For Simple Saturday this week I thought, since we spoke in depth about our closets this week, I would give you a sneak peek into mine.
My stuff at the back and Hubby's to the left
My wardrobe at floor level
The one item I decluttered
Simple Saturday ~ My Wardrobe
That looks good. I will have to do the same thing soon. Take pictures I mean.
Hi Deb J,
I am glad to say I didn’t have to do too much tidying up in there to make it look this good. I did spot one or two things that might also end up on the chopping block before my mission is complete though.
If I took pictures of my side of the closet, you could see that I am truly serious when I say I have no pants. There is a huge hole where the pants used to reside. I am hoping to fill it with at least two pairs of pants I can wear without crying. The rest of the closet is filled with winter shirts. The floor is full of shoes I don’t wear (mostly). I think I need to declutter shoes and add pants. If anyone knows where I can really buy pants (in the states) that are not going to make me hate myself or cry from the pain, can you please send me a link?
I’m truly hopeless. LOL
Hugs,
Chelle
http://www.lifeonthedomesticfront.blogspot.com
Hi Chelle,
I have just the same trouble. I spent a whole morning in a large shopping centre trying on pants from chain store cheap to boutique expensive with no success. I see plenty of women the same shape as me walking around with pants that looked fine – I think I’m going to have to accost one & demand they tell me where they ‘Got those pants’! Seriously though, I think I’m going to have to go back to making them myself…..but knowing me it will turn into more ‘aspirational clutter’. :/
Julie,
So what exactly do you wear? I am having the most awful time trying to find anything that I can wear on my bottom half and I am in between the jeans sizes right now. I have to get bigger or smaller by five-ten pounds.
I also see women who are larger than me walking around in pants and I want to run up to them and say hey, you’re the same shape as me and I’m gaining weight. Where do you buy your pants? But I’m afraid I’ll get punched in the nose. LOL I just don’t understand how all of these larger sized women are fitting into these pants. And they are all short like me!
Help! Maybe I need to go to the thrift store, like Colleen is suggesting. I need to do something, because I just can’t find anything at all to wear. It’s gone beyond the normal “I don’t have a thing to wear” to a very serious “I really don’t have anything to wear and I’m going to have to go naked!”
Chelle
Hi Julie,
welcome to 365 Less Things and thank you for leaving a comment. If I were you I would definitely accost one of those pants wearers and find out where they got them from. They just might have the answer for you. Good luck!
Hi Chelle,
if you are not sure how your weight is going to go maybe it would be best to make a trip to the thrift shop and see if you can pick up some nice inexpensive pants there. It would be a whole lot easier parting with them if you lose weight again and they no longer fit. We get some quite lovely clothes in very good condition passing through the thrift store where I volunteer so you just never know what you might find at a store near you. Good luck!
Chelle, is your weight gain concentrated at your waist? My sister had this problem while on some medicine. Her legs were still thin so pants which fitted at the waist were way too big for her legs. Finally, she found some clothes that fitted perfectly in the maternity section.
Good luck!
Colleen, thank you for including pictures. That’s really helpful. Thanks for following me on twitter too 🙂
Hi NatalieinCA,
I didn’t realise until Thursday that you had just a great twitter page. I will be checking in often.
Coleen you are my hero!! How bloomin fabulose is your closet!!!
I am slightly envious, here in the uk we don’t really have walk in closets, our house was built in 1939 and there is no storage at all, let alone a walk in closet. Hubby and i have a ikea wardrobe each and that’s it, no drawers no shelves nothing, to have that sort of space to house your clothes is a dream!!
Thank you for sharing posts like these, they continue to inspire and encourage me 🙂
Sharron x
Hi Sharron,
I feel your pain. We have not always had such a modern house either and the lack of functionality of those old fashioned wardrobes is annoying. I can still remember the ones we had as children and even as I child I know they weren’t suited to our needs. You would hate me if you saw our ensuite area in the house we lived in in America. It was bigger than our bedroom, ensuite and walk in wardrobe combined in this house. I had a walk in robe of my own that was at least as big as the one we now share. I do miss that ensuite and even though it was bit it was a very functional area. Mind you it is probably partly the cause of all the decluttering I am doing now because there was so much space to store stuff. I am very happy in my new easy to clean, small cardon footprint house that I am in now, so no regrets.
im so envious also….i live in five rooms in queens and have very little closet space. since my 92 year old mom moved in I really dont have a closet. I have dresser drawers…my husband has an armoire (sp?) and I have a lot of things stored in rubbermaid containers. I have the winter sweaters in a cedar chest being stored. We make it work but I sure wish I had your walk in closets. absolutely lovely. you inspire me to want less…use what I have and declutter. I did a show on blogtalkradio yesterday….I am attaching the link should you like to listen….I hope you do:)
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/donna-marie-ryan/2011/09/01/use-it-sell-it-give-it-away-throw-it-away#.Tl-ch9rIus0.email
thank you so much for inspiring us every day..
