cleaning out the closet

I've been on a bit of a sweater-purge lately. I used to be so attached to my sweaters that I would never get rid of any of them, despite the fact that there were quite a few which I rarely wore. My husband criticized me on this a bit. He's a man, and most of what's in his wardrobe gets worn frequently, except for the suit. I was much more emotionally attached to my sweaters, and didn't want to get rid of them. Most of them were gifts. From my grandmother. Who lives several hundred miles from here, so she doesn't see what I wear most of the time, but when I do see her, I should let her know that I'm using her gifts, right? Besides, they're useful as insulation and packing materials (okay, not really, but any excuse would do, hey?). Since I started knitting last year, my attachment to my store-bought sweaters has waned a bit, and I was able to look at my closet with a more critical eye. Keep in mind that the following sweaters have been in my possession for 4-8 years.

The grey turtleneck with the band of snowflakes around the chest? Such a scratchy acrylic that I don't wear it because it itches so much.

The lavender turtleneck with sparkly silver bits in the yarn? Pretty, but I don't really like turtlenecks, and the colour doesn't suit me. I'm not really a pastel kind of girl. And it's acrylic.

The brown and green striped pullover which I bought because I loved it? It's always been the tiniest bit too short, and the stripes are not placed in flattering places. Also, acrylic.

The maroon and black pullovers? Nice enough, but the mock-t neck doesn't do much for me, so I rarely wear them. Plus, acrylic.

The cotton fair-isle cardigan that was given to my mum and didn't fit her, so I got it? Heavy beyond belief. So much so that I avoid wearing it.

My brown turtleneck got frogged and the wool is waiting to become a vest. I liked the yarn but not the turtleneck part.

The thick wool pullover with the absolutely enormous turtleneck that my aunt gave me? Well, she knit it years ago, I got it as a hand-me-down, and she told me that when I outgrew it, she'd be willing to take it back. I'll give it a good washing and get it back to her. It's a handknit, and she hasn't knit very many sweaters. If it had been something I'd found at the thrift store, I would either unravel it for the yarn or modify it, but it's not.

The other ones, though...they went to the charity shop around the corner. They're all nice sweaters. They just don't work well for me. And it took me a while to admit it, but it's true. I have a couple of pullovers I wear because they are comfortable, although the blue-green acrylic one may be the next to go. I'm wearing it right now and it's itchier than I remembered. And there's a few cardigans which are frequently used. The long red wool-acrylic sweater-jacket I picked up at the thrift store for part of my Halloween costume is getting a lot of wear (and compliments, too!). My red cotton cabled cardigan gets worn a lot as well, and so does the white cotton hooded cardigan.

Since I am planning to knit sweaters for myself now, it doesn't make sense to hold on to the ones that I don't wear. And it really did feel good to donate them to the shop down the street. Hopefully someone who can actually use them will get them.

I got rid of a bunch of shoes, too.