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As mentioned in my “About” section on my blog, I am intrigued and am actively adopting minimalistic habits to live a more meaningful and intentional life. One of my first practical applications was with my closet. I was reading a book about minimalistic fashion called “ Project 333 ” by Courtney Carver and decided to put it into action. In this blog I will share about Project 333 and my experience with the challenge personally. Read on to learn more!
What is Project 333?
In short, Project 333 is a fashion challenge for you to only dress with 33 items or less for 3 months. Notice how I said “items” and not “clothing pieces.” The challenge includes your accessories too. That’s right! Your shoes, earrings, necklaces, sunglasses, hats, scarves, bracelets, rings, etc. all count in your 33 items. Then these 33 items become your capsule wardrobe for the season. I thought for sure this was not going to be possible, so I tweaked the rules a little bit for my first shot in order to lower the ball. I figured if I made the goal somewhat obtainable, I might actually find some success. Research shows that we only wear 20% of our closet 80% of the time though, so maybe it wasn’t as far fetched of an idea as it seems. I also want to note that you can change your capsule every 3 months to accommodate for the different seasons and add some variety if you feel like you need to switch things up. Also it’s important to note that underwear doesn’t count – thank goodness.
Step 1: Take Inventory
For someone who is a detailed perfectionist like myself, I wanted to know the ins and outs of everything contained in my entire wardrobe. I was also on a mission to feel better about myself. Surely I didn’t have hundreds of items in my closet and there’s no way there was anything in my closet that I hadn’t worn recently (spoiler alert, I was WAY wrong). After pulling literally every item out of my closet and laying it on my queen sized bed, I was absolutely blown away by the amount of items staring back at me. I’m not exaggerating when I say I was standing there with my mouth open just soaking in how my bed was unrecognizable under the, what I considered, slim pickings in my closet.
front view of my stuff
side view of my stuff
top view of my stuff
Before I go any farther, I want to define what my closet space actually is. I live in an apartment and have a small walk in closet that I share with my husband. He had one side and I had the other. We also had a wooden 8 cube organizer that we used for other clothing items, a 4 drawer dresser that we divided between the two of us as well as a front closet full of coats and winter gear. Not to mention the shoe rug by the front door.
After the initial shock wore off, I decided my first step had to be to take inventory of exactly what I had. I counted every shirt, pair of socks and earring I owned. The results? 308 items. If you’re a detailed person like me, you can read the exact contents of my closet at the end of this post. If you’re not, I’ll spare you the time. In short, I had 100 tops, 23 bottoms and 50 accessories. I was disgusted with myself. I had enough tops to wear a different shirt every day for a third of the year, yet I knew I regularly rotated through a handful of favorites. I knew I had a lot of work to do.
Step 2: Go Through Your Stuff
One of the reasons I chose to take literally everything out of my closet and put it on my bed was because it would force me to do something with it before the day was over. There was no way I would be able to sleep with all that stuff on there and I hate a messy floor so that means I had to face my stuff head on. I made myself 3 bins: one for absolutely without a doubt items I would keep, one for items I wasn’t too sure about and one for items I knew I would be okay parting with.
In the book, Courtney advises you to not get rid of anything for your first cycle of the challenge. She encourages you to make a storage box, containing items you aren’t sure if you’re ready to part with quite yet, then tape it up and store it out of sight. Then, if at any time during the challenge, you find yourself wanting an item in your store box, you can retrieve it and add it to your capsule. On the other hand, if you go the 3 months without missing anything, the box is already packed and sealed for you to drop off at your local donation center, guilt free.
My keep pile was pretty large and my store box was packed like a can of tuna. I did have about one trash bag full of items I was ready to donate, so I chose to focus on that the most. Newsflash, I am not a sentimental person (unless we’re talking about my childhood stuffed animal or my favorite bent fork, but overall, I could care less). My family actually makes fun of me for always seeming to declutter and get rid of things, so I thought my closet would be no problem but I was sitting with just a little bit of progress. With the success level seeming bleak, I decided to move on to creating my capsule.
Step 3: Create Your Capsule
Remember how I said I tweaked the rules? That comes into play here. For my first capsule wardrobe, I decided to exclude shoes, jewelry, underwear, bras, socks, pajamas, sunglasses, bags, undershirts, sweatshirts, jackets, cardigans and my work uniforms. It’s a pretty long list, but I was satisfied with the amount of items I had in some of these categories. For example, all of my jewelry fits in one drawer in my makeup organizer. I have a couple pairs of gauges, 2 necklaces and an anklet. I found this to be a good amount for me and didn’t have a desire to change it. The same goes for my bags. I have one small box that fits all my bags, totes, backpacks etc. and I genuinely use all of them that I have (some of them did get thrown into that “donate” box when I went through my closet). I think it’s important to remember that minimalism looks different for each individual because we all have different levels of “enough.” I went into Project 333 with the same mindset: 33 might not be the number that works for me, but I can surely benefit from looking at my closet in a new light and learn some things along the way.
