What's a Capsule Wardrobe, Its Benefits, and Is It Worth Your Effort?
A capsule wardrobe is often marketed as a universal cure to the I-have-nothing-to-wear problem, cluttered closet, decision-making fatigue, and a bunch of other unpleasantries that mismatched, ill-fitting clothing makes us feel. And while I swear by capsule wardrobes and create them for you, I know this approach isn’t for everyone.
So, how do you know if something is for you before you try it? Sometimes you feel it, and sometimes you need a detailed blog post to help you lean in the right (for you) direction.
This blog post about capsule wardrobes covers:
what a capsule wardrobe is and what it is not: capsule wardrobe’s definition and history
capsule wardrobe pros & cons: who benefits from this method, and who doesn’t
a capsule wardrobe template to recreate: a graphic example of a practical, 11-piece capsule to make 24 comfortable outfits
Let’s dive in and decide once and for all if building a personalized capsule wardrobe worth your money, time, and energy. Shall we?
What is a Capsule Wardrobe, and How was it invented?
“A capsule wardrobe is a collection of clothing that is composed of interchangeable items only, to maximize the number of outfits that can be created.” — WIKI
I like the definition Wikipedia provides, but I’d edit out the word only. Everything doesn’t have to match everything. Each item has to go well with most of your clothes.
Looking at a capsule wardrobe like that is a small step toward a big difference and enjoying your personal style journey more instead of dreading making a mistake and adding an imperfect item to your regular clothing rotation (that’s how many perfectionists end up with all-neutral closets and fear of color).
Although gaining popularity now, the capsule wardrobe concept is not new to the fashion world. You’ll be surprised to learn that capsule wardrobes first appeared in some American publications as early as the 40s. They featured small collections of garments, uniform in style and designed to be mixed and matched.
Then in the 70s, the term was revived in London. A stylish British lady, Susie Faux, had a boutique called ‘Wardrobe’ where she sold simple clothes that wouldn’t go out of fashion.
Finally, in 1985 Donna Karan released her famous Seven Easy Pieces – a collection of interchangeable workwear items – and popularized the capsule wardrobe concept.
Today a capsule wardrobe goes beyond fashion and represents a lifestyle. Like when someone tells you they are vegan, you can assume they love animals, respect nature, and buy cruelty-free products. And if someone tells you they are into capsule wardrobes, you can suspect that they are organized (or try to be), they value their time, they want to be smart with their resources, and they are very likely environmentally conscious.
Now you know what a capsule wardrobe is. So what is it not?
A capsule wardrobe is not an all-neutral selection of clothing in minimalist style unless you want it to be so. You can add any colors, textures, and designs to your capsules.
A capsule wardrobe is not a selection of 20, or 30, or 33 pieces because it’s not about the number but rather about the volume of clothing your lifestyle or activity requires.
Finally, a capsule wardrobe is not a permanent lifestyle change you commit to. It is a self-discovering experiment that you can choose to continue — or not.
As you can see, every capsule is as unique as its owner’s features, lifestyle, and aesthetic preferences, and it’s more about the journey of building a capsule wardrobe authentic to you than fixating on a perfect result.
How do I know a capsule wardrobe is for me?
This part of the blog post takes you through the three things capsule wardrobes help to save (energy, environment, and money). Take your time to reflect on each point so that you can decide whether or not to give creating a capsule wardrobe a go.
How much energy does dressing up drain from you?
Do you know that there’s a limit to how many decisions you can effectively make in a day? Decision fatigue is a real thing. You can blame being tired on glucose spikes or Mercury Retrograde, but it’s a longer and more complex chain of events that makes you snap at your partner when you can’t decide if it’s pizza or pasta after work.
Think of your typical day. When does being overwhelmed by having to make a decision start? Does it begin with figuring out breakfast, or what podcast to listen to during your commute, or before — when you stare at your closet, uninspired?
Putting an outfit together is only effortless when you don’t have to overthink it. If you find dressing up easy, then maybe you don’t need a ready-to-wear system in place. But if selecting a flattering outfit that feels right makes you self-conscious and like you have to change yourself to fit clothes, why not opt for a method that is designed to empower you?
Which one: quality or quantity?
If you don’t like to repeat outfits and prefer to buy new clothes often, a capsule wardrobe might feel too limiting for you (although this minimalist approach might surprise you with how liberating it feels to achieve more with less.)
A well-built capsule has a cohesive color palette that compliments your skin tone and increases your natural beauty. It consists of clothing that sits right and is made to last. The emphasis on quality here is so heavy because it determines how long the colors and shapes of your clothes remain the same, wash after wash, ensuring your sought-after pieces keep bringing you joy — and stay away from landfills.
