Magic Of Tidying | Clothing (+ 6 tips for after you declutter)

Its all good and great to go through everything and declutter clothing. I always get stuck at the giant pile of donate, sell, and trash items? Will that actually sell, and is it worth the effort?

I spent all this money on these items and now I'm going to trash them? Surely someone can use them?

Then...I end up with a huge donation pile, but I'm wondering if it good enough to even donate?

Here's how we completed the KonMari Method of discarding clothing, and the few tips on what to do after you complete it.

Just seeing this series? Catch up with Why to Try the Magic of Tidying and Our Inspiration and the Weekly Schedule.

Declutter Clothing: What We Learned

• Don't downgrade items to lounge wear
• You will have enough clothes. Mitch reminded me that if I only keep 1/3rd, those are already the 1/3rd I actually wear, the others weren't even being worn and won't be in the future.
• Keep only things that bring you joy, would you still love it and buy it if you found it in the store today?
• Note, as you go, of any items you'd like to replace in the future. Mitch has a pair of work jeans he really likes but they have a hole in the you know where, so I will need to replace by the fall so he has them for yard clean ups.
• Start with out of season items , you will have a hard time getting rid of something you don't love but just wore yesterday.

Only after discarding, you can put away

This was difficult for Mitch and I to do. You want to think ahead to how beautiful things can look and how you will store them, but the process is not about how you store your stuff. Its about having the right items (that bring you joy) that you don't need crazy amounts of storage to be happy in your space.

Clean the space everywhere before you start re-filling and organizing the space. Its such a nice feeling to start with a clean space.

Shop the house for perfect containers first, don't go out buying tons of storage solutions. If you don't have a solution that mets Marie Kondo's guidelines then wait to purchase new. You will most likely be freeing up other storage containers while completing the rest of this process, then you can do a final shifting and organizing with just the items that bring you joy.

5 Tips for After You Declutter Clothing

This is hard for everyone, some have had more experience so its easier to push through the hard, but its still difficult for everyone. I new that the discard pile would be frustrating and difficult to dispose of, Mitch didn't really truly realize this. I ended up getting frustrated and had to remind myself that he doesn't have a lot of practice with this so throwing out a bunch of old ( like 8 years old you guys) shirts that he certainly doesn't wear, it still felt wrong to him. So here's the steps I take after the decluttering to ensure we are on the best footing possible going forward.

What to do with the discard pile?

1.Sell | Pick only the items that have barely been used, are very high end, and on trend. We are trying Thred Up this year and will let you know how it goes in the future, otherwise we would take items to a consignment shop.

2.Trash | Believe it or not, this is where most of your items are going, and thats hard for all of us to handle. You spent all this money on these items, just to throw them away.

My biggest tip? Any t-shirts that can be used as rags should be cut up into rags on the spot (CUT! otherwise they sneak back into freaking rotation somehow). This can be dangerous (no one needs as many rags as you have old t-shirts) so make sure your only doing this if they will be used. We DIY almost everything from painting, staining, to most of our mechanical repairs, plumbing, etc. so rags are at a premium. We haven't found rags good for cleaning, you might end up feeling good because you "repurposed them" but added back in clutter into your home because they won't be used.

3.Donate | This should be a relatively small pile if you trashed accordingly, even someone who doesn't have a lot of money  doesn't deserve your old clothing in disarray. Donate out of trend items that are in excellent condition these are the things that could help someone who is in need left themselves up.

If you wouldn't be proud to still wear it (if it still fit and was in trend) don't bestow the crap onto others in an effort to make yourself feel better about throwing it away. I know that was very pointed but its the truth.

Moving forward, tips for keeping things organized

4. Create a Capsule Wardrobe out of what you have, make note of any additions you would like to make in the future. I use Cladwell and started probably almost two years ago after my first round of Magic of Tidying. They now have a wonderful app that you fill up with similar wardrobe pieces as you have (you don't need to take countless pictures, just pick from their vast inventory) and it tell you what to wear each morning. The app even take your local weather into consideration!

Our closets were built in 1925 with the house and were the only two closets in the entire bungalow... as you can see we can't fit a hanger front to back in the space, so we have had to adjust or organization. Hopefully we will get to remodel this space at some point soon! Thinking a built in closet system will work wonders.

5. Create a Daily Uniform Look  Think about creating a uniform,either for weekends, work, or mom life. This past winter I got 5 long sleeve thermal white shirts to wear with a set of leggings as a winter uniform. It worked great, I stayed in my clothing budget and therefore was able to purchase a few high quality items.

Right now I'm hoping to save for some very expensive over the knee boots for next fall/ winter. I have worn cheap versions for years (Years!) they are a closet staple but I'd love to stop buying crappy versions and get a pair that will last for years to come.

6. Slowly add staple pieces that will last for a long time, it will be easier to keep the joy in your closet and save money on all the multiple cheap clothes you will no longer need.

Did you get around to completing the clothing this week? How did it go, what are your best tips? Let me know if I missed anything vital you would recommend, and get ready for next week: Books!

Week 1: Why Try The Magic Of Tidying

Week 2: Inspiration & Schedule

Week 3: Clothing

Week 4: Books

Week 5: Papers

Week 6: Misc   | Electrical, Office Equipment, Paper, Valuables , Crafts, Hobbies

Week 7: Misc   | Skin Care, Make Up, Bathroom, Meds, Linens, Bedding

Week 8: Misc   | Kitchen Equipment, Food, Cleaning & Laundry Supplies

Week 9: Misc   | Collectables, Toys, Sports Equipment, Seasonal, Emergency

Week 10: Misc | Tools, Garage, Vehicle Equipment, Basement

Week 11: Sentimental

Week 12: Getting Rid of Items (Garage Sale, Donate, Sell)