I Just Moved, and These Are the 4 Fashion Items I Purged

As big of a pain as moving is, it does have it's positive aspects—a shiny new place to decorate as you wish, a fresh start, and the opportunity to take inventory of what you own. When examining what you own, moving is the opportune time to separate the things you love from the things you may not use or have a need for anymore. All those items that just sit and collect dust in your cabinets can be boxed up and donated to both declutter your space and hopefully help out someone in your community. You can also take the Marie Kondo approach and rid yourself of anything that no longer "sparks joy" for you—whatever way you want to go is your choice.

This also applies to your wardrobe. Moving is the perfect time to take a good hard look at your closet and pull out the pieces that you don't wear. For my most recent move, I took this task very seriously. I pulled out each piece in my wardrobe and not only considered how much I wear it but also the condition it's in. Does it have holes in it? Is the sole of the shoe damaged? Am I holding onto pieces that no longer fit me properly? After taking all of these factors and more into consideration, I ended up donating three large bags of clothing to my local women's shelter and was left with a wardrobe full of pieces I'm 100% in love with.

Since it's the beginning of the year and we're about to enter a new season, wardrobe purging is about to spike. So I thought this would be a great time to share the pieces I purged during my move last month and the reasoning behind each item I donated. Below are the four fashion items I purged from my closet and what I plan on adding in their place to fill the new gaps in my wardrobe. 

PURGED: Worn-out T-shirts

ADDING: Fresh, polished tees

You know when a T-shirt has seen better days—holes near the seams, a  stretched-out neckline, stains throughout, etc. T-shirts are made to be worn, so they're bound to get a bit too worn at some point. For me, because I wear T-shirts to work quite often, it's important to recognize when they've hit the point of no return. My move was the perfect opportunity to take a good hard look at my collection and donate the ones that are no longer work-appropriate. Now I have room to replace them with new, fresh T-shirts that will look polished under a blazer at my next meeting. 

PURGED: Tarnished jewelry

ADDING: Chain-link necklaces

What to purge from your closet—and what to buy in it's place

Photo:

@shhtephs

I'm a sucker for trendy fashion jewelry but typically don't spend a ton of money on pieces I know don't have longevity and instead invest in timeless pieces I'll wear forever. Since I'm not spending much money on the trend pieces, they tend to get tarnished, start to rust, or turn green at a certain point. After a while, I've accumulated a whole stack of pieces that are no longer in good condition to wear. I decided it was time to let these tarnished pieces go, and in their place, I'll be adding chunky chain necklaces that are oh so on trend for spring 2020.

PURGED: Too-tight jeans

ADDING: Light spring washes 

What to purge in a move

Photo:

@mon.agar

As much as I hate to admit it, I've held onto a few pairs of jeans that are just a tad too tight on me now in hopes that one day they'll fit again. Not only is this bad for my mental health, but they're taking up space in my closet and I need to just let them go. Before the move, I tried on every single pair of jeans I own and added those too-tight pairs to the donation pile. Since I now have a few gaps in my denim collection, I'll be adding a few more wide-leg styles to my arsenal this spring since that's all I really want to wear right now anyway. 

PURGED: Scuffed shoes

ADDING: Clean spring sandals

Back in my early 20s, I used to designate a few pairs of my shoes as "going-out" shoes—pairs I could wear to a bar and get spilled on and not be devastated about. But seeing as how I just turned 30 and rarely go out like that anymore (I'm more of a nice-long-dinner kind of person rather than a crowded-bar girl now), it's time to ditch those shoes with stains and scuffs all over them. I went through and examined my shoe collection to see which pairs I still love and can be repaired, and which have just seen better days and it's time to move on from. In their place, I'll be adding some clean, minimalist spring sandals to get myself ready for warmer days ahead.