Making 2022 the year of enjoying the clothes I already own (and not constantly buying something new)

[nordica]

The thought occurred to me the other day to reframe "a no-buy" year and make 2022 a year of enjoying my clothes. I've done the not buying anything challenge once successfully (for about 8 months) and once unsuccessfully. This feels more positive as the focus isn't on not doing something but doing something good (psychologically easier and more effective).

Recently I've been feeling a little sad about all the lovely clothes I have that don't get worn as much simply because I own too many, and there's only 7 days a week to wear them.

So this is what I'm going to do. The first step is ignoring all those Boxing day sale emails in my inbox and doing some tidying up to plan outfits out of what I have already.

Anyone planning something similar?

Just reading through the thread- working backwards! I think I’d also look a lot better spending my money on my nails and hair rather than more clothes…

@doorornottodoor
I would love to be a style chameleon but if I ever buy anything pretty or different from my usual style, I feel self conscious which is crazy at the age of 49!!

@doorornottodoor
Yee-haw 🤠

@JMAngel1 yes style chameleon sounds pretty wanky on second read. More like dress like I got dressed in the dark . Haha!!! I know what you mean - I have a gorgeous biker jacket from All Saints but I just feel ridiculous in it. I do like strong shapes though and I hate frills and those awful droopy collars. Yuck!

I'm in. I'm very much in a rut but have so many clothes I don't wear. I've just downloaded the Save Your Wardrobe app and started cataloguing what I have. I can already see how much I need to ditch!

@jmangel1 by "beautiful" I am of the same mind as PP: well-cut clothes which fit perfectly, are likely in natural fabrics (silk, wool, cashmere, silk velvet) and in colours that flatter me. They do tend to be the more expensive parts of my wardrobe and many of my pieces have lasted for years (and will likely outlast me!). I also have a fondness for sequins, lamé and embroidered silks which look quite striking all together in the wardrobe (and individually).

I take most things to the seamstress for the perfect fit - v.v.recommended.

And I see no reason why "edgy" items cannot also be beautiful . I would say beautiful clothes don't necessarily make me feel "pretty". But when I wear them, I feel powerful, pulled-together and very take-no-prisoners (while also feeling cocooned and cared-for - think dressing well is integral to self-care).

2020 and 2021 were like this for me. Now everything is worn out and I badly need a new wardrobe.

I've started keeping a note of what I wear each day, I thought I can use this to declutter when the season changes :)

I did this in 2019 other than for underwear. Saved a fortune, felt good about it.

@LivingDeadGirlUK

I've started keeping a note of what I wear each day, I thought I can use this to declutter when the season changes :)

That’s a good idea! Do you do it electronically?

I have too many clothes for those wardrobe apps. Would take me weeks!

I'm jusr using the notes app on my phone, not taking pics :)

I am the queen of apps- I bet there’s an app for this 😁

I'd love to use a wardrobe app but I don't think there is a good one for Android at the moment, also having to take all those photos fills me with dread lol.

@LivingDeadGirlUK

I'd love to use a wardrobe app but I don't think there is a good one for Android at the moment, also having to take all those photos fills me with dread lol.

Yes, I have exactly these same problems! I have an android and also dread taking pictures of every item I own

I started but gave up after about 4 hours. You had to clip each photo it was a pain!

I like the idea of taking photos in outfits though. Just a quick snap.

Mm I was really enjoying the 'Plus size outfit of the day' thread that was running around this time last year. Helped me actually make an effort during the lockdown.

I'm in. I'm going to commit to not buying anything new until April when I get my summer stuff out. Winter clothes-wise I literally don't need anything & have at least 2 weeks worth of work outfits without repeating anything.
I'm going to make myself dress up a bit & wear the stuff I chicken out of at the last minute! Anything I don't wear in the next 4 months will be bagged up for charity.
At the very least doing this will stop me wasting money in shops like Next Clearance where I get lots of 'bargains' which I never wear.
Going to take a picture of each days outfit to keep me going, feel quite excited now!

@LivingDeadGirlUK

Mm I was really enjoying the 'Plus size outfit of the day' thread that was running around this time last year. Helped me actually make an effort during the lockdown.

Same! But it didn't help my bank balance

It’s such a shame that all the decent bloggers are flogging stuff now. I’d love to see some more posts on putting outfits together rather than sell sell…

On that note- livelovesara Canadian blogger has done some good posts on dressing for your body type. She is a real charity shop/vintage buyer too.

There is another Canadian vlogger called Alyssa Beltempo who puts together outfits from what she already owns. She's great. Nothing like me in terms of style or looks, but still love watching her videos

Yes I’m going to try similar.

I’m a classic wardrobe full of beautiful clothes with nothing to wear.

I find snapping a picture of me in an outfit that I really like helps. Then I build up a catalogue. Reviewing the pictures allows me to critically assess what worked/didn’t work and how an outfit might be tweaked.

The biggest change I could make this year is drop the extra dress size that has built up over lockdown. Because my clothes undoubtedly look better and I enjoy them far more when they fit.

I’m in for a no buy/appreciate my existing wardrobe 2022. I bought 5 items
in Jan sales before New Year and those are the last till 2023.

Not going to buy anything new from shops. Instead my friends and I have sorted out our wardrobes and have got 200 to 300 articles that we are going to try to sell from 50p upwards to about £5. Not sure as yet where is best to sell them so any ideas welcome.

One thing that doesn’t seem popular here (or maybe I am yet to find it) are clothing swaps. I lived overseas for years and there weren’t charity shops but instead lots of swap-shops - a bit like a clothes-specific car boot sale, but where everything is free. Usually a community-driven event held in a cafe or similar, occasionally a small charge per-item-swapped that was then donated to charity.
I often dropped off under-used items and came home with something new-to-me. Would love to know if these happen here!

Yes- determined to make most of existing clothes this year.

On 31st Dec, I wrote out a list of every item of clothing I own except for underwear and socks. I'm going to put a tick against an item each time I wear it.

Unless genuinely no opportunity to wear (E.g. black tie dress/bikini etc), if something doesn't have at least 3 ticks against it by the end of year, it's out. Embarrassed that, in 2 days, I have already worn two items for the first time (a pair of trousers and a dress) . No idea why not worn before- enjoyed wearing them.

The list will also help me spot what hasn't been worn much so I can prioritise for wearing (or binning/selling/giving away).