To purge or not to purge
When we moved from the townhome to the rental house, I packed up the majority of my clothes. I left out the essentials, a few shirts to wear to work, all my blazers, a few dresses, my favorite casual shirts, and options for working out. The rental house didn’t have much for closet space, so what would be the point of putting everything out and packing it all up in two months, anyway?
Work shirt options – I go in to the office once a week (and went in up to three days in a row during this time frame) so it’s okay if I wear the same thing each week, ha!
When we moved in to our house, I only unpacked the clothes I had out at the rental. The closet situation is similar at the house – not as much storage as the townhome (which may change in the future, but not the close future).
So I have quite a few boxes of clothes, sitting in the basement. And save for getting out more dresses, and “special occasion” clothes, I don’t really see myself wanting to unpack and use much of it.
I discovered, at the rental house, that I like having less options. I must have filled my closet at the townhome to the brim, because I could. But I just don’t need all those options! I’m not in to fashion AT ALL! I just need a few decent things.
I keep seeing all those articles about how highly successful people wear a “uniform” – something very similar each day, so they don’t waste brain power deciding what to wear. Ha! I do tend to have my standard ware for work and home – so I may do that a bit. But mostly, I like not wasting too much time thinking about clothes, since I don’t care all that much. Until I get so sick of wearing the same things, that I do care, of course!
Right now I have the urge to get rid of everything* (clothing-wise) I haven’t unpacked. But I am going to wait a bit, and see if my urge to purge goes away. And if I start to crave some variety in what I am wearing. This urge to get rid of everything could stem from the fact that a lot of my clothes are old and too big, and make me feel frumpy, so I am only wearing the pieces that somewhat fit, anyway!
*And it’s not like I didn’t go through everything before the first move – I got rid of a ton of stuff! BLAH! How do I have so much stuff?
Themocracy
I definitely had a “uniform” when I worked in the office all the time. Dress & cardigan/skirt, tank & cardigan/pants, tank & cardigan. For me, deciding what to wear every day DID take a lot of time, thought and some frustration (as I had a lot of ill-fitting clothes for a while) until I figured out something easy that worked for me. Pretty sure this stems from me wearing uniforms throughout grade school and high school (and loving them for that exact reason).
If you want to purge, maybe take some time to put aside all of the things you would purge, then think it over for a little while. I purged a LOT when moving from the city, and then again when we moved to RL, and I do miss some of my old clothes. But if it’s mostly stuff that makes you feel frumpy, there’s probably no reason to hang on to them.
Lots of cardigans!!!! Cardigans are a staple in my work uniform too. And pants that I can wear with boots 🙂 It makes things so much easier!
That is my worry – that I will miss something and regret purging it (although that has never happened before). Or, I won’t remember that I got rid of it and be looking for it!. Ha! I do need to take the time to go through everything, and at least set some things aside to think about, and definitely get rid of things that are in bad shape or make me feel crappy when I wear them!
Oh, I’ve definitely done the latter! I used to have clothes EVERYWHERE (closets, bins, boxes in storage, etc.), which made it impossible to know if I just couldn’t find something, or if I had gotten rid of it.
When I went through all my stuff for move #1 I actually took pics of what I was getting rid of so if I felt like I was losing my mind trying to remember, I could reference those pics. HA!
Konmari. Freedom in less. I am trying to get to that point, I have too much stuff. Purging is great.
I agree that it’s great! I just want to make sure I am not going overboard because I am in a “mood.” LOL!
I definitely have a uniform too. It makes things so much easier, especially since I just don’t care that much. I did purge a bit last year and it made my closet feel so much lighter and roomier 🙂 And it was easier to find clothes that I actually do like wearing that I had even forgotten about.
What is your uniform?
You know, it is so nice here (and was at the rental, too) not to have so much clothes jammed in there that I can’t even see what’s what!
Generally slacks, a nice tank top and a jacket. In the summer, I’ll toss in a dress with a jacket. And on casual days it will be tailored jeans with a tank top and sweater.
Awesome 🙂 I love wearing dresses in the summer! (and sometimes in the winter)
I really love purging. I just feel refreshed when it is all done. Sometimes I do worry about will I miss an item but I tell myself if I find I really need something I can buy it again. Plus I am super guilty about hanging onto things that are really past their prime. Then I wear them and dislike them because they look frumpy or crappy.
As Anne mentioned, it might be good to sort thru them and hold onto them for a bit before getting rid of them.
