Thanks Lyn D. and Sarah A for the congrats! Good to see you Sarah. Yeah I'm currently thinking a slightly smaller wardrobe would work better for me. I'm hoping to focus spending this year on finding workhorse shoes and jackets with flair in particular.
Thanks Shevia!
Olivegreen - yes, I wanted to be able to experiment, but I wanted to be able to draw conclusions at the end of it too, and not just about my style preference.
Rachylou - good question about the culling. On the one hand I tend not to be emotionally attached, but I also have trouble culling things that are contemporary enough, fit well, right color, etc. I also worry about if stuff will end up in a landfill, and am reluctant to pass on things bought in the same calender year (unless it's clear they don't work). What I did cull:
-Very first pass were things that were worn out (pilly knits), didn't fit anymore, and were dated (tight tops, early 90s business wear).
-second pass were thrifting experiments gone awry (not contemporary enough or close enough to my style goals), comfortable but frumpy footwear, slight fit or shape problems (tight arms, skirt that shortens/stretches sideways, the things you don't notice at first, but are apparent if you wear it for several hours)
-third pass and where I am now is removing less favored duplicates (black short sleeved tops), removing colors that aren't quite right (slightly too muted/browny) and are outside my core neutral and accent colors.
Elizabeth P- bummer, I hate when that happens.
AM - yes, not counted in these numbers are my work 'uniform' which crosses over with gardening/house cleaning wear. It is basically one drawer with some favorite old tees, some hoodies, a pair of favorite beat up jeans and shorts. Shoes I wear are usually one pair of old sneakers or indoor merrel slipons.
(approx. 4 days per week, but various tremendously depending on deadlines - some weeks I don't go into the studio, some I don't come out -- like the last few months )
My other needs - grocery shopping and running various work related errands, work emails, casual dining, drinks or coffees out, movies. Same clothes work for all of these, in a range from quite casual, to skirts and heels. It depends more on my mood and if I will be carrying heavy things than the venue - part of this is the quirky city I live in where people dress up at Whole Foods and dress down at the theater - it kind of levels any micro distinctions.
(usually 5-6 days a week, and can involve different outfits on the same day -- for example morning errands, change for studio, change to go out to dinner).
Work related non-studio - artist talks, mentoring/meeting grad students, workshops, openings (although most of these are far from where I live so I don't attend). The same clothes as above but leaning casual and vaguely hipster for workshops (with an apron), and leaning arty but still accessible for all other situations.
(a couple of weeks a year)
Evening chic? - very rare in the traditional sense - the opera occasionally? Christmas party? I have two formal dresses, and I think I'm good, I don't even count those as they really are special occasion.
(a couple of times a year).
With the numbers - 10 cardigans would each be worn an average of 10 times (white one might be 3x, black one might be 15x, etc.) and the average cost of each of these wears is .80 (one might be .50, one might be .98)
Here is a screen shot example of my outfit log page and my (cleaned up/not so colorful) tracking page for those who were curious.
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