How to Declutter Easy Items in Your Wardrobe

These items are super easy to start decluttering your wardrobe even if you’re not planning on becoming a “minimalist.” Also, less tears (or stress) is a good ALWAYS a good thing.

Why was there tears before decluttering my wardrobe?

Let me tell you about a common scenario that would happen to me before I decluttered my wardrobe. At my work, similar to most other places of employment, things are continuously changing : procedures, patients and even staff changes. We don’t have a ton of turnover per se, but people move on and start their own practices or simply start a new chapter of their life elsewhere..

The thing is, each time someone leaves or joins the team, we have to do picture day. Lemme tell you… not much is more stressful than picture day.

Tears.

Tears are what happens on picture day.

Then they say, “Dress cute!” and I just don’t know how. Some people love clothes and it comes easy to them. Unfortunately, it does not come easy to me… and it shows.

I can look nice. I can look good – but cute? No way, Jose.

outfit on mannequin in wig store — *What I wish I looked like on pictures day verse what I actually look like below….*

The problem lies in the fact that when I would try to look “cute”, I would take out items in my closet that I wouldn’t normally grab and then after trying on one after another, I would get more and more upset. I realized they were pieces of clothing that didn’t make me feel great, which is why I never wore them.

This is sad to say but I just want to be honest with you guys, picture day is when I am the hardest on myself. I would try to make my curly hair straight, take twice the amount of time applying makeup, which resulted in pretty much the same outcome, and then literally look at myself in the mirror and think “why are you so ugly”?

straightener on counter — I actually just threw my straightener away probably around a month ago. It was decided it wasn’t worth the stress when I tried to straighten my hair. It feels great to remove that decision from my life.

There IS Hope & Now No Tears

Thankfully, picture days have gotten easier – purely because I’ve decluttered my wardrobe. Now I know that if I put something on, I’m going to be decently happy with the way that it fits. I leave my hair curly and do my makeup the same as every other day.

It also helps that our team pictures are now all the same color theme, so I have worn the same shirt for the last 5 picture days and there is absolutely no shame in my game.

young woman smiling for the camera — *Here it is in all it’s glory – curly hair and navy shirt with accessories built in… I know, it’s bad!* *(picture not taken by me)*

Even though I’m not my ideal body weight right now, that’s okay because I’ve optimized my clothing for the shape of my body as it is currently.

Now, you may be a fashionista! If this is the case, and you looooove your clothes – you may not need to simplify as much as some as the rest of us…

But! If your clothes are still strewn about your room,you might want to think about at least decluttering these ieasy items which will help you get to a manageable amount.

Why I DO NOT recommend a capsule wardrobe.

When I first got into minimalism and tried to declutter my wardrobe, I watched a lot of videos that suggested you need a short sleeve, long sleeve and turtleneck in the colors black, white and gray. The message being sent was how beneficial it is to have all these pieces that mix-and-match.

While there is some truth to being able to mix and match, if you wouldn’t normally wear a white turtleneck, you are still not going to wear a white turtleneck once you have your capsule wardrobe.

Turtlenecks are NOT my thing. Actually, sweaters aren’t my thing. I run hot. Very, very hot and sweaty… It’s gross. Sorry, TMI, but I just want some of you to know that I get your struggle because I’m a hot mess too!

Also, I don’t really like to wear white. White clothing can look very classy and I love that, but for me, wearing white makes me feel like I look bigger…and I’ve realized that feeling bigger, which makes me feel sad and self conscious, is not worth it just to look “nice” in white.

woman in a white sweater — *I just recently went against everything I stand for and bought not just a white, but a white SWEATER. I know I don’t look bad, but I don’t look as slender as possible.* (also picture not taken by me)

If you were to buy these pieces of clothing that you wouldn’t normally buy because the capsule wardrobe told you to buy it, that is not simplicity, minimalist or being smart with your money. It is time to declutter your wardrobe if you fell into this idea.

It could actually have the opposite effect because now you’ll have this guilt from buying all of these pieces of clothing that you never would have purchased in the first place.

Enough about why I don’t recommend a capsule wardrobe. Enough on that, moving on to the tips to help us declutter our wardrobe!

How do you start quickly and easily declutter your wardrobe?

Remember, every process should be done in layers, that’s what helps us understand how the change we make benefit us. FEELING the benefits will actually change how our brain works, therefore changing our daily habits and life.

As always, we start with the easiest things.

The first step would be to get rid of anything that is broken, stained, ripped and unwearable.

Let’s go through these individually.

