A Winter Wardrobe

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Posted on May 22, 2020

Some of you may be familiar with Project 333 by Courtney Carver. While I briefly flirted with the idea some years ago, it was never really my intention to try to manage on a specified number of items for 3 months. You can read one of my early posts on the subject here.

It is now the latter part of May and we are fast approaching the official start of winter. Although our climate is fairly mild we do still need winter clothes which are more than summer frocks or shorts and singlet tops. The maximum temperatures this week are between 14 and 18C (55 – 65F) where I live.

I finished full-time work at the beginning of July last year. Although my workplace accepted a business casual dress code, my clothing requirements have certainly changed in the past year.

The change of season is as good a time as any to review the contents of your wardrobe. This is mine before I started today.

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Not everything is hung up so here are views of the 2 drawers in my dresser which contain outerwear. My underwear, pyjamas, swimwear and scarves are in 2 smaller drawers.

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I removed everything from the wardrobe that I do not envisage wearing in the next 3 months (end of August) and have hung it in the wardrobe in the spare room.

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A couple of items that were previously folded have now been hung in the wardrobe and the contents of the drawers re-arranged.

This drawer is what I may wear in winter.

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All of the summer shorts and tops have been consigned to the bottom drawer.

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Then it was time to tackle the shoes. These are the summer ones I have put aside.

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The end result looks like this.

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Due to washing and wearing requirements there are a few pieces missing from this photo. 2 pairs of blue jeans, a rugby top, 3/4 sleeve tshirt, long sleeved jumper and my black ankle boots.

The total inventory is:

Jeans/trousers x 5
Trackpants/travel pants x 3
3/4 sleeve tshirts x 3
Long sleeve tshirt x 1
Short sleeve shirt x 1
3/4 sleeve shirts x 5
Rugby tops x 3
Cardigans x 3
Jumpers x 3
Dress x 1
Vest x 1
Polar fleece jacket x 1
Waterproof jacket x 1
Trenchcoat x 1
Long boots x 1
Ankle boots x 2
Dress shoes x 2
Casual shoes x 2
Walking shoes x 2

In addition, I have scarves, beret, hat, gloves and a couple of thermal tops.

Is it enough? Or too much? I am sure there will be some items that don’t make the cut at the end of the season and there is a good chance that there will be some additions. My aim is that any new pieces will be sourced secondhand or made from fabric I already have on hand.

Wardrobe Audit – Another Month

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Posted on March 12, 2019

I am a bit slow on reviewing my wardrobe this month but here goes.

2019 is now 10 weeks old and I have worn all of my summer clothes apart from one sleeveless top. I like it and it is an identical style to two others so there is no good reason for not wearing it. Anyway, we still have plenty of hot weather ahead so it will definitely get an airing.

There have been some milder days so I have even worn some of my jeans, 3/4 sleeve shirts, boleros and a cardigan.

The following photos show what remains on the backward-facing hangers.

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The sleeveless top is at the extreme right hand end. The remainder are mostly jackets, long-sleeve and 3/4 sleeve tops and shirts as well as a trenchcoat. The exception are two dresses – an emerald green lace frock and a black sheath. These are rarely worn but serve a purpose and deserve their place in my wardrobe.

There are some 3/4 sleeve tops and cardigans folded in the drawers which have not been worn either.

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The lower hanging rail is almost devoid of clothes as I have now worn all six of my skirts, three pairs of cropped trousers and three pairs of jeans. All that remains are my green jeans, good black dress trousers and two pairs of fitted trousers (black and charcoal) that I only really wear with my knee-high boots so they are definitely winter attire.

The exercise of turning the hangers has been a useful one for me. I am confident that everything I own will be worn during the course of the year, with the exception of the two special occasion dresses. I am happy that I generally have enough, but not too many. clothes.

I bought three items in January from the local recycle boutique but nothing since. I am sewing a couple of new sleeveless shirts so they will probably be added during the next month.

Have you tried turning your hangers backwards in order to see what you actually wear?

A Capsule Wardrobe

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Posted on September 13, 2018

Over the past 10 years I have flirted with various versions of a minimalist wardrobe. There seem to be as many versions of how to tackle an over-abundance of clothes as there are people on the planet.

After looking into Project 333 some years ago, I decided that the best option for me was to continue to keep a streamlined, mix-n-match selection that I wear most of the year round. This works for me because I am fortunate to live in a fairly temperate climate.

However, I have recently joined a Facebook group focused on capsule wardrobes. Someone posted about creating a Spring capsule based on the principle enunciated in The Vivienne Files.

One of the things that bothers me about many of the pieces chosen in limited collections tend to be pale/soft/neutral colours which are definitely not my style. It would not matter how many pieces I had to choose from, I would still not be able to find anything to wear! For those who follow the principle of colour analysis, I am a ‘winter’ which means I can wear black and other strong, clear blue-based colours. When I had this analysis done back in the early 80s it really just confirmed what I already knew and I very rarely deviate from my preferred palette.

