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Original poster

Organising your wardrobe so you know exactly what you've got and what it'll go with

34 replies

LovelyDaffs · 13/04/2011 18:40

i can't be the only woman who finds items of clothing that I've forgotten about in my wardrobe. I'd love to find a way of organising things so this doesn't happen even more I'd love a way of working out what bits work well together. A computer program maybe? Or taking photos, but then what to do with the pics?

Has anyone got any ideas or am I being bonkers?

OP posts:
tulpe · 13/04/2011 18:48

I agree that it would be handy to have some kind of a computer programme which you could record all items then have it make an outfit for you (just like in the movie Clueless!)

I organise all my stuff according to item type: all skirts together, all short sleeve tees together etc. It helps to have everything set out separately so that I can see at a glance what I have got but then I find I get stuck in a rut and wear the same outfit again and again. What I really need is for somebody to go through my clothes and offer alternative suggestions of how to wear it.

ValiumBandwitch · 13/04/2011 18:50

Have you ever got back from the shops with a red v-ncek top only to realise you already have one?

you are not being bonkers. I would love to have a huge wardrobe so that i could space everything out really far apart, like in a shop. I can hardly get a fag paper in between the clothes hanging up in my wardrobe, so things are lost in there.

CristinaTheAstonishing · 13/04/2011 18:52

I organise tops by colour. The rest have no order. I haven't found the best way to go about it either and find myself wasting time in the mornings deciding what goes with what. The choice is usually limited by the colour of clean tights available.

Original poster
LovelyDaffs · 13/04/2011 19:14

When we moved last year into a house with huge fitted wardrobes I thought my wardrobe problems were resolved, but I've just filled it. I do organise it, but still miss things and wear the same old same old. I also pack away last seasons stuff and a m about to swap winter for summer, which has got me thinking.

OP posts:
tulpe · 13/04/2011 19:20

computer program for choosing an outfit!

bigbadbarry · 13/04/2011 19:23

There are people who will put outfits together for you - a friend of mine had it done, all photographed, gaps identified for next tome she went shopping (that is what I need as I am forever buying copies of things I already own). She looks fantastic as a result :) I haven't yet persuaded myself to spend the 200 quid to have mine done

leavesleaves · 13/04/2011 19:49

Well, for a couple of seasons I actually organized my clothes into outfits complete with accessories, bags, shoes, everything. I used the chart in this book and wrote everything down, kept it in cover sheets in a binder . . . . So you don't need a professional stylist or organizer to do it, but you do need time, energy, a full-length mirror and patience.

Original poster
LovelyDaffs · 13/04/2011 19:55

Well spurred on by your ideas I had a look and there are a few iPhone apps that supposedly do this, so I'm going to get one and give it a go - will report back.

OP posts:
bessie26 · 13/04/2011 23:50

Marking my place!

I have some nice items, but am not very good at getting whole outfits together. For example I have a lovely green cardi, but absolutely nothing to wear it with so it's sat in the wardrobe for a year now. By the time I find something to go with it I probably won't like it anymore!!

naturelover · 14/04/2011 09:35

I hang like with like (skirts all together etc). In drawers, jumpers in one pile, cardis in another, long sleeved tops and short sleeved tops separate. I have a big plastic box in another cupboard for out-of-season stuff to remove it from the equation completely.

I am scrupulous about getting rid of stuff that I no longer wear or that is old or doesn't fit.

What probably also helps is that I don't actually have very many clothes, but those I do have, I actually wear - usually until they are worn out. This is not by choice - simply lack of cash. My hanging space for the current season is about one metre! And I have two drawers in addition. Getting dressed is easy. The challenging bit is staying on top of the laundry so that I always have something clean.

WalterFlipschicks · 14/04/2011 09:39

Oohhh Grin

senua · 14/04/2011 09:50

I have separate sections for suits, skirts, jackets, trousers and dresses. I try to take them out at one end and put them back at the other, so there is a natural rotation and I don't always go for the same thing. I keep my tops together, in colour order, so I can easily find the top to match the outfit. I have had my colours 'done' so (in theoryGrin) everything goes with everything else.

senua · 14/04/2011 10:05

bessie Can't you find a T-shirt in the same colour as the cardi, so you get a twin-set effect. Team up with skirt or trousers in a classic neutral (navy/chocolate/mink/etc) and pull it all together with an accessory (belt/scarf/jewellery/etc)

WhatsWrongWithYou · 14/04/2011 10:38

Was thinking similar, senua, or a white vest would look good also. Could be worn more casually with jeans as well I'd imagine.

