Living Clutter Free Forever - decluttering tips, professional organizing, minimalist living

Gained weight and not loving your clothes? 3 strategies to help you create a capsule wardrobe that sparks joy (even on a budget) #105

• Caroline Thor - Professional Organizer - KonMari® Consultant

Share episode

Ever felt the frustration of a wardrobe that no longer fits your changing body?
Are you tired of staring at a closet full of clothes but feeling like you have nothing to wear?
Join me as I share my personal journey of navigating these challenges and emerging with a joyful, cohesive wardrobe.
You'll learn how to embrace and respect your body at every stage, reassess your style, and create a capsule wardrobe that truly brings you happiness.
We’ll explore practical strategies like repurposing old clothes, budget-friendly shopping, and prioritizing quality over quantity—ensuring that each piece in your wardrobe sparks joy.

Transforming your wardrobe doesn't have to break the bank. Discover how to set a budget, shop smart at thrift stores, and utilize platforms like Poshmark and ThredUp to find versatile, high-quality basics.
Plus, uncover tips on organizing your closet to maintain a clutter-free, joyful space.
Tune in for actionable advice, personal anecdotes, and the encouragement you need to start your own journey,  and let's declutter your life one joyful piece at a time.

Grab your FREE Wardrobe Transition Checklist

I would LOVE to hear from you. Text Message me here.

Get your home tidy in just 15 minutes a day! Grab my FREE 15 Minute Declutter Kickstart Guide HERE!

Thanks for listening! For more organizational motivation, support and free resources:
Join my online membership Clutter Free Collective
Join my podcast Facebook group Living Clutter Free Forever Podcast: KonMari® Inspired Organizing | Facebook
Visit my website www.caroline-thor.com
Come and say 'hi' on Instagram @caro.thor
Follow me on Facebook @carolineorganizer

Speaker 1:

Hi there, I'm Caroline Thor, professional organiser, konmari consultant, teacher and mum of three. I started off my life as a mum feeling overwhelmed, disorganised and desperately trying to carve out some time for me amongst the nappies, chaos and clutter. One day, one small book called the Life-Changing Magic of Tidying changed everything and I began to learn strategies for making everyday life easier. Today, I have the systems in place that means life can throw almost anything at me, and I want to share them with you. If you're an overwhelmed mum struggling to keep it together, then this is the podcast for you. Grab a coffee and settle in for a quick chat with someone who gets your reality. Hello and welcome back to the living clutter free forever podcast. I am so happy to have you joining me today and, as I teased at the end of the last episode, today's topic is something that has come about because of a conversation that happened in my online membership Clutter Free Collective. A few of the ladies had been decluttering and organizing their clothes to do the wardrobe transition swap from autumn winter through to spring summer, and they ask the question what do you do if, once you have decluttered and organized, you find that the clothes you're left with that still fit you, perhaps having gained a little bit of weight. They just don't spark joy for you, and this is something that I know a lot of people struggle with. It's something I've had to deal with in the last few years, so I decided it would be great to do a podcast episode just on this topic, because I know so many of you can relate to this. So if you go back and listen to episode 45, this is where I was talking about this topic from my experience, where I had an unplanned clothing experiment because of the fact that I had so many clothes in my wardrobe that were no longer fitting me. So you're not alone if this is a problem you have, and today we're going to tackle this issue head on with three strategies to help you create a wardrobe that sparks joy, even on a budget.

Speaker 1:

If you find that, having decluttered and organized, you are left with very few clothes and they're not things that you love. So, just to give a little bit of perspective, I had, in the last few years, put on enough amount of weight that meant I didn't fit in most of my clothes that I had hanging in my closet, and it was a really frustrating experience. It didn't make me feel good about myself standing in front of a load of clothes that didn't fit, and I was really getting frustrated at the lack of choice that I had of clothes to wear. And this is what I talk about in episode 45 and how I dealt with that, and I didn't talk about specific strategies in that episode. So that is what I would like to do today.

