Collaborative post by another author. The clothes that you wear play a big role in how you think and feel about yourself. From the colours you choose to the fabrics you love, your fashion preferences have a lot to say about your lifestyle and your unique personality. But no matter how well you know your personal style, it can still be difficult to keep track of your outfits on a daily basis. For this reason, you need a systematic way to record the clothes you wear—and plan to wear—for every occasion.

You may be thinking that keeping tabs on your outfits is too tiresome to do every day, but maintaining an outfit diary has plenty of benefits that go beyond making daily routines a bit less stressful. If you’re still on the fence about keeping a diary for your outfits, here are some reasons why doing so will make a remarkable difference.

Helps You Identify ‘Core’ Pieces

The most tedious part of preparing an outfit is making sure that it looks as good in real life as it does in theory. To keep you from going in blindly, you can use an outfit diary to take note of which outfits were previously successful. Your diary can help you identify your closet staples, particularly those intended for different seasons and occasions. 

This might also help you identify items to add to your list of must-haves—whether it’s a set of comfortable tights to wear under your skirts and dresses for work or new shorts for the summer months. Your closet needs staple pieces that will keep your looks grounded, and an outfit diary can help you determine everything from your bases to your outerwear.

Enables Experimentation with Basic Garments

The main issue with having many go-to pieces is that your looks will start to feel uniform and boring. If you want to dress in a more versatile manner, you can keep a journal listing the different ways that your essentials can be worn. For example, you can take note of the different ways to wear a tank top: under a cardigan, over a midi dress, with high-waisted mom jeans, or tucked under a floaty prairie skirt, to name a few. There are many ways to breathe new life into the most basic garments, and a diary can be a useful tool for outlining unique and stylish ways to do so.

Allows You to Plan Ahead of Time

Everybody knows how nerve-wracking it is to plan outfits every day, especially when you have plenty of other obligations to deal with. To save yourself the burden, you can use your diary to take note of your previous outfits and plan them ahead of time. This is particularly beneficial if you’re the type of person who doesn’t like repeating outfits but doesn’t want to get up way too early to prepare either. 

Your outfit diary can include things such as the types of garments that you intend to wear for the week, where you will be wearing them, and which shoes and accessories you plan to pair with them. Overall, keeping a diary can be helpful if you need to brainstorm an outfit, especially if it’s based on what you have already worn.

Lets You Bookmark Looks with ‘Tricky’ Garments

Many people have a statement piece or two that they have hanging around in their closet but don’t use as often as they might want to. These pieces seem workable enough, but they can be challenging to style. As a result, they tend to remain in the closet because it’s too time-consuming to figure out ways to make such pieces work. 

Instead of giving yourself a headache by haplessly trying on one garment after another, you can use a diary to bookmark reference looks incorporating your “difficult” pieces. This can include outfits you have already worn or maybe some fashion tips from friends and online sources. So instead of letting your leopard prints and peplum blouses remain unused, you can get some inspiration from various sources and use your outfit diary to see what works for you.

Helps You Monitor Your Style Evolution

Fashion makes up a large part of your identity, and a diary allows you to chronicle how your personal style got to where it is today. Other than that, monitoring your style evolution can also help you determine if it’s time to upgrade your wardrobe and let go of some previously cherished items simply because they don’t suit you anymore. Some people might argue that journaling outfits is even therapeutic as it allows you to see the life changes you’ve been able to instigate, even if it’s in terms of clothing. Style is inherently fluid, and a diary can help you see the great job you’ve been doing to elevate your self-image and build your identity. 

Final Word: Keeping Fashion Fun and Stress-Free

At it's core, an outfit diary is designed to give you snapshots of your everyday looks and relieve you of the stress that comes with trying to dress nicely. Inspiration doesn’t always come easily when you need to dress up, but having a tool for revisiting and planning your ensembles can help get your creative juices flowing and help you plan your outfits better. Beyond all that, keeping track of your fashion choices through the years is a rewarding decision that will make you appreciate your sense of style in all its ups and downs.