Table of Contents
Capsule Wardrobe: How to build a timeless and sustainable closet
A capsule wardrobe is the perfect idea to simplify your closet, do more good for the environment and stop following every seasonal fad. We put together an easy 7 -step guide to create your own capsule wardrobe and start your journey to a closet full of clothes that you love!
Here's everything you need to know about how to create a sustainable capsule wardrobe.
First, what is a capsule wardrobe?
The term 'capsule wardrobe' was coined in the 1970s by British boutique owner Susie Faux from a frustration of too little high-quality clothing in the fashion world. Instead of buying more and more, she advocated a collection of selected items that can be worn all-year round and don't go out of style. The idea gained in popularity in the 1980s, when influential designer Donna Karan released her collection of “Seven Easy Pieces” for working women.
With the rise of fast fashion - one of the dirtiest industries in the world - the concept of a capsule wardrobe today is as important as ever. Creating a sustainable capsule wardrobe means to be conscious about the clothes that we own, uncluttering our closets and creating an essential wardrobe where we love every single piece.
The Benefits of Capsule Wardrobe
Creating a capsule wardrobe has numerous benefits that go beyond just simplifying your closet.
According to a recent study by the International Journal of Market Research, participants who adopted a 3-week capsule wardrobe felt less stressed, detached from fashion trends, and experienced a newfound joy in their fashion style.
Additionally, a well-curated capsule wardrobe can save you money in the long run since the pieces are interchangeable, versatile, and high-quality. Instead of buying new clothes every month, you can use your capsule wardrobe season after season.
Furthermore, creating a capsule wardrobe can make you more sustainable by reducing textile waste, which in the U.S. alone generates over 15 million tons every year. By designing a capsule wardrobe, you'll be lowering your carbon footprint and avoiding the exploitation of human and environmental resources that come with overconsumption.
The Basics: 7 Steps to a capsule wardrobe for women.
Ready to start? Here is a step-by-step guide to build a capsule wardrobe with timeless wardrobe pieces.
Step 1 - Out in the open
Photo by © Ketut Subiyanto Pexels
Start out by taking all clothes from your closet (including shoes and accessories) and spreading them all out on your bed and floor. It is important to have an overview of everything that you own and you might be surprised about what is hiding in the darkest corners of your closet. It will also make you realise how many clothes you own and how much we spend on pieces that we rarely wear.
Step 2 - Narrow it down to your timeless wardrobe essentials
Time for spring cleaning! Now that you can see all your clothes in one place, ask yourself the following questions for each item:
- “Do I still like it?”
- “Have I worn it in the past 6 months?”
- “Will I wear it in the next 3-6 months?”
If the answer is “no” for either question, it is time to let go and move these items to a goodbye pile. You can bring clothes on this pile to a second-hand store or donate them, but there might also be some items that are ready for the trash. Even though this part might be a bit tough, a capsule wardrobe is about owning timeless wardrobe pieces that you really need. We promise that you will feel great after.
Step 3 - What to know about a capsule wardrobe for women
Before it is time to build up your capsule wardrobe for years to come, there are a few important considerations to keep in mind.
How many clothes should be in a capsule wardrobe?The goal of an essential capsule wardrobe is to possess around 35 to 50 items at most, including all accessories like bags, purses, shoes and scarves. However, you don't need to include any underwear, sleepwear or workout clothes in this count. If you are starting to experiment with a capsule wardrobe, 50 items is a great number and you can challenge yourself to go lower as time goes on.
The number that you choose also depends on the space of your current closet and if you live in an environment that is continually changing temperature.
Step 4 - Let's talk about capsule wardrobe colors
What should be the base of my capsule wardrobe?To make it easy to combine and match your outfits, it is best to choose neutral colors and basic designs for the essential pieces of your wardrobe. Denim, sand, gray, black, white, and navy are all colors that are great to have in your capsule wardrobe. Neutral, timeless colors make it easy for you to create an unlimited number of combinations with the other pieces that you have in your wardrobe.
Some recommend choosing one main base color like navy or black for your wardrobe, but we think it is fine to have more than one base color. In the end, every taste and capsule wardrobe is different and you will know what is best for yourself. Thereby you could also choose your favorite color as a base color. It’s all up to you! Although it would make sense to choose a color you are wearing the most.
Get neutral color timeless wardrobe essentials
If you have only chosen one or two base colors it might be a good idea to invest in some neutral color essentials. Choose these essentials, such as t-shirts or pants, in colors, that coordinate well with the base colors and each other. These pieces never go out of style! Some great neutral colors are: white, beige, gray or colors in the brown spectrum. But again, it’s YOUR wardrobe and YOU need to feel (and look) good.
Think about accent colors and patterns.
Not everyone wants to wear black, white and blue all the time. If you're afraid of your outfits becoming too boring, you can always consider adding accent pieces into your capsule closet essentials. These accent colors or pieces can be used to give the rest of your neutral pieces a brand-new look.
Accent pieces don't necessarily have to be colorful. Instead, you could experiment with different patterns or new fits that you've never worn before. If there is a trend going on that includes the usage of loud patterns, try it out with an accent piece/accessoire first. If you don’t like the trend in a few months, you didn’t spend a lot of money on a fast, trendy product. But again, if you love certain prints and wear them all the time, go ahead and buy some essentials with that print/pattern.
Textures - a great way to stand out
Using different textures may be the easiest way to put a twist on an outfit. As always, you decide how many and which textures you want to incorporate into your essential wardrobe. Some famous textures are: denim, tweed and knits.
