By January, I had been eyeing the book The life-changing magic of tidying up, by Marie Kondo for some time, so finally I picked it up. I absolutely loved this book and it sent me on a household purging mission that is ongoing and led me to creating my very own wardrobe capsule.
Kondo recommends holding every item you own and while holding it asking yourself if the item brings you joy. I cull my wardrobe regularly so I didn’t expect to get rid of much clothing with this new technique. To my surprise by the end of the process I had four bags of clothes for donation and two bags for consignment.
Where did all of this come from?!, I asked myself. Although most of my everyday wardrobe stayed intact, I filled numerous bags with loungewear, activewear, socks and accessories.
This small exercise of holding each piece and asking myself if it brought joy gave me permission to let go of things that I normally would have thought, I’ll hang onto this ‘just in case’. This is especially true when it came to letting go of beautiful investment clothing that no longer fit or felt like me (there are very few pieces that still bring joy when they don’t actually fit!), and jewellery that I usually feel quite fierce about hanging onto.
When I looked at what was left I felt so happy, free, and wonderfully cleansed.
It was this feeling that made me realize I needed my capsule wardrobe to include everything in my wardrobe, not just the pieces I wear during the day.
Often examples for wardrobe capsules don’t include all the pieces you actually need in your wardrobe for it to be fully complete.
A French wardrobe capsule example I love
Where do pyjamas fit into this capsule or running gear or socks?
Also, most often these wardrobe capsules are also based on wardrobes in temperate climates—weather in Paris has high temperature averages of 25°C (77°F) and doesn’t ever get much cooler than 5°C (41°F).
Contrast this to Toronto weather where it easily gets to -40°C (-40°F) in the winter and +40°C (104°F) in the summer. Summer and Winter in Toronto are completely different and require some clothing suitable for both.
My head-to-toe wardrobe capsule design
After doing lots of research, I decided that I really needed to create my own wardrobe capsule system to suit my specific needs. Here are the important points I focused on to create my wardrobe capsule:
1. I live in a city with extreme summer and winter seasons.
2. I don’t want to switch my closets over so all my clothes need to live in one place throughout the entire year.
3. I only want to inventory my closet twice per year.
4. I want to account for every single piece in every category of clothing in my closet—if I leave out certain categories in my wardrobe capsule like loungewear or intimates, those categories will just build up.
5. I want a simplified wardrobe with choice.
6. My days are spent mostly in smart casual clothing (for business attire modifications see this comment).
7. I want to do two big shops per year but keep my options open to browse and pick things up as I see them if I want to.
Download a pdf version of the head-to-toe wardrobe capsule.
There are 133 items listed in the wardrobe capsule above not counting jewellery and silk scarves (which are jewellery to me). (When I thought about including jewellery in my wardrobe capsule I felt constricted so I left them out.)
In addition to the pieces above I’ve given myself 10 “play pieces” to work with. These are pieces that I feel are works of art and I’m so drawn to I can’t pass up, but might not fit very well into the categories of this wardrobe capsule. I’ve also given myself 10 stored pieces. For me, these are vintage and designer pieces that no longer fit but I don’t want to get rid of and a few maternity pieces.
That makes the total number of pieces in this entire wardrobe capsule system 153.
A little note: I wear loungewear for pyjamas, if you don’t you will want to add two pairs of pyjamas to your capsule wardrobe.
A work in progress
I believe that the greatest styles and wardrobes evolve as the women who wear them do. I have no doubts that this wardrobe capsule will evolve as I gain experience with the system. I can feel in my bones that I will likely shave the listed number down by at least ten, and I think that change may even happen this year.
It’s really important to allow yourself this flexibility as well.
Currently, I have 114 pieces in my closet of the “ideal” 153 listed above. I don’t know if I will ever actually have 153 pieces in my closet as I ebb and flow through the seasons.
Of the 114 pieces I own, I have too many in some categories (mostly shoes!) but since I know each of these pieces bring me joy it seems silly to let them go just because they don’t fit into my new system. I’ve decided that I will let them go as feels right and not replace them until my new system tells me I need to.
Making a wardrobe capsule of your own
Could you use the system I’ve designed exactly as it is in your own wardrobe or tweak it a little to work for you?
