Capsule Fall/Winter 2014 Wrap-Up

Well, I made it. Even though I came close to giving up by the end, I made it through three months of capsule wardrobe (with a bit of cheating along the way).  Yeah, there are a few outfits that I like, but overall, I have to declare that this capsule is a failure. My goal is to simplify and cut down on my wardrobe, and I ended up buying way too many new pieces and being bored out of my mind with my clothes. Before we go into what went wrong, though, let’s see what I wore.

A few things got worn more than shown here (the black sweatshirt, the cable knit sweaters), but most of those are repeated outfits so I didn’t take photos of them.

Now, just because it was a failure doesn’t mean that I didn’t learn anything from this capsule, and here is what I got:

1. A three-month capsule is too long and unrealistic for me: especially in the fall/winter, when the weather changes so drastically and unpredictably. The “warm weather” items I picked out didn’t get worn much, and I ended up having to add a bunch of sweaters because what I had is either too worn (like the navy cable knit sweater) or not warm enough (like the elephant-embroidered sweatshirt.) So, shorter time frame next time, so that I’ll know what the weather is going to be like and be prepared.

2. I don’t need that many skirts: I have a lot of skirts and I don’t wear them much. Out of the three in this capsule, only the black skirt got the most wears, the pencil skirt not once (it’s kind of a place holder anyway.) A dress is easier to style, and if I want to wear separates, pants are more comfortable. So, I’m cutting down my skirt collection (especially pencil skirts). And on that note…

3. I should add more varieties of pants/jeans: I think it’s time I admitted that I’m a jeans kind of girl. But it gets boring wearing skinny jeans all the time, so I’m going to put my wide-leg and boot-cut jeans into rotation next season to see how well they work. Oh and, I am over colored jeans (my red jeans didn’t get worn once, and was swapped out for another sweater.) From now on, if I do buy pants in any color other than neutral, it should be dark and subdued, like olive or burgundy.

4. I don’t need that many shoes: if there is any success in this capsule, it’s the shoes. I definitely didn’t get bored with the shoes. Maybe I’ll throw in some “fun” shoes in the spring and summer, but I’m cutting those way down too.

5. Accessorize, accessorize, accessorize: scarves, necklaces, brooches. I have them. I should wear them more.

So I’m definitely going to go with the weekly capsule. It makes the most sense for me and my lifestyle, and it can help me get the most out of my closet and keep me from shopping better than this restricting seasonal capsule. I’m still figuring out how I want to do it, but I’ll be back next week with more details!