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Post by mouse on Jun 15, 2008 16:12:02 GMT -5
Recently I realized that, for someone who always claims not to have that many clothes, I sure had a lot of clothes! Upon closer examination, a lot of the clothes turned out to be things I hadn't worn in years. They were clothes that I kept "just in case," or because they looked good on me once upon a time, or because "gee, it's a shame to get rid of it just for that one little hole/little stain." So then I asked myself how much longer I was going to play this little game with myself. I don't wear clothes that don't fit me. If they're too worn, I can't wear them to work, because I have to look professional. If they're torn or stained, I won't wear them either, and I'm not exactly good at mending clothes. I decided a few weeks ago that I was going to go through my closet and dresser and toss the clothes I didn't want anymore. Then I procrastinated for several weeks, until this afternoon. I tossed half a garbage bag of clothes that were of no use to anyone: torn and stained beyond repair. I then filled an entire garbage bag (the green kind) with clean clothes for the Salvation Army. How many t-shirts does a girl who almost never wear t-shirts need, anyway? I was ruthless, and tossed even the ones with "sentimental value." You know, the ones which make you go "Aww, I remember winning this t-shirt in that contest fourteen years ago..." Yeah. So it's been sitting in my dresser, unworn, for fourteen years! Sheesh. Out it went, to a better home. My dresser is almost entirely empty now, and my closet is about half-full. I have a hamper and a half of dirty laundry to wash (so anywhere from three to five loads, I think), and some of that is sheets and what have you. I have a small bag of dry cleaning (five items). I now have a week or so's worth of summer clothing, and a little under two week's worth of winter clothing, and some extra really casual or really fancy stuff. Suddenly getting into my (admittedly small-ish) closet is no longer a struggle! Amazing.  ~Mouse |
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DG
New Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 86
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Post by DG on Jun 15, 2008 16:54:02 GMT -5
Well done Mouse!! Getting down to that amount of clothing is an amazing achievement.
You've inspired me, I've been trying to decide what to start on first upstairs and I reckon organising the clothing cupboard I share with my 2 kids should be my goal this week. The easier it is for them to keep organised the less work for me and more time I can spend on emptying boxes.
DiamondGal.
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Post by glowworm on Jun 15, 2008 17:41:38 GMT -5
Great job, Mouse!
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Post by heylady1 on Jun 15, 2008 18:21:42 GMT -5
YAY for Mouse!!!   That's awesome Mouse and think of all the good those clothes will do for someone else!!  |
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Post by joyinvirginia on Jun 15, 2008 21:45:47 GMT -5
This is amazing! I gotta run do my closet now! Well, maybe I will get around to it later this week...
BIG WTG!
Joy in Virginia
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Post by mouse on Jun 16, 2008 16:33:18 GMT -5
Okay, I used yesterday's momentum to reserve a car with my community car service, and took my purged clothing to the Salvation Army this afternoon, right after work! My landlady even gave me a small bag of things to take as well, so we saved on gas and man (woman?) hours.
Now the clothing is no longer taking up space in my closet, nor is it taking up space on my living room floor. It has moved on to a new and better life with people who will wear it.
~Mouse
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mariak
New Member
Joined: June 2008
Posts: 2 
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Post by mariak on Jun 16, 2008 22:14:45 GMT -5
De-lurking to ask something that may well have come up here at some point in the past. How exactly does one determine how many clothes a person actually needs? Not kidding here  I've recently done a major clear out of my bedroom and actually finished most of the laundry and put it away, which is a huge accomplishment for me. I'm appalled at how many clothing items I actually own. (Obviously, the laundry hasn't been caught up for years -- I have about 20 Old Navy tanks. Who knew?) Granted, my size tends to fluctuate about two sizes up and down every year or so (something I will attack after I attack the rest of the house) but really, how do I decide how much to keep? FWIW, I can dress pretty casually for work (capris, decent sandals, shirt with no writing on it) except days I have to go to court or have to make a community presentation. How many summer shirts is it reasonable to own? I honestly have no idea. -maria |
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Post by mouse on Jun 16, 2008 23:32:56 GMT -5
Hi mariak!
There is no hard and fast rule to how many clothes one should own. My own rule is (in theory) not to own more clothes than I can keep up with in terms of laundry. When I am on top of my laundry, I do 1-2 loads a week. When I'm not on top of my laundry, this can go up to anywhere between 5-10 loads a week (due to disorganisation as much as volume).
The people I've spoken to on Squalor Survivors (the predecessor to this forum) seem generally to agree that about two weeks' worth of clothing is a minimum: that's two weeks' worth for both summer and winter. This does not include your gym clothes, your "cleaning the house" clothes, or your fancy clothes.
