Loving clothes and wanting to feel great doesn’t have to clash with having a minimalist wardrobe. After I’ve gotten tired from that feeling of “having nothing to wear” and hating everything I have, I’ve learned how to approach clothes from a different perspective. I don’t feel like I’m compromising at all.
You can easily change how you feel about your wardrobe, the way you shop and the way you treat what you bought.
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What Is a Minimalist Wardrobe?
Minimalism can sound very intimidating, so a minimalist wardrobe for someone who loves clothes basically comes off as a nightmare. But having a minimalist wardrobe doesn’t mean you have little and limited clothes. I defiantly don’t wear the same clothes for work, brunch, dates, and everywhere else.
Personally, I have a capsule wardrobe of basics and I have a capsule wardrobe for occasions. Meaning I have extra items that fit certain occasions and I would not call them basic. For example, a dress that you wear in the evening but definitely won’t wear to work or to the groceries.
A capsule wardrobe is having specific clothes that all fit each other, fit every occasion and are of quality.
Building a capsule wardrobe doesn’t have to be immediate, there’s no reason to spend a bunch of money at once to buy all the basics. You should plan in advance and adjust ideas to your own style.
You can look for your own inspiration for capsule wardrobe on google, Pinterest, Instagram, Youtube and more.
With The Curated Closet method, you’ll learn to:
Shop smarter and more selectively, Make the most of your budget, Master outfit formulas and color palettes, Tweak your wardrobe for work, Assess garment fit and quality like a pro,Curate a closet of fewer, better pieces. Click here to get it on Amazon.
How To Declutter?
The first step to any change is to declutter. In order to maintain a minimalist wardrobe you have to evaluate what you have that you don’t need.
I have a few basic steps for a simple decluttering process that you should go through. It’s basically questions that you should ask yourself for each and every item you own.
Go through this process for each item, and force yourself to answer all the questions before you just assume that you can’t live without the rainbow-colored fuzzy sweater that you bought 10 years ago and is stretched out.
Pro tip: I suggest putting a timer for a short time and stop when it stops. If you go through everything you own in one sitting, you’ll probably be miserable and desperate to finish. I set a timer for 30 minutes when I declutter and that way I don’t have to face all the mess.
Would you buy it from the store right now?
Very simple question: if you feel that there’s no way you would spend your money again on a specific item, you shouldn’t hold on to it. No matter how much you DID spend already. It takes up space, it makes you feel guilty, thus not allowing you to replace it with something you actually want and love.
Is it your size? Does it fit?
No matter the circumstances, if something is no longer your size, you shouldn’t keep it. Unfortunately, I had too many laundry-shrunk clothes in the past that I’ve held on too because I actually loved them. But what good will they do now? The lessons to learn are to stop buying low-quality clothes that shrink easily and to take better care of them.
Does it flatter you?
Even if the item is your size, you should consider if it looks great on you. Our appearance is not the most important thing in life by a long shot, but we do tend to feel insecure in clothes that don’t flatter us. It’s time to always feel great no matter what you choose to wear.
Did you wear it in the past year?
Another crucial question. If you haven’t worn an item in the past year, it doesn’t mean you have to throw it away. try putting it in front of your wardrobe, and if you don’t reach for it, it has to go in the next decluttering session.
Please try to donate or recycle the fabrics instead of throwing them away and creating waste.
If you need more help with learning how to declutter – I offer this FREE course! It’s 7 days of decluttering, the first day being your wardrobe! The course is super specific steps for how to approach decluttering and how to overcome obstacles.
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This is a step by step guide that goes through each room.
“The Way of the Essentialist isn’t about getting more done in less time. It’s about getting only the right things done. It is not a time management strategy, or a productivity technique. It is a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely essential, then eliminating everything that is not, so we can make the highest possible contribution towards the things that really matter.” Click here to get it on Amazon.
How To Shop?
This is a crucial part of maintaining a minimalist wardrobe. No more carelessly shopping for items we don’t need because it’s on sale.
Having a minimalist wardrobe and maintaining its minimalism can require you to have a whole new approach. Every purchase needs to go through this process. At the beginning, it’s a little stiff, but after a few times it will come naturally – I promise!
Shop for specific occasions.
If you can’t think of where you will wear something – you shouldn’t get it. You need to know exactly the situation in which you will wear your item. When I buy a white dress, I need to list in my head all the places I will wear it to. If I can’t picture the situation I won’t get it, no matter how “cute” it is.
Shop for something that goes with other things you already have.
Similar principal to the previous, you should be able to imagine the new item with other items you already have. For example, don’t buy a skirt that you need to buy a special top and shoes for.
At the beginning, when you still won’t have your basic capsule wardrobe down, you might find yourself still purchasing “stand alone” items. But with time, you should adjust new items to the ones you already own.
Shop when you’re missing something specific.
If you’re getting dresses and feel like you’re missing something specific in your outfit, you can consider getting it. The rule is that you should feel it at least 3 times. I needed long sleeved black T-shirts for the longest time. They were a great basic that I didn’t have and every time I tried an outfit, I wished I had that kind of shirt.
Try to shop online.
This can be tricky, that’s why I’m suggesting to try it. When I needed a black T-shirt, I went to the site of my favorite store, types “black Tee” and just got one that looked good! If I would have gone to a store, I might have been tempted to go into more stores and purchase more items. Shopping online is quick and has fewer distractions. It might be tricky because online you actually see a lot more items, but if you’re focused, you should only look for the one you NEED.
