One thing I think is wrong is that the women in the study only had $300 worth of unworn clothing. I read that on average we wear only 20% of our clothes and 80% goes unworn; that would mean that at least 80 items out of the 103 were unworn. At the cost of clothes these days, $300 is really low. How did they arrive at $300? If it was just a survey, I would say that the people answering the questions weren't exactly accurate.
Just to add, some of the things that go unworn in my closet are just too pretty, and I get freaked out at the thought of wearing them. My mother would never let me wear my nicest clothes; I usually outgrew them before I could wear them. She was like that with everything, even food. If we had cookies, she didn't let us eat them until they were stale and dry. She kept candy for years because it was just for "special." So, now as an adult, I have to fight that training every single day of my life. I'm trying, but it's a lot of work.
Very good, very interesting, thank you. I am not a minimalist. But I have only one rule for buying clothes, and it works very well for me : NEVER BUY MORE THAN THE WORLD'S AVERAGE, which is ten items a year. Sometimes I buy less. But I never buy more (I count a pair of socks or shoes as one item, otherwise I count every item as one, from one piece of underwear to a whole coat).
The get rid after one season of no wear is a bit extreme and just further creates the potential to buy more and throw out more the endless cycle. Sometimes I park an item for a season or two and then bring it back and wear it differently all over again. What's key is buying pieces that are classic to your core style, colors that are classic to your personal style and cuts that are flattering to your body type regardless of weight fluctuation.
I do get rid of clothes I have not worn after one season, as I know from the past, that I will never wear them again. Better that someone else gets the wear out of them and a chairty gets the money. Part of the problem is my natural style is more urban than where I currently live in deepest countryside. There are few shops here and most are not my style, plus online orders take an age to come and even longer to return/get money back from. When I find a thing I love and feels right when I wear it, I wear it to death; but these are few and far between, hence I have a naturally minimal wardrobe.
Agreed. I live in a subtropical climate and we can go a number of years without cold weather, but suddenly we get a cold blast. I'm not getting rid of my super nice warm stuff in favor of having to rush out and buy the cheap junk that is sold now. What I did do was go thru my collection and get rid of anything I wasn't super in love with. Even then I have too much of all clothing, and should probably purge again.
Yes. I live in 4 very extreme seasons, and some years we'll miss the very harsh of winter. I'm not going to ditch my nice wool sweaters because we didnt get freezing temps. They're all classics. * I do agree on painful shoes.
No. 10 needs a caveat: I live in a place where not all summers are hot (three or so years ago, my summer outfit was jeans, a woolly jumper and rubber boots with wool socks, last year I would have had a heatstroke within an hour if I wore the same, last winter I never barely dipped into my stash of really warm winter gear because it was unseasonably warm most of the winter, the winter before I practically lived in it) so don’t get rid of seasonal clothes you haven’t used if it’s due to the weather rather than habit or taste. Also: not getting rid of workwear for a job I’m picking up again now that the pandemic is stabilising. 😊
Me, too. We've had Januaries that were 50 degrees and Januaries that were -20° all month. The year I became engaged to my husband, it was 50° in January, then -30° for most of February and I caught pneumonia. I would never give up my cold weather clothes just because I hadn't worn them in a year! There are people who believe that the idea that you should get rid of clothes you haven't worn in a year is just a marketing gimmick, because people who do that tend to go right out and buy the same thing again.
I think with climate change and global warming, everywhere has some kind of weather problem now. I saw people walking around outside in shorts and t-shirts a few weeks ago. And I live in Canada. The weather this season hasn’t just been “oh, we’re having a warm winter this year” or “we’re having a polar vortex this summer,” this winter alone has fluctuated between -17C (wind chill of -30C) and +16C. Means I’ve needed to switch from a winter parka to a tee in the span of a few days. 😳
@@lokicooper4690Winter is cold and snowy, spring is rain, summer is hot, FALL is leaves changing color and cooler nights. Has nothing to do with global warming. Climate changes with the 4 seasons.