Another good rule of thumb for me is not to own more clothes than can reasonably and comfortably (for lack of a better word) fit into my closet and dresser. If I have to fight with my closet and/or my dresser to get clothing in and out, then I have too much clothing.
Does that help at all?
~Mouse
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Post by shopgirl on Jun 17, 2008 3:44:39 GMT -5
Oh mouse, you did so great! My goal is to have NO dressers or chests of drawers at all. The T-shirts are deadly; at work they give them to us, and I end up with 20 new T's every year. They take up 4 drawers and also a couple of boxes in the garage. I used to clean the car with them, but now I go to a car wash.
Mouse, you have inspired me: tomorrow I will throw away 20 T-shirts and clear a drawer.
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Post by drivermom on Jun 17, 2008 8:13:51 GMT -5
What a great thread you started. In the last 15 1/2 months I have lost 130 lbs. I'm also a parent of 2 young kids, we have a lot of clothes to get rid of. This last weekend I started cleaning my bedroom, I did throw away 1 bag of clothes that would benefit no one. I also gathered up about 3 loads of laundry to do and donate. I still have a huge pile of clothes to go through and either throw or gather for donation. I will be working on that in the next couple of weeks. You are an inspiration and i will be purging along with you.
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Post by Script on Jun 19, 2008 16:01:08 GMT -5
Today I took about 20 articles of clothing, all very nice, and admitted to myself that they needed to go. Here are some of the things I said to myself as I prepared these items for charity-pic-up next Monday:
*I have too many casual tops
*These tops don't fit nicely any more
*This beautiful dress is no longer flattering
*These stockings went with the beautiful dress: I don't need them anymore (they were also uncomfortable)
*I have a belt that is too small
*I have more shawls than I can reasonably use
*I have a dress that is too rough against my skin now
It was hard for me to make the mental leap of admitting these realities to myself. I am comforting myself that someone at the charity store will enjoy these really GOOD items.
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Post by mouse on Jun 19, 2008 17:33:02 GMT -5
Script, I know what you mean. I come from a family in which clothes were the one thing (aside from paperwork) which one never ever threw away. My mother still has all my clothes from when I was a little girl (seven trunks' worth!). So it's taken me a long time to change my mentality about clothing. Luckily, I'm not one for buying many clothes, so I didn't have as much to give/toss as I might. Still, I had to perform the same mental exercise as you did, and argue with myself about the clothes: - I have too many clothes.
- I have not seen this top in over three years, because it was buried at the back of the closet. Thus, I don't need it.
- This shirt no longer looks good on me.
- This shirt has a hole (or stain) in it. I will never, ever take the time to fix it. I will therefore get rid of it.
Etc. It felt good, though, once it was all gone. ~Mouse |
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Post by glowworm on Jun 19, 2008 20:21:20 GMT -5
Sign me up for the clothing purge! While I've not made such dramatic improvements as drivermom with my weight loss efforts, I have lost enough weight to have to go back through my clothes again and purge/replace some more.
Someone had asked how many clothes is enough to keep? I think that your closet size is a good guide for helping you make this decision. If you have so many clothes that you can't fit them all comfortably in your closet/dresser, then you have too many clothes.
If you want actual numbers, I'll give you myself as an example: For work, I have three pairs of dress pants, two skirts, one pair of casual pants, two pairs of jeans, and maybe 10 or 15 tops that can go with any of these. For not at work, I have maybe 10 casual shirts, two pairs of shorts, and three casual skirts, and recycle the two pairs of jeans for the weekend. And a couple of dresses that I bought for various special occasions. That's pretty much it. There are sweaters shoved in a drawer somewhere but where I live, it doesn't get cold too often.
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Post by Script on Jun 20, 2008 8:00:41 GMT -5
De-lurking to ask something that may well have come up here at some point in the past. How exactly does one determine how many clothes a person actually needs? Not kidding here I buy a Canadian style magazine called LOU LOU. Every month they profile some "fashion IT girl" -- someone in the business in some way: designer, decorator, store manager. There seems to be a WARDROBE INVENTORY as part of the interview profile. I read these with avid curiousity. The person for June'08 is a young designer (recent grad?). She has: *36 dresses *27 sweaters *10 jackets *7 vests *52 tops *16 pairs of pants *15 jeans *7 shorts *7 skirts *7 bathing suits *10 sunglasses *2 hats *6 leggings *5 handbags *11 belts *76 pairs of shoes I have not owned 76 pairs of shoes in my whole entire adult life (almost 40 years!). But I have far more than "5 handbags". This young grad emphatically states that her clothes are arranged super-neatly according to season and style. I think we have to THINK about what we need. I NEED A SMALL DRESSER'S WORTH OF FITNESS CLOTHES. This is not a joke (fibro exercise-pain-management-programme). I need 1 pair of sunglasses (Rx bifocals). And so on.... |
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