Why I Quit My Capsule Wardrobe

A capsule wardrobe is one great way to simplify your life, but it's totally o.k. to quit or better yet, pause and pivot when it's just not working for you.

It has been about almost 11 months since my last blog post. It's slightly comical that my last blog was published on April 1st of 2021. Maybe I chose that date subconciously so I could come back today and say "April Fool's!" when it came time to give report on my lofty goal of continuing with my Project 333 capsule wardrobe for an entire year. So, you might be wondering what happened. Honestly, life happened and I got so busy that maintaining my capsule wardrobe was really stressing me out! That's the other funny thing. The capsule wardrobe is meant to simplify one's life, but the reality for some is that it can actually end up creating more work. During simpler times, people owned fewer clothing items that were well-made and versatile. Nowadays, fast-fashion, abundance and consumerism are much more common. I became interested in Project 333 because, at the time, I had embraced the concept of minimalism and I liked the idea of a fun little "project." It made sense for me at that time of my life to just dive in and welcome the discomfort that the challenge brought.

"Honestly, life happened and I got so busy that maintaining my capsule wardrobe was really stressing me out!"

But I am not the same person I was 5 years ago. I told you that life got really busy, which is why my goal to stick to my Project 333 capsule wardrobe went out the window. So, what have I been doing? Well, I have spent the past year continuing to adjust to life as a new parent along with embracing my new postpartum body. I also started a new position within my company, have been navigating the Pandemic as a first time parent and have been focusing on my personal well-being (i.e. exercising, meditating and participating in therapy to help with my adjustment to motherhood). Needless to say, I've had just enough on my plate with very little room to add much more.

You would think that having a capsule wardrobe during a pandemic would be fairly easy, but I think that my body's refusal to "bounce back" postpartum paired with my resistance to invest in clothing that actually fit my current shape definitely complicated things. I thought I could get away with not buying any new clothing postpartum and could just go back to wearing my pre-pregnancy clothes as I normally would, but I was wrong. My refusal not shop caused me to get frustrated with how I felt in my clothes (and my body), which made me feel worse about my appearance and ultimately made me quit altogether. Not to mention, raising a small child has been quite exhausting and I definitely didn't need anything that made my life harder than it already was. See what I mean about the irony of it all? A capsule wardrobe is meant to make life simpler, but for me it ended up creating more work and stress that it defeated the purpose altogether. Don't even get me started on capsule wardrobe apps where people can upload photos, create outfits and schedule when to wear said outfits... That sounds like way more work, time and energy being used to "make life easier."

"See what I mean about the irony of it all? A capsule wardrobe is meant to make life simpler, but for me it ended up creating more work and stress that it defeated the purpose altogether."

Me and Duke (7 months) at a postpartum photoshoot for Ingrid and Isabel (https://www.ingridandisabel.com).

Time to Pivot

My intentions here are not to drive you away from curating your own capsule wardrobe. I still think capsule wardrobes can promote positive values (i.e. environmental awareness and quality over quantity) and can be a fun challenge for anyone who is up for going against the grain. However, what I am saying is that there can be certain seasons in life when a capsule wardrobe just doesn't fit or can be difficult to adhere to. For me personally, a capsule wardrobe is not currently at the top of my priority list, but I know that there will be a day where I'll be able to commit to it again because I believe in the principles behind it.

"I still think capsule wardrobes can promote positive values (i.e. environmental awareness and quality over quantity) and can be a fun challenge for anyone who is up for going against the grain."

One thing you should know about me is that I am very competitive and I do not like to back down from a challenge. Pressing pause on my Project 333 capsule wardrobe was not exactly ideal, but it was the best thing for me to do while continually pivoting and adjusting to the many changes that life brings. Moving forward, I am really hoping that it won't be another 11 months until my next blog post, but I won't make any promises.

"Pressing pause on my Project 333 capsule wardrobe was not exactly ideal, but it was the best thing for me to do while continually pivoting and adjusting to the many changes that life brings."

Stay tuned for future posts and please feel free to subscribe and/or send me a message to share your thoughts.

XOXO,

Jill