Wardrobe Count-Up Part 2

I wanted to do another count-up of my wardrobe to see how it has progressed in the past few months, compared to my last count-up.

Pants: 6 total (compared to 7 total last count-up)
--Jeans: 2 (1 pair less)
--Cords: 1
--Cargo: 1
--Slacks: 2

Shorts: 1 (2 pairs less)

Sweatshirts: 2

Coats: 8 (3 more. How did this happen? I bought one. Perhaps this is a counting error...oops...)

Blazers: 4 (1 more. My houndstooth one!)

Work-appropriate long sleeved shirts: 7 (2 less.)

Casual long-sleeved shirts: 5

Work-appropriate short-sleeved shirts: 15

Casual short sleeved shirts: 10 (1 more.)

Camis: 4 (hard to compare, since my last category included 'layering shirts' as well. I got rid of a ton of racerback tanks I got for free, and bought two camis that I AM IN LOVE WITH OMG I wear them all the time.)

Work-appropriate skirts: 7 (up from 4 skirts at last count? Hmm...I think I bought one skirt. Another counting error?)

Casual skirts: 6 (down from 10. Perhaps my qualifications for 'work-appropriate' have become lax? I didn't think I had gotten rid of 4...well, the total number of skirts had been fourteen, and now is fifteen, which makes sense because I bought one skirt.)

Sweaters/Cardigans: 6 (down from 9)

Work-appropriate dresses: 5 (down from 8. I think my restrictions became more stringent here, lol)

Casual dresses: 8 (down from 13, woohoo!)

Formal dresses: 2 (down from 3)

So at least my overall count has gone down. Good lord, that brings my total number of items to 91, not including shoes, accessories, or underthings (even not including tights or leggings!). That is crazy! Last time my overall count was 111 items, so I am down TWENTY ITEMS OMG. Even with all my recent shopping! Alright, so the goal is now to keep purging, but be very selective with what comes in! I think it will be easier to purge once I start teaching, as then I will have a better idea of what is appropriate for work and what it too formal, too casual, too 'stereotypical teacher-y'

List-o-mania

As promised, an inventory of my closet:

Pants: 7 total
--Jeans: 3
--Cords: 1
--Cargo: 1
--Slacks: 2
Shorts: 3
Sweatshirts: 2
Coats: 5
Blazers: 3 (all black)
Long sleeved work-appropriate shirts: 9
Casual long-sleeved shirts: 5
Work-appropriate skirts: 4
Casual skirts: 10
Sweaters/Cardigans: 9 total
--Shrugs: 2
--Casual-only: 3
--Work appropriate: 4 (only one of which is long-sleeved and any amount of warm)
Casual short sleeved shirts: 31 total
--T shirts: 5
--Tanks: 8 (in my defense, I just got 5 for free from a trash bin)
--Camis/Layering shirts: 9
--Other: 7
Work-appropriate short-sleeved shirts: 9
Work-appropriate dresses: 8
Casual dresses: 13 total
--Can be worn as a tunic for work (with a sweater): 3
--Can be worn as a skirt for work: 1
--Neither, just casual-wear: 9
Formal dresses: 3
High heels: 7
Flats: 9
Boots: 4
Swimsuits: 2

Hmm...seems a lot more than I realized, looking at my closet. I think it's because many of the things I own have qualifiers attached (this can only be worn with a sweater on top because it exposes too much, these shoes are falling apart and can only be worn on very casual days, etc) so I feel like I have less. For example, look at my sweaters/cardigans number: 9. That seems like more cardigans than I should need. However, 2 of those are shrugs that I rarely wear (what's the point? They look wintery, with their color, but don't give any warmth and you can't wear anything over them!), one is a cropped knit thin thing that is from AE, falling apart but I wear it because I don't have anything better, one is a long vest (no warmth!), one is too child-ish for work...and then we are left with 3, one of which has 3/4 sleeves and is very light (although pretty), one is very sporty (not work appropriate, but I love it and wear it all the time) and the other is standard gray knit (which I just got for free from the trash!).

I'm sensing a purge coming on to eliminate these problems...Especially in tanks. I do not wear tanks very often, I got 5 from a trash bin (no joke), and I do not need this many.

Alright, holes in my wardrobe. Definitely warm sweaters. I am a sweater girl, I am almost always cold, and while I love my zip-up dearly, it shouldn't come with me to work unless it is a casual field-trip day. I really need more than one thin gray sweater. I definitely want to look for neutrals in all my clothing, neutrals that ARE NOT BLACK because I just have black and a whole lot of color (better than earlier this year, when I JUST had black).

