I cleaned out my closet this morning. Again. It seems appropriate to clean out once a season, especially because my clothes keep breeding and taunt me with, “Hey, Erin! You haven’t worn me in a while! Wasteful, much?”
Because I’m trying really really hard to not be wasteful. I don’t want to be wasteful with my time or with my money or with my food or with my clothes. Keeping only clothes that I’m proud to wear means that my getting-dressed time in the morning is speedy and I won’t buy more clothes thinking I have nothing to wear.
So this morning I got rid of the clothes that torment me in the morning, the ones I look at and KNOW I should wear but don’t because they fit wrong or are the wrong color or I just don’t like, no matter how much I should.
Jamie Lee Curtis thinks you should only keep your 14 favorite outfits but that’s a little extreme for me. I don’t want to see myself in the same dress every other week. Plus, I have 16 dresses and I refuse to get rid of any more of them.
This is what I did get rid of:
- A very cute pintuck top that I’ve had since before Gideon was born. I’ve always prided myself on keeping it around because it was free to me (a hand-me-down from a co-worker) and always comes back in style. Now is one of those of-the-moment times (it’s a cross between this shirt and this one, except in black). But it’s too big. And when I wear it I look sloppy. There is a comfy-casual look that’s appropriate to life outside the home and then there’s a sloppy, I-don’t-care look. I don’t want to be in the latter category.
- An off-white shirt that my sister has in green. Every time Hayley wears it I think, “I love that shirt. I should totally wear mine more often.” But the color of mine is wrong. I played it safe with off-white, but my skin is off-white and my hair is pale blonde, and the three together look terrible. So I’m giving it away in the hopes someone will look cute in it. The shirt deserves nothing less.
- A striped shirt I bought at Old Navy last year for $3. Stripes are au courant, Hubby compliments me when I wear them, but this shirt is too stretchy when it’s not supposed to be. And when I wear it I look sloppy. Again, that’s a category I don’t want to fall into.
- A dress that is too big in the shoulders. If it doesn’t fit then I don’t end up wearing it, no matter how cute and subtly-perfect the pattern is. Let someone else look adorable in it.
- A black turtleneck because I have another one that fits better.
- A denim skirt because I only need one.
- A black skirt for the same above two reasons.
My hints when thinning out your closet: Look at each piece and ask yourself how often you wear it. If it’s not often, why? Is it off-season? Then put it in a bin and save it for the spring. It only looks good with one pair of jeans? Get rid of it. If you’re like me, those jeans and that shirt will not often be clean at the same time. Too big? Don’t think that it’s not. It is. Don’t allow yourself to look sloppy and feel uncomfortable the day you wear it.
Limit yourself only to clothes that fit well. Maybe you’ll own a meager five shirts for a while but that’s better than sludging around in clothes that make you unhappy. In the morning, have a closet that only holds clothes you truly, truly like and your morning get-ready routine will go much faster. It’s nice to throw on clothes that you don’t have to think about.
And allow yourself to wear clothes that make you happy but that other people might think you’re weird for wearing. Let me quote Jentine again (only insert “dresses” for “sequins”):
Yet it’s one step to buy the sequins and it’s another leap to actually wear them. I used to be afraid of the sparkle, worried about what people would say about me behind my back until I just got over it. Meh. Some people wear Sponge Bob Square Pants pajama bottoms to sign their mortgage papers, and I wear sequins to go for a walk. There is room for all kinds of fashion choices on this earth. Isn’t that nice? My heart is warmed.
I wear dresses a lot and sometimes I wonder if I look too dressy compared to the other moms wearing their cute tops and jeans. But I like dresses and leggings because I feel like I’m wearing comfy sweats all day. So I’ll keep wearing them, even if I don’t look the same as the other girls. That’s okay.
Now go thin out your closet! You’ll feel better, I promise.