8 Awesome Aspects of Creating a Capsule Wardrobe to Energize your Routine

HINT: It’s energizing because it simplifies everything! There are so many reasons that a capsule wardrobe simplifies your daily routine and beyond. So, what are the benefits of a capsule wardrobe? How can creating a capsule wardrobe simplify your life?

What are the benefits of a capsule wardrobe?

Benefits of a capsule wardrobe include having to do less laundry (woohoo!!), simplifying your morning routine, combatting decision fatigue, having a smaller ecological footprint, creating more space in your home, and feeling good in everything you put on your body. For more on how to reduce decision fatigue as part of de-stressing your life, check out my post on living a stress-free life.

Now that you have the why, let’s get into what the heck a capsule wardrobe is and what are some tips and steps to create one.

What is a capsule wardrobe?

Capsule wardrobes are those that are intentionally simple and limited only to essential pieces and those that bring you joy, with the intent of simplifying your closet and reducing the number of decisions you have to make in the day.

For that reason, many capsule wardrobes focus on quality over quantity and slow fashion over fast fashion. It is common for capsule wardrobes to be filled with sustainable and ethical pieces, which is also an intentional choice.

But for some, creating a capsule wardrobe is solely for the purpose of simplifying their morning routine or because they have limited space (hello tiny homers and mini-apt dwellers).

How can I start a capsule wardrobe?

Like all good things, it is a process… So, remember you do not need to do it all in one afternoon.

This process is what has worked for me over the last decade or so that I have been trying my absolute best to maintain a capsule wardrobe. You’ll find tips, a checklist, and steps below to get you going on your way to creating your very own capsule wardrobe.

Capsule Wardrobe Tips

Why do I care about capsule wardrobes? Because creating one can simplify your life, make your morning routine more relaxing, create intentionality around what you buy and how you spend and reduces mindless fast fashion consumption. So, with that out of the way, here are a few best practices to keep in mind as you start on your capsule creation journey.

• Basics and essentials should be neutral colors, whether black, grey, white, blue, or beige.
• The color palette of your entire wardrobe should be based on a few key neutral colors and if you want as an option, a few more playful accent colors. This helps to make paring much easier and save you time overall.
• You can add in a few items with stripes or different patterns, but my personal preference is to not go too crazy. IMHO, we tend to get sick of stripes and patterns faster than solids. 👕
• Shoes should be multi-purpose, functional, and can still be super cute. The same rules go that you want shoes that you will truly wear every day, and limit “special occasion shoes,” like the heels you always pull out for weddings, as much as possible.
• Jewelry is where I struggle the most because, for me, it tends to be more sentimental than clothes. I have jewelry from my great-grandmother, my grandmother, my mom, etc. Fortunately, I don’t have any jewelry from any Ex’s (which I’m sure my hubs is happy about). I tend to go through my jewelry a few times a year to let go of anything that either drags down my energy or I feel obligated to keep (and I would not otherwise wear it). On the plus side, jewelry takes up the least amounts of space, so if I’m lenient with myself on anything, it’s keeping pieces that I’m on the fence about or I don’t wear that often, but I love.
• Do not buy anything new! At least while you’re trying out your new wardrobe for the first few months. There may be pieces that you feel like you just have to have. Like when I found said amazeballs deer beret. In the moment, did I think it was the most amazing creation ever to be seen on earth? Yes. When I see it now do I feel the same way? No. But, I’m happy that I have a picture of the moment and it’s always there for inspiration.

Print a capsule wardrobe checklist of staples

Before you begin the following steps, you’ll want to have a sense of what should be included in a capsule wardrobe and have a reference (like a capsule wardrobe list of items). A good rule of thumb is to have about 25-50 pieces total. That may seem extreme to some, but there are plenty of people who are living it and would never go back.

The following list is a good example of what you should strive for, but everyone’s going to look a little different depending on where they live (and I didn’t include undies cause you can figure that out 😊.

