Take on Project 333 or a Similar Challenge.
Take on Project 333 or a Similar Challenge.
Very good point, Joanna!
We sometimes keep things for o long because it was either expensive or cheap. She wrote about her experiences with evacuation and what it taught her in this powerful and insightful blog post. Your question can help increase clarity, for sure. Perhaps the majority of us can learn from Terra’s experiences and consciously decide to live with less moving forward. Just think for a moment. The readers of Recovering Shopaholic, Terra Trevor, is through evacuating process her home several times, as she lives in an area with a high fire risk.
You Like It, Do You Wear It?
I enjoy having loads of choice. One thing that helped me was to decide what colors I wanted to have in my wardrobe. Anything that didn’t fall into one of these categories left. Usually, make a commitment to get this garment into your regular wardrobe rotation if it’s something you truly love. Notice that place it front and center and challenge yourself to wear it within the next week, if so. I want to ask you something. Did you forgot about it because it was buried in your deep recesses packed closet? Maybe that is my next step. Essentially, ask yourself why you aren’t wearing it, if you rate an item at a level 8” or higher.
Maybe your goal is to reduce your wardrobe by 50 percent.
It’s easier for me to let go of it, if not. Once they are gone look for 2 more. Life is o short and we should not waste our time maintaining things we don’t need. You didn’t bring them in all at once so why should you expect to let them go all at once. Would I spend money on it again? Once you get started it does get easier. If I bought it at that moment, what came to my mind reading this post and the comments is, that I often ask myself when I look into the mirror striving to evaluate if I should keep or ss the garment. I’m sure you heard about this. If that still feels o scary try for 2 things. This can feel so overwhelming that you never get started.
It seems you’ve come up with a really workable solution for yourself.
Win, win! These limits will assist you in being more mindful about your shopping and will push you to carefully consider both what you buy and what you keep. Anyways, thanks for sharing your organizational method with all of us! That’s right! You’re basically doing capsule wardrobes for your various areas life. Having an one in, oneout policy is also extremely helpful in regards to stopping the bleeding. Set a monthly or yearly target that’s a stretch for you but that still feels doable.
Wow, there are some great tips from everyone here! It’s an ongoing process of purging for me and in my opinion this week might be time for another big purge. Everyone sharing to help ourselves. South I really only like to wear casual dresses once the temperature reaches To that end I’ve recently purchased some good quality dresses and got rid of some lesser quality ones.
One thing that was so helpful was that as I purged I also added practical pieces to my wardrobe that allowed what was left to work together. Adding blackish, greyish and coffee colored jeans, a selection of basic long sleeve tees in my favorite accent colors and blackish, dark grey and saddle colored short boots created a wardrobe that really started to work for me this past fall and winter. Consequently, now when I shop, I know that if I stick to my accent or neutral colors, I have what I need in place to make an outfit that goes with my new purchase.
This is another good piece of advice.
Along the what lines would you save in a fire thought experiment you could do a pretend you are moving abroad exercise and imagine that you can only take a certain volume/number of suitcases full of clothing what will you pack?
Are so smooshed gether that the hangers don’t even move, my clothes are very organized in my closet and dresser. I am holding onto a sizable number of ‘work appropriate’ garmets that I’m not currently wearing, since of this. I do plan on rejoining the workforce in another 2 years. BUT I also fall into that I might need it someday group too. Do I hold onto these?
When you go back to the workforce will the clothes you are hanging onto still be appropriate? Out they all went, I gave the suits and dresses to a charity who provide clothes for homeless women who are getting their lives back on track and need smart clothes for job interviews etc They are doing a lot more good there than they were gathering dust in my wardrobe! Occasionally I have to look smart, WAHM, for the most part I can wear what I like because I am at home.
One special circumstance relates to weight issues. You should be honest with yourself, it can make sense to keep some clothing in weight event fluctuations. Are you telling yourself that you don’t trust yourself to keep the weight off? Sometimes we hang on to garments that are either o small or o large because we think our weight might change such that we’ll end up wearing these pieces again. Is that the message you want to be sending to your subconscious mind? Keeping a box of garments in alternate sizes makes sense, if you regularly go up or down a size or two. Anyway, think about what you’re doing to your psyche, if we’re talking about a wide range of sizes or the fat clothes you’re holding on to should you regain lost pounds.
