A Few Capsule Observations

I mentioned in one of my recent posts that I was going back to a modified capsule approach to outfit planning, and today I’m going to write a bit about my methods and observations.

I am not a typical capsule-devotée; my style skews to the minimalist side of the spectrum, but my closet does not. What I like about capsules is the sense of cohesion. I find it pleasing to the eye to have outfits that are harmonious without being repetitive – for lack of a better description, that look like part of a runway collection. Similar, but not the same. It’s obviously easier to achieve this by mixing a smaller number of items together; however, I also get bored quickly, so I like having variety over time. The compromise that has worked best for me in the past has been the rolling capsule – i.e. one that changes from month to month.

The last time I did a planned capsule, which was over a year ago, my approach was to select 5-7 statement pieces that were my favourites at that time, and build outfits around them. This is certainly a viable approach, but the result is not necessarily cohesive if, like mine, your closet contains a wide range of styles and colours. In principle, it’s possible to take, say, a preppy item and adapt it to suit a boho style, but it will require that you approach outfit building with a different lens; the item cannot be the focus, because it will naturally inspire you towards a preppy vibe.

One alternative would have been to use one (or more) of my style avatars as the “theme” of my monthly capsule. Almost immediately, though, I realized this would not work for me – again, because of the variety of options in my closet, deciding where to even begin would have been slightly daunting. The “building blocks” of my style(s) are fairly basic items, so that would not have helped me figure out the capsule in the same way as using statement pieces for a starting point.

The approach that struck me as having the most potential this time around was choosing a colour theme. Believe it or not, this was not an obvious choice for me. While my wardrobe does have a colour palette, it’s a relatively broad one. My outfit choices are rarely dictated by colour, first and foremost, although there are certain shades I won’t wear, and some that I especially enjoy wearing. In the end, though, I chose colour as my capsule-defining device because it helped me to pick out “starting block” pieces, and also infused cohension into the process right from the get-go. With the exception of blue and neutrals like black, each of my core wardrobe colours is only represented in a half dozen or so pieces, so my selection process was far more manageable than starting from scratch.

Briefly, this is what the process looked like:

– Pick 2-3 core colours (non-neutrals) for the capsule; these would be supplemented by 2-3 neutrals, usually black and cream/ivory.

– Write down all of the items I own for each core colour; ideally, there would be 4-5 items per colour. I had a vague goal of using each item in at least 2 outfits that month. [A typical month for me requires 15-18 work outfits.]

– Make a list of the number of outfits needed, and proceed to fill it out using the colour items previously identified, and adding other pieces from my closet as needed to complete the outfit. In determining how to complete an outfit featuring the core colour item, I focused on my style avatars as guidelines for silhouettes, combinations, etc.

So, for example, the exercise was not simply “complete an outfit using this green sweater” but, rather, “complete an outfit using this green sweater and make it fit the Artist vibe.”

When I was putting my October capsule together, this process hadn’t quite fully crystalized, but it was more or less what I did. Rather than core colours, I ended up focusing on neutrals; my colour palette was black, brown and pale grey, with plum and green accents. For November, I deliberately started with core colours: blue and forest green; my neutrals were black, ivory and grey. For December, I am thinking of switching to a warmer palette: red, pink and plum, with brown and black as neutrals. But we shall see.

A side benefit of my recent capsuling efforts is that I have started to pay closer attention again to what’s actually in my closet – and especially what’s missing and what doesn’t need to be there. Based on those observations, I have refined my thrifting list.

On my “buy” list:

cropped sweaters
chunky, textured knits
thin v-neck cardigans (for layering)
thin turtlenecks (ditto)
interesting toppers (shapes, textures, etc. – anything but your traditional, hip-length blazer)
sack dresses
waist belts
maxi and midi skirts and dresses
paperbag waist trousers
culottes
loafers

On my “don’t buy” list:

structured, traditional blazers (see above)
pencil skirts
sheath dresses
pants (other than as above)
jeans (especially skinnies)
frilly, girly stuff (it’s still my Achilles heel)

Newly focused, I am excited for the possibilities – both for my outfit plans and for my thrifting. Hey, with winter coming, I need all the distractions I can get!