After doing Project 333 for one month, I realize that dressing with less was about more than just outfits. Here are some follow-up thoughts and lessons from my first capsule.
People thought I was brave.
The number of times I heard, “Wow, only thirty-three items? I could never do that. You’re really brave!” Or some variation thereof struck me as odd. I guess I never thought choosing clothing was important enough to require courage. Sure, it takes a certain amount of guts (or lack thereof, haha) to put on that crop top, but if you’re reasonably comfortable with your body, dressing it shouldn’t be scary. If you want to shed some more light on why dressing with less could be scary, please leave a comment! I’d like to understand more.
That being said, I suspect most people only regularly wear a small selection of their clothing anyway. They certainly have only a few “favorites” that make it out of their closets frequently. It’s just about shearing away the bulk. That’s not too frightening, is it?
I did way less laundry.
Laundry used to be a twice-a-day affair. During my first month of capsule dressing, I did one load of colors and one load of whites a week! I still do quite a bit of general washing because we cloth diaper Alice, but I’d say we cut it back by about half because of my thirty-three item wardrobe and the fact that...prepare yourself…
Only changing accessories, I wore the same outfit twice in a row.
The horror! If something didn’t smell fresh or had a stain, I didn’t wear it again, of course. Otherwise, the same pants and tops went on for two days in a row, and I’d add a scarf or a hat or something the second day to change it up. It didn’t seem to matter, which brings me to the next point:
Nobody cared, or even noticed, that I wore the same things all the time.
If they did, they didn’t say anything. It’s amazing how, as long as you’re dressed at least semi-appropriately, people don’t give a second thought to what you’re wearing and whether or not they’ve already seen it that week.
The Project 333 timelines don’t work for me.
For example, the winter capsule is supposed to be worn through March, but I think of March as the first month of spring. As such, I’ll be changing the timelines to fit the seasons as I perceive them, making March-May “spring,” June-August “summer,” September-November “fall,” and December-February “winter.” That means that this upcoming capsule will only be worn for two months, but that’s alright. I’m still practicing, and my first capsule didn’t go very well. The shorter time period will let me make mistakes without committing to them for so long!
There is a whole world of ethics surrounding the fashion industry.
I won’t go into it too much here, as I’m sure it would fill an entire post by itself. To briefly summarize, though, I learned that my shopping choices mean a whole lot more to the world than I knew. It’s about more than looking cute. There’s sustainability, environmental impact, animal cruelty, factory conditions, fair trade, and a slew of other considerations to take into account when I shop. I’ll be thinking much more about it next time I need a new piece for my wardrobe.
Who knew I’d learn so much in just one month of changing the way I get dressed in the morning?! My next Project 333 entry will be a display of my spring capsule wardrobe and a description of how I put it together. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss it!
No comments:
Post a Comment