Stay or Go?

Cleaning out my closet and drawers has never been an easy task for me. Parting with worn or stained clothing or shoes is never hard. It's those items that I like and think I may wear again that cause the issue. Just recently, I had to drastically reduce the clothing that I had stored in our basement. A friend was moving in to rent the space and I needed to make room. A few items were hard to part with. They were items I thought I might come back to, eventually. I donated tons of items that I hadn't worn in ages and didn't think I'd wear again.  About a month after this big donation, I started noticing tops like these popping up online.

In my big purge, I had donated two similar tops because they were left over from my 90's club days and frankly I didn't know why I still had them.  When I saw these tops online, for a split second I regretted donating them. Then I did a rewind and reminded myself why I'd gotten rid of them. I'm not 25 anymore. I don't spend Friday and Saturday night in a club anymore. I don't want to look like a throw back to Melrose Place (the original not the remake). I did this trend once already and it wasn't even that great the first time. In this case, my regret passed quickly.  Other times I've really regretted getting rid of an item and actually purchased another similar item to replace it. The "if you haven't worn it in 6 months or a year" rule has never worked for me. I have a few great pieces that I've owned since college. Now you see my dilemma.

My closet purge this time will be thoughtful and calculated. As I decide which items to store and which items to toss or donate, I will be taking a little inventory. Once I pack items away for storage, I'll make a list of those items. Then I will know exactly what I have that could be worn again.  If an item doesn't fit, no matter how great it is, I will either give it to someone, swap it or donate it. I found a great decision tree. It's definitely one of the best I've seen. I'll keep you posted on my closet purge journey.

 

How do you decide what to purge and what to keep?