Capsule wardrobes have been around for over 50 years, but I feel like they really became popular when Marie Kondo’s book came out about decluttering and ‘letting go’ of items in your life that no longer serve you. I was never a big fan of that craze but everyone else was. It did, however, bring to light that we don’t need so many things in our lives including clothes. And so the minimalist wardrobe has been a hot topic ever since.
Most of us wear the same few pieces in our wardrobe over and over again without really thinking about it. If you are the same, you are almost already wearing a capsule wardrobe!
I don’t feel like there is a right or a wrong way to do a capsule wardrobe, or minimalist wardrobe. But the point is to have a minimal amount of clothing in your wardrobe aka minimalist wardrobe.
A capsule wardrobe isn’t practical for everyone. Some people like trendy pieces or like to have a plethora of clothes. A minimalist wardrobe is for those people who get overwhelmed when getting dressed in the morning, never have anything to wear, on a budget but want to look put together, or want to look professional and have a ‘uniform’.
Ask Yourself These Questions
- Struggling to find what to wear in the morning?
- Have too many clothes that you don’t wear?
- Hate shopping?
- Mindlessly go shopping for clothing?
- Need structure in your wardrobe?
If you answered yes to most of the questions, a capsule wardrobe is probably a good option for you
What is a Capsule Wardrobe?
A capsule wardrobe is a collection of pieces that all work together for a particular season. It became a thing back in the 1970’s, when Susie Faux made note that women were spending too much on clothing that wasn’t made properly, didn’t fit correctly, and would more than likely go out of style within a few seasons.
So, Susie came up with the ‘capsule wardrobe’ that encompassed practical, timeless pieces that will last for decades and can be paired with accessories. The designer Donna Karan then ran with the idea and came up with her Seven Easy Pieces. The Seven Easy Pieces are 7 basic pieces that are interchangeable for the workplace.
The purpose of the capsule wardrobe is to spend less time and money on clothing in the long run, but have high quality pieces that can be paired together and that will last years while taking the guesswork out of getting ready in the morning.
How Do You Start a Capsule Wardrobe?
The first thing you want to do is go through your entire closet, drawers, stashed away bins, all of it. Pull everything out and examine it. You need to know what you are working with and what you might need to add to your wardrobe.
Look through everything and create piles for “Keep”, “Maybe”, “Donate”, “Trash”.
All the piles are self explanatory but for the maybe, this is for pieces that you can’t seem to part with either because of sentimental value or you like it but don’t love it. If you don’t end up reaching for it in 3-6 months, you know you need to get rid of it.
And the keep pile is obviously what you are going to keep in your wardrobe. Only keep things that you absolutely love, wear all the time, fits, are the right color, make you feel good, and work with other pieces in your wardrobe.
You want versatility so pieces that are neutrals with clean, classic cuts will work great for years.
How To Ease Into The Capsule Wardrobe
If you feel a little overwhelmed, I have a few resources you could try to dip your toe into it.
10×10 – This concept is 10 items in 10 days. It helps you get out of your comfort zone and start experimenting with clothes that you already have and love.
Project 333 – This is a challenge that has you create a minimalist wardrobe with 33 pieces or less for 3 months. What you do with this concept is to act like you have a capsule wardrobe but all your other pieces, not including the 33 pieces you chose, are boxed away.
If you don’t want to start one of these challenges yet, just declutter and be honest with yourself of what you are keeping.
What You DON’T Want To Do
Now, the whole point of having a minimalist wardrobe is to save time and money, and keep items in your closet for years. If you want to buy something to add to a collection (depending on your type of capsule) wait until you are planning to wear it like one to two weeks. Don’t just buy things to buy things and only purchase things you love.
You can do whatever you want with your capsule wardrobe but it’s to make your life easier, but it will take a little bit to get used to the idea.
There’s no wrong way of doing a capsule wardrobe but if you have a large number of items in your closet and they are more trendy pieces, just call it what it is, a regular wardrobe.
If you are going to purchase items for your wardrobe, check out this blog post I did about my favorite affordable clothing stores.
Clothing Items on your Capsule Wardrobe Checklist
First, figure out if you want a capsule wardrobe that you switch out with each season: Winter (Jan-March), Spring (April-June), Summer (July-Sept), Fall (Oct-Dec) or if you want a capsule wardrobe for the whole year and keep everything visible or just swapping out the more seasonal pieces in and out (winter coats, shorts, snow boots, etc). This will help you understand how many pieces you will need in your wardrobe.
**Remember there isn’t a specific number you have to stick to, just start small with things you actually like and wear and go from there.
Keep in mind your lifestyle and your actual style. If you think you wish you were more dressy but gravitate towards more basic outfits like jeans and t shirts, stick with the jeans and t shirts. You can definitely have those more formal pieces but they just aren’t in your everyday wardrobe.
An example is you can start with 7 dresses, 7 bottoms, 7 tops, 3 sweaters/cardigans, and 3 jackets/coats.
Here is a starting capsule wardrobe checklist for a year long wardrobe:
Tops:
- Short sleeve tops (white, grey)
- Long sleeve tops (striped, white)
- Blouses or button down down
- Pull over sweaters
Bottoms:
- Blue Jeans
- Black Jeans
- Midi skirt
- Denim Shorts
- Trousers
- Joggers
- Leggings
Layering:
- Short Cardigan
- Long Cardigan
- Dress coat
- Rain/trench coat
- Denim Jacket
- Utility Jacket
Dresses:
- Slip Dress
- Black Dress
- Sundress
- Sweater Dress
- White dress
Choosing your Capsule Wardrobe Color Palette
Choosing a color palette for your wardrobe might already be easy for you, but if you want to see what colors look best on your skin tone, you can take this quiz and it will tell you what your color season is.
For example, I took the quiz and it said that I was a light summer. I already knew this because I did an analysis years ago but if you Google ‘light summer colors” it’s a lot of light pastels that are cool toned. It gives you an idea or colors to wear more to accentuate your natural features.
Start with outlining 3 neutrals or base colors like black,white, grey, navy, tan.
Next you want to have 2-3 accent colors like red, pink, blue, green, purple, orange. Look at the palette and look at your closet. Pay attention to what you already have and what items make you feel beautiful.
If you want to choose your own color palette, check out this website. Just hit the spacebar until you find a color you like (keep in mind the color quiz), click the lock to keep that color and keep hitting space until you find the colors for your wardrobe.
If you want to wear patterns, either stick to wearing them on the top or bottom. Don’t have some pattern pants and some patterned tops because then you can’t wear them together.
Are you thinking of trying a capsule wardrobe now? If so, tell me your accent colors!
XO, Annie