Getting Nerdy

After doing the Closet Inventory, I started playing around in my Excel spreadsheet.  Because I'm cool like that.  This may not be interesting to anyone else, but I thought it was fun to slice and dice the data by different pieces.  And then I made some pie charts.  Because I'm cool like that.

First up, where I buy all this stuff!  It is no surprise that Gap is far and away the leader.  If I add the Gap brands together, it's almost half of my wardrobe (Banana Republic and Piperlime are in the "other" category). I was surprised that I have more Loft than H&M or Limited.  I haven't had as much luck at Loft in the last year, but I guess I still have items from prior years.  Which brings me to...

Over half of my wardrobe has been purchased in the last 18 months.  I think this is largely due to the fact that I've been getting rid of stuff, and also because I like to shop.  (and also because I've gained some weight, but let's not talk about that, mkay?)

Finally, I wanted to see what colors are most represented.  And isn't this a pretty little graph?  Other than the random assortment in the upper left quadrant, the sections look pretty cohesive.  I've read a few things about building a remixable wardrobe, and I've never purposely shopped for certain colors, but somehow it has worked out.  I buy what I like, and I tend to like greens, blues, and pinks, as well as the black/white neutrals. Which means most items go well with most other items!

So now you know what my closet looks like in graphical form.  You're welcome (and I'm sorry).

Cardigan: Gap
Top: H&M
Skirt: Chaus
Shoes: Old Navy

Closet Inventory

Almost a year ago, I started going through my closet by category and making inventory posts.  I thought that taking it in small pieces would make it more manageable.  That plan actually made it easier to just give up.  Brynn and Kate both recently did full inventory posts, which got me thinking I should really do it.  And then we had a 3-day weekend where I didn't have a whole lot going on.  Perfect!

So here's my list of items and counts.  Note - I didn't include workout gear, undergarments, swimwear, socks, jewelry, or purses in this list.  I might tackle those items another day.  (well, not socks or undergarments, but maybe purses and jewelry).

• Tops:  78
• Long-sleeve: 12
• Short-sleeve: 34
• Solid: 14
• Stripe: 11
• Other print/pattern: 9
• Sleeveless: 32
• Solid: 8
• Stripe: 7
• Other print/pattern: 17
• Sweaters:  55
• Light sweaters: 12
• Heavy sweaters: 12
• Light cardigans: 11
• Regular cardigans: 15
• Heavy cardigans: 5
• Layers:  21
• Blazers: 5
• Coats: 5
• Jackets: 4
• Sweatshirts: 7
• Bottoms:  35
• Jeans: 12
• Shorts: 8
• Skirts: 15
• Dresses: 21
• Shoes: 41
• Flats: 15
• Heels: 14
• Boots: 10
• Casual: 2
• Accessories: 29
• Belts: 13
• Scarves: 16

So the grand total is 280!  That's way lower than I expected.  I was sure I'd be in the 400+ range, so it's not as bad as I thought it would be.  I have been pretty good in the last couple of years about getting rid of things that I don't wear.  But still, 280 is a lot of clothing!

I don't really have a philosophy or plan when it comes to curating my closet.  My main goal over the last year or two has been to keep a list of things I want, instead of just buying whatever catches my eye.  I'm also being more careful about not buying things just because they are cheap.  It's not perfect, but I feel pretty good about it most of the time.  And I really enjoy shopping, so I don't see myself getting to a point where I stop buying new things.    

So what now?  Well, I don't know.  I've thought about the one in, one out plan.  But I think that would turn into me keeping things that I should get rid of just so I have something to trade out when I buy something new.  And that defeats the purpose.  Maybe I could put a cap on my total number, so if I got rid of 10 things tomorrow, then I'd have 10 open spots, but I don't know what the magic number should be.

I think I'm just going to stick with my monthly budget plan, and keep trying to focus on the wish list and minimizing crazy impulse buys. I'm also going to try to keep my spreadsheet up to date when I buy new items or get rid of things, so I don't have to do an epic inventory again.

Have you done a closet inventory?  What tips would you share for keeping your clothes hoarding under control?

Closet Inventory - Dresses and Scarves

Remember how I was like "yeah, I'm going to do a closet inventory!" and then I neglected it for several weeks?  Yeah, me neither.  Anyway, I am going to try to get back on track with this.  So, dresses and scarves are the topics of today.

My dresses hang in the middle of my closet in the only "tall" space available.  By my counts, there are twenty-one.  Most of them are wearable year-round, and I feel like I have a pretty good mix of colors/styles/patterns, etc.  I'm not currently looking for anything specific to add to this section of my wardrobe, but I like dresses, so I'll probably buy more when I find pretty options for a good deal!  

