Closet Wrapped – 2024

Last year, I learned that the Hot or Cold Institute published research stating that consumers would need to limit themselves to five new garments per year in order to meet the goals listed in the Paris Agreement. I wrote a little “Closet Wrapped” at the end of the year, intending to share it as a potential New Year’s resolution, but I walked away with a lot of insight into my own consumption habits. So let’s do it again!

This year I set a goal of 5 new items and 18 items total (because even secondhand overconsumption is overconsumption). I beat it at 5 new and 16 total. I spent $332.07 on clothing, shoes, and accessories. Items ranged from $1.99 to $77 and averaged $20.75 in cost. The average MSRP was $73.25, meaning I got a 72% discount by shopping sales and secondhand (at least before considering shipping or any fees). I bought primarily from Poshmark, ThredUp, eBay, and Goodwill. I purchased 1 item each from Patagonia, Mountain Steals, and CampSaver.

I carried rules over from last year: Shop from a list. Look secondhand first. No acrylic, viscose, or rayon. No outlet brands. Pay for shipping instead of adding more things to hit a free ship threshold. Here’s last year’s Wrapped for more details behind each.

I learned a lot about my relationship with clothing this year:

• Anything athleisure or outdoorsy is a hit: I WFH in a town with very relaxed fashion standards. There are college kids in sweatpants, farm and ranch folks in western workwear, outdoorsy folks in fish/hunt/hike apparel, and busy suburban moms who settle for a functional uniform. I personally live in sun hoodies and wool base layers. I walk 3-4 miles a day with the dog. I bike to the grocery store, gym, and restaurants when weather and light allow. After work, I hike, garden, or get a workout in. There are a ton of perks that come with a remote job, and I’m working on accepting that fashion is an easily-sacrificed trade off.

• My casual closet faces a lot of challenges. It’s hard for me to get multiple wears out of a casual garment. I’m in a high desert climate where temps generally swing between 12 and 103 degrees throughout the year. The outfit I wear to brunch in November likely won’t be warm enough for dinner out in December. Plus, I wear a lot of my casual clothes in other cities with other standards and styles of dress: I make the trip to Seattle often. My work trips sent me to rural Vermont. My family and lifelong friends are in the South across North Carolina and Alabama. I need to look for pieces that are versatile: across season, weather, geography, and trend cycles to eventually be worn out over many, many years.

• Color makes a big difference in clothing satisfaction. I went down the color analysis rabbit hole this year and learned I’m some sort of True or Bright Spring – bright, warm colors look best on me. That epiphany prompted several others: I really enjoyed fashion in the 2010s when neons were trendy. I really struggled as we entered the era of millennial grey and blush pink. I’ve tried and failed with recent trends in earthy organic or soft muted hues. I also realized I had a lot more closet satisfaction when I shopped in store because I could “see” color harmony well before I understood what it meant. This insight made it so much easier to walk away from pieces that I like because I know which ones I won’t love as much on me. It’ll be a slow process to wear through my bad colors and gradually invest in brights, but I’m excited to divest myself from that aspect of trend cycles and to look better for it.

• Fucking buy bras. Socks, bras, and underwear aren’t counted in the rule of 5. No one likes bra shopping, but too many of us settle for old bras with worn out, stretched out bands that are too big, yet undersized in the cups. It’s the fastest way to become dissatisfied with your wardrobe, and none of clothes you buy will fix the issue. In 2024, I realized I was only wearing black bras, pulled from a stockpile of samples from my days working in intimates (we always sampled in black). Two white ones put a lot of my favorite wardrobe pieces back into play.

• Sweaters are my downfall. I have too many sweaters, but I also always want more sweaters. There’s always a great vintage fair isle or argyle or cable knit that would be incredible in my wardrobe. I’ve set this winter to be a firm no-buy for new sweaters. Most of the “rule of 5” goals come easily to me because I like saving money with used things and I’m very picky – there’s not a ton out there that I really want. But holding off on something I want just because I don’t need it? This exercise starts to feel masochistic.

• I sold five garments this year. Most Goodwill donations end up in the trash, so I decided I wanted to make the choice to get rid of clothing more burdensome on myself. I didn’t want to delude myself into thinking I was doing a good thing when I placed items in the donation bin, under the assumption they’d be discovered, treasured, and heavily worn by thrift store customers. So I’m making myself list things on Poshmark first. Everything has taken longer and sold for much less than I expected. It really me scrutinize my purchases much harder knowing that I’m going to hold myself accountable for finding their new home if I change my mind about them down the road.

• I spent 319 contemplating a down skirt. I’m becoming more and more patient between adding a need to my shopping list and buying an item that satisfies it. This serves 2 purposes. I spend a lot of time researching options and tracking prices for the items I buy. It improves my buyer satisfaction and the chances I find an incredible bargain. But second, I lose interest in a lot of these purchase categories.

• I put up a hang dry line on my back patio. Not sure why, but it makes laundry a little more fun. Maybe it’s because I get to go outside? I do like nature more than appliances. But it’s also gentler on my laundry and extends the life of a garment.

• I’m really intrigued to see how work impacts my shopping habits. I used to work for an apparel brand where I thought a lot about shopping. I comparison shopped competitors’ websites. I participated in the “New! New! Gotta buy new shit this season!” sort of marketing message. I measured what people were clicking and searching and buying. I was impacted by a layoff in November, and less time at a computer ramped cut time spent shopping dramatically. I start a new role in January outside of apparel. There’s a lot more potential to build process, not just execute it, and I’ll have new challenges like being a people manager. I hope I have less mental capacity to think about my clothing wish list.

Let’s get into what I bought: I classified my purchases into 3 groups. In the appropriate season, am I wearing them weekly, 1-2x per month, or less than 1x per month. Stars denote the items that were purchased new:

Hits – Worn Weekly: I wore the shit out of my new clothes. 69% of my new and new-to-me garments go worn weekly. This was an improvement from 2023 (48%). Every new item fell in this category. I’ve been especially pleased with the Smartwool 150 base layer. I was wearing it 3-4 days a week in the fall since it kept me regulated throughout our 30-40 degree temperature swings. I also loved the Eddie Bauer Lined Guide Pro Pant – they’re the only reason I finished winterizing my garden. And the Line Apres Booties have come in handy far beyond the ski resort parking lot. I treat them like yard Crocs once the snow started falling.

Moderates – Worn 1-2x per Month: I had 2 pieces in this category (13% of my purchases vs. 21% last year). Both replaced similar items from 8-10 years ago that no longer fit; I’ve liked them and worn them across many trend cycles. Both are versatile casual pieces that can create a lot of different outfits with existing pieces from my closet.

Duds – Less than 1 Wear per Month: This category consisted of 3 garments (19% of my purchases vs. 20% last year). “Dud” might be a little harsh. I got the white shorts just before Labor Day. I got the blue shirt in October. Both pieces might get more wear next summer. But I will admit they’re both less versatile versions of my “1-2x per month” pieces. The running shorts were a confirmed miss. Turns out I like running in spandex more. I noticed a price trend in this category: I paid an average of $7.32 per item in this group vs. $20.75 for all purchased pieces. It’s a good reminder that cheap clothes are just a burden if I’m not going to wear them.