Image by Prim via Wikimedia Commons
Almost every girl has that uneasy moment when she opens her wardrobe and thinks “hmm, maybe it’s time for a spring cleaning.” The problem is, it’s way easier said than done. How could you possibly throw out any of those cute dresses or that jean skirt you’ve had with you for the last five years?
Look, it’s never going to be easy, but sometimes it just has to be done. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to make spring-cleaning your wardrobe that much easier.
How often do you wear it?
The first question you should ask is how often you’re actually wearing each item of clothing you own. Of course, there’ll be some things like winter jackets or sundresses which you’ll only ever wear in certain seasons, but you’re likely to find that there are also those things that you pretty much never wear but keep around anyway.
That’s the first red flag to look out for. If you’re keeping something in eternal storage and never taking it out, it’s more likely than not that you’re tricking yourself into holding onto it with some mental gymnastics. “It’s the perfect outfit for something-someday-somewhere.”
But is it really, or are you just kidding yourself?
On the other hand, if you find yourself wearing certain outfits just about all the time (and they’re not part of a work uniform), that’s a good sign that they actually do something for you and are worth keeping around.
Do you really like it?
If you’ve found that an outfit of yours barely ever gets out of the wardrobe, the next question is; do you really like it? Is it at least comfortable?
Yeah, yeah, of course you sort of like it. That’s probably why you’ve been hanging onto it for so long. But is it an outfit that you really love and feel passionate about, something that excites you or makes you happy when you look at it?
If you bought it on sale, but your feelings about it are lukewarm, maybe you were thinking more about the savings than anything else?
And if that’s the case, it might be time to let it go.
Do you have a good memory attached to it?
Some clothes, like prom, wedding dresses, or shawls that were passed down to you from your grandma, will naturally have positive memories and feelings associated with them. These are the kind of things you won’t necessarily wear out often – or ever.
And that’s fine. There’s a good reason for holding onto things that you have a real, positive association with. Take these off the list of things to get rid of, and don’t feel guilty about keeping them around.
Of course, clothes which hold painful memories are another story – and you should consider getting rid of them.
Do you feel confident enough to wear it?
Many great and beautiful outfits get kept locked away in boxes and wardrobes forever, simply because we don’t feel confident enough to wear them. Maybe you’ve got a stunning black dress which you’re sure you’d look great in… if only you could lose 10lbs and tone up your arms a bit.
Often, when we’re not confident enough to try on an outfit, it just reinforces negative feelings about ourselves.
Set an ultimatum: either you’ll wear the outfit within 6 months, or you’ll get rid of it. If you can’t feel comfortable with wearing it by then, sell it, and try again with something else that seems more suited to your current mood, taste and confidence level. This can even be a cathartic experience – getting rid of a couple of old pairs of shoes can be an excuse to go shopping for a newer, better pair from a company like Shoe Finale or Kohls.