The final touches to your sustainable capsule wardrobe
To complete your capsule wardrobe you can use accessories, such as handbags, scarfs, a necklace or rings. The easiest way to incorporate them is to get them in your base color or the color of your neutral essentials. But as mentioned before, you totally can use accessories to bring a splash of color, a pattern or a new texture into your outfit.
At the end of the day you need to be happy about your new essential capsule wardrobe. The whole point of a capsule wardrobe is to spend less time and money and consume less fashion items. There are no rules about capsule wardrobe colors. Sometimes creating a color palette can help you visualize the combinations and guide you while shopping. Choose colors that you wear often and make you feel and look good.
Step 5 - Select your timeless wardrobe pieces & find your style
Photo by © Andrej Lišakov Unsplash
Now comes the moment of truth: making the final selection of your capsule wardrobe pieces. For this, we recommend getting out a pen and paper and making a list of all the pieces that will go back into your closet. Here is some simple math that should help. Generally, your accessories will be about 10 items, so if you want to cap your capsule wardrobe at 50 pieces, that leaves you with 40 actual clothing items. On your piece of paper, list all categories of clothing that you need, such as jeans, dresses, blouses, t-shirts and blazers. It will look something like this:
- T-Shirts:
- Sweaters:
- Jeans:
- Skirt:
- Purses:
- …
Now, write down all the individual pieces that you want to own behind each category, until you reach the maximum of 40 items. Next, also list all your accessories like purses, jewellery and shoes, making sure you don't go over 50 (or a lower number that you defined). And that leaves you with your timeless wardrobe pieces, it's as simple as that!
At the same time, it also helps to think about your wardrobe in terms of outfits. Make sure that for different occasions like work, home or going out, you always have some easy outfits in mind. Of course, it is best to have clothes that work for multiple occasions. But it is also great to know that you always have some nice combinations for any setting in mind.
Step 6 - Refill with these capsule wardrobe clothing brands
Even though a capsule wardrobe is about consuming less than more, you might find that you still need one or two staple pieces to complete it. It is absolutely fine to go out and buy a few high-quality and organic basics that match with the rest of your wardrobe. Check out our Fair Fashion Basics, where you can find wonderfully soft, sustainable and long-lasting basics that you will love to wear on many occasions.
Or get some great capsule closet essentials at…
Reformation
Reformation specializes in women's clothing and accessories. The sustainable fashion brand based in Los Angeles has a focus on using eco-friendly and sustainable materials in its products and manufacturing processes. They are especially great for your outstanding accent pieces.
Armed Angels
Armed Angels is a German sustainable fashion brand that offers a range of clothing and accessories for men and women. The brand focuses on using environmentally friendly and fair production processes. Their many basic clothes are ideal for someone who wants to build a sustainable capsule wardrobe.
JAN N JUNE
JAN N JUNE is passionate about creating fashion for women. The brand has a strong focus on sustainability and an environmentally friendly production and offers GOTS-certified clothing. JAN N JUNE offer minimalistic basics as well as special eye-catcher.
Thinking Mu
Thinking Mu’s “Essentials” collection is the ideal starting point, if you are looking to build a sustainable capsule wardrobe.
Sezane
Sezane is a French online fashion brand known for its timeless, stylish designs. It doesn’t matter what you are looking for. Sezane probably has it.
ADAY
The New York based fashion brand offers a range of beautiful women's clothing. ADAY actually already features different capsule collection categories. Check them out if you are looking for functional or timeless apparel for your capsule collection.
Dawn Denim
If you are looking for a pair of sustainable jeans, Dawn Denim is the way to go. And let’s be honest, a nice fitting pair of denim jeans is truly a timeless wardrobe piece.
Kings of Indigo
Recycled materials in its high-quality and environmentally-friendly designs. What more could one ask for? Kings of Indigo specializes in denim products but also offers a range of other sustainable clothes.
ASKET
With their permanent collection, ASKET creates the perfect conditions for an essential capsule wardrobe for men and women.
[eyd]
[eyd] creates meaningful essentials for men and women. The products offered by them are designed with simplicity and versatility in mind, offering timeless pieces that can be worn for years to come.
FILIPPA K
The scandinavian fashion brand FILIPPA K creates beautiful minimalistic clothes. The sustainable materials in combination with the timeless design create fashion pieces that are perfectly suited for a high quality capsule wardrobe.
There are many more capsule wardrobe clothing brands that are just as beautiful as the ones listed above. We just wanted to give you a small selection of brands that we found and are convinced of.
Step 7 - Enjoy your new capsule wardrobe
Most importantly, building a capsule wardrobe is not about sacrificing something, but enjoying the process. By learning how to build a sustainable capsule wardrobe, you can focus on creating a closet full of clothes that make you happy and feel good. Plus, you'll be helping to save the environment (and your budget) in the meantime. Have fun!
And that's how you create a beautiful capsule wardrobe for women
Creating a capsule wardrobe is a matter of creativity & discipline, of many simple & few extraordinary pieces, of trial & error. It can be a great project to accomplish within a week or a lifetime. There’s no wrong and right, just steps in the right direction!
Photo © Ksenia Chernaya Pexels
In our own research for an essential capsule wardrobe, we found so many great tips & how to’s that we just have to share with you:
- This YouTube video is a step-by-step guide to build your capsule wardrobe. Also, it provides a free PDF guide that helps you follow the steps
- This article provides you with 27 pieces a stylist would advise you to incorporate into your capsule wardrobe.
- Learn more about how different bloggers interpret and live the capsule wardrobe lifestyle here.
- We absolutely love Goop by Gwyneth Paltrow - definitely check out this great piece about creating a lean closet!
