On Be More with Less, mini-missions are a powerful part of making big change through small steps. Dressing with 33 items or less can be a big change, so I thought a special mini-mission just for Project 333 could make the process even more fun and approachable.
This mini-mission will bust one of the greatest myths we have about what we wear. We think everyone notices what we wear, deeply cares about how we look and then talks about it all day long.
Maybe that statement is a little dramatic, but we do put an awful lot of thought into what we think other people think about us. The truth is we all have too much to think about as it is. There isn’t enough time, energy or attention available to focus on what someone else is wearing. I’m not saying it never happens, but it is rare.
Someone may compliment you on what you are wearing, or ask you where you bought your beautiful boots, but that is mostly conversation and pleasantries instead of genuine interest or all-consuming curiosity about what you wear and how you look.
Your mini-mission is to be an outfit repeater for 2-5 days. Wear the same thing or nearly the same thing around the same people for the next few days and see if anyone notices. Keep your outfit simple. Most people will notice if you wear a noisy Christmas sweater three days in a row in February.
This mini-mission is an invitation to experiment. You might discover that as Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project says, “you don’t have to believe everything you think.” I practiced my Project 333 experiment for more than a year while working full-time in advertising sales. No one noticed.
Want more mini-missions? Check out Mini-Missions for Simplicity.
I have always had a very small wardrobe and tend to do this mini session without realizing it. I find no reason to change my clothes every day. It’s so true, no one notices! I have a hard time remembering what my husband has worn sometimes the day before. I love reading your blog. Thanks!
Project 333 made me realize that it is okay to wear what I like to call a uniform. I just grab my jeans, black shirt, coat and black boots and am fully dressed in less than a minute. When it’s really cold I add a black cardigan and a black scarf and gloves.
Since the beginning of the year I used 7 items out of my 33. I don’t feel limited by this number at all. I feel liberated. Unless my clothes get stains I do my laundry every weekend and since there are so little items to wash, I hand-wash them and let them dry near the radiator over night.
Also, nobody noticed that I wore the same outfit for more than 7 weeks.
I believe choosing something simple and flattering that puts the wearer and not the clothes in the center of attention is key.
My wardrobe is very small and repetitive, except for a couple of fun and interesting cardigans. I have been wearing the same outfit two or three times a week for years and no one ever comments that I am wearing the same thing again. (But I do have one friend who is a real clothes horse who will occasionally say, “I really love that sweater,” whenever he sees me wearing it. Yeah for the interesting cardigans!)
I wore the same pants to work for 3 days. I just refreshed them in the dryer with a wet washcloth sprayed with a little Dr. Bronner’s Lavender soap – just a drop. I don’t think anyone notice.
I also mixed up a black t-shirt for 2 days- one day under a jaceket, the next day with a scarf and a cuff.
I just found Project 333 and I’m getting excited about the prospect of ridding my closets of items that I keep just because I paid for them or because they look pretty in the closet, just not so much on me. I think I understand how this works, but I’m not sure if I’ve truly got it figured out or not. Let’s say I’ve got 300 items, I keep out 33 and box up the rest? Then in 3 months, I open up all the boxes and then pick out 33 items (possibly some from the same 33) and box up the rest? I assume that I’d be getting rid of some along the way, as I discover items that I really don’t want, etc. So is this just a work in progress kind of thing and so the idea is that eventually I’d be down to a maximum of 132 items (33 out and 99 boxed up)?
In terms of being an outfit repeater – I do that in some ways already, which is why it’s crazy that my closet is crammed full and overflowing on the floor!
thanks for any advice on getting started
Michelle I’ve been watching project 333 from afar for a while. I think people tend to throw out stuff after realising they don’t use it and the stored items is whatever you’re not wearing in that 3 month session, not a gixed number. Also people seem to keep a reasonable number of items in their wardrobe year round and only switch a small number in/out. Hope that helps.
I noticed that by accident just recently.
We needed a new floor in our bedroom, so all the furniture – including the wardrobe – had to go. We boxed up all of our clothes and just kept a few things. The job was meant to take a week (the week before Christmas). So, I kept five work outfits and a few casual things, about one medium suitcase worth of stuff. Then our builder let us down and just didn’t come back, so the week turned into four. I was back at work again and nobody ever noticed that I only wore five outfits for a total of three weeks.
Of course, I don’t know what people were thinking, but if I think of myself? I’ll notice if someone is wearing something particularly pretty. I’ll notice if someone is wearing exactly the same every single day (I’ve seen it happen, four week, sane outfit every single day). Other than that? No. No idea what my colleagues are wearing.
I find it makes life easier if I wear the same skirt, jeans or work trousers on consecutive days with maybe a different top but sometimes I will wear exactly the same outfit for more than one day.
I generally wear pieces of clothing several times before they go in the laundry basket. Quite often they just go back in the wardrobe. In winter I often wear skirts for work and these heavier skirts need a lot less laundering than summer ones which is great. I find lighter summer clothes need more care as they can get very creased.
The other members of my family aren’t as disciplined but I do sneak their clothes out of the laundry basket and back into their wardrobes without them noticing!
I used to have a roomate who wash his pants every day. every.single.day. I can understand with other clothes, but not with jeans. He had more than fifteen jeans, it was insane.
I’m on my way to declutter my wardrobe, si this mission will complement well and help with what I am doing right now.
This is a great sociology experiment. I’ve found through similar experiments that people don’t really notice as they are in their own visual world and perceptually see what they’ve created. And most people don’t dwell on what you’re wearing as they’re thinking more about how they are viewed.
You are so correct: no one notices. For the last 6 months, I’ve worn white, tan, or black blouses over jeans (7 pairs, all the same). One day I wore a red blouse, and only one person mentioned it. HA! Life is much easier with the 3 colors. I have black and khaki slacks if I need something dressier. Here’s to the simplified wardrobe!
I remember a project where a woman wore the same dress every day for a year. In an interview she said ‘In the entire year, only ONE PERSON noticed that I was wearing the same dress every day (this is completely true!’
The original diary Alex wrote seems not to be around anymore, but there is lots out there about it. It is called Alex Martin’s little brown dress project. It was very interesting, she dressed it up in winter and down in summer. http://www.meetthegreens.org/episode2/little-brown-dress.html this is an interview with her, worth a read as it chimes into this idea really well.
If it’s dirty i wash it, if it’s not i wear it.
I have about 40 items of clothes full stop. including the boxed up ones. In summer i wear things as they are and in winter i layer them up. The only specific things i have for winter is a coat, scarf, hat, gloves and shoes.
It’s possible people notice but they don’t care or are polite enough not to say anything. I’m a very visual person with a good memory so I’m pretty aware of what others are wearing without doing it intentionally. I would certainly notice if someone wore the same thing for weeks (let alone a year). I wouldn’t say anything though, it’s not my business and it doesn’t matter in the long run.
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