https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Mon, 04 May 2026 00:45:51 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1344912 Tue, 02 Sep 2014 01:40:12 +0000 Staysfit 1344912@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thanks for the suggestion Sarah. I'm sure that anyone who is using Stylebook also appreciates your description of how you handle the photographs. &nbsp;My doors have mitered panels and are not flat. &nbsp;Do yours? &nbsp;Do those interfere with the photographs? &nbsp;I may experiment a bit. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>With my closet clean-out this weekend, I have fewer items to track than before &nbsp; I'm hoping that the decrease in total number of items will make whatever process I end up with less cumbersome. &nbsp;I am certain however, that it will be fun, and that I will learn a lot about my style, my fashion habits, etc. &nbsp;</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1344436 Mon, 01 Sep 2014 11:33:13 +0000 Meow 1344436@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I recently started using Stylebook and have managed to enter almost all of my wardrobe. I quickly found that their tutorial method of taking photos was never going to work. Way too time consuming to lay out the clothes on a sheet on the floor. The sheet would get rumpled and then I would have to erase the background. I ended up hanging up the clothing article against my white closet door. This worked for most of my wardrobe - even some cream blouses with very little erasing. For the lighter clothes, I found a darker wall in my hall to use as a background. I had to take down a picture and use the nail to hang the hanger. I also used my ipad camera and then imported the photos into Stylebook. I ended up just clicking away taking photos and then sitting down later entering them into Stylebook. My family thought I was nuts! My teenage boys just couldn't understand why I was taking photos of my clothes -much less why they were on hangers and not just on the floor! lol. Oh-another thing is to speed things up is to use the tap erase and slide the sensitivity to a good level so you don't have to erase so much. I also import photos of newly purchased items from the websites although I haven't learned how to erase the model. Anyone know how to do that?<br /> Anyway, I'm having fun with Stylebook making new combinations of outfits and learning a lot about my wardrobe.<br /> Sorry for novel- hope that helps! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343956 Sun, 31 Aug 2014 17:39:00 +0000 Staysfit 1343956@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>La Belle, I agree with you. Calculating CPW for special occasion wear items and dry cleaned items is tough. When I first read through Gigi's post, I started to wonder if I would set a single CPW goal, several CPW goals, or just look at the CPW as a tool to understand my usage of various items. </p> <p>It seems that different people may make use of CPW different ways. They may also shift their use over time. </p> <p>For my purposes at present, I hope that those items that generate the highest CPW would be purchased most thoughtfully, cautiously, and sparingly. At least to date, I have never considered CPW. It's always been more "I like that, I will get it! ". </p> <p>Not a flattering description of myself, but I am trying to become mindful of my spending, and change what I think are bad habits. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343892 Sun, 31 Aug 2014 15:25:12 +0000 Mary Beth (formerly LBD) 1343892@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This is a fun and satisfying thread to read &nbsp; &nbsp;I use a spreadsheet to keep track of my wardrobe inventory. &nbsp; If I had time for Stylebook or Powerpoint, I would try it. &nbsp; It seems like a massive commitment - although I bookmarked the tutorials!</p> <p>I have found that the most effective way for me&nbsp;to put together outfits has been to track the outfits that I wear&nbsp;with a spreadsheet entry: &nbsp; The date, my activities that day, my happiness factor on a scale of 1-10, the pieces I wore, all the way down to jewelry and bag. &nbsp; &nbsp;If an outfit wasn't a 10 for happiness, I note how I felt in the outfit (frumpy? &nbsp;stumpy? &nbsp; tired? out of sorts?),&nbsp;WHY I thought it didn't work, and what I would substitute the next time. &nbsp; That's helped me narrow down on items and purge them.</p> <p>If I have a piece, such as a skirt,&nbsp;that is making me scratch my head, I will try it on with every top, sweater and topper that I think will go with it,&nbsp;and photograph myself in it. &nbsp; Again, this has been very useful for me.</p> <p>I don't usually&nbsp;do CPW for two reasons: &nbsp; One... if it is a dry-clean only piece, the CPW is skewed (in my opinion). &nbsp; For example, I have a fantastic DKNY black basic top that I got at Goodwill for five bucks. &nbsp; It goes with everything, but has very specific dry-clean instructions, down to which chemicals the cleaner should or should not use. &nbsp; So over time, despite the regular wear, the CPW is never going to be less than about $3&nbsp;because of the drycleaning.