I just did something that I have been meaning to do for a long time: try on everything in my closet to see what fits and what doesn't.
Why? Two reasons:
1. I have so much clothing hanging in my closet that everything is very tightly packed. Removing or adding anything is difficult. The clothing has no room to breathe (!) and whatever hanging there is becoming permanently pressed in whatever configuration it was hung.
2. Having lost 25 pounds and keeping that weight off during the holidays has assured me that I will be able to maintain that weight. So I can free up closet space by removing the size 14's, 16's and 18's that are too big for me now.
Mid-morning Monday, I slipped into my bra, girdle and Spanx and began trying on the contents of my closet. I underestimated how long the process would take and after two hours, I was not even half way through, but I did have a pile of discards, so that was progress.
I broke for lunch and returned to the task in the evening, put in another two hours and clocked out at 8 PM. Another two hours Tuesday afternoon finished the the job.
While I was trying on clothing, I became ruthless on what I discarded. Initially, I only discarded clothing that was too big. And then I encountered some dresses that were too small in the bust — they did fit me at one time, but evidently my breasts have gotten a little larger as I have gotten older, so those dresses had to go, too.
Then there were those dresses that fit perfectly, but I did not like the way they looked on me. I wondered why I had purchased those items in the first place! They ended up in the discard pile, too.
On the flipside, there were dresses that I had not worn in a long time that now look amazing on my thinner body. It's as if I had just acquired new wardrobe to wear!
What am I going to do with the discards?
I will donate most of the dresses to the donation center in town that distributes clothing and household items to the needy in our area. The cocktail dresses and evening gowns are not donation center-worthy and may be eBay-bound.
Now my closet is so empty, I think it's time to go shopping!
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| Wearing Balmain (Source: Intermix) |
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| Dad or Mom and sons dressed for Halloween. (Source: Pinterest) |
My evening and cocktail dresses I donated to Goodwill and they were happy to get them. A couple of times I took trans women to Goodwill to look for cocktail dresses because they were going to a church banquet (MCC church in Hartford).
ReplyDeleteOn second thought, I will probably donate the evening dresses to the local donation center, too. It is staffed by high school volunteers and maybe someone needs a dress for the prom.
DeleteIs your under wear drawer next?
ReplyDeleteLast time I sorted mine out I found stuff I had not worn for years
When I tried it on I found out why
Lucy
I recently located a TG/CD support network in my area which is soliciting donations of clothing. They will get my 'extras'. Velma
ReplyDeleteI have culled items from my closet on numerous occasions, but like you Stana, I need to do a major purge. All I have to do know is to get up the motivation to make it happen. My closet is huge and the task is daunting.
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Sally
You should check out Poshmark to sell your items. Its such a great community and much more enjoyable than eBay. If you do sign up, make sure you let us know your poshmark account!
ReplyDelete