Doing the Purge...of your closet, of course!!!!

When I started on the style rediscovery journey, my main issue was that I didn't feel like I looked like myself.  Most of the time, I headed out the door in what was comfortable...what was was clean...what was quick.  There's nothing necessarily wrong with dressing this way if you have the right pieces in your wardrobe.

My problem was I had all the wrong pieces.  Most of the items in my closet were not reflective of my sense of style.  They were random buys.  I bought it because it was on sale.  I bought it because I needed it for a function.  I bought it because it was my size, etc.  Does this sound familiar to some of you?

This is so not my closet. If only I were this neat...

So how do we work on this problem?  We have to do a closet purge.  It's painful but its worth it.  I suggest you purge on a day when you don't have other pressing issues.  You need some time...a lot of time...and maybe caffeine and sugar or maybe alcohol.  No wait! You need a clear head so no alcohol.

Here's some other things you need.

• A full length mirror
• A clean space to lay out your clothes
• Trash bags

My mom used to make us purge toys and clothing on a seasonal basis so I follow the same format I learned as a kid.  Everything and I mean everything comes out of the closet! Don't pause to look at anything. Just place them on the bed or wherever you have designated as your clean area.

Part I - Make your piles
You will be making the following three piles:  Keep It, Give It, and Trash It
Go through each item of your closet.  Go on first impressions. If you love it, it hits the Keep It pile. Hate it, the Give It pile. If the arms are falling off or moths have taken up residence, it hits the Trash It pile.

Part II - Sorting your Keep It pile
Next, I want you to start sorting through your Keep It pile and ask yourself some questions:

• Does it fit? Don't hold onto a dress you wore when you were two sizes smaller two years ago. The same goes for anything too big. Let them go. Also don't make assumptions about the size listed in the garment. Try it on.  This is where your full length mirror comes in.  I can wear anything from an 18 to a 28.  If I'm really in love with something hanging in the closet that says size 18, I try it on to make sure it still works for me. 
• Does it wear well?  This is a little different than the above. This is about how the clothes move on your body.  For example, I had an electric blue miniskirt that I loved. When I put in on, I looked fantastic but there were two problems. I couldn't walk in it because the skirt would rise up as I moved and I couldn't sit in it because it would hike up to the point of indecency.  So unless I planned on standing in place all night, it had to go.
• Does it have stains that can't be washed out?  Ever wear a shirt thinking no one can see that oil stain from the pizza you had two weeks ago?  I'm guilty of this. On my first date with my ex beau, he mentioned I had a stain on my shirt.  I knew the oil stain didn't come out in the wash. I hoped it wouldn't be noticeable. It was.  Sometimes you have to let garments go or re-purpose them.  That shirt became a shirt I wore while crafting. Quick tip: Before you toss it in the wash, check out Good Housekeeping's Stain Buster for some ideas to get that garment clean.
• Is it in disrepair? Can it be fixed?  You know that jacket hanging in your closet that's missing a button?  The shoe with the broken buckle? The purse with the broken strap?  Before you junk it, figure out if you fix it.  If its beyond your scope of knowledge, visit your neighborhood dry cleaner or cobbler. And please don't think you can wear that blouse with a safety pin and no one notices.  We all noticed. We're all pitching in to buy you a needle and thread.
• Is it dated?  This is a tricky one. Sometimes things come back in style but lets face it...the acid wash bomber jacket I had in high school is NEVER coming back in style. Even if it did, would I wear it?

Now, from your Keep It pile, you should have some strong contenders for your wardrobe.  Hang up everything that doesn't need to be repaired or cleaned back in the closet out of sight.  Everything that needs to be repaired or cleaned, place in bags labeled for cleaning and repair and place that in the closet too.  Whatever needs to be trashed, toss in your original Trash It pile.  Whatever can be given away add to the Give It pile.

Wow, that took some time! I told you it was painful.

Part III - Tackling your Give It pile
Fold the items to be given away. Examine each carefully and discard anything that should go in the trash bag.

Part IV - Take Out The Trash
Simple enough.


Part V - What do you do with the Give It pile
I'll talk about that later this week. For now, place everything in one of your unused trash bags.

Any questions so far?