Based on this knowledge and the selection in my wardrobe, I chose the following 16 pieces for my capsule for the next 3 months.

The suggested configuration was:

Neutral – 2 bottoms and 2 tops, 1 of which should be a cardigan or jacket.

Naturally, I chose black.

Shorts and jeans.

A cardigan and short sleeve top, both in cashmere/merino.

Choose another neutral with the same configuration of 2 tops and 2 bottoms.

I am not sure that red is a neutral but it is definitely a base colour in my wardrobe.

capri pants and shorts.

A long sleeve knit top and a ‘denim’ jacket.

The next suggested category is 4 more tops which obviously need to mix and match as well as meet the vagaries of the local weather.

10 Black and white striped sleeveless top

11 Black and white check short sleeve shirt

12 Red and white stripe 3 quarter sleeve shirt

The final 4 items are open to personal preference and any categories you feel need an extra.

As the weather warms up I will definitely need these white cropped pants.

15 White cropped pants

A couple of patterned tops to add interest.

And a dress.

16 Multi-colour dress

While I followed the guidelines as suggested, I also know that there are dozens of outfits that can be created with this selection because I regularly do it. Almost all of these pieces are several years old and are well-established in my wardrobe.

I am not entirely convinced that these will cover a couple of short holidays and special events that fall in the next 3 months but they will definitely account for 95% of my day-to-day outfits.

I will do a follow-up post in the next few days about a couple of accessories and the shoes that I will add to this collection.

My Own Advice

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Posted on September 16, 2016

Today I am swallowing some of my own advice.

In my last blog post I talked about not trying to meet prescriptive minimalist goals. I eschewed the extreme attitude of Bea Johnson at Zero Waste Home as being not for me quite early in my minimalism journey. There are numerous other extreme ideas such as wearing the same dress every day for a year. I applaud the people that choose to push the boundaries and carry out these ideas but it is not for me.

However, I have been somewhat seduced by things such as Project 333 and Plastic-Free July. I have discovered that the life I live does not necessarily meet the lofty ideals of these and similar sites.

I think that part of my ‘problem’ which is not really a problem at all is the fact that I am a well-rounded person (not necessarily in the physical sense). I dabble in range of strategies to live simply, reduce consumption as well as saving money and resources and have done for quite some time.

It is those ideas and strategies that I try to share with you here on the blog. The little day to day things that may not look like much but add up over time.

There are many others out there who are doing the same stuff every single day and I want to encourage you to do the same.

There are no numbers that you have to achieve, it is not a race but simply an invitation to live the best life you can.

That is enough talk from me – from tomorrow I will be back to sharing some of the practical things that are part of my routine.

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Refilling the Wardrobe

Project 333 – A Capsule?

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Posted on August 5, 2015

Since I first tried the idea of Project 333 back in 2012, I have used “Project 333” as the preface for the title of all my blog posts about my streamlined wardrobe. I would like a similarly short, snappy preface that is unique to my blog posts so I will give it some thought but in the meantime I will use “Project 333”.

Tonight I want to address a question which vexes me and that is, “What is a capsule wardrobe?”

I read and hear of a capsule wardrobe, winter/spring/summer/autumn capsules as well as formal capsules and gym capsules to name but a few. Confused yet? I certainly am. Here is the Wikipedia definition.

My wardrobe has never been bulging at the seams but I have had the same issues that many other women have identified and that is the feeling of looking at a collection of clothes and feeling that you have nothing to wear. This seems to lead to random purchases which only further compound the problem. Therefore, I have chosen to carefully select clothes which truly fit my lifestyle and reflect my personality.

I live in a fairly temperate climate so have very little need for heavy coats. We do not have clearly defined seasons and generally have more warm weather than cool.

It is currently winter and the weather is as cold as it gets with overnight temperatures as low as 5C and some days when the maximum is only around 15C, however, on Sunday the daytime temperature reached 25C. You can begin to see the folly of packing all warm weather clothes away for a 3 month period.

Nevertheless, I did remove some of my true summer clothes from my wardrobe a few months ago and it is easier to see exactly what season-appropriate clothes are available.

As I have continued to define and refine my style over the past few years, I have found that I tend to purchase multiple items of the same style. For example: I have 3 identical pairs of shorts – black, white and khaki as well as a very similar pair of red ones. When I find a style that fits well and suits me, why not buy multiples? 4 dresses, 2 cardigans, 2 pairs of jeans and 2 skirts are other examples of where I have more than 1 colour of the same style. I guess it is a matter of ‘when you are on a good thing, stick to it’.

What do understand by the term ‘capsule wardrobe’? Have you tried to pare down the selection of clothes? What tips do you have?

