WORK / WEEKEND / DATE: Wardrobe Basics Edition!
Before I mastered the concept a capsule wardrobe, I remember looking at my closet and feeling like I had nothing to wear. My clothes seemed boring and lacking in style, leaving me feeling dull and uninspired. Inevitably, my frustration led me to decide about once a month that it was time to go shopping for ‘something to wear’. I would gravitate to all the statement pieces I could find, often in the form of many (read: cheap) printed tops in interesting cuts. I would return home to discover that what I had purchased worked mostly with my basic bottoms (all jeans in a bunch of different neutral colors), and that was it. I basically had a uniform of skinny jeans and loud tops, in either bold prints or bold colors.
It took a couple of capsules to understand that what I needed was not more fashionable clothes, but to learn how to style them. I had a solid wardrobe of mid-quality basics - had I focused on shopping for better quality and learning to dress those basics up or down, I would have stretched my measly hard-earned dollars far more than I did by shopping at budget stores.
Basics are the workhorses of our wardrobes. They are easy to combine and layer, often making them the most worn items in our closets. A few carefully selected basic pieces can set the tone for the rest of your wardrobe, which is why all of my statement-but-low-quality tops seemed to work well in the immediate. They were paired with my basic jeans, which carried the look and made them look presentable.
Because of this, I wanted to focus this video on styling two of the basics in my Spring Capsule Wardrobe: a pair of white wide-legged jeans, and a silk mint green tank top. I started each of the outfits in this video with a basic (often even two) and build the outfit for each occasion around that item. A pair of denim pants becomes work appropriate when paired with a great jacket and a stylish shoes in good condition, and a plain tank top looks great for a date when paired with sparkly jewelry and statement accessories.
These are my two basics worn together, but styled differently. For a date (left) and weekend (right).
Learning to style the basics in a minimalist wardrobe in different ways gives you the option of wearing most of your clothes to any occasion, since basics give you the most versatility when it comes to creating outfit combinations. I can say with confidence that the feeling of having ‘nothing to wear’ practically vanishes when you master your basis. Not only do basics give you the most bang for your clothing bucks, but a few simple changes can take your outfit from day to night in no time!
I hope this video gives you some inspiration for styling your basics to be dressed up or down! Don’t forget to check in next week if you’re interested in seeing a summer capsule wardrobe. Thanks for watching!