Or simplify to build an ethical wardrobe.
Once you’ve determined your personal style, and assessed what you already have, you have the perfect foundation for a capsule wardrobe. Building a capsule wardrobe is an easy way of saying “create a more simplified approach to your wardrobe.” You may not need 37 pieces (or 10 or 22 or 50 or whatever the new capsule-wardrobe expert is saying), but an important step in building an ethical wardrobe is to create a simple wardrobe.
Why create a capsule?
Well, once you’ve assessed what you have, if you simplify the existing pieces down to a capsule wardrobe, you are more able to keep your wardrobe simple.
Four ways a capsule wardrobe helps you to build an ethical wardrobe:
- You are less likely to over buy. Once you’ve created a capsule based on your lifestyle and personal style, you have a guideline of what you might need. In an effort to keep your wardrobe concise, you are less likely to buy unnecessary pieces. And, if you follow certain capsule wardrobe rules, you won’t buy anything at all until the next season.
- You are less likely to buy things that don’t work. When you have a capsule wardrobe, you may me less likely to impulse buy things that don’t work with your existing pieces and don’t work with your lifestyle.
- You are less likely to buy things of lower quality. When you know that each item in your wardrobe really needs to wear well when worn a lot, you are more likely to commit to buying higher quality clothing.
- You will definitely get 30+ wears.
For many women, building a capsule wardrobe is a great way to not only stick with your established personal style, but to help control spending on clothes. It is also the start of a purposeful, pared-down, more sustainable closet. A closet that gives us one less thing to worry about and a few fewer decisions in the morning, which leads to a bit more ease each day. It also allows to more clearly see what we have, so we don’t make duplicate purchases.
Building a capsule wardrobe is not about shopping.
A capsule wardrobe (like building an ethical wardrobe) should not be an excuse to buy more (I think that is probably pretty obvious by now!). Instead it should be used to simplify getting dressed and help make future purchasing decisions a little easier. After a careful analysis of your lifestyle, personal style, and what you already have, building a capsule wardrobe is a possible next step in building an ethical wardrobe.
I have not created an official capsule wardrobe, but I wear the same handful of t-shirts, jeans, old cardigans, and yoga pants every day. Most of the time, I wear my Birkenstocks or my Rothy’s. Working at home with kids has made wearing a capsule almost instinctual rather than planned. It isn’t official, but it is definitely limited.
Creating an official capsule wardrobe, hung neatly in my closet, for a specific season is something that has been on my list for quite some time (maybe this spring?). But, because I have never done it, I am not going to give advice on how to do it. Instead, I am going to give you a few resources that I think are helpful in creating a capsule wardrobe.
For advice on all things capsule wardrobe, visit Un-Fancy, a blog almost completely dedicated to starting and maintaining a capsule wardrobe. This post is a great starter.
Each of us has different needs and different lifestyles (think work from home v. in an office, travels a lot or never, has kids v. doesn’t) and certainly different climates (and daily climate changes) that make defining a capsule wardrobe difficult. For some advice on how many pieces to include in yours, take a look here.
And, if you’d like an argument against the capsule, take a look here.
And again, creating a capsule wardrobe is not a reason to go out and buy exactly 37 perfectly neutral, wonderfully interchangeable elevated basics. It is a way to scale down, appreciate what you have, buy high quality clothing, when necessary, and then wear it, a lot.
And once I eventually do create a pared down wardrobe, I will certainly share it with you.
How to Build an Ethical Wardrobe When You Don’t Know Where to Begin
Step 3: Find your personal style
Step 4: Assess what you already have (and love)
Step 5: Consider a uniform or capsule wardrobe, You’re here!
Step 6: Clean out your closet responsibly