7 Benefits of Owning a Minimalist Wardrobe
Last week, while pulling a couple of warm-weather outfits out of storage, I caught myself reflecting on the benefits of owning a minimalist wardrobe.
Before minimalism, five years ago, my closet was filled—to the brim. Derived from impulsively swiped sale racks, my wardrobe offered many outfit options. Yet, so often, I stood in front of my closet claiming I had “nothing to wear.”
Turns out, for many Americans today, a large wardrobe that yields few favorite outfits has become the standard.
In 1930, the average woman had just 36 items in her closet—today it’s 120. Most fashion trends today peak around 2-4 months, placing consumers in a constant purchasing spiral as they attempt to keep up.
The average American household spends $160 on clothing each month (nearly $2,000 a year), but studies show we only wear 20% of our clothing.
Could minimizing our closets and owning just that 20 percent be worth pursuing?
Absolutely.
As it turns out, owning fewer clothes brings more benefits than you may think. I’ve found all of the following benefits of owning a minimalist wardrobe to be true. If you’re looking for motivation to simplify your life and closet, read on.
Here are 7 benefits of owning a minimalist wardrobe:
1. Emotional benefits
Ever considered your closet as a trigger for difficult emotions? I hadn’t—until I read Courtney Carver’s book Project 333: The Minimalist Fashion Challenge That Proves Less Really is So Much More. Guilt, frustration, and sadness are found packed away in many of our closets, Carver writes.
You feel guilt when you no longer fit into clothes that used to fit you. On days when nothing looks or fits right (and piles of clothes end up thrown on the floor), you feel frustration. Sadness can be triggered by seeing an outfit you wore to an event that made you sad. Or from seeing clothing items of a loved one who has passed away.
Until you are clued into how clothes can trigger these emotions, you can feel worse after getting dressed and not know why, Carver writes. You can continue to carry the weight of these emotions throughout the day without realizing it.
You let go of these negative feelings when you let go of the clothing items that trigger them. By choosing to curate a minimalist wardrobe that you love, you’re inviting positivity into your life each time you open your closet.
2. Ecological benefits
Carver’s book, which presents the challenge of wearing the same 33 clothing items for 3 months (hence the name Project 333), also opened my eyes to the ecological benefits of dressing with less. Consider the following statistics from Shannon Lohr of Factory45:
- The amount of water used in apparel production each year is enough to fill 32 million Olympic sized swimming pools. (Meanwhile 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water.)
- By extending the life of your clothing by an additional 9 months, you can reduce your carbon, waste and water footprints by 20-30% each.
- Clothing made from conventional polyester can take 200 years to decompose in a landfill.
- Making a pair of jeans uses the same amount of water as flushing your toilet for 3 years.
Our choices regarding clothing consumption clearly affect more than just ourselves. By reducing the number of clothes in your closet, you significantly reduce your ecological footprint.
To learn more about the ecological toll of fast-fashion, watch the documentary The True Cost.
3. Freedom to live in the present
Our closets are often filled with clothes we used to fit into, clothes we’ve never fit into but still hope to wear some day, and clothes that we actually wear. If we are dressing for the person we used to be or for some future “fantasy self,” then we’re missing out on who we really are today.
Designing a minimalist wardrobe that contains only items that you currently wear and love helps you live in the present. It frees you from wishing you were different and helps you embrace your authentic self. Carver writes, “Dress for the life you have right now and you will move through it with ease and grace.”
By dressing for who you are today, you’re able to enter more fully into your life. Instead of being stuck in I’ll-be-happier-when thought patterns, you are freed to live contently as who you are today.
4. Mental benefits
You save mental energy each morning when deciding what to wear is a simple process. Studies show that our daily decision-making reserve is finite. This means the more decisions we make throughout the day, the more difficult our next decision becomes.
Decision fatigue is real, but it can be reduced. When your closet contains limited outfit options that are all your favorites, choosing what to wear in the morning requires minimal mental energy. This means you can use your decision-making power for more important things, like work-related decisions or problem solving throughout the day.
5. Increased self-trust
Dressing with less is an exercise in trust. Carver says, “Fear will tell you that you’ll never have enough. The realization that you need way less than you think to be happy will change your life in the most amazing ways.”
Creating a minimalist wardrobe may feel like a leap outside of your comfort zone at first. As you remove the excess, you begin looking to your heart for answers instead of outside yourself (i.e., the latest fashion magazine). Trusting yourself in this challenge, as you realign your choices with your heart, can prime you to do the same in other areas of your life.
6. Improved self-talk
We have around 70,000 self-talk thoughts a day and 80% are negative. When we own a minimalist wardrobe and dress in a way that makes us consistently feel good about ourselves, that percentage decreases. Any self-talk about your appearance and wardrobe become positive because you’re wearing what you love and feel your best in. The more positive our self-talk becomes, the more confident, relaxed, and authentic we become.
7. Inspiration to simplify other areas of your life
Owning a minimalist wardrobe opens your eyes to the power of less. When you own (and are content with) fewer clothes, you suddenly spend less time doing laundry, scrolling through online clothing sales, and deciding what to wear. That means you have more time for what matters most to you. Maybe that’s going on more walks, spending quality time with your kids, actually pursuing that hobby you love, or resting more.
“All the lessons I learned from dressing with less encouraged me to live with less,” Carver writes. “They applied not only to my closet, but my kitchen, living room, garage and beyond. From not only surviving but thriving with 33 items or less, I had the confidence to let go in every other area of my home and life.”
When you begin to feel the benefits of minimalism from simplifying your closet, you’ll feel inspired to minimize other areas of your life, gaining more time and energy to focus on what matters most.
In conclusion
Author Cheryl Richardson said, “If you want to improve your life immediately, clean out your closet. Often it’s what we hold onto that holds us back.”
Let’s accept the challenge to clear the clutter in our closets, curate a minimalist wardrobe, and experience the benefits of living with less.
For more guidance and motivation to minimize your closet and create a simple wardrobe you love, I highly recommend checking out Carver’s book Project 333.
As Carver says, dressing with less provides the “space, time, confidence, and clarity to create a life that is full of what matters most to you.”
Why not start today?
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Julia Ubbenga is a freelance journalist. Her teachings on minimalism, simplicity, and intentional living have reached over 1M people worldwide through her blog. Julia also practices what she preaches in her Kansas City home. She resides with her husband, two extremely lively young daughters, three-year-old son, and baby girl. You can also find her on Facebook.
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