You'll need a cup of coffee for this one. This post has been in my head a long time, and since I'm still relaxing with my second cup of coffee, now's as good a time as any to write it.

For starters, my home was built in 1960, so the closets are VERY small. Why? Well, I'm guessing there wasn't much "fast fashion" in 1960 and comparing the cost of what you wore to the money you made meant clothing was more of an investment. Emotional shopping? Probably not so much. Needs based shopping? Probably pretty strong. On-line shopping? Most people probably didn't even know what a computer was.

"So what is this, a history lesson?" You're probably wondering. Nope, but I've been thinking of all that in relation to where my wardrobe is headed. This past summer, I did a HUGE closet edit, the biggest ever (pic 2). Totally filled up the SUV and donated a ton of clothes. Everything that doesn't fit, semi fits, sort of fits, is GONE. If I stood in front of the mirror and said, "I'm not sure about this," I said BYE-BYE to it. If the shoes flopped around on my feet, they flopped right over to the donate bag.

The Lessons:

Cost vs. Fast Fashion vs. Sales:
Nordstrom, I love you! F21, I love you too! J. Crew is having a sale? Start the car! OK, we have to come to a compromise here. It has to fit / be able to fit with alterations perfectly. It has to be decently made and not look like it's going to fall apart. No more looking at price tags and saying, "Well, it's inexpensive so I'll just buy it."

Emotional vs. Needs Based Shopping and the Dreaded "B" Word:
I'm not an emotional shopper, which is a good thing. I just want everything I see, which is a bad thing. So what to do? Oh this is a hard one. Budget. I'll (try) to (no really I will) stick to a budget. And a list of items my wardrobe is lacking, like dress pants. Well, maybe it'll be the list + one additional item (after all, nobody's perfect - what was that "B" word again?).

The Size of The Thing:
Yes, we're still talking about the closet It's a small closet, and because there is no long space to hang dresses, I do keep those on a rack in the spare room. The closet in the pic has one vertical shelving unit, three hanging racks, and two shelves above the racks, and currently is showing all four seasons of clothes. Out of season clothes will move to a basement closet. I am now following the "one in, one out" rule.

The Shoes, What About The Shoes?
Oh, oops, did I forget to take a pic of those? Confession: I'm a shoe girl. In season shoes are stored on stacking racks in an alcove behind the bedroom door, out of season ones are stored in the basement. I did get rid of a few that were worn out or ill fitting. There's a lot left, and I just added more. That's all I'm saying about that

If you're read all this, wow, thanks! You've done better than I would have (and your coffee must be cold by now). So what are some lessons you've learned about what clothes should live in your closets?