Utilizing Your Closet: Use It or Lose It

Finishing my Wardrobe Essentials series made me think utilizing what I have, as well as about doing a little bit of closet cleaning. This can be a daunting, but necessary task.  Once you begin to add some essential pieces to your wardrobe, it probably means you'll need to eliminate some other pieces. Today I thought I'd share some tips on for how to best utilize your closest, as well as how to determine if it's time to let a piece of clothing go.



Rotate Your Clothes- I have my closet divided into types: tanks, short sleeve, long sleeve, cardigans, sweaters, and blazers are on the top bar, then, I have skirts, jeans, and dress pants down below.  I also have a separate bar for dresses.

I organize my sweaters, cardigans, and blazers by color, and pull out these layering pieces as needed. I also pull out jeans and dress pants as needed too. I know a lot of people like organize their whole closet by color, but I organize everything else in my closet differently.  Once I have washed and ironed a piece, I put it in the back of that type of shirt/skirt/dress, and don't let myself wear it again until it rotates toward the front.  This forces me to think about wearing different pieces, and if I really don't want to wear what's in front of that section, I probably need to donate it. *If there's an outfit I really want to wear, I break this rule, but in generally I try to follow it. It keeps me from wanting to wear the same five pieces all the time.

Make Everything Easily Accessible- if I can't see it, I won't wear it. For that reason I went to Target and found a inexpensive tie hanger which I use to display my belts and scarves. Here's the hanger I got, and it makes displaying them easy.

The same thing goes for jewelry, I have a tray for my bracelets and  a rack I'm able to hang my necklaces from too. I have a traditional jewelry box for my diamond pendents, etc, but find if I can't see my jewelry easily, I'll forget I have it and won't wear it.

Have A Space For Planned Outfits- If I don't think about outfits ahead of time I end up wearing my "teacher uniform," i.e. dress pants, a blouse, and a cardigan.  Now, there's nothing wrong with it, but it gets boring fast!  Take some time on the weekends to think about what you'd like to wear ahead of time and try the outfits on.  I option see things on Pinterest I want to wear too, I set those pieces aside right away, so I remember it's an outfit I want to try. Planning ahead is essential to feeling great in your clothes each day.

Separate Clothes By Season- When we built our house we added a third bar above in our closet.  I move everything that is out of season up to the third bar (using a ladder, it's pretty high up), so that it doesn't take up unnecessary space when I won't wear it.  The second it starts to warm up my sweaters and dress pants make the move up and it just makes seeing what I have so much easier. The same thing goes for shorts and summery tanks, they go up once fall hits, as I won't wear them all winter.  I know this isn't an option for everyone, but maybe you have a hall closet or kid's room with some extra space, think about storing out of season pieces there.

Flip Your Hangers Around- The idea is that at the start of the season you start your hangers with the hook facing out, instead of in. Then, as you wear something you put it back with the hanger facing the correct way.  At the end of the season the pieces that still have the hangers facing the wrong way are the pieces that need to be donated. I love this idea, and also think it makes you think about wearing more pieces in your closet too.

Source

Try Everything On- This summer as I was getting ready for school to start I got my dress pants out, as they were put away for the summer. I took one afternoon and tried them all on again.....then looked at them from all angles. Yikes. What I found was, most were too big through the thighs or a style I no longer liked. I think I had about 15 pair of capris and cropped pants, all of which hit in the worst place (mid calf). These were definitely a popular trend for nearly a decade, but that decade is over. They needed to go.  What I didn't realize before blogging was how I looked in clothes, I know, that sounds so silly, right? I'm pretty averaged sized, but if I'm wearing a piece that's unstructured or too big it just makes me look bigger. I believe this is true for all of us. Not sure about a piece, take a quick selfie in the mirror and that will give you a better idea if the piece is flattering on you or not.

If It Doesn't Fit, It Needs To Go- Seriously. I think we've determined that if it's too big, it just makes you look bigger, the same things goes if the piece is too small. The piece of clothing might be great, but if doesn't fit, it's taking up valuable room in your closet and distracting you from other good pieces you have to wear.  Let someone else enjoy it!

If You're Not Sure If It's In Style, It's Probably Not- Think about the people you consider fashionable, have you seen them wear a similar piece? This advise is from my blogging friend Lauren.  I think it's such a great way to think about it. Also, do you see similar pieces pinned on Pinterest? If the answer is no to either of these questions it's probably time to let the piece go. It's true that pieces will eventually come back into style, but their is usually something that will be different from the first time around. Don't hold onto a piece hoping it will be cool again. Trust me, I held onto a pair of capri overalls for nearly a decade. Even if they did come back into style I am not the same size as I was at 20, therefore they needed to go.

Stains, Tears, and Pilling...Just Let These Pieces Go- I've been there, it's your favorite shirt/sweater/dress but the quickest way to look classless is so wear worn out clothes. I like to wash pieces inside out to try to increase their longevity, but once they quit looking nice, into the garbage they go...no one at Goodwill will want them either.

End of Season=Time to Sell or Donate- if you've gone through a season without wearing something, it's probably realistic that you won't wear it next season either. It's a good idea to sell pieces in like-new condition on outlets like eBay to get the most bang for your buck, but places like Plato's Closet are a great options too. I take my pieces there, then whatever they don't buy gets donated on the way home.

Host A Clothing Swap- Get together a group of girlfriends or coworkers and set up your living room like a clothing store. Give friend an opportunity to drop pieces off, get it organized, then have a Friday night open house to shop and have girl time. I've participated in this and it's a blast. My church hosts an annual clothing swap too, if you attend church talk to your pastor to women's pastor about getting this organized too. Here are some great tips for a successful clothing swap.

Getting dressed each day should be fun, if you know how to utilize your closet, it can help to make you look your best each day!