A graphic of an unorganised wardrobe ready to be decluttered
Episode 23 – How to Declutter your Wardrobe

Efficiently declutter your wardrobe! In this podcast Lesley and Ingrid talk about their step by step process of how to declutter your wardrobe. Decluttering your wardrobe can seem a huge task that you keep delaying because you're overwhelmed and don't know where to start. Today’s podcast is all about action and how you actually declutter your wardrobes. We give our listeners an explanation of our tried and tested process. All good projects start with a plan and you can find our step by step process here on how to declutter your wardrobe.
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Transcript of this podcast episode
Intro  0:07  
Welcome to today's episode of The Declutter Hub Podcast, your channel for super easy, no nonsense advice on how to declutter and organise your home. Please welcome your host professional organisers, Ingrid Jansen, and Lesley Spellman.

Ingrid  0:29  
Hello, and welcome listeners to Episode 23 of the declutter hub Podcast. I'm Ingrid. And I'm Lesley. If you have clutter and want to sort it out, this is the show for you. In today's episode, Lesley and I are talking about the most efficient way to declutter wardrobes. Following on from our last podcast when we delve into the psychology of decluttering clothes. Today, we are going to talk about the most efficient way to declutter wardrobes. We're going to talk through each step to make it as easy as possible for you. So Lesley, I love decluttering clothes and wardrobes. I think our listeners know this by now I think one of my favourite things that oh, what robots do? So I'm excited to talk to you about this.

Lesley  1:14  
And so we did a lot of talking in the last podcast, a lot of talking about thinking and things like that. So today, it's all about action, isn't it? And how you actually do it? Because some people get really overwhelmed at the thought of doing it and think, Where do I even start? So I think it's important that we give people an actual process, a tried and tested process, really, because this is something we've both been doing for years and years. And you need to make it manageable and break it down into smaller chunks. But I guess, you know, we're not talking about a 10 minute here and a 10 minute there. We're talking about a few hours of time here to devote. Today I'm going to declutter my wardrobe, you need to set a set set a day aside really for this. Yeah, this is a bigger project really, isn't it that we're going to talk about?

Ingrid  1:55  
Yes, I think I agree with you. I mean, other parts of your clothing, you can break down in smaller pieces and say Okay, today I'm going to do my underwear. today. I'm going to do my socks or today I'm going to do my pyjamas. But if you want to, if you're going to open those wardrobe doors, then I think you really have to be realistic and set aside a good, good couple of hours if you want to do it this properly.

Lesley  2:21  
Absolutely. Absolutely. All good projects start with a plan. So we're so we have to do some planning. So what's the first thing that we're going to do when we are planning to do our wardrobe Declutter? What do we need to prepare? Well, we

Ingrid  2:33  
need to ingest we need to prepare a couple things I think we need to have, make sure that we've got some beanbags ready. So some bags to put your clothes in that you no longer want. I think it's a good idea to have a bin back ready for rubbish that you find the little tags and plastics and things like that, that have to be thrown away. I think it's helpful to have an empty laundry baskets at the ready. So if you're going to come across clothes that you actually know that have to go into the laundry, you can put them in there. It's helpful, I think to make your bed so you've got a flat surface to work with. So make your bed put the pillows and duvet back. So you've got a flat surface to work with. Always have a Hoover at the ready. So you can do a bit of vacuuming and hoovering in the wardrobe when it's empty.

Lesley  3:18  
Yeah. And like it in a damp cloth. Yes, depending on what your wardrobe is made of. But that might be a damp cloth. It might be a wet cloth, it might be polish, you know, it just depends on what your wardrobe is made of really, but it's about sort of preparing, you know, just jumping back to the comments about making your bed as well. Your bed will get really really dusty as well during this process, because we're taking things out of the wardrobe that had been in there for a little while. So just know that probably at the end of the day, you need to factor in that you need to change your bedding. Yeah,

Ingrid  3:48  
yeah, good points. And also I think we need to think about, if you're thinking about swapping some of your hangers over, then it's also it's handy to have those new hangers ready if you want to go from all kinds of different hangers in your wardrobe and you've decided I want to have this nice, streamlined look. Have the hangers ready. When you are going to declutter, I will talk about hangers a lot more in our next broadcast about organising your wardrobe and what kind of hangers there are and what kind of type but the thing we want to say now is have the hangers ready. So you can have them ready for when you want to put stuff back in.