Speaker 1:

So, first of all, if you have decluttered and organized and found that you just don't fit in a lot of stuff, you need to acknowledge the feelings that come with these body changes. It is okay to feel frustrated or even a little lost when your favorite clothes no longer fit, but what we need to remember is that our bodies are ever-changing. It's perfectly normal. We go through phases where we perhaps gain weight or lose a bit of weight, and I think embracing the body we currently have and being positive about it is crucial. Our bodies do so much for us and they deserve our kindness and respect at every stage, regardless of whether we are disappointed in the fact that perhaps things have changed. So, rather than focusing on the body we have and why we're not happy with it, let's flip it. Let's focus on dressing the body we have now not the one we had or the one that we think we should have, and I think, when you can embrace that change and I certainly had to go through this myself it empowers you to find joy in your clothes again, or to find clothes that spark joy for you again if you currently don't have any. So there is something that you may have heard about, which is a capsule wardrobe. So what exactly is a capsule wardrobe? It's a curated collection of clothes that you love to wear and that fit well, and typically a capsule wardrobe is going to consist of between 30 to 40 pieces of clothing that can be mixed and matched to create a variety of outfits, and the goal is to simplify your wardrobe and reduce decision fatigue and ensure that every piece you own brings you joy. However, if you find yourself in the situation where, due to a change in your body shape and size, you have a very limited wardrobe, then you may find that your capsule wardrobe is way less than 30 to 40 pieces.

Speaker 1:

I know that I had one summer where I had two dresses that fitted, two pairs of trousers, two pairs of leggings and about five tops that I felt really happy wearing, and I didn't go out and buy more clothes. At that point I just made do with those and by the end of the summer I was totally bored with having so few to wear. On the other hand, I wore every piece of clothing that I had in my closet all the time, like regularly. They would go in the wash and come back and then I would wear them again because I had so little to choose from. And it did make me realise that I can actually survive with less clothes than I thought I needed to have, and it was actually really great to see that I was wearing everything all the time like really regularly. So the benefits of a capsule wardrobe are numerous You'll spend less time deciding what to wear, you'll have a more cohesive style and you'll enjoy the confidence that comes from wearing clothes that fit well and make you feel good.

Speaker 1:

So first of all, you need to maybe think about assessing and identifying your style, and your style now may be really different to how it was, even a year ago or two years ago. I know that I personally have had quite a radical shift in style and things that I am happy to wear, and because of that I have let quite a few pieces in my closet go because I've just noticed I never wear them anymore. They're not part of the style that I currently have and I don't envisage that I will be going back to them. So which pieces do you absolutely love? Which ones make you feel confident and comfortable? Set those aside and consider why you love them. Is it the colour? Is it the fit? Is it the fabric?

Speaker 1:

But now we come back to the question that was being asked in my membership what if you have decluttered and you've tried everything on and you're left with no clothes that spark joy? This can be really disheartening, but it is an opportunity for a fresh start, which can be really exciting. So here's what you can do in this situation. My first top tip would be identify why they don't spark joy. So you've got these clothes, they're the ones you're left with and they fit you, but what is it about them that you don't like? Is it the style? Is it the colour? Is it the fit? And when you understand this, it can help you avoid buying similar pieces in the future.

Speaker 1:

If you have got something that fits you but you're not loving it, it doesn't spark joy for you. Consider if any of these items can be repurposed or altered? Could a dress be shortened and made into a top that you might love, or could you dye a piece a different colour? I know I have got one lady in my membership who has found herself in this situation and she had some fabric at home that was totally sparking joy for her. So she is sewing herself a pair of trousers for the summer that she will know fit her and they will spark joy for her. If you haven't got a sewing machine at home and don't even know where to start with sewing, you maybe could find someone locally who could do something similar for you if you could find some fabric that really sparks joy for you.

Speaker 1:

My third top tip is what I would call a temporary hold. So you're left with these clothes. They fit you, but they don't spark joy. But you're not ready to let go of them just yet. You've got a slight uneasiness about letting them go because of your lack of choice that you have at the moment. So maybe put these clothes in a maybe box and store them out of sight and revisit them in a few months and see if your feelings have changed. It might be that you get them out again and one or two things do now spark joy for you, but if you get them out again in a few months and your feelings haven't changed, then you know you were right in your feelings and you can donate them in your feelings and you can donate them.

