This winter wardrobe was my first experience with creating a capsule wardrobe and it was SO. MUCH. FUN. There’s nothing like going to a thrift store with a specific item in mind, searching through rack after rack, and finding the exact garment you need to complete your capsule wardrobe. That happened to me on multiple occasions and it was so fun!
This post will contain how I built my specific winter capsule wardrobe for this year and the exact items that are in it now. Whether you’re looking for inspiration for the winter or how to pick modest clothing (more on that here), you’ve come to the right place. If you’d like to create your own capsule wardrobe, you can read my instructions to do so here.
Here’s my Winter Capsule Wardrobe.
I followed my own instructions at the link above when creating my capsule wardrobe. The first step was to find a color palette by sorting through my own clothes. Here it is:
This is the backbone of my winter capsule wardrobe. Here are the pieces that I started with for my wardrobe.
There were actually a few more pieces that fit within my color palette. But they’ve since been weeded out because they were either not suitable for the cold weather in England or because I realized I didn’t really like them anymore. When you look at the graphic above, you may be surprised why I chose the color palette I did, but it’s because I had more clothes in the palette at the time.
This is what I still have from my original palette finding purge: Two dresses, two sweatshirts, two pairs of jeans, one backpack, two scarves, and my pink Converse Allstars.
At the time I was creating my winter wardrobe, I had a nice little side hustle where I would buy clothes from the thrift store and re-sell them on Poshmark. So, the first place I looked for items for my capsule wardrobe was my own Poshmark closet!
Here’s what I added from my Poshmark closet: 1 turtleneck gray sweater (that’s super warm and comfy!) and 1 gray sweater with a tie detail.
Okay, so now I’ve got some more sweaters. That’s a great start for the cold weather! But I knew that I would still need a few more dresses for church and around the house, maybe ones that could work for both. I also really wanted to have a pair of overalls in my wardrobe. And I knew that I needed waterproof shoes for my move to rainy England!
Then there was also the fact that blush pink was one of my chosen colors, but I only had that in shoes! So, I set off looking for some more things.
Thrift Store Searching
After searching my own Poshmark closet I turned to thrift stores. There were some really great thrift stores close to where I lived in LA and I frequented them for a couple of weeks to find items for my capsule wardrobe (read my whole post about thrifting here). I did find a lot at the thrift stores that worked with my color palette, but it wasn’t warm enough for preparing for the winter in England. So I passed on a lot of things. Though I struck out on what I needed at the thrift store, I do think it’s a great place to look for things for your capsule wardrobe. The only problem with thrifting for specific things is that you never know what will be there!
That’s where Poshmark really comes in handy.
“Thrifting” on Poshmark
You can search very easily on the Poshamark app to find exactly what you are looking for. And, the clothes are still second-hand, which means they are cheaper! I often bundled items together from one seller to get the best deal and only pay for shipping once.
I found most of my clothes for my capsule wardrobe on Poshmark.
Here’s what I found: 1 midi blush sweater dress, 2 blush sweaters, 1 navy cardigan, 1 gray midi skirt, 1 navy midi skirt, 1 cream bell-sleeved cardigan, 1 turquoise sweatshirt, 1 cream sweater, 1 velvet short-sleeved top, 1 pair of overalls (yay!), 1 pair of heeled waterproof boots, 1 pair of wellies, and 1 winter coat.
You can see it all added to the graphic below!
Completing Capsule Wardrobe
After I found these items on Poshmark, I didn’t really need that much more! I had found some blush sweaters and even a pair of overalls. I also found waterproof boots, so that was covered.
To finish up my capsule wardrobe I found a few things at a buy, sell, trade store in Los Angeles shortly before our move to England.
Here’s what I got to complete my capsule wardrobe: 2 navy dresses, 1 blush sweater, and 1 pair of navy dress slacks.
You can see them added to the graphic below.
Those last purchases brought my total items to 31 pieces of clothing!
Edited to add: I realized after I wrote the post that I actually have one more top… so that makes my total item count 32! I was aiming for 30 pieces total, so that’s exactly what I wanted! Here’s the updated graphic of my whole winter capsule wardrobe:
And here’s the breakdown of my Winter Capsule Wardrobe, I have 5 dresses, 2 skirts, 7 sweaters (or jumpers), 5 tops, 2 cardigans, 1 pair of trousers, 2 pairs of jeans, 1 pairs of overalls, 1 backpack, 2 scarves, 3 pairs of shoes, 1 winter coat.
Extra Items
There are some clothing items that I own, but I did not list in my capsule wardrobe. I have two pairs of leggings that I wear with my dresses. But I do not count leggings as pants, they are considered underclothes to me. I also have several pairs of insulated tights that are wonderful with the dresses or skirts. (They are so cozy!) I keep lots of camisoles in the cream color so that I can either layer up with them or wear them with a lower shirt to be modest. And, of course, I have pajamas and workout wear that are not listed in my capsule wardrobe.
Why I’m Loving My Capsule Wardrobe
And that was that, I finished my capsule wardrobe! There were a few items that I purchased and later decided not to keep because they were either not warm enough or I just didn’t like them as much as I thought I would. But I think that was a good part of the process of elimination and learning what I really like to wear!
I am really enjoying using my capsule wardrobe and making it work with fewer clothes in my closet. Not only does having a capsule wardrobe keep my clothes to a minimum, but it also makes it very simple to get ready in the morning. I don’t have to worry that my clothes won’t match or that I pick something out I don’t like. I like all the things that I have and they all go together because they are all in the same color palette. It’s a breeze to get ready now!
If you’d like to give it a try, check out my post with all the steps to do your own capsule wardrobe.
My winter capsule wardrobe has also really made me appreciate each piece of clothing I own. They are all great pieces and I’m very thankful I was able to find them all. They’ve kept me cozy as we moved to the cold weather in England and I can’t wait to see how some of them transition to Spring. I will definitely be doing a capsule wardrobe again! I don’t think I’ll ever go back now.
Do you have a favorite from what you’ve seen above? Let me know in the comments!
Related Posts:
How to Create a Capsule Wardrobe
Dressing Modestly | Theology of Clothing
