>As you know from numerous posts here, I’m working on decluttering my mind and my house. This week I’m tackling clothes. Wow, do I have a lot of them. And they are mostly bad – so ill-fitting, in fact, that I recently posted on Facebook that I’m sure I’m just one bad outfit away from having Stacy and Clinton knock on my door. (One lovely friend commented that it would be nice to have a shopping spree at least – true!)
Anyway, I’m trying to get rid of all the hideousness so that I’m only left with flattering, well-made clothes, even if it means that I only have five outfits left. And it will probably come to that not too long after I begin applying my new rule. Here it is:
Only keep clothes you would wear on vacation.
I realized as I starting thinking about packing for two upcoming trips away from home that I only ever want to take my favorite clothes with me. You know, the ones that make you feel great when you put them on or smile when you pass a mirror? The ones you won’t be ashamed to wear in front of your mother-in-law who used to be a model?? Oh wait, that might be just me.
Anyway, those clothes I’d take on vacation might be a fancy dress to wear to a wedding, a great pair of jeans that works well with all kinds of tops, or my most comfy sweats. So, I don’t mean I’m going to get rid of all of my work clothes, because sometimes you need a nice outfit or two while away from home. It just means that the best of any given category should stay in the drawers and closet, and the rest should GO.
I think having fewer clothes will make me much happier. When I was pregnant with my son, I had a fabulous maternity wardrobe (if I do say so myself). I had one or two of every staple kind of pants – khakis, black work pants, sweats, jeans – some other mix and match basics like black or white t-shirts and camis, and a few really cute tops that I wore to things like showers. It was easy to get dressed because I had fewer options, and I was confident that they pretty much all looked good on me because I refused to spend money on anything that didn’t. Ok, my happiness came partially because having a big belly was acceptable then in a way that it isn’t now, but my point remains. Having fewer, better clothes will help me get dressed faster and feel better all day.
That’s my plan, and I’m heading upstairs now to put it into effect. I’ll let you know how many bags of clothing I’ll be taking to Good Will tomorrow morning!
>An excellent criterion to use for evaluating clothes. My first question is, exactly where will I be taking this vacation? I confess to bringing more "relaxed" clothes when I am visiting any of my 3 children's homes (hoping that they have seen me dressed up enough to hold that illusion even if I am in ill-fitting threads). The second question is whether this is a REAL vacation now or my ideal, imagined vacation when I am 25-30 lbs. lighter. In all honesty, it would be great to lose 40-50 lbs., but I am trying to be realistic re: my cravings (I typed 'crabings' so that may be more true!).The final comment is, yes, I know what you mean and I need to be more honest with my wardrobe de-fragging. Good thing Christmas is coming as I will be seriously without clothes (though I have wonderful bathrobes – will those work if I imagine a vacation by a nice pool?)
>I recently purged my closet, too. Not left with a whole lot, but I'm happy with everything that is left. No point in keeping the other stuff around anyway, since I'd never wear it anyway.
>I posted two weeks ago that I really hoped that Stacy and Clinton would find me! I tend to not like to shop. In fact, I really hate it. And I don't care too much about my appearance in that I'm not high maintenance. But at work, every once in a while, I look at myself and think "dear god!" My main restriction is budget. In that I don't have income to spend on clothes. So, as a result, I have cheap clothes or just OLD clothes that still pass. Go you for purging! Bet it feels awesome!