2022 Wardrobe Plan and Intentions
The past few years, I’ve put together a somewhat loose wardrobe plan to guide my sartorial purchasing decisions (check out my 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 wardrobe plans) throughout the year. As I’m sure you also experienced on some level, there was a shift in my wardrobe and outfits in 2020, driven primarily by the pandemic and working from home. I relied heavily on loungewear and activewear to get me through the year/pandemic in general. This continued into 2021 until I had to go back full-time in the office in the summer.
Let’s take a look at last year’s intentions and then my wardrobe plan and intentions for 2022!
A recap of my 2021 Wardrobe Plan and Intentions:
KISS (keep it simple, stupid)
I intended to keep buying and wearing things that are simple and easy to wear without being boring! I’m basically a pro at this intention, lol. I bought a lot of basics with a twist in 2021 to mix things up but that still fit my personal style and were easy to wear!Shop small, Black-owned, and secondhand
I was hoping to shop more smaller and/or Black-owned brands this year, and I did buy a few items from brands that fit one or both of those criteria, though I didn’t shop those brands as much as I was hoping. I also didn’t buy many secondhand items from Poshmark; out of my 5 Poshmark purchases, only one item ended up in my main closet.Pay full price for the right items
I included this intention because I’m a chronic sale shopper, and I struggled big time with this. It’s hard to undo years of only buying something if it’s on sale so I can feel like I’m getting a good deal. Looking back at my 2021 purchases, I only see two that were full-price. That said, they both felt like good purchases!Limit impulse purchases
I felt like I was doing better at limiting my impulse purchases in 2021 compared to 2020, but I still felt the urge many times, especially over the holidays when the sales are out of control. I also ended up well over budget by the end of the year. I’ve been doing better so far in 2022 but mostly because I’ve had a bunch of other expenses come up.Buy easy-care fabrics
This is one intention I stuck to! I paid close attention to the fabric makeup of the items I purchased to make sure they worked with my lifestyle. No silk or 100% rayon that shrinks, yes to cashmere (gonna figure out how to machine wash my cashmere, fingers crossed!).Audit my closet prior to heading back into the office
I went through my work-appropriate bottoms before heading back into the office to figure out what fit and what didn’t, and I ended up with only a handful of items that worked. (I had plenty to wear, but it definitely didn’t feel like enough compared to everything I own!) I’ve basically been on the bottoms struggle bus since then, cycling through the same few jeans and pants.
2022 Wardrobe Plan and Intentions
Better organize my closet
This is not something I’ve shown on here or social media for obvious reasons, but my closet is out of control. I have things everywhere, and it’s mostly because I don’t have a good home for some items (mainly loungewear). I also don’t have a home for items that I’ve worn but that aren’t ready to be washed. I have a bad habit of making piles on random surfaces all over the bedroom. My goal this year is to get that under control and finally figure out proper homes for everything! (And make sure I’m not keeping anything unnecessarily.)Shop small, Black-owned, and secondhand
I’m keeping this intention from 2021 going for 2022! I’m pushing myself to discover more new brands this year, browse for more new-to-me gems on Poshmark, and maybe even check out a few local boutiques (fingers crossed!).Continue to focus on rewearing/remixing
I love a shiny new wardrobe addition as much as the next person, but it’s fun for me to remix my wardrobe and wear what I already own in new and exciting ways! I want to keep focusing on this when putting together outfits and not so much on wearing outfits with all-new items. I think I do a pretty good job of this overall.Care for my clothes
I have a number of sweaters that desperately need to be washed, and I also have a couple of pairs of shoes and other items that need to be mended. It’s so hard for me to find the motivation to take care of these things, but it’s so nice when everything is clean and ready to be worn and loved. Gonna try hard at staying on top of clothing care!Buy less loungewear
LOL. Okay, I have a problem. I can’t stop buying loungewear. It’s better now that I have a hybrid work schedule; I’ll actually be able to wear my loungewear more than two days a week again! But I definitely don’t need to keep buying it. I need to slow down, wear what I already own, and go from there. Hold me to it!
There are some things I’ve done every year, namely budget my purchases and track what I wear, and you can expect that to continue this year. After going over budget last year and dealing with pandemic-related size changes, I’ve decided to increase my quarterly budget to $600 per quarter (I think, at least…we’ll see how it goes!).
Did you set any wardrobe goals or intentions for 2022? Let me know what’s on your list!