Girl vs. Closet

64 Arts

Nearing the end of our Art of Dressing arc, here’s the conclusion to my personal mission to decrease my fashion holdings.

~~~oOo~~~

Do you know how many pieces of clothing I had between my closet, dresser and in the laundry?

306.

Three hundred and six garments. And that’s not counting things like undies, bras or pairs of socks.

306.

Now, my goal was to get rid of 1/3 or 33% of my clothes. That meant over 100 items out of the closet and dresser drawers.

But I’m getting a bit ahead of my day, here.

Divide and Conquer

The sorted truth of my closet

The "sorted" truth of my closet

The best tactic seemed to be to, first, take everything out of the closet and dresser and sort them into some obvious categories:

  • Frequently worn tops
  • Frequently worn bottoms
  • Almost never worn anything
  • Items with potential fit problems

After the closet, alone, it was looking about 50/50 between the frequently-worn and the problem children. Once I emptied the dresser, though, things shifted a bit. It appears I’d been holding on to more casual-wear clothes and t-shirts than I’d realized. Granted, I’ve gotten into the habit of switching into pajama or yoga pants and tank tops or the like almost as soon as I get home from work so my collection of lounge-wear has increased over the last year or 2.

The first-round draft picks

The first-round draft picks

The items that were in the definite keep piles went straight back into the closet to free up space on the bed. I’ll admit that the closet looked rather bare with only those few pieces in it.

Just Add Bad Lighting

Now was the time I was dreading: trying on the iffy things and being brutally honest in the process. It was like going shopping and dealing with the dreaded dressing room, times 50 or so.

There were a few pieces that I’d put in the fit issues pile that fit better than I’d thought. Some went into a maybe pile (you know, the if-I-lose-5 pounds-these-might-not cut-off-my-circulation-when-I-sit-down borderline cases) and a several went back into the closet.

I thought I’d hit the jackpot when I put on my old black jeans and they were loose. Loose! Just as I was wondering how in the hell that had happened I checked the tag and realized I’d put my new black jeans in the wrong pile. The old black jeans were still just as tight as they’d been the last time I wore them and into the give-pile they went.

Decisions, Decisions

Decisions, Decisions

Try on. Take off. Rinse. Repeat.

And, yes, I did get rid of some frequently worn, fits but does not flatter at all items.

I’m so proud of myself, I might just have to go shopping. (kidding!)

Why Don’t I Wear This Anymore?

Doesn’t fit, forgot I had it, it looked better in the store… the reasons were plentiful and almost everything in the hardly wear pile went into the give-away one, instead.

All of the above took about 3 hours (far less than I thought it would) and I started counting each piece as I put it into the large box I’d snagged from the move for the purpose.

92 pieces after the first culling.

At the time I didn’t know how far that got me to the goal. It was only then I started counting how much was still hanging in the closet:

  • 112 pieces hanging up
  • 45 in the dresser
  • 51 items in laundry-transit

Add in what I’d already tossed (and the 6 items I set aside as wearable but in need of minor repairs), and we get the aforementioned mind-blowing 306.

This meant I was 9* pieces away from my goal.

Girl 1, Closet 0

TaDaa!

TaDaa! (please ignore the lower-right shoe-clutter, I'm still dealing with that)

Though the final cull was a bit tougher–I ended up giving up pieces that I really liked but knew weren’t a perfect fit (literally or figuratively)–I’m so happy that, for once, my closet isn’t stuffed to the gills and bulging at the seams. There are a few holes in my wardrobe, now (all of my brown slacks, for instance, ended up being tossed) and I’m in a jeans-liking phase again so I want a few more pairs of the type that fit well (I only own one each of blue and black), but those will be purchased with a clear conscience, knowing that I have the room and will wear them instead of buying just because they’re there.

All of the clothes that I’m giving away filled (to practically bursting) a large packing box from U-Haul that proudly proclaims it’s capacity as 4.5 cubic feet. All will be on it’s way to Goodwill very soon.

*Yes, I realize I rounded down. As soon as the repairman comes to fix the washer and dryer that was delivered less than a week ago and I get a chance to finish my laundry, I promise to toss one more (clean) piece of clothing into the to-go box to make it exactly 33%.

~~~oOo~~~

We’re almost finished delving into the fashion files but make sure you come back on Thursday for another helpful how-to and a fashionable giveaway!

7 thoughts on “Girl vs. Closet

  1. Everything except my pj/lounge drawer is just fine, that is a bit full because that is the next step for casual items that are no longer perfect for wearing outside of the house. The step after that is usually the trash or the garage. lol I think I manage to keep it uncluttered on the rack because we have moved about once a year and when I pack for that I clean out the clothes as I put them in tubs. I do have a few suitcases of things that I just didn’t want to part with forever back at the house, but they aren’t here clogging up my miniscule closet. I gained weight in a short period of time (I’m lazy and apparently have a non-diabetic insulin issue) and all of my best and most costly items are in the chubby-but-not-fat size range that I can hopefully get back to once they get my issue fixed. It also helps to keep the closet clear that hubby has his own closet and dresser in the spare room and that we have a coat closet so I’m not squeezing jackets in with my stuff like I usually have to do when we live in Navy housing.

    I think you did an awesome job clearing out as much as you did. hat’s a lot to let go of in one day without second guessing yourself!

  2. Wow, if I had closet space, I would certainly get rid of and organize. All my clothing is in drawers and rotates to the attic in bins. I sure do wish I had a closet! Congratulations for getting it all done!

    1. Oh, wow, I honestly don’t know what I’d do without a closet. Probably attic bins like you said but… wow! Kudos to you for making it work!

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