No 'new' clothes for a year challenge

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No 'new' clothes for a year challenge

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Started 10 months ago by lazycow
Latest reply from lucy1965
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lazycow
Member

OK, I'm finally going to do this! After decluttering my wardrobe down to 50 items of clothing (from around 150 items 3 years ago), I'm setting myself the goal of not buying ANY clothes for a year. So far, it's been one month since I bought anything (a puffa jacket and a black dress from the local op shop). As a former compulsive op-shopper I'm including not buying second-hand clothes in my challenge. It is all too easy for me to stay out of shopping centres, but I have a problem going past an op shop without feeling the pull to go in (and waste time!) and often come out with something. I'm trying to include underwear, shoes and accessories too.

Is anyone interested in joining me?

Posted 10 months ago #
Jackthetiger
Member

Wow, this is a big commitment. My friend has completed 11 months and is coming to Melbourne for a spree. She says that it has helped her to really see what she has, and what works about the clothes she likes. I was toying with a no spend month, but what a challenge...can I still make new clothes from fabric I have already purchased? I might need new underwear....OK I will give it a go. I have a very small wardrobe, so I hope they last the year. When are you starting?

Posted 10 months ago #
bandicoot
Member

lazycow, i am awed by this goal.
i don't think i can do it though.
how about this? i'll TRY to do it.
august 1st?
i will allow myself a new swimsuit...mine is about to give up the ghost and it is at least 3 years old.
but i actually don't think i NEED anything else. except encouragement.

Posted 10 months ago #
Ella
Member

Way to go! I'll be cheering all of you on from the sidelines. Of financial necessity, I stopped buying new clothes two years ago (except for underwear). I have a closet full of lovely clothes. Unfortunately, at least half are too small. But rather than declutter the clothes, I'm decluttering the fat. It's nice to squeeze into something old that's "new" again!

Posted 10 months ago #
Another Deb
Member

I keep thinking I will do that, but my clothes are not nice enough to wear after several months. I should spend more money and get the kind of quality that will last but I get disgusted by the "quality" department stores that are too high-style to endure and still fit badly.

My husband buys from Land's End online and is good to go each season with minor replacements.

Posted 10 months ago #
lazycow
Member

Yay, how exciting! I love this Forum, as I'm quite sure none of my friends IRL would be willing (but I'll ask them just the same).

Jackthetiger, of course you can make clothes! I am a very basic sewer (quilts, bags, and I'm attempting a doona cover this weekend - really, how hard can sewing 2 pieces of material and adding press studs be?) and am in awe of anyone who can sew clothes. And I started (unofficially at the beginning of the month - sort of cheating, but I'm happy to officially start on 1 August and make it 13 months to be in synch with the rest of you).

Bandicoot, my sister gave me her old swimsuit so I'm right for this year. However, I have a feeling that my bras will not last another year, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it! I'm going on holidays in August too - driving with the family up the NSW coast and staying with my sister on the Gold Coast. I'll have to stay strong as she is very good at talking me into buying clothes:-)

Thanks for the encouragement Ella, and all the best on your decluttering!

Another Deb, I know what it's like to have clothes that fall apart, which is why I stick to wearing the same things over and over again, leading to the realisation that I only need a few good quality things in my wardrobe. If anything does fall apart, I'm going to *try* and refashion it somehow (which I could probably do if I'm not actually making a garment from scratch).

Posted 10 months ago #
jbeany
Member

Brave souls, all of you! I'm lucky I've managed to get my habits down to a pretty consistent 1 in, 1 out. I love second hand store shopping, plus now that I've lost weight, I'm going to have to eliminate a number of things that simply won't work anymore. (No pats on the back for me on the weight loss - I was just too sick to eat much.)

Personally, I'd have to set an emergency # of allowed purchases. Maybe 6? That would cover things like bras and at least one pack of basic socks and undies if needed, plus a little leeway for some major unplanned dress-up event.

Either that or ask for gift certs to a favorite store for holidays or birthday!

Posted 10 months ago #
pkilmain
Member

I'm in on this one with jbeany's addition of emergency purchases, i'm still working on grtting my clothing pared down and like Ella am decluttering the fat so the smaller clothes I have will fit. August 1 it is.

Posted 10 months ago #
snosie
Member

I was trying this, until I went overseas. I always feel a case of 'I couldn't get this at home' itis, so bought lots of stuff. So I'm willing to recommit (since the start of the year, the only things I can remember buying were my 'birthday' outfit (dress, earrings, shoes etc). I will need underwear (knickers) but I'll cross that bridge when it becomes essential!

