Such an easy word. Everyone knows what it means, but do we know how to live it? I sure don't. Or at least I haven't been. I read a very interesting blog post last night, called The Happy Closet. I found it on Pinterest, pinned by one of my friends. It was about purging and simplifying your closet. You can find the series of blog posts here. Be sure to scroll to the bottom and start with Part 1.
The premise of the posts is to purge all the things from your closet that you don't wear, don't like, think you should keep because it was expensive, or you wore 10 years ago. This may seem like a simple, "duh" concept, but what she is proposing here is to purge all the crap to get to the clothes and accessories that you LOVE. Not clothes you think you need, or even just like a little. The purpose of the purge is to create a closet where every piece in that closet makes you feel beautiful and happy. Also, getting to the point where you are so happy and content with your closet, that you don't want to go out and purchase more and more items. That's the part that really got me. The lady who wrote the post has not purchased any items for her closet in 2 years. That seems crazy, right? Well, for most of us, we have enough clothes that would last us 5 years at least. Now, she isn't saying that you don't have to replace items now or then, or to never ever buy anything new. Just to stop buying into the lie that us women have to buy the latest fad, the "look of this season," or any other gimmick that clothing retailers and fashion magazines sell us.
What this means for me: I have tried in the past year to not hold on to stuff I don't want/need/am emotionally attached to for no reason. I am trying to start this concept in my closet, and then apply it to my whole house. As for my closet, I don't have a ton of clothes that fit me. I have gained some weight in the last year, which made my wardrobe shrink considerably. I am starting in 2014, eating more healthy and trying to get my weight down. No crazy diet, just mainly portion control. So, I will start by going through my closet (again) and getting rid of those dresses and skirts that I wore in high school or early college. I might one day fit into those sizes again, but they are worn out or completely not my style anymore. I am also going to get rid of anything that is 2 or more sizes too small. I plan to lose the weight, but dropping a ton all at once is not realistic. If it happens for some reason, I can replace with new sizes.
Another thing to tackle: accessories. I have about 3 jewelry boxes FULL of jewelry. Some of it is really nice. I will hold on to the pieces that I love, and give the other nice pieces to my mother and sister. The other stuff is just that: stuff. Cheap jewelry that I got at places like Walmart, Claires, and Target. A lot of it is worn out and can be tossed.
Purses, bags, and shoes are the kicker for me. I always think I might need them, even if I haven't touched them in a year. I will really have to knuckle down on those.
I really don't think I will stop buying clothes and accessories in the near future. I am at the point where I am establishing my sense of style. I have been out of college a couple years now, so I am slowly starting to change from jeans and t-shirts into a style that is more me. I have a professional job, so I have to dress for that. And on my off days, I find myself wanting to wear more than just jeans and a t-shirt. So I plan to add to my wardrobe. I will try my best to do it judiciously, though.
I feel like getting rid of all the clutter and unneccesary material things will help simplify my life. It will be less to take care of and more time to focus on those things that really matter. I hate doing laundry, after all. :)
