I do like what some of you say about mood dressing, and Suz’s thoughts about needing some newness mixed in to counteract boredom and Nuancedream’s thoughts on fitting with one’s style journey. I like Lisa’s swapping back and forth with her sister!
Thank you too Jules for the thoughts about your daughters. I suspect as they grow older they will appreciate your clothes much more. Mine now in their 30s like my clothes way more than when they were teenagers
This has been a wonderful thread which I have really enjoyed, thank you all!

Like you, Jenni, retention is not a goal of mine, but rather a reflection of how much I love a particular garment. My oldest, a long black wool coat, is 40 years old!

This is a very interesting discussion!

The age of items in my wardrobe (most of my things are secondhand so they will already be "old" in some sense) is not something I think much about. It's not part of my mental categorization of clothing items and I would be hard pressed to estimate what percentage of items have been in my closet for what amount of time! I don't disagree with the age class rubrics that many people are posting here but it just honestly wouldn't occur to me to think about things that way. Not a judgement, just fascinating!

I like to conceptualize my wardrobe in seasonal/time of year capsules, so during our dominant cool season I am only wearing a subset of my weather-appropriate clothes at a given time. I do notice that if I wear an item a lot in a short space of time (several weeks) I feel sick of it, but I am generally glad to see that item when the season comes round to wear it again. That is my "likes" remain relatively stable from year to year.

I do feel that keeping clothing for a long time IS a goal of mine. I have a bit of a scarcity mentality around clothing, and tend to feel anxious about an item I like wearing out and not being able to find a replacement. (This isn't really rational -- if nothing else I have enough clothing that I can do without any given item -- but there you go.)

I do sometimes go "off" an item or category of item but have some intuitive sense that it is temporary (currently: tunic-length shirts) and will also sometimes be "over" or move on from things (most recently: unstructured open cardigans -- honestly they were never really all that great, they were just available and I didn't have a sufficiently refined sense of my preferences).

But I think both of those feelings are different than being "bored" of something.

Not having a “sufficiently refined sense of (one’s) preferences” is probably something that a lot of us go through SarahD8 and that’s where participating in the forum can help us. I think understanding more of my (probable) Kibbe type of soft gamine- self-diagnosed- and having my seasonal colour palette confirmed helped me as well. I have just made my first clothing purchase of 2026 today, after looking at it 2 days ago and taking items today that should go with it. There was an instant feeling on seeing this pair of pants that they were sassy, which is my main style word! But I had 48 hours to think about the purchase.
I have been interested in the different ways we all think about categorising our wardrobes too.

To me ‘new’ is <1 yr, ‘old’ is 5+ yrs. I looked up ‘vintage’ for clothing, and learned 20 yrs and up met the criteria. Thrifted items can be golden, but sometimes they do have a shorter life due to being pre-loved.

When I grow ‘bored’ with something, it’s usually due to ++high levels of wear during a season. I just set it aside, and wait for a half a year to see how I feel about it then. Usually, I’m looking forward to getting it back into rotation.

Sometimes I get bored with an item after only a few wears, which says to me it wasn’t a great purchase. Other things I never get bored with!

My wardrobe spans a lot of years. Strangely I don’t always think of something as “old” even when I’ve had it for 5+ years. I think the Covid era has something to do with that, LOL. When I look at my Finds here, sometimes I’m surprised at how far back I have to scroll to find a certain item — I will realize I’ve had something for more years than I thought. That’s probably a good indicator.

This is interesting! I don't get bored of clothes per se but I get hugely bored with seasons, especially our long winter season! Fortunately, I just have to wait that out and it fixes itself

I don't get rid of items solely because I've had them for a certain length of time. I keep what's useful, current enough and in good condition, I let go of what doesn't fit or make sense for me, feels dated and unlikely to come back anytime soon (this is variable for everyone of course!), or is worn out in a way that can't be fixed.

I like Suz' time scales as to what is new, old, and in between!

