I love shopping my closet and tend to keep things a long time as a result. My problem is knowing when to get rid of things. I don't believe in throwing clothes out just because they're X years old, but I worry that I don't notice when my clothes are faded, dingy or shabby. Sure I can tell when they're stained or ripped, but gradual aging is hard to see. Any tips for really being able to evaluate old, but still useful clothes this way?
3 Easy Tests To Know if You Should Keep it Or Let it Go
- Test for Fading - Take the clothes out of your wardrobe that you think may be getting old. Take them into a space that has great lighting. Look inside the seams or inside a pocket and see if there is a difference between the colour there and the colour on the outside. This is a good way to see how much fading the garment has had.
- Thrift Shop Test - Now run the garment by the "Thrift Shop Test". Imagine that you are in a thrift shop. Would this garment pass your quality test for purchase? If it was someone elses 'old thing' would you still want it?
- Currency Test - Go online (or to the stores) and see if you could replace it with a very similar item. This will tell you if the shape and style is still current, or not. If you can find very similar garments in store, then it's still current. If there is nothing like it in the chain stores (and it's not a really creative or unique item to begin with) then maybe it's a fashion of another era.
These three quick tests will help you evaluate if that old favourite should stay or leave your wardrobe forever.
Check out this post too on signs that it's time to let it go!
Plus when is it time to let go of the trends you love?
And 7 top tips on what dates and what becomes timeless.
