Clean out the wardrobe
Separation anxiety? This method frees you from too much clothing
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Anyone who wants to clear out their closet inevitably asks themselves the question: What should I keep? You can find out here how best to proceed and what tidying expert Marie Kondo advises. And for the future, we’ll reveal how you can avoid bad purchases.
Work, family, friends, sports, hobbies, shopping and appointments of various kinds keep us busy every day – and then we want to have a nice time at home too. In order to get all of this and the household under one roof, we need the perfect cleaning schedule! However, one point that tends to get lost in everyday life is ours Wardrobe. We take out our favorite pieces, some pieces are lying around used, others become closet keepers and clutter up our storage space. That doesn’t exactly make us feel good, does it?
So if you’re in the mood for a clothing diet, these are the ones below Tips exactly the right thing for you. We’ll show you how to distinguish the good pieces from the dead weight.
Clean out your wardrobe: when and how?
Yours Wardrobe Of course you can at any time clear out. If you can’t motivate yourself, it helps to set a time.
The beginning of the year is a good time for this, when you’re in restart mode anyway, spring cleaning or the meteorological and therefore textile season change. So when you put your winter things away and take out your spring pieces, etc.
We have had this at least since Marie Kondo’s “Konmari method”. perfect basic frameworkto clean out your home thoroughly and efficiently. Her three basic rules ring:
- Clear out by category
- Take everything into your own hands
- A fixed place for everything
In our case this means: The category is clothing, to sort it out we take everything in our hands (see next section) and at the end we sort everything neatly into our wardrobe.
When it comes to cleaning out your closet, you should come up with one Keep time slots freeDepending on the quantity, this can take several hours. It is helpful if you do this in advance Organize moving boxes, boxes or large carrier bagsto become the master (or woman) of your mountain of clothes. And it beginns …
Go or stay? Clearing out in 5 steps
- Make space for your cleanup in a room and set up 5 stacks: Keep, throw away, donate/give away, sell, upcycle. Use the boxes for this so that nothing flies around.
- Well get everything out of the closet, drawers and hanger. Yes everything.
- Spread out the clothesfor example on the floor, bed, etc.
- Now comes the most important step: Take every single piece in your hand and think about whether you really want to keep it. Also try on clothes and check your look (and your feelings about it) in the mirror.
- Sort the things according to the stacks or boxes.
Sounds easy, right? Unfortunately, breakups are never easy and clothes can somehow grow on us. And so we sometimes find it difficult to part with things, be it because we associate memories with them, because we paid a lot of money for them, or because they were a gift. This leads to us storing too many items that are lying around unused or unworn.
Kondo advises asking yourself the following question: Does it make me happy? The answer is no? Then get rid of it! If a part gets a no when asked about happiness and you still hesitate to sort it out, the expert recommends: to thank the piece and then let it go.
The 7 questions for your separation interview:
- Does it make me happy?
- What feelings does the item of clothing make me feel (when I wear it)?
- Have I worn it in the last twelve months?
- Is there something similar in my closet that I wear often?
- Will I wear the piece in a timely manner (for a specific occasion)?
- Do I just keep the item because I paid a lot of money for it or I got it as a gift?
- Does this still suit me and my style?
Tip: Do you find it extremely difficult to sort out clothes? Then you have two options: Postpone your decluttering until another day when you feel better able to do it. Or set up another box for a temporary separation. That’s where I-can’t-somehow-part-myself pieces go and you store them somewhere good. The deal: If you don’t miss or need them for three months, they’ll come away.
Textile ballast: How do I get rid of it?
You have one of your favorite pieces in your hand and you immediately know that you want to keep it. With other items of clothing it may be more difficult. You should sort something out if it…:
- … broken and cannot be repaired
- …you, simply and simply I don’t like it (anymore).
- … you like it and it’s still in good condition but know you won’t wear it or wear it very rarely
- … it in the has not been worn in the last twelve months
There are also exceptions:
- A chic evening dress, for example, that you don’t wear often, but do it again and againof course goes on the keep pile!
