Simple: easily done, presenting no difficulty
Real: genuine, not imitation
On Oct 1st. 2016, I posted a blog on appearances and how my dad and St. Teresa help me reign it in and stay simple and real with make up.
Appearances also include the Clothes that we wear. It is difficult to keep it simple and keep it real with clothes.
We have clothes that currently fit, clothes that previously fit, clothes that we wish would fit, and clothes that we buy in the hopes that they will fit in the future.
And let’s not forget the group of clothes that cry out “just because it still fits doesn’t mean you should wear it” which is my personal favorite. (Thanks to my friend’s daughters, Aileen and Abbey, who pointed that out to me a few years ago) LOL.
At this point in my life (middle age), my body is very clear in telling me that it would be in my best interest to clean out that Closet and “be real” about it. Yes, I may actually lose the weight I have gained in the last year and it may stay off for the foreseeable future, but getting back into those clothes from the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s might not be a good idea anyway. Yes, I actually do have a sweatshirt from 1989 that I still wear around the house.
I have two sons who are, without a doubt, exactly the gender I was suppose to raise since obviously God knows what He’s doing and I LOVE everything about having sons, but this does leave me as the lone female in my house, and without female input, I am clueless as to fashion.
It appears as though some things go out of style and come back in which works well for me since I have clothes from that original cycle that I’ve never gotten rid of. My friends with daughters will sometimes help me by sharing what they’ve learned from their own daughters. Last winter a friend shared this: “Mom, no one wears turtleneck sweaters any more”. Really, I just wore one last week and it fit my criteria: it fit, it was clean, and it matched my skirt.
With all that aside, looking into my closet, I realize that it would make my life a lot easier if I got rid of the excess, not because I understand or really care about fashion and the latest trends (the apparent jean jacket with jeans debacle of 2012, according to Morgan, teenage daughter of another friend) but to keep it simple when standing in front of the array of unorganized clothing trying to get ready in the morning. To be honest, I would like a less cluttered closet.
Plus, my husband actually takes up 3/4 of our closet with his clothes, so I could use the extra room. Seriously honey, how many collared golf shirts and t-shirts does one need? O.K. guys you could say the same thing about the shoes for females. But hey, luckily, most of the time, the shoe size doesn’t change and that is so comforting and practical, so yes, I still have shoes from Andrew’s First Communion in 2005 with bows on the top that I have not worn in 8 years but you never know...I might. Isn’t that always the answer to hanging on to items we never use or wear.
Once again, enter Rod Hays with wisdom. My dad kept it simple and real with his clothes. His closet was always neat and tidy (he never bought more clothes than what he really needed in the first place, so no overflow like the rest of us most likely have) and he knew when to get rid of clothes. Actually, he knew when and how to recycle clothes too.
My dad had just enough of what he actually needed to wear. He had just a few dress shirts and dress slacks (he didn’t have a job or lifestyle that required dressing up much) and several pairs of his work jeans and work shirts. Just enough to make it through the week before wash day. He purchased quality clothing that would last, and when it had run its course, he got rid of it or used it as a rag (old men’s tube socks make the best rags for woodworking when cut in half).
O.k. so buy high quality pieces that will last (your basic slacks, skirts, shorts), only what I really need, and get rid of it when it’s time.
Hmm. Get rid of it when it’s time. When is it time? When it goes “out of style?” For me, “no” because it’s too hard for me to keep track of what is and isn’t in style and it is really subjective. After all, I decide what “style” I like and that turtleneck is still in good shape and will likely come back in style, right? So I’m going to wear it if I want. Who knows, maybe you’re thinking “when did a turtleneck go out of style anyway?”. O.k. it’s getting far from simple here.
When is it time? Well if you never wear it, get rid of it. Easier said than done. If it is old or worn out with holes, get rid of it. Easier said than done.
Sometimes, even my dad had a hard time parting with clothing. The plaid flannel work shirt.
In 1997, my dad and my husband worked together to build a deck off the back of our house. Notice the shirt my husband is wearing.
Later, my husband decided to get rid of that shirt so I asked my dad if he wanted it. Of course he said “yes” because it was a “good shirt” as he put it. It was still in good shape and he liked the quilted flannel, and let’s face it, good quilted flannel shirts never go out of style. My dad wore that shirt out, literally. He even turned the worn collar inside out and sewed it back on to get more use out of it.
Many years later, when my sons and I were visiting, he admitted that he had actually thrown the shirt in his trash only to retrieve it shortly after, since it was still a “good shirt”. The day I took the pictures below, he had recently resurrected the shirt and, to my knowledge, got a few more good years out of it.
Take from today’s post. The gentle nudge: We are finally moving into fall according to the outside temperature, so many of us are transitioning out of summer and into fall/winter clothes. I am not happy with the clutter in my closet and am vowing to take a good, hard look at what I keep in my view for the daily decision of what to wear, or lately, what not to wear.
If you google “How to organize your clothes closet” you will find many helpful ideas. Some of the procedures, in my opinion, are way too complicated and time consuming so, to keep it simple and real, I am going to quickly go through my closet and remove any item that I just don’t love or that isn’t something practical for my everyday needs and put them out of sight for awhile (basically clutter up another area of my house) and see how I feel. I think having fewer choices will help and who is really keeping track of how many times I have worn that favorite shirt in the last few weeks anyway.
Try it and check back in to let us know how it went.
My son, Luke, is great at this. He, like his grandpa Hays, only wears a select number of shirts and actually refuses to buy anything new which usually frustrates me but, now that I think of it, he has the most organized closet in the house and never wastes time trying to figure out what to wear. Thanks Luke!
Keep it Simple, Keep it Real.