Are you starting with a few less pieces so a smaller wardrobe capsule might work better for you to start… or forever?
If you sat down and thought about it, what are the 3-5 things that matter to you when it comes to creating a wardrobe capsule. I highly recommend writing these motivations down so you have them in front of you as you decide what direction you’d like to take your wardrobe.
Pinnable
Hi Wen – I love this (it totally works with my anal retentive organizing and streamlining!) Curious about how you would add a conservative work wardrobe into the mix, that is what I struggle with the most as I feel I essentially need to have 2 separate wardrobes, currently they really don’t cross-over at all.
xo
Gillian
Hey Gillian! I have been thinking about corporate and how this would be modified for that. Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.
1. Outerwear: Stays the same. Your wool and lightweight coat would be for work. The rain jacket and puffer coat for casual.
2. Layers: Both blazers need to be work appropriate. The cardigans would be best if you could use them for both work and casual. The pullover sweaters could go either way (casual or work) depending on how you usually wear them (perhaps one is specifically work, one specifically casual and one could be used for both).
3. Tops: Personally I would try to buy sleeveless or short sleeve blouses that transfer from corporate to weekend, but if that doesn’t really work for you, you could add 3 weekend tops to the mix.
4. Bottoms: Both skirts would be for work and the “casual pants” OR the “casual jeans” would need to be dress pants. That gives you four bottoms for work (you can match these to your the blazers if you need to wear suits).
5. Shoes: The “pumps” would need to be good for work. You might want to switch one of the “casual walking flats” for another pump or work appropriate shoe.
6. Dresses: I would do 2 out of 3 of each of the day dress categories for work and the other one for weekend. So 4 of 6 for work, 2 of 6 for casual. If you have to wear a suit everyday, ideally two of these dresses match the two blazers you have.
The rest would stay the same.
If you need to wear a suit absolutely everyday you might want to consider adding a third three-to-four-piece suit (skirt and/or dress, pant, blazer) to the mix.
Also, remember you have 10 extra “play pieces” to work with if you need them.
I like it!!! I’m going to start my own spreadsheet (you are creating a monster!)
That’s great Gillian! I can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Hi Wendy!
I just read your capsule wardrobe article and had to mention firstly that you have done a tremendous amount of work scaling down your wardrobe – I’m truly impressed – and secondly you may enjoy reading a funny article by Samantha Bee in the June 2015 Chatelaine about her reading of the Marie Kondo book and her follow-up. It’ s on the last page of the magazine.
Take care and again thank you for your tips.
Hugs,
Elaine
Awesome, thanks Elaine! I will keep my eyes peeled for the article!
Not a snark, it’s a lovely article with great tips! Just one little typo, in this sentence; “Although most of my everyday wardrobe stayed in tack”
I think you mean “intact.
Keep up the good work!
Hi John, thanks for looking out for me! All fixed! 😀
This is such a great little exercise in managing your closet! I also read and fell in love with the KonMarie method, and it really changed my life!! Now I am in continual purge mode, as I already did one full sweep of my house. Moving makes that easier!! I don’t think i own 153 pieces in my closet, but I do see there are certain categories where I have too much and other categories not enough! This would be a good guide for me to even it out for a more complete look. Found you on Pinterest. Thanks for the article!
So happy you found this Michelle and that it can help!
Intimates is an area where I really struggle to pair down – I feel like I need so many different things. I noticed you only list two “regular” bras – a t-shirt bra and a strapless bra. Are you really able to wear a bra every day with only two items in your wardrobe? I also find it difficult to make interesting outfits in deep winter. I get too cold without a pullover sweater on, but sweaters also cover up everything else I’m wearing and tend to overwhelm the look. If I only have 3 sweaters, I feel like I only have three outfits for mid-January through mid-March. How do you handle this?
Hi Jen, great questions! I actually do only use those two bras, but I would say I’m the opposite of you in that undergarments aren’t my favourite thing to shop for. Know that you can survive with only these two bras and cull from there. It may not feel comfortable for you at this time (or ever!) to go to this few bras, so you don’t have to… but it’s nice to know that you can easily let go of some of the pieces that are no longer bringing joy.
