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Keeping rarely worn items?

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

What do you do about garments that are useful but that you almost never wear? The other day I made myself wear a pair of black trousers I rarely wear. They're classic flat-fronted and totally fine, but I just never think to wear them. I keep them, though, because they'd be very handy for job interviews, funerals, and that sort of thing.

But where (/when) does one draw the line? Are they more like gear, in that they're not needed often, but when they do they fill a unique need? F'r instance, I don't feel like my fleece-lined jeans should be worn more often, but I do feel that way about these trousers. I know we've discussed this before, but I'm wondering what other people's approaches are.

Dressing

16 replies

Latest reply was from JR

JR

Veteran

I try to wear my clothes about evenly. You may have read one of my posts about how I put my clothes away in the back and try to dress from the front of my closet. This means I am always considering the ones that have been waiting the longest. If I shudder when I see them, it's probably time to purge.

This is like a permanent dress-the-front-of-the-closet challenge for me. I rather like living that way. I don't feel caught in too many ruts (I try not to wear the same combinations all the time) and it's satisfying to think that I'm getting my money's worth out of my clothes.

Of course, clothes that have a specialized purpose are a different kettle of fish.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I have a handful of these items. Every year I debate about them. Usually they are dresses or heels and I have few occasions, but keep them for those times I do need them. Other, more every day things, that don't get worn I am getting better about tossing. There must be a reason I don't grab for them. Why hold on?

Anonymous

I keep a lot of things I rarely wear but that is because I have a very changeable/eclectic life and I like to be prepared. Types of things I keep are:

Trousers 1 brown/1 black
Heavy coat
Heavy wool sweater
Snow boots

I don't have a lack of space issue.

lamireille

I wish I had advice! I've just been going through the threads here on closet editing, and I get all excited about how wonderful it would be to look at my closet and LOVE everything I see... and then I try to actually do the editing and throw out... great shoes I coveted and then never wore! An embellished sweater that should be awesome but kind of isn't! Jeans that I paid way too much for because they were comfy but not super flattering! And I just have a horrible time doing it.

I'm all about purging in my head, but in practice it is really hard for me, and I think for the same reason you're talking about. A piece that looks gorgeous in the catalog may not be a thrill in real life, but I still remember what I expected from it, and that makes it hard to throw it out. A cashmere crewneck SHOULD be classic and elegant and a staple you can build a wardrobe around, but... it's also not thrilling. Much like your black pants (not to slam your pants--but you don't sound like you're in love with them). And something that isn't thrilling doesn't get worn. But it feels so WRONG to purge something so sensible.

So, I feel your pain, and I'm looking forward to reading the answers you get!

Aziraphale

Veteran

I guess it depends on the item in question. If you have regular need for those black pants, even if it's only once a year, keep 'em. If you have other items that will fill the same hole, and you kind of feel "blah" about the pants, you can probably get rid of them. Like, sure they're good interview and/or funeral wear, but do you have other appropriate things to wear to interviews and funerals? Things that you would *rather* wear? If so, I see no reason to keep the black pants.

DonnaF

Veteran

I've been making a conscious effort to wear seldom worn items. In addition to reaching for the same things out of laziness and habit, I have concluded that I tend to be reluctant to wear something if it has to be dry cleaned and that I have a tendency to *save* nice stuff.

I now make a conscious effort to purchase machine washable clothes (even jackets!) and tell myself that I deserve to look nice and wear those nice clothes. And for those lesser worn items, I try to figure out more creative combos than wearing them in the same ol', same ol'. That may include dressing it up or dressing it down. In the case of the little blazer I bought that never seemed warm enough but was too dark for summer, I am now wearing it with layers and layers underneath. It is very stretchy, so all the layers fit.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

If it's truly useful, I wear it.

Maybe not often. But enough to justify the space it takes in the closet.

I have a pair of patent pumps. I wear them maybe twice a year. That's okay; they fill a genuine need.

When it comes to stuff like your black pants...if I never reach for it and wouldn't miss it in an emergency, I purge it without a thought. For instance, I wouldn't keep a pair of "interview" worthy pants around unless a). I enjoyed wearing them in other ensembles, and/or b.) I planned on going to some interviews within the next six to eight months. Otherwise, why bother? Styles might change, my shape might change....and I wouldn't even know what I might be interviewing *for* and the requirements might differ.

