The Curated Closet

by Anuschka Rees

  Basics

  Your basics’ job is to support and balance out the rest of your pieces. They can tone down a bold look and give other pieces a neutral foundation to stand on. And they can also be used to fill in any gaps (for example, when you know your statement dress will run the show for the night but you still need a pair of shoes to wear).

  Read more about the importance of paying attention to details when shopping for basics here.

  Your basics should be simpler than your key and statement pieces in terms of colour, cuts and details. But simple doesn’t mean boring or derivative. Every piece in your wardrobe should reflect your style, and that includes your basics.

  TYPICAL BASIC PIECES

  Tops; T-shirts; jeans; and plain trousers, skirts and shoes.

  BUDGETING STRATEGY

  Since your basics will likely be less structured and detailed than your other pieces, you should be able to find high-quality versions at all price points. An exception here are more structured pieces like blazers or jeans, which depend on an exact fit.

  Imagine you owned the five to ten key pieces and the five statement pieces you selected during the previous exercises, but nothing else. Brainstorm a few outfits you could build for different occasions. Which five to ten basics would you need to complete your mini wardrobe?

  Assessing your current wardrobe

  The point of the three thought experiments in this chapter was to help you come up with a mini wardrobe that’s perfectly balanced and tailored to your personal style – regardless of what’s currently sitting in your closet. Keep that mini wardrobe in your style file for now: you’ll use it later on, alongside all your ideas from other chapters, to create a concrete shopping list for your wardrobe overhaul in chapter 13.

  A thought experiment is a creativity technique that makes it easier to come up with fresh new ideas by removing all outside restrictions and working off of a blank slate.

  Complete these two last steps to figure out how much overlap there is between your ideal mini wardrobe and your current closet.

  STEP 1 How balanced is your current wardrobe? Does it contain a good mix of key pieces, basics and statement pieces? Or too little of one, not enough of the other?

  STEP 2 Go back over the list of key pieces, basics and statement pieces that you made during the last few exercises and compare it to your current wardrobe. Cross out any items that you already own (or a similar version of it).

  Colour lovers unite! Learn all about the ins and outs of colour palettes and how to create your own from scratch. Twelve sample colour palettes are included to get you started.

  Whether you like to dress in all colours of the rainbow, prefer a chic monochrome look, or favour something in between, your colour likes and dislikes are one of the most important components of your personal style.

  Colour has the power to instantly trigger a mood, an emotion, or an association to a culture or an era. For example, most of us associate pastel shades with youth and innocence, silvers and blues with calmness and sophistication, and deep purples and reds with power and status.

  Many of these associations with colours are universal to an extent, and some are cultural, but our personal life story also shapes these associations and provides each one of us with a very unique preference for certain colours.

  The easiest way to make sure your wardrobe reflects that preference is to create your own colour palette.

  Building a colour palette is the second of three strategies that works great for mapping out your ideal wardrobe. It is a super fun exercise that gives you a concrete blueprint you can use to curate a cohesive wardrobe that’s easy to mix and match. Your colour palette will also help you out when it comes to putting together outfits that are 100 per cent in tune with your style. Plus, once you have tailored your closet to your colour palette, shopping for new pieces is as easy as pie – that new jumper or pair of boots will not only fit straight in with the rest of your clothes, you’ll also have lots and lots of pieces to wear it with.

  Colour palettes 101

  What makes a great colour palette? A few things: Your colour palette should consist of six to twelve colours that work well with each other and reflect your style. On top of that, each colour in your palette should have a clear function, depending on the role you want it to play in your wardrobe.

  MAIN COLOURS

  The main colours in your palette should reflect the essence of your style concept and really signify the overall look you are going for. If you’re going for a classic seventies boho look, your main colours could be tan, carrot orange and mustard yellow. If your style is a mix of gothic and punk elements, your main colours might be black and red. If you’re going for an Elle Woods in Legally Blonde look, your main colours are hot pink, magenta, and violet.

  Your main colours are the equivalent of your favourite style colours. What colours do you love to wear? Which colours aren’t you wearing yet that you want to play a major role in your wardrobe?

