Spring Cleaning Your Closet for Better Organization

If your family is like most, your closets are among the most cluttered spots in the home. Many people try to keep all of their clothing in the closet year round, which is just fine for some walk-in closets. But if you have a smaller closet space to work with, you need to keep only the clothing that you can wear for the season at your fingertips. This means that when spring cleaning, the time is at hand to clean out those fall and winter clothes from your closet.

Getting StartedYou can easily make seasonal closet organization a family affair, and have the entire family doing this project at once. Before beginning, determine how you wish to store your off-season clothing. Some people just box it up in moving boxes or other boxes that they have salvaged from a local store. Others may have purchased boxes specifically for storage. You may have garment bags that you want to use to hang your off-season clothing in a storage closet or basement. Lots of folks now use those convenient space-saving vacuum bags that can be vacuum-sealed flat to fit beneath the bed. Or maybe you want to just sack it all up in a trash bag and toss it in the attic. Only you know the best way to take care of your clothing, so determine beforehand how you will store what and where you will store it.

SortingSorting your off-season clothing can be a lot of fun, especially if you are a stickler for getting rid of the things that you know you’ll never wear again. This might be because you’ve lost or gained weight, or because the item is out of style (or because your style has changed). As a rule of thumb, if you haven’t worn the item in the past year or so, it is time to find it a new home. This is true of clothing, shoes, and purses. For whatever reason, if you have items of clothing that you know you will never wear again, now is the time to get rid of them! There are several ways to accomplish this feat. If you have a family member or friend who likes to get your “hand-me-downs”, start a box for them. Another option is including these no longer needed items in a tag or yard sale, or, in the case of really nice clothing items, place them in a consignment shop. A consignment shop will try to sell the item for a particular number of days (usually thirty) and they get a percentage of the sale price. If your items don’t sell, you can either pick them up or give them to the shop to donate to charity. Donating your items yourself to charity is also a good idea for ridding your closet of things that you no longer wear. As a bonus, you can also get a receipt for the item from the charity that can be used as a tax deduction.

Helping Kids to Organize their ClosetsYour children may have a harder time than you when it comes to organizing their seasonal clothing. And there’s a good chance that they will have many items that no longer fit them. If you aren’t planning to hand down their used clothing and shoes to a sibling, cousin, or friend, then follow the same sorting rules that you did for your own closet.

And remember, for both your stuff and theirs, once you’ve made the decision to toss it out, don’t be tempted to rescue it from the rubble. An organized home is one that holds just the essentials.