Uniforms. My life has been full of uniforms. I went to catholic grade school: uniform. Ballet and theatre required a different kind of uniform but still, a dress code nonetheless. All the jobs I've had have required uniforms. So, dressing myself for work had never really been an issue, until I graduated and landed a job at a company without a dress code. After the first week, I realized I did not have as many work-appropriate articles of clothing as I thought. These past weekend, I went through my dressers and broke up with some of my favorite pieces. But, in order to professionalize your wardrobe, here are the 5 articles hanging in your closet that you should pitch in your next purge.
1. T-Shirts.
College. What a hub for free t-shirts. They were everywhere; they bribed you to events you knew nothing about; they tempted you around each corner. T-shirts are so comfortable. A perfectly worn t-shirt can feel almost like pajamas. And, they might as well be. There is nothing professional about a t-shirt, unfortunately. After college, I found them to be the dominating item in my wardrobe. I'm not saying you can't keep your t-shirts. I wear them while I work out, am lounging around the house, and run errands. They shouldn't be the staple item in your wardrobe anymore. So, ditch some of the tees. Keep your favorites.
2. Your hot pink heels.
This category seems really specific but it may be the broadest. Your hot pink heels basically means anything that you would wear to a fraternity party: open-back, sheer tops, colorful heels that you wore to AePi formal sophomore year, bandeaus in general. These items really don't transfer over into your professional wardrobe in any situation. Let go of the dark-fraternity-basement-jungle-juice stained items.
3. Old work shirts.
As mentioned before, I have had many uniformed jobs. Now, I have more oversized button-ups and polos than I know what to do with. Toss them into the donation bin. Someone else could make more use of those than you.
4. That one thing that fit you at one time that you're losing weight to fit into again.
You know what I'm talking about. It's in the very back of your closet. You try it on every now and again and it still doesn't fit. But, gosh it would be so cute on you if it did. Look, everyone gains a little weight in college. It's inevitable. Your body will change from freshman year of high school to your senior year of college. There's no use in making yourself feel bad about not fitting into those size 5 pants from sophomore year of high school. Embrace a little body-positivity in letting go of this one.
5. Anything you're keeping for a theoretical situation.
I don't really know if this one applies for anyone else besides me. In my most recent purge, I found gold lamé pants I wore for New Year's Eve a few years back. I honestly couldn't tell you WHY I had kept them after all these years, or WHAT I was saving them for, for that matter. But, anything you have to say "Oh! I can wear this for Halloween and be 'a this or that'" or "Just in case I get invited to a movie premiere someday, I have this in the back of my closet." Donate it. Unless you work at a costume shop, the chances of you actually wearing it to a hypothetical event you've made up are slim. And even more slim are the chances you will wear it to work.
Cleaning out the closet is a good thing. Other than giving yourself an excuse to go on a shopping spree to rebuild your now-skeletal closet, there are hundreds of thousands of people out there that could make better use of the stuff you no longer wear. So, consider donating the things you don't need anymore to people who need them, especially as the cold months creep around the corner.
Happy purging, beauties.
