It's no coincidence that a lot of people look to their closets in the new year ready to get back to basics, get on the right track and declutter. It feels so good to shed the excess after the whirlwind of the previous year's holiday season, and only have what you absolutely love left behind! Today we're revisiting our best decluttering lessons and tips, and if you want some real deal inspiration, check out how I organized my own closet awhile back.
As an added bonus, I'm showing you exactly what my accidental capsule wardrobe looks like in this season, and the fabulous Project 333 Challenge that one of my team members introduced to me. If you want a great system for decluttering or have spring cleaning in mind, this post is full of closet refresh tips to get you started!
Closet Refresh Tips + Project 333
Lessons Learned from a Weekend Cleaning Out Just One Closet
We are a lot more productive if we set aside a weekend day or a full weekend every month to tackle cluttered spaces, because let's face it, you accumulate a lot of stuff especially when you're raising children. For big or overcluttered spaces, you'll want to make a game plan before hand.
Clear the calendar for as much of the process as possible! The actual decluttering, bagging and boxing up of what is going out and what is staying, plus drive time to get items you're passing on to where they need to go. I try to move items to their new destinations whether that be a donation center, a recycling center, or the trash bin, at the end of every decluttering day.
Focus on one space, big or small, at a time. If it's not the whole closet, maybe it's the top shelf. Pick the size of your project that will ensure finishing within your weekend. The satisfaction of that will keep you inspired for the next time!
Remember that things sitting stagnant in a closet aren't serving you, or anyone else. You have a way better shot of items serving someone if these items are available for someone to take home and use. I have a rule that if I don't wear or touch something for a year it needs to go. I'd rather bless someone else than have stuff sit around unused. After all, clutter = chaos in my humble opinion.
With all of my decluttering over the years, I had created an accidental capsule wardrobe. Can you tell my branding comes from somewhere? #sorrynotsorry So when one of my hip team members Katherine mentioned the Project 333 Challenge, I thought, "huh, I think I've done that!"
Project 333™ is a minimalist fashion challenge, created by Courtney Carver, that invites you to dress with 33 items or less for 3 months. Now those 33 items can be a combination of whatever you love - if you're a purse person, or a shoe person, that can be as many of your items as you want, and only 3 shirts and 2 pairs of pants! If you're a dress person, that can be the majority of your capsule too - it's all about you and your preferences.
And having lived this for much longer than 3 months, I can absolutely tell you that this amount of clothing is absolutely sustainable for the long term. If you have big weather fluctuations each season, you can always switch things out, but I bet we all haven't seen only 33 items in our closets for years and years!
If you agree with me on my selections, I have linked them below, but what you already have is absolutely enough. I share this as inspiration and a fun exercise to see how consistency can look.
Are you doing a big closet cleanout or getting ready for spring cleaning? Share your battles or your battle plans below!
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