Project 333 Archives - Page 3 of 6

Packing from the 333 Capsule Wardrobe, with a few essential deviations from the system

Belovedest and I are off to Toronto for a long weekend of rugby and rest. I packed pretty easily from the Project 333, except I had to jump ship for the rugby match - nothing but jeans and a jersey will really be appropriate!So I hauled everything out and assembled it on my nifty hanging rack:

The obnoxious plaid thing is my pajamas... Far left is my black jacket - I might wear it on the plane, or pack it, depending on what the weather does. Then you can see my jeans, and my rugby jersey, and then my sweaters and scarves, tee shirts, and pants.

Everything lays out like this:

It is quite a bit more clothing that I would normally pack for 3 nights, but the rugby match requires very special garments, and the way ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333: The Uniform gets MORE Uniform

I may have mentioned recently that I had problems with the striped tee shirt that I had included in my spring and summer project 333. Bottom line - I didn't try it on when I was pulling summer clothes out of storage, and I found that it fit poorly when I finally went to wear it. I blame weight lifting...So one swap I've made is to donate the shirt that is now so unflattering, and replace it with a looser striped tee shirt that's designed to layer over things - in my wardrobe that will be tank tops or a simple dress.

More and more, I find that I'm very happy wearing monochromatic outfits - everything black and grey is starting to suit me well. I particularly found my green tee shirt to be... awkward - mentally. ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333 Failure of the week, and the best advice I didn’t take

May 16, 2013

Every wardrobe advice writer in the world will remind you that you should try on ALL of your clothes on a regular basis. It seems obvious - your body changes, the clothes can change, and the way your body feels in the clothes (an elusive concept, but you know what I mean) can change more than anything. But I, in a moment of reckless confidence, decided that I could just roll with last summer's clothes -it was only a few months ago - without trying things on.AND... my striped tee shirt is terrible. It just feels short and tight and awkward - I will never wear it...

Okay, so this isn't a tragic problem. I donated the offending tee shirt, and I found a wonderful replacement at Eileen ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333: Another week, with travel, work, and the gym

Last week I experienced another small hitch in my Project 333- my striped tee shirt is NOT going to be wearable for the summer, so I've replaced it. (Yes, with another striped tee shirt...) Otherwise, I have been delighted with my choices, so far.My travel wardrobe, based on two pair of black pants - one silk, one cotton twill - worked out well too. It was warm enough that I didn't need to wear my scarves, and one day I pulled off my sweater mid-day, but that was part of the plan. Layering makes it possible to pile on, or peel off, depending on what you encounter.

So Monday and Tuesday I dressed out of my suitcase - Monday, I did some gardening, and Tuesday we flew back to Chicago. (yes, on Monday I borrowed casual shoes ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Packing from the 33 for a long weekend

I'm out of town right now - actually, I've been out of town since Thursday afternoon; the magic of the internet means that I can schedule blog posts ahead of time! I'm visiting a number of my relatives, which is the easiest packing; laundry is available, and borrowing clothes is always possible. I'm carrying the huge suitcase because belovedest and I are sharing the bag, and his clothes and shoes take up a LOT of space...

... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333: FAILURE, in the second week in my uniform

Well, not anything horrendous or drastic (let's be serious, last week wasn't a great week for many of us...), but when I woke up Friday morning to the sounds of SNOW HITTING MY WINDOW, I retreated to my jeans, which I had not included in my 33 garments. Of course, when I picked those 33 pieces of clothing, I didn't expect to have to dress for snow. Sigh...Monday and Tuesday were great, similar to last week, I started with a black "suit", chose a bright tee shirt, and added a scarf to tie things together and brighten things up. Tuesday was a core of black garments, with boots, a cardigan, and a cashmere scarf to keep warm,

Wednesday and Thursday were also very uncomplicated.Another core of black, ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333: My first week in “my” uniform

This was NOT the best week for me to begin the Project 333 - our weather was impressively wintery, so I had to do some creative layering, and piling on of scarves. Happily, I managed to figure things out, and I was very pleased with how I felt...Monday and Tuesday - I started with my black "suit", added a pink tee shirt and a scarf, with some socks and loafers. I was particularly delighted with the Tuesday outfit, in which I layered a sweater over my dress (which is something I will do all summer), but then added a white cashmere scarf, opaque tights, and my boots. Instant cold-weather outfit!

Wednesday I went all black, with flats, an Hermes scarf and pearls. Wearing tights with flats makes everything warmer. ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333 for warm weather – my search for a uniform

I won't even try to kid you - I've been under a lot of stress recently, and there's no apparent reason for it. I have one of the easiest lives that any human being could want, but I still have been feeling pressured, inadequate, hurried to get things done, and as if much of what I do has been "weighed in the balance and found wanting."

So as the weather finally warms up, my goal is to simplify, and to try to give myself more time to accomplish things that will give me a sense of gratification and competence. Thus, I'm stripping this summer's wardrobe back to the absolute basics - a uniform of sorts.

The late Olivia Goldsmith co-authored the above, very insightful, book (available here, finally at a reasonable price!). ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333 for Winter: the Winners, and the Losers

As March winds down and warmer weather flirts with us, I want to take the time to review how my Project 333 for the first 3 months of the year worked.Overall, 33 items of clothing is WAAAAY more than enough for a season, or, realistically in Chicago, for the 6 months or so in which one must wear winter clothing. If I have another 33 garments for the warmer weather (with a few items that will appear in both selections), then I think a wardrobe of 66 or fewer garments is a good start, for me, toward minimizing the amount of clothing I own. Less money spent, less mental morning confusion, a clearer personal style projected to anybody who's paying attention.

Specifically, I had some garments that I loved and wore every week, and ... View the Post

Getting Dressed with the 33 Piece Capsule Wardrobe: week 10 experiment

March 11, 2013

Why yes, I did miss week 9! and I don't have any clear recollection what I wore that week, which is as it should be... Oddly enough, my life does NOT revolve around what I wear...I've long been convinced that, so long as you are appropriate and attractive, nobody really pays too much attention to what you're wearing, day in and day out. So I thought I'd test that theory by wearing head-to-toe black clothes for a week, paired with a scarf in the same design, but different colors, each day for a week.

I didn't expect ANYBODY to notice that the scarves were the same design, but I did sort of think that 5 solid days with a scarf would elicit comment. And I sort of wondered if anybody would think I'd fallen ... View the Post