How do you avoid wardrobe waste?

[limom]

For a casual day, you could pair it with a jeans jacket as well.

 

[jen_sparro]

I have a personal rule for myself when buying clothes - I need to be able to make 3 different 'outfits' using the item with clothes I already have. If I can't, then I don't buy it. It's so easy to fall into the trap of buying something then realising you need to buy other items to work it into your wardrobe.

I've also moved away from bright colours/patterns over the last 5 years to a more neutral wardrobe, it's just easier to pair and I find it less mentally taxing.

I also try my best to get items tailored/repaired ASAP so they don't end up sitting in my wardrobe unworn for months.

 

[foxgal]

An example: I like pleated skirts and came across one in nordstrom that fit perfectly. It was a nice biscuit colored neutral. Well, I brought it home and when I paired it with a thin cream colored sweater, it didn’t go together at all. I tried it next with a patterned peplum top I had but that wasn’t great either. So now this cute skirt languishes in my closet until I can set aside an hour or so to find a good top to pair with it, either in my closet or in the store. This is just one example of a separate that didn’t work. It’s not the only one. I don’t run into this issue when I’m buying a dress - my recent purchase of 3-4 summer dresses was perfection in terms of fit and satisfaction.

Yes, I find this with many neutrals, creams, taupes, and grays - there are actually so many variations of shades and tones within these that sometimes they clash awfully! I think I've finally learned my lesson with this...I did buy a couple of grayish items, making sure they were returnable, brought them home, and when I realized they actually didn't look complimentary with other neutrals in my wardrobe, I returned them! Progress!