Are you interested in simplifying your wardrobe? Does your closet feel cluttered? Do you suffer from analysis paralysis when it comes to deciding what to wear every day?

Want to find out how to keep minimum clothing without feeling like you have nothing to wear?

Check out these tips to get you started!

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Keys to a Simple Wardrobe

There are a few key steps when you evaluate your wardrobe and begin steps to simplify it!

What are you really wearing?

What in your closet and drawers are you really wearing? I know you’ve probably heard people mention this idea hundreds of times, but if you never wear it, why are you hanging on to it?

Go through your closet and see what you really wear frequently and put those to the side.

Next, go through that pile and take out all the items that you don’t LOVE to wear when you put them on. If you can only wear those orange capris when you have a shirt that covers your butt because it bulges in places it shouldn’t– not worth it. The stars shouldn’t have to align for your to get dressed in the morning.

One of the tricks I use when I am purchasing new clothes is my 10-second rule. If I don’t love a piece of clothing in the first 10 seconds of putting it on, I don’t need it– doesn’t matter if it’s on sale for $3. No one needs to hold onto something they don’t love just because it costs less than a cup of coffee. #amiright

Simplifying is great– but is simplifying and minimizing the same thing?

I’ve read tons of articles and posts about minimal wardrobes. Women who are able to create 30 outfits out of 9 pieces. That is never going to be me, ya’ll. I simply wear too many hats (metaphorical hats– not actual hats–ha!) to be able to skate by with only 9 items hanging in my closet.

I’m a mother. When I’m a home, my go-to is yoga pants and t-shirts (#nojudgements).

I’m a businesswoman. I’ve got meetings to attend and people to meet. Unfortunately, rocking those in yoga pants is a big no-no.

I’m a wife. My husband and I like to go out on dates and hang out together, just the two of us. Helps us stay connected in the chaos that is our life.

Seasons. What you wear in summer (for most people) will be drastically different than what you are rocking in winter.

My solution to all these hats (functional areas of my life)? A capsule wardrobe for each one.

Starting out– evaluate what areas you need your wardrobe to cover. I’m talking consistent needs. Not the 1 off event that happens every 10 years.

1. Write down what those areas are: work, home, seasonal needs, work-out, etc.
2. Of the items you’ve pulled out (items most worn) start separating those items into different stacks to meet the areas you’ve identified.
3. Once you’ve sorted everything out, look at what you’ve got in each section. Go through each wardrobe area and see what kind of outfits you are able to make from what you’ve got. If you’ve got 4 pairs of running shorts and 15 t-shirts, see what matches up and start putting outfits together.  The goal is to maximize the number of outfits you are looking to make, but minimizing the number of pieces you have.
4. Is there anything that you can bring out of the closet that you don’t wear very often but that you can incorporate to round off each capsule?

Anything that doesn’t have a home in one of these capsules gets put to the side to deal with later. 

Shoes, purses, and other accessories….

I love a good handbag! In college, these used to be the thing I’d go out and collect. I had a specific handbag for specific outfits and shoes. I obviously had more time on my hands and less sense when it came to being smart with my money.

Ahhh, my youth. *insert eye roll*

Accessories can really change the look of an outfit! You take the same black dress and change your earrings, necklace, and shoes– BAM— a whole new outfit.

I try to pick a few classic pieces for each area of my life. My husband gave me a fabulous set of pearl earrings the first Christmas we were married and I wear them almost every day, I love them so.

Go through your accessories and try to figure out where they fit within your groupings– the more crossover the better.

Bonus if you can stretch an outfit across categories with the help of accessories!

Shoes

Go through your shoes and see what you can thin out and where what you have fits into the different areas of your life. Do you have 4 pairs of sneakers? Do you need four pairs of sneakers?

Organize it.

Once you’ve got your different areas sorted– it’s time to organize it.

Let’s start easy first. If you have seasonal groups, go ahead and box those up until its time for that season. No reason having your winter coats cluttering up the closet when it’s summer hot outside.

Make sure you label the boxes/bins so you can access them easily.

For the items you need now– I highly recommend these hangers. 

They are slim, which means space savings. They are velvet, which means things aren’t slipping off the hanger. They don’t leave those weird marks in the shoulders of my blouses and sweaters. And they are uniform– which makes everything look and feel less cluttered. Win, win, win. I have these for my entire family and I love them!!

When you are putting everything back into your closet, try organizing by item type. All shirts together (short sleeve and long sleeve together), skirts, dresses, and slacks.

Scarves, belts, etc should all have their own organizer. I like this organizer for belts and this organizer for scarves. 

Organizing your closet makes it easier for you to find and access your clothing. Saving you time, effort, and energy.

Make that money!

Cleaning out your closet doesn’t have to be completely painful. Why not make a little extra money from all the extra “stuff” cluttering up your life. There are local consignment shops, thrift stores, and my personal favorite: ThredUp.

ThredUp is like an online consignment shop. If you are looking to sell, they will send you what they call their “Clean Out bag”. It gets processed (they go through everything) and then they’ll send you an email with your earnings. The first 14 days, you can use your credit to purchase items from the thredUP.com. After 14 days, you can cash out using PayPal or a thredUP Visa Prepaid Card. I’m kind of obsessed with this website.

Bonus! If you sign up through my link above you get a  $10 credit.

A little effort goes a long way

Simplifying your wardrobe may seem like tons of work, but after the initial organization and decisions are made, I think you will find it incredibly rewarding. More time back in your day and more money back in your wallet.

I’d love to hear how this has worked for you or if you’ve got tips and tricks of your own. I’m always looking for ways to save time and money.