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Q&A | How I decide if I need a new clothing item

Hello from the winter wonderland that is the eastern side of the U.S. right now!

mailbox in snow

We weathered the storm just fine, and I am super delighted to report that we never lost power. I think this is at least partly due to the fact that this storm brought really dry snow, which didn’t cling to anything but evergreen trees.

Less snow on trees = less weight on trees = less breakage.

snow on split rail

That’s actually a pretty tall split rail fence…the bottom rail is just hidden by all the snow.

So, yay!   I did make chicken noodle soup the day before the storm, thinking that I could heat it in the crock pot, which we could run off of the generator.   But we got to heat it up on the stove! In a warm house!

All was well.

For today’s edition of Q&A, we have a question from a reader who’s having trouble minimizing her wardrobe.

Hi! I desperately need help maintaining a minimalist wardrobe, partly based on need and partly based on wanting less laundry. 😉 How do you decide if you need an article of clothing? I find myself thinking I “need” a new shirt because I don’t have one like it, or I have one like it and I really like it, or it’s too good of a deal to pass up… basically, I have no rules and it turns into not having a minimalist wardrobe. At. All. I know everyone has different needs for their wardrobe, but could you share how you decide whether or not to add another article of clothing?

Thanks!

Jen

I’m sort of a quasi-minimalist when it comes to clothing. I don’t have a stuffed closet, but I’m also not getting by with 10 items or anything like that.   I do have a small enough wardrobe that both seasons fit into one dresser and one side of a regular American closet (not a walk-in!), though.

minimalist jeans

When it comes to clothing, my decision-making process comes down (as it so often does) to one question:

How much can I regularly and thoroughly use?

This question is useful in all sorts of scenarios (kitchen equipment, sports gear, house size), and I think it works pretty well for clothing too.

Basically, I want to own the amount of clothing that I will regularly use.

If I have too much, I end up only wearing a small portion of it, and it’s just taking up extra space in my house.

So, when I’m shopping, I ask myself if the item is something that I will wear regularly, and if the answer is no, I don’t buy it, no matter how great of a deal it is.

The amount of clothing a person can regularly use will vary greatly, which means the amount that works for me might be all kinds of wrong for you.   And that’s why I like using this questions rather than following rules, like a prescribed number of items…it’s super flexible.

IMG_9987

(Note: I do also think about things like item quality, whether the color is good for me, and so on, but really, all of those questions are sort of sub-questions to the one above.   I will wear something regularly if it’s a good color, it’s made well, it’s practical, it fits me properly, etc.)

Answering that main question should help you on the shopping end of things, but I’m guessing you probably   also want to do some minimizing of your current clothing collection.

When it comes to paring down what you already own, you can certainly look through your closet and cull the items you know you haven’t worn/won’t wear.

But beyond that, I’ve found it helpful to go a step further and do a test.   I pile one category of clothing (say, winter shirts) on top of my dresser and select items from the pile each day when I get dressed.

clothes

Once an item is worn, I launder it and put it back in the drawer.   At the end of a month or so, I figure that whatever is left on top of the dresser isn’t all that necessary, and I donate it (unless there’s an extenuating circumstance…like a shirt I wear in the snow, but it hadn’t snowed that month.)

I know people turn their hangers backwards in their closet at the beginning of a season for the same reason.   All the hung items that are still backwards at the end of the season get donated.

So, maybe give something like that a try as you clean out your current wardrobe, and then as you shop in the future, give some hard thought to whether or not you can really use a new item to its fullest potential.

Hopefully the combo of those two tactics will help you end up with a wardrobe that is right-sized for you!

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Readers, weigh in!   What’s your process for deciding whether or not you need a new clothing item?

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P.S. “How much stuff should you own? The answer is simpler than you think.” talks more about this “How much can I really use?” question.

P.P.S. Joshua and I have week two of our 52 project up on the photo blog.   It’s landscapes this week, another weak area of mine, so I did kind of cheat (apparently landscapes are, technically, shot from a wide angle.   Whoops.)

