There’s something truly invigorating about a wardrobe clean out. 

Beyond Kondo’s illustrious advice to only keep items that ‘spark joy’, I also enjoy a newfound sense of serenity at seeing everything in its place. 

A kind of sartorial feng shui, if you will.

There’s an old proverb I tend to live by: cluttered wardrobe, cluttered mind.

As a serial wardrobe organiser myself, I like to think I’ve got closet culling down to a fine art. 

So if you’re one of the many who battle with their overflowing closet every morning, lamenting a lack of anything to wear, chances are you’re simply in desperate need of a wardrobe refresh. 

Here is our guide to the ultimate closet clean out.

The first step is to choose a day when you have no prior commitments. 

A complete closet refresh is a huge undertaking if done properly, and a few hours just won’t cut it. The last thing you need is to get halfway through, clothes strewn across the room, only to have to run to a class or appointment.

I wholeheartedly agree with my aforementioned decluttering guru Marie Kondo – the best way to a fresh, organised closet is to remove absolutely everything and start from the beginning.

Remove all the items from your wardrobe, then sort your clothes into categories that make sense to you. For me, I like to categorise roughly according to season, followed by style.

Summer – split into tees, singlets, shorts, skirts, light dresses. Winter – split into jumpers, pants, coats, heavy skirts and dresses, etc. That way, if you have awkward, unreachable sections of your wardrobe, you can rotate the out-of-season clothing to these areas, keeping current season styles prominent and easily within reach.

But before you put anything back into your closet, it’s time for a cull.

How do you know what to ditch and what to keep?

Personally, I find the best way to decide what you want to keep is to try everything on. It sounds arduous, but it’s truly the only way to remove any emotional attachment to old clothing that doesn’t fit, or doesn’t suit your style anymore.

As I try each piece on, I ask myself: would I buy this if I was in a store right now?

If I wouldn’t, why? If it doesn’t fit, isn’t flattering, or isn’t comfortable, put it aside to resell, donate or recycle. If it needs mending, or a simple alteration could make it work, put it in a pile to have it fixed. If it makes you happy when you try it on, keep it. 

How should you organise your newly culled closet?

Now that you have your reduced ‘keep’ pile, assess the space in your closet. Do you have lots of drawers or cupboards, and not much hanging space? Prioritise styles that require hanging first, then when you run out of room, fold everything else – or vice versa.

To maximise hanging space, use tiered pant hangers and do away with bulky hanger styles. For drawer space, fold items and store vertically rather than as a pile, so that you can see and access each item easily. 

For shelving space, consider wire bins – they act like drawers, so you are able to store more items without spillage and messy piles, whilst still being able to see everything inside at one glance.

I organise hanging space in order of season, then style, then colour. 

Within a winter block, items are hung in the aforementioned category sections (jackets, coats, pants, shirts, jumpers etc), then within those categories according to colour.

For jewellery and accessories, clear Perspex jewellery organiser boxes are a great way to keep your trinkets visible, safe and separated. Organise according to colour (gold, silver, other), followed by occasion (formal, informal).

Clutches and handbags work well in a wire bin that you can easily pull down and see everything contained within. Depending on your space, shoes can be kept in clear boxes for stacking, or try pantry organiser shelving to add a modular second layer – with flats stored underneath and heels on top.

Luxury handbags and fine jewellery are best kept in their original dust bags and boxes. To retain shape, you can purchase bag shaper pillows that fill out the interior whilst not in use.

To keep items visible and easily accessible, you could also consider adding a picture of the bag to the outside of each box.

If you find you don’t have enough space in your closet to fit all your items comfortably, consider what categories can be stored elsewhere. 

If it’s summer, can you store coats in another closet during the warmer seasons? If it’s winter, can your open toe shoes be put into storage while it’s cold? It’s a great way to free up space for the items you’ll actually wear day to day.

What should I do with my unwanted clothing?

Clothing and textile waste is a huge environmental issue that is placing immense strain on our landfill resources, so don’t throw away old clothing. If the clothing is in good condition, consider a second hand market stall, or list the items online. Donating good quality clothing to your local charity is also a great option.

For clothing and textiles that are unwearable, recycle. Many fashion chains offer textile recycling bins in store, or try Planet Ark’s website to find a drop off point near you.

What's the best way to declutter your wardrobe? How do you know what to ditch and what to keep? Bianca O’Neill explains why culling your closet may just inject a little more zen in your morning routine.

If there’s one person you go to for the perfect brows and lashes, it’s brow expert Kim Evans. 

Her much-loved business Lux Brows and Lashes, based in Melbourne’s Essendon, has been a popular pit stop for a swathe of local celebrities for over eight years.

But during the pandemic, an innovative pivot saw her new line of lash and brow beauty products take off, as Australians increasingly dabbled in at-home beauty care.

“I thought, well I’ve got to think outside the box – and I created a product range, purely brows and lashes,” Kim told me about launching her small, boutique brow and lash line. “I have about six products, but it covers everything.”