Posted 10 months ago #
bandicoot
Member

i have been thinking about this for a few hours and it's beginning to sound like a really good idea.

1. i don't even have to LOOK at clothes for a year.
that will free up a lot of time/energy/money/mental space. just the mental space alone is valuable.

2. in a year i will have worn everything to shreds and can go out with a budget and buy a whole new look. if i feel like it. or not.

3. right now, i love all of my clothes.
i've done the wardrobe purging and i really am down to a bunch of versatile, layerable, dress up or down, perfect-to-travel-with clothes in solid colours that won't date.
if not now...then when?

Posted 10 months ago #
Netleigh
Member

And here I was thinking of no new clothes for a month as part of August no spend month!
I think I will have to recommit each month because a year is still a bit scary for tackling my clothes habit.
Bras and swimming stuff excluded as the lycra will die as soon as it hears this.

Posted 10 months ago #
Mimi
Member

oooooh, what a challenge!
i would like to join you but... honestly... i think i can´t... or can i? lazycow, you said that you have 50 items of clothing, is this true??? how do you count? do you include underwear, sportclothes, scarfs, gloves, hats etc? i would like to join you but i think i need to buy clothes to wear in the office.
and shoes? what about shoes?!
oh. my... you feed my brain with a completely new challenge to think about!!!
i don´t worry about bras, i bought 10 within the last days (i must be mad... but it was sale and i got wonderful bras for 1/4 of the original price - unbelievable- and i like to have more of them as i wash them in the washing machine after wearning them once so they don´t last forever)

Posted 10 months ago #
Jude2004
Member

I'm surprised that so many people can identify with this. I hate shopping, and any extra money that comes my way is spent on my kids. I bought new shoes for the three of us and new clothes for them about 8 months ago. My mother is going to buy them a couple of pairs of pants and some underwear before school starts. I suppose that I'm too poor to identify with this.

Posted 10 months ago #
Anita
Member

Impressive challenge!

I'll pass on this one - pared down my wardrobe last year, and a lot of my clothes are raipdly nearing the point of needing replacement. I think the next year (or at least the next few months) will be shopping-intensive as I'm revamping my wardrobe, so my challenge will be to give myself more options with fewer items, as well as to get anythting less than fantastic out of my closet.

Posted 10 months ago #
susanintexas
Member

Hmmm .. . not for me. I've also been decluttering fat -- 50 lbs so far -- and I truly hope that in LESS than a year nothing in the closet will fit. (Except it will no longer be in the closet -- I'm getting rid of stuff as soon as it gets too big.)

I have established some guidelines for myself, though:
-- I will not but "aspirational" clothing -- stuff that does not yet fit but soon should, just because I like it and it's on sale. There will be other sales.
-- Keep clothing purchases to a minimum -- what I actually need NOW, as this new stuff should soon become too big as well.
-- Do a lot of window shopping -- not buying -- to figure out what clothing I will ultimately want and need and where I can get it.

Posted 10 months ago #
liag
Member

After about a year, I finally delurked. I feel that you are all my friends, so I had to end the one-sidedness. First, a big thanks for all the confirmations and good reading. I am joining the one-year challenge. I feel less cluttered having spoken.

Posted 10 months ago #
Rosa
Member

You guys might like some of these "refashion" bloggers, if you're going to be sewing/going through your existing wardrobe:

http://www.nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/page/2/
http://badmomgoodmom.blogspot.com/search/label/Fashion (that's just the "fashion" tagged items, she writes about a lot of things)
http://refashionco-op.blogspot.com/

Posted 10 months ago #
JuliaJayne
Member

Great sites, Rosa. For more inspiration, I've been following Larissa's blog. http://www.newdressaday.com/

Welcome liag. Glad you delurked :)

Just remembered these instructions to alter a crew neck t-shirt.
http://www.laurassewingstudio.com/Sewing/Necklines_Page_1/necklines_page_1.html

Posted 10 months ago #
pkilmain
Member

Oh how helpful it would be if we were closer and could do a "clothing exchange." I know I have some perfectly good, lightly worn office clothes that I seldom wear in retirement. :)

Posted 10 months ago #
susanintexas
Member

pkilmain -- that would be great, wouldn't it? One of my August tasks is to go through the fall/winter clothes and ship those of the appropriate size to a friend in Maryland. I can't deal with sweaters and corduroy in 100+ degree heat!

Posted 10 months ago #

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