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12 items per year: Has anyone done this successfully?

nancylee

Veteran

LF's thread on maintaining a fashion budget plus my own realization that I've been spending more than I would like on clothing have me thinking that maybe it's time to set a limit for my clothing buying in 2013. The "12 items" method (one item per month) that some have mentioned here on YLF is appealing to me since it puts the focus on the quality and usefulness of each piece purchased rather than the cost.

My wardrobe is in such beautiful shape now (thanks to 18 months on YLF) that I'd like to approach next year with a new attitude and see if I can be more judicious in my buying. I think a method like this would work better for me than a strict SYC or setting a monetary budget because I'd be free to buy things I absolutely loved....but I'd also be forced to buy ONLY things I absolutely loved. Does that make sense?

Thoughts? Has anyone tried this?

Shopping

42 replies

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Transcona Shannon

Veteran

This interests me a lot nancylee. Having just dropped a significant amount of money (for me) on NAS plus a few extra items, I'm also thinking about my spending. Once I get all my NAS items delivered and tried on, I'm going to be taking stock of what I've got for fall/winter and determine what holes I still have and then make a list. Maybe those items still needed should be purchased one per month. It's also not 100% related to the amount of money but also the amount of clothing - I'm learning (thanks to YLF) that I don't need as many items as I thought I did. If I buy things I really like and fit well, they end up being favourites and it's ok to wear them more often.

I'm interested to see where you go with this and will be following this thread.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Before you think about 2013 Nancylee, PLEASE WEAR THE HECK OUT OF YOUR FAB CLOTHES! Too many people forget to wear their treasures and focus on the hunt. At this point that's more important than finalizing your budget 6 months from now.

It's a true waste of money if you don't wear your clothes. Promise me that you will wear your clothes

Transcona Shannon

Veteran

"Too many people forget to wear their treasures and focus on the hunt". Excellent point Angie!

nancylee

Veteran

Good advice, Angie. I am actually trying to consciously do just that (I confess that I'm one of those who loves to shop more than I love to wear!).

You'd be so proud of me this week/weekend. I wore my new silk top Thursday night, my new batik tunic dress to a party last night, and I'm planning to wear my VC sandals and midi skirt to an event tonight.

I do want to make more conscious choices going forward, though. And part of that is wearing the fab pieces that are hanging in my closet.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I'm still building the wardrobe so can't adopt the 12 items rule...except I might just adopt it anyway! Apart from undies, that is. And possibly footwear.

modgrl

(website)

Veteran

TOTAL FAILURE!!

Queen Mum

Veteran

I'm in the midst of a 12 item year and it has been great. I haven't necessarily stuck to one-per-month, and if I keep the few items that I've picked up over the past couple weeks, I'm left with only one more purchase for the year, but I really do see myself succeeding with my goal by December. I have noticed that I"m wanting to shop for the upcoming season and get it sorted out rather than purchase one thing per month continually through the year, but that's okay. At least once fall/winter is complete, I can shut my shopping brain off and concentrate on creating outfits from what I have.

I don't think you could do this well if you've got a closet full of clothes that you're not satisfied with, but when I started the year, I had done quite a bit of shopping over the past couple years and had pretty much a completely overhauled wardrobe. Not much in my closet was over 2 years old. I don't know that I could sustain a 12 item per year schedule for more than a couple years though... I think sooner or later my clothes would be wearing out at a faster rate than I would be replacing them. Does that make sense?

I will say this: I think the biggest reason I have been so successful this year (and I realize that the year is barely half over) is that I had hammered down a wardrobe size I was comfortable with and every category of clothing was complete. I also imposed on myself a one-in-one out policy. In order to buy a new pair of jeans, I have to have a pair that is needing to be set out to pasture. This keeps me from making impulsive purchases. I don't have a pair of jeans that need to go, so I don't need to buy any more. End of discussion I had 2 cardigans that really had seen their better days, so my goal was to replace those 2 cardigans and then not mess with my cardigan collection again until next year.

The other thing I'm trying to be mindful of is keeping a variety of "dressiness" levels within each category. For example, I have 17 dresses. 5 of them are winterish, but of the 12 summer dresses, 5 are super casual (as in summer version of jeans and tee) an the other 7 are a bit dressier (things I wear to church, parties, etc). I replace casual with casual and dressy with dressy. I think this is important because otherwise you might fill your long sleeve top category with all dressy silk blouses and then never feel that you have anything to wear when the occasion calls for super casual.

