DH and retail therapy

HisGirlFriday13

Last night, DH and I went to Kohls. They were having a sale and we had an additional 20% off coupon.

DH said we should buy stuff for our upcoming honeymoon.

He ended up buying work pants, a button-front shirt, and docksider shoes.

I bought a suit, two blazers, four button-front shirts, a sweater, a skirt, two pairs of dress slacks, and a pair of capris. The capris I can (and will) wear on our honeymoon.

The rest are work clothes because I needed new work clothes.

He now thinks I should get rid of other clothes I own.

Silly man. That's not how this works.

LadyMillil

He now thinks I should get rid of other clothes I own. FI says the same thing when I buy a pair or three of new shoes. Maybe I should start saying he same thing when he buys a new board game! Wth, no quote box or paragraph on iPad?!?

JennyColada

Fi mentioned the other day that I take up over half the closet space.

Me: "But my clothes are smaller than yours!"

Him: "I don't think that you're really proving your point with that…"

Me: "I wasn't trying to prove a point. I have a lot of clothes. I don't see the issue."

HisGirlFriday13

Exactly! Also, women need more clothes because our wardrobes aren't as flexible.

Men have more leeway with clothes; suits, khakis/oxfords, khakis/polos, jeans -- those basically cover every event a man could attend.

Women need dressy dresses; nice dresses; casual dresses; skirts; slacks; suits; etc.

DH can wear a suit to church, work, and his friend's wedding and only have to change the tie to make it appropriate to each event.

I could not wear one of my work suits to a friend's wedding or to church. I would need a church dress (modest) and a wedding-guest dress (dressy).

lyndausvi

I actually do purge clothes when I do a big shopping trip.  If my new clothes can not fit nicely in the dresser or closet then something gets purge.  With the exception of formal/semi-formal wear or special attire, if I haven't worn it in the last 18 months I get rid of the item.

DH is the opposite.  He has more clothes than I do.   He has 44 pairs of boxers, yet will buy more.  He has 30+ golf shirts yet he hasn't golfed in almost a year and when he does he wears the same 3 shirts.   I can't even tell you how many button-down shirts the boy owns.    He has over 20 tan shorts.  It drives me crazy.

Of course, we have moved 3 times since 2011.   Moving makes you want to purge.  DH doesn't mind moving all his clothes, he gets pissed at how many family pictures or knickknacks from around the world I have.

JennyColada

lyndausvi said:

we have moved 3 times since 2011.   Moving makes you want to purge.

Oh boy does it!

First day of moving: Let's wrap these plates up all nicely in newspaper. Ok, now to label the box…"Kitchen - Plates". Perfect!

Last day of moving: Fuck it. I can buy a new bed. I don't need this. GO AWAY COUCH. YOU'RE USELESS TO ME. I HATE YOU FORKS.

HisGirlFriday13

Oh, I did purge, and I purge fairly frequently. If I buy replacement clothes -- new jeans, new polos, new sweaters, etc. -- the old ones go away.

But these were not replacement clothes. This were new, auxiliary clothes because for the first time since 2007, I have a job to which I cannot wear jeans.

I'm with you, lynda, when I move I purge and I have moved four times since October 2011.

JennyColada

I love it. "Auxiliary clothes". I'm going to start using that.

pinkshorts27

My FI has as many clothes as I do, but that doesn't mean I don't have a lot of clothes. His dad buys him clothes for every holiday. He keeps his clothes nice and doesn't outgrow them anymore. He has soccer clothes, workout clothes, lab clothes (vet dissection labs), outdoor clothes, hunting/hiking clothes, nice casual clothes, nice formal clothes, golf clothes, and his lab coats. 

APDSS22

H has about the same amount of clothes as I do in the closet.  The problem would be his stash that is currently taking up two of my three laundry baskets sitting in a pile on the floor in the corner of the bedroom.  I told him the least he could do is build me a dresser so I don't have to look at it and can reclaim my baskets.  I occasionally help him let go of socks that are worn through and make him keep only a handful of shirts that cannot be worn in public.  (He needs them to work in his shop or change the oil in the cars.)

