PROJECT 333: THE RULES

Minimalism. A word that I heard first back in university when I was studying art history. Back then my interest began to show but I never did anything about it. A couple of years have passed and since I discovered Marie Kondo and the book “The life Changing Magic of Tidying up”, my fascination for minimalism came back, and this time I decided to start decluttering my house. And so I started my journey towards a simpler life. When I watched the film “Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things”, I felt an even stronger need of owning less stuff. One of the things that caught my attention the most is the “Project 333”. This project is a minimalist fashion challenge created by Courtney Carver. The challenge invites you to create, and live with a wardrobe of 33 items or less for 3 months. And I decided to do it!

The Rules:
33 Items in 3 Months This includes clothing, shoes, jewelry, and accessories.

What is NOT included in the 33 items: “wedding ring or another sentimental piece of jewelry that you never take off, underwear, sleep wear, in-home lounge wear,  and workout clothing (you can only wear your workout clothing to workout)”

No shopping during the experiment! Trade the time that you would normally use to shop to do productive activities such as talking to a friend, reading a book, taking a walk, call a family member etc.
Consider that you are creating a wardrobe that you can live, work and play in for three months. Remember that this is not a project in suffering. If your clothes don’t fit or are in poor condition, replace them.
I decided to make this challenge from June 1st – August 31st.

I decided to do this challenge because
-I want to get to know my real style. I own a lot of clothes that I think I like, but I end up wearing the same clothes. I want to be able to understand my style and stop investing in things I know for sure I won´t wear.
-I don´t want to feel guilty anymore when I look at my clothes and see that t-shirt that I “love” but never wear or those shoes that I knew I didnt need but still bought.
-I want to get better in decision making and want to trust more my intuition. Owning too many things that I don´t use may confuse me  and make it hard for me to make choices. If you also want to join this challenge, it is important that you find your reasons WHY you want to do this as well.

These are then the steps to proceed:
Gather all your clothes and put them on your bed or all on the floor.(Please note that if you haven’t set aside your winter clothes, this is the time to do it.) Then you start categorizing every item and place them in one of this 4 piles:

Love: I love these items. They fit me well and I wear them frequently.
Maybe: I want to keep this but I don’t know why. (You know you have those items)
Donate/Sell: These items don’t fit my body or my life.
Trash: These items are in poor condition. You can bring them to a charity shop.

When you are done piling all your clothes put the trash and donate pile away inmediatly. And then you go trough your “love” pile and choose the 33 items you love the most. Once you have chosen your 33 items, take the rest of your “love” pile and the “mabe” pile and pack them into bags or boxes, seal it, and place it out of sight.

My wardrobe for the next three months will only consist of 33 items. For my experiment I am not including my rain jacket because I live in The Netherlands, and my main transportation is my bike and I need this in case it rains, and it rains a lot in here.
I will keep you updated with my outfits, along with my triumphs and challenges. Let me know if you want to join me and exchange tips and tricks. Send me a message on Facebook or Instagram.

Wish me luck!