Transform Your Closet Today: Easy Closet Declutter Steps You Can’t Miss!

Have you ever felt the frustration of having so many clothes yet nothing to wear? Decision fatigue and a cluttered closet can make it hard to enjoy your wardrobe. But there IS a middle ground, and I’m here to help you find it.

Decluttering your closet in 5 easy steps starts with choosing the right kind of hard. Right now, your hard is:

• Being anxious about clothes everywhere

• Not having a structured place for your clothes

• Spending too much time and money on laundry

• Not enjoying your bedroom because it’s overrun by clothes

• The conflict of having many clothes but feeling like you have nothing to wear

This sucks, and it’s not what I want for you. I’m a home organizer specializing in decluttering, and I’ve helped women like you turn chaotic closets into havens of style and order. Remember, this is the hard we DON’T want. Today, I'm sharing my top easy closet decluttering steps. Let’s get into it!

Step 1: Prepare Your Mindset

Choose a new hard

Before starting the physical decluttering, let’s set your mindset. We’ve discussed the challenges you’re facing; now let’s focus on the challenges you want:

• Creating more space

• Finding your favorite outfits easily

• Redefining your look to match your self-image

To achieve this, you’ll need to:

• Be selective about new wardrobe additions

• Curb shopping impulses

• Prioritize quality over quantity

• Take an extra minute to hang up clothes

• Put shoes away immediately
  

Now I want you to hold these new challenges close—they’ll motivate you through each decluttering step (so eventually you’ll have a calming bedroom).

Gather Supplies

When I’m helping my clients declutter their wardrobes, I always have a few basic items on hand. You’ll need scented white garbage bags (large black bags are fine too), permanent markers, and sticky notes. Optional items include scotch tape, scissors, and a pen.

Prepare Supplies

Label your trash bags or bins with KEEP, DONATE, TRASH, and UNDECIDED using a permanent marker or sticky notes. Prepare a few at a time to streamline the process and keep your focus on decision-making.

Choose a Playlist

People always say if put on a playlist while decluttering they’ll get distracted- well GOOD! Now you can pace yourself while decluttering your wardrobe. My timed playlists can be found on Spotify and Apple Music. Choose a 15, 30, or 60-minute playlist to set the vibe as you declutter.

Step 2: Sort and Categorize

Select your categories 

Sort your entire wardrobe into categories like blouses, jeans, shorts, sneakers, belts, etc. Only you know what you have like that collection of fishnets and stockings is a category, so pull out all items of one type and group them together. This will give you a clear view of your collections and what you have too many of, helping you restructure your wardrobe.

Categorize Your Items

Tackle one category at a time. For example, a client of mine had a large collection of hoodies and while decluttering her wardrobe, we focused solely on putting her hoodies into one pile. Do the same, then sort each item into one of four subcategories: keep, donate, trash, or undecided. This can be the hardest part, but what will make it easier is to sort through one category at once. You’ll be able to maintain momentum and manage your energy. 

Evaluate Each Piece

Go through each item in the four subcategories honestly, asking yourself:

• Have I worn it in the last 6 months?

• Do I feel good when I wear it?

• Does it suit my current lifestyle?

• Does it align with my evolving style?

You can also use my Wardrobe Declutter Questionnaire for each article of clothing (no email required).  

Think of decluttering your wardrobe as a practical means you have to do now SO you can have flexibility and fun getting dressed later. If an item confuses you, has been neglected, or you feel indifferent about then it’s probably time to let it go. It's like not knowing where you stand with a guy you’re talking to, confusion usually means he’s not that into it. And the same can be said for how you feel about an article of clothing. 

A well-balanced wardrobe leads to a healthy wear rotation, where you regularly wear special occasion outfits, pieces are tailored, and dry cleaning is put away. Remember, you can’t wear what you can’t see or find.

Step 3: Address Sentimental Items

Recognize Sentimental Value

Most of our belongings are associated with a person, place, or thing. We use things to give our experiences meaning and cement a memory we never want to forget.  It's beautiful how our belongings tell stories about who we are and what we want the world to know. However, when too many things are sentimental, they become overbearing and create strife in our day-to-day. Get real about the experiences you’re holding onto (that no longer serve you) and the ones you want to keep. It's like when I let a college friend convince me to throw away a decade's worth of journals. They weren’t causing me any inconvenience and were very valuable to me. You have to be objective but be honest. 