I'm thinking that next year, I'll allow myself 13 items: my slogan will be "Lucky 13 in 2013!"

oh, and I should add, that my 12 purchases this year have been "fashion" purchases. I've also allowed myself one per month of non-fashion items: bras, workout clothes, running shoes, nightgowns, etc. Socks and tights/hose are purchased as needed

shedev

Veteran

I really like this idea.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Thanks for the input, Kim! I am not sure I could reach these limits but am aiming to buy less for sure next year. I think the point about having your wardrobe pretty well flushed out to start with is a good one. I thought I did, but even this year I bought my first suit and first leather jacket in over a decade. So I still had items I needed that weren't just replacements for things wearing out. Maybe next year I will be in a better position to aim for maybe 1 or 2 items a month. Of course, it would help if I knew whether my dominant season would be snowy or humid and hot lol.
I would love to see a collection of your items at the end of the year if you don't mind sharing!

Janet

(website)

Veteran

"PLEASE WEAR THE HECK OUT OF YOUR FAB CLOTHES! Too many people forget to wear their treasures and focus on the hunt."

Angie, you could have been speaking to me! Totally guilty here.

I'm always intrigued by these kinds of challenges. I may try a variation of this next year. I certainly have plenty. I need to continue being more judicious about what comes into my closet. As we're reaching late summer, I look in my closet and realize there are some warm-weather pieces I have had no desire to wear. Those need to be ruthlessly evaluated and either purged or worn. I'm not exactly repeating outfits every week, or even every 3 weeks. Now that I've settled into a new size and a sounder idea of my style direction, I really need to slow down the purchasing.

Here's a start! And this is not radical, but it's a start. I am not buying any more summer pieces this year, no matter how good a bargain they might be. The season is nearly over, and I'll be in a cold climate for the better part of September anyway, so when I return from my trip, I'll be pulling out the boots and leather jackets (YAY!).

In fact, after my SF trip and NAS purchases, the only thing on my fall/winter wish list now is a pair of dark snakeskin low-heeled booties and/or a pair of burgundy low-heeled booties. I'll do more evaluation when I switch out my summer-to-winter wardrobes, but I think I'm going to make some efforts to keep my spending/collecting to a limit.

sarah

Veteran

I am very much enjoying this discussion and I appreciate Kim weighing in, since I was aware that she was practicing this, well, practice.

I am fairly pleased with my wardrobe at the moment, although I've still got a few rough spots that need smoothing over now that I've got a better sense of where my style is going. But I like the spirit of this challenge and will keep it in mind.

Parsley

Veteran

Well, no, not even close.
I've been completely overhauling my wardrobe this year, so that hasn't been an option. I'm hoping that soon I'll be at the point where that would be possible, though.
Then the main challenge is to quit the weight fluctuations that contribute to my needing to buy new things that fit.

cade

I do not have a clothing budget, but have for the last few years maintained a fairly strict shopping routine in that I shop only once or twice a year, focus on high quality basics in neutral colors and wear these pieces over and over again while changing the accessories. My closet is emptier, I have spent far less money in the long term and I have clothes that look nice wash after wash after wash. It has been a revelation.

MNsara

Veteran

I liked this idea when Kim presented it many months ago. (Was Kim the first or did I forget someone else was doing this . . . ?)

Lots of us seem to have found YLF after a period of wardrobe neglect and we're doing some serious catching up for a while. So, I think it's a reasonable approach once you feel like your wardrobe can be quite stable. Like Kim having refreshed her (almost complete) wardrobe before beginning this.

Plus for me, I went off on some style experimentations (inspired by other fab YLFers, but not suitable for me!) So, apparently I needed to go thru those phases, or learning curves, as well.

And actually, almost three years into YLF (and some *good* purchases at this NAS), I look at my wardrobe with satisfaction and really feel I could adopt a 12-item goal

Taming my love of shopping and thrill of the hunt is an entirely different animal!

Lokibear

I think I would like to do a combination of 12 items and a set clothing budget. I can't afford to buy one item of clothing a month at ANY price, of course, and I'd feel guilty if it were something more expensive. Having a budget OR an item limit would allow me to save money for a couple months to get a more expensive item, if that makes sense. This would keep the number of items down but also the total cost within budget.

