Call me nosy but I always enjoy peeking into someone else's closet - and you did such a thorough job of categorizing everything, with notes too (I definitely zoomed in on the spreadsheet to read the far right column)!
I also can relate to that cyclical nature of "boom and bust" with your closet. I'm currently undergoing my own "boom" period given lifestyle changes and suffer that same disconnect buying new/often. But I do think our styles change as we change, so we deserve some grace in these periods of weakness. All that said, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post and appreciate all the work you put into it!!
Thanks for reading! I think it's healthy to go through seasons of wardrobe experimentation/evolution/reinvention -- especially when you're approaching in a way that feels good to you. With these exercises, I'm trying not to engage in too much self-shaming (as moms, we have enough to feel bad about!), and instead see them as opportunities to learn about myself.
I hope you are enjoying your season of style exploration!
I'm coming in hot on an older post, but...I want to say that I really enjoyed this!! I'm feeling super seen in that my online purchases are also typically more successful. It seems a little crazy to say it, because it feels like everyone else is like "the only way to understand the fit and feel and emotion of it is to shop in person!" but, for me, the thought and intention of figuring out how it fits into my wardrobe is the most important thing - and, I find it impossible to do that standing on the spot in a store. I need time! Once it comes to me at home, the only thing I'm still really evaluating is fit. But everything else is figured out.
Thanks for reading (love Indyx btw)! It’s interesting because I do prefer shopping in person for the reasons you’ve mentioned (plus the ability to support local economies), but the data shows that I tend to make better decisions when shopping online because I’ve really thought through the purchase. Ultimately, I’ve realized that slowing down, taking time to evaluate, and not settling for placeholder/”I could make it work” pieces is key, regardless of shopping medium.
This post inspired me to do my own reflectlion! My clothes shopping exploded in 2020… something about discovering and supporting local brands during the pandemic. I am embarrassed to admit that some of them made their way to Poshmark. I was also on mat leave then and I feel like those years were full of “aspirational dressing” , but didn’t reflect my real life. Also, weight gain!
I still have a bunch of precious clothes i’m holding on to (love all my shirts from Power Of My People!) … motivated to give them more love.
I started 2024 with The Rule Of Five, which has turned out to be way more than 5 items. But I have stuck with keeping a list in my phone of what I bought, where, how much I spent, whether it was planned, and how I feel about the purchase. I review it often and am hoping to learn how to buy less by spotting patterns in my purchases. I love your spreadsheet and am going to transfer my phone notes to a similar format. Thank you for this post!
The data can bring so much clarity! I have a similar list of purchases from within the year that lives on my phone. The spreadsheet is also great for deeper analysis of trends over time.
This was so interesting! Thank you for sharing your data and analysis with us.
I've been listing the things I've bought for several years but last year I took a look back at the previous years' lists to see which purchases stuck around and which ones had been failures. I never pooled the information into statistics but I am tempted now!
It was definitely a worthwhile exercise. The next layer I’m planning to add is number of wears and cost/wear. Would love to read about your shopping insights!
Wow, that was a mammoth exercise! In the depths of the pandemic, I created a similar sheet on Airtable, and I still log everything I buy, the cost, and how often I wear it, but I have never thought to rate my satisfaction with the item. I might try that some time. I too, need to stop falling in love with fabric...in this regard the Rule of 5 has been really helpful in getting me to stop buying things that I love the feel of but would never wear.
I hope you enjoy Substack! I don't love the more "social media" features that try to serve you content, but I really enjoy the ease of the writing and publishing interface.
It was definitely sobering to sit with all this information! The satisfaction analysis really affirmed that I need to stop making space for things that are “just okay” or “almost great”.
Thanks! I don’t have a ton of time to engage with the social features, but I like how user-friendly it is (plus my favourite writers like yourself are here). I still refuse to download the app though haha.
So thorough, hugely impressive! I found the purchase satisfaction pie chart especially interesting. I hadn’t thought to evaluate satisfaction holistically, maybe will try at the end of this year. The good news about having a lot of 3/2/1s is knowing that there’s so much room to cut out, which is more helpful than not knowing at all.
For sure! Satisfaction is hard to measure objectively as it’s always shifting — I’ll have to revisit my ratings at some point in the future. This whole exercise was a good reminder to be more discerning with my purchases. My hope is to have a closet of only 4s and 5s someday.
