Hey, I have two pairs of jeans, slacks in black, navy, gray and Khaki, lots of plain t-shirt-style tops, sweatshirts for cold weather, several pairs of shorts for hot weather. I survive.

I think it depends on a lot of factors. Do you work outside the house? Do you exercise, play tennis, etc...? Do you live in a climate w/ four distinct seasons? How frequently do you do laundry?

The last time I cleaned out my closet, I donated anything I hadn't worn in the last couple of years. Surprisingly, I have not missed one single item and it's refreshing to not have the closet overflowing.

Do a goggle search on "personal uniforms". This is the idea that you find a certain style of dressing and build a simple wardrobe around this one style. It is a bit like the idea of a "capsule" wardrobe. Most often, ideas for a capsule wardrobe are centered around a specific need such as travel.

Also, search on" LBD project". "LBD" stands for "little black dress". This is a challenge were the person, basically, wears the same basic item of clothing for a year and accessorizes it differently every day. This is something of a novelty experience, but it is quite interesting.

The most sustainable of these ideas is the idea of adopting a basic uniform, of sorts, and building a small and versatile wardrobe around it. There are any number of articles and blogs written on this subject.

The personal uniform is my goal. I am drawn to the idea of having a simple array of clothes. I want a closet that looks like one of those photo shoots in an Ikea advertisement where there are just two pairs of shoes, a couple of folded pants and a half dozen tunics.

If you can sew you have a few more options.

One of the real problems that i have with trying to assemble a wardrobe from the department store is that so many of the clothes are not really suited to be versatile in that they are made from fabrics that do not lend themselves well to a active life. So many have such design features as big floppy sleeves and excess drapes and such that they are almost impractical. Then, the plastic fabrics that almost everything is made from are slick and cold in the winter and in the summer you feel like you have been wrapped in cling wrap.

Even the jeans are not loose and cottony feeling anymore. Most are worn skin tight and they are graced with a big dollop of spandex. I know a lot of people say that they just wear jeans and tshirts. That is fine if that works for you. That is not my choice. I don't care much for either of those garments. And, I don't even want to get started on how womens' clothes have NO working pockets!!!!!!

I am glad that I can sew, when I can find a suitable fabric to sew with. I love loose linen pants and the concept of dressing that is referred to as "langenlook". It is a loose style of dressing. Some of the garments that are promoted under this banner would have you looking as if you just gathered the bed sheets around you,. You have to weed through the fluff and find the working elements of it. It can get to be just too much, too quickly. The European approach to it is much more sophisticated than is the American concept.

You did not say if you have to dress for work. But, the idea of the personal uniform has been embraced by working women, as well. Google it.

Excess clothing is one real big drain on our wallets and blow to our environment. Most women buy so many things in an effort to piece it all together.

The quality of ready made clothing tanked very quickly around the turn of the century.

For an idea of capsule wardrobes, check out everydaysavvy.com - It has various types of capsule wardrobe ideas for different lifestyles (working woman, working mom, SAHM, traveller, etc.)

And go through your closet NOW and donate anything you haven't worn in the last year (my only exception is cocktail dresses, since they don't get worn as often.). There are lots of people that could get good use out that clothing, and you'll feel better both for the donation, and when looking at your cleaner closet/drawers. And while you're at it, throw out all the old, stretched out or ratty under-garments that really need to be replaced! :)

First, thanks, All, for your thoughts. Today's my last day at work 'til the new year, and this is going to be my project.

I was reading online what some people say they own /think is appropriate. One woman said she owns something like 250 hanging shirts PLUS an overflowing drawer of tees. Okay, I feel a little better about myself ... at a guess, I suspect I have 75-ish hanging items in my closet plus a shelf of sweaters above. Yet this morning I went to the dryer and pulled out a shirt to wear.

Hey, I have two pairs of jeans, slacks in black, navy, gray and Khaki, lots of plain t-shirt-style tops, sweatshirts for cold weather, several pairs of shorts for hot weather. I survive.

I'm pretty much with you ... in terms of what I actually wear.