</p> <p>And two... I have some formal/semi-formal/costume pieces that were very expensive, and only worn a handful of times, but I still feel were absolutely worth the price. &nbsp; But if I did CPW, I think it would take away the joy I feel in an item, and make me feel anxious or guilty.</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343820 Sun, 31 Aug 2014 13:47:40 +0000 Staysfit 1343820@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thanks Gigi! So helpful to hear your use of CPW, and your detailed explanation gives me much to think about. In my case, I know that I have a lot of high ticket items in the form of shoes, boots, coats and cashmere sweaters. (I spend money to keep warm.). These items also have the most classic shapes in my wardrobe, and with luck will last a long time. Some of my boots are 4-5 years old and my sweaters and coats the same. I might accept a higher CPW for these items, then for jeans, or my exercise clothes. I will give it some thought, because it really does have an impact on what I should spend on any item coming into my wardrobe. </p> <p>Perhaps just tracking for a year first to see what the numbers look like will give me more concrete ideas. I can make some estimated targets and then see how the numbers play out. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343638 Sun, 31 Aug 2014 02:35:11 +0000 Gigi 1343638@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Staysfit, I don't keep track of the reasons for purging/consigning, but since my closet is not too large, I know offhand what the reason was for getting rid of each item. But adding a column for that is a good idea going forward, so thank you!&nbsp;I've only been wardrobe building for a year, so everything is manageable, but the day may come when I can't remember things as easily.</p> <p>My original intent when doing the purge/consign spreadsheet was to see how much money I was making from consignment sales vs. how much I spent on the items. However, I never got around to adding in my consignment checks to the spreadsheet. I probably won't want to know anyway, as the money from consignment is surely pretty negligible. But it's certainly better than nothing, right?</p> <p>Good for you for finding original costs! I think it's really fun to track CPW. I actually started a thread for that not too long ago:&nbsp;<a rel="nofollow" href="http://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/what-is-your-target-cpw">http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....target-cpw</a>. I haven't decided what my target CPW is yet. I'm thinking maybe $2 a wear. One dollar would be ideal. But I grew up always having a very minimal closet and wearing things into the ground, so I'm sure that affects things. I will hope to get to a CPW that low, but I'm not going to make myself miserable or force myself to wear things that I don't want just for the sake of reaching the goal. Shoes in particular take a long time to whittle down.</p> <p>As the linked&nbsp;thread points out, CPW shows you only so much. But what I'm discovering as I track it is the following:</p> <p>-Yes, it is worth it to me emotionally&nbsp;to buy something expensive if it's *exactly* what I want, but it really takes a LOT of wears to bring an expensive item down to my target CPW, especially because I live in a four-season climate. I have a pair of Citizens of Humanity coated skinnies that cost me $150 (on sale, actually!), and the CPW is still quite high despite the fact that I wore them a lot. But if I figure that I need to wear these puppies 75-150 times to get to my target CPW, it makes sense that the CPW is still high, since I've had them only a year. But this made me realize that for me, premium denim may not be worth it.</p> <p>-CPW helps me pinpoint items that I love but aren't getting enough wear. Sometimes this is because the item got shoved to the side in my closet and I forgot it was there, so this brings it back to mind. Or sometimes I realize that I'm not wearing a top because only one bottom goes with it, and I need to look for more bottoms. So I guess you could say the CPW in this case helps me pinpoint wardrobe weaknesses.</p> <p>-CPW helps me pinpoint items that should be purged or consigned because I'm not wearing them due to the fit not being right, the color being wrong, etc.</p> <p>Sorry for the long post! Hope this is helpful to you. Welcome to the wardrobe cataloguing club! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343175 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 11:59:20 +0000 Staysfit 1343175@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Perhaps we have hit upon a little business opportunity for someone creative and with the proper skills! They could create an excellent tracking app and eliminate all the cumbersome flaws we are encountering.</p> <p>Melaine, I had the same issue about not having many good daylight hours for taking photos. