How to Audit Your Wardrobe

Author: Robbie Lannon

Posted on: Oct 15, 2025

One of the first steps to revamping your wardrobe is the Audit. It’s not as scary as it sounds, but it will take a good bit of time. Pick a day with no other plans, put on some tunes, grab your favorite beverage, and let’s get started.

You’re going to sort your entire wardrobe. Yes, every. Single. Piece. Your entire closet, dresser, anything that holds clothes should be empty when you’re finished with the audit. Like I said, it’ll take some time. It will be worth the effort when you’re finished, though.

The Essentials

Start simple with socks and underwear. If your underwear hasn’t been replaced in more than a year or two, replace it. You’ll be amazed how much better a new pair of underwear can feel.

Socks are a little more in depth. Athletic socks should be replaced with underwear. Dress socks have a bit more leeway. If the elastic is still strong, and the pattern is something you still like, keep them. Otherwise, replace them as you need to.

For new dress socks, it’s kind of up to preference. I don’t like having to keep adjusting mine because they fall down even though the elastic is still good, so I’m looking into over-the-calf socks. Problem: they’re hard to find and expensive when you do find them. So use your own judgement here.

The Boxes

Now we get into the meat and potatoes of the audit. You’re going to have 4 boxes you want to use. Shoutout to Antonio at Real Men Real Style for this system. They are: Love, Like, Live With, Lose.

This is where things get tedious and take a long time…you’re going to put on each piece of clothing you have and sort it into one of those four boxes. This should take a few hours depending on how full your closet is.

Love It Box

This is the box of the things you love wearing. You constantly get compliments on them. You feel like a million bucks wearing it. You put it on and stand a little taller or walk with a little more swagger. The end “goal” for your whole wardrobe is to do this audit again in a few years and everything is in the Love It box.

There’s a small problem here too, and that is that tastes change. You may not like something in 5 years that you absolutely love right now. And that’s great! It shows you’re refining your style and willing to make adjustments as you need to!

Like It Box

This one is for items you still enjoy wearing, but they could use a minor tweak or two. A jacket with sleeves ¼” too long, a shirt that would look better with darts in the back, pants that you’d rather change the break on, things like that. Keep wearing these and bring them to the tailor as you can budget them for the minor changes.

It’s a great way to quickly fill your Love It box next audit. You could also use these items as bases for upgrades later. Say you like a sweater that's a scratchier material than you’d like. Wear it as is and save up for a merino wool—or really splurge for a cashmere—if you’re feeling fancy.

Live With It Box

This one often gets confused with the Like It box. I think of it as the box for things you don’t really like, but in a pinch you can get by wearing it. My rule of thumb is that this would be the box for things that are a tiny bit too short or too tight. Since these are things that can’t easily be altered, the Live With It or the Lose It boxes are where these items end up.

Another consideration is if this item is on its way out of your style. When I first started my style journey in earnest, I got rid of all my jeans except one pair. Yeah, in hindsight that was way too drastic, but now that I know what fits I like and what style best suits me, I can intentionally pick out colors of jeans instead of trying to find some that fit AND are the right color.

But if I were starting this over again now, I’d keep all the jeans I have and replace them as I could. Items in this box are the ones I recommend replacing first. You like them enough to keep them, but there’s something about each piece in this category that makes you not want to wear them consistently. Take your time here and make a list of each item and why it’s in this category. That way you know exactly what to look for when you go to replace each item.

A notoriously difficult example for pieces in this box are leather jackets. Mine is no exception here. I have a great jacket I got from my uncle—very well made brown and black (yes, they can go together, but that’s another post) Wilsons Leather moto jacket. I’d love to wear it all the time! Unfortunately, the sleeves are a bit too long and leather is too difficult to modify to make it worth my while to try and get it altered. So, I live with it. I wear it occasionally, but not nearly as often as I would if it fit me properly.

Lose It Box

This is either the easiest or the hardest box, depending on how you view your closet. These are items you know you’re going to get rid of. Things that don’t fit, trousers with holes that can’t be mended, shirts with collars too frayed to even wear for yard work, shoes that your feet are poking through. Those are the easiest ones to get rid of.

The harder ones are things that do still fit or could fit with minor alterations, but you really just don’t like the color. Or the pattern isn’t flattering. Or whenever you pick it up to consider it, you almost immediately put it back down for something else instead.

Use this as an opportunity to start fresh. Get rid of anything that doesn’t fit your lifestyle anymore or doesn’t hold significant sentimental value.

If you find yourself in a spot where you just can’t immediately get rid of this box, try this other tip from Antonio: seal it up and write today’s date on it. Give it one year in your closet or other storage area. If you haven’t opened the box and pulled the item out in a year’s time, it’s safe to get rid of it.

Congratulations! This giant mess you’ve created in your living space is now the foundation for your new wardrobe! Now, systematically organize the ones that are going back in your storage spaces, and you have an easy way to pick out outfits at any time!

Tags: style