How do you get to be one of her "special friends"? I would love to borrow a Birkin bag and with the huge number that she has I would think it would be an act of kindness to see that they got some use!

I'm confused. How does she fundraise? Does she auction off these items?

I do understand that the wealthy can support artisans and traditional methods of creating art that would otherwise die out due to lack of consumption (prohibited by cost). But does Christian Louboutin really fall into that category? I think that there is a limit to the amount of things that a person can own and still remain emotionally healthy.

It's difficult to see people at the food shelf not have enough money to eat, or to have to eat unhealthy, overprocessed food because that is all that is available, when others have more possessions than they can even use in their lifetime. I agree that we have to develop our passions, but quite honestly, enough is enough. There doesn't seem to be any moderation here.

Sorry, I'm really crabby today!

I, too, absolutely adore style and fashion but this is a bit ridiculous! I'm not jealous, just stunned at the sheer volume of designer goodies.

Aw, Alicat! Don't go!!!

Wait, what? Did Alicat leave?

Alicat, please come back! If I offended you with my comment, I do apologize. I shouldn't have been so snarky.

Boo, I missed the closet... I don't know how I might feel about the closet, but I am all for champagne while getting dressed!

I'm sorry too if I said something insensitive. I thought it was an interesting topic with a lot of different perspectives and I was glad you posted it.

Oh no! Alicat, come back!
Given all the rash of minimalism threads, this closet does make me feel better that at least my wardrobe isn't the largest one ever...

Oops!

I am from a third world country. I lived there for 25 years of my life (so I am not just a person with roots there so to speak). My wardrobe of 197 items (close to 175 now) is seriously excess to the people around me from the same place and background. I shudder to show them my closet. I never would. On the other hand, the community here is pretty compassionate about it. Because it is not a figure that is nauseatingly excess for them. But for the people around me (if I ever show them!) I am sure it is! Don't you think perspective is everything?

How is it that someone who buys a designer item at full price somehow is less ethical/moral than someone who scores thrift stores for the exact same brands and pays less for it? Both want the label, don't they?

Would you be equally annoyed if it was a 3 storey closet with non designer/cheap/thrifted designer pieces?

Just pondering.

Neel, that's a good question. I have no problem with this lady spending her money on designer labels, but it does make me sad to think that here is so much that she could not possibly wear it all. Whilst I appreciate fashion as art, I think of it as performance art - it needs to be worn to really be appreciated. At it's heart, I guess I dislike the idea of waste and that would apply even if all the items were thrifted.

Alicat, I am sad you have left. We all make different choices about lifestyle, consumption and how we live and I think it is interesting to discuss the ideas and values that inform those choices.

I missed this thread yesterday and didn't follow the link. But if Alicat has left I am super sad. Ali, you're a valued member of the community. Tried to PM you but could not. Please don't go!

And...I think the discussion's important -- wherever we stand on this issue. I love being prompted to think harder and question myself. To marvel and enjoy...to wonder and wag my head. You know? The exploration is all good.

I'm really sad too, Suz. It was clear she meant the link as a lighthearted counterpoint to our recent purge/austerity/minimalism celebration around here, and I admit, a little of the judgmental tone of response made me feel a little defensive, even though I have nowhere near the resources and wardrobe of the woman in the link. I'm highly aware of the privilege I hold in the world. Perhaps the subject of that video is too, which is why she chooses to do a lot of fundraising.

I feel so sad that Ali has left. My negative response to this story was my honest gut reaction and perhaps I should have kept that to myself.

I enjoyed the discussion and several points made were things I had not thought of.

Personally my issue was not how much money the woman spent in these items nor even the designer "name dropping" (for lack of a better term). My issue was the sheer number of items and thinking there is no way one person could physically wear all of these things - there isn't that many days in a year. And at that point, it seems so excessive.

And I in absolutely no way meant any offense to anyone of privilege or to those with large wardrobes.

Seriously! I missed this, because I wanted to watch the link at home.
Alicat, please come back.

Plus some of the these comments, well, every so often I consider leaving the forum, and they don't help. I mean what do you really think of my shoecase?

ETA I found the story

http://jezebel.com/texas-woman.....1607015525

Shoecase Anna. I'm intrigued. Been wanting a way to display my shoes for myself to see them & know what I have.

