For months now our closets has been stuffed with all the rain coats and puffy jackets as we await cooler weather. But once the first leaf falls…we will all run to pull them out along with our umbrellas and rain boots. Leaving us to put away our spring and summer clothes in what will become a weekend project.

Storing seasonal clothing is not an easy task and filling up cardboard boxes to put in storage is not the way to go. Here are five tips on how to properly store it.

1. Clean your clothes before putting it away, make the effort to wash them to remove perspiration stains and/or perfumes. That goes for bedding too.
2. Organize your clothes in groups, outerwear, beach wear, etc. Each pertaining to its own storage box.
3. Say no to plastic or cardboard! You don’t want your clothing to soak in the smells of the containers. Also, your clothes need to breathe. Look for linen or clothed based boxes.
4. Pretreat for moths. Consider adding moth balls or lavender sachets to your containers for extra protection.
5. Store in a cool and dark places like an attic or basement as those are ideal places to prolong the shelf life of your items. This makes them ready to use the following year.