In Chapter 10 of my book, Shopping for the Real You, I wrote about closet clearing. That advice still stands. Today I want to approach the subject from a different perspective. Since detoxification is a big part of self-care let’s consider some new ways to “detoxify” your wardrobe.
This is a good practice to do periodically for several reasons. An over-stuffed closet makes it very difficult to actually see what you own. Also, if you hang any wool or cashmere items in there they will become a more favorable secret breeding ground for moths. And, items that tend to wrinkle need space to hang without being squished together. So let’s look at how to detoxify your closet to get the most mileage out of your clothes.
Does This Suit My Current Age and Lifestyle
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You may have heard from a life coach or read in a self-help book that you should dress for the life you want to live. Or, you may have heard that you should dress for how you want to live five years from now. Those experiments can be fun. But life changes, and we change, and what may have been a priority, or a dream, or a goal five years ago may have nothing to do with who you are now and what your priorities and goals are now.
I think a better way to approach this is to look at the things in your closet and assess whether they reflect how you want to be perceived now, at this stage in your life, at this age of your life. One of the things that color and style analyst Hella Tsaconas advises in order to determine if some article of clothing or an an entire outfit works is to ask: “Where am I going and how to I want to be seen?” That’s often a more successful way to determine whether you should keep or toss an item of clothing.
How Happy Do I feel When I wear This?
When you spend months and months wearing sweats or just not getting dressed up much at all you can tend to lose enthusiasm for the joy of fashion. I think that’s a shame. There is nothing wrong with getting joy out of material things. But they should elevate us in some way, either aesthetically, or psychologically. What we wear should make us feel happier, healthier, more beautiful, more engaged, more current and more alive. That’s the purpose and the value of fashion.
And don’t think that if you love something you can’t wear it on repeat. When you have a beautiful garment that is flattering to your coloring and your personal style, every single time you wear it you will feel uplifted. I always encourage clients to buy the best they can afford. But that does not mean you have to wear expensive clothes. One of the most fashionable dressers I knew was an Italian woman who always looked like she had just stepped out of Bergdorf’s. She actually did a lot of her shopping at Target. And she always looked joyful in everything she wore no matter how many times she wore it.
So if you are harboring things in your closet that don’t make you happy, it’s wise to give them away.
How Comfortable Am I in This?
Photo by Mohammad Metri on Unsplash
This one should go without saying, but I have heard too many women say that you have to suffer for beauty. I think after a certain age we realize that’s nonsense. The idea of comfort should be applied to everything you wear or carry. (As for the latter, a beautiful but heavy bag won’t likely get used as much). My sister had a gorgeous pair of embroidered heels that she wore to an awards event. They sat on a pedestal in her closet for a long time, just glorifying the space. But at some point she let them go. She knew she would never wear them again. It was not a hard decision.
Additionally, if you have put on some weight, or lost a lot of weight, evaluate how comfortable you feel wearing things that you used to wear. Our clothing shouldn’t own us or make us feel uncomfortable. If anything you wear does, ask yourself how happy you really feel wearing it.
I hope these tips give you something practical to go on. Sure, you can use the standards of ditching things that are worn out or no longer in fashion. But if you apply these three ideas to your keep-or-toss decisions you can’t go wrong.
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