Summer Capsule Wardrobe: A (Semi) Minimalist's Closet

 I am a fan of having a small wardrobe.  I think that if you only have a small amount of clothing, life is easier: you don't have as many decisions to make and you don't have to rummage through an overstuffed closet to find something! One of the reasons I love owning fewer clothing items is because nothing is ever languishing around in the closet. I only own what I actually wear or what has sentimental value to me (only a few of those items exist!).  Perhaps I do take this to an extreme, but I think I have too many clothes; compared to most American women, I probably have very few.

This was my summer wardrobe this year:

*4 dresses

*   1 pair of seersucker trousers

*1 skirt 

*3 pairs of shorts (I have several because I bought them before we went to DisneyWorld; otherwise, I wouldn't own any shorts!)

*2 blouses

*2 lightweight cardigans

Not pictured, in another drawer, are a couple of tee shirts that can be worn with the skirt or shorts. 

I don't count my exercise clothes or my swimsuits, because I only use those for a particular purpose.  The majority of the time this summer, I wore the clothes in the photo. 

For church I'd wear a dress with a cardigan and sometimes a scarf or wrap, as well as nice shoes and jewelry.  On a "normal" day of shopping or being around the house, I'd wear the same dress, but with more casual shoes or sandals.  I didn't wear the shorts very often, since they are not as much my style as dresses, but I wore those seersucker trousers with a tee shirt or blouse a lot! They are so comfortable and flattering. 

A friend of mine asked if I have to do a lot of laundry because of my small wardrobe.  The answer is not at all!  In fact, I don't feel like I do much of my own laundry.  With this many clothes, I can wear clothes for at least 6-7 days with no repeats at all (other than the cardigan, if I wear one).  I do not consider washing clothes once a week to be doing a lot of laundry! In reality, of course, I wash clothes a lot more frequently because I launder all our napkins, tablecloths, towels, and all of my family's clothing.  But as for my own clothing?  Once a week is plenty.  

My autumn wardrobe is similarly small (although a little larger; I have more long-sleeved shirts).  It's a lot like it was last year, although this year I've gotten rid of two of those sweaters, and probably need to replace them sometime this winter. 

Last year I meant to show my winter clothing as well, but I never did it.  I'll plan to do that this year, because I did buy a couple of winter dresses last year, and I am enjoying them! I also have a new secret weapon under dresses....so I'll talk about that as well.  But not until the temperature drops below, say, 65.....

There's a lot of freedom in owning less stuff, and that goes for wardrobing as well!