This is the time of year when I’m just getting tired. Tired of the clothes in my closet. You might remember last month I did this whirlwind clean out of my closet and pretty much every closet in my house. While it’s great to get rid of stuff I wasn’t wearing, now I feel just a little bit bored with what is left.

So, it’s time to go shopping. In my closet. This may come as a surprise to many of you, but I’m a little tired of buying new things. I’ve limited my purchases recently to great scarves, an interesting piece of jewelry or the new bag my husband bought me for Christmas.

For me, the key to shopping in my closet is to start with one piece of clothing. There are two ways to do this. The first is to take a piece that you wear frequently and accessorize it with existing but otherwise less worn pieces. The second way is to take something you rarely wear, but really like and experiment with making it into a new outfit.

For the first example, take an old standby like a black dress (or sweater, or pants, etc) and hang it separately from your wardrobe. Look at it like a blank canvas, because that’s what it is. Do you usually wear boots and tights? Try switching out the boots for a pair of pumps or a flat and go with a textured tight. Do you always wear certain accessories? Put those out of your sight and look at less worn cuffs, bracelets, earrings and necklaces to accessorize. For me, it’s this kind of creativity that keeps me interested in my closet and reminds me that I do have a closet full of clothes I love.

Now for the more challenging part: pulling out something you don’t wear as often and begin building new looks. My first question to ask yourself is why aren’t you wearing it? Is it an item that needs to be deleted from the closet and that somehow missed the cut in January? Or is it perhaps that piece that just never found “friends” in your wardrobe? This is your chance to find out. Hang the item (dress, pants, top) away from your existing wardrobe as well. Then get those “go to” pieces that you set aside in the first exercise and see how well they work with this less worn piece. My bet is that mixing old standbys with something you wear less will help you see your wardrobe in a new light.

If you are honest with yourself and you’ve done your closet clean-out effectively, you should find that you have more looks that feel new than you previously thought possible.

February is a hard month. Though it’s short, if feels very long. Try these tips to refresh your closet and Spring may start to feel right around the corner.