15 Things To Toss From Your Closet Immediately, According To The Pros

Is your closet overflowing with clothing, accessories, and items galore? It's easy to amass such a build up of unwanted and unused items in your home that makes you want to do literally anything else instead of cleaning out your clutter. But according to experts we consulted, odds are you have several items that need to be tossed pronto.

Curious to know what items made the list (that are also in your closet)? Here are 15 items to toss from your closet now, according to our professionals.

Old Clothes & Accessories

We're going to go ahead and assume that your closet is full of clothes that need to go... no offense. But, according to our experts, clothes are a problematic part of most closets.

"Most of our customers have clothes and shoes they simply no longer wear," Dodson says. "Set aside time every season or at least once a year to go through your closets to purge what you have not worn in years. The axiom is that if you haven't worn something in 12-18 months, chances are you won't wear it again and it is simply taking up valuable closet real estate." Another valuable hack Dodson gives is to get rid of an item for every new one you purchase.

But if you're having a hard time knowing what to let go of and toss out, Steele recommends considering the current fashion trends, your style, and what's in your closet currently. "As time goes on, things come in and out of fashion, and accessories that are out of date or don’t match the rest or your wardrobe should be donated."

Outdated Gym Ensembles

Similar to old clothes and accessories, Steele says you need to toss old gym clothes immediately as well. "Workout clothing is one of the things that will come in and out of your closet," she says. "With all of the periods we go through where we want to get to the gym, we buy new gym clothes. If you have submitted to the fact that you might not be a gym goer in the near future, it might be a better option to donate your old workout gear."

Duplicate Items

When it comes to clothes, the best thing you can do is be honest with yourself and let go of items you know you don't need to keep, like duplicates of the same items.

"Having multiples of the same item, like white or black t-shirts that all look the same, you don’t need them (and probably don’t wear half of them)," Steele says. "Give yourself room to breathe and toss the multiples you don’t use! This will help free up space and make your closet easier to manage."

Anything Ripped Or Damaged

No, we aren't talking about ripped jeans or clothes with intentional holes. According to Brock, you should inspect the items in your closet and toss anything that's been torn or ripped by accident. Also anything that missing a button or is unwearable due to damage. "Ripped clothing makes a homeowner look like they don’t care about their appearance," she says.

Items With Price Tags

Once again: be honest with yourself. That sweater you bought from two seasons ago that still has the tags on it? You're not going to wear it anytime soon, so it's best to open up more space in your closet by donating it.

"Stores are full of clothes that might have been an impulse purchase," Brock says. "If when you get home, you ask yourself “what was I thinking”, rather than face returning the piece it stays in your closet taking up space. Just get rid of it."

Smelly Shoes

It's possible to get foul odors out of your beloved shoes, old or new, that are cause from feet sweat. However, if you have outdated shoes that have developed a funky smell, Brock says it's time to toss them in the trash instead of donating them.

Well-Loved Linens & Towels

If you have an influx of dirty or ragged linens and towels on your shelves, the good news is that you can toss them out of your closet but recycle them for a whole other purpose.

"Don’t keep these in the linen closet because space can be an issue," Brock warns. "Transfer them to a bag of rags or the garage. There’s always a need for rags."

If you're ever cleaning or organizing the garage, these old rags will come in handy to dust off any surfaces or corners.

Outdated Paperwork

Odds are you've amassed a build up of paperwork in your closet from important documents over time. If you don't have these documents already stowed away in a fireproof box or digitally scanned, it can become easily to have them overtake your space (and let's be honest, much of it is probably outdated, if we had to guess).

"Many homeowners have their home documents scattered around their house. Your insurance policy documents are in one location, while contractor business cards are in another," Dodson says. "Receipts for home services are products are elsewhere. You may even have plans and approvals for your home in a completely different location. The list of 'important papers' that homeowners now need to keep is remarkable and growing all the time."

To cut down on the clutter, Dodson recommends digitally scanning your documents and keeping them in an online cloud so your home is paper-clutter-free.

Shopping & Gift Bags

According to Dodson, grocery bags and gift bags are the first items to toss out of the closet when you get around to decluttering. "We head to a grocery store, forget our bags at home or in our car and buy another one. Buying these bags add up," she says. "Before you know it, you have bags piled up in a large stack but rarely use them. The same holds true with gift bags. You receive a gift in a beautiful gift bag and tell yourself you will use the bag for someone else but, when the gifting moment arrives, you forget where you stored it."

Empty Boxes

Similar to shopping and gift bags, an influx of empty boxes in your closet should go as well, and Brock agrees. "Whether it’s shoe boxes, hat boxes, gift boxes, or whatever, we all have them but think we will use them eventually," she says. "They take up space. Purge them out of your closet to either a different storage place or toss."

If you're planning on moving soon or within the near future, store them in a more open space, like a garage or junk room, to keep your closet clutter-free.

Holiday Decor Items

"Holiday decor can easily get out of hand," Dodson warns. " All of the sudden, you have many boxes full of holiday decorations, especially if you decorate for multiple holidays. Sharing decorations with your family or others could be a great way to get them in the hands of people who are starting their decorating journey."

Or, if you have an abundance of items for each season, go through and find the ones you can let go of to toss them and minimize your clutter.

Unwanted Gifts

It's possible to receive gifts from time to time that you either don't want or forget to use, but to relieve your conscience, it's perfectly fine to remove these items from your closets, according to our experts.

"No one wants to throw out a birthday present they were given from an aunt, but if it’s been sitting in your closet for years, it might be time to think about regifting or donating it," says Steele. "Keeping them might be sentimental, but if you’re not using the item it’ll just take up much needed closet space for the things you actually like and use."

Rusty Tools

If you consider yourself to be more of a handyman, odds are not every tool in your home is in perfect condition anymore, especially if they've been exposed to water multiple times. Not to mention, tools that have rusted can become dangerous and need to be tossed immediately for safety precautions. "Rusty tools can cause health hazards like tetanus if they cut your hand or body part. Rust also comprises strength of the tool," says Brock.

Dried-Up Home Improvement Items

Continuing on the home improvement items, Brock says other items you need to toss from your closet include dried-up or discolored paint and old glue. "Glues dry up and become unusable. Paint doesn’t live long even when sealed tight," she says. "Paint on a wall always fades so the paint in the can might not be the same color. Toss after 1-2 years."

Old Crafts

Lastly, if you have any old crafting objects in your closet that haven't come out of the box for years now, Brock says it's time to let go of these items and throw them away. "People go through phases of what they enjoy doing craft-wise or perhaps age-wise. So if no longer engaging in a particular craft, go ahead and donate as someone will be able to make use of these supplies," she says.