How to Reduce your Wardrobe with Cost per Wear
You see these boots? They cost me $900 on sale (yep on sale. I hope my mum is not reading this!).They are a beautiful pair of boots, but the middle section of my foot starts aching after wearing them for 5 minutes. It is so bad that I have worn these boots 3 times since I purchased them 5 years ago. This is what you call a complete waste of money.How did I come to that conclusion? By using this handy formula:
(Wears per Month) x (Number of Months worn if it is a Seasonal Item) x (Number of Years it will be in Fashion)
= (Numbers of Wears)(Cost) / (Numbers of Wears) = Cost Per Wear.
Based on this formula, the boots Cost Per Wear should be:14 wears x 2 months (we dont wear them much in Dubai so I'm including time in Europe) x 10 (they are a classic style) = 280 wears$900 / 280 = $3.21 per wear.That's not bad at all. The reality is -$900 / 3 (as I have only worn them 3 times) = $300 per wear.Yep that is terrible. I need to find a way to enable me to wear them without crying or give up the ordeal and sell them to someone who will be able to walk in them!You might think that is shambolic, but I promise that is the only ridiculous item of clothing I have in my closet. Promise.I buy more expensive quality items that are classical looking and wear them till they are worn out. If you have met me, I will in all liklihood be wearing a pair of blue jeans at various levels of darkness. These Paige Jeans have been part of my life for the last 5 years. I recently had to throw my first pair (I have 3 pairs in my wardrobe at any one time) away as the crotch area and around the knees had disintegrated despite being patched up by my tailor. When new they were used for meetings, socialising and shopping; once they started fading, I used them as part of my Decluttr Me uniform.Based on the amount of use, I calculated that the cost per wear was:28 times a month x (ignore the season bit) x 10 years (they are classic jeans they will never go out of fashion) = 280 wears$179 x 280 = $0.60!Yep the cost per wear for wearing my Paige Jeans is 60 cents. They may be expensive to purchase, but they are so comfortable and perfect for my body that I don't mind paying a bit more. I have bought H&M jeans and other cheap brands, previously to wear when socialising and for work, and ended up wearing them about 5 times as they were not so comfortable or they frayed too quickly. The cost per wear was about $8!Cost per wear doesn't make you buy less stuff, but it makes you think about buying better stuff that you will love wearing and wear often. What is the point of buying items which are on sale currently if you only wear them 2 times and then hide them in the wardrobe.Start going through your wardrobe and calculate roughly the cost per wear for each item. If you have items that have a high cost per wear, consider if they are worth keeping in your wardrobe. As you start reviewing your wardrobe and decluttering these high cost per wear items, you will start creating a wardrobe full of timeless, My go to shops for day to day and evening outfits are Banana Republic, Cos, Filippa K, Autograph by M&S and DvF. The clothes are a bit more pricey but they are tailored, classic and quirky, which suits my personality and last for years.If you need help to calculate the cost per wear of your items and to declutter and organize your closet, get in touch with me to book your first session today.
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