How To Shop Your Closet In 10 Easy Steps

In this article, you’ll learn how to shop your closet in 10 easy steps!

Do you regularly feel like you have nothing to wear in your wardrobe?

Are you often tempted to buy clothes even though your closet is full to the brim?

If so, don’t immediately go and buy new pieces at the store or on your favorite clothing brand’s website!

Instead of spending your money unnecessarily, you could learn to make the most out of the clothes you already have.

And not only that, but you could actually start enjoying wearing them by following a few simple tips.

In this blog post, you’ll learn how to shop your closet in 10 easy steps so you can avoid buying new clothes while still feeling like you have tons of options!

What does it mean to shop your closet?

To shop your closet means that, instead of buying new clothes, you try to see your clothing from a new angle and combine it in different ways with other pieces.

You find ways to make you love and use them more so that you can make the most out of them.

In short, you reassess everything you have in your wardrobe and learn how to make new outfits from your closet.

What are the benefits of shopping your closet?

There are so many benefits of shopping your closet!

First, by creating new outfit combinations, you give your wardrobe a fresh twist.

It then feels like you have brand-new clothes and you feel excited about wearing them.

Doing so also saves you money as you don’t go and buy new pieces, and it’s one of the best things you can do to make your wardrobe more sustainable.

Another benefit of shopping your closet is that it helps you understand your style and personal preferences.

It also allows you to identify gaps in your wardrobe because you get to know everything that’s inside of your closet.

You rediscover pieces you may have forgotten about and identify what is missing.

What’s more, I find that shopping your closet can make you more grateful for the pieces you decide to keep.

This can help you want less and stop impulse buying in the future.

Not to mention you’ll feel more satisfied overall!

How to shop your closet in 10 easy steps

1. Understand and get clear about your style

To be able to shop your closet efficiently, you need to understand what your style exactly is.

To do so, open your closet and dresser and have a look inside.

Pull out your favorite, most worn pieces as well as the clothes you wear and like the least.

Then, analyze why you like or dislike each piece.

What pieces do you feel most comfortable and confident in?

Why?

What sizes and styles do you wear and love most?

What colors and patterns?

What do you not like?

Also, learn what pieces are flattering to your body shape and skin tone.

I recommend you write everything down on your phone or paper.

Read more:

2. Declutter your clothes to be able to shop your closet

Once you know what your style and clothing preferences are, you need to sort through all your clothes to weed out those you never wear.

The thing is, if you want to be able to shop your closet and avoid buying new clothes all the time, you need to feel like you have enough.

If, every time you open your closet, you see clothing you never wear, you might think that you have nothing to wear.

Unused clothes only get in the way and make you feel guilty for not wearing them.

So take everything out of your closet and drawers and go through each piece one by one.

Only keep the pieces you love and wear regularly.

Make sure they fit your body, that they’re your style, and that they’re in good condition.

Read more:

To be able to shop your closet, you first need to declutter what you don't like and wear regularly.

3. Create outfits with the pieces you kept

Now that everything you’ve decided to keep is clothing you love and wear, come up with as many outfit combinations as possible using those pieces.

Take each piece of clothing and see how many other items you can pair it with.

Try to be creative and combine things in new ways.

Finding new outfit combinations will help you feel excited about your wardrobe again!

You can also think about new ways you can wear certain pieces.

For instance, consider wearing that dress you are saving for special occasions in your everyday life too.

Another example is to use a button-up shirt as a beach coverup or lightweight cardigan besides its original purpose.

Also, remember that most of your summer tops can be layered with sweaters in the winter, so you can wear them all year round.

Every time you come up with a new outfit, take a picture so you can easily reference and recreate them in the future.

4. Get out of your comfort zone when shopping your closet

If you want to shop your closet and be able to use what you already have instead of buying new clothes, don’t be afraid to try new things.

Create unique outfit combinations that you wouldn’t usually try.

Mixing different genres and styles can sometimes create a nice look!

Try wearing them and see if you like them.

For instance, you may want to combine your nice pair of heels with more laid-back pants for a dressy-casual look.

Don’t be afraid to try things out and get out of your comfort zone!

When shopping your closet, don't be afraid of getting out of your comfort zone.

