I Love Clothes But Hate Mess—9 Decluttering Wardrobe Tips I Rely On to Stay Organised

Full disclosure: I am somewhat of a self-proclaimed wardrobe decluttering expert. My credentials? The fact that I recently relocated to London from Sydney, meaning I had to pack up all my possessions into as much checked and carry-on luggage as the airline would allow.

In the lead up to the big move, I spent an entire Saturday living out my Sex And The City: The Movie fantasy, trying on nearly everything I owned to decide what I’d keep, store, sell, donate and extend the life of through other means like tailoring, altering and deep cleaning. Despite what I had imagined, decluttering my wardrobe wasn’t as chic as Carrie Bradshaw prancing around her Brownstone walk-in and drinking champagne. It was dusty, sweaty and messy work. But with a little bit of elbow grease, and a helpful hand from my mother and sister (who were allocated to taking photos of the pieces for selling on digital second-hand marketplaces), I managed to declutter 25 years into 3 full-sized suitcases and a duffle bag.

Indeed, after eight hours sorting and separating the “loves” from the “leaves”, there was nothing like the sweet relief I felt with a clean, organised and clutter-free wardrobe. The breath I let out after letting go of clothes that no longer fit (both literally and figuratively) was a release I’m still chasing. Thankfully, I’ve not yet built up a stockpile worthy of a purification since then. However, given we’re in the period of spring cleaning, consider the seasonal change an invitation to transform your space and bring a lightness to your life.

“An organised wardrobe makes for a calmer mind,” Amy Bannerman, eBay’s Pre-Loved Style Director, tells me. “Having stacks of jeans that don’t fit and stuff that doesn’t fit my lifestyle anymore, just makes me feel overwhelmed when I’m getting dressed,” she adds. “If you only have items you love in your wardrobe, you will discover combinations you hadn’t considered and getting dressed will actually be enjoyable.”

In the aftermath of my substantial wardrobe declutter, I was exclaiming to a colleague how I had finally reached a place where I felt well and truly satisfied with the contents of my wardrobe. Everything worked together. There weren’t any pieces that I had decided could only be worn on special occasions or to the office, with all the garments cohesive enough to be dressed up or down. It’s not that I’m an astute minimalist dresser now or have a strict capsule wardrobe complete with a certain number of clothes. I still love shopping and regularly inject new pieces into my wardrobe.

What decluttering my wardrobe helped me with most is to consolidate my eye for design and learn about what silhouettes and styles I gravitate towards most, which, in turn, made my investments more discerning. It also prompted me to be more experimental with what I already have and fall back in love with things I had forgotten, long hidden down the back of my rack or squashed in a drawer.

Of course, starting the task is the hardest part. So, if you lack the knowledge or motivation of where to begin, I’ve spelt out a foolproof and step-by-step guide to the declutter wardrobe tips that actually work. You won’t find any drivel about deciding what “sparks joy” or ridiculous techniques like the “container method” or “10-10-10 rule”. Instead, just practical tips you can rely on to actually refresh and clear out your closet. Uncover them all ahead.

What Are The Benefits of Decluttering Your Wardrobe?

There are so many reasons to declutter your wardrobe that don’t include moving houses, cities or countries. “Decluttering your wardrobe is important not only because we need to keep it tidy and organised, but it is also extremely beneficial for our mental health,” says Laura Mountford. Known by her handle @lauracleanaholic to her combined one million followers across TikTok and Instagram, the author, podcaster and cleaning content creator explains that decluttering your wardrobe can lead to feeling more empowered and in control of your life.

“Decluttering your wardrobe will make it much easier to put outfits together that make you feel confident,” she tells me. Having a simplified space can indeed lead to an overwhelming sense of calm. I’m personally someone who stress tidies but often feels intimidated about diving into huge undertakings like this. But as this is an arena we interact with every day, decluttering your wardrobe leads to a more streamlined and welcoming environment to play in. After all, getting dressed should be fun!

Decluttering Wardrobe Tips, According to Experts

1. Set the Mood Before You Begin

Decluttering your wardrobe is all about putting yourself in the frame of mind. Start by setting aside a free day in your calendar to work through the task uninterrupted. I recommend beginning first thing in the morning, jumping straight into your activewear before picking up a coffee and a pastry and returning to confront years of wardrobe build-up. Open up all your windows in the room to improve ventilation and signify the shift you’re about to engage in.

Most importantly, line up some background noise. Blast an album you’ve been meaning to listen to or a new podcast episode. Turn on the next season of that water-cooler show you need to catch up on, or play classic music videos to take you back to the MTV days. Whatever it is, having some simulation in the background can make decluttering your wardrobe less of a chore and help romanticise the activity.

2. Invest in Durable Bags and Hangers

This is quite an unsexy tip, but invest in durable bags and hangers. Having storage solutions has caught me off guard quite a few times—you always need more than what you anticipate—so stock up on those affordable laundry bags, recyclable bin bags or sturdy boxes to ensure what you’re carting down to the charity shop or donation drop off point doesn’t rip in transit. Hangers are also essential for maintaining your decluttered area. I use hangers with built-in clips for my bottoms as it gives me more space in my wardrobe after everything has been culled, and velvet hangers on a swivel for my tops and outerwear so I can easily itemise everything the right way around. The mixture of wood and black fabric doesn’t matter to me, though I know this would irk others. Just make certain whatever you’re buying is good quality (no more flimsy metal).