Lesley  4:25  
I think it's interesting, isn't it really, because it's one of the only times where we would advocate buying storage and the hang up would fall into the storage category? Yeah, before we actually declutter because normally we would say leave that to the end. But actually, what we don't want to do is do the same process next week and swap everything over to different hangers because it's quite a big deal and quite a big job really. Yeah. So it's important to factor in, how many hangers you're going to need if you do want to swap things over. And I always say to clients you never have if you do want to swap them out. Obviously we're going to talk about velvet hangers and the benefits Have those and different types of hangers next time on the podcast. But have a mentor kind of run through your wardrobe, see how many clothes you've got, because it can be hundreds and hundreds of hangers that you need. If you're going to swap things over by the hangers, leave them in there, leave them in the wrap, keep the receipt and if you don't need them, because you've done an amazing job decluttering then you can always take them back.

Ingrid  5:21  
Yes, that is definitely true. Okay, so we I am fully prepared now, Lesley. So what's the next step? Well,

Lesley  5:28  
I think we need to break it down to one wardrobe at a time. It's it's interesting, actually, because that we've spoken in other podcasts about Marie Kondo, and her methodology, which was suggest that you take all of your clothes out from everywhere, all at the same time. So that we said in our last podcast, we're not really big fans of doing that for lots and lots of different reasons, mainly, because we feel that it might be we understand the psychology of that, which is to kind of shock you into knowing that you've got too many clothes, but actually, the practicalities of doing that are not great. So we would advocate doing things one wardrobe at a time. So it's kind of one section of a wardrobe at a time, really, depending on how your wardrobe is put together. I think it's important, you know, you need to make progress. And you need to, you know, you never know what's going to happen. And you don't want to bring every single thing out onto your bed and not be able to get into your bed at night. So break it down. And that you can get through each wardrobe one step at a time. Take everything out of your wardrobe, don't do this kind of moving things across, and you don't think oh, they're all nicely hung up, I'm just going to kind of swish the hangers across and decide what we're actually going to get rid of. Because psychologically, once you've taken something out of your wardrobe, it's a more difficult decision to put it back in. But if it stays in your wardrobe, it's easier to leave it in there, if that makes sense. So it's a strange sort of psychology, but one that really really does work. Once it's out, it's more difficult for it to go back in. So please take everything out your wardrobe, because we need to do that anyway, for cleaning purposes.

Ingrid  6:55  
Yeah, yeah. And that's why I think we have a different methodology, you take everything out and put it on the bed. But I already do a short of when I take it out, I go okay, is this a trouser? Is this a top? Is this a dress? Is this a skirt? Is this a jumper and I kind of make a little bit of categorization when I put it on the bed, I'll categorise still a bit. So I'll put the jeans together. And maybe possibly also the trousers on that same stick because they're all trousers. So if there's like nice black chinos, or I put them together, so I divide it a little bit. So I don't put one wardrobe in its hole on the bed, I try to already do a little bit of categorization to make it easier to decide when you're decluttering. What's going to go back in?

Lesley  7:39  
Yeah, I guess it really it really very much depends, doesn't it on what you're starting off with, you know, if you're starting off with a walk in wardrobe with eight sections to it, then you're going to have some sort of categorization already in place within those wardrobes. But if it's a real mishmash of stuff, then to sort of do a presort is probably a really good idea. Yeah,

Ingrid  7:57  
definitely. So okay, so everything is out of the wardrobe, then I think I think that's very important. Your wardrobe is empty now. So it's the perfect opportunity to give the wardrobe a clean. And I would say Hoover ants, first use your your vacuum cleaner to Hoover your wardrobe. And then give it a wipe with a damp or wet cloth, depending on what kind of material your wardrobe is made of. But things can dusty, you know, especially if there's bags on the floor of the wardrobe or shoes on the floor, things get really dusty and a little bit grimy in there. So it's the perfect opportunity to to kind of start fresh,

Lesley  8:35  
and don't forget the rails as well. A lot of people always forget to clean the top of the rails as well. And they've got a lot of dust on them as well. So yeah, cleaning is a critical part. And it made you feel much better about things as well, it makes you feel as if you've done a thorough job.

