Dress: Forever 21, gift // Jacket (below): Vintage via Goodwill, $6 // Bag: Vintage via Goodwill, $3 // Shoes: Lucky Brand, courtesy of Lucky Magazine // Cuff: Courtesy of LOFT
I vaguely remember selecting this dress for my sister to buy me as a birthday gift about five years ago. After a decent amount of wear, it didn't leave its hanger for a few years. As I've mentioned before, I'm terrible about keeping stuff I never wear. It makes maintaining an orderly (and reasonably sized) closet nearly impossible! A stream of new items steadily flows in, and things rarely leave.
As spring approaches, I've been trying to do a purge. The dress has been in my "try on before deciding" pile, so this morning I thought, "Either wear it today, or it goes!" I found myself pleasantly surprised. It fits me now much better than before. Definitely a keeper.
While I know there are plenty of pieces that really do have to go, this dress made me wonder what else I'm taking for granted... How do you guys manage the ebb and flow of your closet?
33 comments:
Totally love the dress, and your hair is so so cute! I just have to say that at my house I have a "girls room" filled with clothes and mannequins and a beautiful velvet sofa... which is constantly covered in a huge mound of clothes!!! Constantly. It doesn't matter how much space I allot for clothes... they take up all of the room. I really like this post, it is motivating me to organize to find forgotten items!!!! :)
Cheers,
Smog
i love that bag its out of this world.
xoxo,
F
lekisskiss.blogspot.com <-- Texas gal bloggin fashion from NYC!
Every summer, I try to "clean" my closet. I make a strict rule that if I have not worn a piece of clothing for a year I'll give/sell it away. But there will always be many exceptions to my rule. :D
i adore that coat -- i can't believe you found it at goodwill! and that dress is definitely a keeper.
i'm bad in the opposite way as you... i toss things when i get bored of them. sometimes i remember it years later & wish i kept it. yours is probably the better extreme :]
Your shoes are gorgeous! Annie.
Great outfit.. When it comes to my closet I go through phases. I then am constantly giving things away and missing them later when I realized I need to buy something exactly like it. I have to learn to keep more, I'm constantly "starting over". But as I get older my taste isn't changing as much so my closet is starting to build up again. I'm finally learning to just save it for later. Lol
www.fashionofmysoul.blogspot.com
I am the same way. Once something is in my possession, I simply can't let it go. My closet has reached full capacity and I still refuse to purge the unused items. It can't be healthy, but every piece has it's story. I'm afraid I'll forget the story if the item is not there to remind me.
The dress is so lovely and looks great on you!
I like to refer to it as 'survival of the cutest'. However, like you I have a hard time letting go of things. Sometimes if I wait a few years an item will become an outfit staple all over again.
I love your dress, it looks good on you and your hair looks amazing! :]
~Ren
http://mirrortoomirror.blogspot.com/
i tend to pass on big piles of clothing to my sister when i feel like my closet is getting too packed ... but i make her promise not to get rid of anything! that way i can go back to it if i remember something i just cant live without, lol!
Sadly I just keep trying to buy thinner hangers and sneak things into my husband's closet!
I have all flow and no ebb. I can't get rid of things either. And when I do, I always regret it. Why oh why did i give away those acid wash capris? Why?
But you look fantastic here. Yes, I think keeping this dress was the right idea.
Oh, here's a good trick, I find I can often part with items if I clothes swap them with someone else. Giving away clothes for nothing is hard, but for something?-possible.
;-)
purplestinkindogtoy.blogspot.com
Great dress and its color is so amazing!
www.abitoffashion.com
I love these shoes! I've been eyeing them myself. Can you tell me if they are comfortable (like reliable everyday shoes) or just bearable to break out every now and again?
I'm the same way - I usually end up saving articles of clothing for years even if I haven't worn them. I've found, though, that this at times pays off. I've had the same experience where I rediscover a piece in my closet and now know how to style it better than before. In those moments, I'm glad I save most of my clothes.
