[krbshappy71]

I keep seeing this as a tip on the web, wondering if anyone does it and considers it useful:

You put all your clothes in the closet with hangers turned the opposite way. If you wear it and put it back, you get to turn it around the correct way so you can see which you have worn and have not. Then at the end of the year, or a given time-period you try to purge those clothes that you obviously didn't wear because their hangers are still the opposite way.

I keep thinking I want to purge clothes but I have some really nice clothes from Freecycle I haven't worn yet, and yet am so attached to my old-time favorites. I was thinking 6 months for my cut-off date.

If there is another thread discussing this please let me know, I did search "clothes hangers" without success for this topic.

If you have done this, I would like to know:

1) Did you do this for special occasion clothes as well?
For summer dresses even though most days you find yourself in shorts working in the yard?
Should I shorten my time frame to "per season" since I have such distinctive clothes for summer and winter? (am in CO) There are t-shirts I wear year-round, sometimes just as layers, so I find myself holding onto them for year after year because their season never ends.

2) I have 4 work shirts that I could easily wear 4 out of 5 days of the week (I really don't care about expressing myself when it comes to showing up at work) which would then extend my daily wardrobe life span. I find myself wearing those instead of my other clothes because its easy. Still give myself 6 month time frame of purging?

My closet is stuffed, there were many years that I did not have more than 1 week of clothes to my name, so I think I'm leaning towards excessiveness now. (I would wear pajamas on laundry day, no joke, so everything was in the wash)

 

[lisaflex]

i have never done it and probably wouldnt either. i have a few "go to" pieces that i just adore and wear alot! if i really really love it, i buy another one just to have it.

but, i do go by the "if you havent worn it in 2 yrs, get rid of it" rule. works for me. closet is still bulging at the seams though!! lol

i do consign OFTEN!!! and do quite well. just started w/ a new consignment shop..hping to do well! anything that is either old navy, target, i just give to SA or GW

 

[mndtrp]

I generally put my clothes on hangers in the middle of the closet. As clothes don't get used, they move further and further to the ends of the hanger rail. That's how I determine what I'm not wearing.

Anymore, though, I go through the majority of my clothes. I will do a load of bottoms whenever they are needed, but I don't do my tops until I have exhausted the majority of the collection. I'll go about a month before I have to do jeans or khakis, but I can go two months or more before doing my shirts. I do the same thing with boxers, underwear, as well as night clothes and towels.

 

[lisaflex]

omg. i do tons of laundry and send plenty to the drycleaner. tell me, what am i doing wrong???

 

[monkeywrangler71]

I've seen the tip before but I don't do it. I have things that I haven't worn in years that I have no intention to getting rid of - like my black velvet evening gown - the rest I purge regularly. I either love it, use it, or dump it.

I couldn't stand to look at all those hangers going in different directions.

 

[frugalwarrior2]

No that would annoy me. I do put all the hangers to the left together. Then they don't fall on the floor and I can quickly grab them when doing laundry. Also i do arrange by type then color.
And I pack all the summer away in winter and vise-versa.
See I'm not retentive at all.lol.

 

[lisaflex]

monkey - no offense, but, get rid of the black velvet evening gown. i will tell you why, i just consigned FIVE, yep, you heard me, 5, beautiful evning gowns (one was even a st johns...) i know that they will never be worn again. no matter how much they cost, how much you love them, you will feel freer once you do

styles change, etc

mine were all purchased w/in the last 8 yrs, but, some were a bit dated, someone else may LOVE them, i was so over them. loved wearing it when i did, but, i know i would never wear them again, so, i am hoping for a consignement check in the mail as the holidays drawnear...just a thought...

and, we do "functions" but nearly as regularly as we used to...so, enough said...

 

[monkeywrangler71]

monkey - no offense, but, get rid of the black velvet evening gown. i will tell you why, i just consigned FIVE, yep, you heard me, 5, beautiful evning gowns (one was even a st johns...) i know that they will never be worn again. no matter how much they cost, how much you love them, you will feel freer once you do

styles change, etc

mine were all purchased w/in the last 8 yrs, but, some were a bit dated, someone else may LOVE them, i was so over them. loved wearing it when i did, but, i know i would never wear them again, so, i am hoping for a consignement check in the mail as the holidays drawnear...just a thought...

and, we do "functions" but nearly as regularly as we used to...so, enough said...