What I have that I actually wear is one pair of jeans, one pair of black jeans (which I sneaky-sneaky wear to work all the time), and two pairs of work-appropriate slacks -- one gray, one light brown with a herringbone pattern. I have a couple other pairs of work slacks that, um, won't zip anymore -- can't understand why! :( My plan for them is to pack them in a box and label them with a date one year from today. In one year, if I can wear them, they can stay -- if not, they're going to Goodwill without the box being opened.

I think it depends on a lot of factors. Do you work outside the house? Do you exercise, play tennis, etc...? Do you live in a climate w/ four distinct seasons? How frequently do you do laundry?

I do work, but I'm retiring in roughly two years. I just last night thought to myself, "I will not buy work clothes any more" -- or, I will buy sparingly, replacing only as actually needed. I actually do need a new pair of black flats. We Carolinians do have seasons, but winter is mild (40s being our typical lows).

Thing is, these are also my church clothes and my going-out-somewhere-casual clothes, so I can't out-and-out STOP owning these things. But once I retire, I will not need the quantity I have now.

Yes to exercising, but I feel comfortable with that arena of my wardrobe. I have "just enough" without excess.

Similarly, my coats and shoes seem to be "just enough" -- that is, I have what I need, and nothing sits un-used. Must analyze: how is it that I've chosen better in these arenas?

Shoes are kind of easy to analyze: A couple years ago I developed Plantar Fasciitis, so many of my shoes had to be replaced. Fortunately, my two daughters wear the same shoe size and were quite willing to take all those nice strappy sandals and heels that I could no longer wear. I can wear a couple brands of sandals -- and they're not all old-lady looking, but I have to be so very PICKY -- and I can wear any shoe into which I can slip my small orthopedic insert.

Surprisingly, I have not missed one single item and it's refreshing to not have the closet overflowing.

Yeah, I want to be able to say that.

Do a goggle search on "personal uniforms"

I didn't know that term, but I think I'm already doing that. My go-to work outfit is a Lands End knit dress ... worn on its own in fall/spring, worn with a cardigan in winter. I have probably a dozen of their dresses in a variety of colors. I don't wear this exclusively, but I probably wear this type of thing three days out of five ... especially in warmer weather.

Also, search on" LBD project". "LBD" stands for "little black dress".

Oh, no. I know you mean well, but I hate little black dresses. With all the colors in the world, why do women flock to no color? Go to a party, and all the women are wearing the same color? I own exactly one black dress -- one of my Lands End knit dresses -- and I always wear it with a colorful cardigan or jewelry.

I want a closet that looks like one of those photo shoots in an Ikea advertisement where there are just two pairs of shoes, a couple of folded pants and a half dozen tunics.

I'm not sure I want anything quite that minimal, but I understand your point.

I am glad that I can sew, when I can find a suitable fabric to sew with.

I can sew, and about a hundred years ago (when I was in college) I worked in the sewing section of Belk's department store -- they no longer have that department. I don't particularly enjoy sewing, but I'm compotent. Being 4'11", I do excel at hemming.

I love loose linen pants and the concept of dressing that is referred to as "langenlook". It is a loose style of dressing.

Reminds me: I recently saw a picture on a travel site of a woman wearing a pair of loose linen pants and a white peasant blouse. I have several blouses (in several colors) similar to the one she was wearing. She was saying it was a perfect, comfortable travel outfit, and it would work with casual sandals or Toms-type slip-ons. I liked it enough to look it up online -- I liked the pants in a tan linen and a pink linen -- and I thought I'd ask my husband to get them for me for my birthday, which is in spring.

As I said, I'm not far from retirement, and I thought that'd be a nice type of thing to have as I transition out of my school-marm things. I have always been good at work clothes and ultra-casual clothes, but I have never felt quite comfortable with the "in between outfits"; that is, I'm not good at pulling together an outfit that says "full-fledged adult meeting girlfriends for lunch and shopping" -- and I'd like to be better at that. I can look like I just stepped out of my classroom, or I can look like I'm about to go cut firewood, and I do "fancy" well -- but I would like to feel more "put together" for casual events like a baby shower or going out to a museum.

Hey, hey, hey -- STOP IT! I'm trying to get rid of things, and here you are encouraging me in a different direction! (Pouting.)

Most women buy so many things in an effort to piece it all together.

When I was younger (and used shopping as a hobby without fully realizing it), I was very guilty of buying pieces and pieces, especially sale items ... then never wearing them because I didn't have anything to match. I have become better about that over the years.

