I am not one for New Years resolutions, I’m all about finding balance and simplicity throughout the year, and one source of stress and disarray was definitely my closet. I have been inspired by the blog un-fancy to clean out my closet, and work on a capsule wardrobe to fix this problem. Life can be so chaotic due to things I cannot control, why not do everything I can to live simply, and end this cycle of conspicuous consumption?Here we go!

My approach was in 3 catergories, it can seem overwhelming otherwise:

Step 1: Completely empty your closet, I know this seems crazy, but you will understand when you start putting the pieces that you love and would change into right now back in your closet, and you start to see the development of your personal style. This would be difficult to see if you still had all of the “maybe” pieces still hanging in your closet.

Step 2: Sort each item into one of these four piles:

• Wardrobe staple and would wear it right now! These are pieces that you get excited to wear, and have worn in the past 2 months,  put it back in your closet.
• Maybe: This is for pieces that have sentimental value, unique vintage finds that you don’t know out to outfit yet, pieces that still have the price tags on them…
• Nope: Weed out the pieces that you have not worn in 6 months or more that you cannot see yourself wearing anymore, damaged items that you have not fixed yet, things that do not fit…sell, donate or do a fun clothing swap party with friends.
• Seasonal: Little strappy sundress when it is 30 degrees, fancy party dresses after wedding season/the holidays have ended…these are pieces you want to keep but are not going to wear right now. If you have space in your closet, when you put the clothes back in after the purge, separate into seasonal sections, if you need more space, seal them in boxes under the bed and take out when you need them.

Step 3: Pack up the “nopes” you want to sell into a rolling suitcase, put together a bag of what you are donating, and set aside pieces for a clothing swap party with your friends. Now hang your staples in color families back in your closet. Then, if there is space, make a summer/spring section, and an outerwear section. If you are trying to maximize space, pack the warm weather stuff into a box, and when that season rolls around, pack the outerwear into that box.

This seems like a ton of work, but only took me about 3 hours and it feels SO GOOD now that I can see what is in my closet, and have rediscovered some old friends I forgot about in the disarray!

Next step: taking my pared down wardrobe, and putting together a capsule wardrobe, STAY TUNED 🙂

Here are the before and after shots of my closet overhaul:

Half of my closet laid out on the bed in Step 1:

The empty half, so refreshing to put my favorites back in 🙂 the crazy mess on the right…

Un-shoppable closet…

The “After” of the right side whittled down to about 80 pieces, I have a suitcase of about 100 pieces in the “nopes” that I haven’t worn in years…

Heavy outerwear:

Heavy outerwear, fancy, and spring/summer on the left

Phew! Always more work to do, but feels so much better, stay tuned for my attempt at a “capsule wardrobe” in the next couple months 🙂

I wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year, Yay to 2016!  I hope this year brings all of you good luck, positivity, and adventure.  I am making it a goal write down at least 1-2 positive things from each day, something someone wise told me to manifest positivity into daily life. It will also be a concrete reminder I can look back on to keep me in a happy mindset when I have a bad day.

Before the New Year, my brother in law who is great at purging and organizing came to stay with us and helped us clean, and realize how much stuff we really have. In this blogosphere, I feel like buying and conspicuous consumption, a cycle that just keeps you wanting the next thing, and not using or appreciating  what you already have is a huge issue. Monetizing a blog is essentially advertising for companies, and feeding into that cycle. So this year I am going to attempt something I have never tried before, I am not going to buy any new clothes for a year, and shop my closet. I am lucky having worked in the fashion industry for the past 10 years, so I have some great pieces to choose from, and in my links to similar items, I am going to find items on sale, and at lower price points to get you guys some deals 🙂 Or, do the challenge with me, and try to create fresh and fun looks out of your own closet!

So excited for starting 2016 on the right foot, I can’t wait to share new and exciting photos, & projects on the blog so stay tuned, be sure to follow along on my Instagram as well: @oaklandblonde

XO,

Stephanie