I’ve been decluttering and organizing our master bedroom closet this past week and made a little checklist to follow and I thought you might like to use it too. So if you’re stuck in an decluttering or organizing rut and need a little guidance and a plan, pick a closet and follow these 5 simple steps.

Closet Organizing Checklist

  1. Quickly go through clothes and make a pile of clothes to donate – if you don’t love it, if it doesn’t fit, and/or if you haven’t worn it in a year, it’s probably time to lose it. Put these clothes in a bin, box or bag to drop off at your favorite donation spot.
  2. Organize clothes in a way that YOU can maintain – group like items together (short sleeves, long sleeves, pants, jeans, dresses, etc.). I like to loosely group clothes – jeans and pants, workout wear, short sleeves, and long sleeves. If you need to completely empty the space to see what you’re working with, do it. Keep it simple so it’s easy to work with and maintain.
  3. Remove everything else that can be removed. Wipe down all the surfaces – left to right and top to bottom. Vacuum the floors, corners, baseboards and wash the floor if it isn’t carpeted.
  4. Any new systems that can be put into place? Socks in a basket, drawer dividers, dresser in a closet, clothes in a bin, donate basket. A donate basket is a must for our closets – it definitely helps to keep clothing in check on a regular basis.
  5. Complete any laundry that needs to be done – wash, fold, hang and put away. Make sure that you’ve done the laundry so you aren’t reorganizing in a couple days. Get your system the way you want it from the start!

Tackle your closet in an afternoon or do a step a day for five days – however you break it up, you’ll find that an organized closet makes doing laundry easier and it also makes the ‘what to wear’ process simple. If you put in the work to cull your clothes and pick just the best pieces that fit and you love and enjoy wearing, you will save time all around.