I'm an aspiring minimalist but I totally feel no guilt in owning several pairs of black leggings. I practically live in them for at least half the year - I have them in different thicknesses and thermal values and I can dress them up or down as needed. And when they start to show wear, I wear them for exercise, around the house or to bed until they're completely irredeemable
Oh Marissa, now more than ever do I need your advice on minimalism. My 10 year old son passed away from a car wreck this week and I know keeping things won't be good for me nor help me. I've always been a minimalist of sorts. So now I'll just need the strength and courage to go through his things.
Praying that you feel comfort and peace. Praying for you as you face this difficult job. Don’t feel like you need to rush into it, please give yourself time.
So so sorry for your loss 😪 wishing you strength & blessings🙏 in this heartbreaking situation. When the time is right for you then you can decide what you want to keep.
Dear Agatha, you have my deepest sympathy, and my heart goes out to you. Losing a child is one of life's worst hardship, and you're very brave. By asking Marissa for advice, and verbalizing your situation, you're on the right track. Big hug
To be honest I've always been struggling with throwing away perfectly good clothing items that *didnt' make me feel good*. But instead of manically decluttering I found more effective to simply stop buying things I didn't 100% love or need, and gradually get rid of all the items that now feel useless, because I have much better options. Just throwing this out there cause maybe some of you reading have encountered this same problem ;)
If you have it in your area, try your local buy nothing group to gift good items to someone who would love it. Sometimes it’s nice to see someone loving it rather than giving to a thrift store that overprices their items.
One more thing to add about getting rid of clothes you haven't worn in a year: last year and this year, two colors became available that aren't normally offered, so I stocked up like crazy on those colors. One was a particular shade of deep red that I haven't been able to find in 30 years! I had saved a dress from 30 years ago just for that color, and it has taken that long to get more items in the color. I may have enough to last me for 15-20 years with care, but they're absolutely classic pieces that will never be outdated. They're also quality knits, so if I fluctuate a few pounds, it's no big deal.😁
Yes I'm a big believer in buying 2 sets of an item I absolutely love cos I KNOW I'm gonna wear it to death then not be able to replace it when that happens. I can think of several items in my wardrobe at present I have 2 of (and some I wear 1 of the set just to dag around cos it's getting a bit ratty and the other I save for more dressy occasions)
The more clothes I had, the more I thought I had nothing to wear! (Don’t know how that logic worked, but still...) a couple of years ago I had a massive clothing declutter and continued to refine this to a warm weather and a cold weather wardrobe. Other than about five pieces of special occasion clothing, which I can mix and match depending on the occasion, I wear every item in my wardrobe within a two week period. I am always on top of my laundry now (because I have to be) and every item has to be loved and wearable right now. Personally I have found this liberating.
It depends on where you live in the country. From March to Mid October in AZ i wore nothing but shorts, t- shirts and sleeveless dresses and sandals. It's triple digits 6 months out of the year. Fall and winter is leggings and sweaters.
For gifts I have gathered the courage to tell my loved ones that I appreciate their gift but I rather them to give me something consumable, local spices as souvenirs from their trips, chocolates or biscuits, I appreciate hand lotions or soaps... It's been a game changer, my closest friends have embraced it and now I receive jams, preserves, even honey!
There's a few items for me that I'd prefer not to receive as gifts: clothes, makeup, and jewellery. I'm just really picky. Sometimes I do still get jewellery but at least that actually fits
I have 14 dresses for F/W and 14 for S/S as my minimal wardrobe. I wear 100% of them each season. I also have 8 sweaters; 5 get worn all year long and 3 are worn in F/W. So easy to get dressed every day. I take the dress on the left end of the dresses row and put them away on the right end of the row.
I wear dresses in spring/summer, but is not practical (and even dangerous) in a Canadian winter (we have a snow storm today) as temperatures are often -30C in January and can reach as low as -50C. Exposed skin can freeze in seconds at those temps, so even a dress with tights or leggings underneath is not nearly warm enough!!!
Ooh, do you know of any resources or videos for all dress wardrobes? Almost every minimalist wardrobe is based around tops and bottoms and I prefer dresses (mostly midi/maxi) and would like to see how others style these to change up the look of them.
on the items for infrequent occasions, I weigh the stress of having a few extra pieces around vs the stress of having to scramble to get something I like, that fits me, in what is often a very limited window. my job is 98% work from home, but when I do have to go to a client's site with little warning, I've ended up buying fast fashion items that I wasn't comfortable or confident in that I immediately got rid of. Now I keep a few classic staples on hand instead.