My scarves hang on the left side of my dresses, but I pulled them out and straightened them up a bit to make sure they were all visible.  I have twelve.  This seems like a lot, but as I look at them, there are only a couple that I haven't worn recently.  The blue/green plaid one was an impulse buy at Old Navy last summer and I think I wore it once.  It might need to go.  I'm not really looking to buy more scarves at the moment.

I've been wondering when we will get tired of these long fashion scarves, because they are a fairly recent trend.  I mean, when I was in high school (we're talking 10 years ago), I thought it was cool to wear the little neck scarves, like they did back in the 50s.  I don't remember anyone else doing that (other than my sister, who I was probably copying in the first place).  Or are scarves already not cool again and I just haven't gotten the memo?

Closet Inventory - Coats and Shorts

Let's continue the Closet Inventory series with coats and shorts - 2 subsets of my wardrobe that rarely meet!

Ten coats/jackets - for the most part, I don't think of outerwear as part of my "wardrobe," because there's a decent part of the year where I just have to wear a giant coat (and hat/scarf/gloves).  I'm currently in the market for a new denim jacket (because mine is growing holes around the pockets), and a new casual winter coat (because the purple one has always been a little snug).  The khaki jacket on the end probably needs to go, as well.  I don't know when I wore it last.  It's not on the blog anywhere, so it's probably been a couple years.  (Putting in the Goodwill pile now...)  Okay, now I have 9 coats/jackets.  It also seems odd that I don't have a black coat.  I have my eye on this one from J.Crew Factory, so they need to run an additional 50% off soon!

Now to the opposite season for shorts.  Seven pairs of "non-athletic" shorts seems like a good amount!  I think all but 2 of these are new as of this summer.  It seems like there were more options in the medium length range, so I stocked up!  I think these are probably on their last days for the year, but I think they'll all be good for next summer.  Unless we stop liking floral print, which doesn't seem too likely. 

I feel like I'm doing the easiest categories first, so it's just going to get more and more difficult!       

Closet Inventory - Blazers and Skirts

One of my big projects for the summer was supposed to be a big closet inventory and clean-out. Well, I think it's safe to say that summer is pretty much over, and I haven't accomplished my task.  I've gotten rid of quite a few things, but it's been pretty random.  I'd like to have a more organized approach to the closet purge.  This leads me to the inventory.  

So far, the inventory piece has been a summary of my blog labels, copied into excel and then adding certain things I want to track, like year added, price (if I remember), and (where applicable), year removed.
I've decided to tackle this project one item type at a time, and I will post each time I finish a section of organization.  I'm hoping to do at least one post a week, most likely on Saturdays.

First up, blazers!  This is easy, because I only have 6.

And here's a screenshot of my spreadsheet, to give you an idea of what I'm doing.  I also have columns where I break out Brand, Item Type, and Color, so I can filter that way, as well. It's getting kind of nerdy.  Gap is definitely winning the brand category.

As you can see, most of these blazers have been added to my closet in the last year.  The 2 velvet ones are on thin ice, and may have to be sold/donated in a couple months.  They only seem appropriate when it is cold outside, but they aren't warm enough to skip a coat, and they don't really work under a coat, so I rarely wear them.  As far as wanting more blazers, I would like a bright pink blazer, but I don't think that qualifies as a need or "closet hole" by any means.

Next up - skirts!  This is also pretty easy, because I have a lot of skirts, but I wear them a lot, too.  Here's the line up: 

I'm not going to include the full grid for every item type (unless you want that, so let me know), because that could get long, but there are 20 skirts pictured here.  Not hanging in the closet are my purple maxi skirt and my black silk skirt.  When it comes to skirts, I am mostly looking out for replacements.  Both my polka dot pencil skirt and gold skirt are starting to look a little rough.  I also want a truer red pencil skirt.  My new one from J.Crew factory is a little bit more orange than I wanted, but it was final sale, and I still really love it.  Otherwise, I feel like I have a pretty good mix of colors, prints, styles.  I'm definitely a skirt person, so 22 doesn't seem unreasonable!

So, skirts and blazers down, only twenty-five categories to go!  I'm hoping to tackle my more summery items next, to get those pared down before I push them to the back of my closet. 

Let me know if you have any advice for cleaning out the closet, or other pieces of information you want to know.  Hopefully I'm not just being narcissistic, but I think it is interesting when other bloggers share their closet details, so I'm doing it too!