My Autumn Capsule

I’ve always viewed a capsule wardrobe as restrictive.  I’m someone who gets bored fairly quickly and I like to get creative with my style.  I thought that limiting the amount of options in my wardrobe would leave me feeling bored and out dated.  But guess what…

I was wrong!

I know, it came as a shock to me too.

By following the fluid capsule wardrobe method I keep a basic capsule that remains static all year round and (the great news) every 3 months you can add some new items to give your wardrobe something extra for the season ahead.  I find this method particularly useful if your climate is more temperate (I think that this word is actually code for “indecisive and crap”) like ours in the UK.  It’s also great if you like to keep up with the current trends, you can add one or two pieces that will upgrade your wardrobe without completely confusing your style and emptying your wallet.

If you’re in the UK September marks the start of Autumn.  In my opinion the best of all the seasons when it comes to fashion, you get to crack out those chunky knits, your trusty boots and start piling on those layers.

Plus all those lovely leaves changing colour makes the light just glorious.

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I’m fairly new to the whole capsule wardrobe game and I’m not a huge follower of the latest trends so this season I’ve decided to keep it simple, stay away from the shops and stick with items I already own.  I have some pieces stored away that I always turn to when the weather changes and the air gets just a little bit chilly.  They are great for adding layers to my existing outfits and they spice things up by adding a pop of colour.

 

My trusty olive-green jumper has probably seen better days but do you know what I love it.  It’s a real wardrobe work horse!  I might look to replacing it next year but for now it’s perfect.

I bought these black culottes from Zara pre capsule wardrobe.  I’ve had a fair bit of wear out of them through the summer months so I thought I’d keep them out and try out a few new looks.  They actually look pretty great with a chunky knit tucked in to the high waist, but I usually keep it simple and pair them with a basic tee and my wool coat, I think they make an outfit look a bit more put together than jeans.

So far I’m loving the fluid capsule idea.  I have less clothes but more choice.  Deciding what to wear is actually fun for the first time in my life.  And its good for the planet.

All in all it’s a win win situation!

If you want more info on how to create your own fluid capsule wardrobe I’d highly recommend heading over to Signe’s blog Uselesswardrobe.  She’s created an easy how-to guide to get you started.

What’s in your autumn capsule?  Let me know in the comments below!

The strip tease…

I want last week to be the LAST week that I did nothing about starting to do something that I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time.  Which means that this week HAS to be the week that I start.  So here I am.  Hi.

I’ve been wanting to start a blog for a while.  Mostly because I’m a creative person without a creative outlet but also because recently I’ve made some changes in my life that I’m hoping will make the world a better place.

Or at least make a start…

Since I can remember I’ve taken an interest in environmental issues.  I remember being petrified to watch Michael Jackson’s Earth Song video because I thought it accurately depicted the events that would unfold when the Ozone layer finally gave up the ghost.  Although to be honest, the way things are looking right now, 11-year-old me probably isn’t far wrong.  Gulp.

Over the past 18 months I’ve been on a bit of a mission to be more conscious about my lifestyle habits and the impact they have on our planet, good old Mother Earth.  It started with my diet and now I (mostly) follow a Vegetarian/plant-based diet.  The good thing about this is that is also has lots of health benefits.  I’m going to post a separate blog about this later.

Once I became fairly happy with my diet I began to wonder about my other lifestyle choices and how I could make some positive changes towards a healthier and more sustainable planet.

Now I would say I’m a pretty normal, stereotypical female, (my friends and relatives may disagree, you can make your own mind up along the way), and by this I mean I love make up.  And I love beauty products.  And I LOVE fashion.  I love other things too obviously but this is a blog not a dating profile.

So the big question is…

Can I be sustainable, conscious and low impact without sacrificing my love of food, beauty and fashion???

I know.  It’s a big ask.  But I like a challenge!  And this blog will hold me accountable, force me to get a bit creative and hopefully inspire others to make some positive changes too.  Oh and I reckon we could all save a bit of money along the way too.  Bonus.

The good news is that people are already doing this!  I’ve been inspired by a couple of bloggers/writers who are already doing an amazing job of spreading the low impact, sustainable word in their own way.

Signe Hansen from the UselessWardrobe is a minimalist fashion blogger who has inspired me to start making more conscious choices when it comes to fashion.  She has helped me to realise that we can still follow our own style, enjoy shopping and be creative with clothes without harming the environment and our wallets.  She encourages her followers to adopt a fluid capsule wardrobe, shop for good quality items that are ethically sourced and if they’re also second-hand you’re winning at life.  Basically her motto is “Less is more”, and I’m inclined to agree.

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My basic capsule wardrobe, inspired by Useless wardrobe

Many of you have probably already heard about Nicola Graimes and her book The Part-time Vegetarian.  A good friend and fellow environment-conscious human recommended it not so long ago.  The thing I like most about this book is that it’s not smug.  There’s no “You should not eat that, if you do you’re a bad person”, or “Eating that steak will definitely end the world tomorrow” vibe.  In fact, it’s quite the opposite.  Nicola opens the book by stating that after nearly thirty years of being 100% Veggie, she is now adding in small amounts of meat, poultry and fish into her diet.  I think this makes the book more accessible to new budding Vegetarian/Vegans, it shows us that you don’t have to

Be one or the other.

Its ok if you want to eat some meat now and again, but I’m pretty sure you won’t want to if you cook your veggies like Nicola does.  I can honestly say I’ve loved everything I’ve cooked from this book so far and it’s really helped me to see vegetables as the headliner instead of the supporting act.

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And its very pretty to look at. Which is nice.

This is probably a good place to stop and clarify a couple of things (and also I love a good list)…

  1.  I’m not an activist – simply put I’m not perfect.  This is a journey for me and I’m hoping to help you on yours.  I’m not here to preach or scare you all into never eating steak or buying clothes from unethical sources ever again.  We’re all human and we have ingrained habits that are hard to break.  I just want to rouse some consciousness.
  2. I’m not an expert – Not in this anyway.  I’m not planning on baffling you with facts and figures and making claims I can’t back up.  Again this is just my journey and a way of making myself accountable.
  3. This blog is an experiment – I’ve toyed with writing this blog for a while.  I deliberated over what I will write about, which topics I will tackle, what message I want to convey etc.  At first I thought I would just make it about food, or just make it about fashion, but the truth is I don’t really want it to JUST be about any of those things.  It’s about being more conscious about lifestyle choices.  Maybe that’s too vague, maybe it’s not.
  4. See.  Lists are great!

So there you go.  My first blog post.  Minimalist, low impact, environmentally conscious idealist with a love of food, beauty, and fashion.  Its hard trying to summarise what this project will entail as I’m not really sure myself,  I’ve never been one for planning.  Let’s just dive in and see what happens!

Enjoy!