Ingrid  8:47  
Yeah. And also sometimes even the hangers themselves. So if there are really kind of bulk your hangers that you said, okay, they're still good. I really want to keep those have have a cloth ready to wipe those hangers before you put your clothes on them again and putting them back.

Lesley  9:02  
Yeah, definitely. Okay,

Ingrid  9:04  
so we've taken everything out, we've cleaned it. And now we're going to look at all the clothes. And I think it's important that we ask ourselves a couple of questions, and not just kind of go, Okay, let's just swap the hangars and put everything back. I think we need to ask ourselves, do we love it? Do we wear it? Do I want to keep it? And if you're like, I'm not sure? I think it's important that you then think to yourself, Okay, why am I struggling with this decision? Why is this a hard decision all of a sudden? Because you know what you wear all the time?

Lesley  9:37  
Yeah, I mean, we talked in you know, and it's a really important if you've not listened to that podcast about psychology of clothes, I would absolutely recommend that you go back and do that now because we talk in detail about some of the emotions that you feel when you're trying to get rid of clothes. I'm not going to go into them in massive detail here but some of the basic emotions that we feel we feel guilty about money are we keeping it because we feel Guilty About the money that we spent on it. Is it a sentimental item that I'm keeping lots and lots of those? Does the item of clothing reflect the current lifestyle that you lead in at the moment? Or does it go back to a previous kind of life? Are you keeping it because you know that you look good in that kind of thing? But you've got 10, or 15? Of the same types of things? Yeah. Or are you? Are you keeping it because you think that you're going to get into it someday if your weight changes or poor down. So those I think, are really quite basic, but quite difficult emotions to work through when you're looking at you your wardrobes, and there's going to be some things that are very straightforward decisions that you were already wearing all the time that you already love. But there are some that are a little bit more difficult. And those tend to be the items of clothing that we've not worn for a little while, but we still have got a yearning for some for whatever reason.

Ingrid  10:51  
Yeah, definitely. So make sure that whatever you decide you want to keep, that is really something that is enhancing your life, and that makes you happy, and that you see yourself wearing now and in the future, and not again, end up with a wardrobe full of stuff that you know, you're not going to wear. Yeah,

Lesley  11:11  
absolutely. It should reflect the current year, it's a kind of, it's an expression of yourself, isn't it to the outside world. And you know, if you wear something that you feel that you look good in, you know, it starts the day, it's like the sunshine and isn't it you start the day, you know, feeling good about yourself. So, I know, it's an easy thing to say, to have everything in your wardrobe that that you absolutely love. And life's not as simple as that. But you know, for the most part, things that are in there should really reflect the current view and make you feel happy about the way that you're looking at them.

Ingrid  11:39  
Yeah. So then the next step is, take an item from your bed or a flat surface or whatever you're using to have all your clothes together, and hold it up, button it up, straightened up, put the colour right, put the arms from you know the sleeves properly, button it up, put it on the right hanger, if you can really make sure that you take the metal hangers out of clothes, because from the dry cleaning, because they're really, really bad for your clothes, because they're, they're too thin. And they cut into your clothes. And ask yourself, Okay, I love Do I love this, do I wear this and then it's right on the hanger. And they feel Yes, this is a good thing, I want to keep this, then and only then it goes back into your wardrobe.

