Wardrobe Editing - part 3
Welcome to the third and final part of my wardrobe editing Journals. This is the fun bit… wardrobe planning!
I mentioned last time that I think wardrobe planning needs to be done alongside the clearing-out process. Planning helps to motivate the editing down and gives you a better idea of the end goal, while editing down makes it easier to think clearly and really focus on what works and what doesn’t.
Shopping Habits
Using Project 333 or the packing party method (both linked from part 2) in order to live with a restricted wardrobe really helps with the planning process and with changing shopping habits.
While I was clearing out and planning - I completely stopped buying new clothes and I now think long and hard before buying or making clothes. Have I got space/what will I let go to make space? Do I need it/will I wear it? Do I love it enough to take care of it/repair it? Does it fit in with my edited wardrobe plan?
As well as reducing my overall consumption, I made the decision to only buy clothes either second-hand or from ethical and sustainable brands. That’s easy for me because I’m a standard size, but there are still far too many brands who only go up to a UK size 16 or 18 (size 16 is the average UK size so this is quite frankly ridiculous). I’m sure there are many other reasons why people might not be able to stick to a strict second-hand or ethical/sustainable rule, so if you’re setting yourself guidelines - make sure that they’re realistic for you.
I think the most important change I made was to reject over-consumption. We don’t need a different frock for every wedding/Christmas party. We can absolutely wear the same earrings every day and no one will care or notice (and if they do… do you care?). And social media won’t break if we’re seen wearing the same outfit numerous times… actually - it might, because it would mean we’re ignoring all the shopping ads… but maybe it would break in a good way?!
When it comes to yarn and fabric I haven’t changed where/what I buy dramatically. I’ve always gone for predominantly natural fibres and I do buy organic and sustainable where possible. But making our own clothes is a slow process and will never be as problematic as the fast fashion industry. I am however a lot more mindful of how I shop and only buy yarn and fabric when I have a project in mind that fits in with my wardrobe plan.
Getting Started
The best advice I can give you for wardrobe planning is… don’t look in your wardrobe while you’re planning! It’s so easy to get distracted and confused.
I’ll use mugs as an example…
When I first edited down our mug collection I really felt like I’d cleared out every mug Beardie and I could bear to part with… and we still had over 20 mugs. We then had a conversation about how many mugs we really need and settled on six: two each and two spares for guests. Once we knew that was the plan, it was so much easier ‘shopping’ our collection to pick out our six favourite mugs to keep rather than picking out the ones to get rid of.
The same goes for my wardrobe. When I was looking at my clothes I found reasons/excuses to keep things I didn’t wear. But making a plan as if I had zero clothes and was building my dream wardrobe from scratch was great fun. And then I could ‘shop’ my own clothes to fit in with the plan!
Colour Palette
I really enjoyed looking into what ‘my colours’ were and planning out a palette that suits me and that I feel good in. Luckily this pretty much fitted in with the clothes I already had - but I did discover that I was wearing some colours that washed me out (grey and light blue/teal). It’s easy to slip into buying clothes/yarn/fabric in colours that we love and look okay in… but now that I’ve spent time working out which colours are best for me, I’m gradually phasing out the others.
I can’t find the original blog I used for working out ‘my colours’ - but this one looks pretty good (if you’ve seen a better one please let me know). Once I’d discovered I was a ‘warm autumn’ I took to Pinterest to find ‘warm autumn palettes’ and narrowed it down to suit me by removing colours I don’t like or wouldn’t wear.
I find my colour palette such a useful tool because all the colours look good together and I’m not tempted to buy clothes/yarn/fabric that don’t fit in with my palette (even if I love them!).
Lifestyle
I also put thought into what I spend most of my time doing, and this really influenced what clothes I kept and what I let go.
I made a list of everything I do: going for walks, lunch dates, working from home etc etc… and the occasional night out or fancy occasion (this was all pre-pandemic/becoming a mum!). Then I noted down examples of my perfect outfits (for each season) for all of those occasions.
It became apparent to me that my wardrobe had not changed with my lifestyle. I had lots of going out clothes which were well worn and loved in my twenties, but very few comfortable outfits for mooching around (which is what I spend most of my time doing!).
Also - the majority of my ‘mooching’ outfits (which I wore most of the time) were old and scruffy. I established that I wanted to feel like I look good… but most importantly I want to feel comfortable in my clothes. So, since making my wardrobe plan, everything I have either made or bought is either loose fitting or elasticated!
How Big is My Edited Wardrobe?
I decided to base my final wardrobe plan on 60 items. This doesn’t include shoes, jewellery, underwear (including leggings), loungewear or sportswear (but I do limit the numbers/amount of space for each of those things as well). 60 sounds like quite a lot… but go and count how many items of clothing you have and I bet you’ll be surprised (feel free to share in the comments!).
I decided on the number 60 after doing Project 333 and enjoying living with a limited wardrobe. The idea of Project 333 is that you only wear 33 items for three months, but you’re not necessarily getting rid of your other clothes - you’re just packing them away and then refreshing your collection of 33 items every three months. So in theory - you might be actually be wearing 132 items across the year.
We no longer have a spare room so I don’t have space to pack things away. And if I ‘push things to the back of the closet’ as suggested… they would still be there and not particularly hidden in my smallish wardrobe! So having an ongoing wardrobe of 60 items makes more sense for me.
Of course you don’t have to base your plan on a number! But I found it helped me keep things streamlined to limit the number and it helped me with setting out the initial plan (as per the mugs!).
The Edit
Once you have your colour palette, your list (or mood board) of perfect outfits to suit your lifestyle and an idea of how big you want your edited wardrobe to be… you can start your final plan!
I started by breaking things down into Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter. There’s a lot of crossover with layering, but it helped me to get started. I also thought about the versatility of garments and making sure I can mix and match: I wanted plain tops to wear with patterned skirts and vice-versa. All of my dresses are patterned and all of my cardigans are plain.
Then based on those notes (and still not looking at my wardrobe) I made a rough plan of what my wardrobe would consist of - ie, how many tops/bottoms/dresses etc for each season. This is a bit tricky, but I think doing it without looking in your wardrobe means that you’re more honest about what you actually need.
Then finally… I got all of my clothes out and started shopping for my new edited wardrobe! Not everything fitted in perfectly with my plan and that’s fine because over time I’m replacing the things that aren’t quite right or are old and worn out.
While writing this Journal, I revisited the plan I made a few years ago and re-wrote it to bring it up to date. My wardrobe contents had crept up by a few items so I needed to do some editing! But mostly I’ve just replaced some items and have new plans for replacing some of the older scruffy things that I’m wearing till they fall apart.
27 of my 60 garments are handmade so in the not too distant future my wardrobe will be 50% handmade. That’s a nice feeling! It’s a slow and ongoing process and I fully embrace that.
And remember…
You don’t have to get rid of anything immediately. If you box/bag it up and feel the benefits of living with less - then it’ll be much easier to let go of those unworn clothes. I still have a smallish over-spill box of things I’m not 100% sure about getting rid of, but it’s gradually getting emptier.
Think of your wardrobe plan like a garden… it will always be changing and never ‘finished’. Even if you opt out of ‘fashion’, your tastes, style and lifestyle will change, but I definitely think an edited wardrobe makes life easier and has longevity. I’ve really enjoyed planning, building and maintaining mine.