My first recommendation is to try it on, if you haven’t worn a particularly garment in a while.
So… this will probably sound a bit crazy… I divided my wardrobe into two. Anyway, one is in my closet and one is boxed up. Look in the mirror and do the first impression test, once it’s on your body. Really feel like I’ve gotten it down to a point that I like all the items that are left, thanks for your personal great posts I am also making an attempt to reduce my wardrobe. Two wardrobes that in theory I like equally. Known just consider whether or not you like the garment day in the here and now. There are still o many and plenty of them fall into the duplicates category. Far I’ve definitely done better with shopping less. Seriously. We’ll see! That said, then when I’m feeling like I really want to shop for something new, the idea is that I will switch out my wardrobe -pack up my whole closet and unpack the boxed up half of my clothes. Quickly rate the garment on a scale of one to ten in regards to fit, comfort, and style. You should take it into account. Don’t take lots of time to ruminate on how much something cost or who gave it to you.
Great question to ask, Leah! In the past I did loads of impulsive shopping where I bought things that really appealed to me and then I would peter out on finding follow through the workhorses to make my favorite new purchases usable. In my current wardrobe there is always an appropriate shoe and handbag choice. Considering the above said. LOTS better tips to add to the ones I gave!
For me wanting thought to own less clothing and to have only what I loved and needed came first. I had no info how to do it. After I read about Project 333 I needed more time to think about doing it. If you have the desire to have less clothes it means you can and were meant to do it, otherwise you wouldn’t have the desire. It was a thought that kept returning over a period of years until one day I knew for certain that it was a goal I wanted to obtain. It’s OK to take your time. While letting go of what I wasn’t wearing, this was years before Courtney published Project I have always edited my closet right after everyany season. I still had o many clothes, and getting dressed was stressful.
At this beginning post, I mentioned Project I’m coming back to that pic now because I believe taking on that challenge was instrumental in helping me to pare down my wardrobe.
Even more so when you want to maintain a more minimalist closet, It’s always an important consideration. Remember, as the challenge three months went by, I found myself going through my stored clothing and letting go of items bit by bit. That’s right! We need to be ready to make the next step. Oftentimes it helped me to see that I really don’t need as many clothes as I thought I did and I can get by with far less. Of course as I loved it and knew others would, terra too. We’re all on our own path and there is no right amount of time it should take. You’re right that it’s okay to do it in baby steps. Let me tell you something. It ok me over a year to do Project 333 and I haven’t made it a way of life like some people. You can find some more information about it on this site. Perhaps your attire brought some much needed levity to a somber occasion… In any event, I’m glad your wardrobe coordinates better these days.
I would be in a significantly better place day had I curtailed my shopping to a larger degree than I did, while I made plenty of progress in paring my wardrobe down last year. They are mostly classic pencil skirts, slacks, and silk blouses. I’ve decided to limit my 2014 closet additions to 38, which will help me in my wardrobe reduction efforts. With that said, I do think they should be useful in 2 years. I have quite an investment in them. I have a very petite frame and had loads of the pieces altered to fit me properly.
Hi Chelsea! Maybe what’s bothering you are that they are in the way? Come December, It’s rather like storing off season decoryou don’t want those Christmas ornaments now. Of course, one smashing suit that still fits and can be used for back to work. And you have made an investment in tailoring as well, it just doesn’t seem to make sense to eliminate them when you are certain you will use them, when it’s almost impossible to find good clothes that fit. Will any of them mix with what you currently wear? Then again, can you store them somewhere else in the interim? Normally, assuming that they still fit you or that you remain a more or less constant sizethat’s what I would do.
You do indeed have street cred.
My clothes would actually be fairly low on my list. Congrats on keeping your wardrobe at a more manageable size! Your advice to Chelsea is very good and I agree with what you wrote. For instance, thanks for sharing! Dottie.