I say if you can't get to your mending for six months then PAY for it to get done!! I found I was so happy doing this and enjoyed my clothing just as much!! I now get all my mending done by someone else and I'm so happy!!!!
I'm still at 80-90 items but have finally gotten to a place of being really critical of the nuanced details of my garments. I'm choosing to dress a little nicer than I used to as well and so am realizing some items simply no longer serve me :) The more you part with, the easier it becomes to identify what you value, what are your best colors, and what is your true style. Very fun!! ☺️
I own more than that, but I find that I don't want more than 25 or 30 pieces in rotation at a time. I'm trying the 333 plan, with modifications. About 30 items in my closet about every 3 months, with 4 months for summer and two months for fall. Our fall doesn't normally start until October, and by December I'm ready for winter colors and need full-on heavy wool sweaters, snow boots, etc. Maybe it's just the novelty of it, but I think it will work for me. I'm pretty excited about it so far.
I do like that you mention the DIY projects. I tried to do some visible mending on a pair of distressed jeans my cousin gave me because I don't like distressed jeans. I only wore them since they were free. I was heading to a consignment store and figured I might as well remove the mending and try to sell them. Out of the four pairs of jeans I tried to sell, only they were on trend enough to be sold. I am now $2.34 richer than I was this morning lol.
As I sit here…in my bathrobe and skim knockoff cozy pants 🤣 I agree with everything on this list. Surprisingly I think the hardest to get rid of is gifts due to guilt, but I’ve completely shifted my mindset over gifts of every kind over the past several years. I say thank you and open it right away and assess its place in our home. For the most part people don’t even ask about it afterwards, so it’s up to you to live with it, not the gifter.
Such a great practice! I appreciated her mention of that as well and like you have found that people generally don't ask about it...wonderfully freeing to be grateful, then to let go ☺️
Absolutely ❤️ Appreciate they thought of you when they bought it for you and try to use it as best as you can and if it’s not useful or sitting in the back of a closet, it’s not serving it’s purpose, so donating it so someone else might love it is a better use of it’s existence.
Great, great list!! What changed my life was getting rid of my "just for home" clothes! I feel more put together, more confident now that I only keep What I would wear to go out with!🤗 Much love, Alessandra
I decided to make most of my at home clothes nice enough for public wear. Lol. Focusing on balancing comfort and style. Had to get rid of a lot of my mismatched or worn out hobo clothes. Lol.
This is an interesting perspective. I actually feel the opposite because I feel my nice clothes last longer/have less wear and tear when I use them for being outside of the house.
The rags bit was so true. Was taught to hang on to anything ratty to use as cleaning rags but my closet was busting with rags I wasn't ever using. I'm glad they're gone 😌
I kept some dresses that didn't fit me in order to be motivated to lose weight - it did take me a few years but in the end it worked out just fine, proudly wearing them now
I just got rid of three big trash bags full of clothing because I lost a lot of weight. My closet feels so much nicer and I love each item in my closet now 🤩
Lol that rule of 1 reminded me how my grandma told me about how her mother always bought 3 pieces of every piece of clothing. Reason was her husband did not liked to SEE her spending too much money on clothes, but did not really understand too much practicalities of daily life. Result: She was admired by everybody how she is always perfectly clean no matter what. Secret: she switched to the identical clean piece of clothing. Personally i buy multiples in case of items you wear in pairs and are likely to loose one here and there. Like when i buy 3 pairs of gloves it allows me to loose up to 4 before rest is useless ;-).
In 2017 I downsized to 40 clothing items and it made a huge difference!! I work in a professional setting and find I don't need a huge amount of clothing to look pulled together. I own: 19 professional clothing pieces 11 casual pieces 6 workout pieces 4 lounge/pj items. It gets me through all 4 seasons, with layering keeping it practical in cold weather.
@@la381 I do my best to buy classic pieces that suit my body and worry less about trends that are here today & gone tomorrow. A well-tailored item made from quality material that fits & flatters never truly goes out of style!
