The 4-5 piece French wardrobe #1

[cheepmunk]

I know it was decided that 4-5 pieces meant adding/having 4-5 key pieces around which a wardrobe was built, but I was lying in bed the other night, and I started thinking about what I would have if I only had 4-5 items total. I eventually expanded it up to six because that's the bare minimum I could get by with, but if you could only have a few items, what would they be? What is the absolute minimum number of items you could own and still feel fulfilled by your wardrobe?

My list finally came down to:
Gray long-sleeved tee
White dress shirt
Long skirt
Black or brown slacks
Sweater
Trench

In a way, I'd be happier with that wardrobe (I've got 40-ish pieces now). Even though I love all the outfits I have, it takes me so long to go through my options. It's kind of exhausting. And, of course, the more I have, the more I want. I've only bought one dress and one pair of pants since the beginning of the year, so it's not like I'm splurging, but still. The want is there. I'd like to only have a few fabulous pieces that really flatter me and that require no thought whatsoever. Has anyone actually done this? I'd be curious in knowing how long it took you to tire completely and utterly of your wardrobe.

 

[maiden voyage]

I love Kate! I love how you see her repeat a lot of items in her closet; it gives the impression of someone who really lives with her clothes, as opposed to just buying and disposing.

i've noticed this about her too. i really enjoy seeing how people creatively combine and recombine their favorite clothes. that's more interesting to me than an endless parade of new outfits.

...and some clothes are just a lot more versatile than others. when you're limiting the number of things you're getting, then it starts to be more important that they work with what you have. and that can be tricky to know, at least i sometimes have trouble figuring that out at the outset... and sometimes things i've gotten on a whim turn out to be really key.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ You're like a serial novel, leaving us hanging And ... ??

 

[The_Ida]

Yes! You can't just stop there

I need a mid-priced decent blazer, I can't seem to find any

 

[fashionista-ta]

gaiam

I need shoes for interviewing ... I have no serious shoes for this time of year

Btw, my sweatshirt worked out great--I love the design. The cuffs are tight & there's a drawstring at the bottom, so even though it's lightweight organic cotton French terry, it really keeps me warm.

 

[maiden voyage]

^ any suspense was unintentional! it was bedtime, so i didn't want to ramble on too much in my sleepy state... (and that's a cute sweatshirt, organic cotton is amazing)

ok, so here are a couple of lists, see if you can guess what i wore a lot and what i didn't!
1
vintage silver dress
pink trousers
vintage rabbit fur vest
painted clogs
2
black silk chiffon dress, super cute
soft wool trousers
perfectly-fitting white shirt
black ankle boots

these are some of the things i bought around the same time a few years ago... i was realizing that my wardrobe wasn't working very well, i hadn't been shopping in a focused way, but just buying things when i felt like it. and i had a lot of clothes, but i tended to thrift or buy things on sale... so i tried to buckle down and fill in gaps with 'sensible basics', and i wanted to start buying fewer, nicer things that i would enjoy for a longer time...

all of things in list 1 were impulse buys, list 2 is made up of the so-called 'sensible basics'.
the funny things is that i wore all the things in the first list - the pink pants were great for work (i was working with abused kids, they always put a smile on their faces)... the silver dress turned out to be really versatile (a tunic over jeans with a gray cardigan, layering a black turtleneck under with leggings, etc)... i wore the fur vest with everything until it fell apart... i still wear those clogs almost every week... etc

and i hardly ever wore the things in list 2, except the ankle boots... i wear those much more now, actually, but back then i didn't really need them. so basically, all that wardrobe advice about buying white shirts and black dresses did not pan out! i'm sure i'm not the only one

this was about 5 years ago, and i learned (quickly! buying nice clothes doesn't leave much $$ for mistakes) to think much more specifically about what i need before investing. some items just won't make friends with other things very easily, for example... (those wool pants) and other things may look great but don't suit my lifestyle... (that chiffon dressninja:

but i also realized that sometimes i intuitively reach for things that actually make sense, even if i don't realize it right away. and because all of those things in list 1 were cheap (or on sale), i didn't really have to think so hard, but could try them out... on the other hand, spending more per item means being sure... and i've been learning how to figure that out - buying things i can try out and return for one thing! any other insights??

 

[The_Ida]

Buying 4-5 pieces per season doesn't mean that you should stick to the classic stuff, you know, white shirt, trench coat, formal black pants, black pumps. I don't work in an office, never will, I don't need those things. You need to find the 5 things that work for you.

I keep buying boots, but heck, boots are the only thing you can wear in Denmark. Flat ankle boots, tall ankle boots, flat calf length boots, flat knee-high boots...I could go on.

 

[fashionista-ta]

maiden voyage, you make an excellent point ... this isn't about classic dressing, it's about efficient dressing, about having a little jewel box of a wardrobe.

While I have a great pair of black (wide leg) pants that I love, and it seems like various black cardigans are always pulling me out of the ditch, my aubergine suede skirt has served me extremely well. And my red patent heels are probably the best $$$ I ever spent.

