When you can make clothes you love, there’s also the issue of what to focus on making :
– what group of specific clothes you want in your closet,
– and how to ensure they are not ‘orphans’, items you can’t actually wear because they don’t ‘go’ with anything else you have.
(I’m assuming you have already dealt with the issue of making only clothes that are your style and colour ๐ )
There is also the issue of how you like to choose the clothes you are going to wear on a specific day.
This post starts with the suggestion that you base your clothes choices on ‘Core 4’s of items which co-ordinate, as that is a popular idea. And then this post discusses some of the many alternatives for people who do not want to dress in that sort of way.
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A Wardrobe Core :
There are dozens of books and on-line courses on choosing a wardrobe.
Much advice suggests starting with a capsule based on a group of 12 items. I assume this is because, if you already have a huge closet of disparate items in every possible colour (as many advisors think you are), you need to simplify.
If you’re making your clothes, The Vivienne Files may be more helpful, as she suggests ways of building up from one or two items to a whole capsule.
Most people who seriously suggest an entire wardrobe usually present more than 20 items. 33 is another key number that keeps coming up, that number does include accessories – shoes and bags.
Some of the many online wardrobe stylists are Stunning Style and Classy yet Trendy. They suggest the types of item you need to have in your closet each season – but they never mention sewing your own clothes ! They don’t expect you to buy a whole new wardrobe every season, just to find something similar from your existing clothes and add in a few items if necessary.
Janet Wallach was the first person to suggest 12 item wardrobe plans, in her book Working Wardrobe (actually 13 items including a coat). That was published in the early 80s, and her plans were organised around wearing skirts rather than pants ! Some of the capsules include pants instead of the dress.
This is an example capsule from the back cover.
A ‘capsule’ is a small group of garments. With a small group it’s best they all co-ordinate – each item can be worn with any of the others. If the items do not coordinate, you will only have a small number of options for outfits. When all the items do co-ordinate, then you can get the maximum number of outfits from that group. For example, the items in the above capsule (4 layers x 4 blouses x 3 skirts) could ideally be combined into 48 different outfits. Though I would not wear a yellow blouse with the patterned skirt, unless the print has much yellow in it. There are only two true suits – jacket and skirt from the same fabric. And one two-piece dress – blouse and skirt from the same fabric.
A more recent book with the same attitude is Nancy Nix-Rice Looking Good. She also briefly mentions topics such as personal style and personal colouring. And she does sew herself. More information on her site. She also has a Craftsy video class (can be bought individually), and a Looking Good DVD.
Thereโs also a pdf from her at Threads magazine, in which she briefly explains the best ways of making a capsule based on Core 4s. She does start her capsule using knit fabric patterns from Pamela Leggatt, which are fairly easy to sew but wonโt be to everyoneโs taste. Then Nancy talks about ways of expanding the capsule by adding Core 4s which vary in colour and style.
Pamela Leggatt’s patterns could be a good starting point for this sort of wardrobe design, as everything ‘goes’ with everything else in shape, and is fairly simple to make. I’m just not very enthusiastic as they’re not my style. So I have to think of ways in which Nancy’s ideas would work with rather different styles.
Janet and Nancy are choosing clothes for work, and copying those styles would need more sewing skills than you may yet have. So you may prefer to look for inspiration from Janice’s capsules of more casual items at The Vivienne Files.
Many people have several different roles or activities in their life, so you may need several such 12 item capsules, perhaps for work, for more casual times, for sports, for dirty work at home, for vacations, for special occasions. . .
The minimum basis for such a capsule is a ‘Core 4’ consisting of :
skirt,
pants,
jacket,
top (can be enlarged to a pullover layer, lengthened to a dress, or make a ‘two piece’ dress from top and skirt in the same fabric).
It is the jacket layer that sets the tone for an outfit, at least in a cooler climate. Nancy suggests a waterfall jacket and a single lapel blazer-like style (both from the same pattern from Pamela Leggatt. I prefer Simplicity 8742, but it is more difficult !). A classic skirt and pants will work with both those layers, and also with current fashion favourites : a bomber jacket and a shacket (large overshirt). Jeans or capris would work with both those layers, to make the wearable outfits go in a more casual direction. That’s 4 jackets and 4 bottoms. Add 4 or more tops – perhaps a shirt, a blouse, a sweatshirt or wool top, and a tee. (Or a sleeveless tank and camisole for a hot climate/ summer.)
And there’s your multi-use capsule ๐ How would you like to change that to suit your own wearing preferences ? Many more ideas in the 4×4 section of The Vivienne Files.
After all your investment in learning to sew, even though you may not yet have any specialist sewing skills and still think of yourself as a beginner, and may not yet be able to make all the styles mentioned in the previous paragraph, you can make simple versions of a ‘Core 4’.
