Cherry Picking

Navy blouse (Apt. 9, Kohl's); White skirt, Shoes, Bag (Steinmart); Belt (Target); Bracelet (Nordstrom)

If you're like me, you probably have some tried and true favorites in your wardrobe that you reach for over and over again - you "cherry pick" the best from your closet while other items rarely see the light of day.  Some items may even still have the tags on them.  Why?  There are any number of reasons for wardrobe waste:  maybe you didn't like a piece as much when you got it home as you did in the store; maybe you didn't have anything to go with it; or you are saving it for a special event; maybe it's due to poor closet organization.  Regardless of the reason, if you're not wearing what's in your closet, you're not maximizing your wardrobe, and you're not maximizing space in your closet for items you WILL love and wear.

In a prior post (One Skirt, Two Ways), I talked about shopping in your own closet to find fresh looks by mixing and matching or styling items in a different way.  This takes a bit of effort and some quality time spent organizing and trying on all those lonely, less loved, and forgotten pieces, but the pay-off is worth it in several respects:  1) you'll have "new" outfits that didn't cost any money; 2) you'll create more opportunities to wear your "go to" favorite pieces because you'll have more ways to style them; 3) you'll identify staples that may be missing from your wardrobe to complete outfits; 4) you'll be better equipped when you do shop to recognize what purchases will best work with items you already own, and 5) you can clean out and donate pieces that just don't work for you, thereby creating more space for new things that do!

I've been working on cleaning out my own closet recently, and rediscovering pieces that haven't been in rotation for a while or, in some cases, ever.  I decided to challenge myself to make no new purchases as long as there were items hanging in my closet that had never been worn.  The caveat was that it would be acceptable to purchase items specifically to match something I already owned if the only thing keeping me from wearing a piece was lack of anything to go with it.  This personal challenge was also an opportunity to get rid of items (yes- even some that still had tags on them) that didn't make me feel my best.  I love to shop, so the process was not always easy, and I haven't been perfect in completing it.  On occasion, a gorgeous new item at a great price has been too great a temptation (especially when it comes to shoes!), and there are a few items I haven't been able to part with even though I still have no idea how I'll style them. Even so, I feel like I've made lots of progress in maximizing my wardrobe while minimizing my shopping budget, and I've discovered some new favorites that I didn't appreciate even though they were in my closet all along.

How often do you overhaul your closet?  Have you "rediscovered" new ways to wear old pieces?

Fashion is what you buy; Style is what you do with it!