Freckles

Veteran

I find funeral wear particularly problematic for family friends. I want to be sensitive to their idea of a norm and since you never know when the need will arise it seems a bit of a difficult area to judge. I might keep them around and see if you reach for them at the next funeral.

I had one last winter in the bitter cold with a really long cemetary service and nothing warm enough and appropriate to wear.

Deborah

Veteran

As Suz says, if the garments are truly useful I say keep. For example, I have a dress that I bought for my FIL's funeral. It's a simple sheath dress with detail on the short sleeve. I could wear it to work or to other functions but for some reason I don't. I think I have only worn it the once. But it's one of the dresses that won't date quickly and serves a purpose.

Gaylene

Veteran

I'd say that it depends on the particular item. To keep, it would have to still fit and look current. Anything that didn't pass those two tests would go. Then it would depend on whether or not I had anything similar in my regular rotation. If yes, then I'd be inclined to purge the item if I hadn't worn it for the past year. And I really take a long hard look at anything that has sat in my closet unworn for more than a couple of years. If the right occasion hasn't happened during that time period, the item probably belongs more to my fantasy life than my real one.

Caro in Oz

Veteran

I'd be thinking about why I don't wear them & then think about the pieces I love to wear what are the differences? Sometimes it is the small things that make the difference between loving & not wearing. If you have pieces that do a better job then I don't think there is any need to keep them but I do think it's important to understand why they don't work.

goldenpig

(website)

Veteran

I think hanging on to old clothes is useful if they are the perfect finishing item for an outfit. For example I have several old tank tops that I keep as "completer" pieces that I wouldn't necessarily wear on their own but work well under jackets. And a handful of other 20 year old clothes that I rarely wear but still do once in a while. But I have a large wardrobe and high tolerance for keeping rarely worn items. If you don't like wearing them and never reach for them, then it's time to purge. I'm realizing that I hardly ever wear trousers anymore so I'm trying to minimize my pants collection.

Transcona Shannon

Veteran

I have a couple of cocktail dresses and a vintage fur coat that only get worn once or twice per year so technically are rarely worn items. But that's because of what they are and the function they are worn to is not frequent. So in that instance, yes, I am hanging on to something that is rarely worn. Otherwise, if I have an item in my closet and I haven't pulled it out in several months to wear, it gets purged.

Mander

(website)

Veteran

I have a couple of things like this that I hang on to because I don't really have a similar piece, and I don't want to go to the trouble or expense to try and replace it at short notice if I need it for an unexpected situation. So I keep my somewhat frumpy, inoffensive black trouser suit, plain black leather heels, and a fancy ball gown, even though they are hardly worn.

If your clothes storage space isn't too crowded and you don't secretly hate the item, I think it's fine to keep it until you find something better to replace it.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

"I don't really have a similar piece, and I don't want to go to the trouble or expense to try and replace it at short notice if I need it for an unexpected situation." Mander, that's exactly the situation I find myself in with these pants, and some other similar items. I don't really need to wear tailored trousers that often, nor certain kinds of shoes or a suit, but it seems silly to get rid of them, assuming they still fit and aren't offensively out of style.

I think maybe I just need to put these somewhere other than my regular clothes, if I'm honestly not going to wear them except for a few times a year. Maybe collected together on one side of the closet or something. I can't quite articulate why it bugs me to have them hanging around, when it doesn't bug me to have shorts in the back of the closet in the winter, say.

This goes together with my culling post of the other day, I suppose - I don't have a hard time any more with getting rid of things that don't fit, don't suit me at all, or that have some feature that bug me. But perfectly good clothes that I might need someday, it seems crazy to get rid of them when I've spent the money for them.

JR

Veteran

I think it's crazy too. I put those kinds of clothes in the very back of the closet, out of the regular rotation. They are for specific occasions, not my everyday life, and I don't expect them to be worn often. But when I need them, they are there. Why purge a perfectly good item that you would have to go out and replace a few months later?

Getting rid of something that doesn't fit, or is rotten quality, or that you can no longer bear the sight of, is something entirely different.