Clothes — A Daily Thread – Post 6

Some of my favorite items in my closet are ones I’ve had for a long time.

I have quite a few sweaters that I purchased in the late 80s and early 90’s that still look great.

I have a J Crew denim shirt from that same period with beautiful fading that I love to wear. Made in the USA with single needle stitching when such things were built that way by default.

I have a number of used and vintage items that my wife has picked up for me over the years from clothing exchanges or the buy/sell/trade/free groups she’s a member of on Facebook (more on this in a future post). Many of these have quickly become regular faves.

The truth of the matter is that, if you were to ask me to choose 10 of my most favorite items from my closet, I’d be willing to bet that 8-10 of theme will be things that I’ve had for decades or were free.

This forces me to face a the very question I keep coming back to year after year — why do I bother buying new clothes? Do I really need to? I already am, just based on the above alone, happy with everything I do own and own enough of each type of clothing one might need (tops, bottoms, underwear, socks, shoes).

Part of the issue is that I fall prey to marketing. I have a gmail account that I use specifically for BACN type promotional email from various clothing brands that I typically shop. I’m interested in fashion and am fascinated by what’s “in” and “out” of style seasonally. Additionally, I more often than not get ideas from these on how to style things I might already have or I see something I have in storage re-elevated, fashion wise (J Crew recently re-issued their classic late 80s rollneck sweater — I have 4 from I bought in that era). That said, too many times I’ve seen a promotional email and given in to a massive sale on a certain item —one for which I then find a genuine need to justify it — without really pausing to examine the reality and depth of that need. Without ever pausing to examine what enough is for me in this area.

The easiest way for me to avoid this in the future is to use the “Unsubscribe” on these email promotions liberally and with prejudice. If I want to stay true to my commitment to buy less,and truly do have everything I need, then I should have no reason going forward to know whatever the latest sale-on-sale is. The truth is that, if there is something I need, I’ll be aware of any sales and promotions the moment I visit any brand’s website to look.