Maximalist, I'm testing the capsule wardrobe for my summer vacation

Ah, the ordeal of the vacation suitcase... My theory is that when faced with this summer chore, there are two types of people . First of all, the minimalists: people who focus on a reduced, efficient and versatile wardrobe. All they have to do is delicately fold their few belongings between their toiletry bag and their camera, and take it easy while waiting for departure .

And then there are the maximalists. They have a wardrobe full to the brim , with a large number of colorful and patterned pieces. They are therefore very confused, and unable to choose what to take for their stay, since the more choice there is, the more difficult it is to decide (like in the canteen). Result ? They stare at their sadly empty suitcase for hours, with a smug air, dreaming of it filling up by itself .

I'll let you guess what type of person I am.

Packing my suitcase, a chore without name

I'm a vintage collector, and my closet is filled to the brim with clothes. They are colorful, colorful, textured . It's an explosion of hues and patterns every time I open a drawer. It's not really that I buy a lot - it's mainly that I keep my things for a very, very long time, and I have a hard time parting with them .

I'm probably Marie Kondo 's worst nightmare: I assume that every piece of fabric brings me joy, and therefore, that every item of clothing deserves its place in my home. Some evil tongues will say that I accumulate. I will hammer home until my last breath that when you love, you don't count . And it turns out that I really, really like my clothes.

However, it would be very hypocritical of me not to recognize that my daily life would be much simpler if I had a more minimalist wardrobe . Starting with the fact that I would pack my suitcase in no time, for example.

A limited number of pieces

I'm getting ready to go to my parents' house on the Côte d'Azur for three weeks, and ALL my belongings need to fit in one suitcase (medium size, between the cabin and the hold). Imagine that there are no escalators in the metro that takes me to the station, and that I don't have enough muscles, coordination and mental strength to carry TWO suitcases up those damn stairs . And also because living in a small Parisian apartment, I only have one suitcase anyway :D

A limited number of clothes for my stay is therefore a necessity. It’s a no-brainer: I need… a vacation capsule wardrobe . But let it be said, I, who like to have infinite possibilities when choosing my outfit of the day, am already breaking out in a cold sweat.

What is a capsule wardrobe?

But before we go any further, let me explain in a few words what a capsule wardrobe is.

“Less is more”

The concept was launched by the American Courtney Carver. A few years ago, she imagined “Project 333”, which consists of choosing 33 pieces that we will wear for three months (adapting to the seasons) . The idea is to have a reduced number of clothes and accessories that all go with each other, and allow you to create lots of outfits by mixing everything together. “Less is more”, in short .

The capsule wardrobe is associated with a simple and minimalist lifestyle , where we are enough with little and where we make do with what we already have, going against the tide of mass consumption .

To be forgotten are the clothes that we keep “just in case”, which don’t go with anything, which we rarely wear, which no longer fit us (or not yet). For ease, the pieces chosen are often basic and timeless , but it is not forbidden to slip in more original and strong ones, according to your desires.

A guilty pleasure

All of this has several advantages:

• we get dressed faster in the morning, since everything goes with everything
• we only own pieces that we really wear
• clothes are adapted to our lifestyle and our needs
• we save money by settling for little and buying much less
• we avoid stylistic “missteps” by focusing on simple and timeless looks

I find this concept absolutely brilliant and fabulous . Sincerely. My guilty pleasure on Sunday morning is sipping my coffee in front of YouTube videos of complete strangers detailing their capsule wardrobe for the season.

I'm absolutely fascinated by the ability some people have to reduce their wardrobe to the essentials . I am personally incapable of it, in particular because of my soul as a collector of old vintage clothes. But for just three weeks… I kind of want to try it .

Conditions to follow

Based on my Sunday mornings spent watching YouTube, I know the main guidelines of a capsule wardrobe . Here is what I followed as advice, picked here and there, to put together the perfect list for my vacation :

• I especially need basics...
• …but I can allow myself pieces that are a little more fun as long as they match the rest
• ban on taking things “just in case” (that’s the hardest thing for me!)
• to have fun in terms of style, possibility of focusing heavily on accessories
• I have to limit myself to three pairs of shoes maximum
• I have to think about multifunctional pieces: for example, a dress that can be worn during the day as well as in the evening
• I have to force myself to follow a well-defined color palette so that everything goes together
• Ideally, you should have base colors, complementary neutral colors, and pops of “accent colors.”

