capsule wardrobe

Hi there! Happy Monday!

I wear neutrals almost exclusively. White, black, beige, gray, navy, denim, and I also consider blush and olive in the neutral category. I do not wear patterns or florals, but I do wear stripes, leopard print, plaid (buffalo check and gingham), and the occasional polka dot. But, why? Do I hate all colors? No, not at all…let me explain.

Why I Only Wear Neutrals

I love clothes, and if you could hear me in a store? “Cute. Cute. Cute! That’s cute”. But I hated not haven’t a definite style. In high school I wore the typical Abercrombie, Hollister, and American Eagle garb that was popular amongst high schoolers at the time. In college my wardrobe bounced around a lot, until I got a job at Abercrombie where we wore “core colors”. I LOVED it. What do I wear today? Navy, gray, or white. In my mid-twenties, now no longer working for Abercrombie, I bounced around and just bought whatever I thought was “cute” but didn’t really know what my style was. It was then that I decided to start figuring out more clearly what I liked, what I wanted my style to say to the world, and how to build a capsule wardrobe.

I went through my closet and pulled out anything I could sell or donate. I still do this every few months.

I now only buy neutral colors and it is a GAME CHANGER.

Why I Love Neutrals

Versatile
Timeless
Looks high-end (especially black. Black faux leather, black blazers even if inexpensive, look luxe)
You can invest (I haven’t done a lot of this yet, but if I spend $$$ on a classic piece that I’ll have forever that’s way better than on something trendy or that I won’t like in 2 years)
It’s so much easier to shop. I get to ignore 75% of every store or clothing section.
You can repeat and mix-and-match outfits easily (Once you get pictures in a floral dress, it’s far harder to repeat, no?)

Neutral Outfit Examples

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A few great neutrals on Amazon to get you started.

Do you prefer neutrals? Or are you all about color and patterns?

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Hi there! Happy Wednesday!

I hope that you are having a fabulous week! Cheers to making it to hump day : )

I have recently been doing some major spring cleaning in my closet. I began by going through every piece of clothing that was hanging in my closet and deciding whether or not it was something I loved or wore enough to justify it getting to stay in the closet.

CLEANING OUT MY CLOSET

I got strict with myself and if things had stains or looked ratty I tossed them. I had so many cami shirts, tanks, and tees that while I still consider closet staples, needed to be replaced. I threw away cheap shoes that weren’t comfortable or were very beat up. I donated clothing that was in good shape but that I didn’t wear or that didn’t fit me. Anything that I couldn’t part with because it was extremely sentimental, great quality but not currently being worn, or things that I did use but very rarely I moved out of my closet and into storage.

ORGANIZING MY CLOSET

I put all of my clothing in color order and by type so that when I am looking for something, it is easy to find. I already had been doing this, but I perfected it to make it as easy as possible to find and use my clothing pieces. I use these black velvet hangers to keep a clean and organized look while maximizing my small closet space.

REFRESHING CLOTHING ITEMS WITH BUTTONS

I made a pile of clothing that needed to be dry cleaned, and then another pile of things that I loved but wasn’t wearing because they needed small inexpensive repairs. I took a trip to Hobby Lobby and ended up spending $13 to fix three items and am so thrilled with my results that I had to share them with you. I am no seamstress, but I have a small sewing box that is pretty much exclusively the spare buttons that come with clothes and a few basics. If I can do these quick fixes, so can you! ; )

E3000 RHINESTONE FIX

I found a button down shirt that I have had for years from Express that love because it has the timeless style of a white shirt but fun rhinestone buttons to give it a little something, but I hadn’t worn it in YEARS because one button on the shirt was missing a rhinestone. I was able to find a rhinestone that fit into the button and glue it in using E3000 and now I have my shirt back. Similar shirts at Express cost about $60 and I fixed it for $3!

REPLACING A BUTTON ON A SILK BLOUSE

I had a beautiful silk shirt that my mother purchased for me for sorority events back in college (yes, it’s more than a couple of years old!) that I hadn’t worn in years and years because it was missing a button and the puffy sleeve had gone out of style. Fast-forward to 2018? The romantic sleeve is back in style, and a silk shirt really always looks good, so I decided to try to find a replacement button. I found a button that was a bit larger than the buttons on the shirt, but I decided to move the top collar button onto the shirt to where the button was missing and then added the larger rhinestone button to the top collar spot to that the size difference looked like it was meant to be that way. *TIP: If you can’t find the exact button or the exact size you need, put the replacement in a spot that isn’t obvious and move that button to the more obvious spot if needed. I spent $3 to replace a button on a shirt that would retail about $100.

REPLACING BUTTONS ON A BLAZER TO TAKE IT FROM CHEAP TO CHIC

A one-button gray blazer from Maurcies was sitting in my closet but I wasn’t ever reaching for it because I felt that it looked a bit cheap, even though it fits me well. I spent $7 to replace the plastic gray buttons that the blazer came with one large gold button and the smaller gold buttons on the sleeves. A Maurice’s blazer costs about $40-50 and I was able to make it look like a blazer from a more expensive brand by simply replacing the buttons.

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So, what do you think? Can you think of any jackets, blazers, or shirts where a simple button replacement could make them wearable, more luxe, or more current? If this post inspires you to update any of your pieces, please share with me on my social media which is always linked at the bottom of every post : ) I plan to do more style DIYs and budget tips, so please let me know if you have any requests! xx

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