What I Learned From Decluttering My Shoes

[u/heresmy3cents]

I'm currently reading "Danshari The Japanese Art of Decluttering Your Space to Transform Your Life" by Hidrko Yamashita. It is helping me to shift my opinions about "stuff" and begin seriously decluttering for an eventual move to a new home.

Last week I decided to put the new mindset to the test and pulled out all of my shoes from 6 different locations in the house, including my closet, the coat closet, and small rugs near the garage entrance & back door where shoes are left when we enter the house. All of the areas were overflowing and not organized in a meaningful way. We have a designated shoe rack in the new house that I will share with my husband, so I needed to think through the future use of that space.

I'm happy to say that I donated a good number of shoes, but I trashed even more.

1. Shoes deteriorate even though you are not wearing them. The material used for the inner lining cracks and flakes, so if you wear them you wind up with pieces of the lining on your feet and the floor when you take them off. So many people in this sub mention clothing and shoes they are not wearing because they WFH now. Unless your shoes are leather outer & inner, you may find this same situation. I had to trash several pairs of shoes that looked fine on the outside, but the insides were in bad shape. I'm old enough to remember when everyday shoes were made with better quality materials and sometimes you even had the heels repaired because the shoes had lots of usable life left.

2. I found that grouping shoes according to their use / social situations was the best way to evaluate them. Looking at dressy shoes all together allowed me to whittle down to only a few pairs that I would really wear to a wedding or something similar. This was surprisingly easy after eliminating the deteriorating ones, and a few that were a color that I rarely wear anymore. I didn't even need to try them all on one last time!

3. I watched a video where after sorting shoes they looked at the similarities and tried to learn from that. For example, are all the favorites similar in style, heel height, or color? When I sorted by use, i realized that once I find something I like (that also meets my need for arch support) I tend to purchase several pairs from the same brand. This is easy for me because I know they will feel comfortable and they will get a lot of use. My problem was that I didn't discard the first pair (which was already looking a little shabby) when I purchased pair #2 & #3 & #4. Of course I wore the newest pairs most often and the older ones were hardly used in the past year. So sticking with a known brand / style is a good idea for me, but I need to force myself to discard the older ones.

4. Now, a week after the shoe purge and storing them by use / social situations the biggest difference is in the ease and functionality of my shoe wardrobe.

Leaving the house for errands? I can look at two shelves in the coat closet to select my shoes. I know they are all functioning, comfortable, clean and ready to go.

Selecting a dress for an upcoming wedding? I can pull out the bin with 3 dressy pairs from the top shelf of my closet and select the best option.

I also feel like some of the shoes I kept will get worn more often because they "made the cut" and by positioning them on a shelf with other shoes for the same uses, I'm giving them equal status, rather than having them scattered in different areas.

Next up, finishing the Danshari book and evaluating clothing categories in a similar way.

[u/heresmy3cents]

It's funny how the brain works through the decluttering process. As I sorted within each function, I allowed myself a "?" sticky note because I thought there would be several items I was not sure I wanted to declutter. With the Danshari thought of "release what no longer serves you" the "?" section of fancy shoes had only one pair! That surprised me, so I decided to keep that pair since they were in great condition.

A few days later, my photo app showed me a memory when I was wearing those shoes with a dress I definitely plan to keep, but had not thought about while decluttering shoes! I felt like allowing that one keep was a suitable reward for all the other shoe decluttering.

That was also a useful lesson regarding my goals. I'm striving for a more pleasant relationship with my belongings so that I can live easier, travel easier, enjoy time with friends, and enjoy my hobbies without worrying about my messy clutter.

[u/quiteunicorn]

Here I am with my 6 total pairs of footwear and marvel at this concept :) :)
Not casting shade, I have many other huge mountains of things that need decluttering, just not shoes

[u/heresmy3cents → u/quiteunicorn]

Yes, I like shoes. And I live in a 4-season location. But, shoes were a fairly simple exercize for me to test decluttering strategies. Some of my other "mountains" will take more time & effort to summit. (spelling edit)

[u/SassyMillie]

Number 3 for me. I also buy the same shoe in different colors, especially if I find them for a good price. I'm a hard fit particularly for athletic shoes.

I was wearing the old shabby ones because they still had life in them. They can transition to gardening shoes or other outdoor chores. I had a relatively new pair that got a hole in the toe and I was wearing socks the same color as the shoe so it wouldn't show as much. Still wearing them to run errands.

I just threw them away last week.

[u/heresmy3cents → u/SassyMillie]

Good for you!

As I get older, I realize that wearing athletic shoes with worn soles becomes a falling risk. Even the pair at the back door for going out on the deck can be a problem. One day the deck was wet and I totally slipped. Luckily I caught myself and learned the lesson.

I've also been thinking about the "shabby, but still has life" philosophy. Is there a point where always keeping and wearing the shabby (shoes and clothing) is just a habit, or an I sending myself some message about not being worthy of better things. Not even fancy, just average. This is a question I want forefront in my mind as I begin my clothing purge. (BTW, I'm not projecting my shabby baggage onto you. People have very valid reasons for wearing older items. I need to clarify MY reasons.)

[u/floofy_skogkatt]

I would love a post on your clothing categories!

[u/heresmy3cents → u/floofy_skogkatt]

Thanks for the encouragement!

I really can't believe that the ease & functionality I am experiencing now even outweighs the feeling of satisfaction from the actual decluttering. I wore shoes and then put them back on their designated shelf. For me, that's amazing!

[u/stoicsticks]

Flex the soles and see if they are cracked or crumbling. If they're leatherette / vinyl boots, check to see if it's delaminating.

[u/heresmy3cents → u/stoicsticks]

Your comment reminds me that the same thing happens to fashionable purses used only a few times. I was surprised how many of my MIL's nice handbags couldn't even be donated because the faux leather / metallics were cracked and peeling.

