How much clothes storage is normal.

[Everyoneesleistheproblem]

So I'm having a long overdue clothes clear out but no idea how much I should chuck out.

One of the issues is that I have an outdoor job ( mud, water, walking all year round - think forest school ) and a job that requires smart casual clothes to meet clients in professional settings. . So I need a more versatile wardrobe than when I just went into a normal office everyday. I would like to get rid of a chest if drawers but can't see how,

I have : a double fitted wardrobe with all my dresses, coats/ jackets, shirts and shoes/ boots in boxes at the bottom.

A 3 drawer chest of drawers with : swimwear/nightwear, trousers, jeans
A 3 drawer chest of drawers with : sleeveless tops, longer sleeved tops, skirts
A 5 drawer chest if drawers with - In the 2 small drawers - underwear (pants bras), socks/ walking socks/ thick tights, thin jumpers, thick jumpers.

So how does everyone organise stuff? What can I get rid off do you think?

I also have lots of coats. You aren't alone

The type of coat I wear for a rainy walk in April, is different from a day outside in February doing muddy stuff to going into an office, or to sit in a pub garden when it's a bit chilly because the sun has gone in.

I dont have enough space for clothes. I have 1.5 wardrobe and 3 drawers. It really annoys me. I roll my clothes up and I have to make sure everything mix and matches and I have thermals and thin jumpers to layer to make more summery stuff work in winter too.

The coats are on pegs in the kitchen though.

I have a single wardrobe which has a rail for hanging long stuff like dresses. the shelf above it has shorts and handbags. There are 2 pull out baskets at the bottom - 1 for pjs and 1 for gym clothes. I then have a double wardrobe with 2 rails. The top rail if for tops/shirt/thin jumpers/blazers etc and the bottom rail has short skirts and smart trousers on hangers. There is a shelf above for fleeces etc. Finally I have another single wardrobe with shelves and drawers - shelves there is jumpers, jeans and t-shirt shelves then drawers for pants, bras, socks, tights and bottom one is swimwear/belts etc

Thank you all. I have a bag of charity shop, bag of rags and some to sell. Still not enough to lose a set of drawers which was the aim but a start.

I'm interested that people are hanging tops not folding them. What are you doing with vest tops and T shirts please?

I don't hold with the if you haven't worn it in a year get rid. I have many clothes that go in and out of retirement. Currently in a cropped T shirt from 1990 which looks great. I hardly wore it back then but lots now. I mean clearly it wasn't actually worth 30 years of keeping it 😁 but I loved it then and love it now.

I am going to cull some coats now.

Well, I have 2 single door wardrobes and a shoe rack that fits 2 on each shelf. DH has a large double wardrobe and a single wardrobe and a large shoe rack that fits 4 shoes on each shelf and is 6 shelves high

Same with coats for me. I have a thick zavetti for winter. And a rain Mac.

I feel your pain OP. I am in the same position. I also work outdoors and also have lots of jackets 😆 when I'm not working, I like to wear nice clothes.

From what you've said, you have lots of office/formal clothing you may need in the future. I'd vacuum pack it and store it somewhere. That's a start, and then be brutal, I tend to do the "have I worn it in last 12 months" rule.

I also tend to alternate the wardrobe by summer/winter, the non wearing season is boxed/vacuum packed....but it's been hard this year with the crazy weather.

You probably could box up some out of season stuff and get rid of anything you know you will never wear.
But if its all stuff you love and will likely wear again then who cares how much there is? (we cant all survive on 3 pairs of knicks and a couple of coats!).

Im lucky that I live alone and have 3 bedrooms to spread over. So I have 3 wardrobes, 2 with hanging rails (one has baskets for gym wear in the bottom the other has drawers for pjs and undies). Then the final wardrobe is all shelves for knitwear, jeans, leggings, tracksuits, etc).
Finally I have a cheap pop up wardrobe that has all my winter coats and boots).

What are you doing with vest tops and T shirts please?
All hung in a wardrobe.
But then I seem to have far more storage and clothes than anyone else on this thread.
I have a wardrobe rail for tops, another for dresses, one for trousers and an overflow for stuff I seldom wear but want to keep.

I've got a 1 metre shop display rail with all hanging stuff dresses, long coats etc, 1 chest of drawers with the half drawers at the top having jewellery, belts etc then one drawer for undies & socks, 3 drawers for leggings, Jumpers & T shirts & bottom drawer for my changes of bedding. Wire shelf above rail holds all my handbags.

This. If you wear it all and have the space, then does it matter if it's too much?

I try and emulate my parents - my mother had 2 large suitcases in the loft. In it would go the summer clothes in late September/October and these would be swapped for the winter clothes in there, and in spring the summer clothes would come out again. .