I Put the 90/90 Rule to the Test in My Closet, and Fully Decluttered It in an Hour

Every morning, I spend way too much time standing in front of my bedroom closet, flipping through my clothes, trying to decide what to wear. I have a selection of shirts I love but never wear, several pairs of pants that might not even fit anymore, and a dress or two that I don’t like but keep because I spent money to have them tailored — among all the other stuff in the closet, of course.

This weekend, I decided it was time to clear out my closet clutter so I could spend less time pondering my outfits every morning. It was the perfect time to try the 90/90 rule.

The 90/90 rule was created by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, who run The Minimalists together. It asks two simple questions: Have you used this in the past 90 days? Will you use it in the next 90 days? If your answer to both is no (with the exception of things like seasonal clothes, holiday items, or anything used only for a specific part of the year), it’s time to get rid of that item.

The 90/90 rule asks you not to care about your feelings or the grand thoughts about throwing more fondue parties or eventually wearing that old shirt you love. If you haven’t used it and you don’t plan to in the near future, say goodbye. I needed that kind of blind clarity in my closet.

My husband and I set to work, going through each item of clothing and deciding what to donate. We tried on everything that maybe fit; we went through all the drawers of socks and underwear; and we nitpicked everything sitting on shelves and hanging on doors. Any belt that was tearing or too big got tossed. Dress shoes my husband hadn’t worn in years went in the pile. Shirts missing buttons, shirts that got pushed aside, pants that didn’t fit — all of it went.

The whole process only took about an hour, and we ended up clearing out our closet with two huge trash bags full of clothes to donate. We can both find things much quicker, and we let go of delusions that one day we’d wear certain clothes again. I also found a stack of skirts I’d stuffed in the back of the closet I forgot about that I’m excited to wear again! It worked so incredibly well that on another day, in a waiting room before a doctor’s appointment, I tried the 90/90 rule again, but on my phone. I cleared out any apps and games I hadn’t used in 90 days. I have to say, I feel much lighter after the fact! It’s nice not to scroll through 10 pages of apps just to find the one I want.

I do have one small piece of advice for anyone trying the 90/90 rule: If you’re cleaning out a closet with your partner and they try to toss a shirt you like, don’t take it from them. My husband had a few shirts to get rid of (including this fabulously warm, thick flannel button-down), and instead of putting them in the donation bag, I put them right into my side of the closet. The point of this exercise is to lose clothing, not gain clothing.

In the end, though, we do have a sizable new gap in our closet from unworn clothes going to the thrift store. We also have fewer caps littering the closet doors, emptier drawers inside the closet, and a smaller pile of mismatched socks. In the next few weeks, I can’t wait to use this brilliant method to declutter the rest of the house.