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CPW questions

Gretchen

Veteran

I decided to start tracking wears, and CPW this year. I don't have any set goals in mind, more awareness. Now that I'm six weeks in, I'm starting to ask questions, and wondered if those who have more experience could give some insight:
- Do you have a goal for CPW?
- I've seen some people suggest 30 wears as a target. How does that work in real life?
- Do you track what % of your wardrobe is worn? Are there any goals you set for this?
Any other suggestions?

So far, I've identified that my wear count moves quickly when traveling (those "after work jeans" were the only pair available for 5 days). And that my work at home capsule relies much more on tennis shoes than I thought. CPW on those items is falling quickly!

Thanks for your thoughts!

Dressing

18 replies

Latest reply was from Gretchen

Jenn

(website)

Veteran

I try not to put too much emphasis on CPW, because I don't want it to discourage me from spending a bit more for sustainability, but I do calculate it when let something go, just out of curiosity.

I've attached the CPW line and categories from my retired items spreadsheet below. I don't track wears for lounge/sleep wear and I also have a lot of blanks from gifts and pieces I bought before I kept track of purchase price, but you can tell it's ALL over the place. One item was clearly a mistake, even with the CPW adjusted for the money I made reselling the item.

I don't track what percent of my wardrobe is worn because my expectation is 100%.

I'm not sure what you mean about how #30wears works in real life? Could you be more specific?

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nemosmom

Veteran

I only started tracking wears and CPW in October. I don't have any goals yet, since I don't have much data to go on, and I don't know about 30 wears as a target yet, either - I have worn a pair of joggers 58 times since I bought them in October (!) so CPW is pennies now.

What I do like about tracking is knowing what isn't being worn so I can try to make a more conscious effort to wear a piece, assess it, and either pass it on, store it, or put it into circulation. That is helping not only with edits, but giving me the insight I want for future purchases.

I am not much help!

Pat_P

For me, I’m more concerned about number of wears than cost per wear. I will spend what I can afford to get the best quality I can (though I certainly don’t mind a sale.) I count wears roughly and do strive for at least 30 wears. So if it’s something I’ll wear less often, I want to be sure I love it enough to keep it for more years. And that it’s something that doesn’t date easily.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

So I have been trying to get 30 wears per piece since 2017, soon after joining YLF. Before that, from 2016, I had thought myself I might try to get 20 wears as what seemed reasonable to me. I had started wear tracking in May 2016. I count wears on clothing and shoes- not underwear like undies, bras, camis and not exercise leggings, plus not bags since I don’t change those up much so any main handbag is worn close to 365 days a year.
It was Jenn from YLF talking about the #30wears campaign that made me change to 30, from 20.
I also decided I wanted a CPW of $5 or under for most things- which means not paying much more than $150 per item if you will wear it 30 times. If you will wear it many more than that, sure. But because my wardrobe is on the larger side ( currently 162, was more like 180-200 pieces before) I have actually found it difficult to wear some pieces 30 times. Of the current 40 pairs of shoes, only 15 have been worn 30 or more times so far. So today I deliberately wore some white mules instead of the sandals I usually wear with today’s outfit. Because the white mules are 2011 but today only hit 24 wears, whereas the sandals are 2015 with 57 wears. I like the look equally but the sandals are flat and the mules have a small heel. Flats are easier and it’s summer so I like exposing toes. What have I learned?- next time don’t buy mules.
I may have more thoughts but this is already long!

CarolS

Veteran

This is fascinating -- I've never really thought about CPW. Given that my wardrobe is currently very small, I think most of my clothes are now paying me to wear them.

Of course, I do have a long list of less than stellar purchases coming in at very few (sometimes, admittedly zero) wears. So that's something I'm trying to be more conscious of. Somewhere between hundreds of wears and no wears there has to be a sweet spot for me to land on!

Gigi

Veteran

My hope is to get most items down to $2/wear. But I'm not strict about it.

I mostly use my tracking spreadsheet to see what is getting worn a lot and what isn't getting worn very much. If I see, for example, that a new pair of jeans is getting worn a lot, I might ask myself if there is something particular about that pair that lends it to more frequent use. Does the rise work better with my tops? Is the rinse color unique in my wardrobe? I can then use this information to determine what might be good buys for me in the future.

I will also use my spreadsheet to pinpoint at a glance what is not being worn. I can then ask myself why that is the case and then move on to next steps: either deciding what to get for a supporting act if the item is an orphan, or deciding to donate it if I'm just not liking the item anymore.

