My first challenge was to declutter my wardrobe. I felt I had a lot of clothes in my closet yet never seemed to find anything to wear! My aim in this process was to:

• have a clearer looking closet where I can find what I am looking for.
• create a “capsule wardrobe” so that all my clothes coordinate with one another.
• have different outfit combinations with fewer quality items that I enjoy wearing.
• avoid the stress of not knowing what to wear each day.
• be able to chose outfits easily for the day freeing up more time.

10 Steps to Sorting your Wardrobe

These are the steps I took to organize my wardrobe. I hope they work for you:

1. Take everything out of your closet/drawers and lay them on the bed. You may also want to include footwear and outer clothing in your sort.
2. Separate anything that is not suited to the season you are in. I worked on my winter wardrobe. Having summery clothes in there created confusion, so I put them away.
3. Start separating your clothes into 3 piles – “get rid of”, “keep” and “maybe”.
4. In the “get rid of” pile put in any items that do not fit. I have held onto clothes that are too small and I have to face it that I’m not getting thinner anytime soon! Keeping clothes that don’t fit anymore can just make you feel bad about yourself – let them go! In this”get rid of” pile I also added items that were stained, broken, worn out or that I just didn’t like.
5. Put aside items that need to be fixed or altered and do it now. Be realistic with yourself – if you’re not going to repair the item, then get rid of it!
6. Do not feel guilty about getting rid of things you haven’t worn or that cost you a lot of money. We all make mistakes, and keeping the item isn’t going to make you wear it more often. If the style or colour doesn’t suit you, then you will not feel good in it and you won’t wear it. Pass it on to a friend who might wear it, or give to charity for someone else to find and love.
7. In the “keep” pile put all your favourite items that you wear the most. Think about what it is you like about these clothes. Is it the colour, fabric, cut, design? These will form the basis of your wardrobe and guide future purchases.
8. Note down gaps and excesses you have in your wardrobe. I realized I had 9 cardigans (so got rid of 5 of them), but I lacked smarter pants and blouses for work, so these are now on my shopping list. Consider how practical your wardrobe is for your life. Do you have the correct balance between work and casual wear?
9. Go through your “maybe” pile. Are there items that you would wear more if you had something for it to coordinate with? If it really isn’t going to go with anything you’ve got, then think about getting rid of it. Put your “maybe” pile aside for a month or two and then go back to it. If you didn’t miss anything then perhaps it’s time to let it go.
10. Do you need to extra storage to organize your clothes better – boxes, hooks, hangers, shelves? Being able to see and access what you have easily will help you chose your outfits more easily and make life that little bit simpler.

If you want more ideas on creating a capsule wardrobe, check out these YouTubers – Mademoiselle, Christie Resell and Justine Leconte.

Reflection on my wardrobe declutter

It’s been a few weeks since I overhauled my wardrobe. So far I realize that I have been wearing all the same clothes I was wearing before! I think this highlights that many of the things I owned I just didn’t wear. They just took up space and added confusion. I now have 36 items in my winter wardrobe, which is around the recommended number in a capsule wardrobe.

I got rid of 6 large bags of clothing and it’s now hard for me to remember what they all were, as I have not missed them at all. It has definitely been easier and quicker for me to chose what I wear each day. On a busy morning getting ready for work and getting the children ready for school, it really helps to have one less stress!

I still have some items I need to add to my wardrobe for it to be as versatile as it could be. My aim is to buy versatile, good quality items that are easy to look after. I’m sure I will make some mistakes in my future purchases, but I will be making purchases more mindfully.

If you declutter your closet or make the transition to a capsule wardrobe, let me know how you got on and share your experience for other readers!

It all began for me 3 years ago when I first emigrated to Canada from the UK. Emigrating was perhaps the most difficult and stressful experience I have gone through. However, on arrival in our new country we had very little, and I started thinking about how simpler life could be. 

We had left behind our home, our careers, and the majority of our belongings. I felt a certain amount of panic, but I also felt a huge sense of liberation, like I’ve never experienced before. 

When you have nothing (no job, no house, no belongings) it really helps to solidify what is important to you. I had my husband, my two children and my dog – all the immediate people that meant something to me. I also had ME. I valued my body, my health, and my mind like never before. 

Of course I felt responsibility to my family to provide for them. But I did not have all the added responsibilities that go with having a “good” job, a vehicle, possessions, mortgage and bills.

Living with Less

After acquiring minimum wage jobs, we rented our first house. It was comfortable but small.

We had very few belongings so tidying and cleaning was easy – just a quick sweep around, and washing the one small bathroom took minutes. 

My kids weren’t burdened with lots of possessions. They had a kindle, a packet of crayons and a pack of playing cards. Without TV and other distractions, the girls spent more time being creative (drawing, making things), being outside, reading and playing simple card games. 

Money was tight, but we spent our time together as a family doing free things – walks, playing at the park and visiting the library.

Acquiring More

Gradually, over the last 3 years, “normal life” has crept up on us again. With better jobs and more money came the inevitable acquisition of goods. We moved to a larger house, we bought a car, a TV, a games console, a desktop computer, a laptop, new phones, furniture, pictures, rugs, toys, books, clothing, sports equipment, kitchen items, tools and so on – gradually re-acquiring the many things we had left behind.

 Of course some of these things have been necessary, but I am more burdened again. I feel that we should have been more discerning about what we reacquired. Not only have we acquired belongings, but our lives have become more complicated in other ways. Our new jobs are more stressful. We have more bills to pay. Our kids are engaged in more structured activities. We spend more time getting or looking after our “things”. This all leads to stress. 

Making Life Simple Again

My challenge this year is to make everything simple again. Not to put myself in the risky state of giving up everything again (including a steady income), but to re-evaluate every aspect of my life and to do what I can to make it simpler.

Each week I am setting a new challenge to simplify an aspect of my life. As you follow my journey I hope you are inspired to follow some of the ideas to make your own life simpler and happier.

My first challenge – decluttering!