Month 2 = CLOTHES. If you want to know about something I have an over abundance of, this is it. I could probably open my own boutique...and not have to restock for a year. Little Sarah Barker could tell you all about it; she's the one who unpacked it all for me in my last move. Beth can testify, too; she's a regular shopper at Closet de Sarah.
(And apparently it runs in the family...yesterday on the way to Disney with Beth's parents:
Beth's mom: Sarah, is it ok if I borrow one of your belts?
Me: Yeah, absolutely.
Mom: Good, because I already did! *giggles*)
To give you an accurate picture, in my closet/wardrobe/dresser I counted:
- 37 pairs of pants
- 38 athletic shorts/leggings/sweatpants
- 10 "other" shorts
- 115 shirts
- 137 T-shirts/tanks
- 19 sweatshirts
- 51 dresses/skirts
- 7 coats
- 4 bathing suits
This is a grand total of 418 ITEMS! And it doesn't include undergarments, socks, the stuff I got rid of while counting, anything in my van/office, stuff Beth is borrowing, and clothes friends and students randomly leave my house with. THIS IS INSANE. 418 probably doesn't even come close to the actual number.
Let's say I spent $10 on each item...we're at $4,180 worth of clothes. But is that even realistic? Jeans run about $40 (low end), I included some bridesmaid dresses at $150 a pop, and I've never see a winter jacket or Nike running shorts for $10. Granted, many of the tshirts were free from events and other clothes were hand-me-downs from friends, but still...even $20 a piece still seems like a low estimate, but at that my closet is worth $8,360. That makes me sick.
I'm an emotional spender and impulse buyer. Target always has what I "need" and Kohls calls out to me in all her coupon-y glory. It's a danger zone, people. Let's not talk about the beauty of technology storing all my debit information so I need not even get up and find my wallet to make online purchases. It's bad, so clearly this month was perfect for me.
30 days, 7 pieces of clothing. Easy enough. But what seven?? After much debate (I think I was on day eight before I decided what my seventh item would be) I went with...
- 1 pair of jeans, skinny, dark wash (Target, my every day, dress-them-up-if-I-want-to jeans)
- 1 pair of denim shorts (Wal-Mart...holla!)
- 116 T-shirt (a necessity with two rap concerts this month)
- Likewise T-shirt (if you're gonna wear something for 30 days straight, make it mean something. Luke 10:37 kind of sums up the heart of Seven. Get one and support my friend at www.molleev.com)
- Orange/Coral/bright button down sweater (GH Bass, because sometimes I leave the beach to go to concerts and don't have any clothes with me and the outlet mall is conveniently on the way)
- Nike IWU quarter zip (purchased the first day of this month, so I couldn't wait 30 days to wear it)
- Button-down plaid shirt, olive and white (purchased on day eight, because I needed something "dressy." If plaid is as dressy as you get, clearly your life is not terribly glamorous)
Once again, we decided not to be too legalistic about anything. We were allowed unlimited socks, underwear, bathing suits, pajamas, shoes, and jackets for our northern trips.
Pretty much...I loved it. Aside from doing laundry...a lot...the lack of choice made mornings so easy. Packing was a breeze. Folding laundry took less than a minute. My bedroom stayed clean (kind of) without clothes strewn about. It was kind of like being at camp and wearing a staff shirt every day. Honestly, the month felt more like a treat than a sacrifice (when else can you wear your favorite T-shirt every day and not be judged for it?).
But by last week, I was getting a little bored. I'm not sure if that's good, bad, or indifferent, but even in my love of the simplicity, I was missing being able to wear a dress to the beach or piece together a cute outfit for a night out. I blame you, Winter Weather and Pinterest, holding hands as you flirt over long sweaters and layers and puffy vests and boot socks...things I don't even own.
My clothes are definitely showing some wear. Apparently silly string doesn't wash out of Tshirt graphics very well, so my 116 shirt is looking a little rough (but birthday party indoor silly string fight? Totally worth it).
What amazes me is that even though I was completely content with seven things, I still feel the need to have a full closet...and more! Even though I clearly don't need them, I made at least two Black Friday online clothing purchases. So silly. Blame it on being Dutch?
Sigh. I'm still learning. I am spoiled and privileged and have a long way to go. This month was good, but I'm excited for what comes next: possessions. Each day we give away seven items. Yes, that's 210 over the course of 30 days. The fact that we are packing up and moving across town next week, and then I'm moving cross country in three months help with downsizing, but it's still going to hurt. And that's good. I'm excited. There's freedom in not being tied down to stuff. But we'll save those thoughts till next time :)
