“I like my money right where I can see it… hanging in my closet,” said Carrie Bradshaw on an episode of Sex & The City. If those words don’t ring true for just about every gay guy and gal that I have ever met, then I need to surround myself with better people. When it comes to the cruel world of fashion, we like to turn out a bunch of new shit and trends every six months. It’s exhausting.
A new study shows that most women have about $550 worth of unworn clothes just hanging in their closet. As a man who has been doing this fashion thing for the past three years, I know all about excess in my closet. For example, there’s an unhealthy amount of awesomely printed shirts that are hanging in my closet and I’ve just never worn them. Luckily, my roommate who has a fashion blog loves to dive in there and throw on some of my clothes. Personally, I’ve always just been more inclined to stick to something comfortable and that I know looks good on me.
The study was done by VoucherCard and studied 2,000+ women on their closets and habits. A majority of women admitted that they haven’t worn about 20% of their closet and that they “can’t be bothered” to return the clothes that they’ve never worn. When I really got into uniform dressing, I started going through my closet for a bunch of stuff that I really just haven’t touched. A lot of had been gifts from various events and PR people but instead of just letting them sit there, I donated them.
Some simple tips for making sure you’re getting the most out of your closet:
- Make sure you know what’s in your closet. Too many times I’ve bought something that I’ve already had or closely resembled.
- You don’t need to dive deep into trends. It’s great if you want to get a few pieces and work them into your wardrobe but don’t go overboard.
- Invest in high quality basics. A good tee shirt will take you a long way and you won’t have to buy too many of them.
- If you find something and question when the last time you wore it was, re-sell it.
