What is a Capsule Wardrobe / Capsule Closet?

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I've only heard about the concept of capsule wardrobe / capsule closet in the last 2 years but guess what?  "Capsule wardrobe" was coined in the 1970s by a London boutique owner named Susie Fox.   But the term gained popularity when American designer Donna Karan released a capsule collection of 7 interchangeable work-wear pieces in 1985.

What does capsule wardrobe or capsule closet mean?  It's having a collection of clothes that you could mix and match. The goal is to  be able to create different outfits for various occasions without owning too many clothes.  This is usually achieved by buying key items in coordinating colors.

Some people have taken personal challenges revolving around the capsule closet concept like Project 333 wherein you select 33 clothing items which you would wear for 3 months (and packing everything else until it's time for a quarterly rotation).  There's another one called 10 x 10 challenge where you choose 10 items (a pair of shoes are counted as an item)  which you have to wear for 10 days.  The catch is you can't wear the same outfit on multiple days coz the objective is to be creative in mixing and matching your clothing items.  😬

But nope, I haven't really taken any of these challenges coz my wardrobe is already down to staple wear.  😂  And my clothes look the same - same cut for all my pants, one style for all my skirts and dresses, similar style and colors for all my tops ... 🙈😂

I know my wardrobe sounds so plain and boring but I've been through the phase wherein I would buy something different from my usual style and colors then not end up wearing them.  During that time, my closet may be packed with clothes but I would have mornings where I still find myself saying I don't have anything to wear.  🙊 

When I read Garance Dore's Love x Style x Life a few years back, I love and could very well relate to what she said which goes - "I find myself buying the same things over and over, but I don't mind - these are my classics, they always work, they always make me happy." Our only difference is she's very fashionable and I'm not. 🙈😂 😂

Anyway, I think the important lesson from the concept of capsule wardrobe beyond item counting is to make sure that we only buy and keep clothes that we love to wear and that we actually wear. When you love all the clothes in your closet (no matter how few they are),  you'll never have "I've nothing to wear" episodes in the morning. 😜