I have not really talked about my style and outfit challenge I had with myself in 2023. Last year I tracked (almost) every single piece of clothing I wore. Today I want to share my closet inventory 2024 & style stats 2023 that I gotten from that experience.
When we started packing up our home for the (first move) early 2022 a lot of anxiety came from looking at my closet. And packing it. I am having a really hard time letting things go. I have emotional attachment towards many of my clothes. May it be because I wore them on specific dates or the joy when finding that particular item or when making it. However many of those items have not fitted in many years. Many of them are well worn and became favorites. Many are still ok to be worn even though I am not particularly liking them. With the first move I discarded a lot of items (for me). With the second move in 2023 a few more had to go. But I knew I needed to get a better understanding of what I am wearing, how I am wearing it and if I needed certain items or if there are items missing. And mainly I needed to know how long to keep items in order to get the price they are worth. For many people clothes are being discarded after a few wears in order to get new shiny things. For me it is the other way around. I keep my clothes until they fall of. And even then I try to make new things out of them. But is it really worth sacrificing space for it? And wearing things I don’t like. Which don’t spark joy. Or is it healthy keeping clothes that remind me of a more healthy human being, mocking me constantly? Not so sure.
And on the more fun side of this project I was a bit tired f what I had in my closet and always pulled out the same old outfits and pieces. I wanted to experiment a bit more with style. But unlike other people I do not like to dress and figure it out infant of a mirror. It is too much time being wasted for me.
That was my mission when I started the experiment. How long does it take to wear clothes until it is ok to get rid of them? Might it be more sensible investing in higher quality clothes? And will I find new outfit combinations in my closet and combine outfits outside my default outfits?
Luckily I came across some very helpful blogpost from Kimi. She has been tracking her outfits for 10 years with the Stylebook app. She has a great article explaining the features of the app as well as an article on how to start inventorying your closet. I checked out a few other apps currently available but the stats feature and the Cost per Wear feature were the main reason I wanted to get an app and so I bought it. (I rarely buy apps but those 7€ were well invested).
My Closet Inventory starting into 2024
Before starting this experiment I could only tell you that I have 2 meters of clothes. What they were… Who knew. With the second move I had to reduce to 1 meter and three drawers. Now I know more. Here is the current inventory of my closet.
Tops: 112 total
Tank Tops: 9 – not in Stylebook App tanks I wear as undershirts in winter
T-Shirts: 21
Short Sleeve Knits: 5
Longsleeve: 10
Blouses: 18
Pullover: 21
Crop Tops: 3
Turtlenecks: 6
Sweaters & Hoodies: 13
Cardigans: 6
Bottoms: 29 total
Jeans: 9 – plus a few currently not fitting and not added to the Stylebook App
Pants: 8 – plus a few currently not fitting and not added to the Stylebook App
Shorts: 5
Skirts: 6
Jumpsuit: 1
Dresses: 11 total
Shirt Dresses: 5
Sundresses: 5
Cocktail Dress: 1
Outerwear: 8 total
Coats: 2
Jackets: 4
Vests: 2
Shoes: 17 total
Boots: 2
Sandals: 4
Flats: 3
Heels: 5
Sneaker: 2
Slippers: 1
Bags & Accessoires: 43 totals – this category is not yet completely entered with all my (handmade) jewelry and scarves, hats and sunglasses.
Belts: 6
Hats: 2
Necklaces: 2
Bracelets: 1
Earrings: 19
Scarves: 8
Lounge & Nightwear: 11 total
Nightwear: 6
Lounge Bottoms: 5
As I said some items are still missing in the app. Mainly clothes that are currently not fitting or the ones I know will be discarded rather soon due to wear. Also the entire accessories section is a hot mess. I have so much jewelry it will take time entering in the app.
Right now the total number of clothing items comes in at 231. Not included underwear, sportswear which I track but only the more expensive items.
Top 3 Purchases 2023
In 2023 I bought a total of 44 new items of clothing. I gave myself a budget which I overspend by 87% percent. It is somewhat okay as I don’t spend much on clothing in general and I really needed some update. Also I have set myself a rather low budget. My plan for 2024 is not to buy anything unless underwear or shoes if needed and everything else I really need or want to buy second hand. We’ll see how that works out. So far nothing bought. Yeah me.
That said, these are my top three purchases of 2023.
These first three items are also logged as the ones most worn in the past year.
The purse was used on 144 days and comes in at a current cost per wear of 0.12€.
The coat was used on 87 days and comes in at a current cost per wear of 1.61€.
