The bag you see in the photo is a work of art that gets me many compliments. However, it had been sitting forgotten in my closet for 3 years due to clutter. Why was that? Let me start at the beginning...
Growing up, my family would often walk around shops on the weekend. It was something to do and provided exercise when the New York City weather wasn’t conducive to outdoor outings. When I grew up and moved out on my own, I naturally started walking around shops. This time, though, I had a salary and could actually buy things. Which I did. A lot. Items would pile up, but I didn’t think much of it. My wake up call came when I moved from Seattle to San Diego. While the movers packed everything up for me, I had to unpack and put away everything on my own. It was then I realized how many unnecessary items I was holding onto, as well as how many hidden gems I had forgotten about.
Wanting to improve my situation but not sure where to start, I read some books. I read Anuschka Rees’ book [4] on cleaning out one’s closet. Her premise is to make one’s lifestyle align with one’s wardrobe. From doing the exercises in her book, I realized my closet was not full of well-put-together work and social outfits. Rather, it was full of mismatched items that were mostly “on sale” impulse buys. I also realized that having too many clothes prevented me from really knowing what I had. For instance, 5 days after buying a black work skirt because I felt it was missing from my professional wardrobe, I found a black work skirt buried in my closet that I forgot I had. Thank God it still fit!
Then I read Jennifer L Scott’s books [1,2,3] on cultivating class as a woman. After studying abroad in France, she wrote three books on the French lifestyle. Scott’s books really made me think about how I carry myself both inside and outside my home. How much is clutter taking over my apartment? How easy is it for me to find an item I am looking for? Do I reach for familiar sweats when I really could be wearing a stunning dress? Scott’s philosophy is to live every day like it’s a special occasion. Part of this involves purging one’s home of junk and ill-fitting / unflattering clothes. When all you have are nice things, you are forced to use them.
After much growth and personal discovery, my de-cluttering process started. It was slow and time-consuming, and honestly still in progress. What I did was organize everything I had and make some difficult decisions about what I really wanted in my life. For the lower-cost items, I made trips to the Goodwill Donation Center. For the higher-cost items, I sold them online or gave them away thru Buy Nothing [5]. Buy Nothing is an online forum where people can post photos of items they wish to donate. Then, members of the local community can comment on what they want to arrange pickup.
Now I strive to only wear my best clothes, eat on my finest dishes, and know where everything in my apartment is. I shop much less, and when I do buy something, I make sure it is an item I actually need instead of just an impulse “clearance buy”. Rather than blowing my paycheck at the mall, I save up for vacations and experiences, which studies show bring more happiness anyway [6]. Whenever I move next, I will not be overwhelmed with unpacking boxes and boxes of unnecessary items. How about you? Where are you on your de-cluttering journey? Do you wear and use your best items or save them for a “special occasion”? What hidden gems have you found buried in your home?
References
1. “Lessons from Madame Chic” by Jennifer L Scott
2. “At Home with Madame Chic” by Jennifer L Scott
3. “Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic” by Jennifer L Scott
4. “The Curated Closet” by Anuschka Rees
5. “The Buy Nothing Project”, https://buynothingproject.org/
6. Rampton, John. “7 Reasons Why Spending Money on Experiences Makes Us Happier Than Buying Stuff”. The Entrepreneur. 15 May 2017. www.entrepreneur.com/article/294163
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