5. Look for inspiration on Pinterest

For the pieces you like but don’t know how to style and what to pair them with, Pinterest is your best friend!

You can go there and look up style inspiration and outfit ideas for each item.

For instance, if you don’t know how to wear your denim skirt and how to combine it with your tops, search on Pinterest: “denim skirt outfit ideas”.

You can also ask Google how you can style each piece.

There are lots of fashion blogs that will give you great ideas!

Once you know what you can pair them with, see if you have similar items in your wardrobe.

It doesn’t have to be the exact same piece or the same color, but look for similarities and create new outfits that way.

Don’t forget to save the pin to one of your Pinterest boards so you can reference it again whenever you lack inspiration.

6. Make alterations and adjustments if needed

If you think that you need to make some adjustments or alterations to some of your pieces so you can wear them more often, definitely do that.

Either go to the tailor or do it yourself if you can.

For example, you might want to change up the buttons on a shirt, cut a long dress shorter, or add some embroidery on a t-shirt or denim jacket.

You may also want to hem some pants or crop a top to give it a new style.

I love making alterations or adjustments so I can wear my clothes more!

I recently added a button at the bottom of a gorgeous turquoise button-up shirt that I used to never wear.

It’s now one of my most worn pieces in the summer.

My mom also helped me transform two pairs of straight-leg jeans that I never wore into skinny jeans.

I now love wearing them!

You might need to make some alterations and adjustments to some of your clothes.

7. Play with your accessories

When trying to find new outfit combinations, remember that you can change the look of an outfit by adding some accessories.

Adding different accessories can create a totally different vibe depending on how you combine them.

So play with your jewelry, hats, scarves, belts, purses, and shoes.

Doing so will make shopping your closet much more fun and easier!

The great thing about accessories is that they can also dress up or dress down an outfit.

For instance, depending on your needs, you can pair more casual accessories with more elegant clothes or wear fancy jewelry to elevate a casual outfit.

8. Reorganize your closet by category

Now that you’ve come up with all kinds of outfit combinations with the clothes you decided to keep, it’s time to put things back in your closet.

I recommend that you organize your clothes, shoes, and accessories by category to make them easier to find.

Store all your tops together, all your pants and jeans somewhere else, and your dresses in another spot.

Make sure everything is visible and easily accessible.

That way, you’ll be able to find what you’re looking for effortlessly.

You may also want to organize each category by color to make things easier to find!

9. Become a proud outfit repeater and shop your closet again and again

If you want to shop your closet instead of buying clothes all the time, you need to be okay with being an outfit repeater.

Society makes us think that we should be wearing a new outfit for every new picture we post on social media or that we can’t repeat the same outfit twice in the same week.

But believe me, there is no shame in wearing clothes multiple times.

It actually shows that you’ve bought pieces you love and that they bring you a lot of joy!

There’s nothing wrong about that as long as you wash them regularly.

We don’t need to go and buy clothes every time we go to an event.

The planet (and our wallets) can’t withstand the pace at which we consume clothing.

So become a proud outfit repeater and get the most out of your pieces!

Become a proud outfit repeater! It's normal to wear the same pieces over and over.

10. Buy versatile clothes in the future

If you need to buy new clothes in the future or fill a gap after your decluttering session, prioritize multi-purpose, versatile clothes.

You’ll be able to combine and pair them with more pieces in your wardrobe than if you pick pieces that are harder to style.

Of course, you don’t have to do this all the time.

But having a good variety of basics and versatile clothes in your wardrobe will make shopping your closet much easier going forward.

Also, check that they fit well, that you truly love them, and that they’re your style.

Final thoughts on how to shop your closet

I hope you’ve found this article about how to shop your closet helpful and that it allowed you to rediscover the pieces you already have in your wardrobe.

Finding new outfit combinations and getting the most out of them instead of buying new pieces will help you understand your style.

It’s also one of the best things you can do to help the environment and save a lot of money in the long run!

If you liked this article, you might enjoy the following ones as well:

Did you find coming up with new outfit ideas easy or was it more challenging than you expected?

Please tell us about your experience in a comment!

Don’t forget to share this blog post with your friends so they can learn how to shop their closets too!