Yes! It feels so good! And I should keep staples and get rid of things that are replaceable if I NEVER use them now.
I think I will do that. I look forward to organizing so I should put it on my calendar!
I put clothes into a plastic tub when I’m in the purge mode, and shove that bin in another room for several months. Later on, I’ll revisit those clothes and while I might pull one or two things out and put them back in my closet, I’m usually ready to send the rest to Goodwill. Purging without committing, that’s my system.
I like your system! I am going to try it! 🙂
I really should get in this mindset as well. Purging is something we always say we’ll do and rarely fully commit to. It usually winds up being a single large garbage bag of donations. The only true purge happened when we were converting our former office (second bedroom) into Nathan’s nursery. Man, did we get rid of a lot. Katie wants to do her part of the closet today or tomorrow. I need to hit my dresser and closet. Dream goal is our attic.
Put it on the calendar and get to it! 🙂 It’ll feel goooood.
Kim,
Guessing that maybe you have heard about project 333. http://bemorewithless.com/project-333/
Minimalism for your clothes. I am trying to minimize my stuff. I have always been intrigued by the Project333, select 33 pieces of clothes and wear only those for 3 months. As Courtney at “Be More with Less” says, it does’t have to be 33 – it could be 35 or 40, but the idea is we all have way to much in our closets and simplifying our clothes helps simplify our lives.
I heard someone talking about a project where you put aside things each day (one thing for the 1st, two for the second, etc.) but haven’t heard of that. Ha! I bet that would really help me figure out what I wanted to KEEP! 🙂
Your post made me think of project 333, too! But you kind of did by accident 😉
I purge regularly and have a pretty small wardrobe, I think. Not having too much in my closet is so nice.
Yay, good for you!!!! 🙂
I go in waves about this, too. And, like you, my big fear is getting rid of something and then wishing I still had it. However, since I take my stuff to the consignment shop in Oak Park and I only go every few months, it typically sits in a pile for awhile before I commit.
That’s good! I am liking this idea of putting it aside and thinking about it for a bit 🙂
I just did a major closet purge and it feels so good! I am struggling with what to do with my old work clothes though. For my old job I had to wear a suit when I was at a hospital, so I have a lot of really nice professional clothes. They still fit and are in good condition. But, now I’m in nursing school and then will be a nurse (and get to wear scrubs!!). They were expensive, so I hate to get rid of them. But I also hate to store them if I am never going to wear them.
I have a few old suits that don’t fit that I don’t want to get rid of cause they cost so much, too. Would any of them stand the test of time? Can you keep those and donate the others to a women’s shelter?
I’m not into fashion at all, so I have my standard look. Dresses and skirts give me more options in the summer, but the winter is dress pants plus a long-sleeve shirt or sweater. Simple, basic stuff.
Can you come help me get rid of all of my stuff? I desperately need a purge!
You can do eeeeeeeeeeeet! Start with stuff you haven’t used in awhile/forgot you had!!! 🙂
I’ve been trying to be more ruthless about purging my closet. I even sell stuff via Poshmark, figuring if I can get some money for it, I’ll be even more ruthless. (And what doesn’t sell goes to the next clothing swap.) But I think I need to do another purge, because lately I stand in my closet and just sigh.
How has that been going – selling some of it? I usually just give everything to Goodwill 🙂
Like anything, it depends on how much effort I put into it! When I have time to dedicate 10-15 minutes to the Poshmark app per day (to create nice listings and share my closet), I’m lucky to sell 1-2 things per week. Otherwise, I’m lucky to make one sale per month. I use the credits to buy myself “new” stuff, lately just stuff for performances.
I NEED to go through my clothes! I have so many that i have not worn in over 2 years (since I was pregnant! EKK!) but its so hard to part with some of my favorites!
Oh man! You really need to! Do eeeet! It will feel good. 🙂
I feel like the “uniform” thing is kind of a fad, but I do think having fewer options does make you a lot less stressed. I like having a really pared-down wardrobe when I travel, and I usually don’t miss the options that I left at home! It’s a good idea to wait though, just in case. 🙂
The uniform thing does seem to be very current and popular (at least to talk about). I wonder if there are people we can look back to in history and see if they did it. Steve Jobs kind of did, but he’s more current.
I got out a few more clothing items after posting this, and really haven’t had the time to go through the rest! Maybe when we move things in to the storage room 🙂