I’ve been hearing more and more about these ‘capsule wardrobes’ and the challenge to live a minimal lifestyle, and I’m intrigued. I’ve done my ‘research’ and have  compiled a list and pictures of what my capsule will include and the various ways I am going to style it throughout the month!

A Capsule wardrobe consists of 30 or less pieces of clothing, including shoes, accessories etc. But this time around I started with 30 pieces of clothing and then add ons – it’s my first time okay! The biggest thing that really attracted me to trying out my own capsule was the amount of time I waste trying to figure out what I am going to wear every morning and then I always come back to the same old thing.

REASONS TO START A CAPSULE WARDROBE:

• De-clutter your closet and say goodbye to what doesn’t bring you joy!
• Minimize the ever-daunting question ‘what should i wear today’
• Be ready 10x faster

HERE ARE 10 TIPS TO GET STARTED!

1// IT’S NOT HARD : It really is that simple. Make sure you start in a month that would be ‘easier'(where you don’t have 6 weddings to attend!) for you so you do not get discouraged. Remember, it’s only a month, make sure you’ve grabbed your favourites and MUST HAVES and try! Next time I do a capsule wardrobe, I’m going to take the plunge and do the complete 30 piece wardrobe, clothes, shoes, accessories and all.

2// YOU’RE PROBABLY ALREADY DOING IT : Most likely, you already have a list of your favourites tucked away in your mind. If you’re having a lazy day, you have those tights and shirt you like to wear. If you’re going out, you have that little black dress and long dangly necklace you love so much. Lastly, if you’re going to a soccer game you’ve got those nice pair of jeans that make your butt look good and that fitted tee to be game ready! So putting together a 30 piece capsule shouldn’t be too hard!

This grey sweater below is one of my top 5 items – I HAD to include a pic of the back! 

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3// DECLUTTER : Are you (like me) one of those people who have a closet that is BURSTING at the seems and has found it’s way to under your bed, down the hall and in your husband’s dresser? If you have been looking for a way to kind of kick-start a purge, then I would highly suggest a capsule wardrobe!

4// BE SEASONAL : When putting together your capsule, keep in mind the season and the weather. Will it be changing? Will you be needing to layer up at all? Especially if you are branching out and decide to do a 3 month capsule, this is a MUST!

5// KEEP IT NEUTRAL : I chose not to have many prints in my capsule, unless they were black and white. I find patterns and more eccentric prints aren’t that forgiving when trying to pair with the rest of the wardrobe. Maybe next time, if I am feeling more daring, I’ll throw a bright print in! This time I stuck to black, white, grey’s, neutrals and jean.

6// HAVE A BASE : You’ll find as you thread through all the different capsules out there, there is always an underlying base colour. I found the most popular are either BLACK OR NAVY. My capsule had a base of black pieces.

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7// THE 3 PIECE RULE : Can I wear this item with at least 3 other pieces in my capsule. For example, I included my long black tank because I love to wear it with my tights and a hoodie but also wear it with my leather leggings, brown booties and a necklace. TADA – Transformed!

8// FITS YOUR LIFESTYLE : As I started my capsule wardrobe, I began with what do I love as the driving force to start choosing what to include. I love playing with Ez so I checked off items one and two with a long slinky tank and tights combo! Then just go from there!

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9// SWITCH IT OUT : I kind of made this up, but it really helped me along the way when deciding what I was going to include. I made my capsule and had the full intention of sticking to it, but then I was about a week and a half in and there was a shirt I just didn’t see myself wearing. PLUS the Whitecaps were in the playoffs and I had forgotten to put my jersey in – so SWITCH!

10// SPREAD THE LOVE : Why just keep it to yourself? Challenge your family to do just the same! Next season around or even in the midst, try it out. I’ve noticed that a lot of the time when I am dressing Ez, I am constantly looking for my favourites and dressing her in the same 10 outfits every week. (yes I realize there’s only 7 days in a week, but, #toddlerlife). Try it out, test it and see if it’s a good fit for your family, it may be a fun ‘challenge’ to see who can do it and stick to it!

BONUS : MY TOP 5 PIECES TO START YOUR CAPSULE

1. Black maxi dress
2. Light jean jacket
3. White runners
4. Black ripped jeans
5. Grey slouchy t shirt

BONUS #2 : TIPS FOR CHILDS CAPSULE WARDROBE

• Stick to solid colours / black&white prints
• 5 piece ‘Rule’ – choose 5 of each (pants&tights / shirts / long sleeve / dress / shorts, depending on season)
• Don’t include accessories/under garments/outerwear
• By starting a capsule for your children you are also limiting their options and therefor encouraging and making it easier for them to start dressing themselves!

In review: At the beginning of the ‘challenge’ I was feeling a bit intimidated and felt like I wasn’t going to be able to do it, but then I got to about number 23 for pieces of clothing and I was done. There was no more pieces I would LOVE to include, so I threw in a few extra tanks and a pair of SWEATS! Lol Something that also made it easier for me to stick to the capsule was separating it from my own closet. I went out and purchased a clothing rack from IKEA ($16!) and had it just against the wall for the month.

I do have to admit though, when I was about halfway through I totally forgot about some family photos we had done with Kaptured.by.Kay and had to break the 30 piece wardrobe and wear a long slinky white knitted sweater I had at the back of my closet, oh no!(eye roll) So here’s a couple photos to justify the add-on!

Thanks for reading through my personal experience with the capsule wardrobe and I hope you’re feeling encouraged to try it out yourself! It’s amazing coming to the realization that I really only wear about 20 different pieces of clothing out of what I have! Makes me more consciously aware of buying items and encouraged to get rid of them! 

LEAVE A NOTE – I would love to hear from you and your own experience in creating and wearing a capsule wardrobe! It was such a fun challenge, and would love any extra tips or tricks on staying faithful to the one rack!

XOX Cass