Focus on quality basics.
Quality is the name of the game. Once you’ve purchased a good quality basic, you won’t have to re-purchase it again and again.
“In Decluttering at the Speed of Life, decluttering expert and author Dana White identifies the mind-sets and emotional challenges that make it difficult to declutter. Then, in her signature humorous approach, she provides workable solutions to break through these struggles and get clutter out–for good!”Click here to get it on Amazon.
How To Keep Clothes For a Longer Time?
Read the label.
The labels will tell you how to take care of your clothes.
Even if the clothes were cheap, take good care of them.
We tend to “disrespect” cheap clothes, so we don’t read the label, we throw it in the dryer and we let it sit in a mess instead of hung properly. That’s the reason we keep buying more and more cheap clothes and “never have enough money for quality”.
Don’t be lazy.
If you get a stain, treat it immediately. When you get home, fold your clothes neatly and don’t just throw them away. Being lazy will wear out your clothes much quicker.
Search what you don’t know.
Nowadays there’s a solution for every problem, including unfamiliar stains on clothes. Don’t just throw it in the wash and hope for the best, search for a proper solution for each situation.
How To Organize?
Start with my favorite organizing articles:
10 Easy organization hacks to be in control of your home
How to organize a small space wardrobe
Read a book:
“Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever.” Click here to get it on Amazon.
“While excess consumption leads to bigger houses, faster cars, fancier technology, and cluttered homes, it never brings happiness. Rather, it results in a desire for more. It redirects our greatest passions to things that can never fulfill. And it distracts us from the very life we wish we were living.” Click here to get it on Amazon.
“Rather than the “crash diet” approach found in other tidying up books, Jay shares simple steps to cultivate a minimalist mindset and form new habits, paving the way to lasting success. Her easy-to-follow STREAMLINE method works in any space.” Click here to get it on Amazon.
So, you’ve decluttered, you’ve shopped for basics, and you’re going to take good care of your minimalist wardrobe!
That’s the basics of maintaining a minimalist wardrobe. it’s fun to look at capsule wardrobe ideas on Pinterest, but it’s more important to maintain the basic idea of minimalism!
I hope you found good advice and tips in this post 🙂
To read more about 10 simple minimalist steps you can start today for an easier life click here.
I would love to hear if there are any recommendations I didn’t include that you think will be beneficial!
I DONT LIKE A LOT OF STUFF SO I AM ALL FOR THE MINIMALIST WARDROBE!!!! I do have “a lot” of clothes though, however…. I wear them all! And if I buy anything new, I have to get rid of something I don’t wear as much anymore!
Hey Gigi,
I don’t have minimal clothing as well, but as long as we love and use everything we have, that’s completely ok!
I love the idea of getting rid of something when you get something new 🙂
I hate shopping for myself. Therefore i am a natural minimalist with my own clothes lol. I do need to shop for some new pants soon i hust had a few pairs rip from being warn to much ha
Hey Sarah,
I don’t like shopping as well, I can try on a lot of clothes and never find something I like so I just avoid it lol.
Being a minimalist helps me bc I don’t feel pressure to get too many things all the time.
Wonderful tips! We regularly go through our clothes, and just this past weekend went through every room and closet in the house for our community garage sale next weekend, including all of our clothes!
Thank you, Stephanie.
I love the idea of cycling through clothes and not just creating waste.
Thanks for the tips there.. My wardrobe is overflowing right now and this is going to help me so much
Hey Kapila,
I’m glad you like the tips.
What a timely read for some spring closet cleaning~
I’ve been trying to observe and practice minimalism in all aspects of my lifestyle and would like to start incorporating that into my closet as well. While I don’t go shopping often, I feel as though my wardrobe are lacking the actual essentials..
Hey Stephanie,
When I started focusing on essentials, I noticed I always have something to wear. Basic clothes are being taken for granted but you can have all the basics and still have a great style I think.
This are amazing tips! I need to do defiantly need to work on my wardrobe!
Thank you, Kara. I’m glad you liked the tips.
These are great tips. Thank you so much for this information. That is so helpful.
Oh this was such a good read! I am a big hoarder **guilty**
Trying to clean out stuff and keep only good quality versatile stuff now on 🙂
Hey Preeti,
Getting quality basics really helps with having clothes to wear and also not hoarding too many things haha 🙂
Those are good ideas. I know my daughter has heard a lot about upcycling of clothing and trying to make new unique pieces out of older pieces. I try to encourage her to do things like that.
Hey David,
cycling clothes sound like a great idea! It also encourages creativity.
I cleaned out my closet hoard some months back and it was the best thing I ever did. I had trash bags full of clothes I didn’t like or wear, to donate. I love knowing that everything in my closet are pieces that fit and that I love. xoxo
Hey Jillian,
Decluttering feels so great and liberating! I’m glad you’re focusing on a capsule wardrobe.
Decluttering is something I have never really been that great at, but this is the time of the year I do it. I definitely need to go through my wardrobe.
Hey Debbie,
Decluttering becomes easier the more we focus only on the things we love.
Just start with your wardrobe it will be easier eventually.
This is something I really need! I absolutely need to declutter my wardrobe – I’m going to save this for later.
Hey Jazmin,
I’m glad you found this useful 🙂