Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Shop Your Closet!


Several of my friends have asked me to come help them go through their closets and decide what to keep, what to get rid of, and how to put different outfits together.  I did this with my friend Melissa not too long ago and we had the best time!

Here's what she said about the process. "I wanted to make use of all of the random pieces of clothing hanging in my closet, and at the same time, get rid of stuff that was outdated.  Amanda went through my closet, piece by piece, putting together color combinations and patterns that I'd never thought of doing, sometimes taking advantage of pieces I hadn't used in months! It was amazing and in a matter of a couple of hours I had 25+ new outfits without having to spend a dime.  She gave me a better understanding of what colors and patterns to put together and organized my closet so it makes so much more sense.  Plus, it was a ton of fun!"

First off, we made a donate/trash pile with clothes that didn't fit, were too worn, outdated, or she just didn't like anymore.  I changed her mind about a few pieces that she thought she should get rid of and urged her to get rid of a few that she may have wanted to keep.  ;-)

Melissa tended to have her closet organized by outfits.  Pieces that she would wear together, she hung together.  In doing this, she limited herself to ONLY wearing those pieces together.  We started out by making piles of different pieces - top layers (cardigans, jackets, sweaters), layering pieces (tanks, tees, oxfords), pants and skirts. Then we went through them and I mixed and matched the different pieces with each other, sometimes even adding shoes and jewelry,  We talked about mixing neutrals, adding a bright pop of color to a neutral palette, and even a little print mixing! I can't count the number of times she would gasp and say "I NEVER would have put that together!  I love it!"  She snapped shots of the outfits with her phone so she could remember what we put together.  Later she sent me the pics she took.  Here are just some of them!

Shop Your Closet!
I was in love with that puffer vest and coral cardi!  It's hard to tell in the pics, but the darker grey top is grey and black stripes.

Shop Your Closet!
I think my favorite piece in her closet was these camo pants!

Shop Your Closet!
One of the color combos she had never thought of was the eggplant (in the striped sweater) and mustard,  And the sheer black sweater she had only worn with a cami underneath.  I showed her how she could get a completely different look layering it with a crisp, white oxford. Also, the look in the bottom left corner is a good example of mixing neutrals - navy sweater, grey jeans and brown boots.  

Shop Your Closet!
The neutral cardi on top can be worn so many different ways.  I also encouraged her to pair her white jeans with Fall and Winter looks! The red and navy cardis had been hanging in her closet unworn for a long time because she didn't know what to wear them with!

Shop Your Closet!
Ok this grey cardi is one of the best basics! And the little taupe jacket - too cute!!!

Shop Your Closet!
By this time the floor had gotten to be quite a mess, so ignore that, lol!  We discussed how to wear denim on denim.  Doesn't she have some great distressed denim?

Shop Your Closet!
Another of my favorite pieces was these olive cargo pants! I told her they literally go with everything in her closet.  :-)

We had quite a few more looks put together, but this is a good idea of what we came up with.  She was so excited to tell her husband that she had 50 new outfits and hadn't bought one new thing!  Since then, she has told me that she's being more brave about mixing neutrals (like brown and black) and has confidence about putting these looks together. I call that success!

We also made a list of basics that would be good to have, so she has an idea of what to look for when she is out shopping.

Thanks Melissa, for trusting me with your closet!








13 comments:

  1. Amazing! I am soooo impressed!

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  2. Great job! I need this but don't nearly have the selection to choose from ;)

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  3. Replies
    1. We should do this as you unpack into your new house! Though, you are just as good as me at putting outfits together!

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  4. I've done this with my friends!!! So much fun!
    Jaymie
    www.jaymieashcraft.com

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  5. I will let you come
    Play in my closet with me!

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  6. This is such a great idea and I really need to do it soon with the new seasons. Thanks for sharing your inspiration at #HomeMattersParty

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  7. I so need your help creating new outfits from my "old" clothes. Thanks for sharing at the This Is How We Roll Link Party.

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