333 Begins Today

The 333 Project:

I shared on Facebook that I am beginning this tomorrow.

This is an experiment in minimalism for me.  
33 items for 3 months: October through December.
Included items are clothing, accessories and shoes.
Excluded items are under-things, sleepwear, and workout wear.
I am no legalist so I have opted for a couple of exceptions to the rules:

1.  October is starting rather warm so I plan to include a handful of warmer weather items for here and there until the weather remains cool.  (If it remains warm for much longer, I will push my experiment to November-January).  The part of the country you live in must be factored in to the timing.
2.  I am excluding weekend/lounging around clothes. My 33 items will be for work, church/public worship time, and going out.
3.  I am excluding outerwear.  The 333 project includes jackets and coats.

As someone who has pursued a more minimalist perspective for a little while now, I am looking forward to this journey.  It was a challenge as I spent quite a while this past Friday going through my clothes and thinking through the weather changes and holidays of the next three months.  I like to plan ahead, but this took that to a whole new level.  And, at first I thought this would be a fun challenge.  As fun as it really has been, it's been more of a challenge than I expected.  I began to plan through some basic clothing options in order to create multiple outfits.  Once I began to add accessories and then shoes...the numbers began adding up.  Then, as I hung all of my clothing options together in one section of the closet so that I would keep track of what I have chosen and have to select from for the next three months, I turned and looked at the remaining clothes in my closet...

Now, let me remind you that I have been on a purging trend for the last couple of years and have easily cut my wardrobe in half over that time.  That being said, I was amazed at what all remained in my closet that I declared 'unusable' for the next three months.

That's the point. At least for me.
I think I'm doing well at using my resources and decluttering and eliminating the unnecessary.
I needed an opportunity to take a deeper look at what I own - at what I consider valuable.

I urge you to look into the 333 project.
Read blogs such as
www.becomingminimalist.com
and
www.theothersideofcomplexity.com
They can encourage you and shed light in a clearer way than I can, that's for sure.

But, I guess I mainly share this so that you can know why I will continue to wear the same basic clothes over the next few months ;)
I'll try to create some variety with accessories.

My poor students - they'll think I own no other clothes.

Maybe, just maybe, this will open a door to conversation.
More than that, I am hoping to re-kindle the embers in my heart of a desire for less.
To get my focus back on what is truly important.

Less does equal more.
I think it's time to dive into that more deeply.