Welcome! Here is a curated list of helpful information that can help you create the capsule wardrobe that is right for you. You can hit the highlights, or you can dive deep by exploring the “BONUS” sections, it’s up to you.
A capsule wardrobe begins with you! (Where else could it begin really?) So grab your tape measure and let’s get started with a conversation about body type. BTW, there is no right or wrong body type, let’s leave the body shaming at the door, ok? Okay!? LOL! Ok.
Let’s get started with a conversation about body type with Justine LeConte, fashion designer and lifestyle vlogger:
I think of dressing to my body type as the structure of the items in my wardrobe. My body is a pear shape, so I know that “fit and flare” skirts and dresses look good on me. I’ve also had a double partial mastectomy, so I realized recently that I can wear halter style tops without bra straps showing! What a treat! Understanding body type helps me choose the structure and shape of pieces for my capsule wardrobe that look best on me. Make notes of what works best for you, but don’t go shopping yet!
BONUS: Want to look for celebrities who have a body type similar to yours? Since they often have professional stylists, following someone on social media who shares your body type can give you style inspiration. Look for their street style outfits since most of us don’t have much use for red carpet looks. And don’t look for brands, but look for shapes and the way they layer pieces that look good on them – and will therefore look good on you. Make notes, but don’t go shopping!
Now let’s talk about COLOR ~ my very favorite thing in the world.
Knowing what colors look good with your skin tone is a helpful place to start. If you’re not sure, then you may have a neutral skin tone which is somewhere in the middle. Also, even if your hair has turned grey, your skin’s undertone may not change. But what colors look good on you may lighten with your hair as you age. Make notes, but don’t go shopping yet.
BONUS: Dopamine Dressing: don’t dress how you feel… dress how you WANT to feel. Dopamine Dressing may be considered a trend, but people have been dressing in the colors that make them happy for centuries. It isn’t a new idea, but it is cool to see the brain science behind it. Exchanging greys, browns, taupes, and tans for full rich colors can have a remarkable benefit to you, and to the people around you. Dress yourself happy! Remember… don’t go clothing shopping yet!
BONUS: Field Trip! Stop by a home improvement big box store and pick up some paint chips in the colors that speak to you; colors that work for your skin tone. Choose at least three paint samples with a variety from light to dark of your favorites. Bonus points if the three paint samples look beautiful together, and most colors do. No need to take every color sample, keep it simple. Sometimes I will literally stand at a distance and look for the color that stands out to me, then I’ll walk over and pick up that paint chip. If you’ve never tried this, you need to. Colors connect with us on a level that makes it hard to put into words. Commercially available clothing has an extremely limited color palette, so finding things in colors that really work for you may require a little extra effort, but it’s absolutely worth it! Keep these paint samples with your notes, you’ll refer to them later.
BONUS: Personal Style, Identity, and Authenticity.
The question is not whether or not you have style, it’s whether or not it’s being expressed. This TED talk from Molly Bingaman, a personal stylist, may have some helpful clues in thinking about your style, and how you authentically show up in the world. Think about the clothing that you’ve had in your life that felt the best to you. Think about styles that feel right.
Style has nothing to do with what’s in fashion, or what’s happening at Paris Fashion Week or the Met Gala this year. Believe it or not, it’s also not about brand names, especially the expensive ones! Style has everything to do with wearing the clothing that expresses the person God created when making you. As we age, culture wants to make us less and less visible. It’s up to us to SHOW UP and STYLE is HOW we show up! Remember, it’s not time to go shopping quite yet.
BONUS: Branding and Personal Identity
I was made in the image of God. I do not need to wear someone else’s name or mark on my body to make me more valuable or better in any way. I’ll wear my own name, but I’m never going to wear a t-shirt that says “Tommy Hilfiger”, because that is not my name or my identity. I’m not going to carry a bag with a huge logo on it. I’m me. I’m not Coco Chanel. I appreciate the designs of Ralph Lauren, but I am not going to mark myself with his name or mark. Most clothing comes with some sort of brand name in the lining of the garment, and that’s fine. I just prefer not to have that on the outside. It’s a personal soap box, but for me it’s also about being unapologetically who I am and not leaning on brand names to make me somebody.
