Minimizing My Wardrobe Step 1 and 2

Step 1: Create 3 piles – Keep, Donate, and Consign. Only keep the items I really love and donate all items that I haven’t worn in a month, that are beyond repair and that don’t match anything.

Two steps into the closet and the fun began. In a fury, my shoes started to stampede forward as they called out “Stranger, Danger!” But I was no stranger, I knew exactly what needed to be donated and so I began the process of minimizing my wardrobe.

I chose to sort my accessories first, the easy route, because I trembled at the thought of dividing up my beloved dresses (woe is me). And it wasn’t hard to spot the accessories I no longer needed.  If they were tucked out of sight for years, I tossed them into the donation pile. The scarves that were hanging semi-neatly in my closet went in the keep pile. It was that simple. The closet is where I started to stall. Sure, the raggedy jeans and spouseless socks were easy to part ways with, but what I needed to come to terms with was the crumpled pile of vintage dresses that hasn’t moved from that corner for years. I finally sorted through that pile and all that was left was the shoes. Errrr…..I dunno, I kinda need multiple boots to survive the winter. I digress. The process did get easier and easier as I pushed forward and after an hour of sorting I ended up with 3 pretty impressive piles.

Step 2: Reduce items again: Build a wardrobe with the goal of only owning 40 items (clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear and shoes) Choose pieces that will meet all of my needs, which includes work and social functions. Toss clothes that don’t match anything and keep comfort and ease in mind. If the final tally is not 40, continue to Step 3 – Turn Around The Hanger Game.

My initial goal was to only have 40 items, which includes shoes and accessories. Is there anything else I can send away? I realized at
that moment I could move on to Step 2. I tossed maybe 4 or 5 other items, but was still left with a total of 84 items. As I stared down at my final choices I could feel my heart squeeze into a ball as I realized that I had to get rid of more…MORE! I backed up slowly from the piles, the room started to spin. Josh caught me just in time, “You
need a hand,” he said.

We grabbed the “Donate” and “Consign” piles and set them aside. We started to hang the remaining clothes into my now spacious closet. I did feel a sense of accomplishment as I stepped back to see how much room I had acquired. No longer will my mornings involve digging through large piles of unfolded clothes to find that one shirt that matches that one dress. But along with that newly discovered peace I also have a big job still ahead. I need to reach my goal of 40 items total. Step 3 will be crucial.

Before (this isn’t all of it!)

After

Pieces Donated: 273
Pieces Kept: 84
Items To Be Consigned: I will attempt to sell 43 pieces
Space Acquired: Emptied a plastic storage bin, jewelry box, 3 dresser
drawers, 3 shelves, large corner in my bedroom, and an ‘Over the door’ shoe bag.
Difficulty: Medium