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343164 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 11:22:55 +0000 Melaine 1343164@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>helpful thread! I really like the stylebook idea but have found it disappointing because of the time it would take to really utilize. Most of my wardrobe is thrifted so stock photos are virtually impossible to find. When I could find time to photo stuff, it isn't daylight so I wasn't pleased with the lighting anyway. I haven't used PPT in years....<br /> I still wonder if there is a better app out there. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343160 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 11:08:42 +0000 Staysfit 1343160@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Wow, once again, some great idea to consider. </p> <p>Marley, thanks for sharing about your spreadsheet use. The happiness factor rings true for me since one of my goals is to only purchase items that make me look great and feel great when I wear them. What a great idea! </p> <p>Shiny, believe it or not I have never used PPT! Every other person in my house is proficient so I have people to show me. This sounds like it may be a more efficient way to keep some visuals, maybe of ensembles I like, or silhouettes, etc. I am giving up on pics of my entire wardrobe until I have weaned it down significantly.</p> <p>Gigi, I like how you keep track of items to purge/consign. Do you keep track of the reasons for doing so? My thinking is this would really help one understand purchasing errors, or if you ended up wearing items so much they wore out, etc. I personally think I need to keep track of cost per wear. I do have a large wardrobe, and I haven't worried enough on how much I spend. </p> <p>I also plan on tracking cost per wear. I do have a large wardrobe, and I am definitely not getting my money's worth out of my clothes. I am not sure what cost per wear I should be aiming for? Perhaps that is a question for another thread?</p> <p>I started to look up original costs for some of my older items by checking the style numbers online. It's amazing how much information you can find. I was successful with almost all of them. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343143 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 07:30:13 +0000 Gigi 1343143@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Alana: PPT is PowerPoint.</p> <p>StaysFit, I just use Excel to track my stuff. I'll attach a screen shot of part of the spreadsheet.</p> <p>I divide up my clothes according to category: Jeans and Pants; Shorts; Skirts; Dresses; Tops; Sweaters; Camis/Tanks; Toppers; Accessories; Shoes.&nbsp;I have the program automatically calculate cost per wear (CPW). Each category is totaled at the bottom of its section, and then I have a grand total of items at the bottom.</p> <p>I keep a second tab in Excel for purged and consigned clothing. When I purge an item or consign it, I cut it from the "current" tab and paste it into the "purged/consigned" tab. Sometimes I use the "purged/consigned" tab as a way of keeping track of what I plan to take to consignment the next season so that I don't have to deal with the data cluttering up my main spreadsheet in the meantime.</p> <p>I should say that I also keep an outfit log on paper, by date. So every day I write down what I wore, in four columns: bottom; top; shoes; other. Then I input the outfits into Excel once a week. I find that this way I can easily go back over my outfits and find out what I liked wearing with top such-and-such, whereas that is a bit harder to do with the way I have my Excel spreadsheet set up. I can also make notes on my paper log like "This outfit would have really been great with cognac shoes," etc., to note wardrobe holes.</p> <p>My wardrobe is on the small-to-medium side, about 130 items for four seasons. So just using Excel, with word descriptions, is enough for me. However, I know you have a larger wardrobe, and perhaps photos are necessary for you to keep the various items straight? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343109 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 05:42:18 +0000 Marley 1343109@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Several years ago when I was SYC I made an Excel spreadsheet with all of my clothing items listed - date they were purchased, brand, color, where they were purchased, cost, and dates worn. &nbsp;Every time I wore the item I marked it in the spreadsheet and I had a formula set up to automatically figure CPW (cost per wear.) &nbsp;I liked doing it at the time - it kept me occupied while I was on the no-shopping ban - but I only did it for about a year and then stopped. &nbsp;No special reason why I stopped! &nbsp;</p> <p>I also kept a spreadsheet of outfits that I wore - with details of each item in the outfit, date worn, and a happiness-factor rating. &nbsp;I also would make a note if there was something about the outfit that didn't work and what I could do different next time to bring the happiness-factor up to a 9. &nbsp;On the days when I didn't know what to wear I would look at the spreadsheet for a rating of a 9 or 10 and then wear one of those -&nbsp;with confidence that I was going to feel great! