Seasonal clothes storage is a great idea, but only if you store the clothes properly. Find out how to do that below.
Whilst certain items of clothing like underwear, socks, T-shirts and leggings are all-year-round items, certain types of clothing are seasonal. Your coats and thick jumpers, boots and heavy jeans, your floaty summer dresses, sandals and beach cover ups -these are all seasonal clothes items that tend to be ignored the rest of the time.
Why Store Seasonal Clothes?
Seasonal clothing is going to take up room in the wardrobe at a time when it isn’t getting used, so it makes more sense to store it and enjoy the clothes you do have that are right for the season. If you don’t store them right though, you could be in for a nasty surprise when you get them out again, so follow these 10 tips to make sure those seasonal items stay in h great condition until you get them back out:
1. Choose The Right Storage Spot
It is so important to choose the right storage spot for your seasonal clothes. Ideally you should have no direct sunlight onto the clothing as that can cause fading. The space should also be protected from environmental damage like flooding, and if possible protected from extreme temperatures. Climate controlled self storage is ideal for seasonal clothing storage. It is dry, secure, the temperature is controlled and it clears room in your home that you can utilise for other things. Local self storage can also be useful for other seasonal items like garden furniture and Christmas decorations.
2. Use The Right Storage Containers
The materials you wrap your clothes in is important as to how they come out again when it comes to using them again. If you can, use PH neutral tissue paper if you’re folding up something like a big wool coat. You should also avoid the use of completely watertight materials like 100% plastic tubs, as that could trap in smells and water, leading to the potential for nasty odours and even mould when it comes to taking the clothes out again.
3. Clean Before Storing
Do clean your seasonal clothing before storing it. Dirt and debris could stain or damage the materials and may get worse the longer it is not removed. Clean and decrease all your clothing allowing it to completely dry before putting it away.
4. Hang If You Can
Most clothing benefits from being hung, rather than folded or bagged up. A rail inside a storage unit is also much more space efficient than something that takes up a lot of floor space. Do be careful, though, to add padding to coat hangers that hold heavy items like coats. This will avoid them stretching and becoming damaged on the shoulder areas.
5. Add Some Pest Control
Pests like mice and other nibblers are unlikely in a local self storage unit because those kinds of facilities do a lot to prevent pest issues. However, one common pest that can infiltrate all manner of clothing in all kinds of spaces, are moths. Do check for moth damage before storing your clothes and if everything is clear, add some moth preventative sachets throughout your seasonal wardrobe.
6. Add Some Silica Gel
Silica gel sachets such up excess moisture, so they are worth placing in your seasonal storage. They are cheap, small and useful in preventing mould and mildew from small amounts of moisture that can be present in clothes we believe to be dry.
7. Hinch Your Seasonal Clothes
One of the best tips from cleaning expert Mrs Hinch is to put dryer sheets in and among your clothing. It makes them smell really nice, which is brilliant when it comes to getting your clothes back out from storage.
8. Ventilate
It is important to ventilate your clothing as much as you can. This includes the tips we mentioned above, ensuring that you don’t store in a way that traps the air around the clothing. Additionally, if you can disturb the air around the clothing every now and again it will help avoid that stale, dead air smell. Even with the Mrs Hinch tip above, that stale smell can occur if clothes are left without any disturbance for months on end.
Another easy way to create airflow in your affordable self storage unit is to create a walkway and ideally don’t pack everything in too tightly.
9. Declutter
One of the best things you can do for your seasonal wardrobe is to declutter it before storage. This will ensure you aren’t storing items you don’t wear or love, and aren’t using up space in your wardrobe when it comes to switching over the clothes. You might even be able to make a bit of money selling some of the clothing, which is always a good thing.
10. Learn To Fold
If you are storing your items in boxes rather than hanging them, learn to fold them up well using Marie Kondo tips, or other effective methods. It helps to avoid the clothes getting deep wrinkles and creases whilst they are in storage, and should make your use of self storage more effective, too because the clothes will take up less space.
Are You Ready To Enjoy Better Seasonal Clothes Storage?
If you do choose climate controlled self storage you will find that a lot of the work is done for you, simply by the unit not having direct sunlight, being climate controlled and having pest control and environmental damage control. Your clothes have a much better chance of remaining in great condition just by them being stored in a more suitable environment than something like a garage. With the tips above, you further add to the likelihood you’ll have a usable, fresh set of seasonal clothes to enjoy once it’s time to change your wardrobe over. You also have lots of extra space at home to enjoy as you keep those unusable clothes out of the wardrobe full of clothing you want to enjoy right now, whilst the weather is right.
Why not enquire with your local London self storage unit today to find out more about how they could help you store your seasonal clothing more effectively?