Help me decide about saving clothes that don't fit..

[shanvan]

If your weight has fluctuated over the past few years, do you save the clothes that are too big or too small?

 

I have lost weight since last spring/summer. I now have quite a few clothes that are too big -- I mean some look like one of those commercials with the people showing their old pants that they hold out! I hope never to fit into these again! For most of my life I have hoovered around the size I am currently--usually a little smaller.

 

I also have a few things that are a little too small, which I have the goal of fitting into.

 

So...would you save these clothes or bless someone else with them? I'm torn b/c I keep thinking I may need them sometime in the future and it would save me money if I had them on hand. OTOH, we have very limited closet space. Many are only a year old and are lands end or ll bean. Someone tell me what to do.

 

Shannon

[TKDmom]

I stick them in a box, put them up on a high shelf and keep them there until I get sick of looking at the box.

[Dobela]

Take them to a consignment store and use the money to buy more. Or sell them online somehow. My closet space is at a premium as well and the frustration just was not worth it.

[fairfarmhand]

i get rid of fat clothes. it helps me stay where I need to if I have no alternatives to wear. i do keep clothes that I am hoping to fit into.

[heartosunshine]

When I lost weight about a year ago, I grouped similar clothing together & sold them on Craig's List. I got rid of most this way & made some extra $. The rest I donated. I didn't want to keep any larger clothes because then I would be more likely to gain the weight back. Now, when my clothes get tight, I watch what I eat more closely & exercise more because I can't spend $ on new "big" clothes. It works for me!

 

Now for the last 10 lbs...

[Carol in Cal.]

I am in this position myself.

Some of those large clothes are never going to be in style again, and I get rid of them. I keep ones that are forgiving, like elastic waist skirts that I really like. I wouldn't need to be much bigger to wear those again, and they fit a whole range of sizes, and they don't take up too much room. I think I have about 3 of these that literally fall off if I put them on now. I also keep a pair of black pants, because that's a basic that I always need and if I gain weight they are free, and jeans, because I have 2 pairs of very cute ones that I would not want to have to buy again. That's all, the rest I got rid of.

 

I was really big for a long time, and had a lot of clothes like that. I think that this selective path is a good one, and everything fits into one small box.

 

The only real exception that I haven't figured out yet is that I have one really nice, 'go to' suit--charcoal gray, very versatile--that I bought at the height of my, well, weight. I'm actually considering having it altered to fit me now. That would be pretty expensive, and I just can't decide. I'm leaning toward doing it, but nervous--it's a pants suit, and it would need major surgery on both pieces to fit properly, but I sure would like to have a good suit that I can fall back on. It's perfect for so many things--funerals, presentations, major meetings, to throw on and look good instantly on an 'almost late for church' morning. The thing that holds me back is, it fit me so well when I was large, and I just don't know whether you can take in a fairly fitted jacket and nice pants and have them come out looking like they were made for your present size or not. I would hate to have this done and not end up with a great suit that I want to wear every day, and also lose the great suit that it could be if I ever gained the weight back again.

Edited May 3, 2011 by Carol in Cal.

[Classical Country Mama]

I've just lost 38 pounds (with 20ish more to go), and can't get rid of my bigger clothes fast enough. Like a pp said, it gives you nowhere to go but the same or down. I donate mine to a local women's assistance place. And ohhh, the joy and freedom in passing those clothes on, because those clothes aren't ME anymore! I'm shedding my old wardrobe along with that extra weight.

 

Congratulations!! :party:

[sleepymommy]

I used to, but I had to finally just get rid of them. My closet was filled with clothes even though I only wore 1/3 of what was in there.

 

It was hard, especially because I tend to be a pack rat, but it's also nice to know that I can reward myself with a couple of new things if I lose these extra pounds!

[flobee76]

Get rid of the clothes. Donate them, sell them, or Consign them. There is no reason for your to keep those clothes.... you probably don't want to BE in that size, so it's motivation enough to keep the weight off.

 

CONGRATS on your WEIGHTLOSS!

[SweetMissMagnolia]

I go through my closet at least once a year and pass on clothes that I don't like or don't wear or don't fit....I did keep some smaller sized jeans that I had been hanging onto for 10+ yrs of not being able to wear them--I came to the conclusion that if I ever did get back down to that size I would be able to get new jeans so it was easier to get rid of them......