These simple styles are much like what is current casual fashion, because the features that make them easy to sew for a learner also mean they can be made with least effort and cost by a manufacturer. And they’re shapeless, not expected to fit well, so sell to the widest range of body shapes.
Once you can make the simplest of each of these (see this Wardrobe sewing post), make a complete wardrobe by making 3-4 versions of each item : perhaps in different colours or fabrics. Or change the basic pattern slightly, see variations posts, also linked from that wardrobe post, and more links in the advancing beginners post.
If your style is not so casual, once you know the sewing basics you may want to move on and add more sewing skills (some suggestions in the clothing styles post), and see the final post in this group, on Intermediate and Couture.
A smaller capsule
Do you want to start with a smaller capsule ? A bit difficult to see in this photo, but here are 6 items from the Modern Sewing Co : shirt, sleeveless top, shorts, pants, dress, jacket. Which can be combined to make 18 different outfits (including shirt or dress over sleeveless top, sleeveless top over shirt or dress, plus jacket over all those).
Add some scarves, a choice of casual and smart bags, shoes, jewellery. If you can wash clothes in your hotel room, how long a holiday would that last you for ๐
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Wardrobe patterns
Pamela Leggatt is one of the few independent designers whose patterns all ‘go’ together, so could be used for making co-ordinates by adding a little thought on colours and fabrics. Most independent designers don’t do this. Also very few of them of them offer multi-garment patterns.
Though some of them do suggest groups of patterns which make a capsule, see this simple example from Wardrobe By Me. These days Wardrobe By Me would probably include the Piper Boho Tunic as it can made in a huge number of versions. For summer they suggest adding this grouping.
The Big4 pattern companies do offer ‘wardrobe patterns’ including 3 or 4 items, so the co-ordination of shapes is done for you. Most of these patterns only include sleeveless tops and dresses, which is no use for me but does make designing the jacket easier (the armhole does not need to be large enough to get a sleeve into).
Simplicity Coordinates patterns include a good selection labelled ‘Easy to Sew’, though I don’t think they are for early beginners.
There are a couple of Vogue ‘Five Easy Pieces’ patterns which are even less easy to make, Vogue 9191 and Vogue 9286.
While Butterick Coordinates include many ‘Core 4’ patterns, though none are ‘easy’.
For myself, if I was still working, I could see combining Vogue 9286 (adapted for wovens) and Simplicity 8924, and playing with the lengths ๐ (not for early beginners !)
Then either New Look 6163 or New Look 6217 could be a good add-on for me.
Those are not ‘easy’, but many of the New Look co-ordinates are labelled Easy (click the Coordinates filter at left).
While Burda 7075 and Burda 8108 are labelled ‘Super Easy’ though they are far from it ! (Burda paper patterns do include seam allowances, and have full instructions with diagrams.)
Long out of print, but I still find the wardrobe patterns designed by Adri for Vogue patterns very inspiring for ‘casual chic’ ideas (though some of the proportions do now look odd to us !). One expert even managed to make all the items in one of these patterns in one weekend. Not a feat most of us want to copy, but it does suggest that making these patterns does not require any major challenges !
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Only Core 4 co-ordinates ?
Only Core 4 items ?
Should you follow wardrobe advisors in having equal numbers of the 4 core garment types, and aim for everything to co-ordinate ?
The ‘Core 4’ approach (same numbers of jackets, tops, pants, skirts) is more oriented to ‘work’ clothes, and many of us do not need to dress so formally.
Both those criteria (core 4, coordination) are actually only some of many ways in which you might simplify your closet, and be clear about ‘what to wear’.
As well as the advisors mentioned above, and many others on-line, there are extensive discussions of these issues at Sewingplums. Here are lists of the posts there on wardrobe planning and co-ordinated capsules.
Use wardrobing advisors’ ideas only as guides to the general principles of basic wardrobe building, as their specific examples may be more complex to make than you may yet have the skills for.
And beware following other peopleโs ideas of what you should wear. My ‘signature’ item is a shirt with frills, and one well-known style adviser says no-one should wear small frills (she would look very wrong in them).
Also would it work well for your style to have equal numbers of tops, layers, skirts, and pants plus one dress ? In winter my layers consist almost entirely of over-sized pullover tops and padded vests, two items which stylists and wardrobe planners rarely mention. I don’t own any dresses, I do have a couple of rarely-worn skirts.
So include in your wardrobe 2,3,4 of the item types you do wear, not what wardrobe advisors say you should wear ! I wrote an e-book pdf with suggestions about how to go about this, at Sewingplums. That was originally written in 2013, so it’s sad but not surprising that most of the links no longer work, though the ideas are still valid.
