By Erica Watson 

After a long cold winter I’m absolutely thrilled that spring is finally in the air. But often with the start of a new season I find myself peering in my wardrobe and muttering to myself, “but I have nothing to wear”! Of course, I know that’s completely ridiculous, given there’s plenty of spring appropriate combos staring back at me. And while it’s very tempting to just run off to the shops – or jump online – for a frock or two and a couple of t-shirts, I urge you to ‘shop’ what you have first before taking the plunge. 

So, here are my secrets to creating a sustainable wardrobe while keep your pennies in your pocket and still feeling like you’ve invested in a wardrobe makeover.

Shop your wardrobe 

Before you buy anything new, audit the items you already own. Knowing which key pieces you already have means you’ll avoid coming home with another white shirt when there’s already three waiting in the wings. 

Declutter 

How many times have you forgotten about a piece of clothing only to find it months – or (gasp) years – later? If you can’t actually see what you’ve got how can you create an outfit from it? Keep similar items together (t-shirts, jeans, jumpers, etc), and if you really want to take it up a notch you can also colour coordinate. 

Organise a virtual clothes swap 

If you don’t want to shell out for new clothes and want to offload what you no longer wear at the same time, a clothing swap is a great option. While getting some friends together might not work right now, why not start a virtual chat, sharing pictures of items you are happy to let go of.

New rules 

If you still feel you’re missing essentials, before you invest ask yourself; what existing pieces will you wear it with? Will you wear it more than 30 times? If the answer is ‘yes’ then it’s likely you’re onto a winner. 

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Related; Is renting your clothes the next evolution of sustainable fashion?