As for the sweaters, I get what you’re saying! I like to switch things up by pairing with different bottoms and I switch the sweaters up for a different layer like blazers. That said, I will definitely wear the same sweater more than once a week. Also, if you’re not a cardigan person (I’m not right now) you could easily sub 2 pullovers for the cardigans and have plenty of options (this is what I’ve done this season).
It’s important to note that there are also 10 “play pieces” in the system so you can always use those if you feel you need more in any particular category.
Another note, there are no steadfast rules when it comes to this kind of thing. My wardrobe is constantly evolving and so it should. As I evolve, my wardrobe needs to come with me otherwise it will no longer reflect the person I am. This system is what worked for me when I wrote it and it works for me now too, with a few tweaks here and there. However, this outline might not feel entirely right for you. I encourage you to give yourself permission to shape and mould this outline into a wardrobe system that bring you personal joy!
I love this concept, have been researching “how to’s” for weeks, and I think you have put together the most helpful article/blog post I’ve read. So thank you!
I work with university aged students, so I mostly wear casual outfits, but I also need a few professional outfits for faculty meetings. I can see how using the dresses/skirts would be an obvious solution, but I am not much of a dress/skirt person, how would you suggest adapting?
Also, my husband’s family business belongs to several associations that have a couple annual events where many folks attend both. Do I need to just “get over” the fear of people realizing I’m wearing the same outfits all the time, or is this where a “Rent the Runway” service would be useful?
I appreciate any (additional 🙂 help you can offer. Happy New Year!
Tammera J.
Thanks for the comment Tammera and I’m so happy to hear this article is helpful to you!
To answer the first questions I would recommend playing with bottoms and blazers to up the anti. For example a nice blazer can be worn with jeans or dress pants. I am also picturing dress pants that can be worn with a blouse and sweater for more casual and a blazer for more formal. You could even go for a suit but if you don’t need a suit for your meetings a blazer and co-ordinating pants is much more versatile in your closet.
As for the annual events you could do a combination. A neutral coloured outfit that you can switch up with different accessories is a lovely choice. Wear with bold jewellery one time and a scarf draped another time for example. Or chandelier earrings one time and a bold necklace another time. Borrowing services are excellent. Love that idea! You could also buy and sell pieces but this could get time consuming. My opinion is that we all need to get over the idea of wearing the same outfit to multiple events. It’s not good for society as a whole to be consuming so many clothes so why do we need that pressure to wear something different all the time. It also encourages us to buy only things we absolutely adore. The other quick thought that came to me for your events is to have three outfits you rotate through for events. If you can do it in separates that can be mixed and matched that could be fun too! There’s no right or wrong answer here so have fun trying out a few options and see what feels best for you!
Thanks so much for a capsule wardrobe that includes SEASONS in it! I’ve scoured Pinterest and finally discovered your system. Tennessee may sound like a warm place to be, but we go from below zero (F) to 105°F so we actually have all the same weather fun as you do!
So tired of French capsule wardrobes with non-colors that make me look dead. Lol.
Great idea adding the 10 flex pieces for parties, sentiment, and variety!
My pleasure! So happy to hear it’s working for you!
Hi Wendy – I randomly came across “capsule wardrobe” on Pinterest about a year ago, and I’m really interested in trying this because I feel like I have a lot of clothes yet very few pieces I ever actually love to wear. One of the things that’s holding me back is that reducing the number of pieces in my wardrobe reduces my flexibility in clothing options when items begin to fade/wear. Practically speaking, are you basically going through your clothes every week and having to wash/dryclean that regularly? I understand your categories of outerwear, layers, and maybe bottoms don’t necessarily need to be washed after each wear, and higher quality garments will hold up better over time. Even so, what are your observations with regards to how often clothes is washed and how often they need to be replaced?
