My New Year’s resolution, while standing 443 feet above the ground on the 1st of January, was to help at least 200 women this year. So I’m going to start right here, right now.🤗

So let’s dive straight into it, shall we?

Here are 7 easy steps to a neater wardrobe this year:

1. TAKE EVERYTHING OUT.

Take everything out of your wardrobe and put it into piles of different categories: tops, trousers, skirts, dresses, blouses, jumpers etc.

2. PASS IT ON.

Go through each pile and take out the things you definitely don’t like and don’t want to keep. From this, create 3 piles:

sell:

Something which might not work on you but is a good brand, in a good condition and you’d like to sell it. There are a few places in London which can help you sell your clothes. My go-to is Manifesto Woman.

donate:

Things to take to a charity shop or to give to someone you know.

recycle:

Things which are not salvageable – have big holes in, for example. There are a few charities in London which would take your unwanted clothes and recycle them. One of the big ones is Traid. Interestingly, & Other Stories and Arket recycle clothes. If you bring them to the store you get a 10% off voucher to redeem within 3 months.

3. MATCH MAKER.

Put on a versatile skirt or pair of trousers that you wear a lot and start pairing with all your tops. Ask yourself the following questions:

When was the last time I wore this?

Is this comfortable?

How does it make me feel?

Does this work with the rest of my clothes?

Would I buy this again?

At this point you might also want to create a 4th pile for items which need altering/repairing.

Once you are done with the tops, leave on the one you wear most and start pairing all your trousers/skirts with it. Obviously some tops will go with certain bottoms and others will need a different one. It’s all about having fun with it and spending a good chunk of time trying out different combinations.

4. COLOUR CONSCIOUS.

Take around 15-20 selfies in natural light - either facing the window (as close to it as possible) or outside, without make-up and close-up. You’d need to hold the items from your wardrobe next to your face. Don’t use any phone filters or portrait mode and make sure there are no smudges on the lens to avoid blurriness. You can use all your colourful clothes plus you can use any other clothes from other members of your household or it can also be coloured paper. By colourful I mean it can be all sorts of different shades - pastels, light, bright, clear, muted, soft, washed out, cool, warm. Once you’ve got all of these, look at them, preferably on a bigger screen, lay them all next to each other. It will become obvious when they are next to each other, which ones are better for your complexion. First, compare warm shades (those are the ones which have got at least 1% orange in them) with cool shades (with at least 1% purple in them). Then compare dark Vs light colours. And the last thing is to compare bright Vs muted colours. Once you notice that some colours don’t complement your complexion, consider switching out these uncomplimentary colours from your wardrobe.

5. DIGITISE.

Download the app called WHERING and digitise all of your wardrobe. You can create your looks and see everything you own easily.

6. RE-ORGANISE

Once you’ve sorted through every item, it’s time to put your refined wardrobe back. Tip: small boxes are a great way to organise your drawers, keeping them neat, tidy, and also makes it easier to find things. I use Ikea’s drawer organisers, but empty shoe boxes work too.

7. KEEP AT IT.

Now that you’ve got a fantastically neat wardrobe, what do you do to keep it that way going forward?

Block one hour in your calendar once a month and run through your wardrobe. Is there anything new which needs organising? Is it best to reshuffle some things around to keep them more accessible?

Which step was new to you? What was the most useful? When are you starting?