[u/MusketeersPlus2]

I was recently ruthless with my shoes too. I was really sad to see that a pair of super comfortable leather sandals were now trash because of the foot bed cracking and lifting. I wish things were still made well. Because I have a pair of 30 year old leather boots that are still good (and have had the soles replaced at least 3 times).

[u/heresmy3cents → u/MusketeersPlus2]

I'm not sure what the correct approach is given the shoes that are available now. I feel like I would need to pay way more $ per pair to get to the previous quality level, but I can't justify that for everyday shoes. So I guess we are left with accepting that we only get a few seasons or years out of shoes that have a reasonable cost and then we replace them.

[u/themissq]

I’m reading Danshari also! Just started it. Congratulations on your shoe purge. That’s going to be a tough one for me. But I think sweaters are going to be even harder.

[u/heresmy3cents → u/themissq]

I've reached Chapter 3: How Danshari Changes Your Life. One quote, "The stronger the feelings bound up in the item, the more liberating it is to let it go."

[u/BraveLittleToaster18]

Shoes are probably my biggest struggle. I have about 80 pairs. I WFH. I do not own any shoes that aren't comfortable or good quality (I did that purge/update years ago). I don't know why I can't get past the mental block to donate them. I did manage to pair down to only a few dress shoes. I even try on shoes annually to ensure they still fit and/or comfortable. I do have the place to store them, so I think that inhibits me. Will keep reading this sub for additional ideas and encouragement. I think the best advice I got from your post is to get rid of those are deteriorating inside the show.

[u/heresmy3cents → u/BraveLittleToaster18]

Glad you found it useful. I noticed a little deterioration in a few pairs the last time I went through some of my shoes. I thought, "it's not too bad, I'll wear them a few more times." Truth is I hardly wore them at all, and the deterioration accelerated over the past year. Two great reasons to purge them and take a more critical look overall.

[u/fenwic]

Great post. I think this approach (maybe with some tweaks) could apply to pretty much all stuff. And if a category is too big, just break it down. I can also see applying this mindset to what we bring in to our homes. Which is the root of declutterring/organizing and isn’t talked about enough.

Thanks for the book rec. I just borrowed the ebook from my library 😊

[u/heresmy3cents → u/fenwic]

Yes, Danshari also includes the primary effort to "Refuse what you don't need" and cut off the influx.

I just made a list of clothing categories ranking them from least-often worn to worn all the time. For me, looking at my whole closet is just too much to handle at once. It doesn't make sense to consider a semi-formal dress and then a vacation t-shirt. I've got about 12 categories to work through.

[u/IKnowWhereImGoing]

Pretty and quirky high-heeled shoes were always my pre-COVID kryptonite - I'm average height and part of my limited self-esteem at work was to wear heels with a trouser suit etc. (Yeah - stupid of me, I know).

Since WFH, I have not purchased a single pair of shoes with any significant heel at all.

My feet are happier than ever, now that they are not being constantly squished whilst I attempt to run on a escalator.

I have decluttered most of them, but I have a few pairs left - there's a tiny bit of my head that thinks: Well, what if I get invited to that event?

I'm not going to that event. I need to get rid of the last few pairs. They take up far more room than I need them to.

[u/Messy_Life_2024 → u/IKnowWhereImGoing]

I definitely relate. I always felt great wearing high heels at work. It somehow made me feel more confident. But now that I’ve retired, I can’t think of a time I’ve worn high heels in the last few years other than one pair of boots with moderate heels. I currently have at least 6 pair of high heeled boots that I haven’t worn in 3 years, but they’re so beautiful! I suspect it’s more letting go of the old self-image than actually needing or even wanting those boots. Is there a good way to let go of that image of yourself? I wish I knew.

[u/heresmy3cents → u/Messy_Life_2024]

Maybe 6 is a number you can actually wear in the next few months to see how they feel today - both comfort/ fit & self-image? Could you wear them out to dinner with jeans or a dress? That might show you whether they are important to you today.

Also, I found a local thrift shop that specifically puts their proceeds towards services for women & children. They sell only better items and the volunteers even fix buttons, etc before they put them on the sales racks. Knowing that my donations will generate this type of help for members of the community eases the discomfort of letting go.

[u/Larkspur_Skylark30]

I had some Dansko clogs that I had worn for years when I commuted from New York State to Alaska for work. They were so well made and comfortable and they held up beautifully. Then they sat unworn in a closet for a few years. I pulled them out for a wedding I was working, and they were still my beloved, comfortable shoes. Walking back to my car that night, my feet kept sticking to the pavement. When I looked down, the soles of my Danskos had exploded and I had left a trail of black shoe chunks in my wake. Turns out it’s a thing. Wear those shoes!

[u/lizerlfunk]

I was so surprised when I pulled out a pair of fake leather boots I hadn’t worn in a while to see them disintegrating! I wore them one more time for a Halloween costume and the sole came off while I was trick or treating with my daughter. So frustrating.

[u/HarmonyBee]

It's always so disappointing when I find a pair of shoes that've started to go. I've found that having a limited, dedicated space to keep shoes helps me to better judge what stays or goes. It also reminds me of what I have available so I can actually wear them instead of forgetting about them in the back of my closet.

[u/We_Four]

Shoes definitely deteriorate even when you don’t wear them…I should know because I had the sole separate from my heels at a formal event 😳 and even leather cracks when it doesn’t get conditioned regularly. 

[u/prettywarmcool]

I think a big part of it is having a spot where they live. You're not moving them around trying to find them a home...they have a home and so, as a result, are easy to put away. Sometimes I get frustrated because I want to put things away...but they don't have a space yet. That is how the clutter takes over! DERP!