It’s that time of year, my friends. That time of year when your closet needs a good combing-through. But, don’t look at this as too daunting or un-fun a task — instead, focus on the outcome! A great closet is a real sense of joy and even pride. It will help you get dressed faster each morning, look better each day, and save you a lot of time while doing all that, too. As a gentleman, your closet should be something well organized, neat, manly, classy, and, most of all, something you like looking at and using. Spring cleaning is the perfect time to actually make that all happen. Here are five of our top tips and tricks; if you follow them all, you’ll be one step closer to turning that dream closet setup into a reality.
One: Set aside a whole day
Yes, that’s right. Pick a day this weekend, or take a day off from work. It doesn’t matter. But you’re going to need some serious time to make this happen (though a whole day should be just fine). Your perfect closet is not going to happen over night. But, it can happen in a day. Set aside real time for this. It matters, and it’s important to you, and, that being the case, you should give it the time that it deserves.
Two: Go through and try on each item, one by one
Break down your closet into sections (dress shirts, shoes, sweaters, tees, etc), and then try on each item from each section. Make sure nothing is ripped or torn or moth-eaten. Make sure you still actually like each item you try on. Style changes. Taste changes. And your body changes. What you liked, or what was stylish, or what fit last year might not anymore. Figuring this out will help make the next step a lot easier, and the only way to do that is see and try on each and every item in your closet.
Three: Keep only what you wear
There are lots of different articles like this online, with all sorts of different tricks to help you decide what to keep and what to get rid of. What they all come down to is do you or will you actually wear the item. If the answer is “no,” then get rid of it. Now, sometimes there is a grey area and things are not so sure. But, ask yourself: Do you remember wearing it in the past year? If yes, and you enjoyed wearing it, keep it! If not, then that’s because you didn’t wear it at all, or you did but it was no un-noteworthy to you that you don’t care for it really. (Yes, you can use the “reverse the hanger when you wear something” trick to help you here, but most people don’t keep that up, really, and it only works for items you hang.) The simple fact is that if you didn’t wear it in the last year, you’re not going to wear it in the coming year. So, why is it taking up space in your closet? Get rid of it. Keep only what you actually wear, and enjoy wearing. If you don’t love it (or, at least, really like it and like wearing it), then get rid of it.
Four: Think of a friend or family member
When it comes to getting rid of clothing you once bought, it’s definitely not an easy thing to do. That’s why we suggest having a specific person or two in mind — a friend or family member — that you know shares a similar size to yourself. Give this person any clothing that is still in great condition but that just does not work for you and your closet anymore. This, we have found, helps a lot with the mindset of getting rid of things, since you know it is going to good use, won’t just be thrown out, and isn’t truly gone if, for some unlikely reason, you decide getting rid of a certain item was a terrible mistake. We bet this will never happen, but if it does, a good friend will understand.
Five: Donate
Another way that really helps in getting over that hurdle of deciding to get rid of something from your closet is knowing you are donating to to be used by people in need. Resolve in your mind that, if you don’t have someone in your life you think would like or enjoy a particular garment, that you will donate it. This should help you with that mental block of being able to part with something you see as still perfectly good — but that, in all honesty, you just never ever wear and don’t really like — as well as, more importantly, helping people that need it! This donation turns a yearly spring cleanup into something that gives back to the community, as well as results in you enjoying getting dressed in the morning even more. Win-win, if we’ve ever heard of one.