We followed the steps in order to adhere to the KonMari method. I mentioned before that we found ourselves cleaning out our closet and drawers at midnight, the night we finished the book.
The biggest takeaway I had from the book, and the thing that helped me let go of so many articles of clothing was changing my mindset. Here’s an example, I had a pricey dress hanging in my closet that I only wore once, I bought it on a whim for a wedding, and wore it, but it has hung in my closet ever since. I knew I would probably never wear the dress again, but I felt really guilty and wasteful for getting rid of something I paid too much money for and never used.
After reading the book, my entire outlook changed. I realized that there was someone else who would love and enjoy the dress, and it’s actually more wasteful for me to let it hang in my closet, knowing that the probability of me ever wearing the dress again is very slim.
Once my mindset shifted, I was getting rid of things left and right. I quickly realized something about my closet, many of the things I purchased on a whim, without much thought, and usually to wear for a special occasion.
I had a closet overflowing with clothes, but always wasted a ton of time trying to find something to wear. Like many other parts of my house, I would organize the closet, then quickly clothes would pile up in a heap. Especially after trying out approximately 27 things before I finally came to something to wear for the day. Such a waste of time all around, from trying on clothes to having to reorganize and rehang the clothes.
After my first run, I thought I had accomplished a good bit. I had about 6 boxes of clothing and shoes, scarves and jewelry to toss. I stuck with this for a while, and it seemed to be in better order, but it still wasn’t quite working.
In all honesty, I had actually kept way too much.
So I read about a capsule wardrobe, and it definitely peaked my interest. It seemed to fit seamlessly with the KonMari method, and after trying for a few weeks, I knew this was just the ticket I needed to get the clothes in order.
I’m going to give you a look into our capsules wardrobes (and the kids rooms) over the next few days, but first let’s get acquainted with the capsule wardrobe. There are so many different versions and interpretations, but these are the rules I followed for creating the wardrobe (based on the guide from Unfancy blog):
- Pick a number (I didn’t pinpoint a specific number, but I knew I wanted between 30-40 pieces for every one to choose from).
- That number will include shoes, outerwear, tops, pants, dresses.
- That number will exclude cocktail wear, under garments, swimsuits, pjs, and accessories (although I did choose to drastically reduce and keep only the things from those categories that I absolutely love)
The key here is to pick pieces that fit your lifestyle. If you stay home, you wouldn’t pick 10 business suits for your capsule wardrobe. You won’t remix the wardrobe for 3 months, so it’s important to choose things that will translate to your lifestyle and fit you well. Of course, make sure you love the things you add! Here’s a good example for that, I had a black and white striped shirt on my list for my capsule wardrobe, but I already had one hanging in my closet. I truly disliked the one I had, so I donated and bought a new one that fits me great. It’s okay to let go of things you don’t love! And if you don’t love it today, the likelihood of you changing your mind down the road is pretty slim.
Tomorrow, we’ll take a look inside my closet and drawers so you can see just how this looks in real life, then we’ll follow with the kids closets (their wardrobes were super fun to plan).
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