Lesley  12:25  
Because you need to make these items look appealing. So when they're when they're on the hanger in your water, they need to look appealing. You know, it's funny because people tend to do we've spoken about this before in wardrobes and in organisation around the home, people tend to do what their parents did. And they tend to follow suit with those habits. So there are people who hang all their clothes inside out because they think that clothes are not going to get dust on them, which I found quite strange the first time I came across that and was like, Yeah, we need to turn all these around, just like oh, I don't want to do that. Because I always hang my clothes inside out. Now to me, they're never going to look their best if they're inside out. And if we're going to be really appealing for you to you know, you've got to kind of go down to a deeper root, haven't you to make sure whether that's something that you want to wear today. So yeah, I think straightening things up on the hangers is really, really important to make things look and once you've got that flow back into your wardrobe, where you can move the hangers across and see what you've got, is much, much better. So make things look good on the hangers use the right hangers, you know, don't put shirts on trouser hangers, if you run out, you know, make sure this is the opportunity where you've actually got the right hangers in place.

Ingrid  13:31  
Yeah, yeah. And also, if you are in doubt about an item, try it on, you know, and kind of even does, it still fits. I mean, I think that's quite an important point as well, too. You know, if you know it's going to be too tight sizes too small, but you can't really tell because you haven't worn it in a long time. Sometimes it's a really good idea to try some clothes on while you're decluttering.

Lesley  13:52  
And sometimes you can't remember some some people can't remember why they're not wearing it and you need to go through that process of trying it on. I've got clients and we that sit there in the bra and knickers the whole time. Three hours, try things are always good fun. So it's good fun breaking down barriers, you know? When so? Yeah, but no, it's a really good process. Because what, what we always like to advocate is don't make that decision later. I mean, obviously, if you're not sure, and you want to get through it, and you've got 10 or 15 items that you're going to try on anything. I'm going to do that later but effectively that's procrastinating on a decision that you could make now. So if it's an easy and it's practical thing to do for you to try that item on there and then do it.

Ingrid  14:30  
Yeah, yeah. Fabulous. Okay, so we have decided it staying we have put it on the right hanger, and we're now putting it back in the wardrobe. Our advice to you is don't worry too much yet about having everything in the perfect category and in the perfect place in your wardrobe. That comes later. Later and we will talk about it in the next podcast about organising wardrobes. Later we decide which category is certain Clothes belonging to this is all about decluttering. This is making that shift between is it staying? Or is it going? And it's not important yet exactly where it's gonna hang out, how is it going to hang in which category in which place? That's for later? We're now just going through everything and making those decisions.

Lesley  15:20  
Yeah, absolutely. Because we need to break it down. You know, we talked about overwhelm, and process. And if you kind of have to think about all those things all at the same time, you just need to go through each individual process. And then you can worry about categorization at the end. Really? Yeah. So you decided that some things are staying, they've gone back into your wardrobe hung very nicely and precisely with our new hangers and or with our buttons up, and so on, and we're loving the way that they look. But there's lots and lots of items that we've decided that no longer serve us. And so we're actually going to offload those to somewhere else. So there's various places that they can go, obviously, yeah, they can go to charity, which would be our number one choice of places for them to go. Really important. If we said many, many times before that you choose a charity that's quite easy for you to drop off. But you know, we're gonna take things don't think that if you've got a pair of socks with a hole in or a pair of knickers, that the charity are not going to take them. Yeah, because they can rag everything. I walked past my charity shop yesterday, the ragging man was there and there was 45 bags came out of my local charity shop, just of rags, that's up to them to decide, and they will get money for those rags as well. Yeah, so please don't put old clothes that you think the charity shop or not going to sell in straight into landfill? Yeah, there's, there's a possibility that you might be able to sell things. But really, really be honest with yourself about those items. You know, some things that you think were really expensive, and you're gonna get loads and loads of money for sometimes it's just not worth your while, investing the time and energy and effort into trying to sell them to get 99 Pence and stuff like that on eBay, you know, so really be honest, after we've got a podcast lined up, haven't we about from it with an eBay seller. So hopefully, she is going to give us some pointers about the kinds of things that are going to sell and the kinds of things that weren't. But generally, if it's not worth that much money, it's probably not going to sell. And it's another barrier to you getting the job done. So putting things in piles waiting for sell, it means that it's not going out of your house, please prioritise the decluttering process first. And the trying to make money second,

