How I Dressed for the Heat in Brooklyn and San Diego
In January, I challenged myself to a six-month shopping "fast" in order to save some money and curb my consumer impulse. It was good for me; I learned to stop making excuses to shop (pre-travel preparation, forgetting to pack certain items, etc.), and gained a deeper appreciation for the ethical wardrobe I'd so painstakingly built over the past few years. Most importantly, though, I realized how freeing it is to remove extraneous decision-making from my life for a little while.
So how did I do? Well, first of all, I only made it about five-and-a-half months, as I really did need some lightweight summer pieces for my upcoming trips. I also let my mom buy me a dress while she was up visiting in April (She insisted! I was powerless against her motherly doting!). But this challenge wasn't about the pursuit of perfection, it was about changing my perspective and proving to myself that I could be happy with less. And in that, I believe I was successful.
When I did decide to shop again, I chose pieces from three of my favorite brands: Marine Layer, Reformation, and Madewell. The first two are obvious choices (Marine Layer's clothes are manufactured in the U.S. and responsibly abroad, and Reformation's L.A.-made clothing is highly sustainable). And while Madewell hasn't always been at the top of my list in terms of ethics, they've made a lot of progress recently in terms of transparency and responsible sourcing, and partner with nonprofits like Fair Factories Clearinghouse to continuously improve workplace conditions. And their denim fits me better than any other brand I've tried, especially now that I'm all about the high-waisted mom shorts.
When I packed for my summer trips to Brooklyn (solo) and San Diego (family in tow), I kept it pretty simple:
- Two black tank tops (one from Amour Vert, one thrifted, both old)
- Linen blend striped button down (new purchase)
- Cotton high-waist mini skirt (new purchase)
- High-waisted denim cutoffs (new purchase)
- Linen midi off-the shoulder dress (new purchase)
- Leather slightly-heeled sandals (mine are Kork-Ease and I've had them forever; I've even had to glue the soles back on a few times)
- Black leather tote (I originally bought my Cuyana tote for work, but it now doubles as a travel/ diaper bag)
- Panama hat (mine has been with me for at least six summers)
- My secondhand military jacket in case it got cold... which it never really did
I basically wore the same 2-3 outfits the entire time, but that's the beauty of travel: no one cares. You can shop the capsule here if you feel so inclined (note: this post contains affiliate links)...
My Summer Travel Capsule:
I don't have any photos of the Hattie dress yet, because I bought it specifically for a family portrait session that we did in Balboa Park. I'll share those out once we get them back (it was a balmy, magical evening in the park, so I can't wait to see how they turned out!). In the meantime, here are a few more shots of the basic tank-shorts-skirt-button-up rotation I've been wearing for the past month...
Jon, Avery, me, my little bro, sister-in-law, and nephew at the San Diego Zoo
Summer Capsule Wardrobe, Make One: A Vintage-Style Halter Top
Hot damn! It's my belly button. Call the police and the fireman oh wait no, just get me a bottle of self-tanner. Clearly I haven't seen much sun lately, but that's not stopping me from showin' off my first make of 2015. It's a floral halter top using Simplicity 1365, a revival of a 1970's pattern that fits in perfectly with my Summer capsule wardrobe plans. I found the fabric at Britex a few months back, along with matching vintage-style buttons (have you ever seen Britex's button wall? It's majestic).
I'm pretty happy with the fit, although the button closure in the back pulls a bit (this is because I was out of interfacing and too impatient to buy more... my bad). But my favorite thing about this pattern is the clean finish. It's fully lined and requires the you "stitch in the ditch" to secure the straps from the inside. This means that I have a beautiful, fully-finished garment without the use of a serger. So much better than using pinking shears or dealing with French seams! I'm already planning a version using some of the black Nanette Lepore eyelet I have stashed away.
In other news, I've been working on adding variety to my poses, as evidenced in the diptych below. Probably still needs some work.
Wardrobe Architect 2015: Planning My Spring/ Summer Capsule Wardrobe
During the first round of the Wardrobe Architect series, I did a lot of work defining my core style, favorite shapes, silhouettes, color palette, and print preferences, culminating in aSpring/ Summer capsule wardrobe plan. Then summer happened, and I never actually got around to sewing anything. All of that thinking did help me make smarter shopping choices, though, and I ended up investing in a few versatile pieces that I wore all summer long.
This year, I created an expanded Spring/ Summer capsule plan that includes several pieces from my current wardrobe. I plan to fill in the gaps with some handmade separates, dresses, and maybe even a Rigel bomber if I'm feeling ambitious. As for the pieces I know I can't make (e.g., the leather jacket and skinny jeans), I plan to hit up my favorite ethical brands like Amour Vert, Everlane, and Adriano Goldschmied. So here it is: the full Spring/ Summer vision above and the detailed plan below, including pattern choices from Colette, Grainline, Papercut, By Hand London, and Simplicity. If some of the "Have" pieces look familiar, it's because they're actual photos of my clothes... which I photographed on a dress form and painstakingly isolated in Photoshop. In other words, I had a rockin' Saturday night.
From top left: Chambray Button-up Shirt, Madewell Denim Jacket, Papercut Rigel Bomber, Everlane Seed Stitch Raglan, Theory Lace Sweatshirt, Veda Leather Jacket, Amour Vert Breton Top, Grainline Tiny Pocket Tank, Simplicity Vintage Halter, Jean Short Cutoffs, Cream Skinny Jeans, Grainline Maritime Shorts, BCBG Sundress, Amanda Uprichard Sundress, By Hand London Georgia Dress, Colette Mabel Skirt, Blue Paisley Skirt, Colette Zinnia Skirt
Wardrobe Architect Weeks 9 and 10: the Travel Capsule
A seasonal wardrobe can feel like a joke in San Francisco, when you're just as likely to battle a damp, biting wind in July as you are in December. Warm summer afternoons turn wicked by 4pm, when the fog rolls in and the wool jackets come out. I don't mind – I'm one of those poor suckers who fell in love with this city – but it can make planning a Spring/ Summer capsule wardrobe a little complicated.
The steps to a capsule wardrobe are simple:
- Choose one to six silhouettes for the season.
- Create a color palette.
- Break down your silhouettes and colors into a list of pieces.
- Organize what to make, what to buy, and what you already own.
My Travel Capsule
Instead of trying to create a wardrobe that would be appropriate for a San Francisco summer - which would necessarily include tights, scarves, and sweaters - I focused on creating one for travel. Although we haven't decided exactly where we want to go yet, Jon and I are hoping to sneak off to a warmer climate in late August (either central America or central Europe - we'll see). The idea of spending all day in a sleeveless dress makes me giddy, and it made planning this capsule a lot more fun.
After all the work I and many others did to define our core style, favorite shapes, silhouettes, color palette, and print preferences, choosing the 6 silhouettes above was a breeze. Although my actual Spring/ Summer (travel) capsule wardrobe will be a bit more expansive, I think these are generally the shapes and colors I'll feel great traipsing around in this season.
For the palette, I narrowed down my choices to 5 neutrals and 5 statement colors. Navy, tropical blues, pinks, and corals paired with creams and camels will play just as well in Paris and they might in Mexico City:
Next, I'll be off to spring clean my closet and see which pieces I can incorporate into the capsule. Then, let the making begin!