I don’t think it’s outfits per se, it’s pieces that can make up a ton of different outfits.

I think that 's a fair statement -- as long as they do add up to outfits. I've learned to be more intentional with my purchases. At this point I do have pants that I can't wear any more because the shirt that matched them was stained /thrown away, etc.

my only exception is cocktail dresses, since they don't get worn as often.

That brings up another issue ... fancy dresses are taking up more than their fair share of my closet. I'm at the age at which my daughters /my friends' daughters are getting married, so I need to keep these dresses. Obviously, I don't want to downsize my dresses, then find myself forced to buy something new for an event.

Only one of my daughters is married, but I have two mother-of-the-bride dresses. A funny story -- funny now: I bought a great dress and was very happy ... until my mother-in-law texted me picture of the very same dress, saying she'd just bought it! She was iffy on whether she'd wear it or not, and I just couldn't trust her not to do it ... so I had to go buy a second dress, which I liked less. Both are in my closet. And in the end, she didn't wear the dress! I could've worn it to the wedding.

Back to the point: How /where do y'all store such items? I was thinking of taking them off the hangers, gently folding them, and storing them in a basket on the difficult-to-reach top shelf. If I'm going to wear one of these dresses (I live in a world of casual dresses and jeans), I'll have weeks of notice, and I can take it out, hang it, even have it cleaned. Good idea or bad idea?

Thanks, All, for your ideas.

I hear you about the little black dress. In reality it is an umbrella term for a basic garment. Some people consider a pair, or a style of pants to be their LBD. It is dismaying the sea of black that is on the racks at the department stores. I complain about that all the time.....nothing but black!!!! So many of the pretty colors are gone. And, I find a brown to be a good base color, yet hard to find in ready to wear.

It seems too that many of the clothes fall into the dressy category either by choice of fabric that is unsuitable for most activities or for style that is additionally unsuitable. And, many garments that used to made of nice serviceable sweatshirt fleece are now mixed with rayon and spandex and it decreases the real utility of them. So many things are made for the style and not the substance or the use. And, the style stinks!!!

And, how many times have I pulled a garment out from the racks to see it better because I thought that the color and the fabric were appealing to me, only to find it emblazened across the front with some large inane slogan! WTF!!!!!!! The stupidest darned things written all over it!!!! Or, it is embedded with plastic adornment. WTF!!! I would NEVER purchase such a stupid thing as that! NEVER!

I have a small collection of things that I used to wear that are in a box. These are a few garments that I sewed for myself back when I was young and thin, I sewed so very well, and there were such pretty fabrics to be had. So many pretty fabrics used to be widely available. Now the fabrics are hardly worth my time or effort. These few garments are so beautiful and well made that it still astounds me that I used to sew so well and it was all so pretty! How I loved those clothes! They are still special to me and that is why they are still here.

When you scratch the surface you will find that a lot of women are highly disappointed with the ready made industry. The Washington Post got a discussion started on this subject some time back and the amount of feedback that it got was off the charts!! So many women wanted an outlet for their frustration at buying clothes and having to dress a certain way. This led to articles about the idea of a personal uniform.

My sister just retired from a long career of wearing scrubs. She is going to have a small ceremony and build a fire and burn them all!

I hear you about the little black dress. In reality it is an umbrella term for a basic garment.

I didn't know that -- perhaps I was being too literal.

One of my teacher friends just said that she's trying to phase out all her colorful clothes and is working towards a 100% black closet ... with accessories bringing in the only color. I couldn't work up any enthusiasm for that idea.

My sister just retired from a long career of wearing scrubs. She is going to have a small ceremony and build a fire and burn them all!

My daughter's a nurse, and I'm totally jealous that she needs to own so few pieces of work clothing, and no one judges her on wearing the same thing over and over and over. And her stuff is so cheap.

She's only a few years out of college and doesn't complain about her scrubs -- or her comfortable footwear -- she may feel like your sister in a couple decades.

littlebug, I would advise to hang on to the old fashioned blue jeans, if that is what you have. It is nigh impossible to find the old fashioned ones anymore and they could qualify as vintage clothing. Now days that are all made to fit tight with spandex.

