Could you make a month on 6 items or less?

[make_your_move]

I was watching GMA this morning and they had a really interesting story on .... could you go a month wearing onlysix items of clothing. The website for the challenge is Six Items or Less. Here's the explanation of the experiment:

What do our clothes say about us? Why do spend so much time on what we wear? What happens when we don’t?

Starting Monday, June 21st 2010, a group of people from California to Dubai are going to take part in a little experiment: each participant gets to choose six (and only six) items of clothing and pledge to wear only these six items of clothing for a month. They’ll share their experiences here at sixitemsorless.com

There are exceptions that don’t count towards the six: undergarments, swim wear, work-out clothes, work uniforms, outer jackets (rain slicker, outdoor jacket), shoes and accessories. You can get multiples of the same item for laundry purposes, but different colors count as separate items. Or you can tell us to stuff it and make your own rules.

People have asked what the philosophy is behind the experiment and most assume it’s a statement about consumerism. In reality, we haven’t dictated a driving thought. Rather it’s about putting a challenge out there and seeing what people bring to it, do with it and talk about.

Check back daily – people are posting all the time. or follow us @sixitemsorless. questions? sixitemsorless@gmail.com

It should be an interesting month.

There's been some interesting side efffects ... some folks did buy less, and pare down more - some folks ended up buying more.

Could you do it? Would you want to? I can't contemplate this now....maybe sometime after Pennsic. But I find the idea intriguing.

Comments

[becalyn.livejournal.com]

It is interesting and I think I could do it. Made me wonder about variations of the idea. I think it would be interesting to pick 6 basic food items and see if you could make a different dinner for a month out of just those items...spices/oils wouldn't count toward the six ingredients.

[arashinomoui.livejournal.com]

Interesting.

What I'd wear:
Blue Jeans
Black Shorts
Black Slacks
Dark blue T-shirt
White Dress shirt
Dark colored dress shirt.

Assumptions:
Undershirts counted as undergarmets.
Dress clothes for work don't count as work uniform.

Basically that IS my warddrobe now, except I have a bunch of the same t-shirt in different colors because, come-on a little variety is nice. Similarly with dress shirts, I have a bunch of different ones, but if I was down to only six articles, I go with plain white, and wear more ties, as they count as accessories.

But then again, I do not have an exactly diverse wardrobe.

[aminahfiddler.livejournal.com]

I win. I wear workout clothes everyday. So I know I can make it. I really don't think it would be that hard if you were always going to go out casual. But if you had to also have evenings where you had to dress for dinner that would be harder.

[dckermit.livejournal.com]

I went 16 weeks wearing only what would fit in two suitcases (about two weeks worth). I didn't have multiples, so laundry time was not something I ever skipped. No question I could do a month with six items.

HOWEVER, when I got home those clothes went straight into a seldom-used closet, and I still haven't worn some of it again six years later.

[lil-kevin.livejournal.com]

Would little Kevie and Kitty get 6 items too? ;-)

[russell-moore.livejournal.com]

well, since I would get to change my underwear without penalty, I could pass this test in a breeze

jeans, hawaiian shirts

2 items

I win

[thatliardiego.livejournal.com]

Like russell_moore, I think I could pass this one in a snap. Jeans, white button-down oxford dress shirt. Sweatshirt over that if it got cool.

[voltbang.livejournal.com]

It would be an easy one for me. With the qualifications it becomes six different shirts and pants, with multiples of the same item allowed. That's two pants styles and four shirt styles allowed. Really I only wear about 4 different pants anyway. So, for me that would be my black cargo pants, blue jeans, a red linen shirt, a blue linen shirt, a black linen long sleeve shirt, and a hawaiian shirt. There is a small amount of personal style cheat in this, in that I always wear a tank-top undershirt, and I can pull the outer shirt off when I don't need the outer shirt. There are people who only know me in the black tank top. In a pinch I could add a suit jacket over the black long sleeve to look less casual, although the pants would keep me in "casual" even with a jacket.

The winter list would change out two of the shirts, and because outerwear doesn't count I get more flex, as I have 4 or 5 coats to choose from.

[blushing-grace.livejournal.com]

I don't think I'd want to go down to 6 items only, but I do think I want to weed out my clothes more. Among other things, I'm having drawer/closet space issues. I've weeded some the last few years, especially when I moved, but could weed more.

Reading the entries the bloggers have I think I'd want to:
Mend a few things
thin out my cheap stuff
toss the things I keep 'just in case'
get rid of the things I wear only so I can 'say' I wear everything in my closet

However, there are also a few 'gaps' of things I'd like to have. Like a pair of comfy shorts.

[blushing-grace.livejournal.com]

My main issue isn't what to wear on non-work days. It's wanting to wear something different to work for 5 days in a row. I'd want 4 tops, 1 dress, and a pair of pants if I were keeping it to 6 things. Ideally I'd add 1 skirt for work and a pair of jeans for the weekend and I'd be fine. Then 4 light sweaters instead of tee for winter and a long sleeve button down (that can worn with a suit).

Actually, I'd like to have 2 weeks of outfits for work (but find I end up wearing typically the same thing most weeks - I should weed stuff out). It's the garb/going out clothes that I need to work on/with...

[3fgburner.livejournal.com]

So, 5 pairs of black slacks would count as one item, ditto 4 pairs of black BDUs? Do 4 blue-and-something shirts, albeit in different patterns, count?

[soubrettic.livejournal.com]

Could I? Hell, I think I have, pretty regularly. I tend to settle into uniform-wearing for periods of time, or fall in love with a particular garment and wear it constantly. And I once traveled for six weeks with a bag the size of a moderately generous purse. I find it liberating to just table the whole issue for a while -- it changes my focus, and there's something a bit gleeful about it.

[wildwose.livejournal.com]

Yeah, like most of the men on here, easy. I kinda do it anyway. Especially as I work from home and don't need all the extras. Heck, I thought they were just talking about 6 Items of clothing! The whole extras and items not counting, that isn't so hard! Good grief. Don't people know what real camping is like!

[soubrettic.livejournal.com]

Camping? Life!

I go to work on

[emt-hawk.livejournal.com]

seven items, by their score.

One pair of boots, two pairs of slacks, and 5 work shirts. It's almost not worth doing laundry for me, except that all my work clothes are in the laundry. Tho I tend to wear my work shirts twice before laundering.

Not a challenge.

I own two pairs of EMS boots, one pair sneakers, one pair SCA dress boots, two pairs combat boots, and two pairs of dress shoes.

I have in storage, some more pants, but aside from a pile of t-shirts, that's it.

--Hawk

[moirinknits.livejournal.com]

Gosh, I've nearly been doing that the past month while writing my dissertation. Black sweats, life is good pj pants, green tee, green hoodie, jeans, rei top... the real problem is that I need to layer here too much. It's too cold most of the time to just get by with a tee only.

[mgs-naughtycat.livejournal.com]

This would be silly easy for me. I wear a uniform to work, so that takes care of that. And otherwise its jeans and a long sleeve sun shirt, or breeches and a sun shirt to actually ride in. I stay covered in the summer because of my mom's sensitivity to the sun (a mild form of Lupus) and don't want to end up having to deal with THAT.
I tend to wear my jeans and sun shirts more than one day in a row so long as I don't get too grossly hot and sweaty anyway.
When I was a kid we always had to write these essays for state tests on "why we should or should not wear uniforms to school" I was always in favor of not wearing them. But now that I have a super low maintenance work uniform I love it, I wouldn't have it any other way!