I cleared out a bunch of (pricy) clothing that I loved, but that was too small for me about 5 years ago. I've since lost and kept off 35lbs for over 3 years and wish wish wish I had those things still. I still get rid of things that no longer serve me, but not more expensive things - I find that I eventually am happy I have them, even if I haven't worn them for a few years.
I had this beautiful dress I wore for homecoming my sophomore year of high school (more than ten years ago) that I absolutely loved and had been hanging onto for forever because it was literally my absolute favorite. I finally decided to get rid of it because it's a size 4 and there is no way in heck I would ever be that size again ever in my life. I'm going to miss it but I do really hope whoever wears it next falls in love with it like I did
I can say fairly confidently that the only things in my wardrobe I've not worn in the last year are my tuxedo, my formal chinese jacket, 2 pairs of formal trousers and 2 long-sleeved shirts. Not been to much in the way of formal events since moving to Bucharest from Hong Kong 15 months ago! But the rest of my pretty minimal wardrobe has all been worn multiple times.
Getting rid of uncomfortable shoes is one of the easiest declutter tasks. Also, clothes that have a texture that bothers me, like scratchy wool items (even if they are gifts).
Patrick Grant of the Great British Sewing Bee gave us a startling statistic: there are enough garments currently existing to clothe the next SIX GENERATIONS. I recycle clothes I don't wear any more, take very good care laundering what I do keep (including hand-washing some items), and am only purchasing maybe 3 to 4 items a year to replace worn out things. Having a smaller wardrobe feels immensely freeing.
@@saschamayer4050 Depends on how often they are worn. If they do nothing but sit in a warehouse or a closet, they might last a bit longer. Except maybe for Shien's stuff, I suppose. That will probably disintegrate if anyone so much as looks at it.
I was bad with hanging on to sentimental clothing but that had to change a few years ago. I had planned a gathering for my husband and my 10 year anniversary, It was nothing huge or elaborate but after planning and having an outfit, I was notified by many close people that they were uninterested in coming to the event so we cancelled. I ended up hanging on to that very pretty outfit for 5 years but every time I put it on, It brought back some animosity so I had to let it go.
@@ColleenJoudrey Well at least you and your husband can commiserate together. Here's to many more wedding anniversaries; you are blessed to have a spouse. 🫂❤
I feel like every time I watch a video, I am motivated to go find one to two items from my wardrobe/house that I can part with. So glad that I am slowly making a mindshift change :-)
I don't declutter all at one time either, thought I make a good start initially. I'm finding that getting rid of some things puts me into the mindset of actually wanting to get rid of others--on MY timetable. And I decided that's OK! We have to do what's right for us, not somebody else.
I wear / wore 100% of my clothes in the past year! Considering I own 25 items per Spring/Summer and 25 items per Fall/Winter (includes outer wear and pj's!) - it's not too difficult to wear everything I own!
Wow didn't realize I've been with uncomfortable shoes for more than one year now! Watching this video has made me realize it. Love watching this channel, Marissa ❤️
Old socks (mismatches! I have 2 bags full!) are wonderful for wrapping breakables and silverware/utensils in if you are moving. Then when you are done unpacking you can gift them to someone else who is moving and pass them on..which they can also do. Very useful items!
My favourite colour is navy, both for business wardrobe and leisure wear at home (14 rescue cats mean plenty of cat hair 😂 - washable wardrobe a must). For leisure wear I now by a stock of 20 pairs of identical navy socks - if a few ones disappear into sock nirvana, one hardly notices).
It was just a suggestion on what to do with mismatched socks (clean is assumed) that can help protect glassware and other fine breakables and not take up much room. Not intended to be a debate about "principle"...if one does laundry properly they are disinfected (not sterilized, that's for medical stuff) and will not transfer any pathogens. This mostly happens in the drying process, as "germs" need food, correct temperature and moisture to grow... and there is no saying you have to use OTHERS socks, you can use your own mismatches! 😃
So I thought I’d go count. I have around 80 items of clothing not including sleepwear and underwear. In the past year, I have worn around 50 per cent of them. Makes me realise, I could probably donate and/or sell another 40 items! I have already donated many bags of clothes. Wow, and I thought I was already down to only the things I wear.
