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10 more bits of wardrobe weeding wisdom
By Meg | February 29, 2008
I’m actually quite proud of wardrobe weeding skills. Nevertheless, I realized the other day that my wardrobe was in desperate need of a really merciless weeding.
How did I know? Mostly, I realized that there were a lot of things that I just sort of avoided wearing. I’d try to wear them, but then end up wearing something else. Quite a few things still had tags on them — a lot more than I had thought, in fact.
I was also inspired by my online friend, Fabulously Broke in the City. She has been cleaning out her closet and selling many of the items on her new blog, “Fabulously Broke in the City’s (Massive) Closet Cleanout. Oh, if only we wore the same sizes!
Maybe that is a good thing, though, since I’m trying to focus on weeding, not buying. While one often leads to the other, I’ve actually been buying a lot less lately and want to get/stay out of the cycle (though I’d still have to snatch up her shoes).
So, with the help of my friend Katy, we went through my closet the other night. Fortunately, she and I do wear about the same size, so she got a few freebies that just didn’t fit me right or that I was just plain bored of. We also filled a bag to donate to Goodwill, and another bag of stuff to return for store credit. Maybe if I was more industrious I would set up a blog like Fabulously Broke, but right now I’d just rather save the time and space and donate the rest to Goodwill.
I’ve already written a whole how-to series on wardrobe weeding and organization over at The Bargain Queens, but I wanted to add a few more words of wisdom based on my recent experience.
- It’s really good to have the help of an honest and patient friend.
- Sometimes it’s easier to be honest about a piece when you see it worn by someone else.
- If it doesn’t fit perfectly, no amount of tugging will make you feel comfortable wearing it.
- Even if you do loose the weight, and even if it does fit despite the fact that your shape has changed, you’ll likely be sick of it by then.
- Patterns get old fast. Particularly busy patterns get old even faster.
- Although I love dresses as an easy go to outfit when I can’t decide what to where, it’s easy to get bored with specific dresses, especially busy ones that are harder to accessorize.
- If you can’t figure out how to wear it, it’s probably not worth keeping.
- If you can’t figure out where to wear it after a year, it’s probably not something you’ll miss. Exceptions made for one formal gown since you never know when you might want to play dress up for the heck of it.
- Having lots of different clothes doesn’t mean that it’s easier to find something to wear. You’ll still bottleneck around a few favorite/versatile items that you wish you had more of like denim skirts.
- The buttons will pop off a blouse as soon as you decide to take the tags off and wear it. And then you’ll notice that the pinstripe threads are tugging oddly. Then you’ll wonder why you didn’t notice all this before and just return it when you still could.
Of course, exceptions probably abound. You’re experience may vary.
On of the big changes was that I got rid of most of my tops that had some sort of all over patterns. Exceptions were made for small polka dots and other simple patterns. I also learned that I really went through a paisley phase, without even realizing it before now. I’m keeping a few of those pieces that aren’t so loud, but a lot of it went bye-bye.
My skirts tend now to have more patterning than my tops, which works well for me since I really like to emphasize my hips. Even so, most of the patterns are classic: pinstripes, polka dots, plaid.
I’ve also started to recognize the importance of solid colors in general, but especially with tops. They’re just so much easier to accessorize.
I’m really glad that I did the weed out. I really learned a lot about my style, which has certainly evolved over the past year. I think it’s interesting to look at pieces that once were my favorites and think, “That’s just not me any more.” And the fact that I’m happy with my new style, that I’m happy with the person that I project using it… well, that makes it all worth it.
Tags: Fashion, Organization & Decluttering, Style
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February 29th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
Make a lot of sense…I like some of my plain clothes and have some simple stuff that I wear a lot. But it’s also nice to be able to have a change.
March 2nd, 2008 at 1:31 am
I wear only polka dots and simple stripes or plaids (classics, like Tartan). These are almost always cool, which means I’m still wearing the same polka dot tank I bought at 14, and the tartan mini I bought two seasons ago is still fabulous. For more fun, I try different fabrications (but not trendy ones), so I have this jumper in a weirdly mod fabric, and lots of wool, denim, corduroy and cotton skirts.
March 2nd, 2008 at 11:08 pm
So true, Anastasia — you can’t go wrong with those classic patterns. And there are so many ways to do them, as you said. I used to think, “Well, I already have a polka dot top. Why do I need a second one?” Now I realize that it’s a good thing to build a wardrobe around the same themes and not try to do something totally different with each piece.
March 2nd, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Hi, Mrs. Micah! I have a great appreciation for simple clothes now. I’ve learned that the key to an outfit is to really look at the outfit as a whole, and that simple pieces that seem boring at first can look better in context than more elaborate pieces.