Hey, guys! Welcome back to Talk Fabulous! We’re coming at you with a Monday edition of the blog, because we have a very important topic to discuss…Black Friday.
Oh, Black Friday, you’re the sale of the year and your special day is right around the corner! It’s the perfect time to refresh our wardrobes. It’s easy to become enthralled by all the fabulous deals, though. If we’re not careful, things can get out of hand quickly. Before we know it, we have a porch full of boxes and a closet that’s anything but rejuvenated. To avoid this undesirable outcome, let’s take some time to prepare. Don’t worry, it’s a painless process based on the one-in one-out rule (for a refresh on this rule, see the post here). Without further ado, let’s get into it!
First of all, let’s acknowledge that letting go of things is hard. To make the process easier, it’s important to “dignify the ending” (credit to Tero International, Inc.). What do we mean by this? It may be by thanking the item for its service as Marie Kondo suggests in her videos. It may be reminiscing about a particular memory or sharing a vision for the future of that item once it’s found a new home. It’s whatever you need to do to get closure and move on. I realize this may seem silly, but I promise it’s helpful.
Now that we know how to say goodbye to our beloved pieces, let’s get to cleaning out our closet.
Step 1: What brings you joy?
Look through all your clothes and set aside anything that doesn’t bring you joy. This may be because it’s not your style anymore or because it doesn’t fit or because it’s damaged, etc. I’m talking serious joy here. You want to look into your closet and LOVE everything in it.
Step 2: Sort, sort, sort
Next up, let’s sort those items that don’t bring us joy. I sort my pieces into 3 bins:
- Purgatory: Things that I’m not quite ready to donate yet. These are items I want to see if I miss once they’re out of my closet.
- Donation: Things that will be donated.
- Trash: Items that are beyond repair and need to be tossed.
Step 3: Analysis
Analysis, you ask? Yes, analysis. Don’t worry, we don’t have to make any graphs (unless you want to!) All we mean by analysis here is that we want to understand why certain items didn’t work well for us. That way we can avoid making the same mistakes in the future.
Step 4: Make a list
Now take stock of everything that has gone into one of the bins. Make a list of those items that you need to replace. Voila! You now have your Black Friday shopping list!
The Steps in Action
To prepare for Black Friday, I too, cleaned out my closet. I’d love to share my experience with you now.
First of all, I cleaned out my Purgatory closet. I dignified the ending of each item as I placed it into the donation bin. That really helped me let of go of those pieces.
Next, I went into my closet and pulled out items that don’t bring me joy. Some went to the Purgatory closet and others went straight into the donation bin.
Next up, I did some analysis.
I bought this blouse to wear under cardigans for work. It’s a nice material, but it just doesn’t work for me. Why? It seems to be the detail around the neckline. Apparently, I don’t need more volume in that area. Lesson learned. I need to look for blouses that don’t have any additional volume around the neckline and bust area.
Something else I noticed, was the number of Target brand tank tops that had holes in them. Don’t get me wrong, I love Target as much as the next gal. Sometimes, though, the quality isn’t the best. I wear tank tops nearly every day. It makes sense for me to invest in better quality tank tops since I wear them so often. Even though the item may initially be more expensive, the cost per wear will be low. Black Friday is the perfect time to find those quality pieces at an affordable price.
Something new I tried out this round was to pull out pieces I wasn’t sure how to style. I figured I would look for outfit inspiration before these items go into Purgatory or the Donation bin.
Finally, I made my list. Here it is:
- Work tank top
- Black
- Sweater x2 (I donated about 5 but I don’t need to replace all of them)
- Long length
- Loose fitting
- Light-weight cardigan
- Black
- Navy
- Dark Pink
- Leggings
- Brown
- Tank tops: Red, teal, purple, navy, dark grey, tan, brown and black
- Long length
That’s it! My experience cleaning out my closet was satisfying and painless. I know yours will be too!
Are you ready to clean out your closet? In about one hour, you can thin out your closet, focus your Black Friday shopping, and make room for fresh, new, undamaged pieces that you LOVE!
Let’s hear from you! Will you be cleaning out your closet in preparation for Black Friday?
Thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous day, lovelies!
lylas,
MissyAnn
If you enjoyed this post, please Pin It!
Talk Fabulous 
5 thoughts on “How to Prep for Black Friday”