Here are the ground rules pulled from here:

The Basics

When: Every three months (It’s never too late to start so join in anytime!)
What: 33 items including clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear and shoes.
What not: these items are not counted as part of the 33 items – wedding ring or another sentimental piece of jewelry that you never take off, underwear, sleep wear, in-home lounge wear, and workout clothing (you can only wear your workout clothing to workout)
How: Choose your 33 items, box up the remainder of your fashion statement, seal it with tape and put it out of site.
What else: consider that you are creating a wardrobe that you can live, work and play in for three months. Remember that this is not a project in suffering. If your clothes don’t fit or are in poor condition, replace them.

You can find out more about The 333 Project here.

As you see, the idea is that hopefully at the end of the three months you will have some insights as to what worked about the items you chose and what didn’t work, which should help you not only further refine your style, but prove that you can stick to a slim wardrobe.

I am wary of a few problem areas already, but am going to go ahead and give it a shot and report back to you later. Specifically, I’m worried that:

* It will become so cold that I will yearn for (and maybe succumb to by getting) my winter coat.

* If there is a lot of rain and snow, I probably won’t get as much use out of my flared velvet pants, which need high heels so they don’t drag in the mud, so to speak.

* I will get bored with my color choices.

The classic example is the Italian man or woman who drives the older vehicle and spends weekends polishing it and caring for it so it always looks like new.

It is also about keeping those old shoes polished and your clothes ironed and your house spotless (I have a problem with this last one, especially with two small kids).

It is about meticulously cleaning your appliances, such as your blender, after each use.

It is taking care of everything you own so it will serve you well and last for years.

It isn’t about tossing something that is broken or needs to be repaired unless it is a hopeless case. It is about trying not to buy anything that is “disposable” that is meant to have a short life and then meant to be tossed.

Instead of discarding what you own so readily, try to figure out if you can fix something that is broken or find a new use for an item before you pass it on. I am trying to do this.

There is a fine balance between decluttering and using what you have until it no longer gives you use. I think the differences is that if you own an item, such as a toaster that works and serves your purposes but maybe isn’t the exact model or color you like — use it as long as you can before you replace it.

The idea is to not replace useful items so readily … use what you can as long as you can.

For instance, I am not overly thrilled with my winter coat, but by taking off the belt and the belt loops, I am much happier with the way it fits. With the waist belted, it looked sloppy, bulky and not chic in the least bit.  When one of the loops for the belt broke off, I decide to tug on the other one and become belt free. the only problem is I ended up with two big rips in the sides of my wool coat. Then a button came off.

Because it is wool and an expensive clothing item, my immediate thought was to take it to the tailor for repairs. I kept waiting to have enough extra money to do this. Didn’t happen. So I sat down with a needle and thread and repaired it myself. It was actually easier than I thought. The stitches aren’t great, but my repair work does not show.

Then I took my beloved trench coat and reinforced the beautiful wooden flower buttons on it. I was upset last spring when I lost one of the buttons on it. I found it crushed by a tire on the street. Luckily, I could pull off an unseen button under the collar and use that. But that was the only button left that doesn’t show, so I need to make sure I don’t lose any more.

I don’t know why but I always feel guilty thinking about style and clothes. Anyway, I love style and clothes, but can’t help but feel it is so frivilous sometimes. I get caught up thinking about outfits and other things and then BAM, a sick kid or some other real world event thrusts me back to reality and reminds me that I spend WAY too much time worrying about style.

With that caveat emptor, I would like to jump right in and say I have been spending some time re-evaluating my style and wardrobe once again. For some reason the wintery, gray days have made me crave a wardrobe comprised completely of neutrals. Even my beloved signature color, turquoise, is distasteful to me.

I want my clothes to be black, navy, deep charcoal gray, oatmeal and white. Period. I want to refine and simplify my “uniform” to solidify my “style” .

There is something so freeing in a “uniform”.

What is your uniform?

Here are some photos from my online style file that I find inspirational: