A 3-Way Test to Find Wardrobe Gaps

when a need isn't a need

Mar 03, 2025

After 10+ years, I’ve determined my current life doesn’t need snow boots and I can finally, thankfully!, delete these from my shop list.

Maybe I don't need to fill that wardrobe gap

Sydney Bass

Feb 24

Read full story

There’s no comprehensive list that can tell you what gaps your wardrobe has - although I’m sure you’ve come across them: the 9 essential basics you need! the top 5 jeans every woman should own! Implications being: if you don’t have these - it’s is a hole that you can fill and once you do - perfection! You’ll never shop again.

(We’ve talked about the myth of timeless wardrobes and never shopping again here.)

These types of lists are marketing - whether it’s from a brand or influence affiliate links. I do think you need to create a list - but it should be your own list, initiated by your life. After all - one woman’s love of graphic tees is another woman’s love of sequined skirts. And who’s to say that’s wrong?

So to that end, whenever I talk about creating a shop list , I go through a three phased ranking that looks a little something like this:

Items you like
Items you want
Items you need

Let’s discuss:

1. ITEMS YOU LIKE -

these are the things you see that are pretty, fun, cute, whimsical, cool, impractical. If you had unlimited funds and space and you could buy it with no consequence, no matter how much you wore it (or not). They are the shiny objects that your magpie brain looks at and says: “oooh! Pretty!” but there’s not a lot of thought that goes into it from there. Sometimes these items are known as trends or impulse buys. But, liking something is the first test an item must pass before it comes into your closet. Because if you don’t like it on a base level, you just won’t wear it. Plain and simple.

Perfect example: this coca cola vest I found while thrifting in West Virginia. Did I immediately grab it and put it on and love it? Yes. Did I want it? Eh, not really. Did I need it? Absolutely not lol. Liking and loving things is not always a reason for buying something - they must pass the next two phases.

2. ITEMS YOU WANT -

These are the things that pass the like test, but that you then filter through your Structure of Style for: vibe, body, shape and color. You ask: “Okay - this pretty thing grabbed my eye. Now - does it fit my body in a way that I like? Is the shape cool? Is it in my color palette? Is it helping me present in a way that feels authentic to me?” This is the next crucial step that you can train your brain to do. It helps prevent impulse buys, yes, but it also helps you evaluate with data points exactly why something would be a good addition to your wardrobe - or not.

The Everlane jeans pictured below are a great example of this for me. I had that instant surge of: oooh I like! That could have resulted in a not thought out impulse buy had I just clicked add to cart (which is what markets and influencers want you do). When I stopped to filter it through my Structure of Style, it checked the boxes: the vibe is giving cool which I’m into, the color fits perfectly into my palette, the shape/structure is interesting and not one I have, and I already know I like this fit for my body. Which means I get to move on to test number three…..

A note! Sometimes we fall for pieces that don’t work for us - but are so well styled that we actually fall for that - how it looks on the model. Learning how to differentiate liking something how its styled and on a specific person and knowing that you’d also like it on you, is a skill you can cultivate. To cultivate that skill? Try on a lot of different clothes and see how they interact with your body.

3. ITEMS YOU NEED -

Items fall into the NEED category once they pass the first two tests (I like and Structure of Style) and 1) you’ve identified 3 ways they could improve your life and 2) they pass your values test.

Putting this into action, here are 3 ways the Everlane jeans "could improve my life:

Note the use of COULD and not WOULD.
Could = used to indicate possibility.
Would = often used to imply a certainty or desire.

ONE: I’m very aware that my jean wardrobe has dwindled from 7 jeans I loved and wore constantly to just 2 pairs that I currently feel super confident and great in. Adding a third go-to in my rotation would give me more options in creating outfits.

TWO: I would buy them in a size that fits my RIGHT NOW body which would greatly improve morale. There is nothing worse than pulling on a too tight pair of jeans and them having to immediately claw them off your suffocating body.

THREE: Since this is an exercise I’m doing in real time with you - I’ll be honest and say I can’t think of a third reason that these Everlane jeans could make my life better. Because… as it turns out when writing this list, I accepted that these specific jeans are not a need - but, that the details I liked about the jeans ARE a need. I’ll explain more after the next section, because there is one more test an item needs to pass.

VALUES TEST:

If you determine that a specific item does indeed fall into the need category, one last test you can run it through is the Values Test, or the “X based” test. And that is simply deciding what you value the most when you purchase clothes and making sure the item you “need” matches up.

These values will be very different for everyone and can help you make fact-based decisions from predetermined categories vs. falling prey to the impulsive oooh I like purchase.

Examples of values or "X based” tests include:

Cost based - how much is an item? Is this how you want to spend this amount of money? Is this in your budget?
Space based - do you have space to add more items? Is your closet big enough? Do you have a one in, one out rule? If yes, what will you be getting rid of?
Clothes based - if you are a person that loves clothes or vintage collector, will this add to that?
Ethnically based - did the workers get paid fairly? Is it not “fast fashion”?
Sustainably based - are the materials made sustainably? What about the shipping practices, are they offsetting their carbon footprint?
Second hand based - do you prefer to buy your clothes pre-loved?
Locally based - is it a small business or owned by someone in your community?

I once heard in a podcast that you have to choose only two values to focus on. That it can be super hard - or very expenses - for an item to check off every single value. Because let’s face it - if you have a very tight budget, it’s okay to shop at H&M or Target or Old Navy - your first priority should be keeping costs down! And if you do want something ethically and sustainably made - you will be paying for that. Create shopping values that support where you are right now - you can always change or tweak them over time.

So why aren’t - for me- the Everlane jeans a “need” despite liking everything about them?

They failed the 3 Ways They Could Improve My Life test pretty badly - I couldn’t even think of a third!
They also didn’t pass my value of being second-hand. I prefer to buy things thrifted, pre-loved, or at consignment stores, which also supports a value of things being local.
I realized the need wasn’t this pair - but that I had a plan to help me get the things that I really wanted: good fit and different wash. The plan: I am going to go to my local consignment store and look specifically for jeans in a size that feels good to wear, that is a similar wash, and has interesting design details. I also have a pair of jeans in my basement that met a really bad attempt at a home dye. I wanted to turn them from stark white into cream, which really just turned them yellow, so then I tried to dye them black, but purple is what came out (apparently this happens with black dye if your water is not actually hot enough). So I am going to attempt to correctly dye them and cross my fingers I get either a very dark brown or faded black. I think both of those colors would work well in my closet and if it still don’t work, then I’ve only spent $8 on dye. Either way, this will add one more pair of jeans into the rotation.

So what did I learn from this exercise?

A need isn’t always a need. Every item needs to prove its worth in my closet. And I’m willing to put everything through the test. That is how you build a wardrobe that works for you.

Vogue [ish]

Maybe I don't need to fill that wardrobe gap

Discussion about this post