• 10 t-shirts/tops
• 2 sweaters/sweatshirt
• 1 jeans
• 1 dressy pants
• 2 pajamas
• 1-3 workout pants/tops
• 1 swimsuit
• 1 winter/warm jacket
• 2 dresses
• 1 skirt
• 1 purse
• 1 winter hat
• 1 sun hat
• 1-3 scarves/mittens
• 10 pieces of your absolute favorite jewelry
• 1 watch (though I’m done with them, that’s what cell phones are for!)
• 10 socks (combo of wool, cotton, etc. based on your activities)
• 1 sneaker/athletic shoes
• 1 dressy shoes
• 1 sandals
• 1 boots
• 1 slipper/house shoes
• 1 hiking boots or any other you need for a hobby

Consider the benefits of owning fewer possessions: less to clean, less debt, less to organize, less stress, more money and energy.

-K. Collins

Steps to Create a Capsule Wardrobe

Put all your clothes and shoes in a big pile

Next, take everything out of your closet and drawers and pile them all on your bed or the floor if there is too much.

There is a visceral reality-punch when you see that great big pile of fabric and start to think about how much you spent to get that great big pile of fabric over the years. Then, think about how much you ACTUALLY wear. 😵

My bet is if you are anything like me, it’s about 10%. And do not cheat, I mean EVERYTHING needs to be in that pile. If you have winter clothes up in the attic, drag them out. If your swimsuits are under the bed for the season, they go on the pile.

Sort your clothes

The next step is to start the sorting process. It is not as fun as getting picked by the sorting hat at Hogwarts, but it can be pretty dang rewarding pretty quickly.

Ok, so get a few pieces of paper and a marker and write need, want, meh, and toss.

Need is for items like work-issued boots or anything that is personalized, for example, if you are a new mom and need to have a nursing bra or anything like that.

Want is for anything that brings you joy or is a great staple. Think of your absolute favorite dress that makes you feel super sexy or your favorite jeans.

Meh is anything you pick up and are ambivalent about. If you don’t have an instantaneous reaction, it should go into the meh pile.

Toss is for items you haven’t worn in over a year (be strict about this one because no you aren’t going to wear it if <insert whatever excuse you’re thinking of>.), anything that is discolored/stained/holes that are not intentional (I see you pre-ripped jeans), and EVERYTHING that makes you feel dumpy, frumpy, uncomfortable, or doesn’t fit you today. Now, I know the saying, “Beauty is pain, dahling,” but f*ck that sh*t. You can 100% be fashionable without messing up your back with shoes that don’t fit and hinder your ability to walk correctly and wear pants that allow you to breathe.

If you get anxious, just take a deep breath, take a break, walk away, and remember-this is a choice. There is no set rule, but the more you let go, the more space you create for new energy to flow in.

Clean house

Here’s where the fresh start brings in new energy and starts to feel amazing.

Move all of the clothes in the meh and toss piles into bags and boxes. I do not like to use garbage bags myself, because it seems so freakin wasteful. I use old boxes, bags I already have around the house, and even old sheets that are ready to move along (lay sheet flat, clothes go on top, then pull the sheet together and tie it up).

Take it all and put it in the garage, in the trunk, anywhere that makes it easy to get to the donation station. If you’re confident you won’t regret getting rid of anything, don’t hesitate and bring all of your lovingly donated clothes to your local dropoff box or thrift store.

If this is all super new to you, you can hold off and live with your new wardrobe for a few months while storing everything away. But do not go in there and pull anything out. The whole point is to try it out and I guarantee the majority of stuff you’ll forget you ever had. And if there’s something you put in that you just cannot stop thinking about, well then maybe it has a spot in your closet after all.

Now an excuse that I’ve heard a ton is that it’s wasteful to get rid of all of these clothes that you’ve spent money on and barely worn. I disagree entirely. You already spent the money on clothes you don’t wear.

Getting rid of perfectly good items may seem wasteful, but that’s not where we went wrong. It was wasteful to purchase it. Now we are just acknowledging it.

— Rachelle Crawford

Buying clothes you never wear was the wasteful action, to begin with.

Now, you are donating the clothes to people who will actually make use of them and maybe will reduce the number of new clothes that they buy. It’s a win-win, and remember that it’s good to pass it forward, do good deeds, and share the wealth. It feels good! 🤩

Le Fin

I hope this sparks some excitement for you if you’re considering a capsule wardrobe as a way to simplify your life and leave a little bit lighter of a footprint. Let me know in the comments if you still have questions or if there’s anything else you want to know about how a capsule wardrobe can simplify your closet and your life! And if you want even more inspo, check out Courtney Carver’s tips on where to find it.