What I Learned From A 30 Piece Wardrobe

This summer, I had the amazing opportunity to study abroad in Italy for 6 weeks, and travel afterwards for 2. While I of course learned a lot about the arts, architecture, and culture of Italy & Europe, I also learned a lot about living with a smaller wardrobe. You see many bloggers taking challenges like the "30 Pieces in 30 Days," where you create outfits around only 30 items for a whole month. I always thought these people were crazy... What if you wake up one morning and realize the one thing you really want to wear isn't one of your 30?! Well, little did I know that I'd be putting myself through essentially the same challenge, but for nearly the whole summer, the months of May, June, and July. The funny thing is, I didn't even realize I had done this until just the other night, when I was putting away my clean clothes in my closet at my parents house.

When I packed for my trip to Italy, I knew I needed a lot of room to come back with souvenirs and extra things I bought while there. Keeping in mind possible weather changes depending on where we travelled in Europe, I paired down my clothes as much as possible. I focused on taking items that worked well with each other, with nearly every top going with every bottom, with a few exceptions of course. I brought a lot of simple sundresses, one-piece-wonders that make getting dressed a breeze. Funny enough, limiting the clothes wasn't as hard as limiting what jewelry to bring! More on that later.

I brought clothes within a similar color palette: navy, white, tan, black & grey, with pops of cobalt, coral, and blush. Once I got to Italy, I added a few key pieces, including a olive green pair of shorts, medium wash skinny jeans, and a flowy tan top. These additions brought my total to about 30, again, completely not planned. 

What is interesting is that I never really got tired of what I brought. Sure, there were days I craved something new, but I made it work through accessorizing, despite my limited jewelry collection. At my Premier shows, I always tell my customers how one outfit can be many more just by changing up the jewelry & accessories, but I never felt that statement to be as true as it was this summer!!

By the time I got home to my parents in Colorado, I was certainly excited to have a few more options. With the stash of clothes I had at home, and a few extra purchases, my wardrobe here is up to about 40. But what I was most looking forward to was raiding my moms extensive Premier jewelry collection for some of the statement pieces I missed! My simple necklaces and earrings were not cutting it any longer. 

Aside from the art and history lessons, I learned a great deal about personal style this summer. One does not need an entire wardrobe to be a stylish, fashion-forward woman. Classic, timeless style is about sticking to basics that don't seem basic (think a navy maxi dress with a high-low hemline or a flowy blouse in a bold color). It's about understanding what colors you love and can rock like nobodies business. It's about understanding what your comfortable in, and knowing that you don't have to have every "trending" piece to look stylish. I learned how to be true to myself a bit this summer, something I didn't think I needed to learn.

Having a minimal wardrobe doesn't have to be defined by a number; it's more about making sure that everything you own has a purpose, and provides cohesion in your closet. Once I get back to Tallahssee and all my clothes are in the same place, I plan on keeping this limited wardrobe going. When I think about all my favorite clothing items, I realize they are all with me, because I know what to wear them with, how to style them fabulously. Heck, most of them traveled with me around Europe! We are bonded now! 

After living (surviving) so long with a limited wardrobe, I am now a firm believer in the 30-in-30 challenge. Limited your wardrobe frees up your mornings, your mind, and your soul. Besides, fun jewelry can make up for the lost clothing items! And who doesn't love jewelry? :)

--Caroline

Five Fridays Favorites

Being sick really takes it out of you, and I've still got a lingering cough so I'll keep today's post simple and to the point. Here's what been going on in my life lately!

1. I treated myself to a spa day (with the help of an unused Christmas gift card from my sweet boyfriend!) which included a 1.5 hour long massage and getting my hair cut! As mentioned in this post, I was ready to do something different, and I am loving my new hair! It's so fun, so me, and so much easier to take care of! 

2. On Sunday, my first day of being really sick, I got a sweet & unexpected surprise from Kyle. He popped in on his way to his grandparents house, so that he could check in on his sick girlfriend and feed her some soup. :)

3. I pulled out my first item from "purgatory"! I went in my closet with an outfit in mind and was very confused when I couldn't find my white top with black polka dots. At first I was so confused, trying to think of if I maybe left it in Daytona the last time I was there or if I had a load in the washer, and then I remembered my purgatory! (Read this post if you are confused at what I'm talking about! lol)

4. This outfit was a cute & comfy success... check out my hair curled!

5. I spent some quality time with my bestie Caroline (we call ourselves C-Squared) which was long overdue! We saw Captain America 2... So good!

Have a great weekend, y'all! I hope you've got something fun going on! I've got a ton of homework to get done before Sunday, which is my sorority's sisterhood retreat to Seaside, FL. Beach dayyyyy!!!