[KatieJ]

Happily I understand your dilemma! I lost quite a bit of weight about 10 years ago. I saved a box of those clothes. Now that they fit me again, I hate some of them and of course they really are not in style. I went thru the box, took out what I wanted to wear and donated lots of clothes to a local charity. I found that saving all those clothes for years did nothing to motivate me to loose weight, it only added to the guilt. Getting rid of what doesn't fit now is very freeing. Life is hectic so I just donated it rather than Craigslist, but in years past I would have tried to sell some stuff to recoup some monies for my current buying binges.

 

I am a seamstress so I could alter my clothes, but it's really difficult to put the pins in by yourself IYKWIM. I am considering asking a seamstress my DIL's used for their weddings to put some pins in some things for me so that I can alter them myself.

Why don't you get an estimate for the alterations on the suit and then decide if you love it that much.

[Guest momk2000]

I used to donate mine, but experience has taught me that no matter how sure I am that I will never again wear that size, I am sure to return.

Over this past year I gained back a lot of weight that I had lost and have nothing that fits. :confused: I am saving the jeans that are now 2 sizes too small, hoping to someday squeeze back into them. :D

From now on, I save everything! When I look back, I am such a yo-yo when it comes to my weight. From year to year, I look like a totally different person in many of our family photos - so frustrating. :glare:

[beezus]

My weight has fluctuated a lot over the past 20 years. About 9 years ago I lost a lot of weight and fully intended to keep it off, but after some health issues and other life stresses, I piled that weight back on - and then some. I was glad I'd saved a couple boxes of basic things so I didn't have to re-purchase an entire wardrobe later on. I can usually find jeans and everyday tops at thrift stores for not too much, but I was especially glad I'd saved a few dress clothes. It seems like the selection of dressier clothing at thrift stores around here is pretty dated. I don't normally buy trendy clothes. It was nice to have a couple of my conservative, classic-cut skirts and a few other dress clothes for when I needed to dress up but had outgrown my skinny clothes.

[Crimson Wife]

I keep a few but mostly get rid of them.

 

Unfortunately, that practice meant last year when I gained some weight due to stressful life circumstances and couldn't afford to get more (even from Goodwill), I had to dip into my maternity clothes to find stuff that fit :glare:

[Janie Grace]

i get rid of fat clothes. it helps me stay where I need to if I have no alternatives to wear. i do keep clothes that I am hoping to fit into.

 

This is what I would do too.

[Chocolate Rose]

I've lost about 110 pounds over the last several years. I can now wear "normal" sized clothes. In January, I went through my closet and boxed up everything that was too big. I have quite a few clear plastic boxes filled with these clothes. I am not going to get rid of them yet. I have always been overweight and have never been able to keep weight off. I'm determined not to gain the weight back, but I know from experience that getting rid of the clothes that are too big is not enough to keep me from gaining the weight back. Unless you have unlimited means to buy more clothes, I vote that you keep them. At least for a while.

[mytwomonkeys]

if it's too big, i toss it. if it is too small, i'll get rid of some things but keep things that i love. they inspire me & keep me dreaming....getting rid of it says i will never be that size again - so i'll hang onto some things:001_smile:

[AHASRADA]

I currently have bins with size small, med. and lg. clothes in them, organized by size (unfortunately, the xlg. sizes are in my closet and drawers):tongue_smilie:.

 

These are all clothes that have fit me in the past, that I still like, and hope will someday fit me again.

 

I lost about 50 lbs. 6 years ago, and I bought a lot of size small clothes, since I was so excited to fit that size for the first time in my life.

 

At that time, I did get rid of a lot of my "too big" clothes, mostly tired and worn items I didn't want anyway. I did keep items that I really loved, thinking I would pass them along to a friend or family member who could enjoy and care for them well.

 

Unfortunately, I slowly gained the weight back, and was relieved to have some of those old favorite items in other sizes. It is very humiliating to have to go out and buy bigger clothes, not to mention hard on the budget.

 

I understand the theory that, if you throw out your "fat" clothes, you are less likely to gain the weight back. However, I believe losing and gaining weight is a very complex and psychological phenomenon that is not likely to be determined by whether or not you will have clothes to fit your new body.

 

All this to say, I agree with the posters who tell you to keep your favorite items, the ones that are least likely to go out of style, and put them in a bin in a storage area, out of sight out of mind. Hopefully, you will never need them, but they will be there if you do, saving you from adding the insult of having to spend money on fat clothes, to the injury of regaining the weight (which, of course, will never happen! :lol:

[AnitaMcC]

If I thought that I may not be able to hold my weight down.. I would keep maybe 5 outfits that are 1 size larger than my current size and get rid of the rest.

 

The ones that are too small... if I planned to loose more weight, then I would hold on to them if I really love them.