Are you tired of opening your closet door or dresser drawers and seeing an overwhelming amount of clothes? Clothes that you don’t love? Clothes that are old? Clothes that were bought on a whim because they were on sale? I feel ya! I’ve totally been there and it’s so overwhelming that it’s almost crippling. You have tons of clothes but you don’t even know what to wear! You’ve collected things without a purpose and now you have no method to the madness. It’s time for change. It’s time to get rid of what you don’t love. Here’s how to build an intentional closet so you can open those doors and love what you see!
Declutter
First things first, before you build an intentional closet, you must declutter what you currently have! You must do a little dirty work before the fun. And that means getting rid of everything you don’t love.
I have an entire blogpost HERE on how to clean out your closet, but here are the simple steps:
- Take everything out of your closet
- Ask yourself these questions: Is it in good condition? Does it fit? Do you look great in it? Is it versatile? Do you love it?
- If you can answer yes, then keep it! If you answer no, then get rid of it!!
- Put only the things back in your closet that you love.
Evaluate
Now that you’ve decluttered your closet and gotten rid of everything that you don’t love, it’s time to step back and evaluate. Do you notice any patterns? Do you like wearing certain colors? Does your closet have crucial missing pieces? Take a good thorough look and evaluate what you have and what you need.
Get some inspiration by following people on Instagram, Pinterest, or blogs. Make note of what styles you like. Do you currently have any of those pieces? Do you need certain pieces to get those looks?
Plan
Now, make a plan! Make a list of what you need. The most dangerous thing to do when going shopping is to go without a plan or a list!! This will cause you to buy things you don’t need and spend money frivolously. You’ll get suckered by sales and will lose track of your focus. You’ve gotta be smart and have a list of what to look for. And then stick to the list! Shopping with a purpose is essential!
Budget
After you plan, make sure you have a budget. How much money do you have to spend? How many pieces of clothing do you need to get? Having a budget will keep you on track and will make you pause and really think before you purchase something. It’s easy to buy something when it’s a steal of a deal! And it’s easy to buy something when you don’t have a budget because you’ll just buy whatever you want! But when you have a budget and you have a plan, it helps you stay focused on making intentional purchases.
Having a budget and a plan will help you save money and keep you from purchasing pieces without intention. You don’t want to add more clutter to your closet, so be smart!
Shop
Once you’ve decluttered, evaluated, planned, and budgeted, it’s time to shop! Whether you want to shop from the comfort of your home online or go in person, here’s the fun part! Because you’ve done the prep work, you will be able to shop with a clear focus and purpose. You know what you’re looking for. And sometimes the crazy thing about being a smart shopper is that when you’re looking for something specific, it seems like the universe is against you and it’s hard to find!! But that’s ok. Once you find what you’re looking for, you’ll appreciate it even more!
When shopping, make sure to ask yourself these important questions before you pull out your credit card to pay:
- Is this on my list?
- Will it go with other pieces in my wardrobe?
- Do I look great in it?
- Is it high quality?
- Is it versatile? Can I picture wearing it in at least 3 different ways?
- Is it within my budget?
- Do I love it?
Asking yourself those questions will help you make a smart choice instead of a quick sale.
Tips
Here are just a few last quick tips when building an intentional closet:
- Don’t let a huge sale reel you in. Be strong. Stick to your list and your budget!
- Pick a color scheme and stick to it. You want to make sure your pieces can coordinate well with each other in your closet.
- Buy pieces that are high quality so they will last for years instead of for months.
- It’s ok to spend more than you usually spend on a piece because you are thinking long term. Invest pieces will last your for years and that means that those investment pieces might be pricier. But you’ll end up saving money in the long run because your cost per wear ratio will be better.
With these steps and with a little planning and patience on your part, you are well on your way to build an intentional closet! Say goodbye to the closet overwhelm and hello to a closet that is full of pieces that were bought with purpose with pieces that you love!