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Rudaiya

Saturday 12th of March 2016

I agree with not shopping for a while, if you feel you have too much already. Just wear what you have for a year (or 6 months, 18 months, whatever you decide), notice what you arenโ€™t wearing & get rid of it, and make note of any gaps that you really need to fill & at the end of the year (or 6 months or whatever), if you still feel you need those items, look for a good value (good quality, decent price) and buy those things only. here's I drop one usefull link, you can try - https://chesterfieldbags.com/

Amanda

Tuesday 26th of January 2016

I live in Chicago so I need clothes that go from 95 degrees (I just have fans, no A/C) to -5 degrees (though not this winter). I work from home and have set a maximum 75 pieces year round(not there yet). If I think I need something I write it down, along with what seasons I can wear it and what situations I can wear it in. Then I don't buy it. If I return because I'm feeling every week like I need that item I'll then buy it once I can get a sale or find it secondhand. Example being I had a good amount of T-Shirts, 1 good flannel and then 2 light and 2 heavy sweaters. I finally decided to buy 2 long sleeve shirts for warm winter days and I'm sooo happy I bought it. I did a very heavy pare-down of my wardrobe after I finally stopped lying to myself about oh I'll wear this eventually and whatnot and it was so freeing! I was able to sell some and gave a ton of work clothes to a friend who needed them. I still do the hanger thing and I have a collection of lazy/housework T's and 2 painting jeans so I don't ruin the good stuff.

AnnMarie J

Tuesday 26th of January 2016

I'm trying to go for just as many clothes as I need to do laundry once a week, with a couple extra shirts/undies just in case.

So, when I found my absolute favorite t-shirts, I got rid of my other t-shirts, because I want to wear these all the time. Did I really like some that I got rid of? Yes, but I like these even more!

I have a few too many long sleeved shirts (which are practical in FL for only a few months of the year, too). Haven't some trouble paring those down because the ones that are the worst fit (baggy, from 5K walks we did) are my favorites but can't be worn to meetings and I usually prefer to wear something nicer to the doctor or other appointments. Still trying to figure this one out.

One thing that has also worked is that I make bags out of the old shirts. Cut off the arms, make a scoop neck (using a bowl, perhaps)--at this point, it kind of looks like a scoop-neck tank top. Sew up the bottom and you're good to go. Sometimes I reinforce the shoulder seams, but for the most part, they've held up. If it's good t-shirt fabric, you'll be surprised how many groceries fit in the shirt and it doesn't break!

Ruby Julian

Tuesday 26th of January 2016

When my husband and I travel, we limit how much clothing we need to take by hanging up the outfit we wore to travel to the destination and then re-wear it back home. Everybody in an airport looks kind of crumpled, so it works.

Jenni

Tuesday 26th of January 2016

I consider myself to be a frugal clothes shopper. I dress professionally during the week, casually on the weekends and sporty when I coach. The questions I ask myself, once I've identified a clothing "need" are: Does the item flatter me? Do I LOVE how this item looks on me? Does the item make me look and feel great? I have items from Value Village and I have items that are expensive. No matter where I shop, the answer must be YES to these questions or else it's not worth it. I don't want a "bargain" shirt if it's just going to make me look BLAH and end up sitting in my closet unused. That's a waste of money...no matter how little I had to spend. When asked what I want for a gift (bday/Christmas) I'll answer "giftcards" to my favorite clothing store. That way I can go shopping for something I need at a place I love. Win-Win! To identify a need, put a little note in your phone. Each time you feel yourself saying "I could really use a pair of ________" put a mark beside it. If you find yourself with several marks beside the item....you probably need it. Case in point: Winter boots! Glad to hear you survived the storm! I am writing to you from Northern Alberta, so shovelling snow is a regular exercise around here! LOVE your blog!!

alice

Tuesday 26th of January 2016

Those are great ideas!

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