What Are the Benefits Of Shopping Your Own Closet? Ten Clear Advantages of Shopping Our Closets

When it comes to shopping our own closets, there are many obvious benefits. However, today I would also like to talk about the surprising benefits of shopping our closets, the ones you perhaps didn't think about.  I wanted to write about this subject for such a long time. Today I'm finally taking the opportunity to do it. Personally, I'm a big proponent of shopping our own closets. Some of you have even noticed that. I do like to re-wear clothing items and I know I'm not the only one. A lot of people are advocating shopping our closets these days. There is so much I feel like I have to say about this subject. I'm sure that I'm not revealing anything revolutionary when I point out that shopping our closets makes sense. As someone who loves and possibly even prefers this type of shopping to any other form of shopping, I feel like I have something to say. So today I will talk about 'shopping our closets' in more detail. Nevertheless, I will try to refrain myself from making this post too long. I might come back to this subject again, as it is something important to me. 

The Multiple Advantages of Shopping Our Own Closets

1. You'll save money!

We are going to start with the obvious benefits. Obviously, when you shop your own closet, you'll saving money because you won't be spending as much  money on new clothes. If you decide to commit to exclusively shopping your closet and opting for a shopping ban, then you'll probably be able to save a pretty sum. Shopping your closet doesn't mean that you have to stop shopping the regular way, but you might want to limit the amount of your new purchases so that you could better focus on this kind of shopping. When you re-wear the clothes you already have, you'll also making sure that you're getting your money's worth from them. Either way you approach this kind of shopping, one thing is for certain. It is the only that kind of shopping that is free. 

2. You'll rediscover your favourite clothing items!

Once you've started shopping your closet, you'll be amazed to find a lot of clothing items you loved, but that you've completely forgot about. For example, that one pair of jeans that fit you like it's nobody business. It is not so uncommon to buy things we already have. You'll be surprised to find out how common this practice is. It happens to the best of us and it's a complete waste of our time and money. In other words, if you have a nice classical black blazer that fits you perfectly, you really don't need to go and buy a new pair that's almost identical. But you might do that, if you had forgotten that you have one in the first place. You can't rediscover clothing items if you keep on buying new items. Today we're all in want of more time, we're always trying to be as busy and as productive as possible. We forget that we can be busy without being productive. Often we forget to take time to go through our closets and appreciate the clothing items we already have. We always want something 'new' but we forget that we can always find some 'trendy' items in our closet, if we only take the time to look. 

top: vintage, long cardi: no name, jeans: vintage, heels: old

3. You'll be able to feel comfortable while you're shopping!

Assuming that you feel comfortable in your home, as most people do, shopping your closet can be a very comfortable experience. You don't have to hurry because someone else is knocking at the door of the dressing room. You can try as many clothing items as you want. You can try everything you have in your closet if you want to. You don't have to worry about calculating the prices. You can take 1000 photographs if you want and not worry whether it is against the policy of the shop. You don't have to be anxious about damaging the clothes and then having to pay for them. When you're by yourself, you don't really have to feel embarrassed about anything, do you?  You won't have to feel obliged to show yourself to the sales person and listen to their comments. It is obvious why this is something that might appeal to an introvert. However, if you an extrovert and you actually enjoy trying out on clothes in company and receiving immediate feedback, you can always invite your friends over. There's no place like home, right? 

4. You'll be able to listen to the kind of music you like or  listen to an audio-book!

When you're in a mall you're basically sentenced to listening to Katy Perry, Bieber and the likes which is great if you happen to like that kind of music, but if you're like me and it makes your ears bleed, it's not a great option. If you're like me and you'll convinced that not even audio-tune can help most of the today's popular singers then you'll really going to appreciate being able to listen to the kind of music you like while you try out clothes. An opera lover? No problem. You can listen to whatever you like while you try out clothes at home. You can even listen to audio-books, radio or TV. 

5. You'll have the possibility to better access your clothes!

When we try clothes in a shop, we don't spend much time wearing that clothes. How much time do we spend in a clothing item we try on in a shop? I would say under a minute. Sure, some people take photographs of things that they have tried on and they might spend an extra minute or two wearing that that clothing item, but what is a couple of minutes? In other words, if you really want to be make sure you will be comfortable wearing something, you need to spend more than a minute wearing it.

