We are now in the home stretch of our mini capsule challenge of wearing 20 items for 21 days. Just tomorrow and Sunday left, and then this assignment is a wrap.
It has been so sunny this week in Portland, and that has given me a huge dose of motivation to get my spring closet/capsule in order. Transition seasons are hard, aren’t they? How do you select clothing to span a myriad of temperatures? Variety is key!
On that note, lets dissect the final week of living out of a minimal closet, where variety has been my new BFF.
The good:
When it comes to (small) wardrobe planning this exercise has really taught me that variety lends itself really well to making your closet feel bigger than it is. If you have dressy items and casual items you can get the most out of outfit building. You can combo up all your dressy items to feel more polished, you can go totally casual for a keyed down look, or you can mix and match to make unexpected combos (like Friday’s outfit). This may seem like a logical notion, but it’s a lesson finally sinking in with me.
I am pretty sure next week when I am back to a ‘regular-sized’ closet I’ll have further reflections about this challenge. Living with more once again will probably shed a greater light on these three weeks of living with less. Now that I’m in the final days of this experiment I am starting to ‘get used’ to the small closet and even prefer it. I feel like overall I am dressing a little nicer and not just reaching for convenience items like t-shirts.
Outfit planning is the key takeaway I’ve had this week. On Sunday night Paige and I were texting and I was sort of bemoaning how I was going to make it through the final week. She told me she took a few minutes to brainstorm some outfits for the week to get her going. So I followed suit. I spent a mere five minutes thinking about combos, and then I jotted them on a little scratch paper near my closet and that’s made all the difference this week! In the morning, when I am tired and cold and all I want are sweats, it’s really hard to brainstorm. That’s why doing it ahead of time is key. This week, I just glanced at my list and pulled the items out of my closet. Done and done.
Do you plan your outfits or do pre-dressing brainstorming?
The bad:
I don’t really have a lot of negative reflections this week other than what I’ve touched on in previous weeks: I’ve started to get tired of seeing the same items over and over (like my cardigan). But the lack of creativity I felt in the earlier weeks is gone. I felt quite creative in my outfits this week, something I certainly didn’t expect this far in.
And the Outfits:
You’ll notice I am conspicuously one day short! Wednesday was my birthday so I took a one day hiatus from the exercise. :) Plus I really wanted an excuse to wear some of my new items for spring. (More on that coming soon!)
Monday | sweater, old (similar) / denim, thrifted Madewell (USA made option) / jacket, Levis / Chelsea rain boots, thrifted J.Crew
Tuesday | sweatshirt, old Everlane (similar) / white button up, Everlane / denim, thrifted Madewell (USA made option) / shoes, Van’s (ethical option)
Thursday | white button up, Everlane / denim, thrifted Madewell (USA made option) / jacket, Levis / shoes, Nisolo
Friday | dress, Brass / leggings, Zella (USA made option) / shoes, Van’s (these would be killer) / necklace, BYCO
Overall I’d say this has been a really good experience. Despite my complaining I have truly learned a lot. Today’s outfit for example, I would have never dreamed up this combo without this challenge, and I love it! And I’ll probably repeat it.
I’d love to hear if you had any similar experiences!
xo,
andrea
So I’ve got a pretty small wardrobe in general, but I bet this would work for capsule folks too: I generally wash my clothes on the weekend, and after the kids go to bed on Saturday or Sunday evenings, I take all of my clean clothes and make outfits out of them for the upcoming week. I hang all the pieces — sometimes including accessories — on a hanger (even undergarments go in a mesh bag I hang around the hook). It’s a bit of work at the outset, but when I’m rushing out the door at 6 am during the week, I’m really glad I did it! Plus it’s easy to do while watching TV etc. And it can actually be fun :)
Sometimes I even put more than a week’s outfits together — I think it’s a good way to make sure you’re maximizing your wardrobe, you know?
I love this idea Heather! It makes so much sense!
I have loved the looks you created during the past 3 weeks! I love Tuesday’s layers and Friday’s unexpected combo. I am definitely an outfit planner. I use an app on my phone and load pics of all of my capsule items, then when I’m feeling inspired I create outfits that are stored in the app. This saves me early in the morning when I can’t think!😉 I look forward to hearing your takeaways as you transition back to your full closet.
Hmmm, remind me which app you use again?
I have really enjoyed the 21 days challenge. I even took a fraction of my capsule from Florida to Vermont by adding two coats and snow boots and it was great. Apparently a change in scenery/people helped me not feel bored wearing the same clothes. I don’t want to go back to my normal minimalish closet yet!!! I think I’ll put together another smallish capsule for a few weeks, it seems to make everything easier. I definitely pre plan outfits and taking pictures of the outfits in the mirror helps me to have ideas when I feel blah.
Andrea, you looked effortless and classic chic in your capsule photos. I love your style and am thankful to have your blog to read for inspiration. Thank you!!
Thank you Brenda! I feel inspired by you! Your comment means a lot.
Doing the 21 day challenge was such a great exercise! I am eager to go back to my normal closet but almost a little apprehensive too. Hopefully I wont feel too overwhelmed by the options!
Oh my gosh, your outfits kept getting better and better through this, I don’t think you had a single bad one!
I really enjoyed the 20×21, it was really fun (even though I complained a lot some days!) and it was actually a bit of a shock to go back to my regular closet. I was excited after feeling deprived but a few days in now and I feel sort of overwhelmed – I think the 20×21 was really good at showing myself I can get along just fine with a few items and that I don’t really need a ton. It didn’t really help with the feeling of wanting more however so I guess that’s what I have to work on next. It was fun however, I really enjoyed following your posts on it and you’ve been a huge inspiration. :)
Katie I love hearing your thoughts! Thanks so much for sharing. It IS a little overwhelming to go back, isn’t it?!
I need to work on the feeling of wanting more too. :/ Sometimes I just boss those thoughts out of my head it makes me feel better. I thinK I need do more of that.
Thanks so much for your kind words!