The term ‘capsule wardrobe’ strikes fear into the hearts of many of my clients.
They assume that having a capsule wardrobe means fewer clothes, less options, less interest.
Whilst I don’t believe you need a wardrobe bursting with clothes to have plenty of variety and choice, I do think most of you would be surprised what a small percentage of your clothes you actually wear on a regular basis. You probably need a lot less clothes than you actually think and wouldn’t miss half of what is in your wardrobe if it wasn’t there.
Now is the perfect time to start curating your wardrobe ahead of the Spring shopping season; by planning ahead, assessing what you have and being mindful in your purchasing choices you can ensure your budget is spent in the best possible way and on items that are going to give you more wear out of your wardrobe and stand the test of time.
Here are my tips to help you buy less, buy better and create a dream wardrobe that lasts…
MOOD BOARD
I start every new season on Pinterest and Instagram saving outfit ideas and putting together a mood board of looks that I love.
Creating a visual reference in this way really helps to inspire and evolve your style aesthetic with new ideas. You’ll get an idea of the colour palette you may want to work with as well as looking at how you can style existing items in different ways.
Once complete you can use your mood board to assess your current wardrobe against, helping to identify any gaps you may have so you can start drawing up a list of items to buy.
AUDIT
Before you even THINK about hitting the shops it’s essential to take stock to what you already have – after months of not wearing your Spring wardrobe it’s inevitable that you will have forgotten about certain items that have been lurking at the back of your wardrobe.
I recommend getting everything out and then organising into three piles…
Donate – anything that was originally bought for a low or mid-range price point and is still in wearable condition but possibly just doesn’t suit you or fit with your current style aesthetic.
Sell – higher priced or designer items that are still in good condition.
Repair – anything you want to keep but needs a little TLC (this pile needs to go & get sorted ASAP!)
BUDGET
How many of you actually set and budget (and stick to it) when shopping for clothes?
If you’re unsure what you want to spend try adding up your total amount of spend on clothes for the past 12 months and then divide that amount by 12 to see your average monthly spend. You can then set yourself either a seasonal budget to spend on clothes, or a monthly amount.
Adding it all up over a 12 month period will most likely give you a bit of a surprise – those small £40 purchases soon add up.
Having a look at the big picture will give you cause to think about the best way to spend your budget (and possibly look to invest in fewer, high quality items rather than lots of smaller pieces that are lower in value – you may even reduce your spend overall!)
Once you’ve been through the above steps you’re in a position to hit the shops with your carefully edited ‘hit list’ and a budget to bear in mind.
I truly believe that putting in the groundwork at the start of the season leads to a much more satisfying shopping experience and a harder working wardrobe in general.
Do hear over to Instagram and let me know how you get on!
Until next time
Anna xo