Capsule Wardrobe Planning: Fall / Early Winter

I was a little daunted to get started with this whole capsule wardrobe thing, but Unfancy’s Capsule Wardrobe Planner was a lifesaver. I sat down one afternoon and did an initial session going through her categories.

I thought the lifestyle pie chart was especially helpful. It prompted me to think about any upcoming events, trips, and then just day-to-day usage to make sure I set aside the right type of clothes. I discovered that about 90% of my clothes should be for day-to-day wear as a stay-at-home mom. For me, this means comfy pieces that I can move around in, lay on the floor with Finn, get dirty, etc. 5% will be used for special events—Dylan’s 30th birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The last 5% will be for travel. We are taking a week long trip with my parents and sister and brother-in-law to New Orleans. This was helpful so I felt confident stashing my dress pants but leaving out two nice dresses.

From there, I worked on the colors section. I wanted to keep the major and minor colors neutral, and I’m really feeling camel/tan/cream for this season. That’s how I landed on black, gray, and camel/tan/cream. For the accents, I wanted maroon/magenta and lilac for sure. I’ve been eyeing a lilac cardigan for a while. Maroon and magenta are rich, jewel tones that represent fall to me. Plus, I had picked up a magenta cocoon sweater from JC Penney a few weeks ago. The turquoise/navy came about randomly. I realized as I was going through my closet that I have a few pieces that go well with navy so it seemed like a logical choice. Navy is such a classic color. It pairs with the gray and the camel, the lilac and the magenta.

My colors came together pretty easily; they are common colors for me, so I have quite a few options in each color. In terms of style/aesthetic, I picked a lot of items that can be layered to transition from fall to the chillier temps of early winter. I have a couple of cozy sweaters picked out, but I’m saving my thick ones for the heart of winter after the turn of the year. I’ll definitely be busting out boots, leggings, and scarves to add to my outfits. I’m not counting shoes or scarves toward my capsule. Scarves are as much an accessory as a necessity here in Minnesota, and I don’t think I could narrow them down to only a few options. I have quite the collection.