AIBU to think we all have too many clothes?

[OceanAvenue]

I’ve come back from my holiday and done the laundry and vacuumed packed my summer clothes. I wouldn’t say I buy clothes that often but I’ve brought out my winter stuff and I am OVERWHELMED by the amount of things I own and I don’t even like most of it!!

Any advice on how to streamline this?

Most of us wear 20% of our wardrobe 80% of the time. Lockdown taught me that I really only needed two pairs of jeans and a couple of tops!

I did Marie Kondo and got rid of a lot of my clothes and I can honestly say that it made life much simpler. Everything in the wardrobe fits, feels comfortable and most of it goes with other stuff. Getting dressed became simple choices rather than a stressful experience of trying on loads of things.

For the last five years or more I’ve bought only second-hand clothes for ethical reasons. I don’t follow fashion, I wear mainly classic styles. I realised recently however that I have been buying stuff because it was cheap and had accumulated too much again; now I only buy something if I absolutely love it.
I’m saving up to buy something Community Clothing jeans, produced in the UK and sourced responsibly, and I think they’ll last me a long time.

Less really is more (and I grew up poor, wearing second hand clothes). My other rule is ‘3’ - three places you’d wear it (work can count as three) and three things in your wardrobe that it goes with. If it doesn’t pass those tests, it stays in the charity shop 😄

@OceanAvenue i found that one reason why I can end up with too much stuff is because I dint really LOVE the clothes I’ve bought.
Often theyre just the best I could find. Other times, I really needed to buy, let’s a couple more tops before going away.

Now I’m trying to buy only what works really well and I really enjoy.
So the T-shirts that are too short? Out they go.
The trousers that are too clingy, ditto etc….
Ive learnt some materials are a no-no. Etc…

It means I have clothes I WANT to wear and even though it might still be slightly over the top, it gets used and enjoyed.

I’m saying I’d just see you in a black top again. Is that hard to understand? You might feel you are doing something very different and I would just see another black top

I'm in my 60s but still the same size I've been most of my adult life. Clothes bring me a huge amount of joy. As a PP said, I grew up in a happy but poor family and didn't have many clothes. I don't buy expensive clothes - I mostly buy in sales or from charity shops. I have 3 or 4 shops I buy online from when they have sales on. I don't subscribe to the capsule wardrobe concept - I love colour and variety and mixing and matching. My clothes make me happy

When my children grew up and left home I converted one of our spare bedrooms into a dressing room. I have a double wardrobe full of day dresses and jumpers, a rail of evening wear, a rail of jackets, a rail of coats and a rail of trousers and skirts plus a drawer of tshirts. I don't have anything in my wardrobe that is worn out, doesn't fit, is uncomfortable or I don't like. I love all my clothes and I love opening my wardrobe and deciding on outfits.

Yes, some things I don't wear very often. I don't care. If I love it, I keep it. I will wear it occasionally. Because I haven't really changed shape I have items in my wardrobe that are 15+ years old.

I do feel sorry for my kids having to sort it all out when I die but in the meantime I will continue to enjoy my lovely clothes 😊

Alright, I was just asking a question on a light hearted thread about clothes 😬

I did a cull a few months ago. Now I work on a one in, one out basis.

Hi
When you say 3 places you’d wear it and works can count as 3, what do you mean?

Also what about dresses? I presume they don’t have to match with anything.

Someone may have already mentioned this, haven't RTFT.

I only have hanging clothes. Everything - jeans, jumpers, t-shirts etc all hung. Even my underwear is sort of hung (only exception is PJs, which I have next to my bed). I decided how many hangers I was happy with and I have to make it work. If all hangers are full, I have to get rid of something or put it back.

I haven't counted, but I reckon I have about 18 bottom hangers, and maybe 50 tops. This is everything I own.

It really works for me.

I store them under my bed so vacuum packing is just for space saving.

@Summerlovingtheraspberries i need to think of three places/occasions I can imagine wearing something, eg ‘out for a drink with friends/going to the cinema/going out for a meal’. But if it’s work-appropriate I don’t need to think of two more places, because I know there are five days a week (or less) that I might wear it.

The other ‘3’ still has to be effective though; say it’s a top, I have to be able to think ‘it will go with jeans, black trousers, or a denim skirt’.
Of course some things don’t meet these criteria, but I find it’s a good policy to aim for.

That's pretty much what i do, generally find it pretty staightforward but there are always a few things i hang onto. I used to go out a lot so had a fair few quite dressed up things, keep having to remind myself that i am not that person anymore and need to dress for the life i have now.

