Capsule Wardrobe Fall/ Winter: Revised

As I mentioned last post, this exercise has really been eye-opening for me.  It's amazing to see how much I have accumulated--a good portion of which don't fit any more, or just don't fit my taste.   As a side note, during this time of financial instability, it also really helped me to appreciate the abundance that is already at my fingertips.  I am *very lucky that I can go through my drawers and simply pull out a small (ish) selection of clothing to style and still have 2/3 of my drawers full. 

First, I went back through my previous post and pulled (almost) all the relevant pieces from my closet, as well as bunch of other stuff I re-discovered that was in the same color scheme.  There were quite a few pieces that I had totally forgotten about--like the pair of black velvet pants I thrifted last year, and the striped, long-sleeve boatneck blouse that I'd made.

Seeing *how much* stuff I truly had allowed me to re-evaluate a few things and let them go--like that striped blouse I'd made.  I fell in love with that fabric when I saw it online (can you feel where this is going?), it was *exactly the colors & pattern I was looking for and it was a knit, so it should have been perfect for Fall/ Winter--except, that the knit is a heavily poly blend which doesn't feel nice on my skin AT ALL and snags on EVERYTHING, including my hair.    I wore it once and just look at the way it pilled!

In addition, I had adapted a pattern to fit the design I wanted. . . and the result was less than perfect.  The sleeves need to be moved higher on the shoulder and the neck opening is way too wide.  I also could have made it longer and could have used a more coordinating thread to hem it with.  Frankly, all that was/is fixable, but I was so angry with the fabric that I just didn't bother.  And then, for mysterious reasons, I hung on to the thing.  Time to say goodbye.  This one isn't going to the Goodwill, it will be ripped up and braided into dog toys.  The corgis will have a lovely time chewing it to pieces.

The black velvet pants are totally staying, FYI.  Which brings me to my next thought: what to do with all this stuff now that I have pulled it out & assembled it?

The tip of the clothing iceburg.

I used to have my closet organized so that the lighter, shorter things are at the front & heavier things in the back. That meant at the front were blouses, then skirts, pants, dresses; coats & bathrobes at the back. (front= right side, back = left side; the left side is harder for me to reach b/c there is a chair placed in front) This used to work just fine.  I don't really store things seasonally, since in Southern California our main seasons are Spring, Summer, & Slightly Chilly.  

In addition, this year, working at home means that somedays I'm in pjs until quite late and then I change into jeans or sweats.  It also means that my fun holiday/special occassion dresses are languishing without a purpose.  I just don't need the variety of clothing I did before. I want to pair down & try something new.

So, I have moved my seasonal dresses, pants, & skirts to the front of the closet.  This way I can see them as soon as I open the door & I can access them easily.  

I have also cleared out/ rearranged my drawers so that I have a full drawer for my seasonal stuff: one for shirts & one for sweaters.  This should make it easier to see what I have in the same color scheme so that I can layer & mix & match.

I clearly have more sweaters than any California Girl needs.

Again, as I was clearing out sweaters, re-folding and replacing I was able to re-evaluate my collection.  I had to ask myself: is this piece worth the drawer-space?  Does it fit?  Will I wear it?  Granted, I didn't get rid of a ton, but there were at least 2-3 pieces that I let go.  Even that little bit of clearing out created some space and some clarity.  

Next week: accessories!