Getting Started with a Capsule Wardrobe
Pinterest Inspo
Color Palette: black/white/olive/cream/gray/navy with pops of rust
Pinterest Inspo
Description Words: neutral, functional and relaxed
Once I decided to commit to curating and maintaining a capsule wardrobe, I needed a place to start. It all seemed a little overwhelming at first; do I clean out my closet now or later? How do I know what to shop for moving forward? What items do I even need? Well, I found an amazing blog that answered all of these questions and helped me get started on the Judy Apparel website. Please note that the rest of this article is me telling you how I completed the steps from the Judy Apparel blog, click the link above to see the detailed step-by-step instructions.
Judy Apparel breaks down starting a capsule wardrobe into 7 easy steps;
Audit Your Current Wardrobe and Lifestyle Needs: I followed this step to the letter and let me tell you that my donate pile turned into an absolute monster. It was shocking to me how many of my clothing items either didn’t fit or were falling apart/pilling. While you might assume it was anxiety-inducing to see my closet essentially empty, it was actually a relief and quite liberating. If you follow the steps outlined in the linked article, I promise this step is easier than it sounds. This is the start of you loving your wardrobe again, trust the process.
Define Your Personal Style and Color Palette: Any process that allows me to scroll Pinterest and save whatever my heart desires, I’m down for. The article says to pick about 20 images from things you already had saved, but I changed this a bit. After creating a new Pinterest board titled “Capsule Wardrobe”, I did a search for plus size outfit inspo and set a timer for 60 minutes. My recommendation is that you save EVERYTHING you like, regardless of how you think you would look in it or whether or not you think you could pull it off. You are simply looking for inspiration, not outfits to copy verbatim.
Set Your Capsule Parameters: I will not lie, this is where I went off the rails a bit. Instead of choosing a particular size (number of items) for my capsule, I chose to not set a limit (for now). I did this for a couple reasons. First, the intention I set for my capsule was to include pieces I could wear year-round in any climate, even while traveling. I felt that if I set a limit to my capsule, that may cause me problems down the road when packing for longer trips to different destinations. Just my anxiety talking? Maybe, but not setting a limit is what works best for me right now. Make sure you choose what works best for you. Second, I already had so many factors to keep in mind while shopping that keeping track of the number of items (total) in my wardrobe just didn’t seem like the most important thing.
Identify Versatile Core Pieces: Lists are one of my favorite things to make and I highly suggest that this is the point where you enjoy making them too. I started with making lists of the items I wanted to create the base of my capsule and then simply crossed out what I already had. That left me with a shopping list of the core pieces I still needed to get. After doing this for each of the categories Judy Apparel listed, I had a pretty good shopping list to move forward with. One step I added in here was making a list of seasonal specific items I would need for each season. I had a little trouble with this, but that’s for another article.
Fill the Gaps with Quality, Multi-functional Items: AKA shopping! Now before you go crazy, let’s set some rules. The rules I created for purchasing items were as follows; high quality, fit the color palette I chose, flattering to my body shape, can be worn with at least 3 other items in my wardrobe. Any time I was shopping I had my color palette and list of rules sitting in front of me for me to refer to. If an item didn’t fit those rules then I didn’t buy it (even if I loved it). I honestly thought the shopping part would be difficult, but it was so much fun. I was creating outfits in my mind while shopping which got me excited about the clothes I was buying and already thinking of places to wear them. Once you set all of your capsule parameters and shopping rules, you will be so much more excited about your clothes. I also want to note that I did not “go crazy” and buy an insane number of clothes. Using the rules I set for myself ruled out a lot of purchases. Takeaway? Set rules for yourself and stick to them so you don’t end up with an overgrown wardrobe of clothing items that don’t go together.
Organize, Store and Maintain Your Capsule: Since I am curating a year-round capsule, I do not have to store any of my clothes for different seasons. If you do need to store items make sure you are doing so in a way that prolongs the life of your clothes. The Judy Apparel article also does a great job of explaining how to care for certain fabrics, both for storage and everyday use.
Shop and Refresh Mindfully Going Forward: The downside to not setting a limit to the number of items in my capsule is that it will be hard for me in the future to know when to swap items with new ones. My current plan is to do an annual review of my capsule and see what items need to be replaced. Since I am still building my base capsule, I will let you know in the future how I do a review and whether it’s an effective method or needs to be altered.
Using this and the linked Judy Apparel article, you can easily get started with a capsule wardrobe just like I did. To see my lists of southern seasonal must-haves, check back soon!
Until next time,
Happy Styling
