Post - Her State of Mind

A couple weeks ago, I wrote my first guest post for The Minimalist Wardrobe, a blog that provides helpful advice on how to build a minimalist wardrobe and embrace living with less.

I felt a lot of pressure to write something that would resonate with people. After doing some brainstorming, the topic dawned on me. It’s a conversation that I’d recently had with one of my best friends: What do you do when you’ve “aged out” of your wardrobe – when you look in your closet and see mountains of clothes, but feel like you have nothing to wear?

Life doesn’t stand still – and sometimes your wardrobe can’t keep up. Maybe you just graduated from college and need to substitute some of your crop tops for formal career attire. Or you recently had a baby and need clothing that doesn’t show every sign of spit-up. Whatever the reason for this sudden transition, this is a topic that I think almost anyone can relate to.

And it was surprisingly very easy for me to write about. The words came flowing out because it’s something that I’ve truly struggled with and, while I’m still finding my way, there are a few things I’ve learned and wanted to share with people. It’s not easy to rebuild your closet to reflect your current tastes and lifestyle – and it’s even more challenging to do so in an ethical and sustainable way. Here were some of the key takeaways from my article:

Re-evaluate everything you have in your wardrobe and CLEANSE. Don’t hold on to anything that you don’t absolutely love. Try out apps like Poshmark and ThredUp to sell clothes you no longer want. You can also give them away to friends and coworkers or donate them to charity. Next, identify the holes in your closet, make a list of key pieces that you feel are missing and be selective about what you choose to buy.
Pay attention to what your clothes are made of and consider the quality of materials. Investing in natural fiber clothing like cotton, cashmere and silk can be a game-changer.
Imagine how that item will pair with the rest of the items in your wardrobe. Consider the versatility of the piece, where you’d wear it and picture how many different outfits you could potentially make out of it.
Ask yourself: if I walk away now, would I really regret it? And be honest with yourself. I’m a sucker for a good deal. End-of-season sales are my kryptonite. But at the end of the day, I have to ask myself: do I really love that item of clothing, or do I love the price? Quite frequently, it’s the latter and I realize it’s not something that I really need or even want.
Building your ideal minimalist wardrobe doesn’t have to happen overnight. And it shouldn’t. It’s a gradual process that requires you to make thoughtful, conscious decisions about what you choose to invest in.

You can read the full article on The Minimalist Wardrobe. And if you’re curious to know more about ethical/sustainable fashion and minimalism, check out some of the articles on there. It’s a great resource to get started. There are some awesome, extremely knowledgeable people who contribute regularly to this blog, and I’ve learned tons from them. Go check it out!