--Caroline

Closet Clean Out: Minimalism Approach

Last week I shared with you a ton of articles (sorry!) about different ways people have adapted Minimalism to their life, with the focus being on the closet. (Read my post here.) Fired up by these articles, I attacked my closet with guns blazing!

Step One: Figure Out Which Clothes Are Your Favorites

To do this, I cleared off my bed so that I could lay out these favorite pieces. Then I started thinking about my favorite pieces while not in my closet looking at them! (I think this is an important piece missing from my previous clean-outs, because you are forced to really remember your closet, and therefore the most memorable pieces are the pieces you love the most.) I grouped similar styles into categories, so I could really see what I loved. In the process, I tried on each piece, and I actually came up with a couple outfits just with my favorites that I hadn't thought of before!

I ended up with 40 pieces: 3 sweaters, 3 dresses,  jackets, 13 tops, 4 basic tanks, 2 skirts, 4 shorts, 3 jeans, 1 pant, and 1 romper. 

Then, I examined what was similar about these pieces, so I could determine my "style":

     -classic shapes

     -main colors: white, black, nudes, grays, blues

     -occasional pops of color: greens, pinks, reds

     -simple patterns (stripes & dots primarily)

Now when I'm buying new things that don't necessarily fall into this category, I can really think about if they work with my favorites. (I strongly suggest this evaluation step, even if you think you know your style. That way you know what you are always working with!)

Some observations I made during this step:

     -99% of the things that made it into this category were bought in-person (or tried on a similar size and ordered correct size).

     -Many were unplanned buys that I immediately fell in love with in-store.

     -I knew I was done when I walked into my closet and didn't know what to grab next! This is so important!

Step Two: Figure Out Your "Need to Keeps"

After squishing all my clothes to one side and putting my favorites front and center, I sorted out what I needed to keep. For me this was winter coats & jackets, formal dresses for sorority rituals and functions, and anything I knew I would need for recruitment in the fall. For you, this might mean your job uniform, business suits (only if you 100% love them!), etc. 

Step 3: Attack the Rest & Get Rid of What You Don't Love

By grouping the questionable items together, and making my favorites front-and-center, I was more able to evaluate if something I decided to keep was going to work with everything else I had. For this step, it's extremely crucial to try on everything. If I tried something on and I didn't 100% love it, then out it goes! For me, the things that automatically went were items that require a bandeau or tank (I hate having to wear extra things underneath), items that didn't end up washing well, and items that attract kitty hair like a magnet. 

I also found it helpful (or at a minimum interesting) to take note of some of the things I added into my "loves" first:

     -jean jacket (I wear it a lot, guess I forgot about it in the first step!)

     -3 sleeveless blouses that can go from casual to dressy easily (filled a void in my "loves"!)

     -colorful maxidress I recently got (perfect for spring and summer!) 

I divided up the items I was getting rid of into 3 bags: donate, sell on eBay, and take to a local consignment store. (I prefer Plato's Closet--they pay cash on the spot! Find a location near you here.)

Also important to note: I did this step over two days. Sometimes you just get burnt out and take the easy way out (keep everything), which is not what you want when trying to really be minimal. So I made some decisions the first day, then I slept on it and reevaluated the next morning. 

Step 4: Purgatory

I put every item that I wasn't sure about into a "purgatory" of sorts, in the back of my closet. The pieces that made it here are not favorites, but I do really like them and wasn't ready to get rid of them. When trying to really pare down your wardrobe, you do need to be hard on yourself, but sometimes that's hard! I ended up with 15 items in purgatory, and I'm going to see if I pull anything out in the next month or so (the end of the semester). If I don't then out they go! The key here is sticking to this--don't slack!

Step 5: Deal With the Rejects

Take the time to properly deal with your rejects. Kitty Boy helped me take pictures for my eBay items, and then I loaded up my car to take the items to Plato's. (They took some stuff but not everything, so I'll be adding the rest to my donate bag!). Whatever you do, do not change your mind once you've committed to getting rid of an item. If you wanted to get rid of it for even five minute, it's obviously not worth keeping!

In the end, I went from 92 tops/dresses and 13 pants/skirts to 61 tops/dresses and 8 skirts/pants! That is hanging items only, so my jeans and shorts that are in my dresser don't count in those figures. I am planning on evaluating the remaining dresser drawers (my workout clothes, underwear, and pj's) but that is not nearly as exciting! Overall I am really really proud of myself! Since I've been getting dressed in only my loves, it's been a lot easier to get dressed in the morning, which is always nice. I'm also enjoying my closet rods being less crowded! 

Stay tuned for updates on my purgatory items, as well as updates on my fight to be as minimal as possible. On my list to really go through are my school items, and my large beauty product collection... yikes!

--Caroline