I'm similar to naturelover in that I don't have a great deal of space, nor do I spend a lot (although DH would disagree!). I keep skirts/trousers/blouses/jackets/dresses roughly together in the wardrobe, then have two shelves of a cupboard where I store knitwear/strappy vests/tanks/t-shirts/long-sleeved tops all separately.

Plus I hate to bang on, but I had my colours 'done' a few years ago, plus more recently a style analysis, which means everything I buy (apart from a few blips!) hopefully matches several other things, so there's theoretically lots of potential outfits.

thomasbodley · 14/04/2011 10:49

I once read an article about organising and decluttering and two of the top tips were genius.

One was to pick a lucky number and restrict yourself to owning only that number's worth of a particular item. So if your number was seven, you'd only have seven pairs of jeans, seven skirts, seven dresses etc

The only exception was undies and socks - you need 16 sets of each, because the longest period of time that you won't do any washing is on a fortnight's holiday.

The other top tip was to make a list numbered 1 to 100, and write down the 100 items you'd be lost without/gutted about if your house burnt down. Again, works a treat. Unless you're me - I have 18 party dresses on my list, though I've only been to two parties so far this year, oops.

Original poster
LovelyDaffs · 14/04/2011 16:42

Wardrobe sort out day is scheduled for tomorrow, will keep you posted.

OP posts:
FreakoidOrganisoid · 14/04/2011 16:46

I tried doing this a while ago...It led to me thinking I needed several more items Blush

WalterFlipschicks · 15/04/2011 10:30

Ooh good luck Lovely Grin

Dropdeadfred · 15/04/2011 10:38

I would love to do this but I have way too many clothes.. And they are mostly boring... Jeans, Tshirts etc. I have about 6 drawers full of clothes that don't fit me( lots never worn) god I'm crap at coordinating so everything is black or grey

SerendipityAlways · 15/04/2011 11:22

Very interested in this thread. Im generally a very organised person and am good at doing regular culls of my wardrobe, anything I have not worn in a while gets given to the charity shop etc. I organsie things in my wardrobe by season and colour, dresses together etc etc.

Im now in my early 40s and think Im grappling at the moment to work out what my style is now, as I feel its definitely changed over the past few years. I probably have more of an appreciation of what constitutes a "classic" wardrobe and tend to buy more neutral colours and less obvious "high fashion" pieces which will have gone out of vogue by next year. Saying that I never seem to have the right tops to go with jeans etc for that smart casual look. I love dresses and my wardrobe is full of them, but sayign that its my 7 jeans I wear 90% of the time. Plus I dont possess any other trousers (other than 2 pairs of white capris which I will live in for the Summer).Any advice out there as to a good smart casual look that may involve more than jeans?

leothelioness · 15/04/2011 11:30

Marking my place I am planning on organising my wardrobe early next week so will keep a look out for tips

MrsSeanBean · 15/04/2011 13:47

I have ruthless de-clutters from time to time, and often find myself missing items later on - i.e. wishing I had kept them.

I think this is because my 'mood' varies, so if I am on a classic phase I will ditch 'edgy' items and vice versa.

However, the advice about listing items would would be devastated to lose is a great idea. :)

Will also have a go at the comouter program, and watching with interest re iPhone apps...

bigbadbarry · 15/04/2011 18:01

MrsSB I do that too - just last night I was mourning a top I chucked because I had stopped wearing but I really want again now! Must stop getting rid and put stuff into storage instead, I think.

CristinaTheAstonishing · 16/04/2011 17:11

Lovelydaffs - how's the decluttering going today?

DoubleDegreeStudent · 17/04/2011 00:30

Digital photos of each and every item made into a photo book? I read about one of those declutter services who did that. Apparently there was one client who had to have duplicate books in each of her properties with the location of each outfit so she knew where to have it sent from, and an entire book for her red Valentino dresses because she just had so many Envy.

My version of that was just take photo, upload photo, intend to label but never quite bother and then occasionally remember photos exist and then scrabble around at back of wardrobe finding something.