Participant one’s wardrobe was a carefully selected group of colour-coordinated pieces that were assembled from left to right; darkest to more colourful/vibrant. The participant sorted items according to the list and arranged her well-chosen pieces that mainly consisted of vintage finds, locally made designer purchases, inherited and cherished pieces.

There was a playful, creative element to most of the pieces and several themes emerged in the wardrobe, which included an interest in bird motifs and nautical badges and symbols.

Participant 1 is quite resourceful and creative and had a mending pile of garments that needed repair or garments that she had found in op shops that she wanted to remake/reinvigorate. The participant’s goal is to build a wardrobe that she loves. She looks to pinterest for colour and pattern inspiration.

This wardrobe was a veritable treasure chest of garments that is a testament to a life in synch with one’s wardrobe as it spans a lifetime of collecting, savouring and compiling garments. The participant actively uses her wardrobe; it is open on display in the bedroom, which indicates the status to which the garments are given. The chest of drawers was also in use as a simple strategy for keeping a level of control on the amount of garments. “It is the tipping point”.

The range and breadth of garments was quite impressive as was the active state of most of the items contained within. There was very little in the wardrobe that was not worn or used. Groupings of garments of similar patterns such as floral and a reduced colour palette of red, green and black emerged of their own accord in an unconscious way. These similarities allowed for fluidity within the wardrobe as outfits came together easily.

The wardrobe while wide in its breadth didn’t veer to close to casual, which meant that everything had a degree of formality or specialness that allowed the participant to relish in the process of ‘dressing up’ for all occasions.

A well-edited, relatively minimal wardrobe that is small in quantity but rich in depth.

It was sorted according to the suggested categories, but a lot of thought and time went into analysing the motivation behind each one of the items. The hues contained within the wardrobe tended to be very neutral with an occasional pop of colour.

The garments are not thought of as individual pieces but instead are part of groupings or outfits as each item of clothing has its place in an ensemble. This strategy makes for ease of dressing and assembling outfits.

The participant has accumulated quite a large collection of items that have been accumulated over many years and have been brought with him on his travels across the globe. He elaborated on the existing categories with his very own unique categories which broadly came under the description “purely functional’ or ‘fun, playful items’. Other subsections within the wardrobe were- ‘the animal section’, ‘party shirts,’ ‘different categories of warm clothing’, ‘man hats’, ‘comfort plie’ and ‘shared category (items shared with his partner)”. Interestingly some of the favourite items were impulse buys (see African outfit worn in picture) when the participant embraced the moment /occasion and bought something as a reminder of that happy occasion.

The participant has a large walk in wardrobe that is quite expansive and impressive as it dazzled the Hackers with its vibrant array of colour and pattern. The wardrobe was mainly grouped according to garment type i.e. dresses together, tops together. There were a lot of items of beauty with quite a large section dedicated to ‘formal/dressy clothing and shoes” and it is obvious the participant has taken a lot of time, energy and money to assemble all these items. It indicates that the participant is much more than ‘marginally involved’ in clothing as claimed in stage 1. There are however quite a lot of garments that are not worn or have their tags attached. The participant has a few duplicates of garments that she likes.