Are you the type of person who feels like they have a lot of clothes but nothing to wear? Or maybe you’re feeling bored with your current style but don’t want to spend money on new clothes. Whatever your reason may be, you’re here because you need ideas, and we have plenty of them!

Edit Your Wardrobe

But first things first, let’s take a look at the clothes you own. Lay them all out and figure out if there are any you can donate. You will never wear a shirt that doesn’t fit properly, and maybe this is a good time to throw out those socks with all the holes. Either way, figure out which clothes you want to keep, and which ones you want to get rid of. 

Sort by Colour

With that done, it’s time to put your clothes back into the closet. But rather than sorting them by functionality, like putting all of your pants together, try sorting them by colour. When sorting clothes by functionality, you are actually limiting how you wear your clothes. Button-ups are only for work and sundresses are only for the beach, for instance.

Looking at your clothes based on colour actually helps with seeing which garments go together regardless of when you would normally wear them. There are no rules about when, where and how you have to wear your clothes. So, encourage yourself to see your clothes in a new light by seeing what goes together best without thinking about the level of formality that you normally associate with a particular garment. We’ve all seen how cute a suit jacket paired with jeans is. 

Look Online for Inspiration

Now it’s time to experiment. Look at the clothes you have left over from after you purged your closet, and challenge yourself to build new outfits. If you really don’t know where to start, look for style inspiration online and see how you can use the clothes you already have to complete those looks. The clothes you have don’t have to be exact to the photo. But if they are of a similar style, colour, or texture, give it a shot! 

Your Clothes Are Versatile

Try mixing and matching the things you always wear with the things you don’t normally wear. That way, you are still comfortable while also trying something new. Again, you’re not going to like everything you try, but clothes are often far more versatile than we tend to think. You may also find that perhaps you weren’t wearing a particular garment because you didn’t like how you were styling it. Like, try tucking in a shirt that you normally leave untucked or cuff your jeans even if you don’t normally do this. Simply styling something differently can breathe a whole new life into your clothes.

Layering

Unless it is scorching hot outside, you can absolutely layer your clothes to create whole new looks as well. As stated above, your clothes are versatile. While looking at style inspiration online you’ve probably noticed that fashion influencers never just throw on one piece of clothing and call it a day. They layer different pieces together so while they may be reusing clothing that they already own, what they end up with is a whole new outfit. 

Accessorize 

Of course, accessories can give you a whole new perspective on your clothes. While it may be tempting to just throw on a shirt and pants and leave your outfit at that, it’s your accessories that will really tie your outfits together. 

Now that you’ve sorted through your clothes, sort through your accessories. Look at your hats, scarves, jewellery, belts, bags and shoes. Since your clothes are now sorted by colour, it’ll be even easier to see which accessories pair with which clothes. This is also another place where you can really experiment. Again, this isn’t about the level of formality, this is about finding what looks good with what. Try different combinations to see what you like best. Don’t be afraid to mix and match here in terms of colours, textures and patterns.

Now go! Experiment and have fun!

Lauren Schwartz | Contributing Writer