- 1). Take everything out of your closet. Even your shoes. You can start with the hanging items and move to the folded clothes and drawers. Or start with folded clothes and drawers, whichever is more of a mess. But take everything out.
- 2). Dust all the shelves, hanging rods and shoe storage areas. You want your closet to sparkle and avoid having dusty marks on your spring clothes, so clean it out before putting anything back in.
- 3). Clean the inside of the drawers with a damp, soft cloth. This will remove all the lingering little pieces of fluff, dirt, drawer-sachet-explosion and mess.
- 4). Vacuum the floor and wipe down the baseboards.
- 5). Wipe down the closet door.
- 6). Put your winter sweaters, heavy socks and wool trousers into storage. Make sure they're neatly folded with tissue placed in easily wrinkled clothes. Use sachets to keep them smelling fresh and mothballs to deter varmints.
- 7). Pull out your spring and summer clothes. Evaluate each item. If it's stained, set it aside to be cleaned (either at the cleaners or your hamper). If it needs repair, put it into a repairs area. If it's too small, give it away. If it needs ironing, set it in the ironing pile. The goal is to walk into a closet that is full of clothes that you can get dressed into comfortably and quickly.
- 8). Place your clothes back in the closet. Start with whichever you have the most space for--either hanging items or shelves. That way, you'll be able to put more away more quickly than if you start with what's most squeezed for space.