The surprising benefit of shopping your closet is that it allows you to spend as much time as you want to try on something. You can put some cute outfit on and go and read a book. You can dance around the house. You can do whatever you want wearing that clothing item or an outfit of your choice. After you have spend an hour or two in a certain combo, you'll have a much better idea of whether it is comfortable or not then if you have spent a minute wearing it. Am I right or am I right? 

6. You'll still be able to follow trends!

Most people don't realize that they can still follow trends even if they don't buy anything new. Fashion moves in circles. Besides, things have changed a lot. Today there are so many trends out there, that everyone is bound to wear something trendy even when they don't realize it. Literally, even if you tried to avoid trends altogether, you would probably still end up wearing something that is trending somewhere. Back to my point. Shopping your closet doesn't mean giving up on being trendy. You can even turn 'shopping trends at home'into a fun challenge. Write down a list of trends, think about what you would like to buy and then examine all the clothing items in you closet. You'll probably end up surprised when you see how many 'trendy items' you have hiding in your closet. Moreover, you can even use a visual reference. You can hold a magazine in your hands or a fashion illustration an use it as an inspiration. If you did that in a shop, people would stare. At your own home, you don't have to worry about that.

7. You'll be helping the environment!

By shopping less, you're helping the environment in an indirect way. Fashion industry is know to be one of the sources of industrial pollution. Fast Fashion is considered to be the second dirties industry in the world. Constant shopping leads to tons of clothes being thrown away on regular basis. This obviously puts a lot of pressure on the environment.  When you shop your closet, you're not only avoiding being wasteful, you're contributing to reduction of textile waste. By shopping your closet, you'll automatically be more green and ecological in your choices. Besides economical, shopping one's closet also has clear ecological benefits. 

blazer: vintage, jeans : vintage Levi's, heels: old (no name)

8. You'll be able to build a relationship with your clothes!

Create memories. Is there anything better than when there is some clothing item that has a special meaning for us? When just seeing it makes us feel cozy inside. When wearing it makes us feel invincible. Think about it. It is hard to build a relationship with clothes if you keep buying new clothes and casually getting rid of old ones. The odds are that when you have had some clothing item for a long time, you'll probably know both its strengths and weaknesses. You'll know what it looks like on your body. When you buy a new clothing item, you'll always have to spend some time learning how to use and what to style it with. While this learning can obviously be fun, it can also be quite time consuming. There is always the risk factor. You are not sure if you're a good fit. If you are addicted to the feeling of novelty, you can always try storing some of your clothes somewhere far from reach and then you can pretend you've just bought it. Imaginary haul day? Why not? Put some clothes in a plastic bag, wait for a few months, then pretend you've just bought it. It might work. By holding on to things you really like, you'll be able to create memories with clothes. Creating stories that revolve around clothes, now you'll be surprised how fun it can be.

9. You'll get to know your closet better and learn to make use of what you already have!

Once you start shopping your closet, you'll get to know the contents of your closet much better. There is no disputing that. The more you know about the contents of your closet, the better will you be able to utilize them. You'll be constantly rediscovering things or figuring out different ways to wear a same clothing item and this will teach you to get more creative with your clothing choices. It will teach you to appreciate what you have at your disposal. You payed for the clothes you have in your closet. Why not make most out of the things you payed for? You might even check out the clothes of other family members if you live together with your family. Maybe you can help them style something or inspire them to wear a clothing item  in a new way? Help out others and they will help you. If you're not single, you'll probably get to know the clothes from your significant other better. My husband is slim and we're about the same height, so I often steal clothes from him. Even if you live by yourself, you will probably be able to rediscover items regularly once you get the hang of it.

10. You'll be able to inspire others and be inspired by others!

Nowadays, there are a lot of blogs and sites that not only promote shopping less, but help you in developing strategies for shopping less. Considering that addiction to shopping is becoming more and more widespread, I for one think we should welcome this trend of online communities in which members encourage each other to shop less and to be mindful of their shopping choices. I imagine that these types of sites and communities can be an excellent resource for recovering shopaholics. While I was never a shopaholic, I can honestly say that shopping my closet more has helped me appreciate clothes in a new way. It made me focus more on the clothing as such. It taught me to be grateful for what I have. I've always had the best experience with shopping my own closet and that is certainly one of the reasons why I wanted to write this article. I hope that with today's post I managed to add something of my own, something of value to this subject I care so much about. As always, thank you for reading. 

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