Trivial and irrelevant to who? Im the only one who matters as Im wearing it, and its not trivial and irrelevant to me!!

I would never hang stretchy stuff like jumpers or tshirts, they ruin the shape.

it is hard but as consumers it's up to us to buy better and stop buying shite. look at labels look out for better materials research companies that explain their full supply chain. there is plenty of information online aswell as laods of bloggers on Instagram andrea chong is one the good on you app is another also twin Brent on Instagram- he is a rare one as he was actually on love island and refused point blank to sign with a fast fashion company when he left the island.
jenny garcia another one she used to work for top shop - she speaks very passiontly on the recent documentary about working in topshop years ago
Once you learn what should be looking out for it gets easier

Interesting. When you say stretchy, do you mean things like hoodies? I only have knitwear as jumpers, and I think on my head I'm doing myself a favour as hanging it might pull the creases out haha.

I literally only own four casual t-shirts, which definitely doesn't require a drawer!

is it good enough to sell on or to donate? and I think it's fine to have stuff you'd donate but not selling online because it's about price points and being able to see the items.

if you don't like it, get rid of it. if you can sell it, get it on Vinted etc and use that money to buy one or two items you do like.

I really struggle with this. I have so many nice clothes and I don't want to get RID in case I want to wear them again some time, but i probably need to do what someone said up thread nad get it all out, and whittle it down to ab acceptale number, making sure stuff still coordinates

Any knitwear. Hanging it, means the weight is pulling on the shoulders, so overtime it will become misshapen. Im very fussy about how my clothes are stored but equally jumpers are a nightmare because of the space they take up in drawers. Theres no ideal solutio.

I try and keep to the following rule . If I didn’t wear it last year in the season it suits I probably won’t wear it again. Apart from a few occasional things eg weddings/ job interviews. Also if it was expensive 1. You can sell on Vinted etc and 2 you are not losing the value / money now but when you bought it. There’s not many things I regret donating to charity.

I really would struggle to wear the same clothes all year round, I really would.
I visited relatives for several weeks and they live in a very hot country. There is no way on earth I could have worn jeans/trousers. Likewise in winter in need to wear much warmer clothes, partly due the temperature where I work. Absolutely no way could I wear shorts in winter. We also have a dress code at work so shorts are an absolute no no.
Having said that, I do have lots of clothes. Like other posters have said, I enjoy wearing seasonal clothes and different clothes depending on the season.

I was thinking this too - and where I eg have short and long-sleeved tops, they are all in the same wardrobe/drawers so there's no putting things away and getting others out.

I have way too much stuff because I don’t have a lot of storage space and also because I cleared out my mums house after she died and I have a lot of things from there eg 4 handbags!
I have lots of cosmetics I won’t use. Partly from my mums house. I am going to bring them into work and leave them in a bag in the women’s changing room with a note saying “help yourselves”
I have already done this with lots of nail varnishes and they were all taken.

I use the clothing bank/ charity shop for clothes.

I can’t get enough of Joshua and TK!

My DH and I were looking at some old holiday photos from about a decade ago when we were recently in the same location on holiday and my DH realised he was wearing the exact same outfit down to the shoes!

I wasn't but very similar. That's because I find things I like and then buy more of them from ebay as they wear out. I managed to find a Fatface jacket I had back in 2013 the other week! It faded but now I have a "new" unfaded version which has obviously been sitting in someone's wardrobe and not used. So please do cast off and sell your unwanted things.

That's a good idea, I have unwanted toiletries from advent calendars etc and was trying to work out what to do with them.

This is me - two lots of clothes a year when young Christmas and Whitsuntide (May) and lots of hand me downs ……so clothes, shoes and bags are very important to me. Or that’s my theory.
I don’t mind paying quite a lot as long as it’s a bargain ie in a sale or designer nearly new. However I will shop at Primark and New Look etc too.
I look after my things - handbags in dust bags or pillowcases, good shoes in boxes, some clothes/coats in hanging bags.
They make me happy but I also have guilt over the amount and how they don’t always fit in my wardrobes.
I find it really hard to pick out stuff to get rid of but I force myself - 2 massive bags to charity shop this week.
My next job is to go through more clothes/shoes in the next few days and donate, although if family members or friends want items they can have them.
I should sell on Vinted but I’m ashamed to say I’m too lazy but I’m trying hard not to buy so much.