Edit Your Closet Like a Pro

Rules for editing your closet abound. Here are some favorites, along with some of the thinking behind them.

If you haven't worn it in a year, get rid of it.

This is possibly the simplest, most often repeated rule in closet organization and management. If something's been hanging in your closet for a year and you haven't worn it, chances are that you won't. So why is the advice so hard to take?

 

There are items we love that we just don't get around to wearing, but are sure we will. There are the things that just don't quite fit right now, but we're sure they will soon.

The reality is, you've gotten dressed at least 365 times over the past year. And somehow, this beloved item didn't get chosen one. single. time. Be honest with yourself. Are you really going to wear it? If you're convinced the answer is yes, then put it in a special probationary spot, like hanging on a valet hook outside the closet door. Give yourself a reasonable time limit (a week is a good baseline). If you don't wear it in that timeframe, out it goes.

Another option is to put the item in a closet in another room for a set period of time (a month or less--don't let it go longer than that, or you're not eliminating your clutter problem--you're spreading it around. Not good.

There are exceptions. A great classic piece of evening wear might go longer than a year without occasion to wear it. As long as you love it and would be proud to wear it to a formal evening event, hang onto it.

Out-of-season items are another exception. A great piece of advice is to get rid of seasonal items in season--so edit sweaters in the fall, shorts in the summer. It's so hard to imagine yourself in cashmere in July that you might decide to chuck your whole wardrobe, and then regret it later.

Pregnancy put a huge percentage of your wardrobe on hold for at least the duration and a few months after (unless you're Heidi Klum).

If you own a special item or two that you really want to hold onto for sentimental reasons, get it out of your closet and into a cedar chest or archival storage box. If you don't necessarily need to hold onto the item for the sake of the memory but still want a memento, take a photograph of it and archive that on your computer hard drive or back up to disc. Remember--it's a closet, not a diary. It should only contain the clothes you actually wear.