Decide Thoughtfully

Only you can decide which items hold true meaning. Only you know if it's time to let go of the person, place, or thing that’s connected to an item. If you struggle to let go, create parameters based on your values and future goals. For instance, when decluttering my toddler’s wardrobe, I kept her 1st birthday outfit so if I have another child, they can wear it on their 1st birthday. Keep sentimental items in a designated basket or bin to manage them better.

Step 4: Organize and Optimize

Return Items Strategically

After you’ve sorted your one category into the 4 subcategories, move on to the next category. For items you’re keeping, hang them back into your closet but this time, turn the hanger hook in the opposite direction so they hang backwards on the rod. This time next year, you’ll see which hangers are still turned in the opposite direction. So you can objectively see what you didn’t wear.   

Create Uniformity

I love black velvet hangers, they never fail. Having matching hangers will create an instant uniform look. Order items by color, length, material, or season. Organize by season by putting summer/spring on one side of the closet. And winter/fall on another side of the closet. If you have more than one closet, separate the seasons. If you’re like me and have one closet, organize by color and size. Store seasonal accessories away.  For instance, my winter gear lives in a Hermes shoe box which blends with the rest of my closet, so it still looks put together. 

Maximize Space

Utilize vertical space because so much of the wall height goes unused. Can you add a shelf a little higher up for memorabilia and sentimental items? Use items like The Container Stores Elfa system on the back of your door for things like belts, clutches, sunglasses, and jewelry. Underbed is a great place for things you don’t use daily or for seasonal items.

Step 5: Maintain and Refresh

Remove temptation

It might be a good idea to unfollow, mute, and cleanse your timeline of accounts that promote shopping. If having too many clothes is your issue, taking in content that encourages you to buy more clothes is counterintuitive.  

Adopt a new rule

Since your focus is on decluttering your wardrobe, the one-in, one-out rule may not apply yet.  Instead, for every donation bag you give away, buy one organizing product for your closet. And if you’re really tryna keep a clutter-free home, make that item something you need. 

Stay Inspired

Join Homeschool, my free newsletter where I share free, intimate lessons for your mind, body, and home. If you want to know what you should be focused on based on how much or little clutter you have, take my free Homebody Archetype quiz. And follow me on Instagram where I help thousands of women like you break the generational pattern of living with excess. 

To Conclude

I’m so proud of you sis! You’re already on your way to having a more organized and peace-filled home. Take a moment to pat yourself on the back for making it to the end of this blog post (and I don’t care if you read blog posts all the time). And here’s a few more things I want to add to help you implement these tips. 

Celebrate the small wins

You went through an entire drawer, YASS sis. You can see the bottom of your closet floor, you did that! You realized your capacity and stopped working, Okay self-compassion and grace, we love to see it. No win is too small to acknowledge. 

Pace Yourself

I swear I say this for every part of the decluttering process but this one is really important. The truth is, that sense of urgency to get your home organized when applied to the right place(s) is useful. Like any large-scale project, decluttering years' worth of clothing will require a plan that includes daily, targeted, action. You got the plan. Now it’s just applying it.

Resource List 

• Where to bring Donations: If you don’t know where to bring your bag of clothing donations, click here for my master list of different places to bring them to.

• Take Inventory: If you still feel overwhelmed with just starting, maybe taking inventory of your space will help. Click here to download my free Life Inventory worksheet to take inventory of your space and clear your mind. 

• How much Clutter do you have: If you want to know where to start organizing your home and what to focus on based on how much clutter you have, click here to learn more about my 5 Homebody Archetypes. 

• Support System: If you feel your roommates or a partner are getting in the way of your progress, get strategies from my Organize Together Guide to get support and motivation from loved ones.

Decluttering your closet doesn’t have to be a daunting task. With these steps, a bit of motivation, and some good music, you can transform your space and make getting dressed a joy every day. Here’s to a beautifully organized wardrobe and a stylish, clutter-free life!