For many, January is the month parents tackle closet cleaning and sort through clothes for donation, or possibly resale. The biggest decision– to involve the kids, or not.
If they are small, then it’s a job best done alone. But if your children are older, they can help.
Mindy even asks her kids to do most of the work, making three piles: a giveaway pile, a “maybe” section for things that they might have outgrown or aren’t sure if they like, and a “keep” pile.
“I ignore the keep pile and do a swift look through the giveaway pile to make sure they didn’t just put all their church clothes in there,” she said. “Then we’re left with the “maybe” pile. I usually talk through that one with them. Somehow, it is always the smallest one, too.”
Rachel keeps a plastic laundry basket at the bottom of the closet.
“If they try something on and it doesn’t fit, they put it in the basket,” she said. “Once the basket is full, I send it on to cousins and friends. If it is monogrammed or otherwise special, I keep it in a box at top of closet with the thought I will one day have it made into a quilt.”
Julie tried the Marie Kondo method with her daughter, pulling out every single item to evaluate individually. She also had keep, give and maybe piles.
“I gave her a lot of power in determining where each piece would go - which I think has actually made subsequent cleanouts easier, because she can see if her previous decisions worked out for her,” Julie said. “The maybe pile helps you get rid of more. I feel if it your choices are only keep or give, you let emotion get in the way on many items.”
While many moms said that it can be hard sorting with their kids because they are attached to their clothes, Amy has the opposite problem – her kid wants to give anything away.
“She pulls everything she wants to donate, and I double check that there isn't something in there that needs to stay,” she said.
Emily on the other hand, does not involve her three children at all.
“That way I can toss things that they keep wearing even though it's too small or has holes or stains,” she said.
Dianne is also in the no help camp.
“They will have opinions, and it is faster and easier to do this on your own,” she said. “I did it seasonally. Now the way it works is – if I hate it – it disappears in the laundry while said child is gone and by the time they notice – if they notice – it’s LONG gone.”
When Selena’s kids were small and she didn’t feel like wrangling them into clothes to see if they fit, she found one bottom and one top that she knew was too small. They served as the model for evaluating the unknowns.
Seema said that for her, it helps to have someone in mind to receive the clothes.
“It’s hard to get rid of really nice clothes that don’t fit anymore, but if I know they will be going to a relative or friend’s child, it is easier to let them go,” she said.
Another option is to offer your unwanted items on consignment, which of course helps fund new purchases.
With Bagsy, it is pretty easy. We send you a bag and you send us your good condition, gently used children’s clothing. There is a list of brands we would love to receive.
For more information, visit https://shopbagsy.com/sell/.
And happy purging!