The boots was used on 77 days and comes in at a current cost per wear of 0.31€.
The boots will probably not hold up for another season. That tells me I could spend more on quality shoes and see if they make it past one year. The coat is my most expensive clothing in my wardrobe and the lining starts to ripped. Not sure what that tells me. Do you wear coats longer than one season?
Color Distribution in my Closet
My favorite color in my closet is – surprise: blue, followed by black, white and gray. That is pretty solid and it will be interesting to see if that will change over time. I have been in my blue phase for some years now. Last year I did add a few more brighter colors (pinks and reds mainly). currently I am leaning towards mint and sage colors but I know it is a short lived phase so I try not to spend money on such items and more on accessories if I really need to.
My Top 3 Worn Outfits
I tend to wear similar outfits in winter and fall while during spring and summer I get more experimental.
My Handmade Clothes
I love that the app shows me all my handmade items in one place. It is nice to see that compilation. I mainly create tops. My weight is too unstable to put much effort into creating bottoms. Sadly.
Currently the handmade items (logged as brand) come in second place. Yeah.
Seeing this I think I will create separate categories for Handmade Clothes and Handmade Jewelry.
Clothes that need repairing
I am particularly happy and annoyed at the same time that the app can filter and tell me about the items that need repairing or special cleaning focus. Unfortunately the app can’t do it for me. But I guess I can dedicate a day and start doing those repairs and it is easier and more tidy than having a basket sitting somewhere judging me.
Things I learned tracking my outfits for a year
- I own too many clothes. I still haven’t logged everything in the app.
- I own much more handmade items than I was aware of. Something to be proud of.
- I am cheap when it comes to buying clothes. Something I want to be more conscious of knowing where the clothes come from.
- While I don’t particularly like summer most my clothes are summer clothes while only 85 are winter items. Interesting.
An here you have My Closet Inventory 2024 & Style Stats 2023 and I can apply cross of another bucket list #72 on my 101 things in 1000 days.
Have you ever tracked your outfits? Do you know how many clothing items are currently in your closet? Do you have a color that is dominating your closet? How many new clothes did you purchase in 2023? And how many have made it in your closet already I 2024?
18 comments
I started tracking my outfits and clothes I think last summer due to similar reasons as you- I have SO many clothes and yet often feel unhappy with my clothing choices. (Things either fit but I just like ok, or are in good shape but don’t feel as high quality as I’d like, or are just really old and I’m tired of them, etc).
I also feel like I have so many clothes yet don’t wear half of them. So I wanted to try tracking my outfits to encourage myself to wear and mix and match things I already own. Unfortunately I found it too tedious to add all my clothing to the app! And I would forget to add pictures and daily entries also. So… yeah. :) I still like the idea though! And I’m still motivated right now and actively wanting to curate my closet to be more minimalistic but higher quality /only things I love.
About the coat… not sure why yours isn’t lasting! My boiled wool coat I wear often I bought probably 13 years ago – I believe it was maybe $150. My north face winter parka I got when my 14 year old was 2- so like 12 years ago? I have many other coats and jackets and they all seem to last a long time (and I don’t buy the most expensive thing I can find, either, but also not cheap.) For quality in general I find it’s a mix- sometimes “expensive” doesn’t always equate to quality, and vice versa. I have some cheaper tops and sweaters that last longer and look nicer than so called “high quality” things I’ve bought! So I guess it depends on the item, and maybe a bit of luck. I’m also trying to shop more with mindset of investment pieces now too though.
Setting up that inventory and getting everything in there really is a bit of work.
I sometimes took a quick photo of the fabric and added it so I can record it and later I replaced the image when I had more time. I also sometimes set up outfits I hadn’t worn. This way I could easily record and had a catalogue to choose from at any day. Made it easier. Sometimes I took an items and made all possible combinations to see what would work. But yes, you do spend some time in the app.
The outside of my coat is all fine it is just the lining that gets ripped at the seams. You don’t see it when I wear it but it’s annoying. I do have jackets that I own for more than 10 years too. They just don’t fit very well right now. My oldest piece of close I bought in Rome in 1992.
This is so fascinating! I love all the handmade items — so impressive. I do not track what I wear, but I do understand exactly what you mean about having an emotional attachment to some items. I have some clothing that hasn’t fit for years, but I cannot get rid of it because it reminds of specific times… I also have some clothing I like in theory but not in practice, and I can’t bring myself to let go of them. I would love to spend more money on nicer things, but I think I get bored too often. But maybe if I were more intentional about what I buy, it would be worthwhile? Definitely something to think about!