Since the launch, she’s seen the range grow in popularity, despite her clientele returning to the salon for in-person pampering. “I’m very lucky, I’ve got a great lot of clients that trust what I bring out.”

And when it comes to brows, trust is tantamount. As the ultimate face-framers, a tactfully sculpted brow can make or break your entire makeup look. 

So, we chatted to Kim about everything brow-related, from her top tips and best kept secrets, to the latest trends - including those questionable 90s skinny brows touted to make a comeback… suffice to say, as a natural brow enthusiast, her reaction was less than enthusiastic.

How would you define a natural-looking brow, and how can someone at home achieve this shape?

“Leave the top of the brow, the hair – don’t make that a perfect line. That top hair should be more natural looking, with a beautiful base that is really defined and sculpted. When the top of the brow is a really harsh, defined line – that’s when it starts to look a bit too fake.”

What’s the biggest mistake most people make when it comes to their brows?

“Everyone always chooses a brow powder that’s too dark. Everyone! I would say 90% of people, when I get them to look at the palette, and ask which colour they would choose, they always go too dark.”

“Always go softer. If you apply the powder in a lighter colour, you can apply more but get that fuller shape. If you apply a darker powder in the same way, they just look too heavy on your face.”

What’s the one key product that you would recommend for people to use to care for their brows?

“I would say, for that really natural look brow, a brow highlight pencil. That’s a white brow pencil – not an eyeliner, they’re different. A white pencil, it’s so understated – it really brightens and defines the shape.”

“It’s drawn underneath the baseline of the brow, and while it defines the brow shape, it also brightens your eyes. It makes the eyes pop. If I was to wear no makeup, I would just put brow soap and white highlight pencil – not mascara, not anything.”

“The best addition to your products at the moment is brow soap, because it lifts that hair at the base line, exposes that beautiful clean line that you’ve got, and gives you that soft fluffy brow look on the top.”

“You apply it with a spooli*. Some people like to dampen the brush to get a softer look. To get a more defined, more lifted look, don’t wet the brush.”

*Note: This is the spiral brush you find in mascara, also used for eyebrow maintenance.

What are your thoughts on the rise in the lamination trend?

“I love lamination, but not everyone can have it. Lamination creates a fluffier brow, and it contains the unruly brow hairs. What you can do if you’ve got the unruly, long or curled brow hairs, we can relax those hairs during the lamination.”

“But it does lift up from the base – so if you’ve got holes or gaps in the baseline of your brows, that will be revealed, so you’ll need to a brow defining pencil to build that baseline in. I think most people think they’re going to get this miracle, fuller brow, but don’t understand that the lift is coming from the base, which creates fullness.”

Lux Brows & Lashes White Highlight Pencil and Brush

What are your thoughts on the rumours that there will be a return to 90s skinny brows?

“Not much at all! I’m not quite sure who can pull it off… I’d be surprised if that comes back, because we’re embracing more of a natural makeup look as well at the moment.”

“If those follicles die during the process, it will never grow back. So if you pluck your brows that thin, consistently, potentially you could damage the follicle. It might never grow back.”

What is the brow stylist red flag we need to be looking out for?

“We do not cut the brow hair. We are more of a natural brow look – others will trim the brows to get the more solid, accurate line at the top of the brow. But just think about it – if you push your brow hair up, and then you chop that off, the brow hair naturally falls to the outer of the eye and then creates gaps and holes.”

Fresh from styling the fashionable faces of Melbourne's celebrity scene, brow stylist Kim Evans clues us up on the best insider tips and tricks for maintaining your brows.

High Brow: The Rules of Eyebrow Maintenance

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Bianca is a fashion and travel journalist who spends all her money on travelling the world instead of sensible things like food and a mortgage. 

She's a lover of sci-fi novels, oversharing on Instagram, and un-fine wine.

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 The In Essence Midnight Ultrasonic Diffuser disperses the aromatic properties of your chosen 100% pure In Essence Essential Oils throughout the air via a fine cool mist, creating a therapeutic ambience to enhance your mood, calm your mind, or to help you find balance and clarity.
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 The stylish monochromatic design of In Essence's Ultrasonic Diffuser makes it a versatile piece for function and beauty in your home, whether you make it a centrepiece of a sacred space for meditation, or a discreet addition to your bedside table.
 Pioneers for over 30 years in the essential oil industry, In Essence are dedicated to delivering holistic health and wellbeing solutions through the power of pure essential oils. They have designed their unique diffusion vessels to ensure you receive the optimum therapeutic benefits from their 100% pure essential oils.
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 HOW TO USE START Place on a flat surface in a safe and convenient position, out of reach of children. Remove the upper cover. Connect the AC adapter to the base of the DC socket. Add cool tap water to tank, do not fill beyond the max level mark. Add 6-9 drops of In Essence pure essential oils into the water in the tank (avoid chemical, synthetic oils as these will cause product to malfunction) Replace the cover of the main body. Press Mist button to turn on the diffuser. Press LED button to turn on the light for ambience. 
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Bianca is a fashion and travel journalist who spends all her money on travelling the world instead of sensible things like food and a mortgage.

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