The Simplify Project: Week 3
We have done good, hard work these past two weeks. And this week: Closets! I couldn’t wait, so I am sending this to you on Saturday in case you have the time to get started!
Clothing 101
Why are we looking in our closets day after day and sighing, thinking we have nothing to wear, but our closets are overflowing? There’s clearly a disconnect. On top of choice fatigue. And now we’re tired even just thinking about this topic.
Before we despair, take 60 seconds and close your eyes. Visualize how you want your closet to feel. What clothes are in there? How do you feel looking into your ideal closet?
Keep in mind your ideal feeling as you simplify. Your vision will help you know what to keep and what to say goodbye to.
We are going to keep it very, very simple. Two rules will apply for our clothing. Ready?
Rule 1: You MUST love it.
Rule 2: It MUST fit.
Yep. That’s it. If you follow those rules, you will absolutely succeed in simplifying your closet. I promise.
Borrowing from KonMarie and her amazing ways, as well as some tips on capsule wardrobes we are going to ROCK our closet and dressers! Here’s our steps. Do them sometime this week! Let me see all the before and afters!
Take every item out of your closet, your dressers, your drawers. Every piece of clothing must march on out and show itself. If you are feeling like you want a deadline, put it on your own bed, so you have to finish in order to sleep later. If not, the floor will do.
Following KonMarie, hold each piece of clothing and ask yourself if it sparks joy. If not, then gently tell it “thank you” and put it aside. Respect what has been purchased, remove guilt, say goodbye. The end. This then puts your clothes in a Keep (Joy) pile and a Not Keep (Thank you) pile. Very simple. Very intuitive.
For Marie, when in doubt, she says keep it. For Amy Seiffert, when in doubt, I say thank you and goodbye. If I don’t love it and know it (big feelings around here!) then I don’t need it. My joy meter doesn’t have a ton of wiggle room when it comes to clothing. I want it to make me feel great because I love it and it fits. Bottom line.
Hang up the clothes that you LOVE and FIT in your closet with the hangers all facing the same way. After you wear it once, hang the other way. This is how you can see what you are wearing the most or not at all. For drawers, I absolutely adore how Marie folds and stores her clothing upright so you can plainly see what you have. I have converted all my children’s drawers this way and it’s so easy. I cannot believe I am about to say this: but I am really enjoying FOLDING laundry right now. The compact folding is oddly satisfying. I know. Who am I? And my kids are all helping fold too! I am sure this is a short term fad for my circus right now, but I don’t care and will take any and all joy I can find regarding laundry. Even if short lived.
YOU DID IT!
Bonus Steps:
Make a lifestyle pie chart. Draw a circle. Divide up your time in a day. Are you home a lot with cozier clothes? Are you working in an office? Are you working from home? How long are you wearing the clothes in your closet and what kind are they? See how you spend your time and what you are wearing.
Make a list of what you may need. Does your pie chart show you that you actually have a ton of office-work clothes but now work from home, so more casual clothing will do? Or has your season changed and you are spending time differently so your clothes don’t match? Write down the items you may be missing. Be specific. Don’t write “more tops” if what you need is “a basic black long sleeve tee and a cream cardigan.” The next time you are shopping, look at your list and stick to it.
Closet Q and A with Amy
Q: What if I am in between sizes, or feel like I will one day fit into it, or am losing baby weight and need time?
A: Box up what you are saving. Have what you love NOW and what fits NOW hanging in your closet NOW.
Q: What about the seasons? I have summer things hanging up but it’s winter.
A. If possible, have only what you are wearing NOW in your closet. Pack the rest up. I have a Spring/Summer Bin and Fall/Winter Bin that I store above my hanging clothes. You can store these under your bed or attic. The goal is to only see what you LOVE and what FITS right in front of you. You don’t need unnecessary choices and visual clutter in front of you.
Q. What if I am overwhelmed in this process and I start to not like you, Amy?
A. Take a deep breath. Step away for a minute. Maybe call a friend to come over and help you when you’re not sure what sparks joy anymore. And even if you don’t like me, I love you, girlfriend. Ain’t no thang. I’ll be ok.
Q. How do you feel about capsule wardrobes?
A. I have done a capsule in the past. But I have found if I only have what I feel great in, then it has made itself a capsule and I am not stressed about getting the right number of clothing. I don’t have LOADS of amazing things, because loads of things don’t look amazing on me. Only a few good ones.
Ok friends, have a BLAST! Show me your before closets, your mound of clothing, and your after closets!
You can DO this, girls! Simplifying is SO good for the soul. Our outside order helps our inside peace.