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The difficulties of co-ordination
As well as not always wearing the true Core 4 items, it may not be your style to organise your wardrobe so everything co-ordinates. Though if you do have co-ordinates, because each item can be worn with all the others it does make it easy to choose your clothes in the morning. Just pick any top, bottom, layer, and you will look good ๐
Some writers on wardrobe planning seem to suggest that the larger the number of different outfits you can make from a given collection of clothes, the better.
Though actually – needing to wear a different outfit each day is only required in some cultures.
The most extreme version of co-ordination requires that all the items in a capsule can be worn with every other. The first keys to achieving that are to keep to the same outfit silhouette and length proportions, and use few style elements. Classics make this easy ! It’s easier to achieve if you use the same pattern each time – the blouses in the Janet Wallach capsule example shown above only have 2 collars and all have the same sleeve. Those collars have to be wearable with all the jacket and sweater layers. Or see Pamela Leggatt’s patterns which have very few ‘interesting’ style elements.
Also make sure the fabrics go together in colour and texture. Wallach restricts herself to two colours plus white and one accent item.
Even using the simplest basics, you may find it difficult to devise a capsule of 12 clothes in which every item can be worn with every other item. Or it may be difficult to avoid being bored out of your mind by what you would have to wear ๐ But of course in real life you can be more relaxed and have some items which don’t co-ordinate with everything.
Indeed there a couple of easier strategies for ensuring you don’t make ‘orphans’, items which you can’t wear because they don’t ‘go’ with anything else you own :
– the ‘Rule of 3’ : only make (or buy) items which can be combined with items you already have to make at least 3 outfits.
– sequential version of the Rule of 3 : only make items which go with at least the last 3 items you made ๐
It’s certainly much easier to make items which only have to combine with 3 other items rather than 11 !
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Your ‘choosing what to wear today’ style
Of course it may not be ‘your wardrobe style’ to have a coordinated capsule at all. You may not want items to co-ordinate, you may like to have specific outfits of items which you always wear together and never mix with other items.
Or you may find the thought of both co-ordinates and outfits very restrictive, and instead want a wardrobe that will inspire you each morning to choose what you wear according to the mood of the day ๐
Whatever method you find is ‘your style’, it is much easier once you have a wardrobe which contains only items you love, in colours, shapes, proportions that co-ordinate !
And if you would prefer not to have to think at all about what to wear, just set up a few outfits.
Or follow the Style advisors mentioned above, Stunning Style and Classy yet Trendy. They not only suggest what to have in your closet each season, they also provide daily outfit calendars telling you which of those items to wear each day.
Although I think about clothes a lot, and have to wear clothes that I find both physically and emotionally comfortable, I am not at all a person who likes to think out every morning what to wear. When I was working I always wore an โinner columnโ of navy cashmere sweater and navy pants, with a variety of jackets. Now Iโm retired I could easily wear the same things every day. So I confess I use a system from one of the stylists who gives an ‘outfit calendarโ (Classy Yet Trendy above). I translate her suggested normcore wardrobe items into my own, and then follow her outfit calendar for what to wear each day. This does only work when you have built up a wardrobe in which all the items co-ordinate !
Another other no-thought-needed way of generating outfits (after setting it up) works if you have different numbers of each garment type, say 3 jackets, 5 blouses, 2 pants/skirts (10 garments). Again they do all have to be co-ordinates, to be wearable with each other ! Then just hang (or pile) each type of garment together. In the morning pick out the one on the left (or at the bottom) of the group and in the evening return it to the right (or the top of the pile). So you cycle through each garment type in a standard sequence.
That example gives 30 combinations, a whole month of different outfits :
Imogen Lamport of Inside-Out Style has a post on whether you like to wear a ‘uniform’, follow a formula, or decide each morning.
I don’t know whether my style would be described as a uniform or a formula, but I certainly always wear the same types and silhouette of garments. I’m not someone who wants to spend part of each day choosing what to wear, though I have now got a simple strategy for wearing something different each day (see above). The overall process is simplified because I have done enough work on my wardrobe to like all my clothes, and they are all in a limited colour palette which looks good on me.
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Good Luck with thinking about how you are going to handle this major issue of organising the clothes you have and make, so you can enjoy making, and wearing, and choosing what to wear ๐
โฅ๏ธ ๐ โฅ๏ธ ๐ โฅ๏ธ
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The world of sewing is so richly full of advice, courses, and patterns, that itโs a great help to clarify where you belong amongst all the possibilities.
These are the posts in the Avoiding Overwhelm series :
Intro to your many styles.
Your clothing style.
Your wardrobing style – what garment types you want in your wardrobe and how you prefer to choose what to wear today (this post).
Your learning style – which teaching materials suit you best.
Your sewing style – a quick reward or slow and careful, always learning or repeat the well known ?
Your pattern using style, fitting style, and final points.
All my posts on learning to sew are now brought together and linked from the Learn to Sew page.
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