I really struggled with letting go of my clothes, project I tried to pare things down a bit so I wouldn’t have to store as much. All of these feelings led to a complicated sort of emotional soup that paralyzed me from taking action. In the ensuing year, I’ve beenI was able to reduce my size wardrobe by one half. I felt that I liked plenty of what I owned and I didn’t want to send any of it out the door, like my reader. On p of most of you who are still struggling to downsize your packed closets, Hopefully, a certain amount what I’ve learned can help the reader who posed the question.
Just this morning, I have a sweater that I always liked and a pair of pants that I bought that been a little snug. Your posts and website are helping clear out the closet. Remember, I’m talking about 2 things that I need to rid of.
Hi, Some good pointers on this site. There would be more knitwear than summer attire too, plus coats jackets. While considering age, modesty may apply the older a person is, shrugs to cover the shoulders for warmth. Boots low heeled footwear would get more wear too. Generally, having said that, maybe owning one party dress high heels with matching bag ………?
Are you not wearing it because it doesn’t fit your current lifestyle, if a garment in question isn’tis notis not fussy.
It will just muddy the waters in your closet and obscure the pieces you actually have the occasion to wear for your current lifestyle. Last year I challenged myself to wear all of my clothes. Can you foresee wearing it at any time within the next year, if that’s the case. For instance, there’s really little reason to hang on to it, if not. Considering the above said. Anything that I didn’t want to wear for a full day went straight to the donation bag. So, this made it really easy to remove stuff because I was usually so frustrated by whatever it was that I was wearing that I was glad to see it go! It’s a well this was a helpful strategy for me because when I do the first impression test I often default to keep it, and it can be difficult for me to see what’s fussy/uncomfortable/unflattering about a garment just from wearing it for a few seconds.
These are some very good points. While having self awareness is an important key, not merely regarding the paring down, also wheneverit gets to shopping. Knowing ourselves and our lifestyles can save us plenty of trouble whenever it boils down to our wardrobes. It’s true that there are loads of it depends situations when it boils down to what we need in our closets. Notice, it takes patience to wait for what will truly work for us -and selftrust, o -but that will serve us a whole lot better in the perspective. Love the Rings Lord reference… The multiples of imperfect things phenomenon affects most of us.
Don’t be depressed.
That’s how I felt the first time I did the BIG purge. This is an excellent tip. Now pay attention please. Sometimes people aren’t ready to let things go right away and need more time to work through feelings or a decision process. Good to release myself, good to realise what I did want and need and good let go. Also, then I realised that I had had the Eureka moment, one way to go was up.
Please share them with me and your fellow readers, if you have ideas that were not mentioned in this post. Please do share, there is a wealth of knowledge in this group! Suggestions Because I received from some amount of you, I’m now much happier with the way my closet is organized. On p of that, should you miss them if they were out of your life completely, if you don’t miss the items in question over a period of months. Try this, if you don’t feel ready to eliminate your less than stellar wardrobe duplicates. Known see if you get the urge to pull any of these items out to wear them. We can learn a great deal from each other! That said, to leave a comment, if you’re reading this post in email or via a feed reader. Move those pieces to another closet or into boxes and bags for the next three months. Chances are the answer is no.
My current lifestyle means I need to maintain business, evening, casual, and gym wardrobes, which complicates things.
Thanks for sharing your process with us, Happy Forgiver. Needless to say, there will always be a need to bring a few pieces in here and there and let some other items go, maybe we won’t need to do very much of any overhaul. That way I’m not looking at cocktail dresses when I’m attempting to get out the door to work, and I’m able to limit each miniwardrobe to the essentials. Seriously. My work clothes in the bedroom closet, my casual clothes in my dresser, my workout clothes in the bathroom closet, and my evening clothes in the hall closet. Therefore, narrowing down one’s color palette is very helpful and I have done really similar this year. Nevertheless, you’re right that the purging never really ends.
Great tips on closet purging here. Rather than less, I have found that I’d rather have more of my clothes be able to remix. It might be time to purge the piece since it is a ‘outlier, if I cannot incorporate an item into any of my existing wardrobe capsules. I’m sure you heard about this. This isn’t to say that every wardrobe item has to remix in multiple ways among pieces in a closet. Ok, and now one of the most important parts. I own very few ‘outlier’ pieces now, for myself. Pieces that remix less rarely work for me.
