Is the bulging suitcase worth it?

And here I thought I packed well. It’s incredible what happens when you carry your entire life around in a suitcase. 

Last month I was rooming with a guy from the group I’m traveling with. It’s not the first time we’ve lived together and both times he walked by my room on packing day and said— 

‘So much stuff.’ 

Which to me is always ironic because we all travel with the same weight allotment, yet why did I seemingly have ‘so much stuff.’ 

Last time I sort of brushed it off as, well if you only knew me before with my closet and two dressers busting at the seams, this is pretty darn good. 

But the last couple of months purging has been at the back of my mind and not for the reasons you might think. The amount of time it takes me to strategically pack everything amongst my bags to make the airline size and weight limits is like a full day affair and quite frankly I’m just over it. 

Much less walking through the airport with it all— every single month. 

I’d definitely been pushing the limits anyways, running on luck that the airlines never actually check the carry on or personal items weight. 

I’m envious of my smooth gliding friends not fumbling around with their luggage like I do— mind you I travel with a rolling duffle that broke a wheel last month so it’s basically me dragging 50lbs of nonsense across the ground. It’s enough to make anyone want to pitch the thing. The same guy who says I have so much stuff always nicely offers to help me with my bag though— gem of a guy really. 

But this month I said no more! I’m purging! I want that free-wheeling lifestyle! 

So I went and got myself a 64Euro roller bag and said here I go on a purge spree. 

Flash forward to a long sit with all my clothes laid out on the bed not even knowing where to start, going back on myself being like is it actually bad to have all these. And easy for a guy to say I have so much stuff, guys have it easy. And then rational mind decides to show up and I’m like, well girls can have it easy too, just like guys who prioritize style might have as much if not more than I do. Cue style guy vs chill guy. Aha! Maybe the key is to swap to being chill girl instead of style girl. Buttttt I loveeee style. And therein pops that can of worms. And then there’s all those life things that I just want to be prepared for because the path ahead is so unknown.

So here’s some thoughts I use to dissect this—

Minimalism

The high cost of low quality goods

Stereotypes 

The style rabbit hole

How prepared is too prepared 

The capsule wardrobe goal

And then considering, what would minimalist functional style look like? Ohh, your girl likes a good challenge! So far my style is neutral chic as coined by my fellow travelers. And rumor has it there’s a guy in the group ahead of us that travels with a single carry on and a backpack! Now I’m not sure about getting there but I darn well wouldn’t mind getting as close as I can. 

And for this reason too, I’ve been wanting to start my own fashion line. What I’ve been after is a versatile yet stylish wardrobe that can accommodate all the climates I’ll encounter while traveling. We’re in a pretty moderate range so I have to believe it’s possible! 

Today I found a brand called Vetta Capsule. They had so much variety in 5-pieces and I dug in investigating how they did it cuz the example shots they provided were quite impressive. And then I realized their sample shots had alt colors and def more than 5-pieces. But it prompted an interesting thought— how little could I actually get away with?

So I’ll probs take this on, cuz I really want to get that initial number down. 

UPDATE: I took it on— rid my suitcases of 3-shopping bags worth of stuff and felt lighter than ever! It’s been a 2-months without now, and you’ll still catch me on occasion being like dang I got rid of that. Even so, I think the only thing I really miss are my sneakers that slip on and off without tying them. They were a bit worn out so figured I’d get new ones but haven’t been able to rationalize the spend/add when all my other shoes work just fine. The travel ease has been so worth it though. Highly recommend.

How to buy clothing you’ll actually want to wear over and over

We’ve all been in that spot where we see something in the store, get it home and never wear it or wear it just once and it’s left forgotten in the back of the closet.

Well no more!

Not only is it actually a waste of our hard earned money, we deserve to do better for ourselves!

Imagine opening your closet and loving absolutely everything that’s in there, knowing you feel confident in every bit of it, and looking forward to the next time you’ll wear each one!

That’s what we want.

And it all starts with our standards. 

A few things to know before shopping—

• Know your proportions

• Know what styles flatter & feel best on your body

• Know how to identify quality made goods

• Know what materials provide you the most comfort

Questions to ask yourself while shopping—

• Is it versatile?

• Can it be worn for multiple occasions?

• Do I already have something like it?

• Is it a duplicate or providing something new to my wardrobe?

• How does it feel when I first put it on?

My mom has this rule that if you have to look at it too long, it’s not a winner. Now I take that one step further and am like if I don’t immediately love how something looks on me, back on the rack it goes! Simply because, I want to love how I look in everything I wear and if I have to justify it to myself, I’m likely going to do that every time and that is just not the confidence booster I’m looking for in my wardrobe. 

Have any other tips you use?
Share them in the comments!

Aligned Closet: A Roadmap

So you’re ready to get your Aligned Closet going! Congrats!!

Shifting your shopping perspective—

Keep this excitement high as long as you can because on this ride, we’re going to need to learn how to surf or we’ll get caught up in the waves.

The great thing is, with a quick google you’ll find lists of brands that produce clothing sustainably and you’ll find a whole plethora of options. 

Once you start digging, you’ll also notice these prices are way higher than anything you’re used to paying and you may think dang the only way I could buy these is to be rich and I’m not made of money so what am I supposed to do? 

