What do you pack when you’re living out of a suitcase for six weeks? In my case, just 14 items. (16 if you include bags.)
If you follow me on Instagram, you might have already seen my 14 x 42 capsule wardrobe (14 items worn over 42 days). But I thought I’d pull everything together into a proper post. Whether you’d like to try a capsule wardrobe to streamline getting dressed every day or you’re interested in what to pack for a trip, I thought it might be helpful to show a real-life example of what I wore over a chunk of time.
I pulled this particular capsule wardrobe together last fall to housesit for a friend. Because of the hectic nature of my life at the time (I was packing up everything I owned to move across the country), I pulled this wardrobe together in about 10 minutes. This is not a brag. Usually I’d spend some time thinking through what pieces to pack. But I was short on time and just had to grab stuff and go.
That ended up being a good thing, because I grabbed items that were tried and true. Hmm, maybe I should set a timer every time I pack for a trip from now on!
OK, here it is. Everything I wore for six weeks. (Sorry, I don’t have one of those cute little wooden clothes racks that other bloggers seem to have. All I had at this apartment where I was housesitting was the bed to take photos on. And the lighting wasn’t great.)
What I packed:
- 1 puffy down vest
- 1 lightweight anorak
- 4 shirts
- 1 hoodie
- 1 sweater
- 3 pants
- 3 pairs of shoes
- 1 purse/belt bag
- 1 tote bag (not shown)
As you can see, I have a color palette going on. This made it incredible easy to get dressed. Everything went with everything. The base layer was black or black and blue. Sometimes I added a pop of color with the maroon anorak or some of the shoes.
OK, let’s take a closer look at each category.
Shirts (from left to right, first row to second row):
- Oak & Fort Boxy Shirt
- Eileen Fisher Brushstroke Top [review]
- Vetta Boyfriend Shirt [review]
- Everlane Shrunken Cotton Shirt
Though the colors are limited, there’s a good variety in these shirts. The Oak & Fort shirt is more casual (it has a sweatshirt-like feel), while the Eileen Fisher one, which is made out of silk and cotton, has a slight sheen to it and feels elegant.
The Everlane button down is classic. (I wish Everlane still made this shirt. The proportions are perfect for a petite.) And the blue Vetta shirt is convertible, which means I can get several looks out of it. I mostly wore it with the V-neck and buttons in front, but you can also turn it around for a rounded neckline. It also works as a layering item worn open as a cardigan.
Pants
- Eileen Fisher Cotton Cropped Pants [review, similar]
- Everlane Easy Chinos [review, similar]
- Everlane Track Joggers [review]
I kept it simple and went with black for all three items. I was going for comfort here, as evidenced by all the elastic waists. Usually I’d have a pair of jeans in here, but this was during a time when none of my jeans fit comfortably and I hadn’t gotten new ones yet.
The Eileen Fisher cropped pants are made from a jersey material while the Everlane chinos are more crisp. But they serve a similar purpose. In the future, I’d swap out of those pants for a skirt for more variety.
Sweatshirts & Sweaters
How about one of each?
Outerwear
- A New Day Anorak [review]
- Uniqlo Ultralight Down Vest
Got my bases covered with something lightweight for warmer days and a down vest to add for cooler days.
Shoes
-
- Allbirds Wool Loungers [review]
- New Balance 574s
- DV Slides [similar look]
These are all on the more casual side. I was doing a lot of walking and knew the Allbirds and New Balance sneakers would be comfy. I didn’t end up using the sandals all that much due to the weather being not particularly warm. In retrospect, I should have chosen a pair of flats instead.
That’s 14 items. I also packed my trusty Everlane Pocket Tote [review] and Lo & Sons belt bag — something that can haul a lot and something for when I just need to carry a few essentials.
Here are a few of the outfits that came out of this capsule:
This capsule wardrobe served me well for the activities of daily living: working from home, shopping, and running errands. It also worked for outings to restaurants with friends, a trip to the museum, and easy hikes.
While I did tire of wearing the same things by the end of six weeks, this capsule wardrobe reinforced to me that I truly don’t need a lot. I can stretch 14 items, which all fit in my carry-on suitcase by the way, into lots of outfits. Not thinking too much about what to wear every day was also refreshing.
