Cleaning out your closet may sound like a chore, and technically it is, but it’s also a great chance to discover things you might not remember, or things you thought you had lost.

If you want, you don't have to call it cleaning out your closet. You could call it a Wunderkammern in the making. A Wunderkammern is like a cabinet, a place for your precious and rare items to be stored and/or exhibited. It’s a fun word to say and can help you think of this task as organization of your precious and rare items.

Why should you clean out and organize your closet or Wunderkammern now? I will give you the best reason — school will be starting soon and tackling your closet before you go back to school shopping could help stretch your budget. Stores are starting to stock up on new fall fashions and accessories. While cleaning out your closet, you might find treasure such as clothes you never wore from last fall that you can mix and match with new pieces. You might also have clothes you can trade or sell. You could also have a stack of leftover school supplies that you can inventory before you have to stock up on more. (Less money for school supplies and more money for your wardrobe and bobbles!)

Let’s Get Started!

*Before you begin, do you share a closet with someone? If you do, let them know of your planned cleaning date and time. You might even ask them to help. It never hurts to ask.

*Start with the bottom of your closet and pick up everything. Sort it all into piles — your shoes, clothes, purses, wallets, socks, scarves, miscellaneous accessories, papers, books, school supplies, and whatnots. Throw away any trash you may find.

*Sort through these piles. Decide what to keep, donate, trade or sell. (Make sure you double check your wallets and purses. You might find forgotten money.) Remember to not be too hasty about deciding to trash, sell or giveaway clothes, shoes, accessories, or supplies. That decision might be best to make after your back to school shopping. You can make an undecided pile.

*Once your floor piles are sorted, move them out of the way. It's time to work on finding the rest of your clothes and/or shoes. If you have clothes on hangers, sort through those first. (Don't forget to check all of your pockets.) Next, work on any clothes that you might have stored on shelves or in boxes. After all of your clothes are sorted, look for any shoes you might have in a shoe rack, or in boxes.

*Now you can organize all of your clothes and shoes. The way you do this depends on your own personality. You may wish to divide your wardrobe up into seasons, colors, or your favorite and least favorite items. It’s your choice. (Don’t forget to look through your undecided pile.)

*After all of your clothes and shoes are sorted, look at what is left in your closet. You may have items such as keepsakes and memories that you are storing, which is perfectly fine. However, you could choose this time to go through those things as well. Remember, look for treasure.

I hope you do find some treasure as you organize your closet. And, if you are inspired to do so, you might want to move on to your dresser and your desk!

Please stop by the Teen Site Forum to let me know how your closet clean out went. I will also be doing the same thing to my closet.

You can also stop by the Forum to say hello, or ask a question.