Hi Melissa, I totally understand your concern as it was one of mine too… but something really cool happened/is happening as I journey through this way of simplified living. I find I wash my clothes way less in general. For example, I’ll wear a silk camisole between my skin and a sweater in the winter. I will spot clean the sweater if it needs it… and only wash wash it when it’s actually dirty. With this, my sweaters will only get washed once or twice a season/year… and I wear them regularly. Any natural fibre can be hung and aired out to remove smells/freshen them up and you can even get mists to freshen the scent more if you like that sort of thing. The clothes I’m buying are of a quality that they continue to last and I don’t want to replace them because I still love them. That’s not to say that pieces don’t wear out… they do. When they do they get replaced, but that is happening a lot less than I thought it would.
Just a side note on an effective “mist” to keep on hand – I learned online about using a half water/half vodka solution to remove perspiration odors and have been amazed how well this works. Its saved some of my hubby’s shirts from the trash bin, because sometimes you can’t get those odors out even with a good wash, especially if there is a high polyester content. I use it to freshen items that should not be washed too frequently too.
Sidenote, I don’t care for vodka, but I guess if you did you would have to take precautions to not drink up your freshening mist!
Thank you so much for this! I needed this! I’m starting to play with the idea of a capsule wardrobe, but I have to contend with Minnesota weather (basically Toronto) and I don’t have the budget for a new wardrobe each season. Plus I have the tendency to stockpile all the “other” stuff like you. It was like reading about my life a few months from now.
Awesome, so happy to hear you can relate!
Hi Wendy, I live in Montreal and while I love Marie Kondo and Jennifer L Smith books on minimalist happy wardrobe I always struggled with my wardrobe for exactly same reason – weather -40C to 40 C. Extreme temperatures like that can’t be solved by layering. I loved your approach and how you organized everything by category. I started taking inventory of my clothes yesterday and am curious to what # I will arrive at with your method.
Thank you for posting this!
My pleasure Julia! I’m so happy to hear this is helpful for you!
Thanks for a much more realistic take on the capsule wardrobe concept. Most of the “capsule wardrobes” out there are so pared down they bore me to tears and dont work for extreme temperature variations, as you noted. The only change I would make in your great list is more pants/slacks. I work in an office, and though I am very feminine in my choices of color and style, I hate wearing skirts and dresses and only wear them for special occasions and religious functions. So up it to three pairs of office worthy pants in neutral colors, and I’m on board!
Great, make that change and you’re off to the races!
Thanks for the article. It was perfect. I first heard of it like a week ago when one of my friends tweeted about it. I wondered how a shopping addict could do it esp. in Chicago with crazy weather but low and behold you made it work. I have tons of clothes and wind up confused. Me and my boyfriend use the laundromat and have tons of I am too lazy to wash but H&M have like 4 dollar shirts and one of my favorites has skirts for like 2.99. It gives perspective for future purchases.
Great to hear Chyra!
I can’t get a handle of mine due to the fact I no longer work. For some strange reason I have kept a few items. I need to get rid of these. I want things to stay within 3 colors. I mostly spend day in jeans but 1 pair of dress slacks would be sufficient. I love that dress jeans are mentioned. I also wear t-shirts regardless of hot or cold weather and layer as needed. I guess I wish someone would come up with a capsule for us stay at home people. So far that’s as far as I have gotten on my own. I’m always cold so I have more hoodies for inside the home during winter. Problem is that I want to dress appropriate for my age but be comfortable as well . I have a shoe fetish. But I did manage to donate clothes twice as I organized closet. I really just want to get up and look polished not like a typical person that just throws on whatever. Help? I loved your way and wish I had it while working. Thank you.
Hi Edna! Have you had a chance to look at the online personal shopping service I offer? It might feel great for you! http://www.therefinery.ca/online-personal-shopping
Hi,
I’ve been searching for awhile to find a take on the minimalist wardrobe that suits me- and yours is it! Taking down an entire wardrobe (especially for the shoe obsessed) to 50 items is extremely difficult, I’m glad that you show there can be a middle ground. Thank you for this post it has really helped me start my purge 😀
That’s so great to hear Sara!
