Work Wardrobe Sorted
Having worked shift work now for over 12 years and not to mention being in the workforce for nearly 22- OMG, it occurred to me I have always worn a uniform. It’s easy, you wake up, no thoughts what so ever, and pop it on. At my new work space we “Dress for your Day” So depending on what engagements we have on, we dress accordingly. Sounds like fun until you have to come up with a new outfit everyday for a year!
A couple of years back I started to minimise my wardrobe, only buying staple pieces that were of good quality and would last me over the seasons.
Having said that, just a couple of months back I listened to a podcast featured on the amazing Lorraine Murphy Show, Lorraine interviewed her business coach Michelle Broadbent and gave me such a new perspective on outfits . Michelle goes through her wardrobe and mixes and matches multiple pieces so she comes up with multiple outfit ideas. This gave me the idea to start searching for a digital version of her pen to paper version, and I found just that!
Award-winning Entrepreneur, Best Selling Author, Speaker, Mentor, Mama- Lorraine Murphy with Business Manager, Business Strategist, Business support Guru Michell Broadbent
Below I will share with you a few of my top tips when it comes to organising my wardrobe and introduce to you my new favourite app.
Firstly the CULL, take everything out! You need to ask your self a few questions as you pile them onto your bed…
Keep two bags or boxes aside, one for Charity and the other for a potential Market Stall (my girlfriends and I do this one often, great for a girls catch up and not to mention the market food & coffee stalls)
Questions…
Do I even like this?
Does it still fit me?
Is it damaged, holes, ripped, stretched? (throw it out!)
Have I worn it in the last 3 months, and will I wear it in the next 3 months?
(Obviously seasonal pieces are different, snow jackets, wetsuits etc)
This with hopefully start to lighten the load.
Secondly I love to colour code! - TRUST me on this one!
Once you have decided what you are keeping and what you’re donating/selling or getting rid of its time to colour code.
You will find it so much easier to find the piece your looking for when its all colour coded.
This just makes things 10 times easier when you’re searching for that “white shirt” or “black singlet”. Rather than frantically pulling out everything you own, start getting into the habit of keeping all your items in colour code.
Other ways would be to keep similar garments together. Jeans with jeans, jackets with jackets, tops with tops. This is also a great way to really see how many pairs of denim jeans you own, do your really need that 5th pair??
A really big one for me, and something we have also taught our daughter, is the saying. “Is it a need or a want?”
Do you really need it? Or do you just want it? I will always buy Eadie the things she “needs”, but if it’s something she just “want’s” then she will buy it from her own savings. ( We are crazy Barefoot Investors!)
This skirt from SWIISH has certainly been worn in more ways than one. I pair it with sneakers, sandals, wedges and then I have mixed it up with both denim and leather jackets. By swapping a black cami with a white it can completely change your entire look.
Start buying yourself QUALITY pieces
I don’t know why it’s taken me until my mid 30’s to realise that we deserve everything we get, we all work so hard and as the saying goes, we can’t care for others if we don’t care for ourselves. It can be hard when our money is going towards our rent/mortgage/kids/family/everyone but us! But when you invest in a good quality staple piece, it just feels amazing!
These kind of items with last a life time, and this is when you really start to get the best bang for your buck. Everybody’s priorities are of course different, some may want to spend $200 on a new pair of shoes, whilst others like eating out three time a week. I have always based my spendings on a price per wear . If you are considering investing in that $150 blazer just think , are you going to wear it at least 10 times? If you are, great! It will only be costing you $15/wear. But if it’s a one off, you mind want to consider. I remember having a pair of Zara jeans that I wore and I wore and I wore, and they only cost me $40 to start . This is an item I pretty much ended up wearing for free because my cost/wear was something like 2 cents. You see what I mean.
So on all of that said, I have been on the hunt and I’ve found an app. I wanted to be able to create multiple looks without spending a fortune for my new role. So far I have only purchased myself a Blazer and a pair of new shoes, the rest I had and with the help of Smart Closet I have created the next 3 weeks worth of outfits.
You take photos of your own clothing, or you can select from a retailer. You can place into categories by colour, season, brand etc. Create multiple looks by combining your clothes, share with your friends and even plan it into your daily calendar!
Would you believe I have the next 3 weeks sorted and haven’t even started to mix and match yet!
I hope this has inspired you in some way to tackle your wardrobe too. Trust me you will feel amazing once this is done. As always leave a comment below if you have anything more to share!