Getting to 30 wears - YouLookFab Forum

This won't be of interest to all - please feel free to skip if counting wears is not your thing.

I do track my wears - I don't bother any more for lounge wear, active wear or gear - nor accessories outside shoes. But I like doing it to justify my habit of buying somewhat expensive clothes......

As I am in the last couple of weeks of wearing summer clothes I noticed a few more pieces have got to 30 wears between January and now. These are all between 6 months and 3 years old (the black silk shirt is the oldest purchased August 2023, the sandals the newest, added in July 2025).

White tank
Black shirt
Black dress
Green flats
Black Mary Janes
Tan and black sandals

I also note that all my heels and 80% of my dresses won't get there.

I am not adding new heels any more, but I do love and keep adding dresses. I don't plan to stop but I do need to be mindful of this and be moderate about those additions.

Outside these categories unless a piece is a poor purchase, then most of my pieces do get to 30 wears if I keep them 2-3 years. I do have examples of things that have worn out prior to 30 wears (disappointing) or that I don't like enough and won't make myself wear to get there.

Thanks for reading and I am interested in what categories for you won't get there.

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6 hours ago

Sal

Veteran

These are the pieces that are unlikely to get to 30 wears (not dresses, not heels)

I do like the olive wrap shirt but don't wear it an awful lot. The cream jacket gets worn about once a year for eight years....but it is occasionally the right thing, and the cardigan is never what I want to wear......but I still own it.

Jenni NZ

Well you know it’s my thing! I have been doing it for almost 10 years and apart from Angie’s PPP principle it’s what has really helped to turn what I used to call my “clothes addiction” into a wardrobe that really works for me.
Some of my clothes take many years to get there, often some unforeseen issue like the neckline problem on my embroidered cream summer jacket. If I love the item still and am not bored with it (as per my earlier thread about how old is old and how long does it take to get bored with your clothes) then I will keep it and just wear occasionally. I have just been swapping around positions of clothes in the wardrobe sections, and looking at my lists.
The 3 2025 summer tops are not there, but my favourite of the 3, the white seersucker-like top from Max, has 18 wears already. The new cobalt block buster pants have 28 wears already since spring.
Skirts can take many years to get there, the 2008 Laura Ashley silk skirt is my oldest and it has 29 wears even now.
Dresses are very slow, I own 8 summer dresses and only one of them is there, so I have not purchased any since 2022. Age of dresses ranges from 2009 to 2022.
Cardigans get there in 2-3 years usually. My Max dark green cardigan from winter 2024 has 26 wears by now.
Jackets can take a few years also, especially if dressy. The embroidered one I mentioned is from 2021 and has 28 wears, it would be more if not for the neckline issue which means I only like it with tanks.
Will do shoes separately later!

Jenni - Dresses do take a while - occasion wear pieces probably won't get there for me and even sundresses take a few years.

I don't intend to stop buying them but I need to be realistic that I will own them for many years so I don't want something I could tire of easily.

4 hours ago

Jaime

(website)

Well I don't track wears but it is still interesting to think about what gets the most and least wear in my wardrobe. In my case it is definitely certain shoes and jeans that get the most wears and dresses and skirts the least.

Lisa

I enjoy tracking wears for all the reasons you mentioned. I especially find that tracking wears helps me feel good about editing items and knowing what brands can last multiple seasons and which do not. Plus it's just interesting and fun to do!

For my wardrobe, I don't get to 30 wears for dresses. They are my least worn items. I only added them last year to my wardrobe after many years of not wearing dresses and while I enjoyed the change, they were not my go to throughout the spring, summer, fall season last year. (I do not have any winter dresses). I specifically purchased consignment dresses when I decided to dive back into dresses because I know I won't hold on to them for long. I'm a jeans, trousers, joggers, shorts gal. It was fun to dabble back into dresses but it's not a staple style for me.

Heels and workwear (suits, trousers, blazers, blouses) are also items that don't reach 30 wears before an edit. I rarely wear these items to the office (I mostly WFH) and often the styles change, my size changes, or my preference changes and I'll end up doing an edit for these categories before 30 wears.

I don't currently own any special occasion outfits, but in the past they never got past 1-3 wears before an edit.

Star (Lise)

Have you tried wearing the cardigan that you never wear buttoned up, like a regular pullover knit? I too don't track shoes, accessories and lounge wear. I stopped tracking between December to end Feb as it is deep winter and I wear the same heavy knits and cords regularly. I know what I wear and need in those three months and don't find any benefit. My clothes that get the least wears are tops because I just have too many. I do not consider 30 wears nearly enough but do use it as a sort of measure when I have made a thrifting mistake and want to edit. I feel a bit better if it is near or over 30 wears. I find that my neutral items get the most wear. Initially this was a big shock as I thought I was a colour lover. Now when I buy I go easy with colour.

18 minutes ago

avicennia

I don’t track wears, never have, and doubt I ever will. But, but I find it fascinating to read about those of you who do. Thanks for posting this Sal!

11 minutes ago

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