*my inventory vs my capsule*
Anyways, with those exclusions in mind, I made my first list. I had 16 different short sleeve shirts, 4 pairs of shorts, a few tank tops, some dresses and leggings. Compared to my initial list of 308 items, I felt like I was down to the bare bones. I was skeptical this would ever work, but I was ready to give it a shot for the next few months.
Step 4: Create(and use) an Outfit Log
I thought the stat about people wearing 20% of what they owned 80% of the time was super sketch and I wanted to know firsthand if it was true or not, so for the first month of my capsule wardrobe, I tracked what I wore everyday. I found that even with less options I was still reaching for my favorites. I was beginning to think that maybe I really could handle having less. I think a common fear is that people will notice you’re wearing the “same thing” all the time or you’ll have to do laundry more often but that simply isn’t true. I’m sorry to break it to you, but other people are not keeping track of what you wear everyday. Also, you will not be doing more laundry, you’re still washing the same amount of clothes, you just don’t have the stash of items you don’t wear taking up space in your closet.
Another way to do this is before you start your own 333 journey, turn all of your hangers backwards for a season and as you wear your clothes and wash them, put them back normally afterwards. I try to do this every season for the visual truth. I can have an honest assessment of items I didn’t wear at all for an entire season and then accept that I probably won’t for the next one either, which gave me the comfort to get rid of it.
Step 5: Assess Your Experience
Once you do all the steps above, it’s important to reflect on your journey. If you’re finding positive changes or beneficial outcomes, you’re more likely to continue your adventure, and will definitely appreciate how far you’ve come. If you’ve found that you had a lot of bumps in the road, it’s okay to admit it and make adjustments moving forward so you design a system that works for you. The goal is to bring more balance and less stress to your life so if something isn’t working, there is no shame in changing it so it does.
After my first month passed and I looked at my closet, reviewed my outfit log and sat with my feelings for a bit, I realized that I felt better. I didn’t spend as much time trying to choose something to wear because my favorite pieces weren’t hidden under tons of other clothes I thought I liked but didn’t enjoy wearing. I also realized, very clearly, that my physical surroundings heavily impact my mental wellbeing. The amount of clothes in my closet was giving me decision overload so I was overwhelming myself first thing in the morning. I realized I couldn’t remember half of the items I had put in my “store” box just a month prior and had actually only retrieved 3 items. I was still hesitant to commit to the number 33, but I was surprised at the amount I could do without. I also donated another box of items at the end of my first month.
My Reflection:
I absolutely loved reading the Project 333 book and was intrigued with taking the challenge. Although I only did the challenge for one cycle and have yet to participate again, I haven’t added near as much as I had taken out in my cleaning party and the things I have added are meaningful, like homemade sweaters from my family and tank tops I found that used to be my mom’s. I do want to try another capsule for a season but I also feel like I don’t have clothes that I am in love with. I have a few go to shirts that are comfortable to wear but I don’t necessarily “feel good” in them. I have lost 32 pounds since I did the challenge so I didn’t want to buy clothes until I got to a weight I wanted to be at. Then Covid hit and stores closed and people didn’t go out. Eventually (hopefully sooner rather than later) I would like to invest in quality pieces that I feel good in and enjoy wearing to create my capsules. I realize that it is much more beneficial to have fewer pieces that will last me longer instead of more pieces I’ll have to replace often, even if that means I have to have a bit more of an upfront investment. Until then, I’m using a more general minimalist mindset and keeping within the boundaries of my hangers. I have a set amount and once the hangers are all claimed, something has to leave for something else to be brought in. This is what works for me right now and I feel good about it.
my capsule wardrobe
Wrap Up
In closing, I highly recommend reading Project 333 by Courtney Carver if fashion is an area that you’re looking to minimize. She outlines so many tips and tricks and gently encourages you that you’re capable if you put your mind to it. You can also checkout her “ Minimalist Fashion Guide ” to get all the tools you need to get you started. I also think everyone should take an honest look at their closet and do a gut reaction keep, maybe, donate exercise like I did when I started this journey. I think we find so much of our identity in our appearance and I want to encourage you that our identity is in Christ and His redemptive work, not in the floral blouse you’ll wear tomorrow. Once we have a healthy understanding of the usefulness of our fashion instead of a materialistic view, I believe we will be more at peace with ourselves and our closets.
As promised, here is the super detailed list of exactly what I owned
My Closet Inventory: