Round 1-Follow up

(UPDATED 5/5/2011) I could not find a picture of me in 2/4 of the items... I did however find this specimen and I think I am wearing the yellow & white tank top underneath the t-shirt.  Enjoy :)

This picture was taken back in 2008. I was on
the Spirit Committee of my relay team, we were
 raising money for the American Cancer Society!

AND I found this picture of me in the Northface jacket at one of my last Tailgates as an undergrad!

Round 1

I have 4 items up for review!  I will begin by showing a picture of the item and then discuss its importance(or lack thereof) and what I plan to do with it.

Black trendy shirt from Forever 21

 This particular shirt was purchased at Forever 21 in Chicago this past Fall.  I was in the area for my sister's wedding and flew home out of Chicago.  While there I decided to go shopping on Michigan Ave.  I don't know why I liked this shirt so much, it was pretty trendy for my taste, and of course I did not try it on, so I was unaware of the reaction my sensitive skin would have to the material and the shoulder zipper without lining....  needless to say when I returned home I tried it on immediately had an allergic reaction and had red splotches all over my chest, never wore it out of the apartment.   This item will be sold to a local consignment shop.

Burgundy blouse from the Gap

I am always looking for tops that I can wear to work.   This blouse was on the sale rack at the Gap and once again I am guilty of purchasing an item without trying it on at the store.  I love the material, color and style... the only problem was the size.  It's a Medium size shirt but the arm holes were Extra Small.  When I put on the shirt for the first time, I got my arms through the holes, but after 30 seconds the blood circulation in my arms were non-existent.  It took me a minute or two to take the shirt off which had me in a mini-panic.   Each wardrobe mistake in a lesson in itself- I guess.  This item will also be sold to a local consignment shop.

White Northface jacket w/hood

  I love, love, love this jacket! My Mom gave this jacket to me for Christmas five years ago. It has gotten me through countless cold winter days walking through campus or sledding in the snow. It has been a good run, but this worn, washed, and washed again jacket is in need of retirement. Because it is still in decent shape I've decided to give the jacket to Goodwill. Hopefully it will find a worthy home and keep someone warm next winter!

Yellow and white tank top from Target

This tank top is cute and has lasted a few summers, frankly I am too old and a little too overweight to wear this particular tank top.  I plan to sell this item to a local consignment shop.

It feels good to begin this process!  Stay tuned for the next round of items up for review! 

Why Blog?

     

I wanted to start this blog to a) help organize my closet and tiny apartment, and b) to creatively inspire you and be a little entertaining!

The idea to start a blog had been building up in my subconscious for some time now.  I started watching the show "Hoarders" on TLC, and began a self-diagnostics.  


Throughout my life my family & friends joke that I am a "pack rat" and that I could never let anything go.  On the contrary I have never been so bad that I would qualify to be placed on this show, and I doubt if anyone else would view me as a hoarder.  I enjoy cleaning and organizing, but have so much "stuff" it becomes impossible to get the tiny space completely "spotless".  With my various projects laying around I find myself moving piles from one room to the next.  

But that is all about to change.  My Aha! moment:  I was sitting in my work vanpool on my way home from a long and tiring day at the office...  I was reading the latest O Magazine (for those of you living in a cave, the O Magazine is produced by Oprah; has millions of readers and a lot of interesting articles if you can weed through the ones you aren't interested in).  Anyway I was reading about an artist who took inspiration from stacks of 2nd hand clothing sent to her native land.  The arrangement of fabrics-all the colors and the way the clothing was stacked became artwork.

This made me think.  I have stacks of clothing that I planned to get rid of, or bins of seasonal clothing that I planned to sort out.  All of this clothing I have not warn in over a year but I can't seem to part with it.  There are too many memories attached to some of the items, or I think "when I lose 20 lbs i'll want to have this to wear".  The truth is I will probably never miss that item of clothing nor will I want to wear something that is outdated just because it fits.  So why not turn it into a creative project?

My inner fear of being a hoarder is coming to surface and I want to find a way to let go of the things that are just taking up space in my tiny apartment.

Inspired by the article, I've decided to use this opportunity to truly let go of those old clothes... but first I will take pictures and blog about the items.  This blog will act as my personal diary.  Therefore, in theory I can have the memory of the shirt without having to actually keep the shirt!!

I have a feeling that this will go further than just clothing, from old movie stubs, to empty wine bottles to framed pictures from high school(8 years ago).

Anyway, I plan to do one of three things when I am done blogging about an item
       1) sell item to a local consignment shop, 
       2) DONATE to a local consignment shop or good will, and 
       3) trash it.  It there are holes and stains and the item does not function the way it was intended, throw it away.

I also plan to find old pictures of myself wearing the articles of clothing that I am writing about, this way we can get a little bit of a time-line, and it will be fun to look back and reminisce!


Now lets get started!