7 Ways to Get to Know Your Clothes

Do you know that item in your closet that has just gone through life with you? Maybe it’s that navy blue

A-line dress or a white button down that sits just right. Once upon a time—our closets were filled with

only garments that we KNEW.

There is a great description in the book, Sundressed: Natural Fabrics and the Future of Clothing by Lucianne Tonti, about how we once knew our clothes “before clothes were produced and disposed of at

increasingly high quantities and dismally poor quality. Before our wardrobes contained garments made of

plastic. Before we abandoned the connection between our bodies and the things we wear on them. Before

we lost sight of the landscapes and skills that imbue our clothing with value…We are all tired of owning

too much and feeling unsatisfied with the options in our wardrobes. For too long, we've been living with things we have no connection to - buying dresses, pants, and jackets we aren't even sure we'll wear. We are on the precipice of a new era of less consumption and more respect for the products we buy because

we are reconnecting with their origins and the work done by farmers to cultivate the land that grows

them. The relationship between the land and our clothes, between our clothes and our bodies, is

significant - not least because we are wearing these materials against our skin. The relationship between

design and comfort, between quality and enjoyment, between beauty and care, will dictate how we move

forward to a place where we are only wearing clothes that we love, that make us feel beautiful, that we

reach for knowing they will carry us through the day.”

Poetry! Let us work towards knowing our garments through an act of creativity. As a result, we will take

better care of our bodies and properly steward the gifts the Lord has given us in the process.

First clean out your closet then organize it by color or texture. We particularly love the Marie Kondo

method of closet cleaning. Practice the art of noticing! Notice the fabric content of pieces you don’t often wear and the ones you wear a lot (awareness is good information). Consider what garment in your closet you have had the longest and ask yourself why that is (Ex: Sentimental? Pattern? Fabric? Shape?).

Let’s get creative. Choose a garment that you recently purchased and haven’t worn much and choose to

wear it at least twice this week and two different ways. If you have a favorite skirt or shirt you always wear

as the same combo—try it on with 5 different pieces in your closet to see if you can find a new outfit.

Style a garment in a new way (ex: a skirt or scarf as a top layered over a long sleeve shirt).

If you find you keep wanting to scroll through online shops and boutiques, consider unsubscribing/unfollowing any stores or influencers that are encouraging you to shop and buy more.

Make repairs! Notice any garments you haven’t worn lately because of a hole or missing button and

make it a priority to fix those (sewing a button will often only take a few minutes). Vogue has highlighted

in its articles (here) the value of repairing garments and even compiled a list of brands that offer

free repairs. A garment made to last is a garment that is able to be repaired and demands our attention to

its care. Always spot clean your garments as soon as you can—there’s nothing that a little baby soap and

baking soda can’t fix!

Finally, here at Litany, we create garments that are meant to go through life with you. We hope our

garments can be as Tonti describes: “The garment must capture something in our imagination. It must

make us feel beautiful and comfortable so that we continue to wear it and don't feel the need to buy something to replace it… designing fashion that is so beautiful it can offer something to our deepest

selves, to our memories, our happiness, our hearts.”