Decluttering for a Simpler Christmas: Clothing

Do you feel overwhelmed at Christmas with all the extra “stuff” in your home? One of the best ways to simplify Christmas is to declutter in the weeks leading up to Christmas. 

Today’s decluttering project is to declutter clothing. I don’t know about you, but we receive a lot of clothing as Christmas gifts, plus my daughter’s birthday is in October and my birthday is in December and we both tend to be given clothes for birthdays too. So, usually around this time of year I go through all our closets and dressers to purge clothing and make room for the new items we receive.

Here are some suggestions of clothing you can purge:

• Anything that doesn’t fit (and that realistically won’t fit again in the next year or so)
• Clothing that is worn out, stained, torn, has missing buttons, etc.
• Items that you no longer love or feel great in (even if you loved them in the past)
• Pieces that are no longer your style or preference
• Things you bought or were given awhile ago but have never worn (honestly, if you loved it you would have worn it by now)
• Clothes that you have too many of
• Mismatched pieces (e.g. pj tops without bottoms) or clothes that need a very specific colour/pattern to pair with

Examples of clothing I’ve decluttered:

When my kids were younger, I decluttered their clothes a few times a year, but always before Christmas. They were good at knowing what they liked and didn’t like, and we had several family members we could hand outgrown clothes down to. Here are a few “hand-me-down” bags ready to go.

Now that my “kids” are older, they usually declutter their clothing themselves. Not always before Christmas, because they’re tired after a busy term at university, but often after Christmas when they’re trying to put away all the new clothes the received as gifts or bought with gift cards.

My hubby and I usually go through our closet and dressers before Christmas too and donate clothes that no longer serve us.

It’s a great feeling when all of our closets and dressers are filled with clothing that fits and that we like and actually wear.  And when they have room to breathe for a little while, knowing we’ve made room for the new clothes we tend to receive as gifts.

It feels so good to purge clothes! There are so many charities that love getting donations of gently used clothing. Knowing your clothes will help someone in need, instead of taking up space in your home, is a win-win.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed with clothing in your home, take some time to purge some of it.  It will make choosing outfits simpler and you won’t have to fight to fit everything in when you’re putting away laundry. Plus, you’ll have space to add new clothing gifts after the holidays! 

Ready to decluttering some clothing? 

If you need help decluttering or organizing, contact me for in-person organizing services in the Mississauga area, or virtual organizing services anywhere else. 

Happy decluttering!