What I've Learned While Trying to Build a Minimalist Wardrobe

One of the first places I started when I decided I wanted to try minimalism was my closet. Clutter in general is always a big source of stress for me because frankly I'm lazy and really awful at cleaning up after myself. The logical solution to this would be to simply have fewer things to have to clean up. Not only does it allow for quicker clean up but it also means you just literally don't have enough stuff to make a mess with.


I mean, I'd probably still find a way to make a mess even if I just owned two things, but it would at least be considerably easier to put those two things back in their correct spots.

I'm not interested in de-cluttering to the point of literally owning two things but you get my drift. Less stuff = less opportunity for mess = less time spent cleaning up after yourself.

Here are a few things I've learned as I've parred down my wardrobe to about half of it's original size:

It gets easier the more you do it.
My first run through of my closet was painfully overwhelming. I took everything out of every drawer and cubby and laid it all out on my bed. As I looked through things I eventually got so overwhelmed that I was only able to get rid of a handful of tops.

Then, as I continued to go through my regular daily routines, I found myself being more mindful every time I put on a shirt and realized that it didn't make me feel amazing. I started mentally noting things that I wouldn't be sad to see go. By the next weekend I was able to get rid of an entire garbage bag full of clothing. The trend has continued and now I've gotten rid of about 4 giant bags.

The most fulfilling part is finally dropping the bags off at Goodwill and driving away into the sunset. A very literal weight off your shoulders.

You don't need as many clothes as you think.
There's always that nagging feeling in the back of my head when I'm getting rid of something, the voice that's yelling "But what if!" What if some day I wish I hadn't gotten rid of this? There are a few ways I squash that voice out:

Odds are that day will never come and, if it does come, the feeling of regret will last approximately thirty seconds and then you will go back to living your damn life. No object is worth agonizing over.

Put the clothes in the garbage bag and leave the bag in your closet for a couple of weeks. You will most likely forget what you even put in there. Get rid of it.

Clean out your closet at the end of a season. You'll have a very good idea, after 5 endless months of winter, which sweaters you never touched. Get rid of them.

You more than likely only wear about one fourth of your wardrobe at best. Make sure that everything you wear makes you feel amazing and get rid of everything that doesn't and you will quickly find that you don't need as many pieces as you thought you did.

Decluttering is really fun.
I feel like a damn genius when I get done cleaning out my closet and have bags of things I don't need. I feel like I tricked the system. I want to sing and dance and tell all my friends about how much crap I got rid of. I feel like a new woman. I feel refreshed. I feel ready to take on the next day. I feel like I have a grip on what I own and what I need instead of feeling like I'm constantly wading through piles of clothes that make me feel mediocre. No more!

I challenge you to start right now. Go to your closet. You know the exact blouse that makes you feel like a frumpy blob. Take it out of your closet, put it in a bag. Do that every day. Do that every time you try on an outfit and hate it. Free yourself from mediocre clothing that makes you feel awful. I dare you.