10 Quick Questions to an Organized Closet
10 Quick Questions to an Organized Closet
Want an organized closet? Ask yourself these 10 questions to get the most out of your storage space.
- Have I worn this in the last year?
- Does it fit?
- Does it need altering?
- Is it ripped?
- Does it have spots?
- Is it in style?
- Is it good quality?
- Do I have more of this same item?
- Do I like it?
- Can someone else use it more than me?
Easy enough right? These seem like simple questions but get in there and start doing the work and we all get bogged down and start to second guess ourselves.
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In order to get what you want (an organized closet!), you need to take ‘yourself’ out of the equation. Write these questions down and hang them up in (or near) the closet you want to organize and ask each question about each piece of clothing. Some pieces of clothing will be an easy decision.
You don’t like it.
It won’t fit.
You’ll have too many of the same type of thing (maybe plaid shirts!?)
If you hesitate with items, put them in a separate pile and reevaluate those items at a later date – like a month from now. You may feel differently about these items after you’ve had some time away from them and after you have been enjoying your newly decluttered closet.
Is it time to clean out your closet? Go ahead and ask yourself the 10 Quick Questions to an Organized Closet
I’ve been slowly moving towards adopting a capsule wardrobe (learn more at un-fancy.com). I think this is a way to start narrowing down what you own. I don’t know if I will ever get to the basic wardrobe that Caroline subscribes to.
For more inspiration read, How To Keep Your Wardrobe Clean & Organized at The Organizing Boutique.
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Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
I used to keep clothes with rips or stains if they were just to wear around home, but I’ve since realized that feeling like a slob is bad for my self-esteem. I still keep the odd piece if it’s only worn under something else, but I’m much better at replacing those if necessary than I used to be.
I like to change into comfortable clothes when I get home from work, but it’s always something nice enough to answer the door in. I agree, wearing clothing in disrepair makes me feel sloppy.
Closets are my favorite room to declutter – I’m working toward a capsule wardrobe…it’s made getting ready in the morning quicker and without the “what am I going to wear?????” drama 🙂
Donna, I am also working towards a capsule wardrobe, but more out of necessity. I moved into the guest room during my master bath reno and I have a 3 foot wide closet for clothes. So I gathered only my favorites to hang. I’m working through it now. One thing that helps is that I wear a uniform while working.
I like Janet’s comment. I do have one pair of shorts and a t-shirt that I wear for painting, but if I wouldn’t wear them out, I pretty much have chosen to not wear them “in” either. My poor husband deserves to see me looking nice too, right? I also ask, “Do you like how you feel when you wear this?” We should feel confident in our clothes.
Seana, my husband need to learn this lesson. He saves A LOT of old clothing for YARD WORK. I always ask him how much yard work is he planning on doing. He see a lot of value in worn out clothing.
This is perfect timing. I am planning to work on my own clothing with spring coming Yay!! Also, I am doing a theme on Decluttering Clothing in my Facebook Group. It just started today. I will share your post there as well
Thank you Janet
Thanks for sharing the post Kim. I mention in another comment that I’m working on my clothing as well. It’s an on going project.
I too, like to reduce the number of clothes in my closet. Seasonally, I replace old clothes and worn-out ones at the end of each season. Then, when the season comes again, I get to see all the newer clothes. Plus, if you buy at the end of the season, you save a tremendous amount of money. It’s a win-win.
As we are nearing the end of winter, I’m looking at my clothing and seeing what I didn’t wear or what I wore only once. It’s time to let those things go, so I have space for the warm weather clothing!