I came to this realization in my downsizing journey to life in a tiny house when I suddenly looked around and realized I had very little, but my mindset had not caught up to my new lifestyle. I came face to face with my own inadequacy and the ways I had tried to cover it up by buying the “in” things, clothes, and looks. This kind of materialism sells a lie – that by wearing “SOMEBODY’S” name, I can become more of a somebody myself. It’s a lie, and as we sink so much money into those things, it can actually be stealing money and resources away from the passion projects and mission assignments that God has given us.
OK! Time to Dive In To Your Existing CLOSET! How Exciting!
The time has come to dive in! (Don’t be frightened.) I find this process to be a lot of fun, and the surprising reality is that it looks like a big job, but it really doesn’t take long at all. And a lot of us already know whether or not the items in our closet actually fit us, we just haven’t taken the time to remove and donate the items that aren’t working. Now’s the time! Watch the video and make your notes. The first half of the video goes through the material using the worksheet, and the second half shows examples.
Preparation: Gather some boxes for items that are ready to be donated. Gather a trash bag for the items that are stained, torn, or moth eaten. If you have a place to store off season clothing, make sure to get those items out as well. It’s time to go through EVERYTHING. Try things on. If it fits you beautifully today, it can stay. If not, Out. It. Goes. Remove any malignant items – they may have negative memories or unpleasant things associated with that garment, donate or trash those items. You do not need them!
I love matching hangers and I get rid of the old mismatched ones as I go along. Nothing makes a closet look more put together than a set of good quality matching hangers. If you’re ordering, order enough hangers for about 30 garments, including some pants/skirt hangers. Off season clothing hangers just need to be sturdy and able to hold clothing without doing damage.
READY? Take EVERYTHING out of your closet! (Including the dust bunnies!)
As you go through your clothing, try on everything! Keep an eye out for clothing that is structured for your body type. Look for clothing in your chosen colors that suits your coloring. And look for items that fit your style. Put those items neatly back in your closet.
BONUS: On Selling Clothes…
Of course you can put aside items to sell. And if you’ve got especially expensive branded items, you might consider doing so. Honestly, I’ve never found this to be particularly worth the time and effort it took but I never bought expensive clothing so your results may vary. Please keep in mind that the investment you made is already gone. If you’d like to see if something sells for a (hopefully) decent price, the best option I’ve found is Thred Up. Visit their website (affiliate link) and look for “Clean Out Bag” and follow the directions to have one sent to you. You can fill it up and return it. They won’t take every item, you won’t get as much money back as you wish, it’ll be frustrating, and it’ll take some time. But you might make some money. And since you might be looking to fill out your capsule wardrobe with a few missing pieces, that’ll might help. I don’t want to misrepresent the annoyance factor, I just find it so much easier to donate things and know that someone out there is going to be delighted when they come across my tired treasures.
Donate the usable items that are not in your closet.
Where? Pick the thrift store in your area who is raising money for the cause that matters most to you. Donate your clothing, shoes, and bags there.
Feel lighter yet? Whew! Pat yourself on the back! There is nothing quite as fun as a good clear out to make you feel lighter and very accomplished! I love it!
Download this worksheet and print it out.
(Print several if you’re like me!)
The basic building blocks of your new capsule wardrobe are all here. Take a look over the worksheet with your body type in mind, making adjustments where needed. Or you might choose leggings over trousers to fit your more casual style. Here’s you chance to adjust this framework to what you’ve already discovered about your body type and personal style.
Using your worksheet and looking at your closet, choose a neutral color and two other colors that already feature prominently in your collection. Fill in the worksheet with the items you have in your closet that work for you.
Write down the items you already have in the area provided.
This will show you precisely what gaps exist in your capsule wardrobe.
Notice examples.
Check out this example of how this plays out when it’s time to put together great outfits:
Pretty cool, right? In this case we used two colors and black/cream/tan as the neutrals. Notice there are solid colors and patterns, and some pieces that really bring the collection together because the colors overlap. It really helps if the two colors you choose are such a classic combination as red and turquoise. Your two current favorite colors will do quite nicely. And remember, you’re not locked in to these colors forever, this capsule wardrobe is only for the next three months. Then you might be ready to make some adjustments.
