Wardrobe rules I'm bringing into 2025

Wardrobe goals: creating a conscious, cohesive wardrobe that I love and feel good in pretty much every item. Especially cool-weather clothing that often ends up being more functional than fashionable.

1. 60% of anything new in my wardrobe needs to be ethical or secondhand.

This was a resolution from 2024 that I'm doing again. I just about managed to hit it with 63.89% of my items being ethical/secondhand last year so I want to do better this year.

I'm considering not counting socks/underwear/bras this year as they always seem to wear out at around the same time and generally speaking I'm not buying these from ethical brands (and definitely not secondhand!)

2. Strictly purchasing off of my 2025 wishlist.

While I have been working off of a wishlist, I've been doing this alongside bookmarking items and as a result the wishlist got a little bit lost. Plus I haven't looked at it in ages and some of the things have been there are so old and generic that I'm not even sure if they apply anymore.

So I've looked through my wardrobe to see what the actual gaps are and what I don't enjoy wearing and would like to replace. I'm sure that this list might grow a little bit as the seasons change but hopefully being stricter about it will give me a bit more focus.

3. If it is not filling a gap in my wardrobe, it is okay to be picky.

I've got to remind myself that keeping something that is just okay is just a waste of my hard earned money and will need replacing in a few months.

4. Not feeling guilty about replacing functional items.

This is something I get stuck on a lot as a conscious consumer. The thing is, functional clothing can last for years and years but if it's not making me happy or it's not quite right then I won't reach for it.

E.g. I have a off-white cardigan that I bought to fill a gap in my wardrobe but it was one amongst many that I looked at that felt okay and I just don't like the way it looks or fits so I'm going to replace it and try to sell it on vinted, even if it sells for pennies.

5. If it's filling a gap, it's okay to buy it now rather than waiting for a sale.

The thinking behind this rule is that often after waiting for something to go on sale, it ends up not being quite right. The search starts all over again and it feels like a lot of wasted time for something that is tricky to be without.

What wardrobe rules will you be bringing into 2025 to help shape your wardrobes?