Out Of The Closet
Your closet is crammed with clothes, yet you have nothing to wear. Nordstrom price tags are still dangling from the sleeves. And your suits have shoulders the size of an NFL lineman. Face it, you’re a closet case.

"Getting rid of things involves making decisions and many of us are procrastinators," says Jody Hammond, a filmmaker who researched our obsession with stuff for Packed House, a documentary broadcast on KPBS. (lajody@cox.net) "As Scarlet O’Hara once said, ’I’ll think about it tomorrow, at Tara.’"

How many of us, she asks, refuse to get rid of clothes that would fit — if we just lost those ten pounds? (No matter that we’ve had that same extra ten pounds for the past 20 years.) "Giving those clothes away is an admission that you’re not really going to lose the weight."

But there’s no better time than the New Year to get a grip on the clutter in your closet. In fact, it’s one of the busiest times of the year for companies like California Closets, which offer custom storage solutions. "Often [customers] make New Year’s resolutions," says Jean Cumpian, a customer liaison, "and as part of that, they’re trying to get organized and to simplify their life." (858/695-0882, www.californiaclosets.com)

You can also call in a professional organizer or consultant to help you weed out your wardrobe. Think of it as an audit for your closet. "A closet audit is a chance to totally cull and clean out your closet," says Rita Szczotka (Shot-ka), an image consultant with the Worth Collection. (619/992-0132) "But more than anything, it’s a chance to organize your closet so it works for you and your lifestyle, so that you can go in and wear your clothes more effectively." Szczotka says so many of us have tunnel vision when it comes to dressing: wearing the same jacket with the same skirt, for instance, or wearing the same outfit the same way. "It gets boring."

Szczotka’s clients range from someone "who doesn’t have a clue how to dress" to "a socialite who has a closet bigger than my kitchen." But all have the same problem: lack of organization, and, perhaps, a lot of willpower. It takes resolve to get rid of something with sentimental value or that pricey suit you’ve had for decades that you’re just sure will come back.

Whether you hire a professional or do it yourself, the process begins with pulling everything out of your closet, trying it on, and deciding what to keep, what to throw out, and what to give away. "If you haven’t worn something in a year, chances are you’ll never wear it again," says Szczotka. "So let’s try it on real quick and find out ’Why am I not wearing it? Is it too tight, too big, is it a color I don’t like anymore?’ That’s how we decide whether we’re keeping or culling something."

If you simply can’t part with the dress you wore to your prom, she says, by all means keep it, but don’t let it take up premium space in the closet you use everyday. Put it in storage or have it preserved like a wedding dress. What about that outfit that cost a month’s pay? You know, says Szczotka, that designer jacket with the "big shoulders and the big buttons that look like door knockers?" If you still love the fabric and the color, the jacket might be worth a facelift. Try to visualize how it would look if you remove the shoulder pads, change the buttons, take it in, or hem it. "What can be done?" Szczotka asks. "Is it worth saving? It’s amazing what a good tailor can do."

Now that you’ve decided what stays and what goes, you can reassemble your closet with a new system and a fresh eye. Some closet cases may opt for a total makeover, using storage solutions such as special shelving, baskets, and lighting. But if that’s not in the budget, simply rearranging your clothes can help reorder your life. Szczotka suggests hanging clothes by category, for instance, jackets together, pants, skirts, blouses, and so on. Within those broad categories, you can group by color, style, or whether a piece is dressy or casual. Split up suit jackets from their skirts to increase your styling options: you’re more likely to mix and match pieces and create new outfits. Once clothes are organized, it’s easier to see if you need to shop for a piece or two to fill in the gaps, say a colorful top to punch up a wardrobe of basics.

California Closets has another tip: turn your hanging items around so the hanger is backwards. Each time you wear and wash an item, put it back in the closet hanging forwards. After a year, take a look at all the things still hanging backwards and ask yourself, "So why am I keeping those?"

And here’s a rule we should all live by: every time you buy something new, get rid of something old. For generations taught to waste not, want not, that may sound like tough love. "Many of us, baby boomers especially, have been brought up to hold onto things because they might be of use again someday," says Hammond. "Your clothes may be out of style, or too small, but they’re good. And probably are still good to somebody, which is why Goodwill Industries or the Salvation Army can help you ease your conscience as you clear out drawers and closets." (www.goodwill.org, www.salvationarmyusa.org)

Another good option is Dress for Success San Diego, which accepts donations of business suits and accessories for low-income women hoping to re-enter the workforce. (619/281-3773, www.dressforsuccess.org)

The process of organizing your closet can take hours, and if you hire a professional, it doesn’t come cheap — hourly rates can easily top $100 for an audit, hundreds and tens of thousands more for a total re-do. But the experts say there’s a big payoff in terms of increased efficiency. Be honest: how many of us have actually lost clothing in our cramped closets? "Research shows that the average consumer spends hundreds of hours a year looking for things in their closets, as well as preparing their wardrobe and dressing for the day," says Janet Hutchinson of California Closets. "Clearly, that time is minimized when you are faced each morning with an organized, efficient closet system." And Hammond, who finally got control of clutter when she moved for the first time in 15 years, says there’s another upside when you downsize. "Once you’ve spent all that time cleaning out drawers and closets, you’ll be a more selective shopper," she says, "because who wants to go through that again." — Andrea Naversen