Jem

Veteran

I love this idea, too and hope I can get to something like it at some point. I'm also someone who enjoys the hunt more than wearing. I'll work on that.

Gaylene

Veteran

So far, I've been quite happy with my 12/year shopping limit. I've currently bought only 7 items at price points that ranged from $1200 to $5. To date, I think I've spent around $1800 dollars which works out to approximately $250/month so far.

A couple of things that I've noticed about holding to this plan:

1. Since I already had a reasonably functional wardrobe, I didn't need to shop for basics. What I am doing is wearing more items in different contexts. Instead of relegating items into different categories (work, leisure, sport, etc.), I wear my silk shirts with jeans. If I'm doing something messy, I put on a full-size apron to protect my good clothes. So far, my quality shirts have held up quite nicely to handwashing (which I prefer to drycleaning).

2. I can purchase a high-end item (like my cashmere sweater) if it's perfect because I know that I won't be buying other stuff just because I'm bored or because it seems like a "deal". I suspect my entire clothing budget this year will be less than $300/month.

3. Finally, best of all, I'm only buying things that I adore and want to wear constantly. This makes me happier because I feel like I've broken that "purge and binge" cycle that bothered me so much. I didn't much like the "I see it and I want it" attitude that I was engaging in for the past few years. I also find it much easier to resist trends that I know will not flatter me; instead of justifying purchases as "experiments", I have actually found limited buying has given me a much more cohesive style that makes me happy.

Will I find 5 more items before the end of this year? I don't know. But I do know that I feel much better about my buying and my wardrobe. For me, limiting my purchasing was really a philosophical decision rather than a financial decision.

nancylee

Veteran

It sounds like this idea holds a lot of appeal for many of us (especially those of us...myself included....that love the hunt).

QM, thanks for weighing in with your experience. I'm encouraged by your success, and am considering trying this for 2013 (or maybe your idea of lucky 13!). I do think it will work best if I allow some flexibility and don't limit myself to a strict month by month purchase, but to perhaps buy 3 items one month and then take the next couple of months off. You're an inspiration!

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

I like this idea a lot; if it were issued as a challenge, I think I'd be on board

ironkurtin

Veteran

No.

But it is a question I "let's pretend" about: "*IF* I were only to buy 12 items a year, would I buy this?" It weeds out a lot of crap, even if I buy waaaaay more than 12 items a year.

MsMary

Veteran

I'm about ready to do this. Gaylene, your post really resonates with me! I am realizing more and more that my wardrobe is really bigger than it needs to be. I gravitate towards the same things over and over, and then I feel bad because other things go unworn.

Lisa

Veteran

I'm a big failure at this. I'm more like 12 items most months, bad I know. But I have gone a couple of months with 5 or less purchases and I have one month (Jan) where I did not purchase a single item. Maybe next year I'll stay on track better. I do like Angie's reminder to wear your fab clothes. It's funny I was looking at my closet the other day and realized I am more than halfway through my hot weather and still have a few tops that have not been worn yet this season. I'm trying to purchase very few items right now.

Echo

Veteran

While I didn't think about a set number of items, at the end of last year I decided that I wanted to focus on higher quality items that would last. Each time I see something I want, I come home and think about how it would incorporate into my wardrobe. And each time I decide against it, I try to put that amount into a savings account instead. It is amazing the number of small purchases that could add up sto something worthwhile! Anyway, so my goal was to save for a few investment pieces - a nice bag, a good leather jacket, a new winter coat.

I've fallen off the wagon a few times; it isn't easy to resist the shopping bug. But I have been choosier about my purchases. I still have a long way to go, though. I need to do a complete closet overhaul for fall and find out exactly what I have and exactly what I need.

rute

Veteran

Loved angie's advice! I'm also An. Hunter that sometimes forgets to just wear and enjoy

JR

Veteran

You know, this is so funny. I remember in my student days, a friend of mine worked cleaning houses and a client of hers was complaining bitterly that she hadn't been able to buy a piece of clothing that month. My friend and I were both absolutely horrified. We couldn't imagine being able to buy something new EVERY MONTH. We couldn't imagine WANTING to buy something new every month.