SmileDamnit

Oh man, oh man. FI is definitely the way bigger clothes whore between the two of us. I am constantly forcing him stuff back to his side of the closet & dresser. He might maybe enjoy shopping online a bit too much, and if he had his druthers, he'd buy absolutely EVERYTHING in pairs. It baffles me. 

jdluvr06

I don't purge clothes but I tend to shop more for accessories than clothes. I buy everything in neutrals, clothes wise so that they mostly match and I don't have to think about it too much. However, once a year I go through and get rid of purses and shoes that I no longer use.

banana468

I'm terrible at purging.  In my defense, I've changed a lot of sizes having had a child in 2010, losing most of that baby weight and then getting pregnant again.   I *could* purge but then I'll have to buy more if I get back to my goal weight eventually.

The stuff I wore 10+ years ago that's clearly no longer age appropriate is gone.   I'm not going to wear extremely low rise jeans or tops that show off a navel ring unless I lose my mind.   However one day I'd like to get back into my nice size small blouses and cute summer skirts.

The space bag is my friend. 

pumpkinsandturkeys

I also have had to go through a range of sizes after ballooning due to my hip injury and then being on bed rest post-surgery for weeks on end. Took a couple of years to get close to the size I was pre-injury, so I've had this vicious cycle of buying and purging for a while now.

FI says I go shopping too much, but I always have to remind him that my shape and size keep changing as I lose/tone more, and I've changed jobs a couple of times, too.

lmcooper86

Thank you all for making me laugh out loud! I fully plan on using the term "auxiliary clothes" from now on!

BF and I have had several conversations about clothes and how we both have a LOT of clothes. We've realize that we are going to have some major closet requirements when we buy a house!

He can't get on me too badly though...he's an impulse buyer, and routinely buys a new hat or new pair of shoes; we're going to need an entire closet just for that stuff, it's ridiculous.

AprilH81

H and I probably have about equal amounts of clothes but I go shopping to refresh my wardrobe 2-3 times a year and he hates shopping.  When I buy new clothes I try to purge some things that I'm sick of or don't wear often.

We are also getting ready to move and we have been purging, packing and staging our house for sale the last few weeks.  It is amazing the amount of stuff that you can "lose" in the back of a cabinet or closet that you haven't seen since you moved in.

Cookie Pusher

Our closets got so out of control a few years ago that I had to move all of my clothes/shoes/purses/makeup into the 2nd bedroom of our apartment. FI has just as much clothes as I do if you add in all of the uniforms he has to have for officiating (youth/travel, high school, and college all have different jerseys and shorts, as well as warm-ups, jackets, and "formal" attire for events). I blame my massive wardrobe on 7 years of working in retail (who purchased gorgeous Jones New York suits for $12? This girl! Who has a trunk full of free high-end makeup from working in the cosmetics industry for 3 years? This girl!). I do purge quite frequently while it's like pulling teeth to get FI to throw away those ripped/stained t-shirts from college.

JCbride2015

I definitely am the one who engages in retail therapy.  Fi will go shopping once or twice a year and buy everything he needs, while I enjoy picking up things here and there.  I'll watch a particular item for weeks until it goes on sale.

Today we went to the outlets in FL to buy a fancy dress for my law school formal.  I bought a $370 dress for $80 at BCBG!  Success.  Of course, I then *had* to stop in J. Crew and pick up a few things at their 50% sale... Fi said he knew that was why I left extra room in my suitcase!

CMGragain

I never go shopping with DH!  Never!  Not even grocery shopping if I can avoid it.  He hates shopping, and he hates spending money, unless he's convinced he is getting a deal.
 I currently have him researching hot tubs.  I pre-shopped, of course, and warned the business owners that they would be dealing with an engineer.  I am getting one.  He is currently contract shopping for an electrician to upgrade the house to take the load.  He has read every technical manual he can find.  I want it before October.  By the time we buy it, he'll be convinced that it was HIS idea.
I do a lot of clothes shopping on line.  I am plus sized, and it is hard to find decent clothes.  I also love eBay for jewelry.  If I do see something I want when I'm with DH, I usually go back and get it later.