What are my clothing needs?

I took an inventory of my closet yesterday.  I’ll be writing about it tomorrow.  For today, I  want to go back and think through who I am, what my roles are and what I’ll be doing in the next year.  I want to determine (as much as I can) what items of clothing I’ll need in the next year.

Weather

I live in Menlo Park, California, which is about 30 minutes south of San Francisco.  The weather is fairly mild all year.  In the summer, we have a few days in the 90s and maybe a few days in the low 100s.  But, generally, it’s in the 70s and 80s in the summer.  In the winter, it gets down in the 50s and maybe down in the upper 30s or lower 40s at night.  Very rarely, the temperature will drop below freezing.  It rains in the winter, but not in the summer.

Personal Clothing Needs

I’m a sensory girl.  I need my clothing to be super comfortable.  I don’t want to have tags bothering me.  I don’t want to have to tug at neck lines to ensure that they stay modest.  I want my clothing to fit well, feel comfortable  and for it to stay put.  Pretty much, I want it to feel like pajamas.  🙂  Also, I need my clothing not to feel morally icky.  In other words, it needs to be sweat shop-free.  My shoes need to be as comfortable as tennis shoes.  I know- I’m not easy to please.  To put it simply, if I’m going to have less, it all needs to work.

Lifestyle

I’m somewhat active, but I’m married to a high octane man who loves to be very active.  My kids are also quite active.  I will be in my third year of homeschooling my children this year.  I will also be starting a hand-made soap business this year.  My husband and I will continue the task of simplifying our possessions.

Roles- Here are the ones I can think of:

• Wife
• Mom
• Daughter
• Sister
• Aunt
• Small business owner
• Teacher
• Friend
• Small group 1st grade leader at church
• Blogger
• Soap maker
• Home maker
• Cook
• House cleaner
• Food gatherer
• Church volunteer
• Justice advocate

Activities that I’ll be doing in the next year (not an exhaustive list)

• Teach my children
• Attend children’s activities, such as soccer, choir and home school park day
• Attend children’s outsourced classes, such as Spanish and Chess
• Masters swimming
• Camping
• Making soap
• Writing at home
• Attending appointments to get our business going (i.e. meeting with attorney)
• Participating in church
• Cooking and cleaning
• Shopping for food
• Volunteer work

So, what kinds of clothes will I need for these activities?

• When I’m at home, I usually wear jeans and layered tops.  T shirt with sweater.
• When I attend my kids activities and classes, I wear comfortable clothing.  Anything from skirts to jeans.
• When I swim, I wear my swim suit, which isn’t counted, because it’s work out gear.
• When I camp, I wear grubby clothes.  Jeans and sweats, usually.  I know I’m not supposed to wear work out gear out, but I’m going to make an exception when we go camping.
• When I make soap, I wear my husbands ugly blue jump suit left over from when he was in the navy.  It protects my clothing.  So, there is no special clothing needed for soap making.
• Attending appointments.  I haven’t operated in the professional world in over ten years.  Back in the day, I was a school teacher.  In the next year, I will have more engagement in the professional world.  I anticipate wearing nice business casual clothing.
• At church, I work with first graders.  I’m literally on the floor for a good portion of the time.  So, I often wear skirts that I don’t have to mess with to keep from flashing people.  At my church, I would feel comfortable wearing anything from shorts to a business suit.
• I usually wear jeans at home to cook and clean.
• I wear whatever I’m already wearing to shop for food.  Usually skirts or jeans.
• In the last year, I’ve done some messy volunteer work.  Sorting gifts at Christmas for a non-profit.  Cleaning classrooms at a local school.  Doing construction work.  So, I need some grubby clothes for this.  I’m going to consider this work out gear.

And then, there is everything else that I can’t plan for.  I don’t have a crystal ball, so there is no way that I can know all of the things that I’ll be doing in the next year.  But, this is my rough brain dump of what I’ll be doing and what I’m going to need from my clothing in the next year.   What about you?  What will you be needing from your clothing in the next year?

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