This is a bit more complex than the first big spreadsheet report three months ago, because now I’ve covered winter and spring weather up to the beggining of the hot-hot summer. It’s cumulative instead of capsule-ish (but the capsule is dead) and garments appropriate for milder weather are bound to have more wears in total. Yet it still is a clear reflection of the functionality of my wardrobe (and of babysteps towards #100wears). The astonishing part even for me is that in these six months I have worn it all at least once! Boom. The ~40 garment wardrobe (~50 including shoes) works and might be the optimal one!
So here you have the wardrobe heroes by categories in 2018 so far with the number of wears in parenthesis:
Layers
Most worn: Julie’s cardigan (45).
Runner-ups: The red flea sweater (41) and my mom’s Zara hand-me-down trench (39).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: The floral courduroy bolero (2) – it’s fancy and in Rīga, works very well (although takes it slightly over the top) with the HnM sweetheart dress, but not casual enough for every day even by my very lax standards.
Dresses
Most worn: The second-hand kaftan (16).
Runner-ups: My mom’s dark blue silk dress (15) and my aunt’s hand-me-down PhD dress (15).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: The HnM sweetheart dress (3) – again, it’s a party garment and lives in Rīga so that I would have a mainstay for all family celebrations and opera. Feels like a bit of a waste but I’ve had it since 2008, so it has to be somewhere in vicinity of those #30wears. Also, this February I finally found a nice way to dress it down a bit, this.
Tops
Most worn: The demon t-shirt still wins (40). This is weird, because I don’t have a feeling that I’ve worn it that much. Here, a proof that my memory and perception of frequency of wear cannot be trusted!
Runner-ups: The swap Forever 21 t-shirt (26) and my mom’s lace undershirt (23).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: The WAG top (5) – Throughout these months I still hadn’t finished the beige skirt, so the only combination was with the set skirt which is (I finally have to admit it) very uncomfortable. Here, finally I have a combination issue! I have a top that can be worn only with (now) two bottoms which themselves are not that easy to wear, and that clearly doesn’t help to boost their wears. Ugh. At the end I should probably admit that the African set was a rather stupid impulse buy…
Bottoms
Most worn: ZIB black leave leggings (42), still.
Runner-ups: Liisa’s velvet skater skirt (32) and Amoralle leggings (30).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: Blanco paisley pants (1) – they live in Rīga and mostly serve as lounge wear decent enough to also head out in them. I had them in Barcelona last summer and didn’t enjoy them that much either. If I’d be spending any summer time in Rīga this year, they’d probably get their wears, but that’s not happening, not in 2018.
Footwear
Most worn: Arcopedico wedges (78) still, obviously.
Runner-ups: Veja Wata (43) and Veja Arcade (41).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: Nokian Hai wellingtons (1) – they live in Rīga and are rainboots. I keep wondering if bringing them to Barcelona could be a good idea…
Adornments
Most worn: Jēkabs necklace (24). It had been in my heirlom stash for years and I decided to give it a spin. Turns out I really like it!
Runner-ups: The red wooden necklace (18) and the bird and flower headband (12).
Never wore: Wore them all.
Wore the least: The flower ball headband (6) – I rescued it from the Rīga wardrobe and we had a great time together in London, but then in Barcelona I find it hard to wear. And the bicycle-headband incompatibility (the wind!) doesn’t help.
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Have has your wardrobe fared in these first six months of 2018? Do you think you have worn all that you have? Have you tried any kind of wardrobe tracking? Are you anywhere close the optimal wardrobe?
For spring/summer I have around 45 pieces of clothing and 8 pair of shoes, but I think it’s to much for me(considering the numbers of wear this season).
If I have a small number of clothes, I start “needing” mentally more, for the unexpected cases (sweat,dirt from playing with my toddler or commute by manual scooter.
I plan on reducing the number, by using the pieces and to get more versatile pieces when needed, but still remain above 30 pieces.
I think that’s a very smart observation! If you notice that less items would push you in a scarcity mindset and towards acquiring other items, stay with your 45 things. That’s still so much fewer than it could be… As I’ve written before, further reduction when hovering around already small numbers has been much harder for me than editing a big wardrobe, exactly because things gain unique value with ‘I have only this one thing for such and such occasion (and not 5)’. Try to forget the numbers’ game and enjoy your already streamlined wardrobe.