Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Project Rewear: Recap

I did it.


I successfully went a whole year without buying any new clothes. Shocked?


I am a little bit, too.


Last year, when the presents were unwrapped, the bubbly uncorked, and people were resolving to be thinner, wealthier, and better-looking (or something like that), I decided to challenge myself to buy no new clothes for the entirety of 2009. “New” is really the key word here – I bought clothes that were new to me, just not new to the rest of the world.


I like clothes. A lot. Legend has it that I began to pick out my daily attire at age two, because something my mom had chosen for me didn’t “mats” (I was apparently aware of the color wheel long before I had enough teeth to say “ch”).


I treat clothes like souvenirs. I like to buy them when I travel, bringing a little piece of the world home with me. Currently, my closet holds shirts from Dublin, scarves from London, a skirt and sunglasses from L.A., Cubs shirts from Chicago. . . it’s kind of like World Market, without the well-coordinated décor, edgy music, and off-brand Nutella.


And, being a good, thrifty Presbyterian, I am also highly susceptible to the “itsareallygooddeal” disease. This illness can strike suddenly and without warning, usually within a tight radius of the Gap clearance racks. And no matter how cute that $12 Target bargain is, those add up fast, and were leaving my closet too full and wallet too, well, empty.


I also stopped buying new clothes to lessen the environmental impact of all those clearance rack spending sprees. If I don’t buy a new sweater, it means someone has to make one less sweater, and those materials and energy aren’t used. The consignment shop sweater has already been made, it’s already “out there” in the world, and by reusing it, I reduce my resource consumption, albeit by a very, very small percentage. While one sweater isn’t going to make a very big difference (or for that matter a whole year of clothes purchases) it is still something I can do, and in the end has changed by buying habits.


The rules of my experiment were simple. No buying new clothes. Consignment stores, thrift stores, garage sales, Ebay, and Craigslist were all were acceptable clothing sources. In an effort to learn a new skill, I was also allowed to wear anything I could sew myself (which sadly turned out to be, well, nothing). I could wear anything given to me as a gift, because I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings (and I have a rule to never, ever turn down free J. Crew. Just sayin.’).


Surprisingly, my year-long experiment was much, much easier than I expected it to be. Probably the most difficult was when I traveled to L.A. and had to deal with the candy-shop assortment of colorful boutiques laid out before me. I bought accessories (not forbidden) and sought out some cool thrift stores and consignment shops. I didn’t get to clear out the H&M as I would have liked, but my shopping need was well satisfied. For the rest of the year, I found a few key thrift store jewels, and got creative with how I put the rest of my wardrobe together.


If I had to summarize everything I learned this year in one word, it would be this: Ebay.


No, seriously.


I never knew what a treasure trove of fashion awaited me in cyberspace! Ebay-ing for books, electronics, and Christmas presents was old hat, but clothing was a new challenge. One that takes patience, proper measurements, and some more patience. In order to be a successful Ebay clothier, you need to know your measurements and stick to brands you know and trust (for me it’s the ever-lovely J. Crew). I would scour Ebay for the particular item I was looking for (most of the time jeans or boots), add a bunch of items to my watch list, watch as most of them went out of my desired price range, bid on a couple, and maybe win one. It took me about two months before I finally found the tall, brown boots I was looking for (new shoes weren’t off limits, just more than I wanted to spend), and I had to buy two pairs before I found one that fit (after a few forlorn sighs, the other was promptly re-listed). But in the end I ended up with a great pair of brand new $300 boots for $60, that I wear almost daily. Jeans are a bit tricker, but if you find a brand and style you love, keep scouring Ebay for them. I bought two gently used pairs of (J.Crew!) jeans for under $12 each, and that is so much more satisfying than buying the same jeans out of the catalog for $80.


I ended my retail-fashion-fast on New Years Eve by stopping at an outlet mall somewhere in Indiana. Or maybe it was Kentucky. (We were driving home from Wisconsin on our Christmas adventure across the Midwest, and I’d spent so many hours in the car at that point, I wasn’t even sure what state I was in.) All I know is, while we were chugging along I-90, my sweet husband suggested we stop and stretch our legs and let our dog relieve her ever-patient bladder. And then we pull up in front of the J.Crew factory store. Yes, folks, my husband loves me.


All that to say that one pair of cargo pants, corduroys, and a sweater later, my fast is over. And while it will be really nice to walk into a store and buy a white dress shirt if I need one, rather than scouring every thrift store in town, I don’t think I’ll be returning to my old shopping habits any time soon. I still plan to turn first to Ebay whenever I’m looking for a new pair of jeans, and thrift stores can more than satisfy any hint of “itsareallygooddeal” disease that may come my way.


And for all of you who stopped reading five paragraphs ago because this post is so damn long, here’s a recap: I didn’t buy any new clothes for a year, I survived (thrived, even!), and you should try it too.


I threw that last little encouragement in there for good measure. If you’re thinking of giving up new clothes for a while and need some pointers, let me know.


In the meantime, I’m going to try to figure out something to resolve for this new year before I blink and it’s 2011. Any suggestions?

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