I agree on getting your wardrobe down to the basics. I am not one for fast fashion. I like the tried and true. It might be boring to some, but it's comfortable and predictable to me!! 😁 My family has loved using the Amazon gift list. We put things on there and family can go on there and pick something on there for B-day or Christmas' gifts. Takes the guess work out and the person is getting something they want/like.
After doing the 20 item Capsule Wardrobe and Capsule 333 for 5 years I am proud to say I go through my clothes every 2 months in Australia as the weather slowly changes and continually donate clothes. A few times a year I shop for more items after writing a list of gaps.
One of my daughters as a teen started turning her hanged clothes backwards every season in her closet. If something was worn it would be hung up frontwards and by the seasons end she knew what she could get rid of. Now as an adult with her own family she continues to do this.
Omg, when you called us out, I was getting ‘defensive’ and thinking: I wore everything! And then I was like: maybe not, is she right…? And then she said: Sorry, Belgium 😂 I’m from Belgium 🇧🇪 I laughed so hard! Amazing video btw 😍
I like this. This is the first video of yours I’ve seen and it’s really reasonable minimalism. Not the “you must only own 10 items and wear them until you’re dead” level some people get to. I’m not aiming for minimalism but I am definitely going to keep these things in mind next time I’m going through my wardrobe
A little caution on getting rid of work clothes/dress clothes you don't feel you need. First off, I don't have an "off the rack" body I wear short petite pants if I can find them, and my arms are short also. I usually have to fold up/under most long sleeve tops that don't have ribbing. Going out to buy something when I need it and that fits is just not an option. And no, I am no seamstress. When I retired, I was going to donate all of my work clothes as I wouldn't be needing them. I had them all folded in a box ready to take to the shop. Procrastinator that I am, they were still in the box a couple months later when my aunt passed away. I went to my closet to get something to wear to the funeral home, and I had nothing appropriate to wear. They were all in that box. So, I picked out several slacks and tops that would be appropriate to wear to a funeral or to a nicer restaurant and they have been my go to for the last 4 years. Do I wear them every year? No. But it saves me time, money and worry about having something to wear when I need it.
I have the opposite problem in that my wardrobe is too minimal. I HATE shopping for clothing because I have a difficult time finding clothes that fit properly. My wardrobe is just plain worn out. I do love your advice.
I'm in a similar situation. Thrown out a lot of stuff this summer because it was worn out with a plan of replacing it, but I really dislike shopping and I want to find the perfect shirts... Not a good combo. On top of that I've gone up a size in pants so now I have one pair of winter pants that fit 🙈 good thing it hasn't gotten cold yet, but oof. Maybe we can find a friend who does like shopping and is willing to help us out?
Maybe it might be an idea to get clothes that fit everywhere that may be slightly too big and to get them tailored? Tailored clothes will make you look better and feel better and might remove the stress of finding items that fit perfectly. Barring that, you could always get items made to measure, but they will probably be a lot more expensive than ready made items that are tailored for you.
If you like it, keep it. I've chucked out a lot, A LOT, and most if it was fine but there are a few things I am very sorry about. For instance, there was a good navy winter coat bought in a New York February.... but kept and not worn for 20+ years in Auckland. My mother replaced the cheap lining with a luscious black satin. My daughter grew up to live in Wellington, where it is bitterly cold, and she would have loved and needed that super-smart coat lined with love. But I threw it out - gave it to a junior drama costume department. Logic is not as right as feelings, in the end. It was a good coat. I wish I had kept it.
The timing of this is funny cause over the past week I just boxed up 50% of my wardrobe to see if those items could be purged (cause I basically never wear them/only wear them when my favourite items are in the wash)
An idea for socks with holes (and the problem of too many rags) is to either donate them as rags (there are places that recycle worn clothes to make... other textiles) or to use them as "one use rags", which reduces the need of washing (and storing) filthy rags. Also, for the DIY / mending projects, you might have different timings for that :) I tend to do all my projects very staggered in time, so for me even DIYing something from last year has value - it's more of a question of whether or not my time is really worth it. For example, I just finished sewing a beautiful shirt that was left basted only for one full year, and I love and wear it often, whereas I decided ignore / donate a mending project that I started just last week, because I didn't love the idea anymore.