Now for that, I have a few tricks-of-the-trade to help you navigate these new waters! I’ll be here to guide you along the way— cuz I’ve been there! And wow do I wish I had a hand to hold, so here I am to hold yours!

Here we go!

Here’s where sustainability gets fun and becomes a
choose-your-own-adventure. 

—

Adventure #1 - Reframing value

Go into your closet. 

How much are you used to spending on an article of clothing? $10? Okay now pick out 10 shirts that you haven’t worn in the past 3-months. That is $100 right there. And instead of having 10 items that you never wear, you invest that same amount of money into an article of clothing of higher quality that you actually enjoy and will wear over and over.

Adventure #2 - Change where you buy

Shop Local

Keeping money in local circulation is the best thing we can do to make our communities stronger. It helps people who are pursing their passions in business, you know where it comes from and who it’s supporting and typically also have a direct connection to the sourcing so you know exactly what you’re getting and from where. I’ve found I can make great friends with the business owners as well and often get an inside scoop at the process and appreciate the goods I purchase even more!

Shop Sustainable Fashion

Find brands that produce with sustainability at their core. You can do this by googling and you’ll find a list of brands. Start checking the about pages to find brands that resonate with you and uphold the values that align with yours.

Shop Thrift & Vintage

Secondhand shopping is the one place I found that I can still get bargain prices without costing the planet. And truly it’s the most sustainable option even over buying new goods that were produced sustainably from the start. By purchasing goods that have already been created, we are becoming part of the solution rather than contributing to the problem. 

I personally implement a combo of the two. I try to buy secondhand where I can, and fill in the blanks with sustainable clothing. 

Adventure #3 - Extend the life

Some other things to consider—

Do I actually need to buy anything new at all?

Maybe it’s a matter of reorganizing or clearing things out so I can actually see what I do have that I enjoy.

Or maybe it’s reworking clothing that I do have to actually fit me better— take it to a tailor, repair, etc.

Or maybe it’s hosting a closet swap with friends.

— A look ahead —

After you start doing this for a while you’ll find your go-to brands and practices. But that can definitely be one of the main challenges when starting out.

Once you have these basics down, you may be wondering well how do I even know what is sustainable when I start looking for alternatives?

Which brings us to the actual key to sustainability— allowing only items into your life that actually serve you, your lifestyle and your goals and that could be different for everyone.

The more I learn about sustainability, I realize these principles can really be applied to every aspect of my life. And from here I started to look at my entire home & lifestyle from the lens of sustainability. It’s best to take things step by step, because an overhaul of an entire lifetime of habits can take some time!

If you’d like some guided challenges to walk you through with ease & get you started taking one step at a time, let me know in the comments.

Sustainable clothing matters to me— here’s why

Sustainability has been an 8-year journey for me so far. It all started with a little documentary called ‘The True Cost’ and snowballed into an entire lifestyle recalibration. What I learned in that documentary forever changed the way I look at the world around me and my role in it. Here’s some of those realizations—

I had no idea it’s mostly people that make our clothing. I thought they were made on machines.

I had no idea these people are subject to such poor working conditions that even when they noticed a crack in the wall, their managers made them keep working to stay on schedule. And when those cracks turned into a collapsing building, thousands of people lost their lives in the pursuit of meeting quotas.

I had no idea that major stores were the culprits behind these deadlines— Gap, H&M, Forever 21, Old Navy. 

That these mass manufacturers compete against each other for the lowest prices. That these countries depend so much on their large orders that they have no choice but to offer the lowest bid or they lose out contracts that keep them in business and their people employed. Meanwhile corporate revenues are getting higher and higher each year. 

I didn’t know bargain clothing is the business of exploitation. 

I didn’t know that these clothing brands now implement a 52-season cycle, a new cycle for each week to keep us coming back for more and more. There used to be 4-seasons. 

I didn’t know that any donations we make, only 10% end up in thrift stores in the US with the rest shipped overseas to form literal mountains of unwanted clothing. 

I didn’t know those same donations are ruining previously thriving industries of skilled seamstresses because there is no more demand for locally produced clothing. 

I didn’t know there isn’t a way to effectively recycle clothing because most of the garments are made of mixed components that we do not yet have the technology to separate. 

I didn’t know most cotton used for clothing is produced in Texas and India.

I didn’t know that the wide use of pesticide on crops like cotton causes cancer. And I didn’t know that Texas has the most cancer centers in the world. Coincidence? I think not. 

I didn’t know the manufacturing processes like the dying of clothing or tanning of leathers cause birth defects in regions it is practiced because the runoff and waste infiltrates the ground water. 

I didn’t know the companies that commission the production of these goods are not held responsible for the impact of their production. 

I didn’t realize a t-shirt should never cost $5. And the only way it can is because it completely ignores the social and environmental responsibilities of production.

I didn’t realize there are so many hidden costs to the planet and our fellow humans in the manufacturing of clothing that no-one is taking responsibility for. 

I had no idea of the environmental and social impacts my purchases were supporting, and that by spending my dollar I was making a vote to continue those practices. And with my same dollar I could vote for something else. 

This is the journey of me finding that something else. I call it the—

Aligned Closet

To begin your own Aligned Closet journey—
START HERE:

Aligned Closet— A Roadmap