Springtime Declutter

Do you have too many clothes?

It’s that time of year when it is a great idea to declutter your wardrobe. Are you feeling overwhelmed when you open your wardrobe doors or can are you wearing the same few things again on repeat and finding your other times tricky to put together into a new look? 

Decluttering can reveal a whole new lease of life for clothes you already own. But before you dive in there and immerse yourself in the memories certain outfits will bring, take 10 minutes to assess your wardrobe needs in these three steps. They will help you decide what’s a keeper and what items are now destined for a new home, hopefully via the charity shop, e bay or one of the many resale sites such as Vestaire. If they really have expired their use get them to a textile recycling point rather than throwing in the bin as there is a mountain of clothes already in landfill.

1. What do you want your clothes to say about You?

We recommend that you start by writing down what you want your style to say about you before you start getting ruthless with your wardrobe detox.

Think about the major different aspects of your life and who you are in those roles. What sort of clothes would your ideal version of you wear?

The role your clothes play may well be different for various parts of your life and we women need to be chameleons; changing our spots to suit the occasion, which is perfectly OK, and half the fun! So keep the themes general but do give them some thought.

2. How do you spend the majority of your time?

Do you have clothes that are proportional to your lifestyle? Or are you guilty of having a wardrobe full of pretty eye-catching pieces that you pack for your holiday but never wear at any other time? Or do you only have tired mum clothes that you just don’t know how to get excited about?

Write down roughly how much of your week you spend working, at home, socialising, sport/exercise, with kids, spouse/friends and any other main activities you pack into your average week.

Now ask yourself do your clothes match these proportions?

3. Getting real.

This is the hard one. But it is also a very liberating one.

Harbouring clothes that are a memory of a dress size that is unattainable in a season is a painful negative every time you look in your wardrobe. We don’t recommend you get rid of these clothes unless you are sure you won't wear them again, but store them away and focus on clothes you can feel great in now. That way when you browse your wardrobe for ideas it is a positive experience each time and your focus is on enhancing the body you have now.

Just because you haven’t worn something for two seasons or even two years doesn’t necessarily mean that it isn’t right for you. Simply, that you may not know how to wear it, (yet) or what to wear with it to make it right for you. That’s my job! 

But if your lifestyle has had a major shift and some items of clothing in your wardrobe have negative memories or associations I say it is time for someone else to have the chance to be happy wearing them. Do you keep chipped or broken china in your cupboards? So don’t keep clothes that have metaphoric bruises or chips in them either. Only wear clothes that make your soul sing which everyone can achieve, with a little know how.

You can have a declutter blitz, but you will do so much more sustainable and mindfully once you know what you want from your style. 10 minutes of planning in advance will see you through a season of happy clothes and ever closer to that wonderful capsule wardrobe you've have always dreamt of.