Organizing the Closet

I had been putting this off for quite some time, but I finally went through and organized my clothes closet.  I am careful to say organized versus cleaned out my clothes closet.  At first pass, I could only part with one item (a wind breaker that I never really liked and have not worn in 20 years).  The main reason is that I am a pack rat.  Another reason is that most stuff fit (or was close enough to being able to fit).  Finally, I really believe I would purchase the items again even though I do not wear them often.  I have a certainly look in my head that does not always match reality.

• Crossfit shirts (10) - I wear these all the time and do not skip any
• Carhartt t-shirts (7) - I wear these all the time and do not skip any
• T-shirts (11) - I have my favorites, but wear these often
• Long sleeve t-shirts (9) - I wear these less often, but am going to mix it up
• Flannel shirts (8) - I have more of these than I need
• Button down shirts (11) - I have a few, but do not wear them often
• Running clothing (6) - long sleeve shirts, vest, wind jacket, Golite jacket; rarely wear, I do not run in cold weather very often
• Cycling clothing (9) - jerseys, long sleeve jerseys, heavyweight jerseys; rarely wear, I do not cycle in cold weather very often
• Dress shirts (12) - from light to dark, last time I wore one was September of 2018 (Simi's wedding); I want to pare these down, most are from when I was in medical school (1994-1995), a few are more recent but rarely worn
• Dress pants (1) - only wore once since purchasing around 2006 (fit great)
• Sport Coats (2) - last time I wore one was when Diya started at WWA (~2012)
• Suits (5) - Banana Republic tan suit (wore for Deepa's wedding 2014); My Wedding Suit (purchased 2005, wore several times, snug); Goodwill Suit (wore for Nina's wedding 2017); Nick Uncle Custom Suit (wore for Simi's wedding 2018); Nordstrom Suit (wore for Simi's wedding 2018) 
• Polo shirts (16) - mix of logo'd and non-logo'd, I wear these often enough, but how many is too many
• Hawaiian shirts (2) - bought one in Puerto Rico (1999), bought one in Hawaii (2019)
• Sports Jerseys - Rockies Jersey (wear to games), Purdue Jersey (Rarely wear)
• Indian clothes (6) - My wedding, Priya's wedding, Raj wedding, a few casual
• Pants (9) - 2 fleece lined, a few Eddie Bauer, Gramicci, Costco; I rarely wear these, but I do like the way they look and would probably purchase again
• Vests (5) - Leather motorcycle, Hunting, Fleece, Down, ScottVest - rarely wear these
• Sweatshirt/fleece (6/3) - wear often; how many is too many?
• Hoodies (7+10) - pull-over and zip up, wear often; how many is too many?
• Outerwear (4) - bike and track jacket
• Outerwear (9) - Too many; which ones to part with is a tough question.  Most, I would buy again, but one can only wear so many coats.  (plus 4 windbreakers in the basement)
• Belts - mix of black and brown in various states of repair
• Ties - did not evaluate

As I do not have a two story closet, I will at some point need to resort to the guide on the left.

While I certainly accept the wisdom of have you worn it in the past year, I am still somewhat hesitant to part with stuff and I cannot wrap my head around it.

Most commonly, I wear jeans, t-shirt or long sleeve shirt, and a hoodie.  In the winter, I will throw in a sweatshirt or flannel for variety.  In the summer, I may wear a polo shirt.

I make an effort to cycle through, wearing the leftmost article of clothing in the category and after washing, returning it to the category on the rightmost side.  This works well and only rarely do I find myself skipping items.

Formal clothes, sports clothes and outerwear are tough to part with because they are expensive and are typically only worn occasionally.

The final thing that makes this difficult is that I just bought a pair of pants, zipped hoodie and 2 crossfit shirts in the past month.  4 additions without any subtractions.