Call me nosy but I always enjoy peeking into someone else's closet - and you did such a thorough job of categorizing everything, with notes too (I definitely zoomed in on the spreadsheet to read the far right column)!
I also can relate to that cyclical nature of "boom and bust" with your closet. I'm currently undergoing my own "boom" period given lifestyle changes and suffer that same disconnect buying new/often. But I do think our styles change as we change, so we deserve some grace in these periods of weakness. All that said, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post and appreciate all the work you put into it!!
Thanks for reading! I think it's healthy to go through seasons of wardrobe experimentation/evolution/reinvention -- especially when you're approaching in a way that feels good to you. With these exercises, I'm trying not to engage in too much self-shaming (as moms, we have enough to feel bad about!), and instead see them as opportunities to learn about myself.
I hope you are enjoying your season of style exploration!
Wow, for this excavation into data for the wisdom. Definitely lots for me to learn from. Thank you for sharing.
I'm coming in hot on an older post, but...I want to say that I really enjoyed this!! I'm feeling super seen in that my online purchases are also typically more successful. It seems a little crazy to say it, because it feels like everyone else is like "the only way to understand the fit and feel and emotion of it is to shop in person!" but, for me, the thought and intention of figuring out how it fits into my wardrobe is the most important thing - and, I find it impossible to do that standing on the spot in a store. I need time! Once it comes to me at home, the only thing I'm still really evaluating is fit. But everything else is figured out.
Thanks for reading (love Indyx btw)! It’s interesting because I do prefer shopping in person for the reasons you’ve mentioned (plus the ability to support local economies), but the data shows that I tend to make better decisions when shopping online because I’ve really thought through the purchase. Ultimately, I’ve realized that slowing down, taking time to evaluate, and not settling for placeholder/”I could make it work” pieces is key, regardless of shopping medium.
This post inspired me to do my own reflectlion! My clothes shopping exploded in 2020… something about discovering and supporting local brands during the pandemic. I am embarrassed to admit that some of them made their way to Poshmark. I was also on mat leave then and I feel like those years were full of “aspirational dressing” , but didn’t reflect my real life. Also, weight gain!
I still have a bunch of precious clothes i’m holding on to (love all my shirts from Power Of My People!) … motivated to give them more love.
I started 2024 with The Rule Of Five, which has turned out to be way more than 5 items. But I have stuck with keeping a list in my phone of what I bought, where, how much I spent, whether it was planned, and how I feel about the purchase. I review it often and am hoping to learn how to buy less by spotting patterns in my purchases. I love your spreadsheet and am going to transfer my phone notes to a similar format. Thank you for this post!
The data can bring so much clarity! I have a similar list of purchases from within the year that lives on my phone. The spreadsheet is also great for deeper analysis of trends over time.
This was so interesting! Thank you for sharing your data and analysis with us.
I've been listing the things I've bought for several years but last year I took a look back at the previous years' lists to see which purchases stuck around and which ones had been failures. I never pooled the information into statistics but I am tempted now!
It was definitely a worthwhile exercise. The next layer I’m planning to add is number of wears and cost/wear. Would love to read about your shopping insights!
Wow, that was a mammoth exercise! In the depths of the pandemic, I created a similar sheet on Airtable, and I still log everything I buy, the cost, and how often I wear it, but I have never thought to rate my satisfaction with the item. I might try that some time. I too, need to stop falling in love with fabric...in this regard the Rule of 5 has been really helpful in getting me to stop buying things that I love the feel of but would never wear.
I hope you enjoy Substack! I don't love the more "social media" features that try to serve you content, but I really enjoy the ease of the writing and publishing interface.
It was definitely sobering to sit with all this information! The satisfaction analysis really affirmed that I need to stop making space for things that are “just okay” or “almost great”.
Thanks! I don’t have a ton of time to engage with the social features, but I like how user-friendly it is (plus my favourite writers like yourself are here). I still refuse to download the app though haha.
So thorough, hugely impressive! I found the purchase satisfaction pie chart especially interesting. I hadn’t thought to evaluate satisfaction holistically, maybe will try at the end of this year. The good news about having a lot of 3/2/1s is knowing that there’s so much room to cut out, which is more helpful than not knowing at all.
For sure! Satisfaction is hard to measure objectively as it’s always shifting — I’ll have to revisit my ratings at some point in the future. This whole exercise was a good reminder to be more discerning with my purchases. My hope is to have a closet of only 4s and 5s someday.