I'm sad Alicat has left. I'm sure nobody was judging her but rather the woman with the big closet. It did make me chime in with a second comment to defend her & the woman & myself & everyone on both sides of the minimalist/maximalist closet/wardrobe but I think most fabbers harbor no ill feelings toward each other.

I like how Sharon put it: fashion is really performance art and is best worn. I do not have a problem with very large wardrobes, but this was excessive, imo. And it wouldn't matter whether the items were thrifted. I don't think that it's even healthy for the woman herself to have that much, regardless of how it could be seen to impact others (such as in resource distribution).

Anna, your shoecase is, I assume, in your condo and not in a separate building. I don't have a problem with maximal wardrobes—but the wardrobe in the video is beyond maximal. The line where something becomes "too much" will differ from person to person, but I am pretty confident that the line can be drawn before a person reaches a 3,000-sq-ft closet. And I wouldn't even mind if someone had enough pieces in their wardrobe to wear something different every day of the year. But this woman has so much in her closet that she could not even wear everything within her *lifetime*. That, to me, is what put this closet into "excessive" territory.

But I am very sad that Alicat has left. I know that I have occasionally posted threads that took a very different tangent than what I thought, and it can be hurtful. One of the things I really like about this forum is that there are a lot of differing viewpoints, but we all express our honest opinion—and we try to reason our opinion out. I think that's why this is such a healthy forum, imo.

I'm not sure why Alicat left. That said, why all the Judgy McJudgertons? Who's to rule that Anna's shoe case is acceptable because it's contained within her condo...thus implying she wouldn't be welcome here if her shoe budget were unlimited and her collection housed in its own building with a full-time curator/cobbler? Seriously?

I think the negative reaction was to the closet and the woman in the link, not to alicat, who posted it here. I don't think anyone intended to shoot the messenger.

And while I can see the excess, it is difficult for me to judge. She has raised millions for charities she supports. While that may not be the primary reason for the closet, it is far more than many of the 1% have done. How is a person who has 1/20 the amount of stuff but gives nothing back to the community any better (hypothetical situation)? How much is a person allowed to have before it is "too much"? How are the McMansions with enormous kitchens that no one ever uses (because they cannot be bothered to cook) any better? Is excessive, enormous wealth okay and acceptable as long as the owner doesn't display conspicuous consumption?

Jay Leno has a collection of antique cars, more than anyone would ever need. Is that similarly unacceptable? Or is that better because so many people like Leno? Many wealthy individuals are collectors - of cars, art, antiques, property, etc. By definition, any collection is unnecessary. Like others have mentioned, I wonder if this woman would receive the vitriol if she collected stamps or coins instead.

Good questions. I've sold artwork to folks with their own climate controlled art storage wings, and one person who owns a separate mansion that is just to display and store a collection of monster movie memorabilia and macabre art objects.

I think honestly if the items were thrifted (and it wasn't a person who was partly reselling or rehoming, but intended it all for personal use) and the person didn't have the means to employ someone to take care of the clothes, a collection this large might be seen as hoarding and might evoke concern rather than admiration (the latter is what I think the news spots are focusing on?)

Also some things touch a nerve, not on a personal but political level? I think for a very diverse international forum people tend to tread carefully but there are inevitable world view clashes. My hope, and what I've seen here so many times is that people of different viewpoints will share them, and agree to disagree while still growing in understanding from the conversation.

I'm giggling though about some of the comments on the Jezebel article and what people would want to collect in their three story closets. We all have fantasies :).

I'd hazard a guess that the reason Ali left is that she intended for this to be a lighthearted contrast to all the minimalist posts, and it turned into a philosophical discussion. Whether people intended to attack her character or not, the implication is there, at least to some degree, just because she found it amusing.

This woman's closet exists and all the righteous indignation in the world likely won't change that. The reason it can be amusing is because it is so 'unreal'. It stands as a reminder of how each of us, at our own level, need to be mindful of our consumerism.

It saddens me that she's taken a leave, but I hope not for good. I don't prescribe to a minimum or maximum closet, just the one that's right sized for me. I feel like Wardrobe Goldilocks . . . mmm, just right. I do think realizing what's right for ourselves isn't necessarily what's right in the larger sense is good to remember.