Five Easy Steps
It’s that time ladies! You want to know why? Spring is here! Also due to unfortunate events of the Coronavirus, this is a perfect time, since we are all shut indoors with nothing to do. Use this time positively and while we have time. This status of our everyday lives won’t last like this forever so get some cleaning done while you can.
Spring is just around the corner for those of us living in four-season climates like me, and you might be feeling the pressure to start to think about organizing your closet for your spring/summer wardrobe. The nice thing is if you start to gradually clean out your closet now, it will be way easier for you to make the transition from winter clothes to spring clothes when the warmer weather arrives. You can also start to think about the essential items that you will need in your closet ready to go for spring. I admit I found a few items I did not wear this winter nor even last winter. With my new mindset of wanting to be a minimalist and not be wasteful I am feeling more confident in getting rid of those items that really, lets face it, don’t belong to me!
This is a great time to start to review and think about your spring capsule by adding or building if you have not already done so. My post on “Building your spring capsule”, will be coming soon, but basically these are the 10-20 items that go well together in the color choices that are your colors along with your essential 10 items every woman needs in her closet. I have already made one important decision for myself: I decided that I need to add a timeless simple navy blazer that is light-weight, comfortable but warm to wear through spring, summer and fall. I am personally not a fan of black blazers because black is not a great color for me. Now that I already know this in my head I can start shopping. I might actually design and sew it for myself! But if you are not a designer/sewer, the spring fashions are already online and in stores. You can start to have a look at the styles, the color options and the specific items you need to add to your “must have items”.
Step 1: Start Now
Today is a perfect day to do this. If not, I suggest that you have a look at your calendar and pencil a date in. Otherwise if you are like me it won’t get done. You will want to give yourself a good two hours to do this right. Grab some garbage bags for items you want to throw out and other bags/boxes/hangers that you will use to take to consignment or donate.
Stand and face your closet and take a couple of deep breathes. Start with hanging items – tops, sweaters, then pants. Then go to the drawers or folded items on those shelves.
Step 2: Review each piece and decide
Make space on your bed or table top for three piles. For each item decide if it will go in one of three categories and lay them in one of these piles;
Throw out: These are clothes that you do not wear and that you are not able to save with alterations or mending. They are not in good enough shape to even give away.
Keep for next winter: These are your items that you still love and have been wearing consistently. In this pile you will also have your items that you want to keep but need to alter or mend.
Give away or sell: These are items that you have decided don’t fit you well anymore, you did not wear them this winter or even last winter, you have decided the color is all wrong, or you simply just don’t want it anymore.
Step 3: Accessories and shoes
You are almost there! Now it’s time to go through all your accessories. You will have to decide what to hang on to based on the clothing items you decided to keep. Same for your shoes – Make sure the shoes you decide to keep will go with the clothes that you have kept, otherwise you will have to consider purchasing new items to go with those shoes you just don’t want to let go!
Step 4: Tidy up and get ready for Spring
For the pile of clothes you know are not in any state to give away, pack them up and take to donation center or garbage. I hate to say take to the garbage but there really is no other option. Unless you have a friend that can recycle your clothing items there is really no other option.
For the pile you plan to give away to maybe a family member or friend or a donation center make sure you wash and clean your items, place in your bags, tag them and move them out if you can. If you can not right now then its best to set aside in your house so you can do this at a later date. If it is an expensive item, decide whether you want to spend extra time considering consignment, Facebook buy/sell groups, or other ways to sell used clothing. If it is inexpensive or you don’t want to go through the hassle of selling items, you have a few options on how to give them away, including Goodwill, Salvation Army, Value Village or other stores that take donations of used clothing, but please first consider donating them to your local women’s shelter or other local charities.
For the pile you plan to keep, decide if you have to leave them in your closet or whether there is another space that you can store them to make room for your spring wardrobe. I usually place all my off season clothes in bins that I purchased from IKEA and placed on my top shelves out of the way. I am also lucky to have a spare room closet to hang my off-season dresses and coats. I do not like to have clutter in my main closet – this makes it easier when you are trying to decide what to wear each day, and I would suggest you do this if you can.
Step 5: Make a list of new Spring items
This is the fun part! Have a careful look at all of the items that you have chosen can stay. Try to pair items together to see what goes together and how many outfits you can make. Don’t forget to pair the shoes also! I usually start with a pair of pants and then see how many tops match with my pants and what shoes will go with them.
Once you have completed the above you can now see which are your top 10 wardrobe-essential items to keep ready for spring. Ok maybe a few more, but not more than 20! These are your essential items that you can wear for all seasons. Those of us living in 4 season climates, I believe will have less items that we can carry over from one season to the next compared to those in warmer climates. Do you have what you need? If not add those items to your shopping list for essential items to purchase. Next add to your list the items you feel you need to purchase for this spring. I always like to review the Pantone color palette for this particular spring/summer to see if there are some colors that are perfect for me and what I might want to add to my wardrobe. You can look this up easily by going to https://www.pantone.com/color-intelligence/fashion-color-trend-report/fashion-color-trend-report-new-york-spring-summer-2020. I also like to review spring fashions to see what are the trends for this season. I take this with a grain of salt, as I am personally not one to go for the far-out different styles knowing that they will go out of style. I do like to add a bit of flare and detail to spice up my wardrobe but it has to be something that I know will last the passage of time.
Coming soon: I am currently putting together a post to show you what’s in for spring 2020 in terms of styles and colors. Sneak peak: I am excited to see ruffles, layers, jewel colors and styles that support function. What more can fashionable ladies of 2020 ask for? Be sure to share with me below how your closet cleansing went.
