It’s time to stop focusing on price, and start focusing on what really matters–value. This week, we’re talking about how to create a valuable wardrobe on any budget.
What is Value?
Value isn’t about being the cheapest option available, and it isn’t about what costs the most. Value describes how much something is worth to you.
In other words, value is personal.
If you’ve ever wasted a lot of money on an item you didn’t love (or didn’t wear), or found the perfect thing in the clearance section, you exactly know what I’m talking about. It’s not about the money you spent, it’s about how the item made you feel, or how easy it made it to get dressed.
What is a Valuable Wardrobe?
A valuable wardrobe is one that is made up of clothes that make you feel fantastic, that make it easy to get dressed, and that actually get worn.
You can have a closet full of expensive things that don’t fit, flatter or make you feel good. You don’t have a valuable wardrobe, you simply have an expensive wardrobe.
On the other hand, you could have a closet full of thrift-store finds and hand-me-downs that make you feel like a million bucks and make it super easy to get dressed. Even though you didn’t spend a lot, your wardrobe is full of value.
How to Create a Valuable Wardrobe
The first step is to find the valuable items you already own.
The best way to do this is to imagine your closet is on fire. if you could safely rescue just 15 items, which ones would you rush in to save? Chances are, those pieces are valuable to you! If you wouldn’t bother rescuing anything, that’s a sign you don’t have anything of value in your wardrobe.
The other question to ask yourself when you’re going through your closet, looking for something to wear, is this “If this was destroyed in a freak laundry accident, would I be sad?”. I know I’ve got a lot of doom and gloom wardrobe scenarios here, but things that are valuable to you have meaning…and you’d be sad if you lost them.
After you’ve identified your valuable wardrobe pieces, spend some time figuring out why they’re valuable to you. Is it because they look great on you, or is it because they make it easy to get dressed? Maybe it’s because they exemplify your Signature Style perfectly. When you know why they’re important, you can look for similar things, and increase your chances of putting value into your closet.
Then, identify the low-value items in your current wardrobe.
You can learn a lot from your high-value items, but you can also learn from the low-value pieces too. Look for things you spent good money on, but never wear. Look for things that are difficult to make outfits with. Look for things that make you feel bad, physically or psychologically. Those things, regardless of how much you spent on them, are low value.
Just like their high-value counterparts, take the time to understand why these pieces are low-value. Why don’t you wear it? How, or why, did you buy it? Understanding your habits will help you break them.
Get rid of low-value items.
You may not be able to get rid of all of your low-value pieces right away, but next time you edit your closet, pay close attention to the pieces you’ve identified as low-value. What you can do, regardless of your wardrobe or budget situation, is commit to not buying any more low-value pieces.
This is why it’s so important to understand why you high-value items have value, and why your low-value items don’t. If you don’t spend some time figuring that out, you’re destined to make the same mistakes again.
Add more high-value pieces.
If you want to guarantee your purchases are high-value, use the definition I shared earlier as a filter.
Ask yourself:
Does it make me feel fantastic? When you try things on if your reaction isn’t an immediate heck yes, it’s an absolute heck no. High-value wardrobes are not full of “It’s fine, I guess”.
Does it make it easy to get dressed? This question is about versatility and essential pieces. A top you can wear lots of different ways makes it easier to get dressed. So do the perfect black pants that fit like a glove, and make you feel like a million bucks.
Does it light meup? Everything else aside, there is incredible value in clothes that you, deep down, just truly love. That just make you smile. This question is really about being dialed into your Signature Style, and not being afraid to just love what you love, and wear what you love. You’ll never regret buying the things that instantly make you say “I have to have that”. The more of that you can put in your closet, the more valuable your wardrobe will be
Will it actually get worn? Now, the flip side of buying things you simply love, is that they have to be somewhat practical for the life you really live. You can love fancy party dresses all you want, but if you never go to fancy parties, and your life is more about working from home, driving kids around, and going to Costco, you need to find things that light you up and are appropriate for Costco.
If you ask yourself these questions and say “yes” to at least 3 of the 4, you’ll find yourself creating a high-value wardrobe, regardless of how much you’re spending.
Listen to the full episode below to hear more about how we waste money in our wardrobes.
Additional Links & Resources from the Episode:
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