My First Capsule Wardrobe Challenge

Five months to go.....



Sylvester by Kate Sylvester Dress - consignment Lasting Labels
Shoes from No 1 Shoes (new)
And my rack of second hand clothing (read on...)
 

The other day I was reading some hard hitting news posted on an on-line site and came across an article that stopped me dead in my tracks due to the serious nature of its content.  It covered politics, the monarchy and sustainability in this modern world.  “Is there a limit to outfit repeats?” the headline shouted out at me.  The writer went on to ponder the age old question of how often can one person wear the same item of clothing?  It was festooned with pictures of women wearing the same outfit to different occasions with a certain member of the royal family taking centre stage.  Interestingly enough the writer mentioned one UK politician who had worn a particular suit 11 times and had been vilified by the public, unlike a male colleague who had worn the same suit 111 times – with nary a comment from his constituents. 

So I ask that same crucial question of you.  How many times is too often to wear the same piece of clothing?  If we are looking at ROI (yes, that’s right folks – return on investment.  See?  I’m really getting into this budget thingamajig) then one would think the more often you wear an item, the better investment that article of clothing really was.  And the less likely one would be maligned for not subscribing to this throw-away mentality which has developed over the last few decades.

So it got me thinking about my clothing choices and what I myself would deem acceptable office clothing wearing etiquette (if there is such a thing, Ms Emily Post?) …and I came to the following conclusions:

Everyday items

There are some items that I think a woman can wear every day without anyone batting an eyelid – such as a handbag or laptop bag, that special piece of jewellery or that heavy winter coat/jacket.

Every other day items

There are some items that a woman can wear every few days without someone curling they lip in distain – such as shoes, or costume style jewellery.

 

And the “what were you thinking” items

 

But shoot me dead with a filthy look if I wear the same dress twice in a week, let alone five days in a row, unlike the humble male suit – which seems to be worn consecutively for weeks on end with not even a twitch of an eyebrow.  Seriously guys, those pants need dry-cleaning more often than you think.

 

There have been social experiments (many to be found on YouTube) of women wearing the same outfit/dress day in, day out for a week, a month or even a year.  Now I will never be that person, I get bored easily and can barely stand having the same hairstyle two days running.  But as I embark on this journey of not shopping for clothes…FOR SIX MONTHS (yes, I was yelling that) I think about ways I can experiment with my wardrobe to make this whole process a little more interesting and more importantly, fun. 

Over the next few months I’ve decided to try three different things

• Wearing only second-hand purchased (or hand-me-down items from friends) clothing for a week.  That’s outer-wear only and does not cover accessories
• The 30 x 30 Capsule Wardrobe – that is 30 items of clothing for 30 days
• And finally the 333 Capsule Wardrobe – that is 33 items of clothing for three months.  That’s the scary one…the one I will be slowly building up to

 

So let’s start with my first project – that was clothing purchased second-hand or gifted to me by friends who were either bored with the item through consent wearing, or rejected the item for reasons spanning from “I’ve lost weight and now it’s too big for me, but it should fit you” (ouch…but yes please as you are probably right because I found the weight you lost) or “it was an impulse buy in the first place, what was I thinking, I’ve never really liked it on me but it may suit you” (double ouch…but yeah…I’ll give it a crack). 

 

I tried really hard to make every piece I wore fit into the above category – but I realized early on when pilfering my wardrobe for all second-hand items that I tend not to buy or procure many trousers or jeans new, let alone second-hand.  It appears that I am addicted to my dresses.  I think part of that addiction is I'm a typical pear shape - and I have never loved shopping for trousers - nothing worse than finding something that fits over your rear but gapes at your waist.

You will also notice that I switch from Sumer dress to more Autumnal ensembles – as this is Christchurch, and we can experience four seasons in one day, let alone an entire week.  I got a bit stuck on Casual Friday – but still managed to wear two pieces of second-hand purchased clothing (three if you count the scarf).

 





 



MONDAY
Max Dress - Trademe
Katie and Me Shoes - consignment shop Preloved Clothing
  



TUESDAY
River Island Top - consignment shop Recycle Boutique at The Tannery
OAMC Black Skirt - hand-me-down from a friend
Hispanitas Black Pumps - consignment shop Lasting Labels
Belt - stolen off one of my dresses



WEDNESDAY
Demgirl Black/White Striped Dress - consignment shop  Second Heaven
Grace Hill Black Merino Cardigan - Savemart second hand shop
Hispanitas Black Pumps - as above



THURSDAY
Veronika Maine Black Dress - consignment shop Second Heaven
The Flexx Black Shoes - consignment shop Second Heaven
Repertoire Black Coat - consignment shop Recycle Boutique at the Tannery



FRIDAY
Country Road Cream Top - Savemart Second Hand shop
Europelts London Brown Leather Jacket - consignment shop Recycle Boutique at the Tannery
Scarf - consignment shop Wear Else
Max Jeans (new)
No 1 Shoes Brown Boots (new)

Watch out for my 30 x 30 wardrobe challenge for April - yikes!

 

 

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