Using the Changing Seasons to Simplify Your Closet

Twice a year, my husband and I rotate our clothes out. A lot of you may do this as well- you pull out your summer clothes when the weather starts warming up, and then put them away when it's time to bring out the winter jackets. We live in a small one bedroom apartment that has a single closet that holds everything from our camping gear to board games to Christmas decorations. This means that our actual space for clothes is limited and we've had to come up with ways to simplify our closet.

Rotating our clothes out each season has become one of the main ways that we keep our closet streamlined and efficient. Below are some of the ways we use clothes rotating to our benefit; I hope you'll find some of these ideas useful and contribute your own ideas in the comments below! 

Ask yourself three questions with each item of clothing that you are storing.  

1. Did I wear this item this season? This question is the main way we simplify our closets at the end of the season. If we haven't worn an item at the end of the season,  we put it in a pile to donate to the thrift store. If you didn't wear it through an entire season, what are the chances you'll wear it when you bring it out the next season? Sometimes if an item has particular nostalgic value and I didn't wear it that season, I'll keep it one more season and if I still haven't worn it after that second season, the nostalgic value has worn off and I can put it in the thrift store pile. 

2. Does this item still fit well? We all go through stages where our body may fit into clothes differently. Keeping maternity clothes around because you're planning on having more children is one thing; keeping clothes that are too big because you've lost weight and no longer fit into them is another thing. If I no longer fit into something or like how it fits on my body, it will go into the thrift store pile. 

3. Do I still like this wearing this item? I know that I go through seasons where I like different styles and my style changes a little bit. If there are items that I've had since college and feel like no longer fit my personality or style, those will go into the thrift store pile. Be honest with yourself- if you like the item simply because you wore it on a special date five years ago, but don't actually like wearing it now, then maybe it's time to simplify your closet and get rid of it. 

Utilize creative storage options to keep seasonal clothing out of the way. 

This obviously looks different for different people, but what we've found that works great for us are these under-bed storage containers.

 My husband and I each have our own that hold our seasonal clothing and stay out of sight and out of mind during the off season. The garage can be a great place to store seasonal clothes or perhaps an extra closet in a spare or guest bedroom. Getting creative and storing it in a place that's not normally used will help free up more functional space in your house. 

Don't replace everything you've discarded with other non-functional items. 

If most of us are honest with ourselves, we only wear a handful of items in our closet. Another vital component in doing this seasonal purge of clothing is having the self restraint to not go out and replace everything that you've just gotten rid of. I try and pay attention to the clothes that I wear on a consistent basis and try to buy clothes based off of that. I also keep in mind the clothes that got donated to the thrift store, and I try to remember why I no longer wore that item of clothing. Buying clothes out of impulse often leads to overcrowded and dysfunctional closets. Pay attention to the things you wear often and this will help you make better clothing purchases. 

By doing a seasonal purge of clothing and buying clothes according to what you often wear instead of what you like in the moment will really help to simplify and add functionality to your closet. 

What other ideas do you have to simplify your closet? 

Does anyone else do a clothing purge when rotating their clothes out? 

{This post first appeared over at The Simple Kind of Life Blog}