Your drawers are stuffed, and your closet is full of clothes for every season and every occasion, but you feel like you don’t have anything to wear – or you wear the same thing over and over again. Are you tired of the “mom uniform” – wanting to wear more than just leggings and a t-shirt each day?!? This episode is packed full of ideas on why reducing the number of belongings in your closet allows you to get out of this rut and start creating outfits that you like and wearing clothes that you feel good in.
Listen to this episode of the Intentional Edit Podcast now!
Full Episode Transcription:
A closet full of clothes, but nothing to wear your drawers are stuffed and your closet is full of clothes for every occasion and every season. But you feel like you don’t have anything to wear on a daily basis, or you wear the same thing over and over again. Are you tired of the mom uniform wanting to wear more than just leggings and a t-shirt each day, this episode, it is packed of ideas on how to reduce the number of belongings in your closet, so that you can get out of this rut and start wearing more so that you feel better. And like your outfits that you’re wearing every day. If you’re struggling with daily tasks, clutter organization, and finding any sort of work life balance, the intentional edit podcast is for you. It’s time to stop the chaos and live with more intention. I am Lauren and I am here to help you declutter implement systems and maximize routines that remove the overwhelming unorganized parts of life. Bringing simplicity to your home, come on. It’s time to create a life you love.
(01:03):
Hey friends, thanks for joining me for another episode of the intentional edit podcast. This episode is episode 28. We are going to dive into what is happening with the clothes in your closet. Why you have a closet full of clothes and probably over stuffed drawers and a lot of things you’re not wearing, but you are not getting rid of, of them. How can you feel good in the clothes that you have, or make some conscious choices to add to your wardrobe, with things that aren’t intentional, that you will wear that can last for the long term, let’s get rid of some of these things that you’re holding onto, that aren’t serving you and causing you to wear just a tiny little bit of the clothes that own, instead of wearing more of what you own. Before we dive into this episode, I wanna ask you to head over to your browser and type in intentional, edit.com.
(01:54):
That is my website. I have spent most of this year answering questions that you guys have been sending in the way that I am figuring out what topics to cover on the podcast is based on what you are sending to me, the comments you’re sending to me, and the question that you’re asking. If you are listening to this podcast, I know that you are struggling with something in terms of organization, decluttering, simplifying, you wanna learn how to meal plan. You wanna create systems in your home, but you don’t know where to begin, or you’ve already started the process, but you need more guidance along the way. Maybe you are interested in doing a coaching call with me or working with me in some capacity, but you haven’t taken the plunge yet. I want to help you. I am planning out episodes into the future couple months into the future.
(02:45):
And I wanna make sure that I keep covering the topics that are most interesting and most important to the majority of my listeners. In order to do that, I need you to send in your questions and it is super easy to do this. You don’t even have to type anything out. You could just leave a message for me, just like you would leave a voicemail for a friend. All you have to do is grab your phone, click on the link to my website, intentional edit.com or just open your browser and click and type in intentional, edit.com. A little gray box will pop up. It says is record. Now it’ll either pop up on the side or on the bottom and you click that and then just record a message for me with whatever you’re struggling with. It doesn’t even have to be a question you can just say, I’m a busy mom of three.
(03:33):
My kids are between the ages of two and seven, and I’m really struggling with getting to school on time. We can’t seem to get out the door, something like that. Or ask me a specific question. If you need a product recommendation, if you’re in the middle of an organizing project and you’re stuck in one place, ask me the question so that I can answer those on future episodes. If you don’t want to do it on the speak pipe button with the record word, to now button on my website, head on over to Instagram and just send me a direct message. The more people that send in questions or let me know what they’re struggling with, helps me go in the right direction with the podcast and keeps these episodes relevant to you so that I’m always giving you the information that you are interested in hearing.
(04:18):
One more time. I’m just gonna mention head over to my website, intentional edit.com, click on that button that says record. Now it will pop up for you in your browser. You can just leave me a message with your thoughts. What’s on your mind. What are your struggles? What’s overwhelming you or a specific question. I would really appreciate that. It’s a great way for me to keep my episodes current it with the information that you are wanting and get it out to you the quickest way possible. Now that we have covered that, let’s talk about your clothes, your closet. What is in your closet? I know most of you have drawers and hangers full of clothes, lots of shoes, maybe even clothes in a different room, like a guest room closet, or an entry or coat closet just packed full more often than not. The situation is that we have too many clothes.
