Sorting out a wardrobe

More storage is not the answer

When a wardrobe fills up, the instinct is to buy storage boxes, but more space usually just means more clothes. The first step in sorting is not making room but reducing the amount. The more clothes there are, the longer it takes to choose, and you end up rotating a few favourites while the rest just take up space. A packed wardrobe also crushes clothes into creases and blocks airflow, which encourages damp and odours. There should be enough slack between hanging items to slide a hand in easily, which makes them easier to take out and kinder to the fabric.

Take everything out first

Looking at items one by one inside the wardrobe hides what should go. Pulling out a whole season's clothes into one pile shows at once how many similar items you have and how many you actually wear. Finding several garments of the same colour and shape is common. Trying to do the whole house at once is tiring and often stalls halfway, so split the job into small parts, tops today and bottoms next time. Sorting what you take out into three piles, keep, let go and undecided, speeds up decisions.

Criteria for what stays

Clothes kept because you might wear them someday usually turn up again at the next clear-out. If deciding is hard, set criteria in advance and apply them mechanically. If any of the following applies, lean towards letting it go. Many items are kept because they were expensive, but the money is already spent and keeping the garment does not bring it back.

• Not worn once in the past year
• Needs altering before it can be worn, and has not been taken in
• Does not fit, with no realistic plan for it to fit soon
• Bothers you when you wear it, so you never reach for it
• You already have several items doing the same job, and this is the least worn

Put undecided items in a holding box

Forcing a decision on clothes you cannot make up your mind about stalls the whole process. Gather them in one box, write the date on it and open it again a few months later. If you never took anything out in that time, you can clearly live without them and the decision becomes much easier. Limit yourself to a single holding box for this to work; once boxes start multiplying, you are not sorting, just relocating. Clothes you keep for sentimental reasons rather than to wear can go in a separate small box of their own, so they do not mix with what you wear and the wardrobe feels much lighter.

Hanging versus folding

Hanging everything ruins the shape of some garments. Knitwear and jumpers stretch at the shoulders under their own weight and are better folded, while shirts and jackets, where creasing is the problem, are better hung. Wire hangers leave shoulder marks, so avoid them for anything hung long-term. Using one type of hanger keeps everything at the same height and easy to scan, and storing folded clothes upright in drawers rather than stacked lets you see the ones at the bottom so everything gets worn.

Before seasonal storage

Anything stored until next season must be washed and fully dried first. Invisible sweat and food marks turn yellow and set over time. Moisture causes mould and odours, so confirm that clothes are completely dry before sealing them and add a desiccant. Vacuum bags save space, but down jackets and knits may not fully recover after being compressed for a long time, so compress bulky items only moderately for long storage.

Keeping it that way

Even after a good clear-out, if more clothes come in than go out, things return to how they were within months. The key to keeping order is controlling what comes in. Sorted clothes have plenty of destinations besides the bin, and choosing one that suits their condition makes letting go easier. Clothing bank locations and accepted items vary by area, so check your local rules.

• One in, one out
• A short check each time the season changes
• Good condition: resale, giving away, donation
• Hard to wear: clothing bank (check local rules)
• Stained or worn out: reuse as rags before disposal