Knowing When to Say Goodbye...

Once it has twice as many holes in it as were there when I bought it, it's gone. Otherwise I keep almost everything; even the pants I bought back when I had a 28 waist and haven't worn since '99.

bad stand-up joke tho it may be, most guys will never get rid of their skivvies. the underthings are just too precious, yo.

I actually toss my drawers pretty regularly but I still have t-shirts from 1991.
However, my only pair of jeans has just worn through in the knee. The hole is smalled than a dime, but it immediately throws them out of rotation.

I've missed like old band t-shirts that I've ditched, but regret nothing else. I need to clean out the closet pretty soon here.

Had this truly sweet black crochet top I gave away to Goodwill by actual accident, since I was filling the black bag with childhood clothes.

My rule for giving stuff the push? If I can only fit one leg into it, or it can't button round my waist (which means it would be incredibly tiny, anyhoo), tis time for someone else to enjoy it.

I always do this when my closet gets overcrowded and/or messy. I usually just get rid of the things that I haven't worn in a long time and don't plan on wearing anytime soon.

Congratulations on your donations, Mary.

The only things I've ever regretted donating were jackets and T-shirts that teams I had played on had custom-ordered for ourselves in small runs. Unfortunately, the decision to donate those was made quite rashly.

Therefore, I have found that a triage method helps break down the process into managable steps. Gathering all the items not worn in a year is a good start. Then, I ask myself, how does this item of clothing make me feel?

1. If having the item makes me feel bad for any reason, it goes into the donate pile, regardless.

2. If I like the piece but I haven't gotten around to wearing for whatever reason in the last year, I keep it but maybe I'll pack it away.

3. If am undecided of whether I can let go of it yet for whatever reason, I put it into a "Probation" bag. Then after about six months I revisit Probation and see if I'm happy to see anything in there. If not, it can usually be donated.

yeah, band t-shirts are usually worn & cherished until they rot right offa you.

I don't get rid of any of my clothes til I have a massive fit with them. They're all over the place, it's horrible.

I mostly throw out stuff that is really falling apart, or clothes that I don't feel all that strongly about in the first place (especially those "what the hell was I thinking?" sort of things cluttering the closet). I prefer to be organized but I hate to part with clothes I like that might be useful later. So stuff I like that no longer fits ends up in piles at the back of my closet. My tiny closet is a disaster.

With t-shirts I love, I wear them until they're super-soft and holey, and then wear them under things, and then wear them as pyjamas until they're ridiculously falling apart.

I use the same system as Nicolars. I used to always throw something away whenever I bought something new but that became silly. It is good living next door to a charity drop box thingy.

I usually wind up tossing stuff when it shrinks up and becomes unwearable. Which means for instance that this ribbed blue sweater I got last weekend will probably get binned within the month. I need to learn to stop buying shirts that don't come in 'tall.'

Last things I tossed were some old boxer briefs (why did I ever think those were comfortable?) and two pairs of good wrinkle-free pants that got tossed in the washer with a ballpoint pen in one of the pockets.

Before that I had an International Noise Conspiracy T-shirt that I was quite fond of and a really comfortable pair of khakis which ended up biting it with me on the asphault outside a dive bar one fateful night. Band T-shirts are awesome but frankly giant holes and bloodstains aren't really my look. Most of the time.

this thread reminded me very much of my answer to the filing records alphabetically thread.

my answer here would be similar (although my closet is not nearly as chaoticly organized as my records/cds).

also, why does this thread make me feel bad about selling clothes (rather than donating them)... :-(

in SF I think the sell/donate dynamic is a bit different because of the all the secondhand boutiques all over the place. Such establishments seem much less common in other cities I've been to, and the end result is that by selling your clothes to such joints you redirect a lot of young/hip Goodwill vultures to profitable businesses and the people who actually NEED Goodwill items won't get stuck pushing a cart behind two white guys with piercings who are going over every shirt to see which one is funniest.

to explain further - I always feel a tad guilty when trolling the Goodwill shops with pals for apparel because really I can afford to shop elsewhere and I know others can't (even though I also donate). In SF I felt a much better market system was in effect and honestly my friends and I never even looked in the Goodwill shop on Haight, we walked right on by to the 'fancier' secondhand shops.

it is a TERRIBLE feeling to be in a thrift shop picking over things thinking, "hmm... this collar isn't quite big enough..." and then notice parents trying to outfit several children.

well that's when i hand them an issue of Vice.

and take a picture of them.

Huh, I hadn't realized there was a market for used clothes... probably not in my size, though.

I have a *very* hard time getting rid of anything, as evidenced by the fact that my closet pole BROKE IN HALF and I had to REPLACE it due to the weight of the clothes.

lauren I guess that means you'll never come shopping with me at the Salvation Army near my house (which is a shame, it's pretty good).

I keep a bag near my closet which I gradually fill up with clothes that I wonder why the hell I bought, have gotten permanent stains on, or realize I will never wear again. Once this bag fills up and I have not pillaged through it at all, it's off to goodwill. So, my method is more work in progress. I also try not to buy any extra hangers.

dude, i went to that salvation army once! i got several things that looked good at the time, like these weird old white leather and mesh stiletto sandals that turned out to be irreparably grimy. i also got a minor asthma attack, so you're right in your assumption that i probably won't be going there anytime soon.

But tom, you are doing good by shopping at Goodwill/Salvation Army. They sell the clothes to raise money for their various services.

I reguarly throw out vintage items that bite it. Like this weekend when the silk fabric of the dress I was wearing literally disintegrated as I was walking out the door late to a wedding. Grr. Granted the dress was older than my momma so I guess its time had come.

Otherwise, rarely to never.

It's time to say goodbye to some books, lots of them actually. Now that I've rearranged my apt to accomadate high-speed cable-modem, space is at a premium.

I just lost 8 or so boxes from VA when my mom threatened to move, but then never did (yet). How do you decide which books to get rid of? Especially if they are nice books, maybe you got them for free (from work or something) but something tells you that you will never get around to reading them.

PS: If you are my friend and you live in NYC and you want to browse for free books, stop by!

Also, I have some borrowed books I must return.

I think I will be making a lot of trips to Housing Works.