For my color palette, I went with white and black for my base colors, brown, khaki and “denim” blue for the complementary neutral colors, and yellow, orange and pink for the stronger colors.

My final suitcase for three weeks

I go for 20 days in total, and I tend to change between daytime and evening. Normally, I would probably have left with a good forty clothes (yes, I know, it's nonsense), with the idea of ​​having enough to make two different outfits per day. And, let's be honest... I most certainly would have overloaded my suitcase for nothing , and only carried half of what I would have brought.

20 pieces, accessories included

I challenged myself to leave with 11 items of clothing, three pairs of shoes and 6 accessories . 20 pieces in total. Here is the result ( note: for practical reasons, this montage was made in part with images of clothes similar to mine found on the Internet, quite simply because I sometimes did not have access to images of my own pieces in quite good quality):

Clothes :

• Five tops: a khaki t-shirt, a white t-shirt, a brown t-shirt, a vintage white openwork cotton blouse, a black silk camisole
• Three bottoms: two skirts (one silk leopard and one floral vintage: this is where I went wild with the prints , having chosen only sober and plain tops) and 1 pair of jeans
• Two dresses: a basic black one and a vintage multi-colored polka dot dress (with this one, I cheated a little because it's not a sober and versatile choice , and it doesn't exactly fit into my color palette . However, I need a slightly “fancy” dress for a birthday party to which I am invited, so this is my joker )
• Three pairs of shoes: a pair of yellow heels, a pair of brown sandals, a pair of white sneakers
• An oversized denim shirt ( in case it's a little chilly )

The accessories :

• A hat (a pretty vintage boater with a black ribbon)
• a pair of tortoiseshell sunglasses, in orange-yellow, brown and black shades, which will go with all my looks
• two belts (one black leather, one gold braided)
• two bags: the Itasy basket bag from BonneGueule which I have already spoken to you about at length here + a leather shoulder bag, orange-yellow, from the Valet de Pique brand

What I obviously didn't count in there:

• my swimsuits
• my underwear
• a large zipped tote bag for the beach and shopping
• my jewelry (I wear the same ring every day, and I rotate between a few earrings and necklaces that don't take up space)
• the Akita shirt from BonneGueule , which I will use as a beach “outfit”
• my pajamas

Not an easy task

The hardest part for me was forcing myself to only take three pairs of shoes and only two bags . I would have taken with me a pair of black heeled sandals and heeled espadrilles.

As for the bags, if I listened to myself... I would have taken at least five or six! I'm afraid of regretting not having a black bag , even a mini-clutch... But I have, I admit, an emergency solution: going to my parents' house, I will therefore have the possibility of stealing a bag to my mother. It's a bit of cheating, I know. But I don't care :D

Review of the experience

At first glance, I sincerely wondered how I was going to avoid stylistic boredom with such a small suitcase . But with a little hindsight, I realize that it's ultimately quite interesting to have to imagine as many combinations as possible with the fewest pieces available .

I even prepared some outfit ideas with the same piece each time. For example here, with the white t-shirt. I like the idea of ​​playing with layering with the black camisole for a little rock/90s look.

The leopard skirt can be worn more casual during the day with a t-shirt and sneakers , or in the evening with the camisole and heels. I can't wait to wear the outfit with the vintage blouse, basket and sandals, which I find very retro while still being cool and modern .

Last example with the black dress, a piece that is also very versatile and can be adapted depending on the accessories . I find it all very inspiring!

And you, have you already experimented with the capsule wardrobe ? Could you take the plunge for a trip, or for a few months to test?

For my part, I'm waiting until the end of my vacation to give myself a final opinion - it's very easy for me to only say good things about it when I haven't REALLY spent three weeks with just these pieces yet. . Maybe I'll be convinced, who knows. But something tells me that I will be very happy, when I return, to be reunited with the rest of my wardrobe .