How to clean your Inventory...Part Three, Deleting

You survived  Part One and Part Two of Inventory sorting, Well let's move on to the final phase, "Deleting...how to decide what to keep and what to say goodbye to". I admit to having a hard time letting go of some outfits, skins, hair and objects. I'm what you would call a pack rat, but not quite so bad to where it's considered hording syndrome, to me this is the most painful part of inventory sorting because it involves having a critical and harsh eye.

So here is how I normally decide what I'm going to keep and what I'm going to delete.  

1. First off Strip Naked, That's right Detach it all from head to toe. We're in inventory deletion mode and need a fresh clean slate to work with.

2. Pick out your favorite Hair and Skin. You want to use the most up to date or newest designs you own, the skin and hair combination that makes you feel the best. By doing this you are already creating a standard for quality.

Set your standards. Everyone has their own personal standard for what they consider "good clothing". Personally I am NOT a big fan of overly photo sourced clothing, and prefer hand drawn or a cross between the two. So to me if an object is heavily photo sourced it's likely to fall into the trash.

3. Start going through your inventory and try on your clothing.
 Ask yourself...
Do I like the quality?
Will I wear this in a year?
Do I own something similar?

Keep What you Love
If you can find one thing you don't love about the article of clothing get rid of it. Draw the line on older Items, unless *Vintage. Don't be afraid to tear apart an outfit meaning, Using only a shirt and trashing the bottom or skirt, vice verse. Just remember Be Critical, you already purchased the item and found it to be worth keeping, just ask yourself why?

When working with hair
Textures are key, Save styles with great textures. I tried my hardest to delete styles that were created before hair sculpts were introduced. 2008, is the oldest hair in my inventory and it's *Vintage.

Respect Your Vintage
At some point after you have purchased an Item it's Vintage, Let's say after the two year mark. These Items were originally designed and had great quality. They could have been the HOT item of the year, a limited edition purchase the point is they have major staying power and deserve to be kept in your inventory.

Vintage is also considered to be designs from stores that are no longer in business. You can't find these little gems again on the grid. Examples of stores are, Last Call, Old ETD. 

Transferable Items
So I'm going to throw this out as a little tip in case you are feeling generous and are willing to take the time and look for transferable items. Like in RL sometimes in SL I like to donate items I purchased, just because I didn't find use in an item doesn't mean someone else won't. So perhaps finding a nice new resident to donate might be beneficial. There is always the alternative of selling at yard sale or gift to a friends. Remember the ONE thing you CAN'T do is KEEP.




So after completing my inventory Clean up I have only 17,532 items in my inventory.  I lost a grand total of 4,717. And I'll let you in on a secret. I don't have a bare inventory. All my favorites are still in tact. I just feel a lot lighter now and am definitely ready for more shopping trips. :D Who's going shopping with me?