CPW

There's been a lot of talk about "cost-per-wear" on the internet these days, with some touting it as a solution to fast fashion and others calling it out as justifying the purchase of an expensive item.  The basic principle is to divide the cost of an item by the number of times you plan on wearing it - simple enough, though I would argue that the equation is far more complicated than that in real life.  It's not unusual to have great plans for a new purchase that fall apart when the piece is home and hanging in the closet, especially if that closet is already full of other enticing outfits.  

So how exactly can we make CPW more effective as a tool to curb excessive consumption and properly curate our closets?  In practice I've discovered that the number of times I'll wear an item is linked to how many different outfit combinations I can get out of it, which is related to knowing exactly what I already have in my closet and what I want to add to it.

A good example are my grey skinny jeans by Frame:

• After my initial closet cleanse some time ago, I made a list of items that would be useful and complementary to the clothes I had kept.  On the list was a pair of distressed, medium grey, skinny jeans.  
• Whenever switching seasonal wardrobes I again eliminated anything I hadn't been using or no longer loved wearing, then refined my wish list.  A pair of grey skinnies stayed on the list for years, so I knew I really wanted them.
• When I finally found a pair that matched my wish list description they were much more expensive than any of my other jeans.  At this point I made a list of how many outfits they would work with before I applied CPW, this meant that the number of planned wears was realistic and not just wishful thinking.  
• Finally, I checked my budget before buying them.  No matter how low of a number you get from the CPW formula, you must still be able to afford the total purchase price first.  

And the end result is that I wear my Frame skinnies pretty much once every week.  I know that this doesn't work for everyone, but the idea is to find a system that works for you.  Closet cleanses + wish listing + CPW + budgeting = my winning formula.. what's yours?

Top: Dagg & Stacey (old) / Denim: Frame (old; available in other colours) / Necklace: Swarovski (old) / Bracelet: Swarovski (old; still available) / Shoes: Poppy Barley (old) 

Photos courtesy of Micheal Jones