Jane- understand both the joy and the slightly wistful feeling of seeing things go. For me, the presence of pieces that are sub-par for whatever reason is costly, as it prevents me from "seeing" and optimizing the possibilities of the much better for me items. I have a way to pass the good pieces on to others who will enjoy them and that makes me happy, too. I am going through my closet a couple of sections at a time now, removing everything to temporary racks, sorting and trying each piece, creating donate and toss bags and putting the keepers in a logical order and integrating my NAS finds into the mix. It is very worthwhile to have the space and focus the process creates.
I am always interested in how YLFers organize their closets as I find slightly methods may work a different times. Right now, I need more space for longer hanging items than I had before. Some for dresses (which I had not been wearing much for years) and some for the longer toppers that I am currently loving.