Is It Time To Reboot Your Wardrobe?

Are you always wearing the same clothes? 

Have clothes fallen off hangers at the bottom of the wardrobe?

Can you not wear that blouse you like because there is a button missing?

Are there items in there you haven’t worn for ages?  

If you can relate to some of these then maybe it’s time to make a change?

Does that item you bought in the sale still have the label on?

As we are moving towards the summer holiday season and the weather is now improving (hopefully!), it could be that moment to spend some time on the clothes in your wardrobe and drawers and make it work better for you. Changing your clothes around with the seasons and only having items out that you require now, makes selection simpler, quicker, and more enjoyable. Ultimately making your life easier.

If this is a task you have not undertaken before, starting one drawer or cupboard at a time makes it far less daunting and easier to manage and achieve.

A way that works for me is to take the clothes out and set them out on the bed or hang them on a freestanding rail (if you have one) and work through them item by item, looking at each item carefully. For each item ask yourself:

• When did I last wear this?
• Have I ever worn it?
• Does it still fit?
• Do I still like it?
• Does it need repairing?

For items you do not want to keep consider perhaps donating them to charity or maybe even selling them – so sort into three categories:

• Donate
• Discard
• Sell

Having bags out ready to place the ‘not to keep’ items in, as decisions are made, saves time.

Before replacing the clothing you wish to keep, it is good to dust and wipe down the interior of the wardrobe, the rails & shelves or drawers.

Hanging your clothing back in the wardrobe could be in type order – that is ¾ sleeve shirts, short sleeved shirts and sleeveless etc. Or maybe you prefer colour order, or even a combination of both! 

Adding storage to your wardrobe inside or on top could be a good way to keep smaller items organised and easily accessible. It also utilises that spare space and looks better too.  You may already have storage items you can use or if you need to buy new ones make sure you have measured the space first.

So next time you open a wardrobe door or pull open a drawer, consider whether it’s time to reorganise, reduce the number of unused or unusable items and think of how much better you could feel having well organised and accessible clothes for you and the benefits given to others by your donations.

How to retain memories decluttering sentimental items

Recently, as I have been unable to work in client’s homes, I have been busy in my own home.  I have moved a few times in the past, included in that is an international move. So, I have become used to decluttering and organizing areas at home regularly. 

My decluttering process involves collecting items from around the house, from under beds, or on top of wardrobes, and bringing them together in one area so that I can begin to deal with them. I then ask myself questions such as “When did I last use this?” “What would I wear this with?” or “Do I want to keep this?”

 If the answer is that I’m not using or wearing them, I put them to one side to donate or recycle those items. 

However, some items I remove from my cupboards or drawers and then put those items back even though I don’t use them and haven’t done so for some time, and this is the topic I want to discuss further. 

An example of such an item was a birthday gift of four beautiful floral patterned mugs given to me by a friend who sadly passed away some time ago. I had never used these mugs, and when I have tidied the cupboard they are stored in, I always put them back without thinking. I was emotionally attached to these items, but I realized I could still remember my lovely friend without the mugs being in the cupboard. It was time to let them go and, if I could find a good home for them and let someone else enjoy them, then I could be happy. So I wrapped them up carefully and posted them off to my mother, who I knew needed some new mugs and would appreciate them.

When decluttering sentimental items, there are various options to ensure we can remove the items while preserving the memories they bring. First, sort the items into categories such as photographs, pictures, personal items, or clothes that remind you of a special occasion, to enable you to consider the next steps. For small items that we wish to keep, think about creating a memory box. For children’s artwork, consider creating a collage, framing it and finding a place on a wall to hang it. For clothes, maybe take a photograph of the item, or if it fits, try it one last time!

Of course, the decision to declutter items of great sentimental value needs to be taken with care, and its not always the right decision to give them away, but by adopting good strategies such as the ones I described here, you can preserve memories AND gain pleasure from the extra space you have created.

And for me, going through this process has enabled me to let go of things I have held onto for a long time and move on while adding to the memories I have of my dear friend.