The Clean Closet Guide

As we near the end of summer, now is the perfect time to clean out your closet. I generally like to clean out my closet at the end of each season but it’s a good rule of thumb to clean out your closet 2-3 times a year.

Since I am a fashion blogger, I need to clean out my closet regularly and have developed a system to make the process efficient, easy, and painless. I know cleaning out your closet can seem like a daunting task but you will love your closet so much more when you are finished!

Cleaning out your closet allows you to:

1. Get rid of items you don’t wear to make it easier for you to see the items you love
2. Help you rediscover items you forgot you had
3. Help you earn a little extra cash if you decide to sell your clothes at Plato’s Closet or my personal favorite, Poshmark.

I’ve broken down the process into four easy steps:

1. First, go through every single piece of clothing in your closet and sort clothes into “keep” “donate” and “sell” piles. The “keep” pile will go back into your closet. The “donate” pile will be taken to Goodwill. The “sell” pile can be sold at Plato’s Closet, Thread Up, or Poshmark. When looking at an item and deciding which pile to put it in, think about:

1. Have I worn this in the last year?
2. Can I see myself wearing this?

Don’t try and make excuses for your clothes. If you can only see yourself wearing something to a very specific event (for example, I kept a pair of cowboy boots for years because “what if I get invited to a country themed party?”) No. Toss them.

Repeat the above process with your shoes and accessories (jewelry, belts, scarves, hats)

2. Once you’ve made your three piles of clothing, shoes and accessories, bag up the items you are going to donate and put them next to the door or in your car to drop off at Goodwill next time you go out.

3. Organize your “sell pile”. There are a few different ways you can sell your used clothes:

1. Plato’s Closet – If you are planning on selling your items at Plato’s closet, put them in a bag and bring them to your closest Plato’s closet. You can bring whatever they don’t buy from you and drop it off at Goodwill with your donation pile.
2. Poshmark – This is how I personally sell my clothes. When I get my “sell pile”, I take pictures of each item and post it on my Poshmark account. I then pack it into a bin or box and place it on a shelf in my closet so it’s not creating clutter. This is the slowest way to sell your clothes, but you get the most return from this method.
3. Thred Up – I have not used this app but it is basically an app that acts as an online Plato’s Closet. They send you a bag that you fill with items you want to sell and send it back. They take what they want and send you a check for those items and donate the rest of your items. I have a lot of friends who use this method since it takes care of the donation part for you!

(There are many different ways to sell your used clothing but the three listed above are my favorites and options I think are easiest)

4. Finally, reorganize your “keep pile”. All you have left to do is put those items back in your closet. It pays off to be very intentional about HOW you put your clothes back into your closet. Here are my tips:

1. Organize by type – organize your tanks, your t-shirts, dresses, jeans, etc. into different areas of your closet.
2. Organize by color – this sounds a little OCD but it will be so much easier to find things when your clothing is organized by color (within the type). So you would have your tanks light to dark, your t-shirts light to dark, your dresses light to dark, etc.
3. Buy organizational products – I love buying things to help me stayed organized. I love this ring holder, this jewelry organizer, and this shoe organizer!
4. Buy matching hangers – if you’re psychotic like me, go reward yourself for the hard work you just accomplished and buy yourself some beautiful matching felt hangers. I bought my hangers at Costco in packs of 35 for $9.99 a pack. 

That’s it! You’re finished. You should now have a clean and organized closet that will make getting dressed a breeze.

I hope this helped the idea of cleaning out your closet seem a little less daunting! Please email me or DM with any questions you may have!