Most of us are blessed enough to have a closet full of clothes, shoes, and accessories; however, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you love everything in it. I know I have tons of stuff in my closet that I’ll most likely never wear again, and you probably do too! Whether you have tons of clothes or much too few, you can create a beautiful wardrobe that suits your personal style. Although I’m a relatively simple gal, my style has changed quite a bit over the past year, and I want to do something about it. I plan to use my own advice over the next few weeks to reduce and refine my closet—follow along for a few helpful tips for building a wardrobe you love!

Find Your Personal Style!

It’s not uncommon for your personal style to change occasionally. Personally, my style has changed a few times over the past 5 years. If you stand in front of all your clothes and still claim you have nothing to wear, then your style might be changing. Rather than going overboard and buying a new outfit for every occasion, you can create a new wardrobe.

That said, you have to find your new personal style! Consider using the internet to find styles and color combinations you like. If you want more guidance, ask your most honest fashionista friend for her opinion on what styles suit your personality and body type.

Once you have a better idea of how you want to dress on a daily basis, it’s time to get to work!

Sort What You Already Have

Now that you know what you’re aiming for, you should first sort through what you already have. Take everything out of your closet and make 3 different piles.

Pile #1: This is your without-a-doubt keep pile.

Pile #2: This is your gotta-go pile.

Pile #3: This is your maybe-stay-or-maybe-go pile.

After making your piles, you’ll have a better idea of what you’re working with. At this point, try on your maybe pile and decide what you want to keep and what you want to part with!

Now you have two piles! Set your keeps aside and box up the gotta-go pile.

Kindness Tip

Many people decide to post their gotta-go pile for sale on social media, but you can spread love and kindness by donating instead. If you’re getting rid of it, you clearly aren’t really gonna miss it that much anyway! And I don’t mean donating to an organization that will resell the items—choose a women’s shelter, Salvation Army, or another organization that will truly give these items to people in need.

Organize What’s Left

Now it’s time to organize what’s left. I like to organize my wardrobe by style. My tanks, basic tees, graphic tees, fancy shirts, long sleeves, crewnecks, sweaters, cardigans, and dresses all have their own sections in my closet. You can organize however you like, but I highly recommend doing it in a way you can determine what all you have.

Fill in the Gaps

Your closet should only contain items you love still, and now you can decide what’s missing. For instance, you might need a few more sweaters, fancy shirts, or basic tees to complete your wardrobe. Whatever you think you need more of, write it down; this way, you’ll have a list to follow when you shop to prevent excessive shopping!

Shopping is either the best or worst part of this process depending on who you are. Whether you shop in-store or online, you don’t have to go overboard. Just buy a few items to fill in the gaps.

Only Buy Items You REALLY Love

I’m not sure about you, but I used to buy things just because they we’re on sale, in my size, and kinda cute. This left me with a massive wardrobe, bursting at the seams! It may seem better to have an abundance of clothes, but in reality, it’s much more challenging to build outfits out of this chaos.

Start training yourself to buy only the items you really love! If it doesn’t leave you with that “I have to have it” or the “I can’t stop thinking about it” feeling, then don’t buy it.

Obviously, you need your basics, but you don’t need a closet full of statement garments. If it doesn’t wow you, don’t add it to your closet.

Shop For Your Real Life, Not Your Fantasy Life

One of the other ways you may end up with far too many clothes is shopping for your fantasy life rather than your real life. It’s very easy to go into a store and see all of the beautiful evening gowns, dress clothes, or what I like to call goin’ out shirts, and want to go crazy.

However, this isn’t the best mindset. In reality, you probably wear comfortable clothes or business causal 90% of the time. Don’t fill your closet with options you’ll choose once a year; instead, shop for your real life. If you have a wardrobe you love and you can choose something to wear on an average day within seconds, you’re on the right track!

Now that you have a few helpful tips for building a wardrobe you love, you can cultivate outfits you feel beautiful and confident in. While this was mostly about clothing, you can apply the same process to your shoes, accessories, fashion jewelry, and handbags. There’s nothing better than having a clean, organized, and intentional wardrobe—you just have to start somewhere.