Capsule Wardrobe Magic: A Spring Wardrobe Overhaul
With the Spring vibes in the air, I’ve been feeling a much needed wardrobe detox and refresh. I have spent the greater portion of the last 10 years living and operating in sweatpants or leggings. Your girl’s ready for an update. I’m not giving up my sweats and leggings. That would be crazy. But, what I am looking for is a style reboot.
And while cleaning your closet is not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about your health, I would argue that finding and feeling good in your own personal style (whatever it maybe) plays a role in our confidence as human beings. And can be a major form of creative expression.
A few months back I came across a YouTube series created by the mother/daughter duo Elisa Goodkind and Lily Mandelbaum, called, “What’s Underneath.” It’s a docu-style video series that invites people off all colors, races, body types, genders, and sexualities to remove layers of clothing while sharing honest, empowering stores related to their style, self image and identity. It was inspiring to watch. The common thread is that each had fought their battles to sit and be ok with who they were, radically accepting themselves and their style. Fully detoxed from societal pressure. Pretty awesome.
Typically when I clean out my closet, I’ll go section by section and sort in piles, LOVE, MAYBE, DONATE, TRASH. But, this time around, I wanted it to be a bit more purposeful.
I want to reduce waste and churn from my wardrobe.
I want pieces that I’ll wear, not take up space.
So I asked myself, “how do I want to feel when I open up my closet to get dressed?” The first word that came to mind. Simplicity. When I open up my closet I want to feel an ease and effortless nature to my clothes, and style with a dash of sophisticated funk. How do you want to feel when you open up your closet?
I remember Stacey London and Clinton Kelly from “What Not to Wear” used to always say that you really only need a few key items in your wardrobe. A quick google search of wardrobe essentials brought me to this article from ELLE magazine, recommending 30 items to build a capsule wardrobe, which is simply a collection of clothing and accessories designed to be mixed and matched together to make several different outfits.
The benefits of a capsule wardrobe is that it simplifies getting dressed, saves you time, takes up less closet space, saves you money, reduces your stress. SIGN. ME. UP!
Here are their recommendations.
Tailored Trouser
Wear-Everywhere Dress
Black Crossbody Bag
Basic Winter Coat
Leather Belt
Transitional Sweater (cozy enough to wear at home, and out for lunch)
Little Black Dress (of course!)
Oxford Shirt
Tote Bag
White Tee (short and long sleeved)
White Sneakers
Slip Dress
Everyday Jewelry (like a bangle bracelet)
Everyday Hoop Earrings (love me my hoops)
Denim Jacket
Basic Flats
Shoes for Errands
Leather Jacket
Face-framing sunglasses
Special Occasion jewelry set
Leggings
The Perfect Bra
Solid Hoodie
Flattering Denim
Simple Ankle Boots
Comfortable Formal Shoes
Sneakers
Flattering Swimsuit
Buy in bulk underwear
Socks
So with this list as my foundation, along with a couple of swaps and add-ons for my own personal preferences, I’m going in. Pieces that have been sitting unworn for the last year will be faced full-on Marie Kondo style, DOES THIS BRING ME JOY? And for those moments where the joy is there, but you’re just not sure, here are some questions I found in my searches that I thought were super helpful.
How often do I wear this item?
Does it fit well?
Do I feel confident when I wear it?
Is it in perfect condition or does it require some extra care/ alterations?
Does it add something to my wardrobe?
Do I have items to combine it with?
Does it fit my style or how I want to be portrayed to the outside world? (IF this is important to you)
A few other tips that I came across which I thought were particularly brilliant,
Never embark on a closet detox when you are emotional. This is a recipe for over-clearing and potential tears. Noted.
Be ruthless.
As you wear clothes throughout the year, flip the hangers from what you have worn, the opposite direction so when it comes time for your next clean out, there is no doubt of what you have/haven’t worn. Brilliant!
Quality over quantity especially when it comes to items like coats, blazers, and shoes. You want these pieces to last.
Find what colors work best for your skin tone. I took a free and quick test from colorwise.com.
Make investments as you can.
After the clean out, it’s time to fill in the gaps. The fun part.
Here are a few of my favorite recent finds that have become go-to’s.
These black trousers that I found at Target are amazing! I wear them often and get tons of compliments on them. The best part. Their only $32.
GAP is having a great Spring season. Lots of linen and great capsule pieces. I picked up this boyfriend linen shirt in blue. It’s on sale right now for $34.
I also snagged a pair of satin cargo pants which feel like pajamas on sale.
And then there’s the question of what to do with all of the donations. Goodwill, Salvation Army, and for professional attire, Dress for Success are all great options. There are also companies like Trashie who will send you a bag to fill of your donations for $20, and you will then get $30 Trashie $’s to spend. Trashie $’s can be used on various gift cards and items through their vendor partners. The best part? Trashie keeps 90% of what is sent to them out of landfills. This is good news considering that every year we produce 92 million tons of textile waste globally.
Since starting to get out of my sweats and into my OOTD, here’s what I have noticed,
I am more productive.
I feel more confident.
I feel more motivated
I feel energetically lighter.
But, I still love slipping into my cozy sweats at the end of the day. ;)
Happy Spring!
Xo