- Clothes you liked to wear But if you no longer fit, you can sew them around, by yourself or by a tailor. However, if that’s too much effort for you or too much money for such clothes: sort it out.
- If it’s just the color that you no longer like, you can dye or batik the fabrics yourself (for example with Shibori).
This is what you do with the pieces you have sorted out
- Expensive or currently trendy pieces could improve your household budget and end up in the sell pile. Offline flea markets and/or online portals are suitable for this.
- On the The other closet keepers, who are still in good shape, go into the donation/gift pile, but not carried by you. Maybe you’ve ever noticed that a friend secretly kept an eye on the sequined skirt you once wore? Clothing stores are also happy to accept items of clothing that are in good condition.
- Clothes that are broken and not in good condition are sorted out in garbage bags and placed in the residual waste bin. Or you can use the old clothes from your closet for upcycling. Inspirations: Making your own textile yarn, upcycling ideas for clothing, using leftover fabric.
Last but not least, you can put the keep box back in the closet – we’ll help you organize your closet.
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Avoiding bad purchases: 9 practical tips
What makes clearing out your closet easier or even unnecessary is avoiding bad purchases. This saves you money on your closet and your wallet!
- take time: Take enough time to shop! If you feel like you have to do it quickly, this time pressure is more likely to tempt you to buy something that you would leave behind if you had a moment more peace and quiet.
- Stay relaxed during discount campaigns: Speaking of pressure… No matter whether an online shop counts down the unique sale that is only valid now with a countdown or red tempting price tags in retail encourage you to buy now: Don’t let yourself be put under pressure. Think about it: Would you buy these clothes at regular price? How does it fit when you try it on or do you think the item of clothing online is the right color for you? The next sale is definitely coming!
- No concessions on fit and cut : It’s a bit too tight, but you like it that much? Do you actually think that a V-neck doesn’t suit you, but it’s so cheap? The old clothes status is already programmed.
- Don’t buy into every hype: Trends come and go – especially in the fast fashion world. Sometimes we like the trendy fashion, but it doesn’t really suit us. Stay true to your style and your gut feeling, you probably won’t wear this trendy item more than once and you’ll be throwing money out the window.
- Take uncertainty seriously: You want it, but you’re somehow unsure. Question why you want this particular item of clothing now: Because it’s cheap (see point 2)? Because you really like it, but it’s too expensive for you (If you are sure that you will wear it often and for a very long time: go for it!)? Because everyone has it (see point 4)? Because you already have so much (you can sort out something else for it)?
- Consider outfit combinations: Do you have a potential favorite item in your hand and you can immediately think of different looks with your current wardrobe? Perfect. Otherwise, it’s better to steer clear.
- Create a Wishlist: We like to be seduced into a buying frenzy, especially online. Create a wish list, many shops offer something like this anyway, alternatively you can create it by hand or on your laptop. Leave the items on your wish list for two to three days, then if you still want them, order them.
- Buy quality: It’s not for nothing that they say “If you buy cheap, you buy twice”. Pay attention to high-quality materials and equally high-quality workmanship (because not everything that is expensive is also of high quality!). Of course, you may find a Merino sweater scratchy, but you can definitely still sell it for good money. With a cheap blouse where the seams are already coming apart, things look different again.
- The potential for a bad purchase is already at home: In this case, the 3-7-14 rule will help you. This works very easily: The clothes have been bought and have been lying around untouched for three days? It was probably a bad purchase. Because we are usually so pleased with a new piece that we want to wash it and wear it straight away. Still not worn after seven days? It’s best to return it within 14 days of purchase – the likelihood of you wearing it is no longer high. As a rule, you can easily return unworn clothing within two weeks (even longer in certain online shops).
Also worth reading: Here we show how you can store worn clothes, what you should pay attention to in a dressing room and the best way to decorate a shelf. You can also find your favorite furnishing ideas here Pinterest collect!