by Jess Atkins, Stylebook Co-Founder

For over two years now, I’ve been recording my outfit every day in the app Stylebook — it's helped me get dressed better regularly and given me a new perspective on my closet.

Here are five things I learned from keeping a daily outfit diary:

1. Getting Dressed Doesn’t Have to Be Stressful 

I used to wear whatever I could throw together at the last minute, which made mornings stressful. Now I spend quality time on the weekend figuring out outfits ahead of time (usually from the couch while watching TV) instead of just throwing them together in a rush. Since I can see all the outfits for the week at once, it also helps me spread out clothes, so I don’t wind up doing laundry midweek. Laundry is my least favorite chore, so this is a lifesaver.

2. There’s No Need To Resort to A Uniform 

Getting dressed is a creative outlet for me, so I cringe when I see articles that suggest wearing the same thing every day just to save time. Personally, the idea of an identical personal uniform is too restrictive for me - I want to have fun with my clothes! Instead of sticking to the same outfit every day, I save time planning with my outfit calendar. If I do it on Sunday night, I literally don’t have to think about clothes all week. By the way, I recently read that Queen Elizabeth’s Dresser (her stylist) also keeps an outfit diary for the Queen, which I found entertaining!

3. There Isn’t Enough Time To Wear Everything, and I Already Own Too Many Clothes 

According to my Stylebook, I’ve saved 730 outfit ideas, which means I could wear a different outfit every day for about two years. I own about 150 clothing items, and it turns out that’s more than enough to wear a totally new outfit every day. Knowing this has saved me so much money because I don’t feel pressure to overhaul my wardrobe every season. 

4. Rewearing Clothes Doesn’t Have To Be Boring

To build my outfit catalog, I intentionally restyle pieces into as many outfits as possible as soon as I add them to my Stylebook closet. It gives me more variety without buying something new and actually helps me shop less often. This is only possible because I save my outfit ideas in Stylebook. After all, the photos I entered in my closet inventory can be reused over and over in endless outfit collages and calendar entries. I would definitely forget them if I didn’t have an easy way to collage them.

5. It’s Totally Possible To Wear A Nice Outfit Every Day 

I used to think wearing something I love every day was impossible because I relied on coming up with outfit ideas on the spot every morning. The key to dressing well every day is choosing what to wear from my saved outfits in Stylebook. Most days, I’m not feeling super creative in the morning, so it’s better to save good outfit ideas ahead of time. 

I usually feel the most inspired while I’m browsing Instagram and Pinterest. I search my closet and try to use my existing wardrobe to recreate some of the outfit ideas I like. It’s actually crazy how many outfits I find online that can be made with my current wardrobe.

6. Style Stats Helps Me Wear More of My Wardrobe

I use the Style Stats to see which clothes I actually wear the most - it’s usually pretty surprising. My style goes through different phases, so my favorite thing to do is look at what I’ve been wearing the most over the last 90 days. It gives me a really good feeling for what I’m into at the moment. I also look at the Least Worn stats to get more wears out of everything I own and to clean out my wardrobe. If I haven’t worn something in a while, I give it a second chance and incorporate it into new outfits. If I still can’t bring myself to use it or if it doesn’t fit, it goes into the donation pile! 

Conclusion

My outfit planning strategy has saved me time, money, and lots of stress. If I know I have a busy week ahead, the easiest way for me to plan is on the weekend. Stylebook has the option to record individual clothing items or entire outfits. I usually save complete outfits, and sometimes I add my shoes and bag separately. I love the outfit calendar, and at this point, I don’t know how I would get dressed without it!