Declutter Closet – How to Clean and Organize In 4 Easy Steps
Declutter Closet…. Yep, I hear everyone saying… I need that too! My daughter’s bedroom closet was a disaster! Too many clothes and not enough space. She had things shoved everywhere, including the closet floor, and it just wasn’t functioning well anymore. Can you relate? This is a great way to take a good look at everything and really decide what to keep and what to get rid of. We worked together to clean and organize and create a clutter-free closet. She loves how it turned out.
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This is the before picture – she already has a fairly small closet to begin with. There were too many clothes, shoes, bags, hats, etc. You name it, it was shoved in there.
Declutter Closet – How to Clean and Organize In 4 Easy Steps Video
How to Declutter a Closet Instructions
The Decluttering Process and Closet Organization
Step 1 – Take it all out!
The first step is to take everything out of the closet.
Step 2 – Go through everything in the closet
This next step is probably the most challenging part. We all have our favorite things and can form an emotional attachment to different items for sentimental reasons. It can be hard work to sort through all our belongings and let go of items, but so worth it in the long run. This calls for ruthless decluttering. We went through everything. We took out what didn’t fit and what didn’t belong in there. Then we went through all the clothes, shoes, hats, etc. She wanted to keep everything, so I had her sort every item of clothing, which is the hardest part. We made 2 piles by asking a simple question – “like it” or “love it”. The “love it” became the keep pile and we ended up with a reasonable amount of clothes and such. These were the only things she could keep, the other items went into a donation box.
Step 3 – Clean the Closet
We vacuumed the entire closet, used the brush attachment to vacuum shelves, baseboards, and edges. Then we wiped down the shelves, hanging pole, etc with a damp rag.
Step 4 – Organize
We hung the remaining clothes in an order that worked for her. On one side, there is 1 hanging rack so we put the longer clothes on that rack.
We put baskets on her shelves. These baskets were organized into different categories:
- Regular leggings folded in 1/2 and rolled up
- Thick/warm leggings folded in 1/2 and rolled up
- Bags & purses
- Hats
We pulled out all of her shoes and placed them on a shoe organizer that hung on the back of the closet doors. This was a good choice because it freed up storage space for her laundry basket. We placed that on the long clothing side of the closet.
The other side of the closet has 2 hanging racks in it. We put shirts on top, and pants on the bottom. Now she can see more of her clothes, and get to everything without the mountain falling on her.
Declutter Closet vide0
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Other decluttering tips:>
- Have trash bags or garbage bags handy to put unwanted things in so they can be donated to a charity shop, donation center, or donation bin, and some places give you donation bags.
- New items and new clothes can be donated to a consignment shop
- Make sure if it’s someone else to have them there with you to go through their own clothes to help with the process to learn about decluttering clothes,
- If you haven’t worn it in the past year you most likely won’t wear that again, the only exception to this outfit is for a special occasion like evening dresses
- Sure signs that it’s time to go through the clothes clutter is when it’s spilling out onto the floor and doesn’t have a home because everything is so full.
- Once you go through things you’ll have fewer clothes, you can make better decisions moving forward, and you can make a shopping list of anything you’ll need to get.
- If I buy a new article of clothing I make the decision that I have to get rid of one item so that I continue to have less clothing and an organized closet
Check out some of my related posts!
my teens need this done now i believe I will offer them this post to get an idea of what to do thanks for sharing
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I totally feel your pain Angie 😉 I’m thrilled you’re going to share it with your teens. I’d love to know if it inspires them to attack their closets too.
My closet is begging for a cleaning like this too. Maybe I’ll be inspired to do it soon because of this.
Thanks Lisa, I totally know the feeling.
I love to organize and declutter. Sounds crazy to some but I feel great anxiety when things are cluttered.
Found you over at the traffic jam weekend link party
Dawn aka Spatulas On Parade
Thank you Dawn, and that is totally how I describe it to my family. When things are in their place, I feel at peace. When they’re not, my anxiety kicks in
Great job, I am sure your daughter appreciated it. Thanks to a recent move: our closets are well organized and hubby put up shelves in the basement for all my boxes of shoes. #trafficjamweekend
Thank you Antoinette, and I love that you are all organized. It’s such a wonderful feeling.
Oh, I really need to do this! Looks fantastic!
Thank you so much Cyndee 🙂
Oh, how I hope the inspiration here rubs off on me and gets me into organizing and decluttering mode!
Thank you Michele, and I totally understand. It’s quite a task, and just getting it started can be a challenge.
Thankfully we do this throughout the year and we have really large closets so we keep it under control. With all boys, they have only one or two pairs of shoes and not many extras.
chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
Thank you for sharing Mireille 🙂
I have several closets I need to work on. I agree that you have to take everything out first to really declutter a space. Thanks for sharing every week at #HomeMattersParty
Thank you Donna. I totally know what you’re saying – it’s quite the task and many other things take priority.
Especially when a space is small, organization is a must. I’m sure your daughter will find her new closet space less frustrating.
Thanks for linking up to Creative Compulsions!
Michelle
mybijoulifeonline.com
Thank you Michelle, and her closet is really small compared to the average one and the rest in the house. She has been doing her best to keep it in check.
I love an organized home. Everything is so easy to find and it just feels good.
Thanks for sharing Elise, if things are not in their place for me I start to feel anxious.
Good post. It is hard getting rid of things. Sometimes I am delighted to find a surprise item in my closet that I had forgotten about and it is like getting something new to wear!
Thanks Linda, and you’re right. My daughter has a hard time letting go of things. She did really well with the extra support. Love that – it’s so true that sometimes you find treasures in the job too.
Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Come party with us at Over The Moon! Catapult your content Over The Moon! @marilyn_lesniak @EclecticRedBarn
Thanks Marilyn, appreciate the support and can’t wait until the next one!
Good Morning Chas
Hope your mom is doing well “So Far”
I reorganized my closet last Spring. But I’m going to take some of your tips do a little make over of some things.
Have a Great week. Drive safe. Stay Healthy
Talk soon❤️☘️
Carol
Thanks, Carol! It’s it so satisfying to organize something and get it all fixed up? Hugs