Wardrobe Taming -- Day Eight
[ 16 September 2007 ]
Wardrobe taming series:
Day One 
Day Two Day Three Day Four Day Five Day Six Day Seven Day Eight
Today is the last day of wardrobe boot camp! Over the last eight days, you have:
Started wearing clothes that have been languishing in your cupboard for years
Kept a clothing journal of what you’re wearing, how to wear it better, clothing observations & ideas for the future
Made a list of the items you feel your wardrobe is missing
Consulted with a friend about your style
Started planning a new aesthetic direction
Looked for patterns in what you buy & worked out what needs to be changed
Re-organised your wardrobe, bought any necessary storage & learned about how to keep your clothes in good condition
Shipped items off to the tailor &/or dry-cleaners
Good for you! I’m totally thrilled for you, & I think you deserve a big pink cupcake (or seven!) for your hard work!
Today we’re going to get rid of the stuff you’ve decided not to keep, & we’re also going to make some rules for the future. This will help keep you in control of your spending & your look!
What you do with the weird, unshapely skirts & tops that don’t flatter you is really up to you. I am inclined to say that if you have designer or really high quality items that you don’t want any more, selling them on Ebay or taking them to a consignment store is your best bet. You will never make back all the money you spent on them in the first place, but that’s just how it goes. If you have things that wouldn’t really fetch any money, donate them to a charity you like or give them to someone who you know will appreciate them. Throwing clothing out is naughty, so try not to do it! (You can always cut something up & make it into a headscarf!)
You might want to divide the items into a couple of piles — ‘to donate’ & ‘to sell’. Then deal with them as soon as you can. If you start listing things on Ebay or drive a load down to the Salvation Army today, you’ll be rid of the things sooner & able to move on with your life. Just get it over & done with!
Now it’s time to make some rules for the future. I know, it’s boring, but it will help you, I promise!
Think about what you’ve learned
There’s no point in going through the wardrobe taming rigmarole if you don’t invest a little brainpower too! What have you learned from doing this clothing cleanse? Most people will have one major point that they need to keep in mind. Have you always bought the wrong size, or the wrong colour? Have you followed trends blindly or let salespeople push you into buying things you don’t even really like? You have the power to change any bad habits you have, but you need to realise them first! I suggest writing your primary lesson in big letters & putting it in your wallet somewhere that you will see it often. Phrase it in a positive manner — rather than “Don’t buy things that don’t fit”, you could say “Buy things which flatter you!” — & commit it to memory.
Shop with a list
Do you remember that list you made back on day three, of items you thought would supplement your current wardrobe? Don’t just bury it in a pile somewhere, stick it in your purse & use it! Cross things off as you buy them & add anything you think of. I know this might seem like it is bordering on obsessive compulsion, but the end result will be a totally functional, flattering, versatile wardrobe full of clothing you love. Sound too good to be true? It isn’t! You just need to think about what you’re buying, & it’s easier than you think!
Learn to trust yourself
You may have made mistakes in the past, but don’t allow this to paralyse you or terrify you into never shopping again. You are human & we all wear bad things sometimes! When you are shopping, go easy on yourself & trust your instincts. If you try on a dress & you’re not sure about it, standing there while a sales assistant tells you how great you look isn’t going to suddenly change your mind about it. Do you know what I mean? You are the person who is going to be wearing these things, so learn to listen to your own judgment! If you’re still not sure, you can always ask them to put the item on hold. If you’re still thinking about it in a couple of days, go & try it on again & make a decision. If it’s escaped your mind, you obviously didn’t like it that much, so let it go to someone who will really adore it!
Always try things on before you buy them
It seems elementary, but so many of us (including me) have bought things without trying them on. Maybe we’re in a rush, or we’re just desperate to spend some dough, but the result is a skirt that’s not quite the right length, or a t-shirt with a cheesy slogan & sleeves that make you look like a lamb chop. Buy things which fit & flatter you. Stop wasting your money, & think about how you look!
Avoid Ebay if you can
Following from the above point, be really careful when browsing the perilous pages of Ebay. I know it’s enticing & there are some incredible pieces to be snapped up, but the risks are huge. Unless you have tried an item on instore & have found the exact thing online, you never actually know how anything is going to look on you. Measurements are great, but it doesn’t tell you anything about the quality of the fabric, stitching or general durability. Ebay is a major culprit for fashion mistakes, because it’s so exciting to see that there is only one of these things available & getting into a bidding war can be exhilarating! That whole idea of “winning” an item — when you’re not “winning” it at all, you’re paying with cold hard cash — is a dicey one. Online shopping is not so bad because you can usually return things that don’t fit. Ebay is not as flexible. Please exercise major caution & if in doubt, don’t bid!
