and assessing them. My wardrobe is done and now I am looking at books, paperwork and cupboards.
I feel like all is right in the world when I weed out all the things I don’t use. I had a ridiculous trip to IKEA yesterday when I stock up on shelves, boxes and jars. So many! I actually didn’t appreciate how much work it would require to remove stickers from the 15 glass jars and bottles alone. Organising makes me happy.
Sorry to leave you hanging! A clean out is THE BEST. I feel like I have an all new insight into my wardrobe at the moment. Such clarity when there is not a pile of crap laying all over the floor. Haha.
LOVE THIS. I think we might be related? Like Ikea siblings or something. 😉
Totally jealous of your wardrobe… room! Haha 😛
I went all gung ho into a cleanout, sold two jackets then promptly forgot about everything else I was going to sell and it’s just sitting in the spare room :/
All those reasons for holding onto clothes… I do that all the time haha. Won’t get rid of anything cause I might need it one day! Recently I’ve been getting better at it, so that’s good 🙂
So you should be, it’s FABULOUS! Haha.
Get into that spare room lady, maybe you doing that will motivate me to finish the sale of the items in MY spare room. One day. It’s SO on the list.
And give up those reasons. They are better out the door than taking up space. Let someone else enjoy them. It takes practice and seeing that the world doesn’t end when you give them up to really be okay with it, I think. Hang in there. 😉
Haha, I went into the spare room to do just what you said.. and ended up bringing a dress back INTO the wardrobe, and one onto the sewing table -.- lol. Uber fail. BUT the dress I brought back in eliminated the need for me buying a new dress for my cousin’s wedding. So, sort of win?
Tossed 2 shirts onto the donate pile though!
Haha, anyway I am taking your advice on board, really I am 🙂
Two out, two in, no problem. Haha. I think I caught a quick glimpse of the dress in my morning Facebook scroll! I love it. LOTS you can do with that for sure.