Hi Donna,
I am listening to your radio link as I write this reply. What a great enthusiastic session it is and very encouraging too. Good work. I am going to add it to my Friday Favourite Five post next week. You are a wonderful person taking care of your mom and sharing your home with her. Raising children is one thing but caring for the elderly is a very different situation that as you prove can also be very rewarding if you have the right attitude towards it.
Thanks Colleen – I love it when you post photos, feels like I get to know you a little better!
I (interesting I think), don’t like walk in wardrobes – well I’ve never had one, so maybe I’m just loving what I’ve got (which is all about watering the grass you’ve got, not wishing you had another patch that was greener). I have an old amoire/wardrobe, that dad put shelves in, and most things are folded and put there. I realised this is what I liked when I lived in French student housing, and used bookshelves. It’s just so easy to see everything. I then have a wardrobe section in the study, where I hang my work uniform, coats, and dressy stuff. It works well for me. I’m not sure what I’ll do if/when I move though!
Hi Snosie,
I don’t think it matters whether your closet is walk in or otherwise so long as it is functional. I also have a tall boy with a variation of drawer sizes and I love it. With all the different drawer there is just the right space for just about everything.
Thanks for sharing, I love to see pics of real spaces, I’m nosey like that 😉
I love how your and your hubby’s wardrobes color coordinate, LOL! My DH has a rainbow of t-shirts, but he wears them all all the time.
Hi Cat’sMeow,
it is an absolute coincidence that our wardrobes coordinate because I never buy my husbands clothes. That is one of the few things I have never done for him, that and polish his shoes.
Oh, yes, the wardrobe thing. Mine is bulking too. I switched the hangers the other way around this morning and have decluttered several items. I think I know what won’t be used, but hey, I will see it in half a year.
Hi Nurchamiel,
I like the backwards facing hanger approach. One can be too hasty when decluttering clothes and it is best to wait until the end of the season to be sure your love of an item won’t be rekindled. Once the season ends, all items have had their chance and out they go if they have remained unloved.
Hi Colleen,
I was fixing to declutter a couple of my less favorite “good” t-shirts, then I thought about how I wear “tired” t-shirts under my work uniform… so the “good” but less fave t-shirts now have a use and I have a few more items available for my work outfit, meaning I could get rid of a couple of pretty ratty ones…. win-win-win! 🙂
Yet again another timely post. I promised that when I reached my 40th ( last Wednesday ) that anything that didn’t fit me was going. I start the purge today. It will take many days to get it where I want it, but at least I know it can and will be done. I have gotten rid of 500 things already, but it’s barely a star on the chart ! Gotta start somewhere though. love your inspiational pictures. Thank you.
Hi Tasmanian Minimalist,
my wardrobe does look somewhat organised and reasonably minimal but I have to admit I will be glad when some things are worn out and I can replace them. I am not desperate enough for that to happen to be wasteful though. Patients is a virtue they tell us and in some areas I can be more patient than others. 😉
Hi Colleen,
I hope you find that advice not too obnoxious, but one thing that helps me stay decluttered in the wardrobe is to actually keep one or two pieces that I like but never wear. I decided to keep two allover printed shirts that stylewise just belong to a period in my life that is over. However I know they have colours and shapes I am drawn to when shopping. Seeing them everyday reminds me of my reason for not buying things like that anymore. I figured that it might be dangerous to let go completely because I might forget that I would not wear those things even if I had them. I hope though that this is only a temporary step in the learning process. But as long as I notice that I admire wildly printed things I’ll keep my “reminders”.
Hey Ideealistin whatever works for you is a good method if you ask me. Take a photo of yourself wearing one of them and keep a small copy in your purse just in case you find yourself falling into temptation. You can whip out the photo and go “Oh yes, that is why I shouldn’t buy these things!”.
Uhh, better not. It would probably lead me exactly in the wrong direction. I think the fotos would work for things I look awful in. But those I can remember easily (some shocking moments will never be forgotten … yes, American Apparel shiny high waisted leggings really are only for the super skinny types with no curves. The longshirts to hide everything about them that looked bad on me would have to be maxidresses …)
The physical reminders are for things that actually would look good but I still would not chose them. Hard to explain (which is probably the reason why it is hard to remember, too 😉 )
Hi Ideealistin,
I am not sure I understand completely but like I said before whatever works for you is a tactic worth deploying. So go for it.