La vie en couleur

My wardrobe stats

August 8, 2012

All these posts on small wardrobes and minimalism made me go through my closet with a fine toothed comb. I purged a few skirts and a vest and put a few t shirts in the 'temporary keep' pile (thanks Angie!). I also made a list of each and every piece of clothing that I own for the very first time. It is amazing how many more things I have than I thought! I am happy to report that I do wear most of the items in my closet. I do need to wear a few items more though and I have a couple of orphans as well.

Here are my closet stats:
1. Shirts/tops - 7 (some need to be worn more)
2. T shirts (long sleeve and short sleeve) - 14 (some need replacing, need more woven tops)
3. Kurtas/kurti tops - 5
4. Leggings/churidar bottoms - 3
5. Jeans/pants - 5 (my denim jeans need replacing)
6. Dresses - 8 (3 are unworn as they need alterations and others need to be worn more)
7. Shorts - 3
8. Blazers - 2
9. Cardigans - 2
10. Jackets - 4
11. Vests - 2 (orphans, need to be worn more)
12. Cotton sweaters - 2
13. Skirts - 1

Phew! So there are 58 items in my closet. I do know that there are some wardrobe holes, I need some knitwear for winter, for example, and a winter coat. But making this list has showed me that I do have a lot of variety, clothes that fit and flatter me and can be worn in a variety of ways. I plan to follow Angie's advice and get as much wear out of these as possible even as I shop and add more stuff to my closet. :)

Posted in the Dressing category
This post is also published in the youlookfab forum. You can read and reply to it in either place. All replies will appear in both places.

15 Comments

  • replied 11 years ago

    Good for you! Sounds like this exercise was helpful for you!

    I could use a boyfriend blazer or jacket ... something to throw over knit tops to look more polished in a flash, and my summer capsule is never as stylish as my cooler temps capsules, so I continue to work on that. But, like you, I'm pretty well set otherwise.

  • harmonica replied 11 years ago

    I love your wardrobe counting! You are so good at getting all the best out of your wardrobe, so 58 items are really impressive. This post inspire me to do some counting too because I have been editing + filling some wardrobe holes the last few months.

  • replied 11 years ago

    Wow is this winter and summer? Good job Kirti! Has your number of items grown since joining YLF? I remember talking about minimal wardrobes with you last winter, but mine has gotten a bit bigger, and I think that's a good thing for me. I still haven't had to buy more hangers though; maybe a count is in order. :)

  • Kirti replied 11 years ago

    Thanks Anne! It really was. :-)

    Harmonica: You have been doing so well at building your MOTG wardrobe! I would love to see your wardrobe broken down in numbers.

    Thanks Claire! Yes, this is what I have for all four seasons. I do need a lot more winter stuff than I have, but if I stopped shopping, I would be set for spring, summer and autumn.
    To be honest, most of this is post YLF, I purged a lot of my pre YLF stuff. For example, the shirts and tops category did not exist pre YLF! Only my Indian clothes, 3 jeans, 1 blazer, 1 shorts, 2 jackets, 1 cotton sweate, a few t shirts and the skirt are pre YLF, i.e., only 30-35%! So my wardrobe has really evolved in my time here and I couldn't be happier :-)

  • Suz replied 11 years ago

    This sounds like an incredibly efficient wardrobe, Kirti! I am impressed.

  • goldenpig replied 11 years ago

    So impressed, Kirti. I would have thought you had at least twice as many clothes as that, based on the variety of outfits you post. You are a master at remixing! I have a lot to learn from you! (I don't think I could survive on only one skirt!)

  • replied 11 years ago

    Way to go, Kirti! It's good to have a plan so you don't make mindless purchases. Remixing is a great way to maximize what you have, too. :)

  • Lisa replied 11 years ago

    Superb streamlined wardrobe! I am striving for a smaller wardrobe such as this. I'm keeping your number counts in mind as my long-term goal with my own wardrobe, thanks for sharing!

  • harmonica replied 11 years ago

    Does this list include winter wear (like a winter jacket), gear wear and/or lounge wear? I will make a list later on and now I'm thinking I have a huge wardrobe, although I know it's not *that* big. But I think 4 season climate acquires more items. You know, in one day we can go through all the seasons!

