Out with the Old In with the New

Need a fresh start?  Whether you’re cleaning out your closet or doing a full-on purge, it can help more than just you. Let “Out with the Old In with the New” do more with O, The Magazine + Talbots. 

Thanks to  O, The Oprah Magazine + Talbots for partnering with me to share this give back campaign.

Each year around this time, I do some housecleaning. 

Spring cleaning, if you will. 

I go through my drawers. files, the pantry, the fridge, and even my panty drawer – everything – to get rid of the “crap.” Actually it’s not crap, but the stuff that I don’t use and I don’t need any more. And to be honest, normally I figure out I didn’t ever need it in the first place. 

But that’s not all. 

My clean out every year is both physical and mental. I’m not just cleaning out my closet, but I’m attempting to get rid of all the *bad* stuff from last year and create and restock on the good. 

It’s my way of reflecting. And it’s not necessarily easy either. I work through some a lot stuff and this year has been a biggie; trying to figure out my plan  what’s next. 

What’s best for my family, what’s best for my career, and most of all what’s happiness to me. 

Basically, just like the seasons, spring is time to grow and bloom, but it takes time. And I lack patience.

But this year’s “spring cleaning” had a big change when I literally had to clean all the closets…and the cabinets, and the garage…and everything else in our house. 

Needless to say after 12 years in a home, I have a lot of clothes. And going through each one I still remember what I was doing, where I was, and who I was with when I last wore it. And some of those name-brand frocks hadn’t been worn in a REAL REAL REAL long time. But they were important to me – like my first black power suit and a beautiful Prabal Gurung dress. #prebaby #highschool 

Don’t you just love scarves? I wore them in high school and adored them. So I’m staging a comeback.

So I had tons of clothes that looked brand new that needed a good home (after I tried to put them on one last time and cried a little.)

And just like spring; my time with the clothes was over, but there had to be somewhere that someone could enjoy them just as I had. 

For a third year O, The Oprah Magazine Collection for Talbots opened on Feb. 20 at retail and online. The limited set of pieces included red, white and blue pieces that can be work with spring and summer staples. And don’t forget one small, but important detail: the ladybug. 

Talbots is also encouraging women to clean out their closets and will accept “nearly new” clothing and accessories in its 435 locations March 1 to 4. Consumers can also pitch in by purchasing items from the O, The Oprah Magazine Collection for Talbots collection. Thirty percent of net proceeds from those purchases will benefit Dress for Success, which helps women return to the workforce. Cash donations can also be made in stores now through April 1.

Considering I’m always a big fan of a great cardi – especially one that can be made to dress up or dress down, I loved this sweater. And the details in the buttons, along with the ladybug detail, makes this a staple piece throughout the crazy Texas weather. 

So go now to your closet, take out the stuff you may still love and have been holding on to, but haven’t worn. It may be ready for a new chapter for a new woman.

And you’ll have some room to make a new chapter for you. I know I’m ready to write a new one for me. 

To date the “O-Talbots tie-up” has raised more than $3 million in monetary contributions, collected 60,000 articles of clothing and helped to impact 60,000 women’s lives.