I only have one and I will wear it again, I just haven't had occasion to wear it lately. I absolutely loathe shopping, getting rid of it would just mean that at some point in the future I would have to go out on the excruciating chore of buying another one.

I have plenty of room for it, my closet is usually only half full. One of the many benefits of hating to shop.

 

[prudent lass]

An interesting idea, but I don't think I'd use it. One, like Monkeywrangler said, the sight of all those hangers going every which way would make me mental. Two, it just seems like a way of delaying the unpleasant task of getting rid of things. It's like those hoarders that decide to buy lots of Rubbermaid bins instead of just throwing $hit out. (Not saying you're a hoarder!) They're so focussed on the business of setting up organizational procedures that they never get around to throwing stuff out. And now they've got a bunch of new Rubbermaid sitting on top of the hoard to boot.

My closet has a tendency to get overly full, too. but I know at a glance though which clothes I *love* to wear and which ones make me feel...bleah. I'd rather wear the same amazing outfits over and over rather than suffer through a day of fidgeting with my cuffs and feeling awkward. It does still take me a while to toss the icky outfits, but I can I.D. those clothes from 20 paces regardless of hanger orientation.

 

[frugalfranny]

Nope, don't do it and doubt that I would follow it anyway.

I don't really have a bunch of clothes - hanging- that I don't wear often. I wouldn't toss the ones that I don't use anyway........as I might wear them once a year........maybe........still not going to toss. Most are skirts and matching tops.

 

[lisaflex]

maybe now i know my problem...i like to shop way too much!! my hangers have to all face the same way though

 

[xtena]

I don't own enough clothes to make that worth while, LOL. I know exactly what I've worn and haven't worn, usually if I don't wear something it's because it no longer fits well or looks bad on me, and those items end up at the thrift store at the end of the season.

 

[Judi Dial]

First of all, except underwear, we pretty much have 2 complete sets of clothes for summer and winter. There are ALWAYS clothes that I'm not using because of this. The flannel lined LLBean jeans stay around, even if I can't zip them all the way up anymore because in the midst of winter when it's < 0 outside it's one of 2 pairs of pants that I have where I won't freeze (the others are snow pants).

So I would never do your hanger thing. My dream house would have different summer and winter bedrooms, and my fantasy is that you then put the stuff away in the appropriate bedroom closet when you're not using it.

I have consigned some, but the stores I know are really fussy and want "office" or "designer" clothes and since I work at home almost always I rarely dress up for work any more,a nd I only buy designer clothes when they're on special and it's something I was looking for.

Most often, when I notice that something is not usable any more (and I have too many rags already) it goes in the SA bin at the dump or if it's torn or otherwise unusable, I just toss it.

I have a system for purging my pantry, but not my closet. I'll have to think about this...thanks!!!

Judi

 

[LuLuBleen]

Nope, I like my hangers to hang the same direction. I don't keep empty hangers in my clothes closet, they go in my laundry closet.

It's a good idea but I'm too simple-minded for it. :dunce: I just keep what I know I'll wear. When my closet and dresser drawers get too cramped, I know it's time to purge. Easy peasy.

 

[krbshappy71]

Ok I am going to try it, already the hangers are annoying me though. The bf was visiting and I let him know that I normally do not put my hangers that way, ha! He had noticed. I told him about my idea and he was intrigued, will see how it goes.

Agreed, having hangers a different way is very odd. I'll give it one run-through and see if that works for me for a specific time frame.

 

[AmyBoz]

I've given this as advice many, many times. I don't do it myself, though, because I don't keep clothes I don't wear. I have a few go-to outfits for work, and right now my closet is a little more full because I'm pregnant and I am borrowing Maternity clothes from friends, but once I have the baby, it's back to not so much in the closet.

That being said, for people who have too many clothes, I think it is an excellent way of visualizing the excess.