Do you always buy clothes because they’re so cute, but then you realize you have nowhere to wear them? I do! I have at least two dresses I bought last year that I have yet to wear.
I never really thought about this until one of my fellow bloggers wrote a post about it. Anuschka Rees mentioned that when she was younger, she only bought clothes for fun activities. (Just like me!) She somehow forgot about clothes for everyday life.
But she gave some great tips for figuring out what your wardrobe should consist of. Anuschka said that your clothes should reflect your personal style, as well as your lifestyle. Whether you have a small budget or no budget at all, you can get what you need for a great wardrobe. Make sure not to spend too much on clothing items that aren’t necessary. You should try adding the basics and key pieces that can be worn with multiple outfits.
First, you should write down the different activities you do in a three-week period and how often you do these activities. Then make sure to group activities into categories that require the same styles of clothes. Anuschka said, “I often go to university and shopping, but for both I wear casual everyday outfits.” Making a chart like the one below can help you visualize how often you’ll need to wear each style clothing.
You should consider the number of days you do the activities, not just the hours you’ll wear them.
Anuschka mentioned the number of clothes you should get for each category by saying:
Ideally, the amount of clothes in your closet should correspond roughly to the distribution of your categories, i.e. your lifestyle. To get a better idea of the quantities, you can also estimate how many times you need an outfit from each category within the time frame. I chose three weeks because I think I would like to not repeat the exact same outfit in three weeks (1month seemed too long and two weeks too short
. Feel free to adjust the time frame if you want to.
Below is an example of the number of days per three weeks that someone might wear a specific style outfit.Next time you check your closet, have your diagram and frequencies in mind. It will help you figure out what you need more or less of and what you should get next time you’re at the store. Good luck shopping, Lovelies!
Does your wardrobe reflect your style? How do you balance your wardrobe?
guest
This is really helpful! I often go shopping for nice “nightlife” clothes when in fact the majority of my time is not spent clubbing! (I wish….) I should focus more on everyday looks since I tend to look like I’ve given up on life when I go to class.
guest
This has never really been a problem of mine. I have one dress in my closet that I have never worn. I am not even sure why I bought it since it is a formal dress. It may have been for a wedding or something. Since it is classic and pretty I keep it.
rose / 934 posts
Yeah.. if I buy something I will wear it pretty much whenever I feel like wearing it, not because it’s supposed to be worn for x type of day/event. Got a super casual dress and a fancy dinner to go to? Pair it with dressy accessories (includes jackets, bags, and shoes) and make sure the hair suits the occasion. Works the other way around if I want to wear a dressy piece but want to look more casual.
guest
Meh. My wardrobe needs to be replaced almost in its entirety. -_-
I have a couple of awesome dresses from Target that can either be dressy or casual depending on what shoes/jewelry I wear. Have two pairs of jeans that are so old the butt and knees are wearing thin, two pairs that are still in good shape and fit well, and for shirts I just have some lame-ass cotton t-shirts and ill-fitting tank tops (they’re so hard to find when you are super short.)
I feel like I could throw out almost everything, save for a couple pairs of shoes, jeans, and those dresses – and be totally comfortable starting over from there. Meep.
guest
I work night shift, and I wear scrubs all night… so during the day is actually like the middle of the night for me, so I am usually in sweats. I basically live in pajamas, but on my days off I like sundresses, tank tops, shorts. and in the winter I go for leggings, loose shirts, boots, and sweaters. I have maybe 3 going out dresses. I am not too horribly girly
guest
I think my wardrobe fits my lifestyle quite well. I have lots of collared shirts and blazers since they both work for my job (journalist) and for going out for casual drinks, which I do quite a lot of. My school clothes are usually jeans and a nice sweater or something. I do have a lot of dresses but I usually go out at least two nights a week. I own one pair of sweatpants and then a bunch of pajamas that I wear in the house, but I don’t really need any “loungewear” since I try not to leave the house unless I look quite well put together. I could always use more pants though, but shopping for them is such a pain.
guest
I’m lucky if I go one week without re-wearing something, but I am a guy, so whatever.
daffodil / 1525 posts
I go to school and work (on-campus student assistant). My wardrobe is like 50% t-shirts, 20% jeans, 10% shorts, 15% sweaters/jackets, and 5% dresses. I think it’s quite alright.
guest
Pretty much. I don’t really have a whole lot of variety in my daily styles, however. I have to change into work-provided scrubs at my job, so it doesn’t matter what I wear to work. And I can wear whatever I please to class. So…yeah, all pretty casual.
daisy / 598 posts
this is the story of my life. i love buying cute outfits that i often don’t end up wearing as often. i don’t really buy fancy stuff, usually dresses that can technically be casual but are still on the nicer side. even wearing those sometimes at school, i feel too dressed up lol and then when i’m just sitting around at school or whatever, i feel silly being so dressed up (when reality it isn’t, i’m just not in sweatshirts and jeans like everyone else). so i usually end up wearing something more casual lol!
guest
nope, but I disagree anyway. you can wear the same pair sweatpants at home 3 day in a row and no one thinks your outfit is boring. Or the same pair of flat shoes at work where no one cares how you look either.
But you don’t want to wear the same pair of high heels every time you party or the same evening dress to every event. I wear new work out pants every time I work out so that should be 3 pairs a week or so, even though it’s just hlf an hour each time.
guest
Huh…Docs and jeans and band tees everyday.
guest
that’s a really good method!
guest
I got them all set out.
Plus, I’m one of those people who wears lovely casual dresses for everyday
guest
I pretty much own a lot of things I can’t wear anywhere because I don’t go anywhere. But I love to shop and make my own clothes that I know I won’t wear. <3
cherry blossom / 38 posts
I can’t tell you how many items of clothing I have bought and never worn and ended up just giving away. I buy things I think are cute but then have no where to wear them, or realize once I get home it’s completely not my style! Thanks for the tip!
guest
I have a ton of clothes of a variety of styles, but when it is time to go out, I freak out
and can’t decide what to wear. so I usually end up wearing my favorite jacket, casual top and same few pairs of jeans with my sneakers
despite this, whenever I go shopping and see something that I like, I have to buy them or else I’ll go home and obsess over how much I want the items, so I go back to reclaim what is mine
I’m pretty possessive in all areas of my life. all MINE
guest
That’s me in a nutshell. I’m a pretty lazy shopper so my eyes only catch cute cocktail dresses, when I should be buying more work clothes since that’s where I am for 40 hours of the week – but work clothes are ugly so I hate spending money on them. Gotta set priorities.