“My general rule of thumb is that if it’s older than me, I handwash it. If it’s younger than me, I look at the condition,” she said. Silk or rayon pieces are handwashed while polyester goes in with the modern fabrics in a soft mesh bag. With cotton pieces, she washes them on a very low spin under 400 rpm. She regularly goes through her collection and sells pieces that no longer fit. “The idea is to find them a home that will love them for what remaining lifespan they have,” she explained.
Lin says that she will continue to collect because she enjoys it. “It’s not about reaching an end-goal of a complete collection. It’s the journey. It’s more of a lifestyle rather than just a hobby because you spend a lot of time maintaining and taking care of the piece that you bring back,” she said. As for what will she intends to do with her collection, she mused, “Whatever outlives me, is to be given away by my friends to make some people with waists 24 to 28 inches very happy.”