What's in Your Closet? at Catholic Mom

Spend a little time thinking about material things now so that you can spend more time thinking about spiritual things later.   Read more at Catholic Mom.

Blessings,
Laura

Six-Item Challenge: Post Game Wrap Up

It's been a week since I completed my 30 day Six-Item Clothing Challenge and with the exception of a few "cheats" (unexpected funeral & my afore-mentioned oversight of my preschool work T-shirt) it was quite a success.  In fact, on the last day of the challenge, I realized that I had to actually THINK about what I would wear the next day and I was totally bummed out!

Much to my surprise, I didn't hate the six items of clothing I chose by the time I reached the end of thirty days.  I was a little tired of a few of them but I had picked clothes that I liked and felt good wearing so it wasn't the torture it could have been. 

I have to say, those thirty days did teach me a few things.

1. I have WAY too many clothes and I'm not even a clotheshorse!  I'm kind of embarrassed to admit it but many of my clothes  rarely get worn.   Instead, I wear the same few outfits over and over again.  ( Can you say "closet purge"?)
2. When you have a smaller pool of clothing to choose from, you have to be careful not to wash them all at the same time.  Unless, of course, you can spend the day in your pajamas,  Then, be my guest!
3. I've been guilty of the impulsive, last-minute clothing purchase that often ends up being worn just a few times.  After my clothing experiment, I realize that I need to change my thinking when I purchase clothing.  I need to think about quality and longevity instead of low-cost "disposable" items.  This means I will probably be spending more money for clothes but I'll also be buying fewer items.  In the long run, my clothing costs should even out or, perhaps, even go down.  I'll keep you posted.
4. Here's the BIG revelation--Hold on to your hats....Most people don't notice what I'm wearing from day to day.  Shocking, isn't it?  And here I thought I was the center of the universe!  Don't get me wrong.  People may notice if I look nice but mostly they have short memories (thankfully).  Of course, on some level this hurts my pride.  I like to think that people are paying more attention to me than they actually are.  But, the humbling reality is that most people are too busy trying to get through their day to care about whether or not I wore a brown T-shirt two days in a row!

So, did the last 30 days change my perspective?  Most certainly!  Am I going to get rid of all but 6 items of my clothing?  No.  But....I might scale down to 10 or 12 items (per season, that is!).  I guess I've still got a long way to go. 

"Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!"  (Eccl. 1:2)

Blessings,
Laura

My First "7 Quick Takes" Post

After reading other 7QT posts over the past year or so, I decided it was time to give it a try.  I figure that I have so many random thoughts going through my head everyday that writing down seven of them shouldn't be too hard.  (said the clueless blogger...) So, here goes!

 

I'm more than half-way through my 6-item challenge and I've learned a few things namely....



 

---- 1----

I'm not nearly as creative in creating new and interesting outfits than I thought I would be at this point in the experiment.  I was hoping that forcing myself to only use 6 items of clothing for 30 days would inspire some brilliant fashion revelations that I could then share with you.  Unfortunately, the only thing I've learned is that I generally don't put a lot of thought into my clothing combinations and I'm just fine with wearing the same thing over and over again.  I do wonder, though, whether people who don't know about my experiment are thinking, "Didn't she wear that shirt yesterday?"

 

----2----

Doing a clothing challenge during August in Texas comes with some built-in limitations.  When it's over 90 degrees outside, there is no creative layering going on with jackets, sweaters, or even lightweight scarves.  People, it's HOT here.  I mostly spend my time thinking about how little I can wear without getting arrested or embarrassing myself or others!

 

----3----

Hot weather means smelly clothes which also means that you're limited on the number of times you can wear an item before you just HAVE to wash it.  Considering that I'm only wearing a combination of 6 items, putting an item in the wash is like sending your child off to kindergarten.  Can I live without it for a few hours today?  (Cringe, fingers crossed, deep breath.)

 

----4----

 



There have been days when I've been tempted to wear workout clothes all day just to get a break from the challenge.  Since workout clothes and undergarments (Thank Goodness) don't count toward the challenge, would it be cheating for me to wear bike shorts and a T-shirt all day with no intention of exercising?  Judgement call on my part.  I'll get back to you on that one.

 

----5----

I neglected to factor in the fact that my preschool teaching job would be resuming at the end of the month.  I may have to consider my school t-shirt and jogging suit that I wear to teach Movement class as part of my "uniform" and therefore say it doesn't count against me.  Cheating?  Perhaps.  But, I'm still in the spirit of challenge, right?

 

----6----

I'm looking at clothing much differently now.  I guess I have higher standards as a result of this experiment.  I find myself looking at a piece of clothing and wondering "How many ways can I wear that?" instead of "Where can I wear that?"  Where, in the past, if I found a shirt I liked I would try to justify buying it by finding ONE occasion to wear it.  Now, if I can't wear it two-three times a week, it's a no-go.  Of course, that doesn't mean you can't have that one dress that makes you feel beautiful but only gets worn once a year.  We ARE human, after all.  After all, what girl doesn't want a dress that makes her want to hum "I feel pretty, oh so pretty...!"

 

----7----

I can live with a LOT less than I usually do.  Wearing only 6 items of clothing is limiting but not as much as you might think.  In fact, it's kind of nice not too spend much time thinking about what to wear.  Add that to the fact that I only chose items that fit well and make me feel good when I wear them.  It all adds up to me being a 6-item convert.  When this experiment is over, I'll definitely be wearing more than 6 items in a month but not much more.  Maybe 7 or 8 items...? I'll keep you posted!

 

My first 7QT post --DONE!

 

Blessings,

Laura