(05:12):
We have an excess of clothes and shoes and accessories that we are not wearing. Even when you take time to do a closet clean out every couple of years, if you aren’t being intentional about what you’re purchasing, the clutter creeps in, and you have to continue to do these big decluttering of the closet every couple years, or even more than once a year, because it’s over full. You have too much stuff. We wanna put it into that. On this episode, I really wanna focus on how you can feel good in the clothes that you wear by eliminating the clothes that are not serving you right now in the first week of February, questions have come in. That’s why I’m covering this topic. Questions, keep coming in about closet, organization, and clothing, and how to decide what to get rid of, how you know that you won’t feel guilty.
(06:00):
If you get rid of something and then you need it in the future. Things like that. What that’s telling me is a lot of you made resolutions or goals to get organized for the new year. That that is common. If you are in the first week of February and you still sticking to and working through and working towards accomplishing those resolutions and goals, good for you because you are definitely in the minority group, because most people give up on their resolutions way before the end of the first month of the year. That’s awesome that you have kept going with this. I did record some episodes right at the start of this year. I think episode 20 and 22 about new year’s resolutions and sticking to habits and creating habits and systems and routines in your home that you can stick with all year. So that every year you don’t have to set these goals for and systems and simplification because you create the long lasting habits and systems so that they just become routine in your home.
(07:07):
And you’re doing them all the time. Go ahead and go back and listen to episode 20 and 22. If you are interested more about that a few weeks ago, let me look. Episode episode 23 was the closet purging guide. If you need to do a closet clean out, you need to go back and listen to episode 23, because it will walk you through step by step on how to clean out your closet and make decisions on what clothes you can get rid of. It truly is a step by step guide with questions. You will ask yourself about every piece of clothing that you are struggling to determine if you should keep it or let it go. The questions work. I’ve used them with myself. I use them with clients. I’ve had feedback from people that listen to the podcast and are using them. Make sure you go back and listen to that episode after this one so that you can really do a thorough clean out of your closet and get the maximum benefits we need to get rid of the clothes that are not serving you.
(08:06):
Every single thing that we purchase and we bring in our home is taking up our space and it’s taking up our time, takes up space and our home. So we have to maintain it. We have to give it a place to live. It’s either adding to the clutter or it’s put away in a cabinet or closet or container somewhere, but it’s still occupying our space. It’s something that we have to think about. We know that it’s there, whether we’re using it or not. It obviously impacted us financially when we purchased it moving forward. Once we do a thorough purge, it’s easier to be intentional about what we allow to take up our space. And remember that anything that’s taking up your space is also taking up your time because you have to take care of it and you have to maintain it. So when we talk about your clothes today, I said this a minute ago, a lot of people, most people that have a home and are struggling with what to wear, have an over abundance of clothing.
(09:05):
They’re not struggling because they don’t have enough pieces in their closet. The struggle comes from having too many pieces, too many things, too many options, and too many things that are out of style that we don’t like that are old, worn out, have a stain don’t fit, but we’re keeping them and it’s not serving us. It’s causing us to actually wear less. A few years ago. The idea of a capsule wardrobe became really popular and there’s different requirements and different guides for what a capsule wardrobe is. Some people say a capsule wardrobe only consists of 30 high quality, sustainable pieces of clothing that you wear. And you create these outfits by mixing and matching the different pieces to together. That doesn’t include things like undergarments and pajamas or swimsuits. It’s 30 of the main pieces that you wear for a lot of people that doesn’t seem doable.
(10:06):
There’s also a big number of people that took the capsule wardrobe challenge, cleaned out their closets and changed their lives by eliminating almost all of the pieces of clothing and taking a year or a little longer to purchase these high quality items instead of the throwaway fashion, the cheap and expensive stuff that you wear for a season and then never wear again, or you wear it and you still like it, but it’s such poor quality that it has deteriorated before you’re done wearing it. The idea of a capsule wardrobe, I think is very intriguing. Having a way to minimize the number of clothes in our closets and mixing and matching pieces together so that we’re wearing them to create multiple outfits is important. Most people are not going to be comfortable with taking the plunge and really saying I’m getting, getting rid of everything and only keeping 30 pieces.