It is interesting to watch movies that were made in the 70's through the 90's and to look at what people are wearing. Despite the styles that have changed, it remains that the clothes were so much better. There were a lot more woven fabrics and a lot more color and pattern. That was at a time when you could wear a pair of loose and comfy jeans and a tshirt that were both made of nice breathable cotton. For casual, you could add a nice shirt jacket or a real sweatshirt.

Some of the fabrics are not even available anymore.

For example,I saw in a movie a woman was wearing a cotton chenille robe in a pretty blue. You can't buy that fabric like that anymore. It used to be available in the fabric store. It is hard to even buy a robe that is made of nice fabric anymore. Most is like spun plastic .....that awful stuff that is called "fleece" now days. Ugh!!!!

I thought about that, Wednesday. I have 6+ pairs of what they now call Mom Jeans. Lol.

The first things to go were suits and blazers

I've never liked blazers (I'm too busty), but I take your meaning.

Face it - when you reach retirement age you probably are going to need good-to-wear-to-a-funeral clothes.

Sad, but -- yeah -- I know you're right. Although I like to wear color, I do have one very simple black dress, which is funeral-appropriate.

Second to go were pumps. I had a LOT of leather pumps, some really gorgeous. I kept a black pair (no, scratch that - TWO black pairs) and a tan pair that go with a cocktail-type dress I will keep. I have been gradually increasing my supply of more casual shoes (like mid-to-low wedges and ankle boots). I'm a shoe-aholic.

I can see that. Since I stand all day, I have lots of comfortable shoes, but not all of them are things I'd wear in my private life. This has me thinking.

I still have lots of office-wear-type sweaters and probably 8 pairs of black slacks.

Yes, I can see that some of my sweaters are more office-wear, whereas others are things I'd wear with jeans or leggings. This is helping me see what I want to keep for the future. I'm glad to think about that a couple years in advance. No point in buying things that I will discard in the relatively near future.

I have lots and lots of tank tops in a rainbow of colors that can be worn under tunics or alone with knee-shorts in the summer.

That's kind of the way I dress for the Carolina weather: Short sleeved tops, which are winter-appropriate when I add a cardigan -- and your above comment helps me see that some of my cardigans are definitely more "private life" than others.

I have not downsized my coat collection yet. It hurts to get rid of wool or London Fog dress coats that I have worn and loved. But I have too many.

I'm good in terms of coats. I own four, and they cover my needs well: one dressy coat, one mid-weight jacket, one raincoat, one windbreaker. All neutrals -- except the raincoat, which is hot pink; I like that because I want to be visible walking through a parking lot in the rain.

I thought about that, Wednesday. I have 6+ pairs of what they now call Mom Jeans. Lol.

I'm not unhappy with my jeans, but as I approach retirement, I probably need more than two pairs.

Thanks, Folks. This discussion is helping me form plans in my mind for how to address my closet problems.

I also don't think of "outfits", but mix and match types of things. I also consider how often I like (or don't like) to do laundry ;). And I also know my propensity for spilling things on me - usually my tops - so I have an overabundance of tops; once I get an indelible stain, I toss it into the recycle pile and choose another. Not everyone is as mess-prone as I am, so their need is probably not as great; personally, I've never met a meal I haven't worn, and I come to that honestly, as my mother was the same.

I also have a shopping issue - I hate shopping for clothes and all my pants and shorts need extensive altering, so I tend to buy a lot but infrequently. I might buy 6 or 8 pairs of pants, get them all altered, and not buy any more until most of those have worn out or become indelibly stained. That means I might have 8 pairs of pants in my closet now, but I don't always have 8 pairs and it's not because I think I actually think 8 pairs are a necessity. If I find a top in a style and fabric that I like, I'll buy one in every colour that looks good on me, knowing that half of them will be in the recycling pile within a few years ;(

I work in scrubs, so work clothes aren't an issue; most of the rest of my time is spent in jeans/cargo pants/shorts (depending on the weather) with a t-shirt or Henley sweater of various weights and sleeve lengths. (by "t-shirt" I don't mean anything with a message or graphic - just a plain colour and without buttons or a collar). I have some plain docker-style pants for a less casual look, but even I wouldn't call them dress pants. I do need to buy some dressier pants, perhaps a pant suit, in a dark colour for funerals - it seems I'm getting up to that age too.