Our writer had a wardrobe wake-up call after counting her clothes and discovering she owned 237 items, far above the UK average of 118. The realisation came as part of a month-long challenge to consume less, prompting her to audit her belongings and confront years of over-buying.
Most of her fashion landfill dates back to her insecure 30s and 40s, when she would panic-buy from H&M on the way home from work. Sorting through the loft revealed scores of unworn items, including 13 pairs of ill-fitting jeans and an electric blue ra-ra skirt she had never seen before. She has bagged up 90% for charity and is reassessing the rest using wardrobe-organising apps.
Comparing her unworn clothes with the 20 items she wears regularly, a pattern emerged: her favourites were often bought secondhand, costing between 50p and £2.50 each. She has now resolved to buy no new clothes for the next year, except underwear, and will report back in a year.
