I have to admit that last night was the LAST straw! Frankly, I love moments like these, not so much for all of the frustration they generate, but how they force me to face my frustrations and create a plan to deal with or remedy them. Last night I just stood in my closet glaring at my clothes unable to find anything to wear for church on today. Ok, this may look like a minor problem but it was magnified considering I'd had that same problem several times this month already. At this point the picture was PRETTY CLEAR! And it wasn't until my mind drifted back to a magazine article I read on last week did I make the connection.
The July issue of Lucky had a pretty cool article entitled "45 Days of New Outfits: How to Remix your closet". This article showed 19 pieces and how they were mixed and matched to create 45 different outfits which could take you through Summer and into Fall.
(Here are the 19 pieces.....)
(...some of the outfit ideas.....)
(.....and some more. Not all 45 are featured but you get the point!)
I personally wasn't a fan of all the pieces and outfit combos, which is understandable since it wasn't a reflection of my style. But I do LOVE the point this article demonstrated. A wardrobe filled with great interchangeable pieces will definitely yield tons of outfit options. In my post just a few months ago I excitedly discovered my style and decided to only sew/buy items I felt that embodied my simple, effortless, and feminine style. I SO want getting addressed for ANY occassion to be EFFORTLESS!!!
So I've decided to revamp my closet---beginning with a GOOD PURGE! If I have any current pieces, with the exception of a few dresses, that can't be worn at least 3 different ways then it's got to GO!!!! In addition to that everything I sew has to not only fit into the "fun, simple, effortless, and simple categories" but it also has to be versatile. If I can plan 3 different outfits with it then I'm allowed to make it (of course special occasion dresses are exceptions to this rule). So everything that makes it into my closet has to audition first!!!! Trust me this isn't the first time I've thought about creating a versatile wardrobe but I have to admit it's the only time I've gotten drastically serious about it!!!
I've already started my purging and I feel GREAT!!! As things are heading to my church's clothing store I'll also get to work on planning some versatile pieces I can sew up and /or purchase. This may be a bit much, but I hope to create a chart of all my pieces so at a glance I'll know what I can mix and match. For the record I don't want alot of pieces (my emphasis isn't on quantity) but I want pieces I can get alot of use out of!!!! Whew.....breathing a sign of relief.....I love my new strategy and I look forward to making my wardrobe woes a thing of the past!!!
BTW got a quick 2 part question for you. Is having a versatile wardrobe important to you? If so, what steps do you take to accomplish this? I'd love to hear your thoughts!!!