Carolyn!
Your last point about not beating ourselves up is very important to remember. Eventually, we also can change and help others to change. Thanks for sharing your success story here. Loads of info can be found easily by going on the web. While shopping just happens to be the Achilles Heel for lots of us, that doesn’t mean we’re bad people. Everyone has their issues and makes mistakes. Normally, you mentioned that your wardrobe is now harmonious. Although, advanced/Expert phase now, just like you! Besides, self flaggelation’ never helps anything! There’s a lot more info about this stuff on this site. We have to look forward instead of backwards and take things one step at a time.
The objection that generally arises right around this time relates to money.
Well, I have news for you. You hold on to it because it cost a bunch of money, perhaps an item doesn’t suit your current lifestyle or even your present style aesthetic. This is the case. Hanging on to such pieces only serves to perpetuate guilt, which does you little good. Keeping an unworn item in your closet won’t bring back your lost dollars.
Congrats to both of you for doing big purges. I read your blog and I can see that you’ve come SO far. That’s what I’m attempting to do. I get depressed, too, if I reckon o much about the money I’ve wasted. It is I try to remember my progress and trust in the fact that I won’t repeat the many mistakes I made in the past. A well-known fact that is. I get the depression piece also, several thousand items is very impressive. Congrats on being creative and shopping your closet stores instead! Generally, this is SUCH a great suggestion, TJ! Actually, try to look ahead instead of backwards. Then I was challenged to do Project 333 and went that route instead. Of course, virtually, I called another commenter’s attention to it in my response to her. Half Project. I may revisit the Half Project for any longer as I still want to pare things down.
Flashback and Flash Forward….
Now a certain amount you are probably thinking you should keep plenty of the things you’re not wearing just in case you might need them one day.
Chances are it’s very, very few. This is a similar thought pattern that occurs when we consider getting rid of things. The next point I’d like to mention relates to the difference between liking things in theory versus liking them in practice. We don’t feel as warmly ward them once we have them on our bodies, we often like garments or shoes when we see them on a hanger or shelf. Considering the above said. Most of the items you keep end up gathering dust for years until you finally feel it’s safe to let them go. I’m sure it sounds familiar.|Doesn’t it sound familiar?|Sounds familiar?|does it not? people and situations change and our wardrobes need to adjust accordingly, in some instances, we may have really liked certain wardrobe pieces in the past. It’s a well think about it… Just how the majority of those just in case items do you ever end up needing?
Thanks very much for sharing your very helpful tips, Sarah! Be honest with yourself and only keep the clothes you’d want to wear if they fit you today. Of course perhaps they’re for a whileer suit your personal style. Although, we all need to proceed at our own pace. You’re right that Rome wasn’t built in a day and that it takes time to pare down an oversized wardrobe. You can fill in the gaps with some new pieces that you can’t wait to wear, if you do end up losing your excess pounds. You ought to consider if you even like the skinny clothes you’re keeping around. With that said, rid of everything else.
Step One -Stop the Bleeding.
One reason why you should wear items you think you love as soon as possible is that you might not really love them once you wear them for an entire day.
No need to hang them back up in my closet, as I know I’m not going to wear them! Needless to say, if I was on the fence about something it hung on the portable rack for a number of weeks or more. Now please pay attention. Somehow my husband lerated the rack even though our bedroom is small. Then, the entire rack got donated. With that said, this allowed me to do a big purge in a matter of months but I had a chance to really live with each decision before it became final. That’s interesting. Items I initially thought I wanted later moved to the rack. That is interesting. It’s going to collect dust in your closet instead of making it out on the town, if something is so fussy that it annoys you while you’re wearing it. Then, one more thing I found it helpful to have a portable clothes rack in my bedroom for the month or two I was working on my big purge. Some garments look great while we’re standing still but bunch, slip, and bind when we more around. Some items would go directly to the give away pile.
Even as I have stopped compulsively buying things, I still was attempting to reduce clothing number items I for awhile will just keep you feeling bad let someone else who needs it have it! Charity is a wonderful ‘thing you”ll feel better, and while you can’t recoup your lost money, you CAN learn from it! It’s only making you feel guilty, and is helping for any love.