My early fall capsule plan - YouLookFab Forum

Hi all,
A bit ago I was posting about two things a) the idea to split up my seasons into 8, based on the cross-quarters, and b) that I have 3 basic categories of dressing that I need to accommodate: smart casual out and about, work at home casual, and weekend.

Here is what I came up with for my plan for the early fall season, which started nominally last Sunday. I wanted a week's worth of outfits without laundry required, across all three capsules, so I adjusted the size of each capsule to match the percent of the week I expect to be wearing it. The Smart Casual capsule is the size Angie recommended, except with one more bottom (so I don't have to repeat if I need 4 days of smart casual) while the other two are a bit smaller. As of yet I am not tracking/limiting shoes or accessories, though I expect them to be repeated quite a bit given the overall style choices.

As far as style and color palette goes I wanted to make the influences in each capsule different from one another, so that i had a variety of looks available even if the total number of garments is limited. With the smart casual capsule my starting place was the new striped jacket, which to me suggested black and white and brights. For work at home I wanted something different, so i went with a denim/navy theme. For weekend/loungewear, everything was keyed off the blue skirt, which I recently got secondhand.

Seasons, 8, by cross-quarter days
Three main categories, plus workout/gear, formal (not included)
a - work at home days, 2-3 days [3 bottoms, 4 tops, 2 toppers, 2 pairs of shoes]
b - smart casual, 3-4 days [4 bottoms, 6 tops, 3 toppers, 2 pairs of shoes]
c - weekend / loungewear - 1-2 days [2 bottoms, 3 tops, 1 topper]

EARLY FALL, 22 Sep - 6 Nov (46 days)

Work@Home [3 bottoms, 4 tops, 2 toppers]
color & trends: denim and (my) fall colors
bottoms: 1 light jean - Old Navy sweetheart, 1 dark jean - Dockers straightleg, and a jean skirt - Old Navy
tops: navy/gray striped top, pailette top, sea green top with lace, dusty teal top
toppers: navy Target jacket, gray Target jacket {or gray drapey sweater vest?}

SmartCas [4 bottoms, 6 tops, 3 toppers]
color & trends: black and white and brights
bottoms: pink skirt, black jeans, black cotton pants - wideleg and narrowleg
tops: asymmetric black dress, white button-front, floral print knit with peplum, black cowlneck top, dotty print button-up
toppers: striped Target jacket, new b/w tweed jacket, black cardigan

Weekend/Lounge [2 bottoms, 3 tops, 1 topper]
color & trends: Americana casual
bottoms: navy knit skirt, carpenter jeans
tops: dungeness crab tee, powell's tee, pink dolman tee
topper: gray cardigan or fleece jacket?

I have been taking WIW photos all this week, even though I have varied from the plan somewhat based on other needs and the weather being quite warm. I hope to post those soon too - and you will laugh at how much I'm not actually following my own plan. Anyway, it's been an interesting and educational process for me, figuring all this stuff out and seeing how small my capsules can go before I get frustrated.

12 years ago

Anonymous

Laura, I can't wait to see some of your capsule outfits. I've had the same problem of warm weather and changing plans, but when I can use my casual early fall capsule, it is easy because I've tried on everything and know it works. You can be proud of yourself for doing this and I'll bet your work pays off before long.

kellygirl

Veteran

The weather has been all over the board, hasn't it. I think your exercise sounds great. I found it helpful just to figure out what works with what. That alone makes getting dressed easier. I'm looking forwarded to the pics!

JamC

After reading your post, I was so looking forward to your pictures! I do hope you get around to posting because visuals help me so much! Great job thinking all this through. I especially like the labeling of the colors and trends; that seems to clarify choices for me. Thanks.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

OK, I'm going to give posting pics a try. After I downloaded them I found that the bulk of them really didn't come out well. But without the pictures it's really hard to visualize the capsules, I know.

1 - [Smart casual capsule] This was one of those 'fun' Bay Area days where the temperature ranges really widely - it was 50 degrees when I woke up but was scheduled to get up to around 85 midday. Decided to layer some of my summer pieces to give them one final wear instead of starting with the capsule items, but the picture with the denim jacket didn't turn out right. Pink cap-sleeve knit dress, Chico's; ivory scarf, Target; ivory peeptoes, thrifted. [denim blazer, Christiana Zinn]
2/3 - [smart casual capsule] - top, Target, thrifted; skirt, Ann Taylor factory store; shoes, thrifted. i think this peplum top works a lot better with a skirt than with pants, which is how i'd worn it mostly before. skirt is a little big and wants to flip around on me, though.
4/5 - [work at home capsule] work at home capsule day 1 (although I didn't stay home, as it turns out). I found last fall that I wore my ponte blazers like crazy so when I saw Target come out with some this September I snapped them up in three colors (navy, gray, and black with cream stripes). Looking at the picture I'm not sure that all the colors work together. Jeans, Old Navy; top, a German store; blazer, Target, shoes, Born.
6/7 - [smart casual - kinda] this was off-plan with items, if not in vibe. I wanted to wear this top from Gwynnie Bee so I could return it, and I needed to wear separates for a doc visit. I was really pleased with the overall effect of this outfit. Knit top, J Jill via Gwynnie Bee; skirt, Banana Republic; shoes, Clarks, thrifted; belt, I forget.
8/9 - another off plan day, I suppose. Was in the mood for earth tones, so i ended up with a pair of brown plaid trousers and a cream top with a cheetah-y scarf. Pants, Territory Ahead; top, store in Germany; shoes, Mudd; scarf, gift from friend.
So that was last week, weekdays. I didn't take any pictures of the weekend stuff. Looking at this it seems to bear virtually no connection to my supposed plan...

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You have a wide variety here which is probably the secret of not getting bored. My favorite is 4/5. A jacket seems to pull an outfit together and add polish.
Your pink dress in 1 is a lovely color. I could see this topped with a denim jean jacket as the weather gets cooler

You wear the peplums so well. I love that silhouette on you. You have some great pieces in your smart casual capsule. The work at home capsule is a winner too. You can't beat a knit blazer for comfort and I bet the the other two blazers work with the bootcuts too. Easy peasy!

You have definitely thought out your capsule needs. I can't get past MOTG!

jayne

I love the whole thought out process you have described. I feel that kind of thing really helps one focus on what you need in numbers. I am so impressed that you even color coordinated them. I am terrible at that in my casual capsules.

The outfits are so pretty (smart casual) and really look great on you. Please post more WIW so we can see the variations!

Lisa

Great plan here. I find it helpful to preplan my outfits to streamline my shopping and help me get ready faster in the mornings.

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