The part where you mentioned the gulity gifts was great! I struggled with throwing away things that were gifted to me from family members as I connected the items to the certain person, but taking responsibility just for accepting the gift and saying thant you is so freeing. Thank you!
Getting rid of clothes that truly don’t suit you, are worn out, that are meh is good. But I truly fluctuate between 4 sizes due to sickness & medication, I vacuum pack the sizes I can’t wear, I try to buy classic clothing, & just buy a couple of pieces to update clothes each season. Not everyone stays one size, or never gets smaller again.
Agreed, I lost 55 pounds due to illness and am glad I kept some smaller jeans and shirts because I could just wear those. It was during the pandemic so going clothes shopping with the way I felt was a no-go. Bought new underwear online because the old ones were falling off. Sadly, have gained half the weight back.
I indicated in one of these comments that I replied to that I feel overwhelmed. Update: I read and saved the link you provided in the description, "20 Tips" blog. It motivated me to get started with a garbage bag. Setting a timer and clearing flat surfaces next! Then I deal with my mountain of clothes LOL. 🗻 Thank you!
I have only one thing that I rarely wear - it's a beautiful black and gold long jacket that I must have had for 20 years. I wear it exclusively for office Christmas parties, except for the day in 2008 when I wore it to Buckingham Palace to receive an award from Prince Charles as he was then. Covid knocked out the Christmas parties but it's still there for when normal service is resumed.
I read recently that, to determine which clothes in your closet you don’t wear, start out the season (or year) with all hangers facing the wrong way. When you wear an item, put it back with the hanger going the right way.
While I like stuff and am fine being a bit of a clutterer, I do like these videos a lot and find that many tips are quite useful for me, even if I have no intention of becoming a minimalist. Making room for things I feel are actually important by getting rid of "guilt items", taking good care of my feet, getting rid of clothes that don't fit in order not to live in the past... (not that into the robe in public thing, though 😂) I find all this really helpful to improve my life, and some of these tips are perfectly doable without a major lifestyle change which suits me, so thanks for the videos, they are great!
I love your channel Marissa, and I particularly love your videos on your wardrobe. I'd love to see a video on your favourite clothing items, what you love about them and how you like to style them! :)
About gifts: Swedish, now past away, etiquette-guru, Magdalena Ribbing, said: If you feel offered because of what someone does to a gift you have given them, you didn't actually GIVE IT AWAY, because given "the ownership away" includes giving away the right to decide what to do with the gift. I find that a comforting thing to think about.
You’re amazing. I’m on my minimalist journey and I’m so happy I wear 100% of my wardrobe, but I needed your advices about letting go the gifts I don’t like ❤ a hug from Italy 🇮🇹
I love this! I have some shirts that I haven't worn, because we haven't "dressed up" in nearly 3 years. It's funny, I kept the shirts and donated the slacks. I only have two pairs of jeans, a pair of denim capris and a nice pair of dress shorts. OH, and a couple of "work" shorts that I can get grubby doing messy chores. In the past year, I've probably worn about 50-60% of my very minimal wardrobe. Time to wear it or donate it. I need to start WEARING the nice shirts without a "dress-up" reason. Cool!
Love love this video. Keep them coming. The more you give me solid reasons why keeping things are not good for me the more I’m willing to de-clutter. Working on all my pants today. Keeping your psychology for decluttering in mind as I move forward.
I KonMari’d (is that a word? 😂) my closet years ago, and it changed everything. But then when I got a job that requires a uniform, I really came to see how much clothing I still had that I never wore. My biggest failing is hoping one day I will fit it again. 😢
I totally agree with you, but frankly, you should get rid of that T shirt, it does nothing for you...and I love Pink Floyd...lol. However, if it fits, never get rid of the following (I am 70 years old, and these things have been more or less in fashion since the mid 60s): Trench coats, Jeans jackets, khaki pants, good quality American docksiders (have a pair I bought in Maine in 71, still going strong) and loafers (French and Italian come and go, the American stay), black/navy pants, hvite shirts and pearls...so don't throw that away..lol
What's the chance that you'll wear an item next season that you did not in the last? Depends on the person, but for me it is HIGHLY likely. I get bored of items really sometimes, but absolutely love them and just need time to be interested again. Would be such a shame and waste to declutter those items every year (I still remember sandals I miss).
