I am now on the third season of my capsule wardrobe and still loving the experience. I originally started using a specific template from the popular un-fancy.com and I’ve really enjoyed adapting the concept to suit my circumstances and continue developing a style. I will link all my previous musings on the subject at the end of this post, but today I am talking through my tips for the transition from Winter to Spring. The collage above depicts some of the items I’ve updated my wardrobe with (all linked at the end of the post) but if you want to see more pieces in action I’m forever posting outfits on my Instagram account! (thevictoriajay)
Prepare for a bigger switch up
If I’m honest, I found the Autumn to Winter transition a bit of a walk in the park. I had my base wardrobe and just needed to switch a handful of items out to prepare for colder weather, or to replace pieces that just had not worked for whatever reason. This time it was less of a ‘switch up’ and more of an ‘overhaul’. I think this was both due to the changing weather, and the fact I had developed more ideas about what I wanted my wardrobe and style to look like, the longer I had been committed to the process. Practically this meant I needed more time and more money for this changeover, which is definitely a lesson for the future.
Think layers
Talking of weather, being based in the UK doesn’t necessarily mean warm sunny weather throughout the season! With our April showers, unpredictable temperatures and random heatwaves I knew I needed to have variety in a Spring capsule wardrobe. My answer to this? Layers. All my tops can be layered up with each other, and my jackets and shoes have varying degrees of warmth and rain protection!
Consider your patterns
My Autumn and Winter capsule collections were all about block colours. It’s a look I was experimenting with, and I enjoyed it. However, I also love my patterns particularly in the warmer months, so knew I would need some florals in my life come Spring. Part of me wanted to run through the shops grabbing everything brightly coloured and patterned from the rails, but with a love of patterns comes a more complicated buying process for the capsule wardrobe convert! I decided the way forward was to have patterned items on the top half or bottom half only. That way, there was no risk of clashing and my wardrobe kept one of the original intentions of being compact but versatile with almost all pieces being suitable to be worn together. I decided to go with the bottom half meaning I was able to pick trousers, skirts and dresses in as many varied patterns as I wanted, and kept jackets and tops in block colours.
If I pluck up he courage, I’d love to finally get around to doing some outfit posts. If that is something you would like to see, let me know in the comments below…
Links to items…
Top Row (L-R)
Avery Floral Trousers – Boohoo.com (no longer available!) Similar here
White All Star Oxford Leather – Converse
Ella Basic Slogan Box Tee – Boohoo.com
Middle Row (L-R)
Grey Sleeveless Jacket – Miss Selfridge
Suedette Waterfall Jacket – Warehouse
Blush Duster Coat – Miss Selfridge
Bottom Row (L-R)
White Knitted Cross Back Jumper – River Island
Tan Pointed Flats – New Look
High Waist Ripped Jeans – New Look
Previous capsule wardrobe posts…
Trying out the capsule wardrobe – the ‘unfancy’ way
My Capsule Wardrobe: Lessons and Winter Updates
3 Spring Trends – for a capsule wardrobe