When you open your wardrobe, is it bursting at the seams? It’s a possibility that it may take one more than an hour to scour through the hundred pieces and pick that one white shirt. More often than not, a disorganised closet compels us to repeat the same pieces again and again, as we tend to spot them hanging right in the front. For some of us our closets are a little wonderland where we play out our sartorial fantasy. It’s a dress up box where we often end up rediscovering pieces we bought with a lot of love or have a memory attached to them. Think of your favourite pair of jeans from high school (which wouldn’t even climb up beyond your thighs) or a pair of baby pink corduroy pants or a polka dotted kaftan which your perhaps wore to an all girl trip to Capri.
Now with quarantine becoming a reality for all of us, it’s the best time to let go of things that we will never wear anymore? Why not be a wardrobe editor and omit the fluff? Now that we are trapped at home, due to the pandemic, if we don’t find time to do it, we’ll never be able to it. We got experts to give their unique takes on how we can edit down our wardrobes methodically to make dressing up all the more fun.
Rule 1: Don’t keep anything because of sentimental reasons. And trust us, a whole bunch of clothes will fit into this category. Do not keep items just because you paid a lot for them or because someone special gifted them to you. “If you have not worn anything since the last two years, chances are you would never wear it again so you should aggressively throw these items out of your closet except for heirlooms and classic pieces,” advises designer Shruti Sancheti.
Rule 2: Don’t keep garments of the wrong size. You’re a victim of wishful thinking if you believe you may fit into them some day. If you are a size 8, just keep garments that are the same size. “It is unlikely that clothes which are a few sizes small or don’t flatter will ever do so, so one should belligerently give it to people of that size or body type. It is good to be charitable and count your blessings as this category would be something which you cherished,” says Sancheti.
Rule 3: So that polka-dotted little dress has sweet memories of a sweet day out when you were in college. But, really, are you likely to ever wear it again? Even if they make a comeback, it will be with a fancy new moniker. ‘Fads should not be hoarded, especially last season’s style, as even if they come back, they will be in a different avatar,” adds Sancheti.
Rule 4: Keep the basics. White shirts, blue jeans and a classic watch are all you need plus some quirky accessories. “I always feel classics are the best investment and a trans-seasonal wardrobe is the new drift along with WFH wardrobe so perennial favourites like neutrals and timeless colours should be held on to, for prolonged usage,” suggests Sancheti. Seconding this, stylist Pranay Jaitly says, “One should always hold on to their personal favourites and we feel it’s essential for a wardrobe to have a crisp white shirt, blue denims, a nice tailored black pants and a pair of shoes that could work for both morning and evening wear.”
Rule 5: Keep the colours that suit your complexion. “Colours in one’s wardrobe mainly should depend on what complements one’s complexion, however, keeping the current pandemic in mind and assuming that we would all be able to step out in the next month we should stick to summer colours like powder blues, baby pinks, mint green and salmon,” advises stylist Shounak Amonkar.
