Even though you may be up to your elbows in snow, it may be the perfect time to do some spring cleaning in your closet. Stuck indoors on a dreary day? Start tackling the deep dark hole that is your closet.

"Get rid of those skeletons of seasons past and make room for your fashionable future," says Eric Daman, Hollywood costume designer and stylist and author of "You Know You Want It: Style-Inspiration-Confidence" (Clarkson Potter, $29.99). These are Daman's favorite three words for the closet purge no matter what time of year: "Edit, edit, edit!"

"Don't let your head spin around," says the clothes horse behind "Gossip Girl." Instead, Daman suggests that a well-edited and "gloriously groomed closet is a glamour girl's best style secret." Here are his steps to cleaning out the "demons" in your closet and creating a sanctuary:

— Tackle the easy stuff first. Set your TBEs (totally basic essentials) to one side.

— Then separate your "absolute-to-die-for" favorites in another pile.

— One more category of "keepers": "Those would-be goodies except for runaway buttons, torn linings, stains, etc."

— Now for the hard part ... yes, the reject pile. "This might hurt," says Daman, "but you'll thank me later. Be merciless!"

— Get rid of anything you haven't worn in over a year.

— Ditto for "the clones." We all have them. "If you love black pencil skirts, my guess is that you have way too many of them," says Daman. "Choose the top three; ditch the rest."

— Just because it was expensive, doesn't mean we should keep those luxury items. "If you've never worn it, you never will," says Daman. "Consider doing consignment retail."

— "I love it, but it looks awful on me!" Don't be fooled, says Daman, by those "jeans of torture" or the "dress from 10 pounds ago."

— Now that you have all of your clothing in four style piles, it's time to hang, fold, purge and restore, according to the stylist.

— Hang your TBEs and your to-die-for favorites in your now cavernous closet, first by type — shirts, skirts, pants, suits and dresses — and then by color.

— Then give your tired, worn clothing the love it needs by calling in a master — the tailor — who can breathe new life into your old garments.

— Say farewell and complete your ritual exorcism, says Daman. "Put all your rejects into a garbage bag to be gifted, sold or donated to a local charity."

"Be bold, be tough," says Daman. "Remember, you've got to be cruel to be kind!"

MORE TIPS FROM ERIC DAMAN

— As you go through your closet and drawers, if you find something you haven't worn as recently as a few weeks ago, try it on in front of a full-length mirror.

— See how you look standing, sitting and making basic daily gestures, such as hailing a cab or flirting.

— Don't forget the 360-degree mirror inspection by taking careful notice of the "danger zones": bustline, underarms, buttons and zippers, shoulders, pelvic region, hips and tummy.

— Enjoy being the star of your own montage: "This is your chick-flick makeover," says Daman. "'Your Pretty Woman' or 'Clueless' or 'She's All That' moment. Play your personal soundtrack in the background."

— Believe in the power of the purge! "Whatever you do, do not give up halfway through this terrifying task," he says. "I promise you, the end result will be worth every bead of sweat you put into it."

Sharon Mosley is a former fashion editor of the Arkansas Gazette in Little Rock and executive director of the Fashion Editors and Reporters Association.