Another hole: work appropriate skirts. 5? And they are all colors, too--rusty orange, purple plaid, BRIGHT purple (don't know what to pair it with!), hunter green (looks very severe, it's my fall-back interview skirt), and cranberry. Neutrals again! Plus, they are pencil skirts (except one, which is an A-line), so I will keep an eye out for fuller skirts that will allow for a greater range of motion during teaching.

I definitely want to keep my eye out for: nice shirts for work, comfy comfy shoes (sandals, high heels, flats, maybe some more awesome boots), tights (hopefully will be covered as per my previous post, but always good to look for!), belts (non-elastic! professional-looking), maybe some non-black blazers, and grown-up jewelry (least emphasized).

Well...at least I shoot for high goals. :) Plus, I have all summer to look through thrift shops for these items!

Yummy Shoes

One of my favorite activities is making lists, even when they are completely unnecessary. I love the way that they make me feel organized, like I have a handle on things, and I love the feeling of crossing off items from a to-do list. Since I am currently on a no-buy and am trying to be more conscious with what new articles of clothing I buy (when I do start shopping again), one of my favorite activities recently has been making, editing, and adding things to my 'articles of clothing that I want' list.

One of my worries with my goal of buying quality clothing items over quantity is that my shopping habits won't really change, I will just be spending more money as I justify it with 'but it's quality!' reasoning. Some specific items I think will naturally avoid this trap--for example, one of the items on my to-buy list is a pair of comfy summer sandals. I don't think I have had a pair of truly comfortable sandals since I was a kid, and those were the huge, clunky, dark brown 'leather' ones that lots of kids my age had. I have a ton of feet and ankle problems (achilles tendonitis in both ankles? check. extra high arches? check. unusual bone structure that encourages feet wear and tear? check.) and with how active I am in the summer, I think this would be a good investment. Now, I use the term 'investment' in terms of both the health of my feet as well as an eventual lower PPW for the shoes. Normally at the beginning of every summer I fork out between 20 and 40$ for a pair of summer shoes that usually wear out by fall. I am hoping to avoid this problem with the amazing shoe options I have found! They are a bit pricey, but if they last merely two summers then they will have an equal or lower PPW than my cheapy versions (with more comfort!).










Indigo by Clarks 'Smooch'









Clarks Unstructured 'Un.helm' Sandal








Indigo by Clarks 'Bordeaux' Sanda





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Indigo by Clarks 'Edie' Sandal


Ok, so the last one is more of a 'lust' than an actual shoe I would get...but aren't they all pretty? They are all by Clarks (haven't tried the brand yet, but have heard good things about the comfort), they are all in that light brown/honey/cognac shade that I enjoy so very much, they are all leather, and they are all flat. Oh, and they all can be bought from Nordstrom, which I love because of the return policy (often, with my feet, I don't even notice that the shoes are not comfortable until I wear them for a week or so, and with other stores I am then SOL and cannot return them. Yay Nordstrom!). Pretty much all my requirements.

However, some other items on my list I worry that I will fall into the trap of spending more for 'quality' and ending up with another problematic garment in my wardrobe, since I am not that great yet at deciding what looks good on me, what I will actually wear in real life, and what I will *still* like six months down the road. I'm hoping that the reality check of spending money on a single garment will challenge my beliefs enough, but I would love it if I could transfer this thought process over to my second hand shopping, where I wouldn't be spending a ton of money. It's so much harder to be picky when each item costs under 5$ though...my thought process: 'well, even if I only wear it six times, that puts my PPW under 1$, and then it's worth it, right?' Not really. I really shouldn't buy something that I only plan on wearing for a few times, unless it's special-occasion wear.

Well, it's all a process, right? I'm in my twenties, so I always have the 'young and stupid' excuse to fall back on, lol. Besides, if I'm afraid to change things up a bit, try new ideas, take chances, then what's left? So I'll try my experiment of quality over quantity, while also trying to bring it to my second hand shopping.

Granted, this doesn't start until I can actually *go* shopping. 15 days left, according the 365 Fashion Rehab Challenge!

Ok, Outfit of the Day.











Scarf: Selfmade
Shirt: Gap, via Plato's Closet
Dress: Unknown, Goodwill Outlet
Belt: Target
Leggings: Under Armour
Socks: Target
Boots: Faded Glory via Goodwill







Goal Count Up:
Exercise: I'm bad...but I *did* run all over today with errands and work and planning last-minute events for my hall! *hangs head in shame*
Vitamins: Check