A Closet Update

Wow! It has been awhile since I gave a good ol’ closet update. I’ve been sharing a lot about brands to know and outfits lately, which has been so much fun and has helped me continue to build a wardrobe I really love. But you might be wondering – is her closet just brimming with clothing these days? What happened to minimalism? Girl is sharing a lot of brands.

A minimal, all-black outfit. Express Portofino shirt (old), Everlane jeans, Bhava Studio boots.

I think that while it can be frustrating to see bloggers receive gifted items, and it can be easy to judge other writers who accept gifted items, that’s actually all part of what keeps people’s writing chugging along (ESPECIALLY if they don’t get paid to write, but dream of that…like me!).

I do want to balance my blog out a bit more, though. This isn’t like regular fashion blogging. This is like ethical fashion blogging. (Ha!) And I think I haven’t been quite so balanced in what I share lately.

I’m still learning how to navigate all this – I feel like I went from a lot of reflective posts, to more outfits and roundups, and I know a happy medium exists, somewhere. Both types of posts serve a purpose on my blog. So today, I want to give you a closet update on the pieces I’ve added organically, and talk about some of the things I’ve decided to part with.

Checking in with you now and then also helps to hold me accountable when it comes to not sliding back into my old shopping ways, and enables me to ensure that when items come into my home (gifted or not) they are adding something, not just taking up space.

As you know, I’m really not a fan of wardrobe spreadsheets, but lately I have been curious about how many items of clothing I own. I took a quick tally (not counting things like accessories, pajamas or workout gear, since that seemed irrelevant) and I have approximately 110 items, including shoes and outerwear. Not too bad, considering where I started! My closet is truly smaller than it has ever been. Below are a couple of images of the inside of my real, true closet. Usually I share images from my clothing rack, because frankly, those look better and it is easier to see all the items in the photo. But I don’t have a perfect clothing rack wardrobe, trust me. I organize my clothing in a sort-of-by-color, sort-of-by-fabric way. I also don’t have a perfect clothing hanger situation. Oh well.

Before I talk about the things I’ve recently added to my closet, I first want to talk about the items I’ve chosen to part with. It is important to start there and acknowledge the ways in which simplicity has made me feel lighter and more fulfilled than adding items ever could.

There are numerous things I decided to sell or donate, which are listed on my Poshmark and still being added, but there are two in particular that I’d like to discuss.

I recently resold my L’Envers Gaby cardigan, despite having longed for one and seeing their sweaters on all my ethical fashion idols (well, before Babaà took over). However, there were quite a few issues with my sweater. One, the company had sent me the wrong size, and I didn’t want to return it because I didn’t want to wait another 4-6 weeks for a new one. I probably should have exchanged it, and just accepted that slow fashion is, well, slow, but I didn’t. Additionally, I found this sweater incredibly itchy to wear – likely because the wool is minimally processed, and I am sensitive to lanolin. Despite all the things I’ve learned about defining my own style and shopping for me, I allowed the allure of this sweater to overrule the fact that it just did not work for my life. I held onto it for months until just recently accepting that I had to let it go. The Instagram hive mentality is real, and in this instance, it didn’t serve my wardrobe.

I also recently sold some jewelry that was either given to me and wasn’t right for me or represented relationships that are no longer a part of my life. It seemed weird to hold onto things that might have negative energy associated with them, and to keep money tied up in them that I could use for other things. Those items were a little emotional to part with, but now that I have, I know I did the right thing.

It feels good to open my closet and jewelry box and see a relatively small, curated selection of things that make me feel stylish and carry positive energy in them. Maybe I’m giving too much power to my belongings by believing they have energy, but it’s what I believe nonetheless. And I think because I have started to believe that, I am so, so much more particular about what I add to my wardrobe and home.

Now, onto what I’ve recently purchased that I have yet to share with you, and why these items have earned a place in my wardrobe.

Cait Shea Handknit Sweater

I’ve already featured this on my Instagram, but I love this cozy sweater that was hand knitted by my dear friend Cait of Cait Shea Designs, right here in Connecticut. Cait is so talented and wearing the clothing she creates is always special to me. I love the warm oatmeal color of the yarn she selected, as well as the fact that this sweater is NOT itchy.

Only Child Cardiff Trench

You guys, this trench is IT. It is one of the nicest, most beautiful pieces of clothing I have ever worn. I had admired it for awhile and ended up ordering it after a few glasses of wine (oops – I don’t recommend this shopping method, but here we are…) and it was worth every penny I spent on it.

I will say, as someone from the Northeast, know what you’re getting if you think about ordering this trench. It is a twist on the Only Child Cardiff silhouette and is made of mid-weight wool. New Englanders, you might have some preconceived notions about what a long trench made of wool will be like. For our climate, this is more like a sweater-coat. I’ve never had a piece of outerwear like this, and I love that I can wear it alone on moderate days and still layer it under my winter coat on colder days.

Dauntless Hudson Biker Leather Jacket (Vegan)

Since deciding to not add any more leather to my wardrobe, the leather jacket I previously owned wasn’t sitting well with me. While I’m comfortable still using my leather shoes and bags, being so covered in leather became very off-putting to me (and actually had been for some time). So, I ended up selling it on Poshmark and replacing it with a vegan leather version from Dauntless. This jacket is made of PVC, but I don’t find that fact all that concerning since this is something I intend to have for a very long time. It is comfortable, stylish and best of all, PETA-approved vegan and fairly manufactured. I did experience some dye transfer when wearing a light-colored blouse under this jacket on a rainy day, but my dry cleaner was able to fix it. Just a word of caution.

So, there you have it! My latest closet update. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions about my wardrobe, and let me know if you have made any closet additions or subtractions lately!

xx

 

 

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