Shop Wardrobe Essentials:

3. Wrangle Your Friends to Help

Cleaning doesn’t usually spring to mind when planning a friend date, but roping in someone to assist you with this errand can prove more beneficial than distracting. Not only do you have a second set of hands to fold and document the process, but a second opinion, too. Unsure if that dress is worth hanging onto for another season? Ask whoever is helping you out! Need someone to manage the playlist while you have your head down? They’ll be more than happy to oblige!

“I always find it helps to do [declutter your wardrobe] with someone else,” Bannerman acknowledges. “If we have a day of reorganising, it generally spurs me on.” Best of all, they might end up finding a hidden gem they can take home themselves. There have been countless times I’ve wished to raid a friend's wardrobe, so consider this the chance to pay it forward and repay them in clothing for their kindness.

4. Divide the Task Into Sections

Tackling this is a matter of breaking your wardrobe down into bite-sized pieces. I’m methodical in my approach, beginning from the start of my closet through to the right before jumping into my drawers. That’s because I arrange my closet by colour first, then length of the garment, with other ad hoc stuff like activewear and jumpers kept separately, folded away. You might prefer to do it by item type so you can get an overall look at everything you own by category. How you approach the task is less of a concern as opposed to what you declutter, but I find managing it in smaller chunks a more doable workload.

5. Ask Yourself Questions Before Deciding What to Keep, Donate or Sell

So, how to decide what to keep, donate or sell? You’ll inherently know the pieces you wear every day—these are pieces you want to keep. Of course, part of the reason for the declutter is that you find your everyday staples boring or not the most fashionable, but if you discard them, you’ll end up feeling that you have nothing else to wear. (If you live in leggings, it’s not like you’re going to all of a sudden wear that chintzy mini you bought for New Year’s Eve to go grab groceries in.) According to Bannerman, you can also ask yourself: “Have I worn this in the last year? Am I keeping this because I have an emotional attachment to it, positive or negative?

Bannerman also recommends asking yourself, “Do I like it?” but with a specific caveat. “With this one, I always imagine seeing this on someone else and think whether I would actually like it or I am just keeping it because it’s familiar to me.” Another factor to consider is the fit. We only want to hold onto things that serve us in the now. If you have to make lifestyle changes to wear a piece, I’d consider letting it go in favour of something you can wear and love in the present. “Are you holding onto the item out of guilt?” Mountford considers. “Are you trying to hold onto a past version of yourself that no longer exists? If so, then you need to break free. It will feel very empowering.”

6. Take Photos of What You’re Parting Ways With

Another logistical factor is what you’re doing with the clothes once they’ve been decluttered from your wardrobe. I’m a huge proponent of documenting as you go. Not only will this save you step down the track when deciding to list them on resale sites, but if there is a piece of clothing that you feel like you’re missing from your wardrobe after the purge, you can refer back to the images of what you edited down to see if you sold or donated it.

7. Rehome Your Old Wares

Once you’ve pulled all your clothes out and separated them into piles, it’s time to give them another lease on life. “Sell them on eBay so you can invest in items that might be missing from your wardrobe, " Bannerman recommends. "Once you have hung everything up, it might become apparent you no longer have a good black skirt or blue jeans, etc. This is a great way of investing in those key items,” she says. Bannerman also tells me about eBay’s “magical” listing technology, a tool that “uses AI to help fill in item specifics when a seller takes a product image, making listing pieces easier than ever”. This is something that Depop also offers, with apps like Vinted, Vestiare Collective and The Real Real also great platforms you can list your pre-loved items on.

Best of all, they're great places to buy from, with members of the style set regularly selling second-hand pieces from their own wardrobes, like Alexa Chung on Vinted.

8. Consider Changing Your Wardrobe Organisation System

Now that everything has been taken out of your wardrobe, it’s time to consider whether your current wardrobe organisation system is truly helping you. I’m a visual person, so I need to see my clothes to remember what I have and wear them. I keep my tops separate from my bottoms to easily pair a look, often starting with a colour or print that piques my interest. If my sweaters are stuffed away somewhere, they may never see the light of day again. To my surprise (and delight), this method of organisation is actually preferred by the experts.

“There are many ways to organise your wardrobe depending on the space you have, but I like to group the same items together so I can see what jackets or jumpers I have, for example,” Mountford notes. “You can then colour block within those sections so you can see all the tops or bottoms that are the same colour together. This will also highlight if you have too many white T-shirts or black blazers and may prompt you to further declutter.”

9. Check in With Yourself After a Few Months

Finally, make sure you take stock of how your decluttered wardrobe is faring after a few months. If you miss something, there’s no harm in repurchasing it, especially if your heart is pining for it! If you’ve noticed that your closet is overflowing after just a few weeks, perhaps you’ve tried to repopulate your wardrobe too quickly and not taken enough consideration when making a purchase.

I’m now coming up to three months after my move. When I first landed in the UK, I had to stock up on a few trench coats and additional sweaters to survive the harsh winters, so as we head into summer, I’ve already started thinking about swapping some of those pieces out for lighter spring outfits. Of course, this would mean I will have to repurchase them come October, but this is part of the beauty of fashion. There’s no linear path to style. You’ll constantly rotate through clothes as you age and come to redefine and refine your taste. The wondrous thing about these wardrobe decluttering tips is that they’re tools that will always serve you and help contribute to a slower and more circular fashion model. What’s more stylish than that?