6 Lessons I Learned By Decluttering My Wardrobe

1. Second-choice designer dress

First up is this beautiful dress. Dion Lee is an Australian designer. They're not exactly cheap dresses. You could say I was saving up for ages for this dress. Finally went to the store to buy the dress and was disappointed to discover that the dress had sold out.

So instead of just saying, all right, bad luck, it was not meant to be, and walking out of the store, not buying anything, and saving my money, I decided to buy the next best thing. I now regret this because it is a beautiful dress, but it wasn't what I truly wanted.

If I'm saving up with something and it's gone, I need to make peace with that, accept what it is, and not try to replicate that feeling of buying the next second-best thing. Never settle or compromise when it comes to spending your hard-earned money. 

2. Buying an unfamiliar brand

Lesson two is the dangers of buying a brand you're unfamiliar with online. This dress was supposed to be just a fun, very pretty summer dress, and it was wonderful. It's done well.

But again, one of my rules is if I'm going to buy something online, I need to make sure I'm very familiar with that brand so I know the fabrics and how durable the material is.

I broke my own rules, and I got it wrong. It doesn't fit properly. The biggest lesson here is don't necessarily buy something because it's cheap or on sale. 

3. Uncomfortable fabric 

I love this top. However, it started to fade, and the fabric was not great for my skin. It just doesn't breathe on my skin. I've got a couple of their tops and had their outfits before, and I've always had to let them go. I still bought this top, knowing I probably had the same thing.

Another lesson. The fabric. Can you breathe in it? Does it feel comfortable? Is it going to wash well? Is it soft? When you realize a brand doesn't make that fabric, don't get tempted to go there again. 

4. Too small fit

This one, I can be a little bit more gentle on myself. Now, this is a denim skirt. I bought this in London with Tom, and I tried it on in the store, and it fitted like a glove. It was perfect.

However, I put a little bit of weight on, and I think the skirt, I think, has shrunk a little bit in the wash. I'm starting to feel uncomfortable about this.

So this is a skirt that I intend to replace, and I'll make sure that the size does fit me, and I'll check we would go to pay for that item with the sales consultant whether their skirts do shrink at all in the wash. 

5. Fading

For the next dress I'm giving up, it faded in the wash. I was disappointed by this. Again, this is one of the dangers of experimenting with different brands you haven't shopped with before. It's a super comfortable dress, so I am disappointed to see it go.

However, one of my best friends bought the same dress I bought, and they had the same problem: the fabric faded in the wash. I think the thing is, sometimes, when fabrics fade so much, you don't feel good about yourself because it looks tired, tacky, and tatty, which can reflect on you.

6. Uncomfortable shoes

The last lesson for me to deal with as I let go of stuff in my home is these beautiful shoes. I say beautiful because they look beautiful. Again, a lesson on buying something because it's cheap and online. These were uncomfortable.

I wear these, and about an hour later, my foot inflates like a pink marshmallow and is cut off with this strap. Again, be careful of buying things online, knowing your size, quality, and fit, and ensuring that you don't do the same thing again. 

Questions to ask

When you're going through your wardrobe trying to declutter things, ask yourself these key questions.

1. How does it feel on me?

Does it feel soft? Does it feel irritating? Does it feel itchy? If that's just the case, you must let it go because you won't want to wear it. 

2. How do I feel wearing this?

You want to feel like a million dollars.

3. How is the cut & what is the size?

Again, if anything's grabbing you in some way that you're not proud of, enhancing a particular feature of your body that you would rather tone down. Again, let it go. 

4. How is the quality?

Is this item starting to look tired or worn out? Throw it away. Of course, there are things that you can get fixed. You can dye things and change buttons; you can get things altered, mended, and adjusted.

However, at the end of the day, if you still don't feel good about it and know it's still not going to work for your body and your body shape and feel good, then let it go. 

How to declutter your wardrobe

As you do this process, you learn a lesson each time so that you're not decluttering and minimizing your life to let a whole pile of new stuff come back in and repeat history. What mistakes have you made in buying wardrobe pieces? Share your experiences in the comments below.