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343104 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 05:31:21 +0000 Alana in Canada 1343104@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>What does PPT stand for?&nbsp;<br />Fern, I love your spreadsheet! You can see at a glance what a cohesive closet you have.&nbsp;</p> <p>Strangely enough, I spent a great deal of time the other day hunting down pictures of the clothes I have and the clothes I want--I wanted to make myself a visual shopping list. I did--and then I forgot it at home, lol.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343097 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 04:43:49 +0000 Suzanne (ambergreen) 1343097@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I admit I haven't studied how others use the PPT method, but I adopted it for my own wardrobe planning. I have two slide sets so far, one for spring/summer and one for fall. (Of course, some things show up in both sets, because I just use this to put together outfits, not to track items.)</p> <p>I use online pics if I can get them; otherwise, I photo my own items or cobble up imitation "stand-in" pieces using the free photo editor Paint.net. I do make it a point to grab online pics as soon as I buy anything current enough to still have them, but I haven't photoed everything else yet, not even close. I kind of add things as they get picked from the closet.</p> <p>Yes, all this takes time to start up with. Photoing your own items and editing the pics really does take work like Staysfit says. ClippingMagic IS really fast for removing backgrounds, but I deal with it using Paint.net and don't mind it too much. </p> <p>Though I do keep a spreadsheet of items I, um--collect--I don't track cost per wear. :)</p> <p>@Shiny, I love how you collected types of items together to "see" what you have. I totally have to try that. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343004 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 02:25:41 +0000 Suzanne 1343004@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Re: powerpoint, I found this:</p> <p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/by-request-create-a-photo-collage-with-powerpoint-long-post">http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....-long-post</a></p> <p>and this:&nbsp;</p> <p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/how-to-do-a-picture-board-of-your-wardrobe">http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....r-wardrobe</a></p> <p>Pretty cool! I'm curious how many folks do it this way.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1343002 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 02:23:19 +0000 Suzanne 1343002@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I just came to YLF to look for info about wardrobe tracking apps, so thanks for this post! It sounds like Stylebook is getting a mediocre rap ... is there anything else that works better? I'd love to not have to do this in a spreadsheet.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342996 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 02:06:39 +0000 shiny 1342996@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I relied on spreadsheets for ages, then tried Stylebook and some other apps, found them infuriatingly frustrating and slow, then read a thread here about planning it all out in PPT -- sorry I don't remember who shared this Total Genius Tip, but I am forever in debt because it works beautifully for me!</p> <p>It still takes some time to remove backgrounds and re-size, but it's so much better with the way my brain works. I can plot out what to pack for a trip in minutes. I can see instantly what might work together, or where I have holes in my closet that need filling.&nbsp;What's more I can include WIW pics of me actually wearing the outfit--- because wearing is infinitely better than imagining wearing it. Often items&nbsp; work better together on paper, but not on my body.&nbsp;</p> <p>Attached are some of my PPT slides. </p> <p>Slide 1 is just tops &amp; toppers, I was trying to see what color patterns I had going on in my closet. I created this slide earlier today in about 15 minutes, and found it really useful.&nbsp;</p> <p>#2 is core work wardrobe, not including dresses (separate slide).</p> <p>#3 I was playing around with Vivienne Files concepts, but I dislike camel so was thinking red or magenta instead.</p> <p>#4 is from Spring '14, I attempted to keep track of WIW -- this is more difficult for me to do on regular basis. I prefer the electronic tracking for planning, not WIW.&nbsp;</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342993 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 02:03:21 +0000 Staysfit 1342993@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thanks! These are all helpful ideas. I have some free time this weekend and plan to play around with a few to see what makes sense.