Hi, I just came across your article and just loved it. So simple and yet very detailed! Thank you so much 🙂 It will help a lot to organise my wardrobe. As well I have a question about the colours. What are the best colours to be used for the whole year round? What options you could suggest? Many Thanks
Hi Elvina, colours are so personal and many can be worn year ’round. You can never go wrong with neutrals like black, white, navy, brown, gray, however why not pink and purple and green and yellow and all shades of blue? Really any colour of the rainbow can be worn at any time of year as long as it feels good for you. You can dive into colours through these posts: https://www.therefinery.ca/refined/soft-colours.html
I recently retired and downsized from a three story city house to a bungalow in the Pocono Mountains. We have very variable weather with an extended winter. This is a resort community so there is outdoor recreation year round. I dressed every day for work but find I now have to balance out my corporate look with more casual looks. Working the seasonal capsule concept, I still find I have too much clothing even though I gave my daughter 2 large trash bags of clothes. Your article on the multi season capsule gave me the courage to start attacking the summer clothes stored under the bed. I really believe I can make this work. Your plan avoids the panicky feeling that you are not keeping enough but is also “need” flexible. I can adjust according to my own personal lifestyle. My goal is to have all my clothes in my closet with room to spare. No under bed storage! I thank you and my allergies thank you.
That’s awesome Kathleen! I’m cheering you on from Toronto. So happy the article could help!
Handbags and jewelry are definitely my downfall. I can’t seem to bring myself to limiting them. *sigh*
Luckily all my jewelry fits in a jewelry box a little larger than a shoe box. The handbags are a whole other story.
Hi ! Have just come across your article and plan and I really love it – can’t wait to get going in my own wardrobe that is an absolutely shambles !!! Do you have equivalent a male wardrobe recommendation by chance, or one in the pipeline? My husband has more clothes than me and could do with some help l!! Thank
So glad it’s helpful for you! I don’t have one for men as all my work is focused on women.
Finally a Capsule Wardrobe that sounds realistic for me! I cleaned my closet out with Mari Kondo a year and a half ago. What a mistake! I ended up spending literally thousands of dollars replacing my wardrobe! It was too paired down for me. I have now approached things by forming several Capsule Wardrobes for specific needs ie evening dressy, dressy casual, lounge wear . This approach is working for me.
I totally get that feeling of being too paired down! Glad this approach is working for you!
Thanks for the blog! Your capsule wardrobe looks very organised.
Hi! That seems like a very smart plan! As a Canadian, I particularly enjoyed and appreciated your take on things; yes, four coats are a necessary minimum in most Canadian cities and I’ve lived through similar temperature ranges in Quebec. Indeed, as I often read in French, I’m a bit stunned by the posts from France that include just one coat. (Although I currently live in Africa and have zero, but that’s a whole other story.) One thing I find hard to keep control of is traditional clothing. It’s so creative and colourful and there are always new styles coming out. I try hard to stick to a palette, but then I’ll see a wax or batik fabric in all these wonderful colours, and just melt. The worst of it is that the prints are often full of brights that are not always grounded by something nice and neutral, like black or navy. I used to wear metallics with them, but they feel very stale to me now and I long for neutrals (I have been trying to limit my shoe and handbag wardrobe to black and tan). I don’t wear nude colours because they look very washed out on me (I noticed them in your shoe choices… and wondered if you were blonde!) Any ideas for shoes to wear with colourful African prints? Lots of the local ladies have whole wardrobes of shoes in red, green, pink, purple, yellow, blue and so on. But they often just carry a little pochette, not even a real clutch, often in black, but it’s barely visible anyway and isn,t really a part of the outfit. I can’t do that, I’m one of those people who needs a purse with my money, cards, phone, tissues, lip balm, a book, keys and a few other items. Around here, you can have shoes made quite easily in any colour, but not handbags. There isn’t much of an artisanal handbag industry where I live and the people who do make them command high prices! So I want to stick to a small, versatile shoe-and-bag wardrobe that goes with everything. Do you have any ideas? Thanks in advance!
Hi Wendy
I live in Toronto as well and I’m feeling inspired to do a capsule wardrobe. I’ve been reading about them for 2 years , liked the idea but could never bring myself to embrace 50 items of clothing for a whole year.
And Carole Small-Diop I hear you when it comes to African clothing, I find it impossible to pare down so I have a separate armoire for them and consider it a separate wardrobe altogether. I’ve recently added to that collection during a summer trip mostly gifts from family and friends, doesn’t really make sense to have that many when I live here but couldn’t say no.