Dilemma Of The Overflowing Closet

Wardrobe Chronicles
Are you one of those who cry over the fact that you have nothing to wear and at the same time are clueless as to why your wardrobe is overflowing with useless stuff? Count me in. As the festive season has begun, so has my struggle to revamp my already full wardrobe while not having to throw away my favorites and still being able to make room for new additions without burning a hole; rather burning my pocket itself! Whoa! Quite a task, is it? Worry not, as our team of experts (who were not so expert in wardrobe management till recently) sits down to weave a sure shot formula to help you ace the art and come up trumps.

Prepare yourself

With a firm mind set you can considerably downsize your wardrobe. Be ready to part with unnecessary items. To start with you would need trash bags to seclude items to be done away with, boxes to store off season clothes, sturdy hangers and various boxes to store accessories.

Be merciless

Throw or give away everything you have not worn in the last six months. Like, seriously. Unless you are a celebrity reading this article and you have a wardrobe full of labels, I couldn’t even pronounce properly. If you haven’t worn it in the last six months, it’s definitely past season and by next season it will be out of trend by all means.

Be partial

Choose to keep only that which you like the most. Don’t think twice, if it’s your second choice, it might as well be not there at all. For example, if you have two colours of the same type of tops/shirts, lose the one you like less.

Sort and Shortlist

Be kind with the pastels and solid colors as they are ageless and time less. Ditto for the classic woolens and leather and cashmere. You may also consider storing your special occasion clothing carefully. For everything else follow the given steps:

• Categories your clothing into trash, repair or donate.
• If a piece is faded, frayed, damaged or lost shape, instantly trash it.
• If it is damaged, consider repairing it. Also consider if it is worth the effort.
• Something that doesn’t fit and can be altered should be kept otherwise it should be sorted immediately into any of the three categories.
• A single item should qualify to be paired with at least 2 or 3 other items in your wardrobe. This creates versatility in your style.

Arrange wisely

When you finally arrange the remaining clothing back on your shelves remember to keep the most used items at eye level, lesser used ones at the base and rarely used or off season clothing at the top.

Buy intelligently

Make it a rule to get rid of one item whenever you buy something new even if it means giving away or throwing something every month or even week. Think about the joy it could bring to those who are needy and can’t afford to buy that stuff. This way you will never be consuming all the space and creating extra space even when you buy new things.

Don’t be sentimental

If you are clinging on to that pair of denims you wore in college only because of fond memories, please get rid of it right away. Remember memories do not lie in material belongings. And if you haven’t worn that dress your aunt gifted you, chances are you never will. So long, birthday dress from 2000!

Think fresh

Although it’s not the norm in our country, but you could try selling off your ‘only worn once’ lehenga or sari at a Sunday yard sale. You never know it may turn in a quick buck. If not you could always exchange it with a friend or cousin for a similar item. Your old could be their new and vice versa.

Fix a time for your own self

Give yourself at least 10 minutes each day to arrange your clothes. Do not push it for the weekend. If possible, while arranging, toss a single item each day. This way by the end of a month you would notice a drastic change in your wardrobe.

Categorize and colour code

This may as well be the first point in this list. Stack clothes by category – pants, jeans, casual shirts, work tops, to make putting together outfits easier. Or, you could try arranging them by color, from light to dark.

Once you are done doing this, you will feel much triumph and then thank your own self for being diligent and de cluttering your life along with your closet. Trust us, it’s a heavenly feeling and you would be saving a lot of time getting ready too.

By – Team Rapid