(11:00):
It’s a big move. I think for most people, somewhere in the middle of the over abundance of clothes, you currently have holding onto things that you are never going to wear again. And the capsule wardrobe, very minimalist idea, somewhere in the middle is a great place. The ideas behind a capsule wardrobe are amazing. That’s kind of where I want to go with this episode today. How, what are you keeping in your closet? I already mentioned that you should go back and listen to episode 23, to know exactly how to purge, to follow that step by step guide, because we need to get everything out of your closet that you do not need, use, or want. If it doesn’t fit you, if it’s stained, if it’s a style that you would never wear or something that you don’t like anymore, it’s gotta go. You have to get rid of it.
(11:52):
And that episode will walk you through that. Talking about your wardrobe, you should feel good in the clothes that you have. A lot of us have had lifestyle changes significantly over the last two years, because going to work five days a week is not happening anymore. A lot of the clothes that we have for that work wardrobe have become irrelevant. Not seeing people. We don’t have to dress up, or we can just have a nice top on because we’re on a zoom call all day. Some of you are still going into the office. You are still wearing those clothes or maybe your work has transitioned. So it used to be a, a lot dressier. And now it’s more casual when things change and circumstances change. It doesn’t mean that we have to immediately get rid of all those clothes, but as time goes on and we see what’s happening, we notice that styles change.
(12:44):
At the same time, we have clothes that we haven’t worn in years. And that’s when we know that it is safe to get rid of those things and donate them. People that will actually use them. Things that you want to think about are reducing the number of items in your closet, because you’re not wearing most of the things statistics show that we wear between 20 and 30% of the clothing that we own. So most of the clothing that, that you have in your closet, you could get rid of. You would never even notice. So we want to put you in a position to where you’re gonna save time, because you’re not looking through 40 or 50 t-shirts anymore. Maybe you’re looking through 10 or 15 and every single t-shirt that is still in your closet. You wear, we’re also saving money because you’re not spending money on some thing you never wear, or maybe only wear a handful of times.
(13:38):
Then it kind of makes its way to the back over a few months and you don’t wear it anymore. When we take the decision fatigue away from our daily outfits or the clothing that we’re gonna wear, we become quick at making decisions. And all of sudden there’s less to select from. We can pick faster, no two wardrobes will be alike. And of course it depends on your lifestyle and the needs that you have. And like I just mentioned the needs for your wardrobe two and a half, three years ago might be significantly different than they are right now. That’s okay. So you modify what’s in your closet. You now are more intentional. You buying as many work clothes and fancy clothes that are office appropriate. If you’re not going into an office anymore, if you are a mom that is home and running errands and with your kids and you need comfy clothes, and that’s been your state for the last few years, but you still have a closet full of clothes from when you worked many years ago, that’s the same idea.
(14:38):
You don’t need those things. Do you have to get rid of all of them? Absolutely not go through the list that I gave in episode 23, about making decisions on the clothes that you should keep or get rid of, because most likely your style has changed. It has evolved. Your body has changed. And the things that were your favorites probably don’t fit you the same anymore. Your overall life has changed. So if you have a, the majority of your closet is work related clothing, and you’re not wearing that except for a CLO a few times a year, no wonder you’re going into your house. And you’re stuck in this rut of leggings and a t-shirt every single day, you don’t know what to put on because there’s this decision of what to wear every day. And you have the decision fatigue because you have a closet full of clothes that don’t apply to the life that you’re living and your daily activities anymore.
