Capsule Wardrobe Chronicles. Spring 2019 Edition. - Uncomplicated Spaces

Well friends, it’s that time of year again…finally!! The snow has melted, the temps are above freezing and the birds are chirping!

But don’t worry, it’s not all sunshine and roses here in the Midwest…literally. The grass is still brown and there are no signs of leaves on trees or flowers on the ground. And this week’s forecast has 3 days of rain. But soon.

I decided that I would try a capsule wardrobe again. I tried one in the past, and although I enjoyed it for a short time, I didn’t stick to the timeline that I had set for myself. So this time around, I’m not setting a timeline. I’ll do it for as long as I enjoy it. I am also not putting any restrictions on myself. If there’s something that I like that would be a good addition, I am permitted to buy it. If something isn’t working and I want to switch it out with another item, that’s fine too. However, I do not plan on buying much as I am very pleased with my present collection. I also don’t anticipate a lot of switches.

Maybe this is actually a loose definition of a capsule wardrobe. And maybe it’s how most people approach a capsule wardrobe. I am trying to be less restrictive with myself and to not put too many self imposed expectations on myself. I guess it’s an act of self love to myself.

My Process

I have been trying to tamp down my capsule for a few weeks now. Here are some of the steps that I took to get to the final selection.

• Taking the weather into account for the next few months, I pulled items that would be suitable for 40-70 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the weather gets hotter, I will prepare a summer capsule wardrobe with lighter pieces.

• In terms of clothing, the first thing that I did was pull the items that I was most excited to wear. This was by far the easiest part.

• Once I had my favorites, I looked through my clothes for filler pieces. Particularly for layering. I included a few jumpsuits as some of my favorites but it is definitely too cold to wear them alone, so layering pieces such as tops I could wear under, sweaters and robes that I could wear over were important additions.

• I ensured that colors were cohesive. This wasn’t very difficult as most of my items are pretty neutral in color…there is not a whole lot of pattern going on in my closet! My color palette consists mostly of black, grey, white, brown and with a little green, blue and red thrown in for good measure!

• Once I had decided on the items to include, I went back through the rest of my clothes to see if there was anything that I really though I would miss over the next (possible) few months.

• I decided not to include shoes or accessories in my capsule. The weather is all over the place here during the spring and, like I said earlier, I didn’t want to be too restrictive.

The items

In total, I chose 35 items of clothing to include in my capsule. When I started I had the number 30 stuck in my head as the “magic” number. Once I had 30 items picked out, it was evident that I needed a few more! I have an upper limit of 40 items, meaning that I’ve left 5 wild card spots open.

Jackets // Robes

I just love light jackets and robes so any season where I can wear them without (a) sweating to death or (b) having to wear a heavy coat over them is good with me!

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen a few of these before. But I’ve recently thrifted a couple of new additions, as well as saved one from a discard bag.

L-R:

• Thrifted brown velvet jacket (new addition)

• Thrifted tan satin robe (new addition)

• Mauve velvet robe (resurrected from the discard bin)

• Thrifted grey/white check linen coat (new addition)

• Thrifted Jean jacket (new addition)

• Ozma of California red duster robe

• Eileen Fisher black duster robe

• Vintage black silk blazer

• Elizabeth Suzann black Harper jacket

Sweaters

I’m adding just 2 knit sweaters to the capsule. I feel like this will be a good number as I already have quite a few other layering pieces.

• Babaa cardigan No. 18

• pink sweater that I’ve had for many years (I also recovered this from the discard bin)

Top // Tanks // Shirts

Lots if old favorites in this group too, with the exception of a newly thrifted sweater and a top that was in last year’s summer rotation.

L-R:

• Eileen Fisher brown silk tank top

• Everlane black bodysuit

• Thrifted oatmeal long sleeve top

• Thrifted oatmeal cropped sweater (new addition)

• Tradlands cream Henley

• Thrifted printed top

• Aliya Wanek sweatshirt

• Black linen top (old favorite from last summer)

• Cuyana white silk shirt

• Tradlands flannel shirt (similar)

• Doén Chambray shirt (similar)

Jumpsuits // Skirts

I have become increasingly enamoured with jumpsuits since I acquired my first one last summer. I have managed to add a few more since then and I am including 4 of them in my capsule. I am also adding a pink pleated skirt that I have recently thrifted which seems like the perfect addition for spring.

T-B:

• Thrifted pink pleated skirt

• Filosofia vanilla linen jumpsuit (new addition)

• Linenfox grey striped jumpsuit

• Kordal Studio cream wool jumpsuit

• Elizabeth Suzann black silk Mara jumpsuit (similar)

Pants

Nothing new here!! All old favorites that have been going strong over @uncomplicatedspaces.

L-R:

• Thrifted Jesse Kamm black sailor pants

• Elizabeth Suzann brown silk Andy pants

• Thrifted green velvet pants

• Ozma of California silk/linen pants

• Imogene and Willie Josette jeans

• Agolde Jamie jeans (Brooklyn wash)

• Banana Republic boyfriend jeans

• Agolde Riley jeans (Hideaway wash)

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And there you have it. My spring capsule. I am actually very excited about it. I think it’s because I really like these items. I am looking forward to styling them for the next unspecified period of time! Don’t forget to subscribe for new posts if you haven’t already. I will be showing how I style this capsule. I’ll also be sharing outfits with these items over on my Instagram account (@uncomplicatedspaces)

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Now, I’d love to hear from you! Do you incorporate a seasonal capsule wardrobe or a year round capsule? If not, are you interested in trying one?

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This Post Has 3 Comments

  1. Lene Granberg

    Very inspiring! I will attemt a capsule wardrobe when spring comes (still 1,5 meters of snow here …) and I found this very helpful! I’m looking foreward to trying your “softer” approach to the capsule wardrobe thing, and seeing the outfits you will be making with your selection (:

    1. Gillian

      Hi Lene! Thank you so much for your kind comment ❤️. I hope you enjoy making a spring capsule…sounds like that snow is giving you a little extra time to think about your items 😉.

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