I have not slept well since last Wed. What is up with that?
This year I have redone my wardrobe. I have been doing this a little for the past 10 years as my job has become more casual and since I let my hair go gray. 2017 is the most money that I will ever spend on clothes/shoes/accessories in a single year again. For sure shoes/accessories. My clothes purchases were not too bad. I am sure I have spent more when I was just shopping for fun and with no plan. I had so much chaos. I have always been a shopper and just bough stuff on a whim or because it was on sale. But now I am downsizing fairly effectively. Other than couple strategic purpose (coat/workout/golf) I don't plan to buy much for a long time. I won't ever shop like I used to. I now focus on classic pieces and not trends. My accessories and shoes purchases this year were high, because I totally revamped both my purse/wallets and shoe wardrobe. I also bought a pair of diamond anniversary bands that I have wanted for several years. I do a lot of painting/yard/gardinging at RH, that I don't want to wear my diamond ring when i am wearing gardening or motorcycle gloves. I sold off a bunch of my shoes (boots, really) and bought 2 more very nice pair that should just about last the rest of my life. One last year and one this year. The savings in space is huge! I also got rid of about 8 various tote bags, all cheap and some falling apart for one really nice vintage leather overnight bag, 1 vintage work tote, 1 vintage leather tote for workout clothes for my trunk and 1 no name leather all purpose tote. I realize this past year I have spent a lot of time and energy and focus on doing this wardrobe overhall, but I have been strategic and planned, bought smart and second-hand when I could and feel that now I can pretty much just maintain my wardrobe going forward. No more time/money/desire to shop aimlessly. I want to focus on more important things - like helping my husband pare down his closet and getting all our stuff moved and organized in our new, smaller RH. P.S. I have sold about $10k of stuff in the past 2 years paring down furniture, hunting accessories, boots, purses, jewelry, motorcycle gear, sporting goods, coats, kitchenware, seasonal decorations, misc furnishings/antiques and 2 sets of dishes. Overall, I feel like this is a huge win and an absolute necessity for us to be able to fit comfortably and without a bunch of clutter in our new place. Since I have had 2 years to do it, it was easier. I would do it all over again. Even though it was a lot of work, it felt good purging. My DH thinks selling stuff is my new hobby, but I would much rather have a less cluttered space that is easier to clean and maintain and find time to get back to reading! My sales proceeds have gone into replacement pieces, doing remodeling at RH and savings. I have funded most of my wardrobe overhaul in cash/some sales proceeds. I will likely not make the same income again for a couple years, so this has worked out well.
Here are my breakdowns of what I bought in 2017, so far. I still have about $500 I expect in clothes sales and I am also trying to sell a custom piece of jewelry I have listed for $1100. So we shall see how that shakes down. I certainly do not think I will have to do such a pare down ever again. (Sure does give me incentive to stay same size!). The next time I pare down, it will be pretty much to get rid of the last of my professional work clothes/shoes/bags. I have about 6 pair of shoes left that are for work and I can prob get rid of about half of those. I will keep one pair of black pumps and one nude. I will get ride of 2 more purses and 1 tote bag. It will be exciting to purge last of my suits/slacks/dresses and just keep the fun stuff. I am really into stuff that can double duty casual or be paired with jackets/shoes/accessories and dressed up if i need. I have bought 4 dresses in the past 2 years, but i like to have them for church/weddings/graduations. Over the last 10 years as I have been strictly a temp, I have probably gotten rid of 15 pair of heels, about 10 suits, 4 dressy coats and 3 briefcases. I also got rid of about 20 pair of boots and numerous business separates and several dresses that were too young/specific. One thing i have done to try to help myself pare down, now that i have gray hair, i don't wear brown anymore, so that was about 1/3 of my wardrobe. I also find that as much as i love navy, it is dressier than i want to be now, so i got rid of a bunch of navy stuff. Now I am way more focused when I do shop and don't buy anything but black, gray or denim. I buy a few colorful accessories (scarves and costume jewelry that are easy to change out). I figure i won't keep much costume jewelry at all either, once i am not working. Jewelry and accessories do not take up nearly as much space, but they are still clutter if they start to take over. Looking back I am sad that I was such a hoarder, but glad I have felt this shift.
total $2159 (less 1000 rings = $1159)
clothes: 409
shoes: 467
accessories: 1283
PM & Thred up
clothes: 59 (misc, incl 2 pair white jeans - this is a tricky category for me, hard to fit and white is unforgiving)
shoes: 124 (2 ankle boots (warm for work - I freeze there and I walk 2 blocks, 1 motorcycle boot (a need - I got rid of 3 others that were not working for me), 1 sneaker, 1 basic pump - I got rid of several cheap sneakers and pumps and got good leather ones)
accessories: 48 (mostly scarves, 1 tote bag and 1 clutch - I never owned a clutch! I bought it for a formal wedding, but picked a basic enough piece, I can use it forever)
ebay
clothes: 45 (2 golf shirts, 2 golf shorts & winter coat - I got rid of 6 other coats)
shoes: 35 (nude pump, black med sandal, 1 med wedge sandal I got rid of 3 pair brown sandals)
accessories: 150 (leather duffle bag and pair of aquamarine stud earrings)
amazon
clothes: 10 (tee)
shoes: 175 (Frye boots and flat sandal - my black pair broke)
other internet purchases:
clothes: (super warm sweater) $60
shoes: (snow boots, 2 sneaker that did not work out) $87
accessories: underwear and bras $25
brick and mortar
accessories: 1060(jewelry, scarves and a golf hat)
clothes (pj's and workout stuff, golf pants, another pair white jeans, 3 dresses): 235
shoes: 50 (2 pair sneakers - I walk a LOT, I buy about every 3 - 6 months)
future wish list for 2018
warm winter boots/house shoes
black pashmina/cashmere type wrap
warm winter hat
hiking boots & day backpack (maybe 2019)
rain parka (may not need - I have a golf rain jacket and I can just use over layers when I walk/hike in the weather)
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