(15:29):
Have to start by purge, eliminating those things, but sticking to what makes sense in your life as it is right now, everything must fit. If an item doesn’t fit, it’s time to say goodbye. You have to get it outta there. What we really wanna focus on is items being interchangeable. Can you mix and match them? I know you’ve seen boards on social media or on Pinterest, where people do a, like a flat lay of an outfit. You can mix and match those or a travel guide. Where, how do you pack for two weeks in a small suitcase? It’s because you’re mixing and matching. Maybe you have a cardigan that you can wear over a or you can wear jeans, a tank top, and that same card. Again, that piece is going to work in multiple different ways. How can you style leggings, put leggings with a cute shirt and a blazer with dress of your shoes.
(16:27):
Those can be the same leggings that you’re wearing with sneakers and a t-shirt. When you buy high quality items that will last longer, and you have minimized your wardrobe, you are wearing the things because you’re creating a wardrobe full of pieces that you enjoy, that fit you, that you actually like feel good in that style. What I’m saying here is we’re thinking quality over quantity more is not better in terms of a closet. When you buy quality pieces that are interchangeable, you can wear them for a number of occasions, a number of events, and you feel good in these pieces. They will last longer. They will stay nice longer. If you’re trying to simplify all areas of your life and root reduce the clutter and the excess tackling your closet is a huge product project, but it’s so worth it. That, and the benefits trickle into other areas of your home and life.
(17:25):
It’s time to be mindful of the items in your closet. Just like you are in the other areas of your home. If you’ve started on this decluttering and getting organized and simplifying your home and life journey, be mindful about what’s in your closet, what are you allowing in your closet? What are you, what can you donate? Because you’re not wearing it anymore. You’re not using it anymore. I’ve mentioned the donation bags that I have in different places throughout my home. And each person has a donation bag in their closet. So if you put on something as an adult and it doesn’t fit, you, you don’t like it. Whatever it is, you can place it in that donation bag. And then when the bag is full, you just put it in your car and take it to wherever you donate your unwanted items that someone else can still use.
(18:17):
Put these in kids’ closets, too. And as kids are growing, then the things that you know, that you’re not saving for another child, you just put it in this donation bag. And once it’s full, it goes of your car and you drop it off. When you drive by the donation place, this prevents you from needing to do those massive closet cleanouts, as often as you would, because it’s like a one and done, you notice it doesn’t fit. You notice you don’t like it anymore. Or maybe you notice something hanging there. You’re like, I would never wear that. I can’t even believe I bought it. You just pull it off the hanger, top it in the bag. And when that bag is full, you don’t even have to think about it. It’s just outta there. And it gets to a donation place where someone else that needs an item can actually use it.
(19:00):
It’s benefiting them. And it’s benefiting you at the beginning. I mentioned that everything that you own takes up your time and it takes up your space. It’s filling up area in your closet. When you wanna feel good in your clothes, you need to purchase clothes by being intentional. Does it look good? Is it a decent price? Does it make you feel good? Does it fit well? Those are all things that you wanna think about. How versatile is it? Can you wear it for more than one occasion in, can you wear it for more than one event? Is it something that you’re gonna wear one time and then never, again, if that’s the case, it’s probably not a good purchase. When you’re buying quality pieces, it’s okay to spend some money up front. If they’re long lasting pieces that you can wear with a number of outfits and that you will be wearing often you to open your closet doors and be surrounded by things that you feel good in, things that you know, that you can wear, that, you know, fit you.
(19:59):
That make sense for the life that you are in right now, the stage of life that you’re currently in a big closet purge is in order. We’ve got to get the things out that you no longer need. Use a or want follow the purging guide from episode 23. Then you will have the pieces left that you like the pieces that make sense in your life. If you need to go out and purchase other things, it will be clear what you need. If you don’t have any jeans or you are lacking in sweaters or winter gear because of the climate that you’re living in. Once you’ve eliminated the pieces that don’t fit, you are not a style that you like anymore are not in style are something that you regret purchasing or that you are keeping out of guilt because there were, they were a gift.
(20:49):
Once all of those pieces are gone. Your closet is full of things that make sense for the stage of life that you’re in. You can use these things. We eliminate so much of the decision fatigue because you open the doors and you see things that you can wear. You know, they fit, you’re not search through things that can’t even be worn. Anyway, you have a closet now full of things that make you feel good to put on. You can put ’em on, you get dressed and you mix and match the clothes that you have to create a look and a style that feels good for you. And what you’re doing that day. If you have questions about a physical organization of a space, I cover that on a tip Tuesday episode in episode seven, with some of the solutions that I use for closet organizing, I can do some further episodes about that too.