Make a commitment to cataloguing your outfits
I’m not saying you have to take stunning portraits of yourself every day, but you need to keep some sort of record of what you’re wearing & what works. For one, paying attention to this kind of thing will really help you when you’re shopping. If you have a top with a square neck & it looks fabulous on you, you might not really realise HOW good it looks until you’re going through photos of yourself wearing it. If you know what suits you & what works, you can look for similar things. Or you might begin to notice how much better your jeans look if you wear them with heels as opposed to flats. This information is incredibly valuable, so do yourself a favour!
If you have nice things, wear them!
It doesn’t matter whether you are a butcher or a mother with nine screaming infants, if you have beautiful clothing, you should wear it. I see it this way: it’s better to wear it & enjoy it & to take the chance that it might get messy or ruined, than to let it hang in the closet for years until it either gets eaten by moths or it just disappears into the abyss. You don’t NEED an occasion to wear your sexy heels or gorgeous coat, but if you feel silly wearing them to the bank or post office, CREATE an occasion! Throw a dinner party or have a picnic or hell, even have a party where everyone is asked to come in their most decadent, normally unworn clothing! You paid the money, get some joy out of your items!
Engage in a dash of wardrobe taming regularly
How often you do it is up to you, but I would suggest going through this routine at least once a year. It will really help you keep on top of what you’ve got. Otherwise, in five years time, you’ll be up to your eyeballs in bad dresses & the thought of dealing with it will make your brain melt!
Okay, well, that’s the end of the series! I hope it has helped you see more possibilities in your clothing, given you the confidence to take risks, loaded you up with inspiration & pointed the way to an aesthetic direction which thrills you! I’d love to hear your thoughts on the wardrobe taming process, too!
Super-love & cupcakes,
Gala
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I’ll second the ‘wear your nice things’ rule! I’m a 28 year old mum of three and I frequently wear dresses, pretty skirts, kitten heels etc, even if I’m just going to the post office. I like getting dressed up, and I truly believe that it encourages others to perceive me in a positive light. Also, I think it promotes good self esteem! Great series, by the way, Gala! Truly inspirational!
i like your “try before you buy” rule
i remember buying a tshirt without trying it out once…i wanted to wear it the next day, but it didn’t fit. the worse part was that i threw away the reciept (how careless of me =[) and now it just kinda sits in the back of my closet. all alone.
amypalko — Good for you! Yeah, making the effort to dress nicely is always worth it. Most of the time, the daily outfits I show on here are only put together so I can go to the post office or to buy coffee! Oh, & thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed the series! It hasn’t had a lot of comments, but I think that’s probably because people will come back & do it when they’re ready…
fashion femme — Ahh yes, it’s a classic mistake, happens all the time. The important part is that we learn from doing these things, & don’t do it again!
“It hasn’t had a lot of comments, but I think that’s probably because people will come back & do it when they’re ready…”
yes! i’ve saved the series to my computer as i KNOW i’ll be needing to do a wardrobe overhaul sometime in the very near future! for now, it’s procrastination central…
thanks so much for this series of articles… i’ve been very complacent with my wardrobe lately and it wasn’t until i sorted things out properly that i figured out how much stuff i actually had. and my cupboard has a rainbow of t-shirts, which is always fun to look at.
that being said, there was a lot to never return to my wardrobe… so i’m planning on opening a stall at the local markets and selling it all to people who would find something new in it :)
Gala- thanks for the taming lessons, I have done day 1&2; printed BUNCHES of stuff off your site & put it in a folder (trying to stay organised, here!) for inspiration when I have the money/time to do the next few ‘days’!
love your site, i am totally addicted now! iCiNG is my drug of choice!
This has been a great series, Gala. I hope you don’t feel too “thing” that people haven’t commented a lot on it. You have given me a few little pushes along – WEAR the party dress! SHORTEN those sleeves! Etc! It’s always good to have attention brought to things like this every now and then.