It's interesting to look at items that are more expensive to see about how many times I would need to wear them to get them down to my $2 target. I know that I tend to tire of most items within three years, so I try not to spend too much money on a given item (unless it is a special occasion item), because I know that it will be difficult to meet my target CPW even if I wear it frequently. Of course, if the item really ticks all my boxes and is special to me, I might splurge anyway.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

Totally agree Gigi. That is one of the reasons I track too, to see what isn’t getting worn so much and why. It has really helped to show things like: I mostly wear either boots or sandals, so don’t buy many transitional shoes any more. My feet get either hot and need open toes, or cold and need socks with boots. I don’t wear the heels much, so stop buying them. I hardly wear the skirts, don’t buy them. Etc, etc.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Do you have a goal for CPW?

I don't really track any more but did so for one entire winter and found it useful for the reasons Gigi mentions.

Also, I don't really pay strict attention to CPW, but I have started noting which items I am wearing each month by creating a collection in Finds. I could make it more granular by adding number of wears, but so far I'm not doing that.

I've seen some people suggest 30 wears as a target. How does that work in real life?

The "30 wear" mantra is more useful for me as a point of purchase question to myself. "Will I wear it 30 times?" I also ask myself how long I can see myself keeping it, i.e. how many years. Even if I'll never wear it 30 times, if I keep it and love it for 6 years, that might be worth having.

Do you track what % of your wardrobe is worn? Are there any goals you set for this?

I wear all my wardrobe, apart from the odd piece of occasion wear, and if I don't wear it, I typically let it go after a year.

Anonymous

I absolutely track number of wears and CPW for every item in my wardrobe (including all accessories), except underpinnings and socks. I've done this for years and the data is valuable to me.

I have a different CPW goal for different categories (e.g., pennies for loungewear; $3 for tops; $2 for pants; $7 for some specialized sports wear). I have a small wardrobe so these goals are achievable.

Because my wardrobe is categorized in a spreadsheet I can easily see if certain categories are becoming inflated. In fact, that is exactly why I put all this information into a spreadsheet. Prior to YLF, I overbought certain garment categories and underbought others. That led to a lopsided wardrobe. Getting dressed in the morning was hard-to-impossible. It forced me to stop buying the "easy" pieces and focus on buying the "challenging" pieces. I don't know if I could have transitioned without hard numbers to force the issue.

The data also resulted in "spending caps." If I have a defined goal for CPW and I already know how much wear I can expect from a garment category based on history, it is easy to calculate the upper limits of what I should pay. I put those spending caps in writing so they are locked in my brain. The caps are not firm. I find I exceed them for pants and tops at least once per season. This is allowable .... but I limit them on a seasonal basis. The spending caps also change, depending of annual goals.

I do not count number of wears with the goal of reaching the magic number of 30. That thinking evokes the idea that once 30 wears is reached, permission has been granted to move the clothing item on so something new can be bought in its place. I expect far more than 30 wears. My wardrobe is small and I do not need a lot of variety. I focus on buying quality items that can be worn often and over the course of several years. I do not see clothing as disposable.

I do not track the percentage of items worn. I assume that my entire wardrobe is worn ..... but you have a point. Certain garments are favored. They get worn all the time. When I see this happening I do two things. One, I make it a point to pull the lesser worn items forward in the wardrobe so they are in rotation. Two, I examine the favored item to figure out why it is so loved. Usually in my case it comes down to the quality and feel of the fabric against my skin. Or the fit.

If I find that some items just are not being worn .... for whatever reason, I have the data I need to purge it. Thirty wears or not. It did not work for me. It could be fit. It could be poor proportions. The garment was a fail for my wardrobe. Gone.

I admit my method is counter to how Angie shops. But our lives are lives and goals are very different. I can't help but think that if I shopped emotionally, I would have a severely skewed wardrobe of gorgeous and prized items, but I would be unable to get dressed in the morning and I certainly would not be able to dress for my individual roles (e.g., work, casual, athletic).

My spreadsheet forces me to be honest with myself. It limits (does not prevent) bloat. Oh! That is another thing. My spreadsheet helps me evaluate just how many items in a given category is reasonable! It is easy to see when I start overbuying! It forces me to stop and think about it because some thought process is moving me in that direction. I try to decide if it is reasonable or not.

So there you have it. Valuable for me. Burdensome for some others. It depends on how your brain thinks and what your ultimate goals are.

Good luck.

Cardiff girl

Veteran

I am lucky in that Stylebook does this all for me.l am more interested in number of wears rather than cost per wear but it is very interesting to see how it all comes out and one does get a sense of justification in having splurged if the CPW turns out well.In the end anything that helps one to get a sense of ones wardrobe and how to manage it is helpful l find.

