One of the reasons we get so bored with our wardrobes is because they have become filled with items that were once terrific but now aren’t for a variety of reasons (they’ve had their day, they fit a life you are no longer living, they fit a body you no longer have, they fit the person you once were but aren’t anymore – just to name a few). Or our wardrobes are filled with items we wished we hadn’t purchased in the first place.
Oh, the lament of the undesirable wardrobe item!
All of us can surely relate to this – purchasing an item that must have seemed great in the store, otherwise why would we have bought it?, but now we don’t wear it and probably don’t even like it.
When culling and cleansing your closet, a particularly useful question to ask of questionable items that you’re not sure if they should stay or go is:
Would I buy this item again?
- If you saw this very item displayed in a store window, would it draw you into the store to locate it?
- If you came across this very item hanging on a rack in a store, would you pick it out to examine it further?
- If you discovered this item on a store’s shelves, would you be tempted to try it on?
- Would you be tempted to buy it if it was full price, and not on sale?
If the answer is a resounding no, then it gives you a clue about the place this item has in your closet. If you wouldn’t buy it again, why are you hanging onto it?
If you aren’t sure, then put this item on your list to explore how you feel when you’re wearing it. Do you still enjoy wearing it? Does it still have a place in your life and your closet? Is it a bridging piece that makes other loved pieces work?
If the answer after that exploration is again no, then you are definitely getting information to tell you it’s time to let this item go.
And sure, sometimes we need to keep particular items for practical reasons for periods of time. Fine. Do that. Keep it for only as long as you need to.
But if that doesn’t apply – there’s no practical reason for you to keep this item – then do yourself a favour and let it go.
It simply isn’t you anymore.