The best thing about an organized closet is being able to find everything you need when you need it. So when your closet is consumed with things that you don’t wear, it makes for a total mess. Because you can’t see any of the clothes you actually want to wear! So, how can you declutter a closet without getting super overwhelmed with all the clothing you may have hiding in your closet? I am breaking down my totally tangible tips when it comes to decluttering your closet.

Clear The Clothing Clutter

Like every good organizing project, start by removing all the clothing. Now I get it. It is super overwhelming when you can see how much stuff you have piled up on the bed. But sometimes that overwhelm is a good thing. It will help you stop stockpiling clothes. Sometimes our brains need that experience of all the clothing sitting in one pile to realize that we don’t need all the clothes. 

So pull everything out of your closet. Stick it on your bed. The pile will get really high. And that is okay. Because you have a plan. You are going to be deciding if something is worth saving or if you can part with it.

But sometimes that is just too overwhelming and we cannot even move past the pile. If that is the case, then do the declutter in sections. Remove clothing in one section of your closet. Make a pile on your bed. Then pick up one hanger and decide if that item is worth keeping. If it is, hang it up in your closet. If it isn’t, put it in the declutter pile. Once you did one section. Move onto the next section.

Decide If It Is Worth Keeping

Now that you have that giant pile on your bed. It is time to decide if the clothing is worth keeping. Pick up each piece of clothing. Be honest with yourself about if you truly wear it. I have a free declutter question checklist that I have used to help thousands of people declutter their stuff. Get yours below.

The more honest you are about the clothing you are wearing, the more likely you are to truly keep what items of clothes you wear. So you will be able to see everything you have in your closet. And you don’t have to worry about things taking up too much space because you are only keeping things you use!

Start a donate pile by using a garbage bag or laundry basket. Make sure you add a Post-It note to it to help keep you organized while you declutter! You can read more about how to declutter clothing here.

Hang Up Clothing

When you decide you want to keep something, hang it up in your closet. There are two ways that truly work when keeping your closet organized. The first is to organize your closet by color. The second is to organize your closet by category. Either way works. You just have to decide how you like pulling clothing out of your closet.

I had a client who wanted all her work attire together and her causal items together because she wasn’t a morning person. So keeping her closet organized by category worked for her so she could grab and run out to work. I had another client who wanted her entire closet organized by color. So we did the rainbow in her closet. She said it helped her visualize what she had when she was shopping for clothes. 

No matter which way you decide to hang your clothes, just stick with one method and you will be good to go!

You can read more about color-coding your closet here.

Now there is a thing called the hanger trick. This is where you flip the hangers around the wrong way. Then, when you wear an outfit, you flip the hanger the right way on the rod. I think this is great for those items you aren’t sure if you wear or not because they may be out of season or you can’t remember when you last wore it. You can read more about the hanger trick here.

Try Making An Outfit

When decluttering your closet, it can be helpful to try to create an outfit from items you are unsure of keeping. Let me tell you a story about a client. This client had a beautiful dress top that she loved. But it went with these cute leather pants. The leather pants didn’t fit her anymore so she sold them. But she still fit into the top. She didn’t want to get rid of it because she loved it. So we decided to try to create an outfit around that top. She tried on every pair of pants and skirts she owned. We eventually found something that worked. So she felt confident in keeping that top because she now had an outfit to wear with the top. Instead of just letting the beautiful top sit in her closet, not being worn.

So try to create an outfit out of clothing you love that may not have a match. If you can’t find anything, then you can ask yourself it you want to find something to go with it or if you can part with it.

Fix Or Replace

Another thing to look at while you declutter your closet is if you need to fix or replace any of your items. My husband has a pair of dress pants that need a new button. They have been sitting in our closet since last winter. So we took the pants to the dry cleaners and they added the button. Now he can wear them again!

Sometimes it is the most simple solutions you need to make in order to keep your closet totally organized. 

How To Declutter A Closet

Now it is your turn to declutter your closet. Start by removing everything. I know it can be overwhelming but try! Then go through each item and decide if it is worth keeping. Ask yourself these guiding questions. Then hang up clothing either by category or by color. If you aren’t sure about a piece of clothing, decide if you can make an outfit or need to fix or replace something in order to make the look feel like you!