Broken Items/Things

Now I know this is a little strange, because most clothing, if damaged, is ripped. BUT I wanted us to get a head start and think not just about clothing, but shoes and accessories as well.

You most likely know right away what’s broken in your closet, dresser and/or wherever you keep all your accessories.

shoes with broken straps — *I’ve been holding onto these for years and have probably worn them 10 times? They’re about to fall apart so it was great to say Sayonara!*

Those shoes with the heel that’s starting to come off? Gotta go! Those flip flops where the toe part pops out on you? It’s time. Belts that are on their last leg – say goodbye my friend.

These broken accessories have probably been great pieces of your wardrobe for you and that’s why they have gotten so much wear, but most things have an expiration date! It may be a good idea to write down what you’re throwing away in this category to see if it’s something you might want to replace with something new later.

Stained Clothing

Now I know some people who can get a wine stain out of a shirt that’s been dried 10 times… that is not me. I honestly don’t even know how someone gets a tiny bit of ink out of a shirt. If you have an amazing tip to get stains out, I would love it if you would drop your knowledge in a comment!

Once a stain happens, if it doesn’t come out the first wash (I do have stain remover products, they just don’t seem to work that well) it then becomes a project to me, that might be time consuming and difficult… aaaand that is when it’s time to say goodbye. Declutter it from your wardrobe will make you feel amazing when you do the same.

stained navy shirt — It doesn’t look THIS bad in person – I just wanted to make sure the stains showed well, but I don’t know if a chapstick went into the washer with it or what, but it’s toast. It is a beloved shirt but I’m no bueno when it comes to getting out stains so off it went.

For a long time, there was a pink shirt hanging in my closet that had some type of grease stain. Maybe from a chapstick or something that it was washed with? Well, it never came out, I didn’t wear it for over 2 years – and lemme tell you, it felt great when I finally decluttered it from my wardrobe.

Ripped Clothing

Here’s the thing, I understand why you still have it. Because it’s something you really like. If it was something that you didn’t like you would’ve already gotten rid of it.

I have a dress that has a rip on it that could easily be repaired because it’s on a seam. But it’s been sitting in my closet, untouched, for a year.

Here is what I would recommend. Give yourself a due date that is no more than a week out. And if you don’t get it done by that day, it’s time to throw it out.

*If you have a piece of clothing that is unrepairable to YOU, time to let it go, my friend.*

If you don’t give yourself a short due date, you know what will happen. You’ll just procrastinate and procrastinate until another year goes by and the dress still isn’t fixed.

Actually if you really want it done, you should do it tomorrow. Or today, after reading this post.

Unwearable

This is an interesting category because there isn’t a definite list of things I can tell you to look for. Of course I have some ideas, but if you can’t find anything in this category, that’s fine! Maybe you don’t have any.

Something unwearable could be something that will never actually fit your body. For whatever reason, maybe the shoulders don’t fit yours or it falls off – essentially you will never make it work no matter how much weight you lose/gain.

Also, trust your gut, if you look at a piece of clothing and think – I will never want to wear that and you feel it immediately, just go ahead and let it go. It’s time.

black bralette — I’m not trying to get hoochie around here, but I wanted to say I declutter this bralette because lace and I don’t get along. I’m not sure why I bought it, but this is a perfect time to declutter it!

Lastly, it’s the item that makes you think , “Why do I even have this?!” Yes – that one! Get rid of it.

Again, these ones should be easy. This is the first sweep of declutter your wardrobe.

Now, that you have a pile – THROW IT OUT!

Or donate. Donate the things that aren’t ripped/stained/broken.

And get that feeling of “ahhhhh, that’s nice.”

young girl waving hands — *Think of Summer cheering you on! Honestly, she just wants photos of herself all the time, but I’m happy to do so.* *Honestly, that’s a lie – I really wanted to get these photos done because I was losing my light but she IS cute LOL*

We will do plenty more sweeps, but gathering and getting rid of these items – maybe it’s 5, maybe it’s 20 – will give you a little bit more room in your brain for the things you love in your life.

It’s time, start to declutter your wardrobe!

Be sure to snag a picture of an item or of your stack and share it on Simple in a Snap ‘s Facebook page or tag @simpleinasnap on Insta. I would love to see it!

Mucho Love,

Becks

Learn more about me here!

How to Buy Clothes you LOVE and Wear!

Some Inspiration

The Minimal Mom is an amazing YouTuber and has some really helpful tips for simplifying your wardrobe. Check out this video from her!