</p> <p>Fern, I appreciate your sharing pics of your system. I would never have come up with adding the colors to a spread sheet like that. Nice touch. I also like your motivation/inspiration collage. </p> <p>Caro, I will try your suggestion to see if it speeds my Stylebook entries.</p> <p>Susie, I like the description of your spreadsheet system. It's nice that you have it divided into seasons. That would make my life easier because I have four seasons of clothing to enter! I also like your use of Evernote. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342982 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 01:41:11 +0000 Susie 1342982@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I use a spreadsheet that is divided in categories- pants, jeans, skirts, knit tops, sweaters, shoes, bags, etc. I include the price and the year purchased. I have 2 separate spreadsheets, one for fall/winter and one for spring/summer. I honestly don't have any difficulty knowing what each piece is. </p> <p>In Evernote I keep a few pictures of each section of my closet. I also keep a note of WIW with a separate note for each workweek plus one note for weekends. I also have a note with a running list of purchases. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342979 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 01:36:52 +0000 carter 1342979@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I gave up on Stylebook because it was taking so long to edit the pictures. With Stylebook, can you import pictures from a file on your computer/cloud? If so, ClippingMagic.com is a MUCH faster way to erase the background. They are charging a small monthly fee now, but you can cancel after a month if you've done what you need. It drives me up a wall to have background in my clothing pics. </p> <p>I think I still have stylebook on my phone. I'll see if I can figure out if I can use one of my edited photos, but there will be others who will know the program much better than I do. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342972 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 01:14:19 +0000 fern 1342972@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I use a spreadsheet with colors next to the item. It helps me visualize the item without a picture. I am not tracking outfits, just what I own. I use the spreadsheet to think about what I need - what is the right number of sweaters for me?<br />I counted wears for the first time in July. I printed my spreadsheet and marked little tic marks by hand. I don't know if I learned anything new - my life is so casual.<br />I do clip pictures from the internet, for my inspiration files. I have used those to make a little motivational pre-season capsule collage. The second picture was for this past summer - it was a mix of things I already owned and thinking about what would work with my stuff. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342910 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 00:16:26 +0000 deb 1342910@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I use a spreadsheet with basic categories, tops sweaters, shoes, etc. I also use a snipping tool to copy pictures an size them to fit on the spreadsheet. I have been using tis method this year with new purchases. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342905 Sat, 30 Aug 2014 00:11:27 +0000 Caro in Oz 1342905@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>For most older&nbsp;pieces I look for similar items in Safari, save the photo to photo stream &amp; then enter it in Stylebook. This lets you enter your information &amp; start tracking CPW. You can go back &amp; replace the photo when you have more time&nbsp;:)</p> <p>For new items I mostly use the retailers stock photos :)</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/spreadsheet-vs-stylebook-tracking-my-closet#post-1342884 Fri, 29 Aug 2014 23:33:29 +0000 Staysfit 1342884@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I just spent an hour photographing and entering information into Stylebook. In that time I managed to catalog 7 blouses. It's a slow process if you want to erase the background around each item. I do because it appears that would make the app more useful. Does anyone use the app without erasing?</p> <p>In the same 1 hour period of time, my DD and I were able to create a spreadsheet using google cloud and entered almost 100 clothing items. </p> <p>Clearly, the spread sheet is easier to get started with, but the Items I have entered into Stylebook look awesome. I will probably slowly continue the Stylebook, but concentrate my efforts with the spreadsheet first just to get everything catalogued so I can start doing counts of how often I wear things, etc. </p> <p>The spreadsheet wins unless I can come up with something better. If people use spreadsheets, I'm curious what categories you use? I'm open to suggestions for tracking? I have a large closet, and still have time to adopt a different system. </p>