Have you heard of the capsule wardrobe trend? As a big fan of living with less, a more minimal wardrobe is really appealing to me! I’ve been (loosely) following a capsule wardrobe for the past few years, including through pregnancy and the early postpartum period. It’s been a great way to figure out what kinds of clothes I really love, what I was just keeping out of guilt, and what clothes look good on me. Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite capsule wardrobe tools and resources. 

If you aren’t familiar with the concept, the purpose of a capsule wardrobe is to create a smaller, curated closet. Basically, you’ll choose a small number of items (typically somewhere between 30-40, but it’s flexible) and commit to wearing only those for a full season. You’ll shop for any holes in your wardrobe at the beginning of the season. For the rest of the 3 month period, you’ll commit to not buying any more clothes.

Following a capsule wardrobe helps me save money, de-clutter, and look better. What’s not to love?

If you live in a home with small closets, this is a great way to purge! Store your non-capsule clothes, and after a year, take a look at what you didn’t wear at all. This has given me a lot of perspective – some clothes I like, but never actually reach for. (Last year, we moved from an apartment with his-and-hers walk in closets to a home with 1/4 of the master closet space!) For a more in-depth description with more definitive rules, check out a few of the resources down below!

How A Capsule Wardrobe Works For Me

For me, capsuling works best when I follow these guidelines:

• Look through my closet (and my Stylebook app, more on that below) to identify any items I need. Shop once at the beginning of the season to fill those holes. (I typically shop in March, June, September, and December.)
• Create a versatile wardrobe with about 40-50 items (including shoes). I like for my capsule to work at the office, at home, at church, and for any other occasions. Formal wear (e.g. for weddings), pajamas, and athletic clothing aren’t included in my capsule.
  • Some people like to have separate capsules for work and for casual wear. However, since I don’t really have separate “work” and “casual” clothes, I like having one capsule that covers everything. The first image in this post features a 40-item fall capsule that I used a few years back. Since my workplace leans towards the casual end of business casual, the 40 items are totally sufficient for work and at home!
  • The exact number of items isn’t really important. I’ve just found the right number of items to cover everything I need without overcrowding my closet or feeling boring.
  • It’s totally fine if the number of items you have changes with the season! Right now, I have closer to 60-70 items in my capsule wardrobe. I’ve slowly built up my closet so that I have more items that I love and want to wear.
• I do allow a few capsule “cheats”. I’m okay with pulling an item that isn’t in my capsule on occasion. However, if I have done a good job in creating my capsule, I’ll rarely do this – I typically have everything I need! I also think that extra shopping trips are fine if I have the spending money. (I budget around $100/quarter for clothing, since I don’t usually have any real “holes” in my wardrobe.)

What I’ve Learned

After about a year and a half of following a more strict capsule, I’m using the skills I learned to create a more minimal wardrobe filled only with clothes I love. I continue to use the “shop at the beginning of the season” method to cut down on unnecessary spending. Right now, I’m really working on purging all the clothing that doesn’t work for me. (I’ve donated well over 100 items in the past year and have a lot more to go!)

Finally, the capsule experience is really helpful for buying maternity and postpartum clothes! I already knew things like how many pairs of pants I really need, so I wasn’t lost when deciding what items to buy. (All the images of my closet in this post are actually from my maternity capsule wardrobe!) I also know how to work with a more limited number of items, which was very helpful for the postpartum stage when many of my clothes either didn’t fit or weren’t nursing-friendly.

Capsule Wardrobe Planning & Style Inspiration

• Un-Fancy: Caroline at Un-Fancy is one of the OG capsulers, and her capsule planning guide is incredibly helpful. This is the first resource I would suggest to anyone intending to build a capsule! She’s also posted several full capsules with tons of outfit ideas, which is great for planning.
• Elsie Larson: Elsie (of A Beautiful Mess) has a great series on capsule wardrobes (including an adorable capsule wardrobe planner). There are also several example capsule wardrobes on the website. This is a great resource for anyone looking for more exciting capsule wardrobes – they often feature trendier and more unique pieces.
• Cottonstem: Erin from Cottonstem has followed a capsule wardrobe for several years, and he has a wealth of information on her blog and Instagram. She regularly posts “capsule try-ons” to show people how to build capsules and put outfits together.
• Sherry Petersik: While Sherry (from Young House Love) doesn’t necessarily consider her wardrobe a capsule, her minimalist wardrobe is closer to how I’m approaching clothing now. She has a great post on how she approaches her wardrobe, what’s in her closet, and how she lives with less.
• Putting Me Together: Audrey from Putting Me Together is one my all-time favorite resources for building a wardrobe. If you want a capsule with none of the work, she regularly puts out shoppable capsule wardrobe guides, as well as style guides packed with outfit ideas. Her blog is also a gold mine of information on how to style pieces multiple ways, how to put polished outfits together, and how to build a versatile wardrobe.

Tools

• Stylebook App: I use this app to plan my capsules. It allows you to import each item from your closet, put together outfits, and document what you wear each day. It also keeps track of closet statistics so you can see what items you wear most (and least) and what items have the best (and worst) cost-per-wear.
• Pinterest: Pinterest is a life-saver for planning outfits with clothes I already have! I have a general planning board with resources galore as well as seasonal boards with outfit formulas and inspiration. (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter)
• AmazonBasics Hangers: These velvet hangers are my favorite. They’re much slimmer than plastic or wooden hangers and they hold clothing SO well. We bought enough for our whole closet a few years back, and it’s one of the best purchases I’ve made!
• Skubb Drawer Dividers: I use these organizers to help keep my drawers in order! We have big under-bed drawers, so this keeps my clothes tidy. They’re also great for things like socks and underwear that don’t need to be folded, but look a lot neater when corralled into their own space.
• The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: This book is great for learning to let go of clothing that you don’t love. While I don’t agree with everything Marie Kondo suggests (I’m a sock baller forever), her book helped shift my perspective on clothing. Any item you get rid of that you don’t love just makes space for something that you do. Also, her filing method of clothing is actually life-changing. (Pro-tip: use your local library card to download the e-book or audiobook for free on the Libby app!) Netflix also recently released a TV show with Marie Kondo, which I’d highly recommend!

You Can Live With Less Stuff

I hope this list has been helpful for you! If there’s any one last thing I can say to you, it’s that living with less is SO freeing. Not only is it easier to choose what to wear, but my clothes make me feel good, my closet is more organized, and I don’t have to feel like my spending is out of control! Starting a capsule wardrobe was one of the best things I’ve ever done for my closet. It helped define my style and really think about what I wear.

View more posts on style here!