Same for me! Usually it's a three-year rotation. I think minimalism is for rich people that can buy something new in place of something they got bored of. My life went through a lot of changes: from uni student, choir member w international tours, to factory worker, to teacher, to office worker and then the pandemic under 1.5 years - without the money for buying any new clothes. I don't know how would I've managed if I hadn't had a 'cluttered' wardrobe in the first place. I'll never go minimalist, it's just too risky. I also darn my socks :)
I go through “sweater year” and “jacket year” phases every fall and winter where I either only want to wear my sweaters or only want to wear my jackets. So one of those categories gets almost entirely neglected then abused the next year
I don't care what they say about skechers, but they actually are super good shoes. I got boat shoes from them, super comfortable slip ons, waterproof, machine washable, and best part? CHEAP! I bought 2 because I really like em, and I dont like shoes giving up on me and being discontinued, but one pair seems to be enough to serve me for a while.
I needed this because I have been holding onto my High school Graduation Jacket, Letterman's jacket, since I graduated and I'm married and 26 and it does NOT fit nor is it comfortable. I haven't worn it in so long and the rest of my wardrobe is only 10 cloths hung up and 10 everything else. But this ONE thing it has my name on it, and my marriage colors, black and red. But... I think it's time to let go!!! Thank you for inspiring me!!! I love you!
I think this is particularly useful to folks like me, who habitually own more clothes than they wear due to always taking in hand-me-downs, buying my own stuff, and being attracted to fast fashion like H&M. I recently decluttered my closet and found clothes from over two years ago that still had tags on them. I decluttered a lot of hand me downs because I discovered that working from home, I wear maybe a quarter of what I own. So I downsized everything and am trying to focus on investing in my clothing. Instead of spending money on stuff that will fall apart in a few months, I am putting forth the expense for clothes made closer to home that might cost more, but are better made and appeal to my style. My approach to decluttering clothes is asking, “Do I like it? Do I wear it? Does it fit?” Chances are I don’t wear something because I don’t like it. Chances are I don’t like it because it doesn’t fit, or I don’t like the fit. If it doesn’t fit, I am not ever going to wear it. Even answering just one of those leads to answering the other two, and I usually get rid of the piece based on that criteria. This isn’t going to work for everyone, obviously. Try not to feel attacked by what she’s saying.
So happy I’m not american or from Belgium 😂 I do use most of my wardrobe but I for sure have some items that I rarely use. But I still belive they’re worth to keep 😉 had to pause the video to declutter my socks and undies (no holes, got rid of everything that doesn’t fit perfect).
Hey there! SAVE those holey underwear!!! They are great for travel ... especially if you fly all day!!! Wear once and throw away ... it will keep your suitcase clothes cleaner😀
The diy/mending topic made me feel targeted 😆 I sew costumes and clothing and upcycle second hand clothing, but sometimes I lose interest in something before I can get to it and that stuff really stacks up. I really needed this permission from an external source to go through that nonsense, thank you!
Genuinely love the list. What really spoke to me is how it relates to the main issues I’m trying to address in my wardrobe now, which are figuring out my basics and realizing that everyone’s basics look different from everyone else’s. For example, someone who works in an office 6 days a week probably shouldn’t stock up on bikinis and sandals, since those aren’t everyday basics for their lifestyle. But even for me, who has a more laid back, homebody lifestyle, the typical uniform of regular t-shirts, jeans and ballet flats are not my personal basics, as none of these items feel comfortable, look stylish on me or fit the daily activities I pursue. Learning this has made it a lot easier to let things go from the “just in case” pile and from re/purchasing items I think I need because they’re the norm, as they’re not my norm
This hits different as someone who is trans and decluttered all of their old work clothes but then realized I was bigender and started to buy dresses again lol. I only buy pieces I really like. If something makes me feel weird I get rid of it. So in that sense I don’t have clothes from my past because of all the bad memories associated with it. I started fresh when I transitioned.