And yesterday I stepped outside my usual style and wore a floral-frock-with-hoodie combo inspired directly by you – my ensemble was blue, but your outfit is green, if you remember the one I mean. It looked great, and I thank you. :-D
I think this was a great series as well, but haven’t commented since I haven’t acted so much on it yet. There has been a lot of brain activity though :) Weeding out the bad stuff in my closet has been an ongoing thing for a while, but I hadn’t thought of the rest of it. So I just the other day began taking photos of my outfits and will begin the ‘what to buy’ list soon. After that I guess I’ll have to start looking at the outfit photos to review my looks :) Also, I’ve begun (last night) asking people what they think of my style, which is really interesting!
Fabulous advice! I shall certainly follow your advice to wear my nice clothes and not just wait for an occasion. I have a red leather skirt that has been sat in my wardrobe waiting to be worn. It deserves an outing soon!
Oh, if only I had read the Ebay advice earlier :( It’s so tempting to get stuff from there, but I’ve now ended up with some stuff that is oh so pretty but to small/big. “A lesson learned…” and all of that, I suppose. I need to get started on this wardrobe organizing though; it’s the like the last thing I need to take care of in order for my house to be truly organized and the steps you’ve outlined will hopefully make it a bit easier :)
annaloren — Oh, yay! I hope it works out well for you, do let me know!
anna — No problem, sweetheart. & I love your idea of selling your clothes at a market stall, good luck to you!
Tasj — Ooooh, an iCiNG folder! That’s so cute! I am very flattered. & I love that iCiNG is your drug of choice… can I use that as a quote on my press page?!
Nadine — Thank you for the validation, wink wink! Thrilled to be able to give you little nudges, & yes, I know the outfit you’re talking about! Heart!
Malin — Yay! I think you’ll find the daily outfit photos to be SUPREMELY helpful. They’re great for me, I love being able to flick through them when I’m having an off day & can’t dress myself!
Helen — Red leather skirt sounds fab! I hope you enjoy wearing it!
Christina — It took me a while to learn that lesson too. Another trap I used to fall into was buying something at the last minute just because it was “cheap” — but really, it doesn’t matter how “cheap” something is if you never wear it… !
Can’t thank you enough for this series.
Before this, my wardrobe was a “war-zone”. Seriously, and this gave me the incentive to do something about it!
But, I did a “Wardrobe Taming” lite. Did everything, or practically everything in 2 hours. Actually worked well, but I don’t know what to do with my “This doesn’t work anymore” pile. It’s all clothes I bought when I was 13, and doesn’t fit at all.
Or, I have this adorable frilly Italian-made creme knee-length skirt. No clue how to wear it though!
Hey, I just discovered your website on Friday night – and then spent the whole weekend reading pages and pages of it!
I had a massive cleanout of all my clothes which I keep but never wear and had a massive dress up session to discover all the old cool items I have that I never wear. And then I got all dressed up for a BBQ, which I would normally wear my usual tshirt/pants combo to and loved it!
I think you’re a total inspiration!!!
Retro.Bunny — Wardrobe Taming Lite! I love it! “All the flavour but half the time!” :D & I would say, the stuff you bought when you were 13 that doesn’t fit needs to go. Donate it to a charity or flick it on Ebay. You’ll feel much better for it :>
Tania — Yay! Sounds like a good way to spend the weekend, haha. I hope it kept you entertained! I bet you looked faaaabulous at the barbeque! Kisses!
You are SUCH a legend, I have been meaning to do this for ages and have just started after reading your series, I can’t believe how much stuff I’ve got that I never wear and I’ve realised that about 70% of my clothes are cream or stone coloured?
I’ve discovered some really nice things that I’d buried under a load of crap as I’ve only got about 7 hangers and I’ve been piling things on top of other things! My next steps are to take stuff to the tailors and clothes recycling place, put stuff on ebay, buy a shit load of hangers and make a list of key items that I need so that I can wear some of these lovely things I’ve found, Gala, you rock!!
Eeee! I attempted to tame out my wardrobe last weekend, and even though I had already skimmed this series when you first posted it, I didn’t realize how much more (other than those three bags from last week) I had forgotten about, stopped wearing, or never liked in the first place! This has been a great help since I started this morning (hehe – it’s now nighttime here!) – ESPECIALLY Day Four! That was fabulous, as I usually don’t ask my close and stylish friends for help until it’s spur-of-the-moment, like in the store! Thank you for the inspiration and the great ideas, Gala!
thank you for this series! i want to do it within the next week and i’m totally excited! (: