The Capsule Wardrobe

Posted by Cathy Alberich on

Capsule wardrobes are a great option to simplify your closet and make your everyday styling easier. Sometimes we don’t know what to wear, or find it hard to create the proper combinations from the clothing we already have. Here’s where this concept comes to the rescue.

The concept of "capsule" not only refers to a way of organizing a wardrobe, but also to a different way of buying clothes. The idea is that you have a closet with a maximum of 40 garments, not counting underwear and pyjamas, but shoes and purses. And that you can combine those 40 garments in different ways to create many looks.

Designer Donna Karan revived it in 1985 with a capsule collection of just seven pieces, and today it was Caroline Rector who brought the concept back with her fashion blog called Unfunny, where she shows her minimalist way of dressing.

Some of the benefits of this concept are that you take up less space and, therefore, you can always have a much more organized wardrobe space.

It is easier to put together an outfit, because all your clothes are versatile and can be easily combined: For work, to go out with friends, to enjoy the weekend. Consequently, you save time when choosing what to wear.

You save money. Many times we impulse buy because something is beautiful and we let ourselves be carried away by the moment.

Then, we don't know what to do with that crazy print shirt that we have at the back of the closet and it doesn't combine with anything.

A wardrobe capsule gives us a framework to buy clothes in the future. It makes it a lot easier because you already know what the garment style is, the colours, etc.

We become aware of fast fashion, which is the era of fashion that we live in, in which buying clothes is quite accessible, collections change all the time and we are convinced that we need to buy to be fashionable.

Most fast fashion is poor quality (they break or wear out quickly and don't fit as well as they should), and they also might be manufactured in questionable conditions for the earth and workers.

One way to change this is to stop consuming like this and think about the wardrobe as a mindful collection of a few high quality garments, this way we help the environment and support human labour rights.

If you think you are ready for this concept in your life, here is a guide on how to do so.

- 15% of your garments must be unique pieces, let’s call them the statement ones: coloured scarves, a shirt with a striking design, a particular necklace ...

- 35% have to be garments for every day: t-shirts, jeans, dresses, pants, skirts that are easy to combine.

- The remaining 50% must be basic. That means garments that go with everything and that have neutral colours (white, black, grey, beige). T-shirts, plain shirts, classic jeans, everyday shoes, a good pair of high end sneakers, a coat that goes with everything …


So, as you can see, assembling a capsule wardrobe can be difficult at first, but once assembled it is very easy and has a lot of benefits for you, for the environment and to change a misconception of fashion. Can you see this happening in your life? 

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