It’s time to start planning for summer 2023. Maybe you have a fun trip coming up? Or you just need a general strategy for packing for different trips and occasions. Creating a summer capsule wardrobe when you are over 50 is both fun and practical.
A successful capsule wardrobe is all about keeping it functional, while at the same time staying stylish. Let’s take a look at how it’s done.
When the seasons shift
If fall is around the corner and you have started thinking about your fall wardrobe, make sure you read my article Fall capsule wardrobe for women over 50, Fall 2023.
6 easy steps to create a summer capsule wardrobe for a woman over 50
1. Decide on a color palette
The easiest way to keep your capsule wardrobe cohesive is to decide on two neutral colors and one accent color.
This way you ensure that all the different clothes match each other.
If you have more than 8 pieces of clothes you can choose 4 colors. Of course, you could do a great summer capsule wardrobe with just one or two colors.
The scope of the color scheme depends on how big you want your capsule wardrobe to be, and your personal preferences.
2. Decide on two or three “star pieces”
You want to look elegant.
Having a capsule wardrobe should not feel drab or restricting.
To not fall into the trap of creating something that is too boring, make sure you add enough “star pieces.”
Star pieces are those types of clothes that have the ability to lift a whole outfit.
It’s the clothes you always get compliments on when you wear them. Often, they are colorful, but they can be in neutral colors, or they can include a print.
I like to start out building a capsule wardrobe by deciding on the star pieces and then picking everything else to highlight and support them.
3. Make sure you have enough basic pieces to properly support your star pieces
Star pieces can often be hard to use. At the end of a trip, they still lay unused in the bottom of your suitcase.
It’s when it comes to this common problem a capsule wardrobe really shines. When you create a capsule wardrobe, you make sure you have enough basic to easily wear those star pieces.
Of course, your basic clothes can be worn on their own and those kinds of outfits are what you often will wear. Your basic should be clothes you love and feel both comfortable and stylish wearing.
4. Check so that your accessories match and highlight the clothes you have chosen.
Accessories are particularly important to make your basic clothes sing. The right accessories can make a “plain” outfit into something tremendously chic.
Make sure that your accessories match both your basic clothes and your star pieces.
5. Lay everything out and start creating and trying outfits
When you are a woman over 50, creating that perfect elusive summer capsule wardrobe is all about trying the clothes on.
You will not know if a particular top work with the skirt you had in mind, until you put the two of them together, on your body.
I know many people skip this step. But you will be surprised at how many gems of an outfit you find by being hands-on.
A capsule wardrobe will force you to try and wear everything with everything. That’s why they are so great.
6. Shop for the missing pieces
As you do this exercise you will (hopefully) realize exactly what’s missing from your closet.
Is it more basic clothes or one or maybe two “star pieces”?
Ask yourself what you need to buy to make your capsule wardrobe versatile. Make a shopping list and go searching for those missing pieces to the puzzle.
A capsule wardrobe is like a puzzle
Also, you might realize you already own everything you need.
Sometimes a wardrobe full of clothes stops us from seeing that we actually already have a perfect capsule wardrobe once we pick out the right clothes.
Trendy clothes
When you are over 50, it’s easy to start shying away from trends. But I recommend choosing one or two trends that you want to include in your summer capsule wardrobe.
You are never too old to be keeping up with fashion. This neat trick will make your wardrobe interesting and fresh.
I mean trends in the broadest sense of the word, for example, a leather jacket or a military-style jacket. (Trends that have been around for a decade by now
