For the past few weeks I’ve noticed that there are a handful of items I no longer wear in my closet. After my thorough KonMari-ing and inventory-keeping, it’s become easier to see which items aren’t making the cut (items I only reach for when I haven’t done laundry in a while). It only took a few minutes to clean out the following:

1 workout tank that I’ve worn for the past 7 years. It’s gotten so stretched out that I have to wear a sports bra underneath even though it comes with a built-in bra.

1 pair of my (beloved) Frye boots. I’ve had these boots for years and years and I’ve gotten them re-soled a number of times, but now they’re just looking so tired that I can’t wear them to work anymore. Years of wear and tear has turned them into the leather boot equivalent of Uggs.

1 pair of Feiyues sneakers. Love these! I got them a long time ago when we hosted a Feiyue giveaway on this blog and fell in love with their shape (molded to the foot) and comfort. They’ve held up after a few washes, but the inside soles keep rolling up and no matter how much glue I use, they refuse to stay in place.

2 black shirts. Both have some sort of embellishment (one has a sheer back, the other has zips on the side), but I rarely wear them because I have so. many. other. black. tops.

1 Topshop ring – it was a favorite last year. I still love the style, but the metal is changing colors and the plastic gem is super cloudy – it was around $15 so no surprise there. I almost kept it, but wearing a ring that is obviously cheap makes me feel like I’m not winning at the whole adulting thing.

4 necklaces that I think are fantastic but never wear.

3 bracelets – they came in a set of four and I only wear one at a time.

1 Zara bag that Lar gave me last year. She used it for a few years and then I wore it to death. It was an awesome bag, but it started to fray around the handles. Once again, frayed purse handles = not adulting.

Now that my jewelry board is so empty (my sad 5-year-old DIY tissue paper tassels had to go), I need to rethink my jewelry storage set up. Any suggestions?

This clean out also gives me the chance to see what I need for the spring:

1-2 work-appropriate skirt(s).

3 work-appropriate blouses that are not dry clean only.

1 nice gold ring in a modern shape (it might take me some time to save up for this one).

I’m not going to lie, I’m pretty pumped about buying some new clothes. Shhhhh, don’t tell anyone!

Okay, 13 things. That’s not horrible in 2.5 months, right? And technically it’s 18 things (when I was snapping away, I forgot about my oil diffuser and four cloth napkins). Still, not an insignificant number if you are trying to live with less.

But that’s okay. Cath and I have not considered ourselves minimalists in any strict sense. That’s why we are learning to live with less. Living with less isn’t a fixed goal. I don’t think once I own only 200 items, I’ll be complete! Or once I stop buying things, I’ll have reached an inner contentment (oh, if only it were so easy). It’s learning how little I can live with without feeling too restricted. And I honestly think that is different for everybody and will change for you depending on where you’re at in the rollercoaster of life.

I started getting rid of stuff five years ago right before I moved overseas. I got rid of a lot so that I could move to Edinburgh with just two wheelie suitcases in tow. At the time it felt liberating!

And then, a few months after wearing the same staples in my wardrobe again and again, I lost my mojo.

I currently have a very small closet (compared to my pre-Scotland days) but it took me a few years to figure out how to create a small closet/wardrobe that I love and don’t feel restricted by.

So don’t feel discouraged if you take three steps forward and two steps back when you’re learning to live with less. You will buy new stuff and possibly regret getting rid of certain things, but overall, learning about what you really love and need is the joyful part of this process.

And even the process won’t stay the same for you. What you love and need will change with your life. That might sound obvious, but I definitely didn’t get that when I first started getting rid of things.

After getting rid of things five years ago, I really thought “okay, now I won’t ever have to worry about shopping again — I’ll just replace what I have once pieces get too worn.” But my style has changed and so have my editing abilities. Give yourself some breathing room as you learn and as external changes happen in your life.

The same goes with KonMari-ing. When I KonMaried my flat in Edinburgh, the method worked perfectly for me and for the next year that I lived in that flat. Once we moved back to the States, methods that worked in my old flat didn’t translate as well here — so I’m still figuring that out.

And “figuring stuff out” is all part of it. So enjoy the process and don’t worry if you feel like you aren’t always adhering to your rules (or Marie Kondo’s rules) perfectly. Being too restrictive or hard on yourself will make any process unsustainable. Learning to live with less is all about what works best for you, while helping sustain our beautiful wee place in the universe.