Now it’s time to assess what’s left in your closet. Do you have items that:
- Fit your body right now! No weight loss shame clothing allowed!
- Suit your beautiful body type, no body shaming allowed!
- Match your paint chips and you!
- Fit your sense of style.
- Can you SHOW UP in these clothes? =)
Go ahead and enter these items in the worksheet. Remember to adapt the framework to fit you. Where I’ve put skirts or pants, choose the kind of skirt that best suits your body type. Pick the kind of jeans, pants, leggings, or trousers that suit you best. I’m not suggesting for a moment that everyone will need three blazers. I use “blazer” very loosely here, sometimes it’s a jean’s jacket or another kind of jacket. If you are an artist and you’ve woven a garment you wear as a jacket – that’s a designer original and absolutely fantastic! If you’ve hand knit a sweater, that’s great – enter it on the sheet. Allow your creativity and your artisan work to be a part of this process.
Just a quick aside, workout clothing, pajamas, and undergarments aren’t generally part of a capsule wardrobe. Go ahead and do the same thing with those – go through them and donate the usable items that aren’t working for you, trash the torn, stained or tattered items, and put the good clean items back where they belong.
Now it’s time to go shopping!
Arm yourself and avoid these pitfalls: You got this! I know you can do it!
- Wander around the mall or fast fashion stores for hours looking on sales racks and at trendy clothing that is poor quality and will maybe last three washes. Nope!
- Go to the most expensive boutique and buy up a bunch of name brand stuff that has to be good because it’s expensive. Nope!
- Go crazy on Amazon so that when the FedEx guy shows up he empties the whole truck at your front door. Nope!
- Buy items without trying them on. Nope! This includes Goodwill. There are two exceptions to this rule: 1) you routinely return items with the receipt within 10 days regularly and it’s not a hassle for you and 2) you’re buying online with your measurements in hand.
Do this savvy shopper stuff:
- We started with a tape measure, and it’s time to take your full measurements so that you know when you purchase something online that it is likely to fit. Here are detailed instructions on how to do that. Save your measurements somewhere handy. Sizes for women’s clothing are pretty much useless and sometimes one wash can ruin the sizing.
BONUS:
Here are a few other videos you might find helpful if you’re interested in purchasing new good quality ethical clothing so that it will last and serve you well.
Wrapping up
Finally, using your worksheet, after you’ve filled in the clothing you already have… look for the empty spaces. Make a shopping list of these items you don’t have and specifically shop for those items. Don’t buy anything that isn’t on the list. They don’t have to be on sale, and they don’t have to be new. I buy most of my clothing from Thredup.com, and I wait for a coupon code. The system filters allow me to get very specific on what I’m looking for and it makes shopping very easy. (It does make shopping a little too easy, so I would recommend not leaving your credit card info in the system – this creates just enough friction for me that I am less likely to be buying clothing on a whim.) And when you’re done, you’re done. You don’t have to even think about shopping for clothing again for at least 3 months – longer if you wish.
As new items come in, hang them on their hangers and enjoy mixing and matching the items in your new capsule wardrobe! Enjoy looking put together and stylish every time you leave the house.
I never had so many compliments as I did when I started wearing the clothing in my capsule wardrobe for the first time. It was a dramatic improvement for me! (I don’t even want to admit how often I left the house in yoga pants and a sweatshirt – definitely not the style that works best on me!) I did all the heavy lifting one day, and I knew I could grab a tshirt, sweater, and pull on a blazer over that and it would look like I made an effort – but I hadn’t really. It was just that I did the work once instead of every single day. What a relief! I wear much better clothing now, quality over quantity!
I LOVE CAPSULE WARDROBES!!
Most folks doing capsule wardrobes are doing them four times a year. I have on occasion loved a capsule wardrobe so much that I kept it for 6 months. You do you. My hot summer capsule wardrobe is thrift store dresses, that’s pretty much it. I usually only do capsule wardrobes for winter, spring, and autumn.
Go forth and look spectacular and enjoy the compliments that come your way!
CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve done it!
How does it feel?
Sending love your way,
~Carmen
Carmen Shenk 