If you were to categorise everything in your closet into clothes you wear all the time to those you barely wear, how big would each pile be? I’m guessing like most people, your barely wear pile would be far bigger than those that you do. So what can you do about it? One strategy would be to do a big cull and pull together the perfect capsule wardrobe consisting of only the pieces you truly want to wear. Whilst effective, it’s not for everyone. So if you’re not quite ready to part with things from your wardrobe and want to give other pieces you own more love, try employing some of the following techniques to get more wear out of the clothes you already own.
Do an edit
You don’t have to do a drastic overhaul but it does help to give your wardrobe a clean and get rid of any items that you realistically won’t wear whether it’s because it no longer fits, is damaged beyond repair or just really not your thing anymore. Doing this will leave you with a fresher edit of clothes that only consists of pieces that you’ll definitely be able to use.
Keep an outfit journal
Write down what you wear every day (even if it’s just for a month) and note down any things you notice when you wear a particular item. This could be something such as a particular top that brought you many compliments, or a pair of pants that made you look a little bigger than you actually are. Take note of the clothes that make you feel great. This exercise serves two purposes: you are able to see in black and white what pieces you gravitate to all the time and in turn help you pinpoint other things in your closet that may serve as an alternative. Plus it helps you identify the styles of clothing which make you feel amazing, which in turn could help you start to wear other similar pieces a whole lot more.
Theme your week
You can pick a particular style or look to inspire your outfits for a week. For example it could be denim week, which means that every single day, you have to wear a denim item (without repeating if possible). So instead of just heading for your fave jeans all the time, this could help you unearth that denim dress that’s been hiding in the back of your closet or the chambray shirt that you don’t wear nearly as often as you should.
Pick a colour
This is a similar principle but it involves choosing a particular hue to focus on. So it might mean that for the next 7 days you have to try and incorporate a yellow item in your outfit. This could help you resurface certain pieces in your closet that haven’t been getting nearly as much airtime as they should.
Call for reinforcements
Invite someone over, whether it’s a friend, a sibling or your mum to look in your closet and pick out at least 10 things they’d really like to see you wear. Often, they’re looking at your wardrobe with fresh eyes, so will spot clothes that perhaps you’d forgotten you even owned.
Document your closet
As anyone who has ever watched the movie Clueless can attest, there’s something quite handy about cataloguing your wardrobe to help with better outfit styling. There’s even apps like Stylebook which help you with the entire process now, so can pretty much have your entire wardrobe in your phone so you can style on the run. By being able to see everything you own (rather than just relying on peering into your closet and hoping for inspiration to strike) you’re able to have a better chance of wearing more of what you own.
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