Project 333 July-September: the conclusions

So I've completed Project 333 in the summer - 3 months with only 33 items of clothing/footwear.  It was actually fine.  I learnt a lot.

1. I learnt which clothes I actually didn't like/feel good in (you'd have thought that I'd have been able to figure that out on my own, wouldn't you) and I subsequently got rid of those clothes.
2. I learnt that while doing project 333, it makes it very tricky to have more than two "basic" colours - for example, I had black, brown and navy but these weren't easy to combine and I ended up with a couple of items of clothing that could only be worn in one outfit - which is not great when you're trying to be minimalist.  And the main selling point of project 333 (to me) is that theoretically most things in your wardrobe can be worn together (taking the hassle out of deciding what to wear in the mornings). So that's been taken forward to next time.
3. I was reminded that clothes actually wear out.  I feel really stupid saying this, but I suppose I've bought clothes with such regularity (or to be fair, my size has fluctuated) so I've not had nearly as much wear out of clothes as I should have.  In fact I can tell you the last time an item of clothing wore out for me - it was a pair of linen/cotton maternity trousers that I worn non-stop through 1.5 pregnancies.  They literally fell apart so I could never again.  It was really disappointing as they were great trousers, but I certainly got my moneysworth out of them.
4. I learnt that fashion is a pain.  In my head I know roughly what colours and shapes suit me.  I look for v-neck or scoop neck tops - but high neck/slash neckline/round neck are the main styles in the shops.  I like bootcut/wideleg trousers (apparently currently the height of unfashion) but the shops are full of skinny jeans/cigarette trousers(??)/ jeggings - all of which make my legs look like parsnips.  I like brown - I needed to replace my brown cardigan - but could find nothing.  A search for brown brought up items in wishy washy taupe, or beige or camel, not chocolate brown.  Brown is obviously not in fashion.  (I eventually found one, but only by going to a specialist cardigan website that fashion had missed).  It is usually eventually possible to find what you're looking for, but it takes ages and many frustrating hours searching the web.
5. I learnt that I'm a creature of habit.  On a slow day this week I thought about my hypothetical project 333 wardrobe for spring-summer next year - lots of things in the wardrobe are very similar to those in this time.  I will properly segregate "holiday clothes" as shorts and sandals were really only worn for 1-2 weeks, I will replace a few items (the navy coloured clothes, for example) and will probably treat myself to 1-2 new things (if they suit me...) that turn up in the shops next year, but other than that, I like what I have.  *I have actually bought some summer shoes in the sales this week, as I really felt that I didn't have any "nice" shoes to wear outside work - I'm just sorry I'll have to wait another 6+ months to wear them*
6. I have found it liberating to get rid of a load of clothes.  I didn't think I would, but I did.  It is joked that I have my own collection at the local charity shop.
7. I've learnt that although I occasionally need smart clothes for work, it's not that often.  It's a bit annoying having to include smart work clothes into the wardrobe when they only worn a handful of times, but I guess if my projects changed their could be a greater need in future.
8. There are still some clothes I can't part with.  These are often dresses and skirts.  I'm not a dresses/skirt person, although I've worn both in the past.  I also have a number of posh-ish dresses that I need to keep hold of as my company has black-tie events twice a year and it's bad form to turn up in the same outfit twice (if you're female, obviously.  It's compulsory to wear the same outfit again and again if you're male...)  But back to the dresses and skirts.  I think I'm hanging onto them as they are definitely dresses/skirts I would wear if I were to wear dresses/skirts.  So they sit behind the wardrobe door that I seldom open - now that I can view my entire project 333 wardrobe by opening one door...
9. I learnt that I want to do it all again.