While organising and decluttering methods aren’t usually very sexy, this one could make you more stylish. I recently tried colour-coding my wardrobe to bring some order to the chaos and to see if tidying up could give my outfits a shake-up – no shopping spree required.
The goal of colour coding is to make it easier to see what goes with what, streamlining your wardrobe and speeding up the process of getting dressed in the morning at the same time. Wearing the same four outfits every week gets old fast, so in the search for inspiration, I decided to give it a go.
Here's why you might want to try it too.
Reasons to colour code your wardrobe
For many, combing through your wardrobe shade by shade and questioning whether your jumper is really blue or if it’s “actually cerulean” probably sounds painful and pointless. But, I promise it's really easy once you get into it, and the benefits go far beyond aesthetics.
It reduces decision fatigue
If you've ever spent your morning staring down your wardrobe blankly as you slowly grow later and later for work, only to shrug on the same tired shirt, you'll know the struggle.
Colour coding helps you visually scan for combos faster. Suddenly, getting dressed becomes a quick, painless process. Think of all the things you could do with that time previously spent buried in a discarded pile of cardigans. There's a reason Mark Zuckerberg always wears the same grey tee and jeans.
It inspires creativity
Seeing your clothes arranged by hue can spark lots of new outfit ideas and new colour combinations. You're finally able to see the long-lost jeans from the back-in-style tops and it's the breath of fresh air my style needed. Colours grouped together just naturally inspire new pairings.
It helps with outfit planning
It’s a great way to give both your wardrobe and your fashion sense a quick audit. You start to see patterns, such as what colours you wear most, and identify gaps. For example, I really don’t need any more little black tops, I must be stopped, yet I somehow have no white ones. Good to know the next time I'm browsing on M&S.
It encourages decluttering
Clothes that don’t fit the scheme or never get worn suddenly stand out. You’ll start questioning why you’re holding onto certain pieces and it's easier to let them go. Be smart with it and you may even earn a little cash rehoming them on second-hand clothing sites such as Vinted, Depop or eBay.
How to colour coordinate your wardrobe
Start with a clean slate
As is the case with most decluttering or organising methods, the best way to start is with a blank space. So, remove everything from your wardrobe – this is also a good opportunity to get in some cleaning, giving the space a good dusting and wiping down with a great-smelling multi-surface spray for that true fresh start feeling.
Split it into categories
Before you dive into colours, group everything by category: trousers with trousers, dresses with dresses, etc. If you want to go full-on Type A, you can break it down further –maxi dresses, denim jeans, joggers etc. You could even go all in with coloured-coded clothing hangers for each group, adding an extra pop of visual satisfaction.
Choose your shades
There are a couple of ways you can organise your wardrobe by colour. Most people use either the classic rainbow order (ROYGBIV) or, if you have more of a neutral wardrobe, you could opt for light to dark. The ROYGBIV method provides the best colour contrast and makes it simpler to distinguish your garments when you’re in a rush.
You can organise by colour within clothing categories (e.g. white to black tops, then white to black dresses). Or, if you’re looking for more of a visually satisfying look, you can try an overall rainbow, strictly done by colour rather than categories. As stunning as this looks, though, this often makes outfit-building a little trickier.
The verdict
I chose to organise by colour within each clothing category using the classic rainbow order. It just made sense to my brain – and turned out to be unexpectedly satisfying.
First surprise: I apparently own a lot more colourful items than I thought. As someone who used to describe her wardrobe as all-black-everything, discovering such a wide palette felt like unearthing hidden treasure.
The whole process took just under an hour, but the style inspiration I got from it made the time well worth it. I found colour combos I’d never have considered before – such as pairing a bright blue high-neck shirt with sunshine-yellow suit trousers. My method? Pick a piece I wanted to wear, then walk it along the rail until something clicked. It made getting dressed feel creative again.
One happy accident: I noticed the pattern in a red shirt perfectly echoed the warm tones of a tan suede skirt – simply because they ended up hanging next to each other. Suddenly, I had an outfit I’d never thought to put together.
Admittedly, some items were trickier to place – such as earthy tones or bold prints – but I trusted my instincts and arranged them wherever they visually made sense. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked.
Along the way, I learned a few things: I own a surprisingly colourful collection of dresses but I should probably take a few more risks with my skirt choices. I’ve also been hoarding bulky winter coats that I definitely don't need right now – into storage they went, freeing up loads of space.
Best of all? I stumbled across items I thought I’d lost, such as this blue shirt I bought on holiday in Sweden years ago – a stylish and sentimental find. It felt like shopping my own wardrobe, without spending a penny.
How to maintain it
Often, the hardest part of any cleaning or decluttering hack is keeping it organised. Luckily, this is one of the advantages of the colour-coding method. It’s pretty easy to stay on top of, especially when you keep these handy tips in mind, to make sure the clutter doesn’t spoil your clothing rainbow.
Keep it seasonal
Free up space by being strict with seasonal items. Store winter coats and jumpers away during the summer and rotate them back in to replace the strappy tops and shorts when the weather begins to turn again in autumn.
Do monthly touch-ups
Keep on top of it all by doing a regular freshen-up. Maybe you’ve had a busy month and been a bit lazy with the laundry, or maybe you’ve got a new shopping haul you’re yet to organise. But taking time to make sure you give it a tidy-up once a month makes it much more manageable.
I’d also recommend doing a deep declutter twice a year. This will help/can correspond with the changing over of seasonal clothing and is a great way to make sure you’re still wearing all your clothes and donating or recycling the ones left hanging.
Use the one-in, one-out method
This tip may be a harsh one for some, but it stops you shopping what you don't need. The idea is that you can only buy an item if you also ditch one, ensuring your wardrobe doesn’t grow unnecessarily.
Of course, there are exceptions to the rule but you’ll have to set your own boundaries. Try it and you’ll be shocked by just how much of your wardrobe you can easily part with when you have to.
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