Summer Project Series: Project 333

With all my newfound freedom, I have started tackling projects.

'Tis the life of a teacher: I daydream and scheme and Pinterest all school year long, waiting for Memorial Day to come so I can start tackling these projects.

Memorial Day has come and gone, I have had some time to rest and recuperate, and the first project to be done: Project 333.

graphic from theproject333.com

This past winter, I came across this article and was deeply intrigued by the premise of the story. Essentially, the woman who wrote this article (an art director) decided that she was going to wear the same thing every day to eliminate stress in the mornings. She chose a tasteful pair of black slacks and a white silk shirt, which she dresses up with fun and funky shoes.

As a working woman, I found this idea really...cool. In her article, Mathilda Kahl talked about the morning that was the final straw--she stressed and redressed until she was late for an important meeting. Although I have never been late to a high powered meeting the way Kahl was, I totally know the feeling of opening my closet, gazing over the piles of clothes, and feeling like I have nothing to wear.

However, ditching everything in my closet to wear the same thing each day didn't really seem logistically possible--after all, when you teach eleventh grader girls, it's a little like having your own fashion police.

Yet the concept of simplifying my wardrobe was appealing. So when my bestie, Ayme, found Project 333, I thought, yes!

The basics of the project:

When: Every three months

What: 33 items of clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear, and shoes.

What not: these items are not counted as part of the 33 items -- wedding ring or other sentimental piece of jewelry that you never take off, underwear, sleep wear, in-home lounge wear, and workout clothing (but you can only wear your workout clothing to work out)

How: Choose your 33 items, box up the remainder of your fashion statement, seal it with tape and put it out of sight. 

What else: 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. 

Now, Ayme and I modified our rules a little, turning it into 333, Wyoming Style. For instance, outerwear like boots, coats, and water sandals are not included in the 33, and neither are ranch or work clothes for getting dirty outside. We also decided that we wouldn't count jewelry, since we are both fairly minimal when it comes to jewelry.

And since we agreed to both give it a try, we'll be keeping up with our Project 333 progress in our blogs. Check out Ayme's awesome blog here.

After a great deal of sorting and debating and sorting and boxing up, I whittled my business down to 33 items for the summer. It was tough, but now that I've spent about four days living with Project 333, I am sold. It requires some planning, but seriously: AMAZING.

So here's what I am wearing for the summer:

1. Loose Racer Back Tank in Turquoise
2. Crew cut t-shirt in White
3. Basic Tank in White
4. Basic Tank in Tan
5. Moss Green Tank Top
6. Crew cut t-shirt in Black
7. Crew cut t-shirt in Turquoise
8. Crew cut steamboat t-shirt
9. Loose Button down tank in Black
10. White and Coral Embellished Tank Top
11. White Tank with Green and Tan Embellishment
12. Draped White Tank Top
13. Mint Embellished Blouse
14. Peasant Blouse in White
15. Gap Long Sleeve Chambray Button Down
16. Long Sleeve Button Down in Army Green
17. Gap Long Sleeve Button Down in Green Check 
18. Cream Long sleeve cardigan
19. Tan Draped Vest
20. Gap Boyfriend Capris
21. New York & Co. Jean Shorts
22. Gap Khaki Capris
23. Gap Dark Long and Lean Jeans
24. Patagonia Kahki skirts
25. Cynthia Rowley Long Cream Maxi Dress
26. Eddie Bauer Knee Length Teal Dress
27. Printed Sanuks
28. Dark Gray Sanuks
29. Cream flip-flops
30. Cream gladiator sandals
31. Black Espadrille wedges
32. Seafoam scarf
33. Tan and turquoise scarf

I know a list is boring, so I will be posting photos as the project continues on this summer.

Despite the fact that it was tough to whittle down my wardrobe, and at first I felt like I was picking too much of the same stuff, I am quite happy with this scenario. It has simplified getting dressed (big time) in the morning because this wardrobe mixes and matches so easily. My mom wondered if I felt like I was wearing the same thing all the time, and to be honest, the answer was yes. Kind of.

I tend to wear and wear again the clothes that I really love, so even when my closet is full to bursting, I still wear the same stuff. So this wardrobe is suiting me really well, because it's made up of only clothes that I: A. love to wear, and B. feel great in.

The Project 333 has begun here at the Sage Creek Ranch, and I have to say: getting dressed for church this morning was a piece of cake :-)