Learning how to clean out your closet just got easier than ever! In this post, I lay out the step by step process for cleaning out your closet without getting overwhelmed.

Why I Cleaned Out My Closet

If you’re like most people I know, you have more clothes than you wear and a lot of clothes you don’t even like. I have so many clothes, I don’t come across half of them until I actually go through everything before a move. The quantity isn’t even the main issue. It’s the practice of not being mindful with my wardrobe.

When you get in the habit of following trends, mindless shopping and not cleaning out when necessary, you’ve officially not been mindful with your wardrobe. Trust me, I would know.

You end up wasting tons of money and having less space and an even less accessible wardrobe than before. In my case, I dealt with all these things, in addition to a cluttered mind. When I have clothes lying everywhere, can’t find an unused hanger and STILL think “I have nothing to wear”, I know something’s not right. My wardrobe has officially brought stress into my life and I want it to bring joy into my life.

Learn From the Best

I moved 3 months ago and I figured it was the perfect time to finally go through everything. I wanted to be mindful with my closet moving forward and live my minimalist dream!

I started by googling “minimalism for beginners” and came across this amazing (simple!) little blog called BeMorewithLess.com! The author, Courtney Carver, has this practical article on “How to Finally Clean out Your Closet for Good.” I decided to make it a challenge and did it right when I got home from work!

Step one in cleaning my closet: put everything on the bed. EVERYTHING

How to Clean Out Your Closet

The process laid out in the article on Be More with Less is simple:

Step 1: Make a Giant Pile

Take every piece of clothing you own and make a big pile on your bed. Yes, this means every single item of clothing, including shoes, coats, socks, underwear, etc. You can bring jewelry into the mix as well if you’re up for it!

Step 2: Sort the Clothes

Go through each item in the pile and sort into 4 different piles until you have nothing left on the bed. The piles are:

LOVE – clothing you wear often and fits you well

MAYBE – keep just because but don’t necessarily know why or wear often

DONATE – Courtney Carver describes this pile perfectly as, “These clothes don’t fit my body or my life.”

TRASH – You know what items belong in this pile. These clothes are the ones you haven’t gotten rid of but you rarely wear because of their poor condition and know are not even worth donating. Repurpose if you can or chuck ’em!

The Hardest Part of Going Through Your Closet

First of all, doing things like going through my entire closet and getting rid of clothes gives me a huge rush, but it can also be frustrating and challenging. With this particular challenge, it was the “maybe” pile for me.

The other 3 piles were easy, but the maybe pile grew and grew! The majority of the clothes were in perfect condition and I loved them, I just never wore them!

Once I put the “love” pile all back in my closet and the donate and trash piles in bags, I went through the maybe pile one last time and asked myself “If this disappeared from my closet, would I notice?” and everything that was a no (which was most) I got rid of.

I made sure to have my sister and friends go through the pile before I actually got rid of all of it, but I felt so proud of myself and much more clear headed!

The End Result

There are clothes I truly love but never wear and I’ve never been able to get rid of them. However, after this challenge, I managed to get rid of them by giving them to friends I know will love and wear them. That way I have joy knowing the clothes are being loved and worn, not collecting dust in my closet.

Plus, I get to see them still on my friends, which makes me even happier! Once you clean your closet and can actually see everything in your wardrobe, you have more options and hopefully an easier choice to make each morning when you get dressed.

Have you ever decided to go through your entire wardrobe? Do you have any tricks for getting rid of things you don’t need or use? I want to hear all of it! In the comment section below or in my email!