This applies to both men AND women. Everyone needs a wardrobe edit once in a while.
I did something similar with Fabulously Fru-girl a long time ago, so I thought I’d share how I got her to basically eliminate 50% of her non-functioning, space-taking wardrobe (she even had a coat that made her look like she was wearing Harry Potter’s dress robes!! 🙂 )
Questions to ask when editing your wardrobe
- When was the last time you wore this?
- Why don’t you reach for it?
- Why are you holding on to this?
- Will you ever wear it again?
- Do you have other substitutes you reach for instead?
- Do you love it?
- Are you just waiting to buy something better?
By the time I got to Question #2, she was hesitating with mostly: Well…… I don’t reach for it because [insert why].
Usually, it just didn’t fit because it was too big, the fabric felt uncomfortable, or it was missing something crucial that couldn’t be fixed with an accessory.
Keeping things in your closet for sentimental reasons is not a bad thing
If you have a necklace from your grandmother that you rarely wear but it reminds you of her, keep it.
However if you are keeping a necklace because it reminds you of the time you first met your first boyfriend, that might be a good item to get rid of.
(My jewellery collection.. somewhat. I gave away some pieces)
Your closet becomes simpler after an edit
Once you get rid of items, you will see what you actually do wear.
In FF’s case, it was that the clothes she actually wore on a regular basis, were in the laundry basket waiting to be put away. That made it a lot easier to go through the wardrobe that she had hanging up to see WHY she wasn’t wearing those items during the week.
After the purge, I think she had barely anything left that didn’t flatter her or that she didn’t like (save for the laundry basketful of clean clothes).
After editing, you will have notes of what you’re missing
If you get rid of (or plan to) get rid of a spring jacket but you know you’ll need one eventually, then put it on your shopping list.
You will now know what you’re missing in your wardrobe that ties it all together (perhaps it’s just a simple navy sweater you need), and it makes shopping more focused & less wasteful.
You can also adopt an approach like I did — recording the pieces of your wardrobe on a device (or use pen and paper in a small notebook) so that you know what you already have, and you don’t buy duplicates.