When we’ve had a bit of a rubbish summer (which, unfortunately, seems to happen more and more often), we Brits always hold out hope for an Indian summer. We seem to get so little wear out of our shorts and summer dresses, and it seems a shame to store them away if there’s still a chance the sun might appear!

So our summer clothes remain in our wardrobes well into the autumn months until our optimism fades into reality and Halloween decorations appear in the shops. It’s sad and painful, but we’ve got to admit that it will be at least another six months before we can wear lightweight clothes again. 

Storing away out-of-season clothes (rather than leaving them to take up valuable space in your wardrobe) is one of those tasks you’ll be glad you did, but it’s not something anyone looks forward to or enjoys. So, to make it as easy and painless as possible, here are our tips for swapping your summer clothes for winter wear.
 

1. Only do what you can cope with

You might like the thoroughness of pulling everything out of your wardrobe and sorting it into piles - summer clothes, winter clothes, all-year-round clothes - and then deciding what to keep and recycle. The summer clothes you save for next year can be stored out of the way, and everything else can be returned to the wardrobe or drawers.

You might like that idea, but know that if you do it, you’ll lose interest halfway through and end up with a bed covered in clothes and no motivation to do anything other than stuff it all back in the cupboard.

If that’s the case, follow these steps:

• Pull out the obvious summer clothes - long, floaty dresses, string-sleeved tops, shorts, skirts that can’t be layered with thick tights or leggings, swimwear, beachwear and sandals/flipflops. 
  • Of those items, bag up anything torn or stained and put aside for when you next pass the clothing recycle bins in your local supermarket car park. 
  • Then, bag up anything you don’t like anymore that doesn’t fit well or wouldn’t have worn this summer even if you’d had time. These items can be either:
    • Given to a local charity shop;
    • Stored for the start of next summer so that you can sell them easily online and make some cash.
    • All remaining summer clothes need to be stored somewhere (see point 2 below).

Everything else in your wardrobe should be all-year-round clothing (e.g. jeans, t-shirts, shirts) or winter clothes. If you have any energy left:

• By all means, sort these in the same way you’ve just sorted your summer clothes; 
• If not, you can sort them out properly when swapping your winter clothes for summer clothes again in spring.

2. Choose an easy way to store your summer clothes

We promised you an easy way to swap out your summer clothes for winter clothes. In terms of where to store your summer clothes over winter, ‘easy’ can mean one of two ways:
 

A. Store them at home

• Make sure your clothes are clean and completely dry. 
• Buy vacuum storage bags from your local pound shop.
• Fold and insert your summer clothes into the bags, and vacuum to remove the air to save space.
• Store your sealed bags under your bed, at the bottom of your wardrobe, in the spare room or wherever you have room.
• Don’t store them anywhere pests tend to gather unnoticed (such as in the loft), as mice and moths can nibble through plastic and could ruin your lovely summer clothes over winter.

B. Rent a self storage unit for a few weeks over the winter

• Make sure your clothes are clean and completely dry. 
• Reserve a storage room or locker online at your nearest Safestore.
• Put all your clothes in bags or boxes. If you have items that can be hung up, you can save even more time and effort by leaving them on hangers because… 
• If you don’t want the hassle of bagging everything up, you can buy a wardrobe-sized storage box with a hanging rail for just £10.99. Hang everything inside your self-storage unit, stack your remaining boxes or bags of clothes in the unit, too, and leave it till spring.

Thinking about using self storage for your summer clothes?

If you don’t have the space at home or would rather not have bags and boxes cluttering up parts of your house and are interested in self storage, here’s what you need to know about Safestore:

• We have over 132 stores across the UK in easy-to-reach locations.
• You can rent a locker with us (about the size of a car boot) or a room (anything up to the size of a warehouse). A locker would be fine for a summer wardrobe, or you could opt for a 16 sq ft room if you wanted to use a wardrobe storage box to hang clothes in. If you have other summer items, such as duvets, garden furniture, and outdoor toys, a 25 sq ft room might be best.
• Our experienced team members are happy to advise on what room size is best for you if you want to tell us what you plan to store.
• You can visit your locker or room and take items out or add more any time during our opening hours, seven days a week. 
• Our units are indoors, and our stores are all covered by CCTV, fire detection and alarms, security alarms and pest control. You’ll be the only person who can access your unit.

If you have any questions, you can chat with us online, give us a call or email us. If you decide to book, you can do this online, in-store or by phone with no deposit to pay, so there’s nothing to stop you from moving your summer clothes out of sight until spring!