Love the color of this dress and how you styled it. I purge a lot of my closet to keep it manageable.
Mb -
These shoes SHOULD be really comfortable. They seem well-made, the footbed is cushioned, the heel is sturdy and supportive. They are definitely comfortable enough to wear all day at the office, but if I have to do a lot of walking, they start to hurt. This may just be a personal fit issue, but they're too tight on my toes. They may loosen up with time though. Hope this helps! I do love them and find lots of ways to wear them.
The epic closet battle! I have a weakness for 3/4 sleeve length cardigans. I find myself in the store saying, "I should get another black one as a back-up ... just in case". I used to be that way with jeans, too ... until I discovered tights ... Happy organizing!
even more than the dress, i think those shoes (and that coat!) are just lovely. maybe i need to go closet shopping..
www.keepfashion.wordpress.com
Love that coat over the dress.
Honestly, I go through my closet about once every three months (approaching the end of a season cycle-ish). If I didn't wear it for a whole season and I can't think of anything brilliant to turn it into, it goes. The thing is, it goes to a thrift store, so that's the perfect excuse to pop in and find a lovely new replacement. :)
sarahannnoel.com
good system! i usually try to do that too but then halfway through i get distracted or lazy, haha, so it never gets completely done unfortunately...
love your sandals hun!
Your outfit is phenomenal I love the little bow in your hair and the bag is perfect. And as for cleaning out my closet I get rid of things that I will never wear again and things I have stylistic-ly grown out of which is generally not too many things. Also things that I loved when I bought them and I still love but they don't look right on me, and things that are worn out.
Those I donate or sell. But for the most part more items enter than leave.
i love the color of that dress, and the bow makes it so special. I also know how hard it can be to get rid of clothes, i seem to keep things forever too, and when some of my friends come over they want to borrow things, sometimes if it fits them well i let them have it, that way at least i can free up a hanger for something else.
http://spectrachics.onsugar.com/
Cute dress! I have a tiny closet space, but I'm trying to get on top of the chaos by ruthlessly packing away all my winter gear, and hanging my favourite spring / summer pieces, with more secondary / occassional warm weather clothing in storage boxes under the bed! it's a system of sorts...
I just noticed the cute brown bow in your hair.
Adorable.
I have a bin that kind of serves as an anteroom. I go through the bin at least twice to cull items for donation. Then, afterward, I use the bin to store off-season items. Some things are harder to discard, so I try to wear them before making decision.
i WISH i was more like you. if i had the room, i would be. i err on the side of getting rid of things too quickly. usually i take stuff to a consignment shop so i can justify a shopping trip! (earn money to shop and make room for the goods!) but there are times when i think, "i wish i still had _____." i also struggle with wanting to keep things for my girls. i have two daughters and i WISH my mom had kept some of her clothes from the 60's & 70's.
Wow, such original shoes! I love your style, I mean you can't go wrong with a hair cut like that. Too cute!
www.kellynicky.blogspot.com
I have a little unhealthy obsession with Orange myself. This burnt Orange color is delish. You know what I love about your blog is that you are REAL. A normal person, living a normal life with great fashion sense :)
I own the very same dress and twice now (I'm a big purger) have put in a bag of to-sells, in fact, it's in my trunk NOW, but I'm going to take it back out after seeing it on you. The shoes you paired with it are fabulous. Thanks for the inspiration!
Glad you're keeping it, I love that dress! I actually just thrifted it last summer (the exact same F21 dress) and it's one of my favorite items. I've worn it by itself (but didn't think to tie the belt in a bow, love the idea!) and layered over a gray dress and with yellow shoes:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/academichic/3410197485/in/set-72157612580944904/
Can't wait to see how else you style it, I'll be checking in for inspiration ;)
S
Awe! I love this outfit. I wish I could find a jacket like that at a thrift store. Love it!
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