Space for Living Organizing | San Diego, CA

Making Room for what Matters Most

The White Tank Top Syndrome

I have 6 white tank tops hanging in my closet. I counted. And that might not be too bad if I actually wore them…but I don’t. I only wear 2 of them.

I never grab the others- this one is too tight here, that one has a small stain there. Yet I still keep all of them. Why?

White tank

I suppose I keep them “just in case”. Just in case the two I do wear are both in the laundry. Just in case a different one works better with a certain outfit (even though it never does). I still reach for those same 2 well worn favorites.

In the big scheme of potential clutter it might not matter much. They hardly take up any room. But each time I flip through all 6 tank tops, searching for my two well-loved tank tops, I realize I don’t need those extras.

What about in your home? If you were to do an inventory what would be your “white tank top”?  5 extra knives when you only use the one sharp one, 4 pairs of flip flops when 3 of them actually pinch a bit?

These little things add up and ultimately can equal unwanted clutter. Take a peek in a drawer or two and find an area that could use some purging.

What’s the “white tank top” in your home?

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Comments

  1. This is a brilliant call to action! In our recent move to a new apartment, I really tried to find these white tank top problems so as to get rid of and not have to pack up things I’m never going to use again. Let me tell you….there were a lot of them! Five small trips to Goodwill over the course of two weeks and I’m happy to report we’re looking better.

    Clothes really are the hardest thing to get rid of because we pay so much for them, usually they go out of style before we truly wear them out, and like you said, there always feels like that “just in case” potential. I’m starting to move into the camp only buying clothes I truly love because I certainly already have enough clothes I just run-of-the-mill like.