Synne

Veteran

I recently also started keeping track of wears. I thought I had a good idea of how I wore my clothes, but I am already surprised by a lot of new info. I repeat wears sooo much on sweaters. Much less variety on bottoms. The last two weeks, only two chunky knit sweaters have been in rotarion every day. I also have too many shoes (heh..). Does the year have many enough days to wear them all?

I have also identified that I almost never wear my bags or purses. Now in winter I wear thick wool socks all the time. I like wearing the same combinations over and over, but with changed up accecories like earrings.

Sisi

Veteran

CPW - I have done it for a while just out of curiosity then quit because I realized it did not teach me anything.

Example: in the Summer of 2015 I bought a dress for 170 euro and a white shirt for 10 euro (that I tought would be a great workhorse). At the end of the Summer the dress had 20 wears and the shirt 2. The dress CPW was higher than the shirt CPW, nonetheless the dress turned out to be a workhorse because it was very well made, flattering, nice colour and I loved it, and the shirt turned out to be a flop because it was ill-fitting and the fabric was too sheer.

It is the number of wears that shows me that I have made a good purchase and helps me understand which are the characteristics I must look for in a garment. Angie calls this ROI - return of investment.

30 wears - I use it as a guideline to avoid impulse purchases. When I am going to buy something I take a pause and try to figure out whether I will be able to wear that piece happily for many times.

% of wardrobe worn - no, I do not track it. I try to keep my wardrobe smallish and I know that I wear it all. Although my goal is to increase the number of workhorses and minimize the number of items that get worn rarely.

rachylou

Veteran

I don’t really calculate cpw... but I know I wear the heck out of my cheap things... it’s not simply that I baby the expensive... but I find the cheap things are indeed peasant clothes, meant for hard labour and hard wear...

Synne

Veteran

Peasant clothes, lol! I also wear my cheap things so much. Even when they pill and fade, good enough around the house. It is truly inverted, because my best and most expensive items just hang and collect dust...

Sal

Veteran

My thoughts are similar to those of Pat P above. I have tracked wears for a month on two occasions. But generally I don’t track but think about realistically how much I will wear something when adding.

I do keep a spreadsheet so I know how many pieces I have in each category. Footwear is about 15 which is about right for me -it could slip to 12 or grow to 18 but I have no need for 30-40 options for my life and climate.

When I tracked exercise gear, shoes, bags and sunglasses got the most wear. I no longer skimp on these areas in terms of quality - or dollars- I am more likely to not buy a shirt or extra skirt though because I know I might only wear it 3-4 times a year whereas the sunglasses are worn most days.

Anonymous

I don't track wears (anymore) or CPW, but shop by the Pupy (potential use per year) principal for what's a reasonable amount to spend and reasonable number of pieces in category. I can justify more pieces and more $$$ in the high Pupy categories, underwear, sleepwear, gear and winter and summer workwear. This should be 90ish% of my wardrobe. The minimally needed categories- casual, specialty, transitional wear- are very small capsules and need very little budget. Still, they're probably not anywhere near 30 wears.

notsaf

Veteran

This is a fun thing to do if you like numbers or patterns and wardrobe planning.

I tracked wears for a year or two and learned that CPW was lowest for things like jewelry, bags, outwear, comfortable shoes, and pants. But, as many folks have said above, CPW is not always the most meaningful gauge. I'm like Jenni, and used it to help me avoid over-investing in categories that are under-used. So, for example, I'm much more likely to splurge on a blazer for work than a dress, because I only wear dresses a few times a year and wear blazers every week.

Gretchen

Veteran

This is fascinating. Thank you for the feedback!

I definitely like the idea of using wears as a way to see what’s working/not working about an item. I also think it could be used to justify a higher price point for something I know will be a workhorse (eg work shoes that will be worn weekly for at least 3 years). And I agree about doing an assessment of what’s not being worn...is it fit, style, comfort, or outfit creation?

My question about 30 wears was more around what awareness that number brings....is it a time to check if the item needs maintenance/ replacement? Or does 30 wear imply a workhorse and an opportunity to assess what works with that item?

I agree that CPW can’t be the sole influence on a buying decision....my black chucks will be down to $1 CPW this summer while my dress sandals might be getting their 3rd wear. But I do think it could help influence why a specific item is needed, and help in deciding on a price point.

As I said, I’m currently most focused on collecting info and seeing what trends I see in the data. Will be interesting to see how this impacts my shopping strategies later this year.