Winter and summer may change what you need as your wardrobe staples, particularly if you live in a climate with very different weather seasonally.
When we think about what we really need in our wardrobe, it needs to:
- Work with your current lifestyle
- Work with your personality
- Work for the environment
- Reflect your personality
There is no one list that works for everyone, but there are some staples that I look for in most wardrobes. Of course, take into consideration your personality and lifestyle – as what works for you and what you like to wear. There is no point in wearing dresses (or trousers) if you don’t like to. Given that, think about having a range of staples that you can mix and match with your more trend oriented clothes.
Now of course your lifestyle will dictate exactly what you need in your wardrobe, but these are some ideas of what you need. They are very general and bland – the whole point of a staple is that it can be worn with lots and lots of other pieces (and is also known as a basic, or supporting act).
If you live in a hot climate, your jackets will be lighter fabrications. You may have more skirts than trousers, or replace skirts with dresses and you may add some shorts.
If you are in a cold climate, add in more jackets, long sleeve layers and cardigans.
Think about your lifestyle. Work in an office and you may need more smart staple clothes than relaxed versions of (though you will need some for your out-of-work hours). If you are a stay-at-home-mum then you will be looking at relaxed and casual versions of these garments. Knit or casual cotton jackets instead or structured wool for the corporate person. Denim or cotton rather than wool skirts. More t-shirts than blouses.
Also, consider how you spend your time. Do you need some evening staples such as a top with sparkles that you can team with your dress pants or skirt?
Some stylists believe you should have a list of items. Here I’ve put together mine as a comparison.
What are the wardrobe staples that you keep going back to over and over that work in lots of ways with your other garments?
More Tips on Building Your Perfect Wardrobe
6 Brilliant Strategies to Creating the Perfect Wardrobe Part 1
6 Brilliant Strategies to Creating the Perfect Wardrobe Part 2
6 Brilliant Strategies for Creating Your Perfect Wardrobe Part 3
6 Brilliant Strategies for Creating Your Perfect Wardrobe – Part 4
6 Brilliant Strategies for Creating Your Perfect Wardrobe – Finale
Hmm, I often choose to wear alot of layers during colder weather and remove them + switching shoes as the weather gets warmer rather than wearing distinct outfits for each weather. The same thing with lifestyle, I tends to choose pieces that are rather in-between my current lifestyle rather being exactly fitted to it. Coz’ I dress them up or down depending on the occasion or my mood. Versatility and Functional are two main factors of my style, because personally I dont believe that a person who doesnt work in a corporate or formal enviroment has to wear more casual clothing (unless they want to of course!), because you can always dress those pieces down if they are versatile enough. I tends to more tailored classic garments and footwear where most people would show up in jeans and sneakers.
(For reference, I live in a rural country area and the intership Im currently have doesnt have any dresscode so people here can wear whatever they want. 99% females co-workers so I doubt I need to worry about getting the impression of humping my boss for promotion from them, for wearing something too feminine. They are no guys working where I am doing the internship haha =P In other countries, people seems to be so fuzzy about it, like you cant wear florals or pink at your job. Does that include female-dominated jobs as well…? o.O;;.).
BUT I always pair these pieces with more relaxed pieces, especially shoes and my sweaters. So I dont really have any specific staples. When buying new stuff or deciding what to wear, I always take function, versatility and how formal the garments are into consideration. If wearing something more formal looking, I dress them down (semi-casual non-sneaker flats and fine knit sweaters). If wearing jeans or other relaxed pieces, I dress down them up (i.e. with blazers). I rarely wear both together. That way I dont find I look either too dressy or too casual for my current lifestyle. Because too dressy to me is satin, sequin, high heels and those daring hem and necklines and thats something I dont wear as day to day basics. After knowing about formality of our clothing, dressing become so much easier for me! =P
PS: I just cant understand when I read comments/blogs where women complains “I cannot wear a office skirt. Its for office women”. It feels like these days, people stereotyping different garments with different lifestyles or label a garment with a specific activity. If you can wear jeans with heels and blazer, why cant you do the same with office woolen skirts, dressing them down? I always found this “dilemma” strange…. that they refuse think outside the box “jeans for casual wear, shorts for the beach, pencil skirts for office women, plaid shirts for wood cutters and fishnet for prositutes”… not accusing anyone, I just find this ….a bit strange. =P (not strange if it was a more extreme case, like sweatpants to a wedding or pencil skirt for housework though… but woven fabrics is too dressy for everyday wear? A bit odd… )
Okaaaay, now its time for ending my babbling! x’D
I wear pencil skirt for housework…. 🙂 Because I don’t like to wear allways jeans and sweats at home.
Greez
People sure are different when it comes to clothes. 😛 Wasnt any ill meant to people who do tho!
(I wear regulare dresses when sleeping …dresses my aunt would wear to a a relaxed wedding. LOL 😀 )
Neither do I Maggie! I’m much more of a skirt/dress person, no matter what I’m doing.
I wear smart black trousers all year round since I discovered they look good with black patent slingbacks in Summer! Other than that jeans and cardigams
four months of the year –
linen/cotton button-downs shirts
slim-fitting linen or cotton pants
shorts
long flowy dresses
sleeveless and long-sleeve silk tunics/blouses
3/4 sleeve v-neck tees
ballet flats in bright colors
small cross body leather purse
another bag with computer and other stuff
spring, fall, winter –
3/4 or full sleeve tees
thicker oxford button-down shirts
long-sleeve silk tunics/blouses
cotton cardigans
wool cable knit v-neck sweaters
structured jackets
slim-fitting wool/cotton/denim pants
navy blue wool coat
ankle boots
small cross body leather purse
another bag with computer and other stuff