A few years ago I discovered minimalism. I’m sure you’ve probably heard about it since the concept experienced a sort of revival several years ago — reaching the mainstream again and becoming an extremely marketable aesthetic in the lifestyle and design realm.
Minus the very obvious stereotypes, when I finally learned about the concept and understood how to use it, it felt like the key to everything I needed to know in oder to make better aesthetic choices — which has always stressed me out a bit if I’m being honest.
As it applies to home decor and clothing, it’s really just about favoring quality, efficiency, versatility, and timelessness.
These guiding principles of sorts have become particularly useful in the way I approach my wardrobe and the more I learned about minimalism in clothing, the more I find it in the fashion world.
Take models for example, who tend to wear pretty minimalist attire in their day-to-day, hoping from go-see to go-see, always looking super chic. You can also consider the stereotypical Parisian woman, who is the portrait of elegance, effortlessness, practicality and muse of many a fashion legend.
What is at the center of these wardrobes is that you will never fail with some carefully selected, well-fitting, timeless “basics”. You can find some of these basics in Ethical Fashion Brands for Basics.
Upon further research, it basically turns out that basics are the foundation of any wardrobe. From neutral tank tops and t-shirts, to plain white blouses, comfy leggings, the perfect pair of blue jeans, etc.
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A minimalist wardrobe makes these pieces a central part of the everyday; but factors in quantity, as much as it is does quality, versatility and lifestyle in order to identify the optimal items that will make up the best and most efficient wardrobe for a given person.
Here’s a what that might look like but of course this is not for everyone so feel free to modify this as you see fit 🙂
8 Tops
- 2 Tees
- 2 Tanks
- 1 Patterned Blouse
- 1 White Dress Shirt/Blouse
- 1 Cardigan
- 1 Blazer/Jacket
2 Dresses
- 1 Slip dress
- 1 Shirt Dress
5 Bottoms
- 2 Jeans
- 1 Pencil skirt
- 1 Pant
- 1 Leggings
4 Shoes
- 1 Sneaker
- 1 pair of Flats
- 1 pair of Heels
- 1 pair of Boots
The best part is that once you’ve got your basics down, you can add to them and pair them with the wildest creations you can think of, or not. But definitely with one another without fail.
It’s such a simple and logical way to approach ones wardrobe regardless of whether or not you want to live with 100 items or less.
That said, the big thing I think people associate with minimalism is quantity. What really strikes me about minimalism is the mindful and intentional curation of items, that can easily be paired with one another without needing to overthink.
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Factoring in your lifestyle in advance (i.e. what you do for work, leisure, physical activity, etc); you can have just the right items to meet your needs as efficiently as possible. And you can easily pair any number of items together to create a solid look for any occasion; that is, granted they are not enmeshed with the rest of the dirty laundry in your hamper.
So what does that look like in reality?
For me, it’s definitely a work in progress. I am slowly building my wardrobe, but already employ a pretty minimalist approach to my daily wear (i.e. plain jeans and a t-shirt for the most part). I do get a lot of inspiration from capsule wardrobes on Pinterest and on Youtube; and have a working list of items that I am looking to acquire.
There are tons of free resources online so don’t be afraid to look around if you need some inspo.
MOSTLY EARTHLY 