So it's been a month or so since I said I Do to my fifteen items of clothing. Here's what I've learned so far, and maybe some things to consider if you're taking the purge plunge:
1. You will miss your old clothes. You just will. It has taken me about a month to get used to not having that X item for X specific thing. But some (a lot) of my old clothes have moved on to be useful in other ways, like a new t-shirt rug for my kitchen. (Hi baby. I can see you from where I'm sitting right now.)
2. Less clothes means less laundry. I run full loads. This means that I am airing things out overnight a lot. It works. Try it. (Unless it has physical visible dirt on it, it goes on a hanger in a breezy room overnight.) I do have two other people to help me fill the washer. And one of them picks up dirt and food residue like bees attract fuzz. Laundry note: baking soda is @*@$&#^*&OMG amazing.
3. Underclothing. Wearing a tank top or light tight fitting tee (doubles as summer jammies, takes up less space in the washer) as a buffer layer ('specially if it's hotter and sweatier than Satan's underpants outside, like right now) will extend the wearing time of your "outside" clothes. Understuff note for the ladies: Your bra doesn't actually come in contact with your underarms, so check its rankness level before just tossing it into the hamper. You may be able to air it out over night. Oily/sweaty is automatic laundry, those conditions are like (insert branded amusement park) for bacteria. And remember, linen spray is your friend.
4. I have "outside" clothes now. My "inside" clothes are my pajamas/yoga/workout/can-take-a-serious-beating clothes. I'll throw on that t-shirt I slept in last night to do the dishes. I have also started using aprons religiously again.
5. My clothes fit in one drawer. ONE. Which leads me to my next point:
6. Traveling is so easy. I've always been a carry-on-if-you-can kind of person, but now it's almost impossible not to be.
7. For the first time in the thirteen years we've known one another, my husband has more clothes than me. This amuses me.
8. My attitude towards my clothes has inevitably influenced how we buy and take care of my whole family's clothes. One item comes in, one goes out (donate, re-use, etc.).
9. My grammy, who came of age during the Depression, knows a ton about re-using, making do, mending, cleaning with vinegar and baking soda, and hugs.
It's a start. Next up: purging and paring down the kitchen. (Steak knives in a mostly vegetarian house? What?)
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