Do you find yourself spending a disproportionate amount of time every morning trying to create an outfit you will feel confident and comfortable in for the day ahead?
Wondering how such an ‘easy’ decision can be so difficult?
If so, you are definitely not alone!
Cure Your Wardrobe Woes
Creating a capsule wardrobe could very well be the solution to your wardrobe woes. Building a personalised seasonal capsule wardrobe for clients is one of my more popular personal styling services - both online and in person. It is in essence a streamlined selection of well-chosen clothes that all work together to create multiple outfits for a variety of different occasions. Meaning you can quickly and easily decide what to wear, be it for work, travel and leisure. Saving you time and freeing up headspace to get on with your day.
A seasonal capsule wardrobe, for a client who is a frequent flyer. Mixing designer accessories with high street clothes. Gucci, Hermes, Chloe, Veja, Reiss, Me & Em, Reiss, Arket, Cos, Massimodutti, Zara and Mango.
Below are some steps to get you started.
Assessing
Start by assessing your current wardrobe: Take an inventory to see what you have, what you wear most often and what you don’t wear at all. Send any items that you haven't worn in a long time and clothes that no longer fit to charity.
Personal Style
Look at your personal style and lifestyle. Determine what activities you need clothes for, work, socialising, dating, exercise etc. Are you in a phase of your life where your summers will be spent attending numerous weddings that you will need outfits for? Create mood boards on Pinterest of styles/looks you feel confident in or those you would like to try for all occasions. Capsule wardrobes will look different for everyone.
Colour Palette
Choose a complimentary colour palette, one that flatters your complexion and hair colour and can be easily mixed and matched. For example for camel, ivory, beige, black with a pop of red makes for a stylish, versatile, expensive colour palette.
Quality
Choose quality over quantity. Invest in some well-made great fitting pieces that will last for years, such as jackets, coats, knitwear, jeans and trousers. Blouses, tees, tops and dresses can be bought at less inexpensive prices as these date far quicker than jeans, tailored pieces and knitwear.
Versatility
Look for pieces that can be layered and worn in different ways. For example, a simple black dress can be dressed up with heels and jewellery for smarter occasions, or dressed down with trainers for a casual look.
Footwear
Consider your footwear options. Choose a few comfortable and versatile shoes that can be worn with multiple outfits, such as a pair of black ankle boots, nude heels and white trainers.
37
Aim for a well-chosen concise number of items, 37 pieces has been touted as the ideal amount. I have no idea how this came to be the optimum figure, but I’d suggest typically between 30 and 50 pieces, to create a workable capsule wardrobe. To avoid having to do laundry everyday.
Personality
Inject your personality is key to stopping your wardrobe from ending up looking ‘meh’ and nondescript. This could be with accessories, jewellery, shoes, bags or adopting a colour palette that is very you. Somebody I met networking only wears shades of orange and purple, has done for years, its her thing and it really suits her.
Seasonal
Whilst the main bulk of your wardrobe can work all year round, you will need to add in some few seasonal items to switch things up, like sandals, shorts, winter coat and cotton sun dresses.
Wardrobe Styling
The key to a successful capsule wardrobe is to invest in versatile, quality pieces that work well together and can be styled in multiple ways. Do contact me if you are not sure how to go about building your own capsule wardrobe. I create them for clients using both my online and in person styling services.
Thank you for reading.
Lisa
About Lisa
I’m an established professional Personal Stylist and Fashion Designer, helping people to develop their style, through a series of personalised colour, styling, sourcing, and shopping services. I’ve worked in fashion industry for 2 decades and have a wealth of knowledge acquired from designing for brands such as Zara to luxury label Sportmax. To styling clients in a range of industries from media, tech, law, finance, to business owners. Ensuring they look and feel their very best whatever the occasion.
