Minimalism PHASE 1: The Wardrobe Edit

I came across the concept of the Minimalist / Capsule Wardrobe some years ago and while it piqued my interest, I’ll be blunt and say that I’m too lazy to do an inventory of my own closet. I mean, I have plans, yeah, like it crossed my mind at some point, but to actually do it, NOPE. At times, I would do minor arrangements and spot checks, but that’s it.

Until one day while I was rearranging my wardrobe (according to colours), I found some items that are new (still with tags on) but haven’t worn for 6 months after I purchased it! As I continued checking, I realised that I have clothes that I’ve worn once or twice and that’s it! So the kickoff of this Project Minimalist happened on my very own clothing cabinet.

I have a pretty regular-sized closet and to see it full and disorganised is personally an eye sore. Then add the fact that every time I open its doors to pick a wardrobe for the day, it takes a long time to decide what to wear. Why?? I remember loving every piece when I tried them out in stores but now, I don’t feel matching that top to this skirt! Or maybe I just I realise that I just bought them because they were half the original price? Hmm…

SEGREGATE, DONATE & PURGE

So before I make another purchase, I told myself that enough is enough! After much procrastination, I decided to take everything out and audit my entire wardrobe. From clothes down to bags, wallets, shoes & accessories.

Truth is, you can’t do this in one sitting. It’ll surely take some time and you gotta do the wardrobe edit several times because categorising alone, will give you a hard time to choose which ones to let go and which ones should stay.

I have four categories for my stash and they were:

KEEP

• These are the items that I love and will definitely stay in my cabinet.

UNSURE BOX

• These are the stuff that I haven’t decided what to do. Like those dresses that I bought on a good deal but I can only wear on special occasions or those clothes in wrong sizes but still on the hope that they will fit me someday.

*I would come back to this pile every once in a while and it helps me decide that there are items that I must place on the donation box. 

GIVE & DONATE

• The items that are still in perfect condition (mostly new and barely worn) but I no longer want so I can pass it to anyone in my family who’s interested or send it to charity.
• But because of my clothing size, majority of them goes to charity.

PURGE

• The items that are worn out, badly stained and/or can no longer be donated.

Like I said, this process takes time and you’ll be surprised how hard it is to let go of some things. Some took a second or third look before I finally placed them in the donation box.

I even have a pile of those that I want to sell online. However, I’m just giving it 3 months and if after 90 days no one bought them, they’ll go straight to our donation boxes. I’m giving myself a deadline on how long I’ll keep the items in the house because putting them out of sight is just relocating the items. It’s still not letting go of the unnecessary.

LIST IT OUT

After the initial purge, I created a list of the things that was left in my closet. This is the best way to have a good look at how much things you have. I can’t believe I have 7 headbands and 20 pairs of (fancy) earrings! But I only use one headband whenever I wash my face and I wear one pair (of the same) earrings EVERY SINGLE DAY!

Oh no!Why do I have so much?!

After 5 sessions of wardrobe edit, my final count is at 224. This means I have a total of 224 items (good quality clothes, bags, shoes & accessories combined) that I can use daily & on special occasions. The number is still high but I’m trying my best to decrease this as the I go on.  I mean, who needs 12 pairs of jeans, right?

REALISATIONS:

Going thru this wardrobe edit made me reflect on my purchasing habits in the past years and they were so bad that it led me to fill my closet with unnecessary stuff.

Change in Style.

Now that I finally accepted that I’m no longer part of the corporate world, my style of clothing also transitioned from formal to smart casual. Obviously, I keep forgetting that and I still bought formal dresses until last year. ARGH! But moving on…

Think TWICE when shopping on SALE

And just because the store is on sale, it means that I should buy things just to take advantage of the promo. I’m so guilty of this! Especially with fast fashion brands and they always have a sale going on.

At first, I feel that I’m such a wise consumer ‘coz I don’t buy their items at full price. Then after discarding a dozen t-shirts, I realise that I also wasted an xxx amount of money on the items that worn out easily. Sure it’s the colour of the season but after 3 washes, the shirt’s shape changes, too.

Lastly,

Repeating clothes is NOT A CRIME.

I’m vain, let’s begin with that.

So when I was still working, I make sure that I don’t wear the same clothes at least within 2 weeks. And I have enough unique wardrobe that’s can last for a month. So there. Judge me all you want.

I have that nonsense fear of being tagged as the girl who wears the same thing last week. That also led me to buy mediocre things just to satisfy that need to wear something different.

But then as I go on with my life, I realised that people don’t really care and if I wear the same thing within the week, it’s also none of their business. But really, people barely notice that. As long as you look clean and well-groomed, that’s fine.

I don’t want a lot, just enough.

This also made me realise that I don’t need a lot of clothes, especially that I don’t go out much now. I prefer to save my money and purchase the things that I really, really love and are of high quality. I don’t want a lot, just enough. I want my closet to have the stuff that I really love so that every time I open its doors, I won’t even need to think hard because everything inside is a good choice.

I prefer to save my money and purchase the things that I really, really love and are of high quality.

This was a good exercise and it helped me reevaluate my decisions and choices that have a great impact in my life. That closet represents me and my choices and it also takes time, money and energy to manage them. So why not change it to something worthwhile.