The 2023 Closet Cleanout: A 6-Step Plan
Written by: the Editors of goop
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Published on: January 10, 2023
Fashion editor: Caroline Griswold
Photo courtesy of Nicole Franzen; design by Athena Calderone
Even the best-intentioned closet cleanouts can end up being less than impactful if you’re winging it. It’s just too easy to take shortcuts (like refolding and shifting stacks around rather than dealing with them), get distracted (Emily in Paris can indeed wait), or give up halfway through. To kick off the new year, we created a six-step strategy for assessing, organizing, and elevating your closet. The end result should leave you with a tight and optimally functional edit, not just newly neat piles of all the same clothes.
Step 1
DECIDE WHAT STAYS AND WHAT GOES
The goal is to end up with three distinct piles: keep, sell or donate, and repair. Use the obvious things (every damn impulse buy ever) to start your sell-or-donate pile.
To tackle the rest of your wardrobe: “Go through your closet section by section,” says Ali Pew, goop’s creative and editorial fashion director and resident überminimalist (even her name is streamlined). “Look at each item and ask yourself when you wore it last. If I haven’t worn something in 30 days, it goes, but 45 or 60 days would make a good cutoff, too.”
If that approach hits a snag somewhere around the silk-and-sequins section of your closet, don’t get discouraged. “For the categories you don’t wear every day, the question becomes: If I had an event to attend tomorrow, would I be excited to wear this?” Pew says. If the answer is no, let it go.
WHAT TO DO WITH THE SENTIMENTAL STUFF
“If you’re keeping something only out of a feeling of obligation, allow yourself to preserve the memory with a photo instead of carrying it as a burden,” says KonMari consultant and Spark Joy New York founder Amy Chinitz. She is an expert in untangling the emotions that tidying can turn up, and she always returns to the original Kondo creed: It’s about choosing joy.
But what if you can’t tell whether the preppy blazer you haven’t worn since boarding school sparks joy or just nostalgia? “Hold it and pay attention to your physical reaction,” Chinitz says. “Your body’s response and your facial expressions may provide clues and reflect the way you feel about something on a spiritual level.”
Step 2
DETOX YOUR DRAWERS
Don’t skip this step. Seriously. Take the opportunity to upgrade your undies, trade the baggy tee you’ve been sleeping in for a matching set, and refresh your workout gear if necessary.
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Baserange
Set of bras
Net-a-Porter, $55SHOP NOW -
Baserange
set of briefs
Net-a-Porter, $57SHOP NOW
Top Drawer
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Skin
pj set
goop, $180SHOP NOW
Middle Drawer
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G. Label by goop
Wu Graphic Puff-Sleeve Pullover
goop, $275SHOP NOW -
Reebok x Victoria Beckham
leggings
goop, $120SHOP NOW -
Reebok x Victoria Beckham
bra
goop, $90SHOP NOW
Bottom Drawer
Step 3
FIND NEW HOMES FOR YOUR OLD STUFF
WHERE TO DONATE
Goodwill is ubiquitous in the US, and the money made off your old stuff helps provide people in your community with education, employment, and training. Women’s centers, LGBTQ centers, and shelters for the unhoused often need donations, too. Before you make a drop-off, make sure everything is clean and folded nicely in bags.
WHERE TO SELL
Vestiaire Collective lets you post your preloved contemporary and vintage designer items from your phone. If that sounds like more work than you’re up for, Re-SEE will handle everything from the photography and the description to shipping and payment for a fee. For nonluxury items, thredUP is your best bet.
Step 4
REPAIR THE CLASSICS WORTH KEEPING
DREAM STEAM
The handheld steamer-slash-iron is the electric toothbrush of clothing care: Regular use makes everything look better. Watching wrinkles slip out of a silk blouse in a plume of steam can even be, dare we say, meditative. And the fact that it doesn’t require a cumbersome ironing board? Genius.
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Nori
press
Nori, $120SHOP NOW
SWEATER MAINTENANCE
When your go-to sweaters slip to the bottom of the stack, it’s probably because they’re pilled. Use a sweater stone on delicate knits, cashmere, and even pant legs, and try a fabric shaver on chunky woolen knits—test a tiny area first, since shavers can snag more-delicate pieces.
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Nori
shaver
Nori, $59SHOP NOW
JEWELRY CARE
Might as well spend a few minutes polishing up your everyday rings, necklaces, and bracelets—and make sure your special-occasion pieces sparkle, while you’re at it. Having somewhere pretty to put everything when you’re done is always nice.
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Anissa Kermiche
Jewelry box
goop, $315SHOP NOW -
Tiffany & Co.
jewelry care kit
Tiffany & Co., $35SHOP NOW
TAP IN AN EXPERT
Your Celine bag has seen better days. Those boots are no longer well-heeled. Your leather pants split a seam. Send them straight to Leather Spa for a sartorial wellness retreat and they’ll come back refreshed and ready to get back to work. For those bags with good bones but dated details, the spa also gives killer face-lifts.
Step 5
GET ORGANIZED
Organizing is an everyday hustle with extraordinary payoff. Here are Chinitz’s top tips for tidying your closet:
If you haven’t tried folding things the KonMari way, give it a go—it’s essentially rolling things up. The purpose is to place items side by side so that everything is visible and easily accessible.
Place boxes into drawers, especially for things that don’t easily stand up on their own when folded.
Anything that would blow in the wind should be hung up.
The choice that makes the easiest and biggest impact when refreshing your closet is to make sure your hangers are uniform.
A few key items—including the vintage modular vanity of our dreams—to help you get organized below.
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Courant
charging tray
goop, $100SHOP NOW -
Open Spaces
drawer dividers
Open Spaces, $48SHOP NOW -
J’Jute
Storage basket
goop, $248SHOP NOW
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Luigi Massoni for Poltrana Frau
vanity
1stDibs, $12,800SHOP NOW -
MAWA
hangers
Food52, $299SHOP NOW
Step 6
STRATEGIZE AND REBUILD
Filling in the blanks is the fun part, but it’s a slippery slope. Taking notes on what you tossed calls out the shades and the shapes you’re drawn to on the hanger but can’t hang with in real life—pay attention, and don’t make the same mistakes again. Need a mantra for responsible repurchasing? Try the Ali Pew MO: “Upgrade your essentials and invest in the classics.” It’s a straightforward approach that works—she’s converted much of the goop staff into thoughtful minimalists able to resist impulse buys in favor of well-made pieces that won’t go out of style.
THE CLASSICS
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G. Label by goop
Gigi Bow Dress
goop, $795SHOP NOW -
Metier
bag
goop, $3,250SHOP NOW
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Lisa Yang
sweater
goop, $504SHOP NOW -
The Row
trousers
Mytheresa, $1,690SHOP NOW
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G. Label by goop
Dixon Floating-Diamond Bangle
goop, $4,800SHOP NOW -
Officine Generale
blazer
goop, $725SHOP NOW -
Gucci
flats
Matchesfashion, $890SHOP NOW
THE FUN STUFF
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Mason and Books
necklace
goop, $4,730SHOP NOW -
Loewe
bag
Loewe, $3,850SHOP NOW
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Alemais
dress
goop, $595SHOP NOW
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Bob’s Watches
rolex
goop, $44,995SHOP NOW -
Emme Parsons
Sandals
goop, $415SHOP NOW
Related Reading
Style Resolutions: 2023 Edition
The Top 10 Clean Beauty Swaps to Make in 2023
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