Closet Inventory - Part I

Inspired by some of my favorite bloggers, I decided that a closet inventory was a great place to start as I work towards building my perfect wardrobe.

This is not my closet...yet! (source)

So let me start by saying, I have two closets. One in Florida, where I currently (temporarily) live, and another in New York, my permanent home. Because the climates are so different, and because I moved via plane with just 2 (giant) suitcases, it didn't make sense to bring my whole wardrobe. I'd hoped that paring down to a sort of capsule wardrobe would make getting dressed easy, but instead I'm unsatisfied and just keep buying more and more to compensate. My shopping has gotten a bit out of control, and I've decided to need to be more thoughtful about my purchases so that I'm building a wardrobe that I'll love for years, rather than a random collection of pieces that are just cute. 

On New Year's Day, I spent a few quality hours with my clothes, organizing and sorting and looking at every single piece with a critical eye. I want a closet filled with beautiful things that flatter, that work for my current life, and that make me happy to get dressed every morning. I wanted to be ruthless about trimming the adorable but ill-fitting blouses from the juniors' department, the pieces that used to fit (but never will again), the clothes that are meant for a girl I will just never be. 

So what did I have left?

I really didn't have any idea what to expect, so I'm not sure what to make of this. Overall, I think my closet is pretty well balanced. I currently work from home, so jeans and yoga pants make up the bulk of my lower-half wardrobe. I have entirely too many sweaters for a hot and sticky climate, but I love them (and break them out as soon as the thermostat gets below 65 degrees!).

The point of this inventory was really just to pull everything out, sort it, and count it. I didn't find a lot of things immediately needed to be removed, though I did discard a few things that were worn out, too big, hideously ugly, etc., and I'll keep an eye on a few things that I haven't really worn that often. For now, I have plenty of room to store all of these clothes, so I just want to be thoughtful about anything that is added.

I'll be able to do my other closet inventory soon, and I'll be interested to see what that uncovers. I feel like there is some purging to do there...some of those clothes are 10+ years old and just shouldn't be worn (by me) anymore.

It feels great to start out the new year with a clean and organized closet! Now to work on keeping it that way...