If you’ve ever seen my sister’s closet, you know one thing: she’s a shoe hoarder. Alright, to be fair, she’s gotten better. But boy, her walk-in closet just never seems big enough. Like me, she has a hard time giving anything up. It’s just damn hard sometimes to let things go. I blame my laziness for the piles of stuff strewn throughout my house, but that doesn’t change the fact that I need to stop hoarding. And what better time to quit this vice than spring cleaning, right?
Time to scrub even the darkest corners of our closets! Seriously, I have so much crap that one of my drawers won’t even close anymore. Recently, I’ve been starting to throw some stuff out, and my niece is ecstatic because she is the lucky recipient of much of my crap. I don’t know what she’s going to do with a balloon blower, but she’s excited about it. Kids, right?
Anyways, here are a couple of tips for keeping the inner hoarder at bay!
- Organize by Category
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For whatever you’ve decided to clean up (clothes or items), it always helps to keep things in their own place. For example, it can help to separate dresses from shirts or toys from important documents. The categories really are up to you. That way, you know how much you’ll end up from each category. You don’t wanna realize by the end of your closet overhaul that you have like two shirts left but more than 20 dresses.
- Create “Donate” and “Trash” Piles
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Let’s make sure the stuff that is still usable continues to be of use to someone else. You can even earn a little money if you want by selling your stuff in a garage sale, or as my family does, send it to Mexico to donate. A clean closet/room feels good but so does knowing your old stuff is a help for another.
- Think Back to the Last Time You Used It
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To really check if something is worth it, remember the last time you used/wore it. If it was years ago, it’s a definite throw away. But even if it wasn’t that long ago, think about the amount of times you’ve used it as well. Sometimes it’s hard to admit that you really don’t want something because you keep thinking about all of the times you might need it, but we gotta be honest with ourselves. As they say, the numbers don’t lie.
- Second Opinions Help
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It’s always been healthy for me to be around when my sister is trying to throw out a couple of things. The girl really doesn’t know how to say no. Sometimes I have to dig at her to be honest with herself and to really think twice about whether she needs to keep something. We all seem to have this weird paranoia of “what if” but that sort of thinking will only breed a chaotic closet. So get yourself someone you know will keep you accountable. We’re our worst critics, but jeez, when it comes to throwing away our stuff, we’re not.
- Do this Often
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I think it’s necessary to clean out your closet every once in a while, maybe even every two months. If we wait a whole ‘nother year, we might end up overwhelming ourselves each time the seasonally sanctioned “spring cleaning” comes around and be forced to spend more than a day really cleaning it all. (You don’t want to end up like me, who apparently needs a whole three days to get my crap together). Cleaning will be easier and faster if we don’t let things pile up.
So hit those closets, rooms, and drawers–whatever needs to be cleaned (everything in my case)! Trust me, it feels so good when you’re done. Plus, since we’re stuck in quarantine and all, cleaning might make the endless days go a bit quicker and you’ll feel like a productive little noodle. I think that’s pretty awesome. Anyways, I’d better go finish my own cleaning. Good luck!