Is Your Wardrobe Ruining Your Life

Dec 30

Is Your Wardrobe Ruining Your Life?

What do you experience when you look at the contents of your wardrobe? Do you see a mixture of colours and fabrics that make you feel happy and excited? Or do you see a mass of clothes that you don’t like or no longer fit, causing you anxiety every time you look at it?

Believe it or not, the contents of your wardrobe and how you present them can have a big impact on your life. Imagine these two very different scenarios for example.

Scenario 1. You get invited to a friend’s birthday party at a great new bar you’ve been wanting to go to for ages. You look in your wardrobe and you can instantly see 3 beautiful dresses that you love, which are perfect for the occasion. You just have to pick which one you like the most. When you get to the party you feel confident, you have a great time and make happy memories.

Scenario 2. You get invited to a friend’s birthday party at a great new bar you’ve been wanting to go to for ages. You look in your wardrobe and everything you can see is either old, doesn’t fit or you don’t like anymore. You wonder why you don’t seem to have any colour in your wardrobe or anything a bit more fancy. You’re certain you keep buying clothes but somehow you still don’t have anything to wear. The wardrobe is crammed full, a lot you can’t see because it’s all stuffed in the back of drawers but you’re sure there’s nothing there of note and should have probably been sent to the charity shop long ago. You feel anxious and panicky and start scouring the internet for anything half decent. You spend weeks looking for something new and after finding nothing you like you finally give up and order a dress you hope will at least be passable, pay too much money for it out of desperation and because you haven’t measured yourself in a long time you’re not really sure what size you are, so you guess and hope for the best.

When the dress arrives, as expected, it doesn’t fit well but you don’t have time to look for anything else, so you wear it to the party and spend the evening being critical of yourself, feeling anxious and thinking everyone looks better than you. Once you’re home, the dress gets put into the wardrobe and added to the mass of clothes that don’t fit and you don’t like anymore.

When you imagine living these two experiences, it’s easy to see just how much of an impact the state of your wardrobe can really have on your life. Getting your wardrobe in order can make you feel more confident, happier, less anxious and also ensure you’re not spending all of your precious time looking for clothes, when you could be doing more important and more fun things.

If the second scenario feels all too familiar to you, then it’s time for a clear-out just in time for spring. So what are the first steps in getting a life that looks a lot more like the first scenario? Read our guide below.

1. Have A Wardrobe Audit
Take a good look at your wardrobe and pull out everything that doesn’t fit well or anything you don’t like. Be brutal. You shouldn’t be left with any clothes that you’re unsure about and there definitely shouldn’t be anything that doesn’t fit you right now but that you’re hoping will fit in the future. Living in the present in just as important when it comes to your clothes, so if it doesn’t work for you, it goes.

2. Take Your Time And Budget
Do you ever find yourself saying that you only seem to find nice clothes when you don’t need them or can’t afford them? Finding clothes you love, that look great on you doesn’t always happen when you want it to and you never know when you might stumble upon something you love, so it’s important to think about your wardrobe as a long-term investment that you contribute to regularly, rather than when you need a new outfit for something specific. The ideal situation is to get to a point where you have perfect outfits ready to go for every occasion. This will benefit your life the most.

Review your wardrobe regularly and make a list of what you’re lacking in. Do you need more colour? Do you need more dresses or is everything a bit too casual? Keep this in the back of your mind so you know the kind of things that you’re looking for. It will help ensure you’re not spending money on items you don’t need. If you have 15 good-fitting t-shirts that are still in great condition, for example, you do not need to be buying anymore.

It’s important to have a budget set aside. Knowing how much you have to spend on clothes will help you plan, so you can make purchases without feeling guilt or worry or risk overspending. Investing in yourself is important and should be a priority, but clothes should make you feel good, not guilty, so get that budget set-up.

3. Know Your Correct Size
Knowing your correct size is very important when it comes to building a wardrobe full of clothes you love. Firstly, knowing your correct size saves you time. You won’t have to spend hours having to return clothes that don’t fit you and you also won’t get taken off guard if your size isn’t exactly what you thought, potentially giving room to negative thoughts or emotions to seep in.

Knowing your correct size also isn’t just about being able to do the buttons up on a shirt. When a designer makes a piece of clothing, it is designed to fit you in a very particular way, so buying the right size for you will ensure it fits you the way it was intended, which means you will look your best.

4. Keep It Organised
You don’t want to be overwhelmed when you look in your wardrobe. You want to be able to easily see what you have as much as possible, ideally hanging up full-length. The ideal situation is that you can find or pick out what you need almost instantly so that you can move on with the rest of your day. And if you can see it, then you’ll also be able to decide more easily when something no longer works for you. If you have a lot of clothes, it may help to keep your wardrobe seasonal, taking out anything you’re unlikely to wear until the weather begins to change, and pack it away. We love clothing rails which are a great way to encourage keeping things organised and minimal. Plus they are a gorgeous feature to any bedroom or dressing room, if you’re lucky enough to have one!

5. Have Fun
Fashion should be fun and sometimes it can be all too easy to forget that for many reasons. But you can help yourself by only shopping when you want to and when you’re feeling good about yourself. Try not to shop because you ‘need to’ to reduce the risk of wasting money on clothes you won’t ever wear again and if you notice any negative thoughts seeping in, stop.

6. If You Need More Help
If you feel you need a bit of extra help finding clothes that fit you right and look great on you, you could try an online personal stylist like Stitch Fix or Lookiero. The costs are very reasonable and can be a fun way to try new styles. Check out our review of Lookiero for more information and to see if it might be right for you.