How To Stop Buying the Same Clothing Over and Over
We all do it.
For me, it’s off-white sweaters and black or gray jeans, for you it might be striped shirts and denim skirts, for someone else it might be crispy white button downs. No matter what that style is, at one point or another we all find ourselves picking something up at a store admiring how great it is, only to be quickly met with five little words from the person that is with us: “don’t you have that already?”
In some ways, having a uniform or a sense of what you like when it comes to your closet can be a great thing. You know you’re going to wear that item you just bought, because you already do it all the time. But in other ways, it means we are expanding our closet with just things to wear instead of things to love. If I go back to my apparent off-white sweater obsession, I wouldn’t say that any of the seven (eek) similar tops I own are ones that I needed. Recently I purchased a little tan cardigan at the vintage shop down the street from me. I loved the sweater and the store is relatively new, so I justified the purchase because I wanted to support the shop. As I got home and went to put it away, I realized I had a baggy cardigan top in the exact same color that I’ve had in my closet for years. Both are great sweaters, but both don’t need to be in my wardrobe.
Why do I keep doing it?
Perhaps the answer might be found in a concept called “mere-exposure effect.” In 1968 psychologist Robert Zajonc observed that the more exposure someone had to something, the more likely they were to view it positively. Essentially, the more we see something the more comforting it is, and therefore we like it more. When it comes to shopping, it could be as simple as the idea that we know the item looked good in the past, we’re comfortable with it, and therefore introducing different colors or styles feels like a risk. There is also a reward factor. When we consume, we get that rush of a new purchase, and we want the end result to feel just as good. When we already know that we like it, the risk is taken out of the experience.
How do we stop?
This is going to sound overly simplified, but the first step is to clean your closet. I mean, really, really clean it. Take everything out and sort it. Put like clothing with like clothing – this is how I know I have seven of those sweaters.
Try them on and make a mental catalog of the differences within the styles. This is hard for me to admit but, within my collection of beige, I have an oversized chunky knit sweater, a fitted cardigan top, a baggier cardigan, a collared henley sweater, a heat tech turtleneck, a cropped cable knit sweater, and a long wool sweater with leather elbow patches. I like them all and will keep them all — but in order, for me to make sure I don’t double up once again.
When you want to buy something similar, think about ways to re-shop the items you already have. For example, instead of buying another cardigan, what I could have done was think about ways to switch up the one I already have. Maybe I could wear it with a skirt or overalls instead of jeans, or over a collared shirt. Anything to make it different.
Embrace your inner outfit repeater. It’s ok to wear the same thing all the time. The high premium on posting about new clothes is outdated. Wear the striped shirt and jeans!
Do you have an outfit that you keep buying over and over? Let’s talk about it!