Reducing textile waste is so important because the fashion industry accounts for 10% of humanity’s carbon emissions, and about 85% of all clothing ends up in a landfill each year. Overconsumption is also a major ethical issue, as most garment workers are underpaid and have to exist in life-threatening conditions.
If you decide not to build a capsule wardrobe in favor of having more clothing and options to choose from, at least aim to reduce your fashion footprint by renting, borrowing, swapping clothes, buying pre-loved garments, and supporting ethical fashion brands instead of fast fashion giants.
How much money do you want to spend on clothing?
I bet your answer is as little as possible unless money has never been a problem. In this case, it’s understandable that you can easily buy a new item to fix an incomplete outfit or purchase clothing that only looks good in specific combinations. Such shopping habits maybe don’t ruin your wallet, but they do harm the environment.
Not on the overspending team? Here’s how building a capsule wardrobe saves you money in the long run:
You spend less frequently.
By having a closet where most of the items complement each other, there’s no need to constantly shop trying to ‘fix’ things and fill out the gaps because there aren’t any.You recover some money when reselling.
One of the guidelines for creating a capsule wardrobe, as you’ve already learned, is opting for higher-quality clothes. Meaning when you choose to let them go, the clothes will still look presentable, and you can recover more money listing them.Your Cost per Wear* goes down because you make better use of your existing clothes.
Get 10% off of all Colorful Standard long-lasting basics with the code ALISAKOZCS10
* What is Cost Per Wear (CPW)?
Cost per wear is a simple calculation that helps you determine if a purchase was financially smart or not. Long-term, it teaches you to make better purchases and avoid overspending.
CPW = the item’s cost / the number of times you wear it.
Let’s compare CPW of a high-quality but pricier tee to a cheap fast fashion alternative, but give it some context first.
Colorful Standard Tee. €35. Imagine you wear it at least three times a month for a year. It doesn’t shrink, stretch, or change color. Number of wears 36. CPW = less than €1 (€35 : 36 times.) In two years, CPW is around €0.5. In three years, it’s approximately €0.3. And so on.
Primark tee. €4. Often it fits well until it meets your washing machine. But let’s give it a chance and say you wore it 10, not two times. Number of wears 10. CPW = €0.4 (€4 : 10 times.) But there isn’t “in two years” because that poorly-made tee will not look or fit as good as it used to, and you’ll need a substitute and spend your money again.
If you don’t want to deal with calculating CPW for each item, there’s an app that does this tiresome job for you: download Cladwell to have your closet in your pocket!
My code ALISA15 gives you 15% off (free version is available, too)
A capsule wardrobe template for you to DIY
In case you still haven’t made up your mind regarding giving capsules a go, here’s a minimalist capsule wardrobe template for you to try. Disregard the colors, shapes, and styles that I chose and try to focus on the items’ categories to make your first capsule wardrobe truly yours.
This template lets you create over 24 outfits with only 11 items of clothing. Here’s what you’ll need to put together something similar:
1 basic T-shirt
1 sleeveless top
1 roomy shirt
2 jumpers
1 dress
1 cardigan
1 jacket
3 bottoms (jeans, trousers, or skirts)
How many shoes and bags you want to add is up to you! You can create a capsule with only one bag and a pair of shoes if you want. I selected three of each to make this capsule more versatile, practical, and playful.
To make sure everything is easy to mix and match, you’ll need to know your color type, understand how to dress for your proportions, and have a solid style reference. You can figure it out with me during our style consultation.
So, is a capsule wardrobe worth it?
Creating a capsule wardrobe might be for you or not. Just like you don’t need a therapist to improve your mental health and instead use other tools such as sports, art, self-help books, and supporting communities, you don’t need this styling method in order to feel good in your clothing and figure out your style. However, hiring a stylist who is a capsule wardrobe expert is a fast track to building your dream wardrobe.
And if you aren’t ready to work with me, check out my Capsule Wardrobe Shopping Guides for cool and warm skin undertones. You’ll access sustainable shopping links to high-quality items to build your wardrobe’s foundation or add more personality to your minimalist selection.
The Year-Round Guides include 32 pieces to create 132+ outfits, and my Seasonal Guides let you create 48 outfits with only 16 items. Oh, and all skin undertone-based capsules can be combined to amplify styling opportunities and let you self-express through fashion even better!
Shop Capsule Wardrobe Guides
Disclaimer: This blog post includes affiliate links, which means that if a purchase is made, I might receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.