Friday, March 27, 2009

My Lifestyle Wardrobe

I need to replace my wardrobe, everything is either worn out or doesn't fit properly. The research that I have been doing indicates that one should first look at their activities or lifestyle to determine what clothes they need.

I first started with the things that I do (I decided to keep this list to 10 things.)
1. sleep (I need clothes for this since I don't sleep in the buff)
2. hanging out at home
3. gardening
4. visiting my dad at the nursing home
5. doctor appointments for myself and my father
6. doing things with friends
7. shopping
8. parties
9. concerts
10. church

Then I added the type of clothes that I wear to those activities.
1a. sleep-pajamas, nightgowns, bathrobe
2b. hanging out-casual
3b. gardening-casual, aprons, hats
4b. nursing home-dressy casual
5b. doctor's- dressy casual
6b. friends-dressy casual, dressy
7b. shopping-casual, dressy casual
8b. parties-dressy casual, dressy, semi-formal
9b. concerts-dressy casual, dressy
10b. church-dressy casual, dressy

The next step was to determine how often I participated in those activities and determine how many outfits I would need for each category if I did laundry once a week and wanted some variety in selections.

1c. sleep, daily
  • 5 pajamas
  • 2 nightgowns
  • 1 bathrobe
2c. hang out, daily
  • 7 casual pants
  • 7 casual tops
3c. gardening, 6 days/week, cannot overlap with other casual clothes
  • 6 casual pants, must be made from a cool fabric
  • 6 casual tops, must be made from a cool fabric
4c. nursing home, 7 days a week, must be washable
  • 4 dressy casual pants
  • 3 dressy casual skirts
  • 7 dressy casual tops
5c. doctor's appointments, once a week
  • 1 dressy casual pants
  • 1 dressy casual skirt
  • 1 dressy casual top
  • 1 dressy casual dress
  • 1 dressy casual jacket
6c. friends, once a week
  • 1 dressy casual pant
  • 1 dressy casual skirt
  • 1 dressy casual top
  • 1 dressy casual dress
  • 1 dressy casual jacket
7c. shopping, 2 days a week
  • 2 casual pant
  • 2 casual tops
  • 1 dressy casual pant
  • 1 dressy casual pant
  • 1 dressy casual skirt
  • 1 jacket
8c. parties, once a month
  • 1 semi-formal dress
  • 1 dressy pant
  • 1 dressy skirt
  • 1 dressy top
  • 1 dressy dress
  • 1 dressy casual pant
  • 1 dressy casual skirt
  • 1 dressy casual top
  • 1 dressy casual dress
  • 1 dressy jacket
  • 1 dressy casual jacket
9c. concerts
  • 1 dressy casual dress
  • 1 dressy dress
10c, church, three times a week
  • 2 dressy dresses
  • 2 suits
  • 2 dressy tops
  • 2 dressy casual skirts
  • 1 dressy casual pant
  • 2 dressy casual tops
  • 3 dressy casual dresses
  • 3 dressy casual jackets

Now I know why I do so much laundry for one person.
What makes something casual vs. dressy casual? The fabric.
If I coordinate everything what do I need? I have no idea. I have never had a coordinated wardrobe, so I guess my list will just cover the basics as I see them.

Summary

By clothing category:
Pajamas
  • pajamas-5
Nightgowns
  • nightgowns-2
Bathrobe
  • bathrobe-1

Pants
  • casual pants-7
  • cool casual pants-6
  • dressy casual pants-4
  • dressy pant-1

Tops
  • casual tops-7
  • cool casual tops-6
  • dressy casual tops-7
  • dressy tops-2

Skirts
  • dressy casual skirts-3
  • dressy skirt-1

Dresses
  • dressy casual dress-3
  • dressy dresses-2
  • semi-formal dress-1

Jackets
  • dressy casual jackets-3
  • dressy jacket-1
Suits
  • suits, with both skirt and pants-2


By lifestyle category:

Semi-formal
  • 1 dress

Dressy
  • 1 jacket
  • 2 dresses
  • 1 skirt
  • 2 shirts
  • 1 pant

Dressy Casual
  • 2 suits, with both skirt and pants
  • 3 jackets
  • 3 dresses
  • 3 skirts
  • 7 tops
  • 4 pants

Casual
  • 7 pants
  • 6 cool pants
  • 7 tops
  • 6 cool tops

Nightwear
  • 5 pajamas
  • 2 nightgowns
  • 1 bathrobe

That is a lot of sewing! I guess I went over the 11 garments recommended by SWAP. I am going to start with a SWAP, so hopefully I can learn about a coordinated wardrobe. Next I have to decide on my colors.

2 comments:

Mary said...

Well, that is overwhelming! I'm sure now that my wardrobe is totally inadequate. We have similar lifestyles, and I don't have but maybe half of the number of clothes you listed in working order (fit, good shape, etc). I think you listed too many things in some places, i.e. doctor appts. and church. For the rest, I think it's fairly accurate. Will I ever achieve this goal? But I can see why I'm having so much trouble finding something to wear. I don't have enough clothes, by a long stretch!

Mid-Life Meandering said...

This is definitely my dream wardrobe. If I can get one outfit made in each category I will consider it a major accomplishment.