Marley, that's interesting about the earrings! I myself confine myself to about a 1" drop max!

Vix, you have overwhelmed me with your blog post *in a good way*. I'm going to have to think about this. I know I love classics but I also know there's MORE!

Fascinating thread, Adelfa, and it gives me much to think about. I SO crave variety, and I feel "confined" in several areas of my life, which just makes me crave the "freedom" of lots of choices even more. YLF has helped me to focus on an "ensemble" wardrobe -- high quality players that work well together, but I do think this Golden Retriever (squirrel!) mentality has slowed my progress a bit.

Complicating Factors: I gave up the "black trousers and shoes" uniform, incorporating more color, returning to wearing both silver and gold, and favoring a variety of silhouettes in pants and skirt/dresses.

Simplifying: Use of formulas (printed shells and black blazer, bf's and printed woven top), "families" of color

Adelfa, you own the most exquisite jewelry!

My simplifying and complicating choices resonate with many others, I guess.

Simplifying:
- narrowing my palette down, though I am not there yet (for reference, it is very similar to the one Suz mentioned hers is on I think unfrumped's thread)
- eschewing black, except in the LBD and accessories context: for some mysterious reason I have the devil's own time mixing black with anything but white and don't like to resemble a panda, much as I love the animal itself!
- adding skinny/tapered pants that make more shoe choices possible, though I still prefer straight legs
- reducing heel height options to 2 inches and under, and really a LOT of flats (needed to give myself permission to do this and not feel frumpy)
- using sarees for by 'maxi' fix (see below under 'complicating' options) as they are an *adjustable* maxi length by nature
- narrowing my preferred silhouettes, especially in ethnic garments (churidars/leggings vs salwars, saree blouses) but also in terms of seasons---A-line skirts for summer, no skirts for the monsoons, add pencils as well for winter etc
- sticking to silver and antiqued brass/bronze
- separating summer and winter neutrals, same as Jayne

Complicating:
- moving from all-neutrals in the beige-brown family to more/other neutrals plus strong colours!
- wearing white and cream, like you!
- challenging myself to add in RED, which I used to be super-scared of, because it actually flatters me in several shades and is culturally important for me
- having Marlene's issue of loving cobalt and not thinking it works with denim, while jeans are the mainstay of my out-and-about wardrobe
- loving maxi dresses and skirts (cf. heel heights issue!)
- refusing to rule out many silhouettes (length, shape, volume) except minis and top-to-toe body con
- having a gold wedding ring (sent it on sabbatical!)
- sitting on the floor a lot, meaning very different silhouette and shoe choices than when out and about! I need whole other sets of clothes for at-home for this reason alone

This is a really interesting thread. A super minimal, easy to mix and match wardrobe has been my goal for years. And while I've cut down to half my original numbers for my 4 season wardrobe, I still have 4 very varied seasons and I seem to prefer a little more variety IRL than in my head.

I've simplified and complicated my wardrobe over the years by:

-I run on team cold so for my warm weather clothes my items need to layer. This has helped me stay away from open knit sweaters or tops with sleeves that do not layer well with a blazer or cardigan (such as a bell sleeve) over it.

-I've limited my 3/4 sleeve tops to 3 and none of my blazers have 3/4 sleeves. I used to purchase lots of 3/4 sleeve items but found layering them in non summer months a real challenge. Now I have a couple for variety but since it's only 3 if they sit for colder months it's not a huge pile of clothes sitting unworn for a large chunk of time. Also because it's a small number there is a high chance by the end of the season the item is ready for purging anyway.

-I do not own any skirts and I own 3 dresses. All 3 dresses are occasion specific (business or special occasion). I've never found pairing skirts with tops easy so I stopped trying. And I noticed I'd rather grab a pair of shorts than a dress in the heat so I phased out a large skirt/dress wardrobe that mostly sat unworn and that really cut down my wardrobe size.

-I own very few season specific items. I do like to dress for the seasons but I am more interested in versatile items. So I limit my seasonal clothing. For warm months I only have 2 pairs of shorts, 1 pair of white jeans, and no bottoms that are cropped. I wear jeans to work year round so it's easier for me to have jeans that are full length and not cropped. For toppers I only have one (a cardigan) with 3/4 sleeves. All the rest are long sleeves and colors I can wear year round. I just push up the sleeves if I want to expose some forearm. When I purchase toppers I try to pick neutrals/seasonless colors that I can wear year round.

-I add a seasonal vibe with my layering pieces. Right now in the heat, that means short sleeve tops in prints of the season. But all the prints can be paired with my toppers. Since my layering items are washed frequently they tend to wear quickly and be replaced seasonally. This freshens up my wardrobe and keeps me from having layering orphans.

-I am very selective with my toppers. These items are usually pricier, and worn year round (I'll wear a blazer in chilly a/c at work) so neutrals work better here. But I do have color with these so maybe it's the materials I am paying close attention to. I can sport a tan blazer year round even though you usually see them in spring as long as it is not linen which would make it too seasonal for my year round needs. I will purchase a seasonal item (such as the plum Tory Burch sweatercoat from NAS) but I'll wear that item for fall, winter and spring and just vary up the layering items and bottoms to make it work (plum is lovely with white in spring and a sweatercoat works great on rainy cold spring days and the plum will also be lovely with black for fall and winter).

-I stick to one heel height for my bottoms. All my bootcut jeans and trousers work with a small heel. If I want to wear a large heel I'll wear skinny jeans or a dress. When I first found out about PPL I went nuts with varying hemlengths on my jeans. But it was too confusing! Now when I shop I know the heel height I need and I just look at footwear that has that heel height. This has really simplified my shoe shopping.

Beth Ann, you're reminding me of what Claire said about finding out preferences. I love how you say that you feel confined in some areas and want freedom in your wardrobe. It sounds like you understand exactly what's going on with yourself. It also sounds as though wardrobe variety could be an important form of therapy for you right now!

Manidipa, I would love to learn more about the ethnic garments you wear! And very clever to get your maxi fix with saris!

Lisa, these are all very thoughtful choices. It sounds like you are quite a ways down the simplifying path.