You might remember that I made 11 resolutions, one for each month of the year.  At the end of each month, I’m going to share my progress and show you how I’m going with each of my goals.

My resolution for January was to clean out my closet.  Since I moved, I have a lot more closet space.  I think I subconsciously freaked out over the abundance of space and started buying loads of things to fill it up.  I’ve also had plenty of great thrifting and vintage finds this year, which has led to my wardrobe being a little overstuffed.

I am proud to say that I had finished this resolution before the first week of January had even ended.  I was so keen to begin, and once I’d started I just put my head down and my bum up and kept working til it was done.

I call this Shoe Mountain

To begin with, I knew that I had a lot of things in my wardrobe that were simply worn out. My worn-out items tended to be basics and things that I wear all the time.  I tend not to throw those things away until I have something to replace them with.  So I took advantage of the Boxing Day sales and stocked up on items that I knew had to be replaced.  I got new workout gear, leggings,  pyjama pants, bras, socks and shorts.  This made it so much easier to part with the things that were worn out because I really didn’t need them any more.  I ushered in an era in which I no longer have a wardrobe populated with faded yoga pants, holey leggings and saggy bras.

I did my tidying in dribs and drabs.  I did one drawer at a time, emptying out everything and then picking through it carefully.  I made piles of things to throw away and piles of things to donate.  A couple of items made their way into my ebay pile as well.

I picked one free morning to tackle my wardrobe.  I pumped up some Lady Gaga and just got stuck into it.  It was a tough couple of hours, but once I was done I was so relieved. I tried to be really honest with myself about the things that I never wear.  I have a few old favourites that have been worn too many times and they’ve lost their lustre.  It can be tricky to get rid of clothing that’s served you well, but I forced myself to be strong and just let them go.

One item that I debated long and hard about was my Chuck Taylor All Stars sneakers.  I adore these shoes, and I’ve owned them for nearly ten years.  They’ve got a few holes in the canvas and the soles have practically no tread left on them.  I put them in my “throw away” pile.  Then, after a few hours I rescued them.  I can’t bear to get rid of them. I’ve decided to hang onto them until I can get to a Converse store to buy a new pair.  Then they have to go!

In the end, I wound up with three big bags of stuff to donate, and another massive garbage bag that went straight into the bin.  I have lots more space in my wardrobe and I no longer have a bunch of worn-out crap cluttering up my drawers.

I feel as though the wardrobe cleaning was a success.  I can tick this resolution off my list!

P.S: if you’re cleaning out your wardrobe too, you might like to read my very first post: The Dreaded Wardrobe Purge.  It’s full of helpful hints for cleaning out and organizing your clothing.