It’s the start of the day, and you make your way to your closet. You grab a few pieces that together form one of the seven-ish outfits you’ve been unintentionally wearing in rotation for the past few months.
For a moment, you may feel bored by your selection. For a moment, you may even feel a desire to add something new to your closet to play with that sparks more excitement in your life.
If you’re like me, a thought like: “ugh… I have no clothes” may cross your mind during this morning ritual.
I’ll admit that although I am a proud and avid outfit repeater, and although wearing the same outfit two or three times in one week may make me feel like the main cartoon character, it also makes me feel like I have only a few outfits that I really love.
Which, just isn’t the case.
The problem is this: I’m not shopping my closet enough.
Ask yourself: Do you have no clothes, or do you just not love what you have? Maybe you truly do love a lot of the pieces living in your closet, but you don’t know how to love them. Undoubtedly it’s a tragic love story, but fear not – you and your whole closet can have a happy ending with a little counseling . . .
Shopping your closet means taking some time to intentionally re-meet the clothing you’ve been collecting for, like, literally years. The idea of shopping your closet was created to combat our societally-ingrained habits to consume more when we aren’t happy with what we’ve been wearing, when the real problem is, we don’t spend enough time looking at what we own and building fun & new outfits. Investing some more time into getting to know your closet and all of the value it holds will lead you and your style into a healthy, long-term relationship that will be a lot more fulfilling for you than an impulsive fling with a $50 shopping spree to SHEIN or one of its insidious relatives.
What I want to do is share how shopping your closet can be not only a fun activity for you but is also a powerful way to build your personal style – which, I hate to say, can’t quite be bought.
Here are some ways to have a fun and successful date with your closet:
- reframe how you categorize clothing
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Your tank tops and mini skirts don’t have to be just summer clothes, just like the lingerie at the thrift store doesn’t have to be used for its initially intended purpose. Layering thrifted thin-strap lacy lingerie tops and dresses over turtlenecks is one of my favorite outfit ideas in the cooler months. Fitted sweaters and dark tights will bring a layer of sophistication and warmth to your short dresses and skirts to be loved year-round.
- lean on Pinterest to spice up your styling
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There may be a thing or two in your closet that you can think of instantly that doesn’t get enough love, which can be quickly fixed when reimagining a way to use Pinterest as more than just an avenue for learning healthful recipes and finding inspirational quotes circa 2015.
Pinterest is a fabulous way to explore new positions to try with your clothes – how to style a specific item for different seasons, occasions, and aesthetics. For instance, let’s say you have a pair of sneakers that you usually save for your athleisure or gym moments. Searching by the title of the shoes along with the occasion and/or season, “Nike running sneakers outfit winter ideas” will assemble some visuals for inspiration that will hopefully be intriguing to reenact with your own closet in the near future.
These Pinterest explorations will encourage you to reconsider how the dress pants stored in the back of your closet for interviews or the maxi-dress in your stored-away summer wardrobe can be layered and styled to create a new and exciting look with what you already own – a win for your wallet, your closet space, and the planet.
- set aside some time to spend together – alone or with your mutual friends
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Reconnecting with all of the clothing that you own will definitely take some time, so it’s a good idea to schedule it in your calendar and stick to it. To prioritize experimenting with your own closet and your own style is to strengthen your self-identity and self-confidence through loving what you wear throughout all of the important and awesome things that you do, every day. Depending on how serious things are, invite your friends to hang out while you interact with your closet for their perspective on how to make things work. Performing a loose fashion show could make things more fun than just pulling items out of your closet to discuss and pair, although it could take some more time and energy. With that in mind, choose whatever route would work best for you.
Although it may be incredibly tempting to indulge in shiny and new low-cost fashion, I encourage you to avoid surrendering to the toxic lure of consumption culture and realize the value in what you already have in your closet.
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