How many times have you thought to yourself: well, even if I don’t wear it now, maybe I will want to in the future?
Or:
This is such a cute shirt, but I never wear it… but maybe I will next month?
I surely shouldn’t sell it or give it away, it fits great…
EEH 🚩
If it isn’t serving you now and probably will not next season, you’d have to CHANGE YOURSELF for a piece of clothing to fit YOU – Why bother? This is why it is important to declutter your closet every once in a while.
Clothes should fit our bodies and not the other way around.
In this blog post, I’ll explain to you how to declutter your closet and use my free Notion Wardrobe Template to keep track of your clothes and accessories.
I have struggled with the mentality that I can’t get rid of things that I bought or was gifted out of pure guilt that I have wasted my money or will offend someone I love for years.
There is no shame in admitting that some clothing pieces don’t serve you, your style and your body anymore!
This is why I want to share with you 6 easy steps, on how to tackle the monster in the room – your stuff.
After implementing this strategy you will:
- Gain an overview of how many pieces you have in your closet. Next time you want to buy something you can look up on your phone how many black leggings you already have.
- Have a LOT more space in your closet: No more going through piles of clothes and creating a mess every time
- A clear idea of what your style is and which pieces you enjoy wearing
- Bonus: get some extra 💲
1. It’s the final countdown ✍️
How many pieces of clothing do you actually have?
This can seem a bit tedious to answer, because (and hear me out first!) you’ll have to count ALL of your T-Shirts, Dresses, Pants, Skirts, Sweaters etc. I know, this may sound mad, however: how many clothing pieces do you really need?
To see how many items you really wear and use, you need to count them and write them down.
Don’t worry, I’ve created a free Notion template for you, to make this process easier. Duplicate it to your Notion workspace and get started!
You can turn on your favourite audiobook or playlist to help motivate yourself. The feeling of success and relief after you’ve listed everything is incomparable!
2. Write down each item and categorise it
Do you have 10 similar black T-Shirts and you only wear one? How will you be able to decide which ones to keep if they all fit “good enough”?
I created a foolproof system to decide what doesn’t serve you anymore.
There are 2 columns for this that you can fill out in the template above: “Love it?” and “Fit”.
In the “Love it?” column, you can choose on a scale from “No” -> “Definitely”.
In the “Fit” column choose from “No” -> “Great”.
Bonus: Do you see the 3 columns with the following emojis: 😢, 🍕, 👑 ?
Here is what they mean:
😢 – the clothing item needs to get repaired because it has holes, or the sole of your favourite shoe is worn down, or there is a button missing. I’m sure you get the point.
🍕 – the pizza emoji stands for casual clothing. Maybe it’s your pyjamas or just something that is very comfortable, but you wouldn’t wear it to a concert or a night out.
👑 – the crown emoji stands for – you got it – fancy clothing. These are the items you probably don’t wear that often: unless you are a performer or have many events to attend. The amount of “fancy” clothes will depend on your lifestyle. Do you go out often? Then you probably need more presentable clothing than someone who works from home all week or goes to concerts or events on the daily.
Especially these last two categories will come in handy, after you’ve categorised everything. Why?
You’ll be able to see how many fancy & casual items you have and can ask yourself if these numbers truly reflect your lifestyle. If you work from home, but the majority of your clothes are fancy but scratchy blouses that you rarely wear, maybe you should rethink your closet and invest in some comfortable-yet-presentable clothes.
3. Which items do you love and which ones fit your body? Aka the “❤️” category.
After writing and categorising all items, you’ll have some, that are marked with Fit -> “Great” and Love it -> “Definitely”. These are the items you should 100% keep, and that you’ll find in the ❤️-view. There is a counter saying how many of these you have in the bottom of the list.
I’m sure you won’t be too mindblown to find out that there are not that many items that fit you perfectly and that you love. At least, compared to the rest of the items that you aren’t sure about.
I had around 50 items in the ❤️ -view, and 180 items that I wasn’t very sure about. Either I didn’t love them or they didn’t fit great. This was truly eye opening to me and I’m sure it will be for you, too.
4. The items that are not in the definitely keep view.
This is a tough one. What if you have 200 items of clothing that don’t fit properly and that you don’t love. Do you get rid of them? But they are of good quality or maybe even a gift from a special someone…
5. Thank the items you are giving away for serving you well.
Yes, do Marie Condo this sh’t.😅
Take a picture of you wearing that sweater with 20 holes that you used to wear in High School. And then move on. Why? Because it’s a piece of clothing. If you want to remember it, take a picture and look at it every once in a while. It will do the same thing for you.
6. The good part
After sorting out the clothes that won’t serve you anymore into a big pile, I suggest sorting out some of these items into a separate pile with clothes you wish to sell. Maybe these items were expensive and almost never worn, or you bought them at a second hand shop and they are really unique. Either way you can give it a shot!
A website I recommend for this is Vinted, and I have had a few easy sales on there myself. The rest of the clothes can be donated to your local second hand shop or a charity.
Get the Declutter Notion Template here:
Did you like this post? Check out my blog for more on student life and learning to organize the mess that is life. More Notion content is coming soon as well!
Have more questions? Send me an Email or a message, I’m here to help and answer your questions because I’ve been there! Follow me on Instagram to see more content like this!