I think “old” is a subjective and personal term. Kind of like small, medium and large. Kinda of meaningless and yet highly descriptive at the same time
Anyway for me “old” in my closet is generally something I’ve owned for a couple of seasons. That being said I own lots of things that are in the 5-10 year range and a limited number that are older than that. But in general those are pieces that move in and out of active wear. Because while I don’t necessarily get “bored” with my pieces I do get the urge to update my silhouette and “vibe” to reflect what I see on and around me. For example the sweater I’m wearing in #1 is probably 15 years old, for the last 2 or 3 it’s been back in my active pieces, because it fits the current athleisure vive, but before that probably was generally unworn for 8 or 9 years because it was to short for lower rises and then not quite the right silhouette. Now it feels right again. Same with the vest in #2 which is 33 years old. Wore it for a couple of years, put it away, pilled it out, put it away-rinse and repeat process. Last worn in 2024. Bored with it, no but in between the times it just wasn’t the right silhouette, vibe or style for me at the moment sorry what a long winded answer short answer: I have an active closet and a waiting to come back to active closet and add and subtract based on what I feel is working for me in and at the moment

Thank you Carla, Janet and Helena.
Carla, I keep a record of what year things were bought (whether thrifted or not) that are in the working rather than sentimental wardrobe. So my mother’s 1964 red coat is not counted but things I actively wear are.
Still have 17 pre-2011 items.
2011: 4, 2012: 6, 2013: 7, 2014:7, etc etc all the way until 2025. I know I am a control and data freak!
That makes sense Janet that you probably have had some items a long time. I know I had to get to at least 5 years old before I thought of them as “old”, it feels hard to believe that Covid started around 6 years ago. Something from 2022, say, still feels relatively new to me.
Your approach seems nicely pragmatic, Helena.

Great answer kkards! I did the same with my now 40-year old bright Mondi knit. Bought 1986, very costly at the time. It felt so 80s that I put it away for about a decade or more and brought it out again about 2010. I had kept it because it was a true case of love, and I continue to love it but feel on and off it at different times. Love your vest!

I don't get bored with my clothes. I might stop wearing something if the piece doesn't work for my lifestyle or if it's at the end of its life. I also donate things that I will never wear again. Those are usually work clothes.
I have a sweater from 1985. I wore it last week. It is in good condition. I will post a picture when I get some energy. I have a couple of other sweaters that are 20 years old.
For me, old is more than 5 years. That is most of my closet.

Fair enough Style Fan! I thought of you actually when I first was thinking about this, I remembered your fab Pucci vest I think it is. If I had something like that I would never get rid of it either.

Jenni, good memory! I have a shirt with a Pucci print. It is in my holding zone. I live in a rural area, and there is nowhere to wear it. I keep it for sentimental reasons. I also have my brown suede fringe jacket from high school. I bought it around 1970!

Oh yes think I mixed up the two in my mind. It’s the brown suede jacket I remember more. I love that!

I get tired of clothes that I wear all the time for the same occasions, like my travel wardrobe. On my last trip I mixed it up and brought and wore other things, which felt very refreshing. On the other hand, I pack the same gear clothes for my hiking/National Park road trips, and I never get tired of those items, maybe because I’m packing for function and not fashion? I don’t know.

I have several items of clothing that are 10 or more years old. The things I keep tend to be things I spent a lot on, and/or have some nostalgic value, like a blazer I bought at the YLF meetup in Boston in 2014. I don’t think of them as old, I think of them as classics. I still have a fuchsia suit from 1986, purchased at my favorite department store at that time, Strawbridge and Clothier. Not sure why I’m still hanging on to it, but it is classic and gorgeous. I’d wear it today if I could fit into it!

Most of my things are within 3 years old, 5 years at maximum (excepting my wedding dress). I try to keep a pretty small wardrobe, since my storage is so limited, so things get worn (and wear out) frequently.
If I make good choices, I don't get bored, but I also don't fret much when things wear out- except shoes cause they're so problematic.

I consider anything purchased within the year to be "new." I'd say things purchased within the last three or so years are "newish." Anything older than that is "old." I have a lot of things in my wardrobe that I consider "very old," ranging from the outfit I wore at my birthday party seven years ago to my ten-year-old wedding gown to my beloved red boots, which are probably 15 years old or more. I even have a pair of cowboy boots from the mid-1980s! And I have a decent number of pieces from when I was working that are probably at least 7-8 years old -- basics like knit tops and jackets. (Although that category gets smaller every time I do a closet refresh.)

I don't really get bored with pieces because I have a big wardrobe and a lot of options. I like to keep things "just in case" and I have the space so it's not a big deal. I do get rid of things then they're worn out or when they no longer suit my style.

I typically use "old" to describe pre-kid clothes (so 12+ years), and "new" for things bought in the past year or two.

I can't say I really get bored with my clothes, but I do find some items may lose or gain relevance over time. I don't have exact stats but I'd say I'd say I manage to wear about half of my clothing right into the ground, which can take anywhere from a few years to a couple decades, and the other half gets sold/traded/donated when I realize it's not working for me (usually due to a fit issue, or redundancy/over-duplication).