Project 333 – New Additions

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Posted on July 30, 2015

I know that the concept of Project 333 is to ‘dress with less’ but one of the clear benefits for me has been to be able to identify gaps in my wardrobe. It means that I can confidently and consciously purchase new items of clothing knowing that they will fit with my lifestyle and work with the existing pieces in my wardrobe.

Today a parcel arrived with 3 items of knitwear that I had ordered online. They are all merino/cashmere blend from Woolovers online shopping. I have not been overly confident of buying online but my sister had previously purchased from the site and had actually found a couple of the pieces were too big for her so passed them on to me. One was a black v-neck cardigan which I found perfect so I bought an identical one in royal blue.

I am trying to incorporate more plain pieces into my collection to increase the versatility. I bought this cardigan specifically to wear with this dress but it will also be great for wearing with collared shirts and trousers.

For years I have dreamed of having a short-sleeved black cashmere top. I finally have one, albeit, merino/cashmere blend.

It will be able to be worn in so many ways but I am definitely looking forward to pairing it with this skirt.

And this one.

My final purchase was this 3/4 sleeve cowl neck pullover. I love 3/4 sleeves and am looking forward to wearing it with a selection of jeans, trousers and jackets.

My red scarf will go well with it.

I have no affiliation with the site but if you are interested in buying from them (and have not done so before) you can use the code and instructions in this link to secure a 10% discount off your first order.

Project 333 – What Went Back

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Posted on May 19, 2015

As promised, I will share a bit more of my wardrobe clean-up.

This is an overview of the bedroom on Saturday morning before I started.

It is not looking the best as I have made it to the end of the full-time working week and now it is time to sort things out.

I mentioned in my earlier post that I removed everything from the wardrobe. I made the bed and hung up the jackets from the end of the bed before I started so that I had a clear working space.

Although one of the basic ideas behind Project 333 is to actually remove all but 33 items of clothing from your closet I had never actually done that. I believed that most of my clothes were worn year-round due to our relatively temperate climate. That is still the case and I have not limited myself to a precise number but as we are approaching our coolest months of the year I removed my summer clothes.

Here is the small pile of dresses, sleeveless tops and shorts which I will not wear again until the weather is hot. This is in addition to those items which I have specifically set aside for our trip to Singapore.

I took the time to critically examine each garment and try on a few different combinations to discover what worked together and how I felt about it. A few pieces have been taken by the local recycle boutique on consignment and a couple more gone to the op shop.

This is what I was left with. I will wear these clothes for the next 3 months with 1 or 2 possible purchases.

There are 2 pairs of trousers, a pair of jeans, 2 shirts and a jacket not shown as I was wearing them/they were in the wash. The pile of summer clothes is bagged and on the top shelf along with a couple of bags and 2 sunhats.

It is now easy for me to see what is ‘missing’ so that I can make considered choices when I go shopping.

One of the things that is obvious from my selection of clothes is that I love prints – florals, stripes, spots, checks – I have them all. I can now see that this is what has held me back from pursuing a ‘capsule wardrobe’ as many like to describe it. So many blogs and discussions seem to revolve around plain colours, neutrals and mix’n’match themes. In general terms, they also lean to what I regard as ‘wishy-washy’ colours – cream, sand, khaki, pale denim which do not inspire me. I love (and look best in) black and white as neutrals with strong, clear colour accents – red, emerald green, purple and fuschia and my clothes mostly reflect that.

I feel like my wardrobe works for me.

Project 333 – Clearing the Cupboard

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Posted on May 16, 2015

While this post is not strictly about Project 333, it is about decluttering my clothes so I have kept the Project 333 tag for ease of locating the post in the future. Today I decided to empty the entire contents of my wardrobe and dresser. Here is the empty wardrobe. The first category that I chose to scrutinise was shoes. Here they all are. Yes, all 21 pairs. Now, I don’t really know how that compares with what other people have but it does seem like a lot for someone who supposedly tries to keep things to a minimum. I sorted them and these are the ones I have worn in the past week. An additional 3 pairs in the past couple of months. Winter footwear that has been worn in the last 12 months. Three special-purpose ones that have not been worn in the last year but still get to stay. In fact, while typing this I remembered that the patent heels have been worn in the past year.

This brings the total to 18 pairs which have made the grade and will return to the wardrobe.

Here are the three pairs that are moving out.

Black heels which I had replaced but not got rid of them. They have not been worn since the new ones were purchased.

Red flats which are nearly 3 years old. The heels are worn and they are not overly comfortable.

Pewter sandals which were a mistake as they are really a half-size too small. Hopefully someone else will get a really good pair of sandals that fit them well.

I did not cull a great number of my shoes as most of them do get worn on a regular basis. This was a useful exercise as it made me consider each pair and the value of keeping them. I have also identified the next pairs which will go over time and I will be giving more thought to the shoes I buy in future.

Over the next week I will be sharing some of the other discoveries and decisions I made when I emptied my wardrobe.

Meanwhile, I would love to hear about your shoes – what sort? how many?