I'm afraid I have had many years when I did not get as many as 12 items a year. Unless you count knee-high nylons. I bought clothes essentially when I didn't have enough to get from one laundry day to the other or when a wardrobe hole absolutely had to be plugged. Of course, it is only fair to say that I would not have been on anybody's best-dressed list.

Dressing more is not necessarily dressing better. And I am here so I can learn to dress better.

I have been playing with the idea of allowing myself one item a season that I don't necessarily need. Just for fun, to make myself happy. Apart from that, I think I will continue with my policy of buying clothing only when I need it.

anne

Veteran

Very interesting thread!! As a wardrobe minimalist, I find the idea appealing

I must have had many years pre YLF when I didn't buy 12 items of clothing (at least as defined the way QM did, with exceptions for workout gear and underwear, bathers etc) but I am not sure I have acheived it post YLF, except perhaps the year 2010-11 (jul-jun)

In 2011-12 I wasn't aiming at a particularly small amount, as I realized that some of what I had bought 4 years ago when I first joined YLF needed to be replaced. With QMs exceptions, I bought 19 items. I those 2 cost me a total of $5 from an opshop, and 2 were bought with vouchers. I would however have bought more if I had found some of the items I wanted to replicate (eg denim jacket, denim skirt and white turtleneck)

I'd live to be in a place where I could do something like this. I always think in terms of the whole year, so would do it that way ( I have months without shopping each year and bursts at the beginning of seasons) For me it would absolutely have to be combined with a budget. I exceeded my budget this year which I had arbitrarily set at $10 a week, having given myself permission when I realised the replication issue. It worked out about $12 a week, which I am fine with.

jenanded

Veteran

This has been really useful for me! I am moving away from trying to keep up with all the 'have to have' lists and been using Angie's concept of writing down what you DON'tTLOVE or purge often. Also in my much smaller home, my car boot/trunk has become the proxy spot for what won't fit in the small wardrobes so I am literally faced with my dud purchases on a regular and public basis! I am almost up to date on what I 'have to have' for end of our winter (mild) and have just about filled the holes for my upcoming dominant summer. I just opened a special bank account to put in what I DON't spend on rot, and to focus on one in one out, and buying the right things. I feel inspired by these types of posts.

Traci

Veteran

I'm seriously considering doing this. I started keeping track of my purchases in June. I've been culling my fall wardrobe, and made a few key purchases from NAS.

I'm trying to decide on a couple of details of how it will work for me.
1. Do I also want to do a dollar amount limit? or will it be somewhat self limiting by me only being able to buy such a limited number of items?
2. Do I want to consider mulitples of basics 1 item? My fallback winter item is a medium weight cotton turtleneck sweater. They're rather inexpensive (around $50 or less) so if I find one, should I grab 2 or 3 and call that one item? I'm thinking similarly with layering tanks when summer rolls around. Both these items get worn so much, sit so close to the body, and by nature of being a knit don't really hold up forever. Or, am I rationalizing already?

In either event, I have a month to decide because if I am doing this, I already have my August purchase made. A pair of Frye Carson Oxfords should be arriving on my doorstep tomorrow morning as a birthday gift.

Queen Mum

Veteran

I meant to weigh back in yesterday, but the day got away from me.

Angie- you get the award for quote of the day. So true- we get so caught up in the hunt, that we don't enjoy what we have. This is part of why I decided to do this.

Mo, I didn't mean to make it sound so simplistic. There is certainly room for adding to a category if that seems necessary. In January I bought a sweater dress, and yes, got rid of a winter dress that was no longer fab. But my February purchase was a green blazer that did increase my jacket collection by 1. But the bottom line was, I knew that I had plenty of clothes to keep me dressed all year, even if I added nothing (which would not be a realistic limitation). I also had to remind myself that my wardrobe doesn't have to be perfect... just quite functional. I spent all last winter/spring without a great pair of easy, casual winter shoes and I survived. I just know now that it is a need that I want to fill for this coming fall/winter.

Sara makes a good point that many of us start our time here with serious wardrobe needs. No need to feel guilty if you're needing to do some catch up shopping, but keep in mind that you can only wear so many items of clothing in a given season... no reason to have more than you'll be able to wear all season. I'ts hard to stop that rolling shopping ball once you get it started, I know...but it is not impossible. I feel very empowered and in control of my wardrobe and shopping habits at this point.

And yes, Mo, once I round out my 12 items for the year, I'll post them all to show them off!

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