Speaker 1:

And my fourth top tip is to really see this as an opportunity for a fresh start. If your clothes truly don't bring you joy, it might be time to part with them and gradually build a new wardrobe that does Start with the basics and slowly add pieces that you love. Now I know that for a lot of you that may be a really hard thing because financially you may not be in the place where you can just go out and buy a whole new wardrobe. So let's think about strategy number two, which would be budget friendly shopping. So you need a new wardrobe, but you just don't have the finances at the moment to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe of clothes. Let's face it, who does? I certainly wouldn't be able to do that. So you could set yourself a budget and determine a realistic budget for your new capsule wardrobe, and this will make you mindful of things that you are buying and avoid impulse buying, because you'll know you've only got a set budget to spend. That is one possibility.

Speaker 1:

A second possibility is to use thrift and second-hand shops to find unique and affordable pieces that you love and, depending on which country you're in, there are so many different places. If you're in the US, you've got stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army and local consignment shops. If you're in the UK, you have got things like Save the Children and other charity shops that you find everywhere on the high street that you can go and have a look at. And if you are in Europe, you have your secondhand shops you can go and look at. But we now have the joy of online platforms that we can use. So there are places selling secondhand clothes like Poshmark and ThredUp in the US, and Vinted is an amazing online secondhand place where people are selling their clothes secondhand. You can find amazing bargains is. The H&M Group has its secondhand platform, sellpy, which sells all over Europe, and you've got like 5 million items I think is available to you there to buy. So that is another option.

Speaker 1:

Lots of people have a problem buying secondhand clothes, but you really can find amazing bargains and obviously, once you get them home, you need to wash them. But I had someone in the membership, who had ordered some clothes from Selpie, had spent very little on each item, had tried them on once. She got them and realised that a few items didn't spark joy, but because she'd only spent two or three euros on them, she was able to, without a guilty conscience, just donate them and keep the ones that she loved. So that is something that you can do, and, of course, there are always sales and discounts happening at stores. If you sign up for newsletters from your favourite stores to stay informed about upcoming sales, it means that you have got the chance to see what's available straight away, before they all get sold. Just be really careful that you don't end up buying things for the sake of buying it because it looks like a good deal. Another thing you can do is use apps to find out what the discount codes are available on different websites that are selling, and I do this all the time. I will do a google search for discount codes if I'm buying anything anywhere online, and very often I will get a really good reduction if I can find a discount code that's working at that point. So these are ways that you can save money and be budget friendly in your shopping If you don't have much finances available to you to replenish your wardrobe with things that spark joy for you.

Speaker 1:

It doesn't have to cost a fortune. You can still get some amazing clothes that will spark joy at a really good price. And then, finally, my third strategy would be to focus on quality over quantity. So invest in the basics first. When you're building your capsule wardrobe, focus on investing in a few high quality basics. So think about a pair of well-fitting jeans or a classic white shirt or a jacket that's going to match with everything. And once you've got these items forming the foundation of your wardrobe, they can be mixed and matched in countless ways. And when I say invest, I don't mean you have to invest a lot of money in them, but invest the time in finding those things that you know are going to be a staple of your wardrobe that you wear regularly. And perhaps for those few items, you spend a little bit more money on those to get a better quality, so that you can really make sure that they're things that are going to wash well and and last.

Speaker 1:

For me, another thing that always when I'm looking for clothes comes into play is am I going to have to iron this? I hate ironing. I will avoid ironing at all costs. So when I go into shops or if I've ordered something online and I learned this from my grandma I remember going shopping with my grandma when I was a teenager and being so embarrassed because she was going up to clothes in the shop and she was grabbing a handful of the material and screwing it up to see if, once she released it, there were going to be creases and I thought, oh, this is just mortifying my grandmother's going around screwing up all these clothes in the shops. But I do it now as well, because I don't want to take things home that I'm then going to have to iron all the time. So really think about what's important to you when you buy your clothes. Clothes for me that I have to iron do not spark joy. They can look totally amazing and I can feel great wearing them, but if I know I'm going to spend hours ironing it to make it look good, then the joy just goes out of it for me.