  • rachylou replied 11 years ago

    I'm a wee bit jealous. I think if I started counting, I'd give up in exhaustion. Clearly I over do.

  • Kirti replied 11 years ago

    Thank you Suz :-)

    Wow thanks Natalie, that is the best compliment I could have gotten about my small wardrobe. Skirts don't work for my body type at all unfortunately. They just keep riding up and annoying me so I donated the 3-4 skirts I had. The only one I kept doesn't budge all day for some reason!

    Thanks Ruth. It definitely is, my style is all about remixing. :-)

    Lisa: Thanks! As I said to Claire, I am little low on winter clothes, especially warm sweaters and a coat, but I'm pretty okay otherwise. Keep that in mind when you look at these numbers!

    Harmonica: It includes all my jackets. I do need a coat or two for winter. I used to hzve a black coat which I donated since it was really old. So no, a winter coat is not included. Neither is loungewear/nightwear. I don't have a lot of loungewear because I mostly wear my stuff at home as well, like shorts and t shirts in summer and leggings and sweaters in winter. I don't have any gear wear at all!

    Rachylou: My wardrobe would be a lot larger too, but moving from India to France, a little post marriage weight and some post YLF purging brought it down!

  • Makrame replied 11 years ago

    I really like how efficient your wardrobe is! And I am with Natalie, my first thought when I saw your stats was that there was no way you could have put together all your fun outfits from such a small number of items. Great remixing!

  • harmonica replied 11 years ago

    I did a quick counting, but did not include shoes, gear and lounge wear nor accessories. And I have stored away some of my winter items, mostly wool cardis, wool skirts and wool sweaters. I also followed your list so I could more easily compare and it was a useful exercise, though not 100% accurate ;-)

    1. Shirts/tops - 13 (incl blouses, long sleeve and sleeveless - must remember to not add more sleeveless because they don't fit the climate here! I miss some coloured blouses to dress up casual MOTG outfits a bit)
    2. T shirts (long sleeve 7 and short sleeve 6) - 13 (abt 5 of the long sleeves are probably on the way out)
    3. Tanks and camis - 15 (about 5 or so should go)
    4. Leggings - 3 (struggeling crack the leggings code)
    5. Jeans/pants - 9 (4 jeans, 1 dressy pants, 1 orphan, 1 chino might go as they are very seldom in use)
    6. Dresses / tunics - 17 (3-4 are just for spring/summer, 1 is really dressy, 2 LBD, 2 or 3 tunics, ca 8 for everyday wear)
    7. Shorts - 2
    8. Blazers - 3
    9. Cardigans - 11 (summer + all year) + 3-4 for winter
    10. Jackets - 7 (incl 3-4 autumn/winter/spring)
    11. Coats - 5 (3 for winter, incl parkas)
    12. Cotton sweaters - 1
    13. Skirts - 8 (2 strictly summer, 2-3 wool, 2 denim, 1-2 all year. May need some wool skirts for the winter because I've purged several)

    I see that my wardrobe is not that minimalist, but I don't feel overwhelmed. I am pretty well covered for every occation; work, casual and dressed up. As layering is imperative for me, the number of cardis are quite high. And dresses too, but when I break it down to seasons and occations, I don't find the number too high. And I wear most of my wardrobe, except some t-shirts and jeans/pants. To get the jeans more in rotation I think I need tops, because most of my blouses are white (need colour) and t-shirts are not kind to muffin tops

  • Kirti replied 11 years ago

    Thanks Makrame!

    Harmonica, it is so interesting to see your list! I didn't include camis, which you did, so if I add those I would be at 61 items. Also, I don't work. Once I start, I am sure my numbers will go up! I agree about adding more tops, I want to add woven tops too because t shirts do cling, plus they get washed out so fast!

  • harmonica replied 11 years ago

    I see your points Kirti :-) I came to think of one way you might get more "skirts", if you want it. Since most skirts are not good for you, you could try to wear a dress like a skirt by layering with a top. Of course, it must not make a lot of bulges, but if you find a way to pair dress + top, you might have some new outfits :-) And maybe you get to wear some of your dresses more

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