Four Steps for Controlling Preschool Clutter

By Andrea Lieser

Are you drowning under an avalanche of old kids' clothing? When pudgy preschooler tummies start popping out from under their shirts or their pants magically turn into "high waters", you know the inevitable is here. Your preschooler has grown and it's time to buy new clothes again. Horrid shopping trips aside, the real question is: What do you do with the old clothes? Just pile it up and hope the junk fairy comes to save you? Poof! No, it’s not going to happen. Not knowing what to keep and what to toss can paralyze you into doing nothing, leaving you in your junk-filled, disaster of a house. Dig your way out the easy way. By adding some simple steps to your current laundry routine, you can free yourself from mountains of preschooler clothing and reclaim your closets. This technique also works for toy clutter. 

Before You Begin to Tackle the Clutter

Choose a laundry day before you go clothes shopping for your preschooler. This will help you stay organized after you come home with more clothes. You can also do this before a birthday party or the holidays, when you know your preschooler will be receiving more clothes. Before you begin, have a large garbage bag for donations ready, and a sturdy box for the clothing you want to keep as mementos. 

Once your clothes are washed, begin separating into three piles as you fold:                 

Clutter Tackling Step One: What to Keep
Clothes that still fit your preschooler can obviously be stored in closets and dressers. If you have younger children, and want to save hand-me-downs, put those in a separate pile. Store them in a rubber bin, tucked in the closet. Once the bin is full, label it with the clothing sizes and season, and store in the garage or attic. Just don’t forget you have the clothes stored away!

Clutter Tackling Step Two: What to Donate or Sell
Bag it and stow it away in the trunk of your car. Then just drop it off at a donation center or consignment shop during your next marathon session of errands. An even easier solution is to have a local nonprofit organization pick up your loot. You're helping others, as well as getting organized.   

Clutter Tackling Step Three: Keepsakes
It is tempting to want to hold onto every adorable baby outfit your preschooler has outgrown. However, this can quickly eat up precious storage space. Keepsakes should be those pieces that make you swoon with sentimental feelings, such as a treasured baby layette or a first babies first Halloween costume. 

Fight the desire to keep those slobbery bibs, no matter how they make you feel. 

Box and label your "keepsakes" and stash those in the closet or garage right away (labeling makes it easier to put more keepsake clothing away in the same box your next round of de-cluttering).

Clutter Tackling Step Four: What to Toss
Trash Bin items should be those that have a certain "ick" factor-things that nobody wants like old socks and underwear. Trashing is a last resort; donate the good stuff if you can. 

You may need repeat this process a couple of times (maybe more) in order to go through all your preschooler’s clothing. If you're feeling very overwhelmed, take it one laundry session at a time. Once you've conquered the overflow of clothing, this system is easy to maintain, by simply sorting through clothing each time you do laundry.

These steps work well with preschooler’s other clutter, such as toys and crafts. Whenever you begin to feel that preschool clutter is starting to swallow you up, follow these steps, and reclaim your closet and drawer space. You will also have some peace of mind, knowing that you tackled such a huge job while doing one of your usual weekly chores.

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I'm Andrea Lieser, I was taught the arts of crochet, embroidery, cooking and gardening at a very young age by my own stay at home mom. I left a job at a fashion accessories design company to stay home with my young daughter and inspire her to love art and family as much as I do.