I still live with a non-minimalist. So, there are still places in our home where I have to pretend they don't exist. I also still have hobbies that require a lot of stuff, like music and photography. So, there is still stuff in my home, but it does clean a lot quicker now than it did in the past and I can truly relax in the evenings, knowing exactly where everything I need is and that it's where it should be.
My most recent project in the minimalist realm is what is called a "capsule wardrobe". In the past, I have just gotten rid of clothes that I don't wear often. The problem with that was I would end up not having a lot of clothes, especially ones that matched. So, I would buy more to fill the gaps. It wasn't a great cycle.
A capsule wardrobe, at least in my understanding, is a minimal amount of very wearable clothing that all matches. Basically, the idea is being able to pull any top and any bottom out of your closet and walk out the door feeling confident in your outfit choice.
Being that I'm just 'oh so fashionable' (I'm no good at online sarcasm... but THAT WAS IT!), this sounds like a wonderful idea to me. I don't have to stare at my clothes and wonder what would look good with what.
I'm still a work in progress, having a few clothes yet that I wouldn't mind seeing disappear and having a couple of things on a list that might make my wardrobe even more co-existent.
But this is what I've done so far.
1. I picked a base color. Gray. I feel like gray isn't as harsh as black or as bland as brown. I have always liked gray. My shoes, for the past few years, have all been gray. My purses have been gray. It's basically my base color anyway. I guess if I had a "secondary" base color it would be jeans...
2. I picked accent colors. Navy and burgundy. In the summer, I add peach and a mint/light blue. Again, these were a lot of the things I love in my closet in these colors already. My favorite skirt is navy, my favorite long sleeve top is burgundy.
3. I removed everything that wasn't these colors from my closet. Everything.
4. I added back what was necessary. I play in a jazz band in the summer and an orchestra in the fall with specific clothing guidelines. So, black pants, black dress, black shoes, white top were all essential.
5. I added back favorites that just don't match. Because I paid good money for that oatmeal colored cardigan and khaki skirt and I think I look cute in them. So they are here to stay.
6. I took pictures of me wearing everything. It sounds daunting, but when you get rid of most of your attire it isn't that bad.
7. I uploaded the pictures to Closetspace, an website/app that lets you organize your clothing and create outfits (GENIUS!)
8. I started creating outfits with my clothes that I could see on the website to know if it would match. If an article of clothing didn't really go with a lot of other stuff, I considered getting rid of it.
9. The app actually lets you add outfits to the calendar, so eventually I could essentially plan my outfits for weeks at a time. Which sounds great, because finding clothes in the morning is the worst.
Once I have completed my capsule wardrobe (basically, once I have let go of a couple of things and filled in the gaps... like, if I can find my khaki skirt in a charcoal gray...) it will simply be about replacing. It will make shopping for clothes a lot less tempting, because I only have 4 colors I'm really after and after I have everything so I feel confident in every outfit, every day, I will just simply replace as things are needed.
At least, that's the goal. It's still a major work in progress.
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