I don't worry about many things, but two of them are the lifespan of my favorite dog and these shoes

So it's true ... the workhorse special "basic" ... the statement piece ... the fun piece (I miss my Dalmatian print jeans! I was just thinking about them the other day when I saw a petting zoo with goats ... some goats once tried to eat the spots off my legs ). Any of those can make a great key piece.

I've been meaning to ask about this ... lingerie for me is never a key piece ... so far it's been more functional. And at D or DD when you get to functional you're happy But have any of you built a serious lingerie wardrobe, where lingerie figures as a "key piece"? I recently saw an article about a woman who took a trip to Paris for a milestone birthday specifically to have a couture bra made, and I thought, that's something I would do

 

[misstarshine]

I saw a show on Oprah and she was talking about the one item every woman needs which was a white shirt. I found it funny because I don't own a white shirt and can't see myself ever wanting one.

 

[shirleebee]

I didn't think I did, and now I suddenly see it as a massive, gaping void in my wardrobe that I must fill ASAP!

 

[classicalbang]

I saw a show on Oprah and she was talking about the one item every woman needs which was a white shirt. I found it funny because I don't own a white shirt and can't see myself ever wanting one.

Me either.

 

[quimby]

i can tell that something will be a "classic" in my wardrobe if it's something seemingly too boring for me ever to have hunted down, but which i find myself needing every morning when i'm trying to put together an outfit. this helps me to identify gaps in my wardrobe.

the latest classic that i finally found was a pair of black shoes that i could wear with skirts and dresses, but that was sturdy enough to walk a mile in the rain to work (i live in seattle). personally, i have always disliked buying black shoes because they never seemed so pretty as the deep brown versions of the same shoe. so i just had no black shoes in my wardrobe, but i needed a pair to pull together certain outfits.

 

[nogoodforme]

I saw a show on Oprah and she was talking about the one item every woman needs which was a white shirt. I found it funny because I don't own a white shirt and can't see myself ever wanting one.

me too! i like the point made earlier re: classic vs. efficient. i don't own a white shirt (or black pants or black pumps or many other 'classics' you're told to have) but in my life, i don't need them, esp. since i don't work in an office, i work for myself. those items aren't functional for me. you definitely need to consider your lifestyle and the larger context of your life when you're strategizing about your 4-5 pieces.

 

[Style-Addict]

I totally understand what you guys are saying- the only reason I own a few 'classic' pieces (black pants, white shirt, etc) is because I work in an office so I find it easy to wear these things to work during the day and then accessorize and liven up my outfit for evening or weekends.

 

[fashionista-ta]

I work in an office, and I own a white T-shirt, but not a white button-front shirt. In fact, I don't believe I own a button-front shirt in any color

 

[classicalbang]

oh i own white t-shirts, too many in fact. no button-downs, though. i have a blue oxford (slightly oversized) that looks really great with a pair of rust high-waisted wide-legged pants i wear a lot.

 

[maiden voyage]

this isn't about classic dressing, it's about efficient dressing, about having a little jewel box of a wardrobe.

i love that statement!
and the pieces you mention are so quirky and fun-sounding. and your stories are so funny

so oprah is going on about white shirts? i guess she is probably using it as a stand-in for the perfect, timeless item. does that exist?

i like the 'idea' of the white shirt... i just saw a black and white portrait of angelica houston wearing a white shirt with some heavy silver jewelry (an old gap ad), she looked amazing. but i don't think the average person is going to be transformed with that, or any other, 'timeless' item unless it works with their style and lifestyle. but the idea is so seductive, right?
(i couldn't find the ad, but she does the same thing for a white tank top)

 

[cheepmunk]

Yes! I think the white shirt is probably one of the most misused items out there, especially the white button-down. Not everyone can pull off white, and Lord knows that not everyone can pull off a button-down, but so many people think it's a good idea to combine the two into one extra special ill-fitting item because it's supposed to be a "classic" piece. It's very easy to fall into the trap of wearing something because you liked how it looked on the hanger.

classicalbang, do you have a picture of those trousers kicking around? They sound great.

 

[HiHeels]

i am most miserable in a white button down.
i've only recently reunited with the white v-neck (hanes men's undershirt).
i think there are "classics" for different aesthetics. "classics" are pieces that easily (and simply) define homogenized groups. white button down, pearls, risk-free trousers are "classics" to a certain group. i'm not in that group so these pieces are not classics for me.
for me, doc martens, black blazers, pieces from CdG, YY, and limi feu or tao are "classic" in that i can identify with them and they are timeless and trend-free, for me.
but these pieces wouldn't be called classic in the traditional sense of the term because the style they create is not viewed as or named classic (aka conservative).
but in the interest of building a really strong, functional, satisfying and personal wardrobe, the word "classic" can be appropriated and applied to anything that will go the distance for an individual's style. i'm pretty thrilled that i've found those pieces for myself. yippppeeeeeeee

 

[classicalbang]

classicalbang, do you have a picture of those trousers kicking around? They sound great.

I don't have a photo of myself wearing them, but here's a picture from the APC look book of the pants:



my scan