Wardrobe taming series:
Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four Day Five Day Six Day Seven Day Eight

Ladies & gentlemen! As a follow on from yesterday’s Wardrobe Taming — Day One, this is the first in a week’s worth of closet-related tasks!

Now that you’ve completed Day One, I want you to walk over to the stacks of clothing you left out yesterday. Ignore the pile of clothing which needs altering — all the stuff which is the wrong size, has hems which are too long, has holes which need stitching, etc. So, look at the other stacks of clothing you have. Maybe you want to tackle the “I don’t have the confidence to wear this” pile. Or the “I don’t know what to wear this with!” pile. Pick something that you loved in the shop, but have since been eyeing with caution.

Your mission for today is to wear that piece of clothing. You can style it up with whatever else you’ve got.

Say your main item is a dress. If the dress you’ve picked feels really “out there”, it’s okay to wear a slim-fit hoodie over the top. Or your favourite jeans underneath it. If you don’t normally wear that dress because it makes your arms look big (& it reminds you you need to go to the gym), or it draws attention to your hips, or it makes you look short, spend a little bit of time problem-solving. How can you detract from these parts of your body? Maybe you could wear a 3/4 sleeve t-shirt under the dress, or balance out your hips with a wild necklace that makes a statement, or wear heels to add some height. If the pattern on the dress is really loud, balance it out with black or white or another neutral. You get my drift. Think creatively about the problem!

If you are really stumped for ideas on what to wear with these pants or that jacket, don’t be afraid to comment here & ask everyone else for their opinion! We’ll all do our best to help you out!

Now, if you can stomach it, I’d like you to do this all week. I know that this might seem daunting, since there will probably be at least one day you wake up late in a panic & reach for your jeans, but if you spend a little bit of time now & plan your ensembles for the week, you can just throw them on in the morning & go. Try them on ahead of time. This is really worth doing.

The reason for doing all of this, rather than just deciding to chuck everything you’ve got, is so you can work out whether these are things you will ACTUALLY wear. It might be that you just need a little bit of encouragement. Conversely, there might be a few items that give you a sinking feeling as soon as you look at them. It’s important to be able to make this discrimination in an informed manner. To get the best value out of the money you have already spent, you really need to get acquainted with what you own!

The other thing I’d like you to do today is to start a clothing journal. I know that sounds a bit ridiculous, but I have my reasons! You can use a little notebook or just keep a text file on your computer, whatever is easiest for you. What I’d like you to do, on the first page, is to either draw your outfit or write down what you’re wearing. From there, I want you to make notes throughout the day as to how your outfit makes you feel. Even the minute details, like “This skirt makes old men stare at me” or “I feel like a funeral director”. This kind of information is super-valuable, so be as detailed as you can!

Alright, now, get to it!

P.S. My article on How To Be Confident might help you when you’re taking the plunge with new types of attire!