Speaker 1:

Another thing to think about is the fit and the fabric. Really pay attention to if your clothes fit well, if they're made from good quality fabrics, because then they will look better and last longer. If you've got natural fabrics like cotton and wool and linen, they're more durable and they're very often more comfortable than synthetic ones. I did make the mistake that I went out because I had literally nothing to wear at this point, where I had gained so much weight, and I bought some trousers. I loved the look of them on me, I loved the pattern. I was super happy with them, but I wasn't sure about the material. It was a synthetic material and I've ended up not wearing them as much as I would like to, because if the weather's warm, I just get really hot and they just feel uncomfortable, so I can only wear them on days when it's not super hot. So really think about that. At the moment I'm hanging on to them because I do like how I look in them and I feel great in them, but the material is a real problem and it's something I should have thought about a bit more carefully before I bought them.

Speaker 1:

And finally, tailoring can make a huge difference. If you can get things altered, you can transform a good piece of clothing into the perfect one. So consider having some key items that you have tailored to fit your body perfectly, and it's an investment that can pay off in the long run because you will end up wearing that item more because you know it fits you perfectly and you feel really, really great in it. So, to recap, we've discussed three strategies for creating a capsule wardrobe that sparks joy. We've talked about assessing and identifying your style, shopping on a budget and also focusing on quality over quantity. And remember, if none of your current clothes spark joy, it's okay to start fresh and gradually build a wardrobe that does, and it's something that you can do over time. So maybe for a while you are going to have to wear those items that fit you, that you're not loving, that don't spark joy for you, but you can gradually replace them over time and know that the current wardrobe you have is not the one that you will ultimately want to have, and it's quite fun having a goal to aim towards to get those items replaced when you financially can afford it or when you find the right item.

Speaker 1:

Whatever you do, do not run out and buy something just for the sake of replacing something. You've got to really, really love it, or you're just going to end up with more clothes in your closet that still don't spark joy for you. And one thing I would love to say before I finish off this episode please remember your worth is not tied to your size. You deserve to feel fabulous in your clothes, no matter what. So if you find yourself in this situation, embrace it, have fun with it. Your wardrobe should reflect the wonderful, unique person that you are, and I am so glad that I realised that when I found myself in this situation, because I've lost a little bit of the weight, but nowhere near all of it. I'm still not back in some of the pieces that I did keep that are a smaller size, that spark joy for me, but that's okay, because the clothes that I currently have I love and I wear daily, and that is brilliant. So I encourage you to take your first step towards creating a capsule wardrobe that you love. Start with a wardrobe audit and see where it takes you. I have got a wardrobe transition checklist that you can download for free. I will put the link in the show notes and you could use that to help you, and I would love to support you and cheer you on. So let's see where we can get to with that.

Speaker 1:

Now, if you have been listening and thinking, oh, so the ladies in the membership have been having this struggle, and this is something they've all been getting support on and they've been supporting each other on it, and you know that you always get stuck with your decluttering and organizing, and if you had a community behind you, you would probably be making the progress that they are. Please come and check us out. Go to caroline-thorcom, forward, slash clutter, and there you can find out all about what we're up to in the membership clutter free collective. We would love to have you join us and be able to cheer you on. Okay, well, I hope that's been helpful and for those of you in my membership who I know will be listening to this, thank you so much for inspiring this episode.

Speaker 1:

I hope you guys have found it useful too, and until next time, if you've enjoyed this episode, please send the link to a friend you know would appreciate it. Subscribe and leave a review. I look forward to bringing you more organising tips next time. A review I look forward to bringing you more organizing tips next time, but if you can't wait until then, you can go to my website or find me on Instagram, at carothor, or on Facebook at Caroline Organizer. Thanks for listening and I look forward to guiding you on your journey to find your clutter-free ever after.