Professional experts say we wear only 20 percent of our clothes 80 percent of the time, which means much of what’s in our closet is rarely used. If you have to dig through or climb over mounds of clothes to find what you’re looking for, it may be time to clear out and reorganize. Here are some suggestions from closet design pros.

Empty the closet of everything, so you can see what you have. Then sort your clothes into three piles: keep, toss and donate. If you have a hard time discarding items, have a friend help you or hire a professional organizer.

Keep the items you wear often. Toss the items that are ripped, stained or damaged. If you haven’t worn something in at least a year and it’s still wearable, donate it. Donating items to your favorite charity not only makes you feel good, it might get you a tax break.

Remove the discarded items immediately so you won’t be tempted to put them back in the closet.

Sort the remaining clothes by type (dresses, slacks, shirts, etc.). It might also help to sort by color and by how often you wear things.

Scrub the inside of the closet with soap and water. Then install shelves, racks and containers to organize the remaining clothes, so all similar items are stored together.

Once your closets are neat and organized, you won’t mind if anyone asks to peak inside.