(21:38):
I also have a lot of information about closet organization on my website. So you can head over there and check that out. I do share a lot of my favorite products and strategies for how to organize categorizing and keeping like items together are a big one. And using the space that you have so that it fits your needs is always gonna be one of the go-to things for organizing. You’re a busy person with a lot going on in your life, and you deserve to feel good in the clothes that you have, and it feel like you’re fits make you seem put together and that you are ready to tackle the day. I hope this episode helped you and motivates you to keep the clothes that you look good in and feel good in and let go of everything that isn’t being worn. If you don’t need it, use it or want it.
(22:24):
It’s time to get it out of your closet. Let that go. So it stops taking up your some time, surround yourself with things that you can use that are meaningful to you, and that make you feel good. Thank you for joining me for another episode of the intentional edit podcast. The episodes I mentioned today that will help you with closet organizings or episode 23 and episode seven. If you wanna know more about habits, how to stick with the habit and why systems, routines, and habits are the key to staying organized, go back and listen to episode 20 and 22. I would appreciate it. If you head over to my website, intentional edit.com, click on that button that pops up that says record now, and leave me a message about what you’re struggling with. What is overwhelming you, what’s frustrating you at home with physical things or events that happen throughout the day where your kids or family, as you stressed out, wanting to pull your hair out and just at your wits end or what are some spaces that you’re organizing? What are you stuck on? How can I help you get your, how organized get those systems in place and get simplified so that you can start living a life where you are enjoying it and can truly be there for the little moments that are so important. Thanks again, for listening to episode 28 of the intentional edit podcast, I will meet you back here next week for another episode.
(23:51):
Thank you for listening to the intentional edit podcast. If you found today’s episode valuable, tell your friends about it by taking a screenshot, sharing it on social and tagging me at intentional edit. I’ll be back soon with another episode in the meantime, find me@intentionaledit.com and be sure to follow intentional edit on social platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook, to ensure you catch future episodes, click the subscribe or follow button. Now I am grateful for a five star rating and review from you. Be sure to let me know what you liked about this episode and what you want me to cover in the future.
Listen to other episodes of The Intentional Edit Podcast.
You can listen to THE INTENTIONAL EDIT PODCAST anywhere you listen to podcasts!
If you have questions please send me a DM on Instagram. I do my best to reply to all the messages I receive.
Lauren is the founder of Intentional Edit, a home organization and lifestyle company focused on consciously editing to create efficient and organized spaces. Lauren believes that a functional home that looks and feels good has a positive influence on all aspects of life. Creating systems that allow for the home to function more efficiently, therefore, eliminating most of the clutter and chaos is her priority. While trends come and go organization is always in style!
Intentional Edit participates in select affiliate advertising programs. If you click and/or make a purchase through certain links on this site or any related social media platforms, Intentional Edit may make a commission. All opinions are my own.
My Favorite Organizing Products
Amazon | The Container Store
Where to Shop
Organizing
The Container Store | Target | Bed Bath & Beyond | Walmart | Marshalls | Ikea
Design & Decor
Wayfair | Joss & Main | West Elm | Crate & Barrel | Pottery Barn | Urban Outfitters |
Deals
Marshalls | Nordstrom Rack | Old Navy | Ikea | Amazon | T.J.Maxx | J.Crew Factory
Fashion
Nordstrom | Banana Republic | LOFT | J.Crew | Lululemon | Nike | Saks Off 5th | Abercrombie
DIY
Home Depot | Sherwin Williams | Michaels | Ace Hardware | Amazon | Etsy
Crafty
Michaels | Ikea | Etsy | Home Depot | Target | Amazon
Organizing | DIY | Recipes | Creativity | Design | Home | Shopping
I’d love to have you follow along. Find me here:
Pinterest | Instagram | Facebook | Blog
I’m Lauren, and I’m passionate about being organized and efficient and making spaces beautiful at the same time. I hope to inspire you to live your best organized life.
