Capsule Wardrobes

I’m a person who tries to live a green and minimal life but who also loves fashion and clothes. The problem with fashion is that trends change very quickly, so living an eco-friendly life and still looking fashionable can be a challenge. This is why the capsule wardrobe movement spreading on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest caught my attention. Two other zero waste bloggers, Bea Johnson from Zero Waste Home and Lauren Singe from Trash Is for Tossers, always look so fashionable, and both practice minimal living and have a capsule wardrobe.

So what exactly is a capsule wardrobe?

It’s a compact wardrobe consisting of around 30 or fewer high-quality staple pieces in coordinating or matching colors. This includes shoes and sometimes even accessories. This principle was created by London boutique owner Susie Faux in the 1970s.

The capsule wardrobe movement is gaining momentum because more and more people are applying the minimalist principle to their fashion for many different reasons:

It saves money—Raise your hand if you, as I, used to have a closet filled with clothes and shoes that cost a lot but were worn sparingly. The problem I had was that most of my clothes matched perhaps one other item or very few, at the most; therefore, I always felt that I had nothing to wear. So off I would go to buy more clothes. I constantly “cleaned out” my closet and gave the clothes away only to fit in more clothes that I purchased and, yes, this was a very expensive way to live. A capsule wardrobe is designed to provide fewer clothes but with more matching possibilities.

Simplifies getting dressed—Instead of “My gosh, I have nothing to wear in my overstocked closet,” there are fewer items that match and can create more possibilities. What’s more, getting dressed in the morning is darned easy!

Saves time—Same reason as above

Saves space—I used to have a huge walk-in closet all to myself. Still, all my clothes did not fit; so, as I said, I would “clean out” my closet or even pack some clothes into boxes and store them away. After 3 pregnancies, my body had changed, but I kept the clothes for sentimental reasons or in the hope that one day I would fit back into size 2 jeansJ These days, since adopting the capsule principle, not only do my clothes fit into a small closet, but my husband, who also joined the movement, now keeps his things in the same closet.

Live minimally —Minimal living basically means you live a simple life with lots fewer belongings.

Saves the environment—The fashion industry is by far not a very sustainable one. Sure, these days there are more and more fashion designers dedicating themselves to creating eco-friendly and chemical free fashions, but everything in this business — from the pesticides used to grow raw materials for clothes to the dying process to the manufacturing and finally to all the clothes ending up in landfills — is causing lots of harm to the environment. Looking fabulous with a minimal wardrobe and less waste saves the planet and is a much more eco-friendly way of living.

Less laundry—Need I say more?