Ingrid  17:23  
yeah, yeah, absolutely. Because the last thing we want is that you have a whole wardrobe full of stuff you're meaning to sell at some point. And sometimes when you finally have time in the future, it's more important to make those decisions now. And of course, if you've got a beautiful dress or coat or whatever, from a brand, with the tag, maybe even still on that might be worth your while. But charity shops need good good items to you know, they they really deserve your nice items as well. Yeah, definitely, probably, you probably also going to run into some items that you think oh, that should have gone to the dry cleaner, or I need to have that mended is a button needs to be shown back on or the trousers gotten loose on the bottom. And the hem needs to be done, have a separate bag ready for things like that. If you know that you want to keep the item, then put it in a dry cleaning and mending bag, if you know it needs some work done, and you're never going to do it or you're going to do it and then still not wear the item, then that it needs to be decluttered

Lesley  18:29  
Yeah, and then there might also be some stuff depending on whether you borrow clothes, there's a lot of people, particularly younger generation that borrow clothes all the time. So if there's stuff that needs to get passed back to someone, and people you know, you need a bag, you know, just maybe a bag for life or something that can go back to things that you have borrowed. Talking about passing things on to other people be very mindful, if you are thinking of like, if that's my sister, or give that to my daughter, I'll give that to my mom, make sure that they actually want your stuff and that you're not just offloading your guilt onto someone else. So it's really important to make sure that if you're going to send 75 items of clothing that you know, on the ones to your sister that she actually would quite like them. And that's can be a tough, a tough conversation sometimes. But it's an important one. It's all about breaking down those barriers and being realistic with yourself.

Ingrid  19:17  
Yeah, yeah. Because otherwise it just becomes more things and you're basically moving your problem to your sister or your mom or your or your friends and yourself. He's moving your stuff to their house for them to sort it out. I see this all the time. Right. Don't overfill your bags don't make him so happy. They're actually ripping off the weight. So make sure you use good sturdy bags and not backs that already have maybe a tear or rip in them because then they're going to burst open. So don't overfill and you still need to be able to carry it carry them downstairs and put them in your car or anything like that. So don't overfill them and also have a plan for those bags. You don't want to have them in your hallway for The next four weeks are in your driving around in your car all the time. So had a plan to go to the chair to show that same day or the next day or over the weekend, and get that out of your house or to the dry cleaners or to your mum or your friends. It needs to get moving and not become another bag of stuff somewhere that needs to be dealt with at a later time.

Lesley  20:21  
Yeah, absolutely. Now that's really important. Yeah. So are we doing with our decluttering then, so we've done it halfway, we put everything back in the water that we're keeping, and we've taken to the charity shop or whoever, wherever, everything that's going out. So what the decluttering process at this point is effectively done. We're well aware that there is obviously a big overlap with the Organising of your wardrobe. But we want to be very specific with talking about decluttering. Today and organising comes in another podcast. We're going to talk about categorization. We're going to talk about storage options and things like that. So you need to tune into our next podcast in a week or two about organising your wardrobe. So we are done. Yes, that was painfree wasn't that? Well, we

Ingrid  21:07  
are done with the wardrobe, Lesley. The drawers and the other wardrobes and

Lesley  21:13  
the shell seem so sales seem so simple to talk about it in 25 minutes.

Ingrid  21:17  
I know, in real life, it will take longer listener. So don't get discouraged. Don't think oh, I can do 20 minutes and I'm all done. Take the time. Like we said before, it is a marathon, not a sprint. And even your if your wardrobe feels too big for you only to have to wardrobe, break it down into pieces that you feel that are going to work for you and we are excited, you know, we hope you're going to have a look at your wardrobes and declutter some of those items that have been lurking in there. And we appreciate you taking the time to listen today. So if you'd like to get more tips and advice, please follow us on social media. We are an Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and we have a lively supportive Facebook group community where we check all things clutter and we'd love to see your before and after photos of your wardrobes there. Please share them. If you don't want to miss the next weekly episode, subscribe to the declutter hub podcast on iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher and it will pop into your notifications each Friday. See you next time.

Outro  22:23  
Thanks for listening to this week's episode of the Declutter Hub podcast. Check out declutterhub.com For more inspiration, and don't forget to tune in next week.
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