It’s no surprise, I’m sure, that some of my strongest memories are wardrobe related. A very 80s store display of matching separates in dove grey, soft pink, and cream, all crisp and clearly polyester. An early 90s Sears layout of sporty jersey separates in bright coordinating colours. I’m certain I spent hours poring over it.
I HAD to include this example from the 1988 Sears Wishbook, even though it isn't the exact layout I remember!
A capsule wardrobe is such a simple concept, but somehow confusing. It involves math and colour theory and trust, and it is a lot to think about at once. I absolutely understand why some of our customers do build capsule wardrobes, in black only :)
Our theory has always been to start with three sleeveless tops, three shrugs with different sleeves, and three skirts, ideally each with a different silhouette. We have always stuck with three or four colours – a light neutral, a dark neutral, and a colour that gets along well with both. These nine garments can be combined in many ways to play with colour blocking, proportion, and overall silhouette.
This week we decided to take a less direct approach to a capsule wardrobe, instead opting for a family of colours that *mostly* go together and then doing our best to allocate colour to garment appropriately. We chose nine colours and ten garments, and spent an hour or so haggling over what went where. This was our plan:
Tops
- Scoop Shell in North Shore bamboo
- Ivy League Shell in Lilac modal
- Tuxedo Shell in Merlot bamboo
- Soft Top in Berry linen jersey
Shrugs
- Basic Shrug in Sand modal
- Cocoon Shrug in Lagoon linen jersey
- Cardigan in Plum french terry
Skirts
- Woven Pencil in Navy linen
- Swing Skirt in Emerald linen
- Secretary Skirt in Plum bamboo
Our thinking was to give ourselves a very wide range of styles from casual to dressy, and eclectic to put together, for instance:
It is possible we didn’t think through how many outfits these garments would produce. Especially considering we decided to do the photoshoot after a late dinner last night :D
So now I’m excited, sleep deprived, and at a complete loss to judge if this was a success. We’ve been caught up in the drama of pretty dresses lately, and it’s nice to remind ourselves how fun separates can be :)
xoxo Emily