Another great video, thank you! I am actually in the opposite situation. In the next weeks I may be starting a new job, and I've realized that after a while without working and with the pandemic, I only have tracksuits and confortable clothes. But before starting to buy a bunch of new clothes, I am going to try to see what I can do with what I have. Have a nice day!💜
Bathrobes in public, a hard line NO! 100% comfortable shoes, every single pair, a drastic YES! Keeping items of sentimental value until they are no longer sentimental, YES! And yes, age appropriate clothing is a thing.
I went to Catholic school and as part of our uniforms we had to wear saddle/oxford shoes. I hated them so much. I wanted to wear feminine shoes, Mary Janes. I used to spend my allowance on little girl play high heels and I loved them. As an adult, I would never give up my high heels. Never!
Your DIY/ mending point REALLY hit home- I have a HUGE pile of mending to do, and only rarely seem to get to it. I might try to give myself a due date, and whatever hasn’t been fixed- or at least started- gets tossed. Thanks for the great advice, as always
I've had that problem, too. I finally decided that the piece wasn't important enough to me to be worth the trouble, and I got rid of several at once for that reason. I don't even remember what they were.
I gave my entire wedding outfit including the tiara and shoes to the church so that someone else could wear it on their big day...I got it professionally washed ofcourse....All the items were in their original packaging cleaned and ready to wear... This can be done for other items as well like first holy communion dresses...or baptism outfit...
One good winter coat is the only thing not worn in my wardrobe in the last year. I have a couple of items in my memory box but that is it. I have a kimono on the wall as a display
I cannot wait to go back to a more minimal wardrobe. Packing away my favorites was so hard! But sadly, the super structured style I favor doesn’t work for pregnancy and breastfeeding. Trying to find a happy medium of being emotionally and physically comfortable in my clothes during these stages has been so hard and it’s created a lot of waste and excess. I’ll be glad to eventually put these days behind me!
I just threw away a basket of old, stained, worn-out socks. I'm pretty far along on my minimalist journey, so I was shocked that I had missed that basket of dingy socks!
I paused the video a few moments in to count and 5/75 things in my closet have potentially not been worn in the last year, but they're all fairly recent additions, some of which I just got hanging tonight. The other 70 have gotten worn quite a lot, and anything that isn't in my closet has definitely been worn bc it's either on me or just washed after being worn yet again. I'm still a little uncomfortable about saying "75" and knowing there's more than that with the wash / dry / store cycle, because that sounds like such a big number compared to so many "minimalists", but really, I'm still pretty excited with myself as that's hundreds and hundreds of items less than I had up until recent years. Even today I got rid of a bunch more things, and it's a continuing process. Looking forward to moving beyond the first few seconds of this video now to see if I can narrow down anything else with it's help.
Yay for comfortable shoes!! I am so practical and also have a hard time finding shoes my feet enjoy wearing that I was holding onto some keds that worked well with my outfits, but we're always a pain. One day I made the decision to just ditch them so that I would have no choice but to find replacements...still working on it BUT I have sucked it up and just worn my tennis shoes a couple of times and hey, my feet have been happy and I haven't been as worried about the look of my shoes as I thought I would be. In fact, I got a compliment from a 7-year-old boy saying my shoes were cool and wow, what a way to get honest positive feedback! 😂
Sometimes I do get to that clothing size again because my weight fluctuates. So I do keep a few clothes in a different size. Otherwise I agree with your tips.
I got rid of almost half of my shoes because I now wear only minimalist shoes (barefoot style shoes), and nothing else feels comfortable enough. Granted, they all look almost the same, except for color and material, but honestly - I couldn't care less.
Uff, I needed to hear this! I’m decluttering my wardrobe as I’m moving country and didn’t think I had all that much stuff but it turns out I do - and some guidelines on what I can let go of are useful! Thanks!
I purge ruthlessly and it’s taken years to develop my personal style. Now aged 45, I know better! I now mix a d match with my existing clothes which still is a lot but i wear them all, have no stress managing them and enjoy my fashion creativity. But first yes, i had to declutter.
Totally agree about getting rid of the wedding dress. It would actually make me so happy to get rid of mine and know that someone else gets to be happy wearing it at their wedding.