I am glad I am not alone in keeping clothing memorabilia.
And yes, I would love to get nicer things but my weight is alway changing so much that I just can’t justify it. Sigh.
I am thinking about getting wardrobe staples in a higher quality. Like a jean jacket. Or some nice pants. We’ll see. for right now I really don’t need anything. I may want a white turtle neck. And a maxi dress.
This is interesting and motivating. I need to purge my closet, but it is so overrun that I find the thought exhausting, so I don’t do it. I think I could do it incrementally, and just get rid of 5 or 10 items a week/month whatever. Even if I don’t finish this year, it would be a start. I have a lot of items that were gifts (mostly from my MIL, whom I adore, but her body and mine are very different and what looks great on her doesn’t look good on me – same with some items from one of my friends. Both friend and MIL are taller than me with long legs.)
I am not sure I want to track my clothes through an app, it sounds like a LOT of work, but it seems like it is giving you a lot of good information!
It is a lot of work in the beginning. Won’t deny that. One it’s all in it’s just a few seconds.
When I need to purge my closet I usually go by category. One a day or weekend. I start with socks. And feel very accomplished after that.
Oh, I purged my socks recently, and my underwear drawer, so I’m already started! I think I’ll do like you suggest, one category at a time.
Have fun. I should also go through again. Maybe I find some courage.
I’ve never tried tracking my wardrobe like you did. I can see how it’s a good idea and will help yoy know where you need to add items, or not add items. My wardrobe is mainly jeans and tshirts. I have a few dress up clothes from years ago. I’m not sure if they fit any more – and if they do, they’ll be horribly out of style! I enjoyed seeing all your information, especially your hand made clothes!
I also felt like I only have jeans and t shirts or better said I only pulled those out. With the overview I did combine jeans and blouses or wore more dresses just because. But I totally get that tracking is a time investment
I was so tempted by this app until I learned that it’s only on iOS. I think it would be really nice to know what pieces of clothing I wear the most. I wonder if it depends on the season – I have sundresses that I haven’t worn in months, but know that I’ll wear a lot as soon as it gets warmer. Hmmm…
I am sorry it’s not available for your phone.
I also have clothes I wear as soon as certain temperatures are here. It’s so fun. I get so much more colorful in the summer.
This is so cool! I recently did a full closet clean out and it was so freeing – but, made a lot of outfit gaps very apparent, sigh. I know the app must be a lot of work to set up, but what interesting data you get from it! I especially love the color chart. I have been trying to land my clothing into 3 colors + neutrals to better mix and match…
Yes the color wheel is so fun. I don’t really count blacks, grays and whites as color and then I only have blues and pinks left.
I do do it for the data. It’s so fun to see.
Oh I remember you mentioned this app at some point. That is so cool that you can see how many times you’ve worn something and what the “cost per wear” comes out too. I am intrigued to check out the app.
I think you made some great progress. Many women struggle with their wardrobe (a full closet and nothing to wear) and I also feel guilty for reaching for the same clothes over and over again. I currently feel like I have no sense of style either because I don’t have to “dress up” very often.
Thanks for sharing this. Very inspirational!
I am glad you found this helpful. I suggest to look at the links from Kimi as she really explains the app in depth.
I find very helpful to see what I haven’t worn yet or for a long time and then explicitly reach for those items. It’s definitely made me more conscious while also not really spending much more time about thinking what to wear.
The stats are really interesting, being able to see what you wear a lot should help you when you go shopping to choose things that you’re likely to wear. I usually try to buy clothes that I’ll be able to wear a lot and hopefully, they last. I did a wardrobe purge and organise at the start of winter last year. After that I bought a couple of long sleeve T-shirts and merino T-shirts, black pants to travel in and a couple of lightweight, warm jumpers that dry quickly and a pair of jeans from the opshop to replace my ripped ones. So far this year I’ve bought two pairs of running shorts, a running singlet and some hiking shorts for our hike in Tasmania. I don’t like shopping that much and don’t have heaps of clothes. I expect the few clothes that I bought last year and this year, I’ll be wearing until they fall apart. Black definitely dominates my wardrobe which is a pretty common thing in Melbourne.
That is interesting that black is a common thing in Melbourne m. I wouldn’t have associated this color with Melbourne. But then I couldn’t tell you which one I would have thought of.
I also am not a fan of shopping. Mainly because it is frustrating that the close usually do t fit. It’s been a thing all my life. It’s getting harder though. Anyways I am hoping your clothes last you a long long time.