Spring Clean Your Closets Now

As the fall turns into winter and it gets cold outside, many people decide to stay indoors rather than brave the elements. What can you do when you are sequestered inside your home? Get a jump start on spring cleaning! It’s time to thoroughly clean out your closets. Start with the one you use most often.

• First take everything out of your closet.
• If you have a temporary clothes rack, place the rack(s) in the middle of your bedroom and move all of your clothes to hang on it. If you don’t have a rack, pile the clothes on your bed.
• Next remove all of the other items (folded clothes, shoes, boxes, etc) and place away from the closet.
• Next clean the closet using rags and cleaner. Make sure to wipe down every shelf as well as the walls.
• Vacuum or sweep the floor to remove all dust. Clean the lights and consider changing the light bulb if it hasn’t been done in over a year.
• If your closet smells musty, use a product such as Febreeze to freshen the room. Cleaning should automatically make the space feel better.

Once the cleaning is done, you are ready to move your clothes back into the closet. Start with the hanging clothes.

• Determine what size you truly are and only put back those clothes that you can wear now.
• Organize your hanging clothes by type of clothing. For example, all short sleeve shirts should be together while all pants will be hung as a group. If you have not worn something in the last year, it does not get a space in the closet.
• If there is any doubt in your mind about anything that is on a hanger, leave it out of the closet for now. All clothes that are too big, too small or you have not worn in the last year will stay on the bed. We will get back to these later.

Next sort through your shoes.

• With the same mindset as with your clothes, only put back those shoes that look good, you have worn in the last year and you still like.
• Pair them together and place them in the closet as matching sets.
• If you have shelves for your shoes, put the shoes you wear most often at eye level.
• Running or athletic shoes go towards the bottom and high heels are on the shelves toward the ceiling.

Now go through your folded clothes, boxes and other items you stored in your closet and put back only those things you want to keep in there. Make sure to remove any dust before placing it on a shelf or on the floor.

After everything is neatly stored away, survey the space. The goal is to keep your closet functional and inviting. This is how you want your closet to look all of the time. What you see is also the motivation you need to go through all of the clothes still on the bed and other items sitting on the floor in the room. Ideally you give everything away that did not make it in the closet. If it is too small now and you plan on losing weight, treat yourself to a new pair of jeans once you get to your goal weight. Remember there are people out there who could use the clothes that you keep stored in your closet and never wear.

Although this project may take the majority of a day, you will be very happy with the result. And you just got a jump start on your Spring cleaning. When that season comes around you will have that much more time to enjoy the beautiful weather.

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By Kathryn LaBarbera

Download our Organization Guides to get your home organized for the spring. Visit our organizational Accessories page and find the right tie racks, pant racks, shoe racks, drawers, baskets or dividers for your home.