Thursday, September 22, 2011

I’ve been on a Goodwill bender recently, hauling bag after bag of stuff to their donation centers, and old clothes, by far, have commanded the most poundage. “Old” is probably a misnomer, because some of these articles were unworn, still new with tag, and they would’ve stayed as such, had I left them in my closet. There simply comes a point, however, when you level with yourself and admit that the chances of you ever donning that particular piece of clothing are statistically improbable.

But the great purge has left visible gaps in the wardrobe, and patching these holes has been a grand undertaking. You may recall my love–hate relationship with clothes shopping. I’d like to believe my patience for this ritual has increased over the months, but the truth is that the acquisition of new threads is still a chore to be endured. I think I made out just fine, though.

I approached this round with the same criteria I employed during my hunt for sports jackets, with an eye for fit and all-cotton construction. What’s more, I wanted to make sure that I truly liked every item I bought. Let me explain. You ever buy, like, a sweater simply because of its price? Maybe aesthetically it was so-so, but you pulled the trigger anyway based on its economic merits, only to regard it with lukewarm feelings every time you actually wore it. That’s precisely what I wanted to avoid. Now, with about 9 new shirts in circulation, I’m taking that age-old adage of how clothes can make a man–and I’m putting it to the test.