  Any colour of the rainbow, from a mousy grey to fuchsia pink, could be a main colour depending on your specific style, so feel free to pick whichever colours you think best reflect the profile you created for your style. The only caveat is that all main colours should be ones that you can see yourself wearing a lot and that you feel super comfortable in. If your style profile is really bold and you have no problem wearing a lot of bright red, tangerine and turquoise, go ahead and include those as your main colours. If not, simply reserve brighter colours like that for your accent shades or consider using a more muted version (perhaps a soft salmon or slate green).

  ACCENT COLOURS

  Your accent shades add variety to your look and give you a chance to explore different facets of your style. Accent shades should work especially well for statement pieces and accessories that you would pair with your main colours and neutrals.

  For example, two of my very favourite colours are light pink and apricot. I rarely want to dress in either of these colours head-to-toe (although I have on occasion). I prefer wearing them in small doses. I own a gorgeous light pink knit sweater as well as some pink and apricot scarves, handbags and tops. Whenever I wear these pieces, they are the focus point of my outfit and so I make sure to pair them with either a neutral (like light-wash denim jeans) or a piece in one of my main colours (white or sand) to give them a blank canvas.

  For maximum mix-and-match potential, try to choose accent colours that work with each neutral and at least two of your main colours (bonus points if they go with each other as well).

  NEUTRAL COLOURS

  The neutral shades in your colour palette are there to support and balance out the other colours.

  For example, if you want to wear your pistachio green shift dress, you know that will be running the show and so you pair it with some simple white pumps in order to not overpower your look. Or if you want to wear a sapphire blue top during the day, you might wear it with a more neutral pair of trousers, like your favourite pair of jeans, to tone it down.

  Obvious choices for neutrals are white, black, grey, navy and sand, and all washes of denim.

  But in general, it’s a good idea to pick your neutral shades only after you have chosen your main and accent colours. That way you will be able to see the overall theme of your palette and can select complimentary neutrals that will go well with every other shade. For example, if your palette includes several shades of green, a tomato red and orange, you could make tan or another warm brown one of your neutrals, to complement the overall warm tone of your palette. Or, if you’ve built a cool palette of pastel blues and purples, go with a medium-wash denim and heather grey.

  If one or two of your main colours are a typical neutral shade like black or grey, those pieces can function as double-duty pieces and you don’t necessarily need to choose separate neutral shades, although you can if you like. It’s all about how you want to wear those colours. In my current colour palette, two of my main colours (sand and white) can double up as neutrals and I wear tho
se pieces both ways. For example, during the summer I often wear all-white outfits, but I also use white T-shirts or white denim to balance out brighter colours. On the other hand, light-wash denim is strictly a neutral for me, because I wear those pieces only to tone down or fill in, never as the main attraction.

  The relationship between colour palettes and key pieces, basics and statement pieces

  Although the three functions of the colours in your palette overlap somewhat with the three types of items we talked about in chapter 9, they are not the same! You can have key pieces in neutrals or accent shades in addition to main colours, and you can have basic pieces in neutrals, main colours and even accent shades. Here’s why: colour is only one of the factors that determine what role a piece could play within the framework of your wardrobe. The silhouette, material and details of the piece are just as important. A dress in a neutral shade (like black) might well be a statement piece for you because it’s form-fitting, embellished, or has other characteristics that put it into dressed-up territory.

  Are you ready to build your own colour palette?

  To select colours for your palette, start by going back over your style profile and mood board and write a big list of colours that reflect your style. Then, look through your current closet. Which colours are you already wearing and loving? Add these to your list as well.

  Next comes the tricky part: Pick your favourites and organise them into a palette, complete with main colours, neutrals and accent shades. Play around with a few different constellations until you’ve found one that’s wearable, versatile and represents your personal style to a tee.

  As you choose your colours, ask yourself these questions:

  • How big of a role do I want this colour to play?

  • How do I want to wear this colour – as the main focus of the outfit, a canvas for other colours, or as smaller accents?

  • Does this colour make me feel confident?

  • Does this colour go well with the other shades in the palette?

  How many colours should I choose for my palette?

  I generally recommend aiming for nine shades in total (three main colours, four accent shades, and two neutrals), but you can of course tweak these numbers however you want. For example, if your entire look is minimalist and monochrome, you may need no more than two main colours, one neutral, and three accent shades. On the other hand, if you like a lot of variety, you could include up to twelve shades, but don’t go too crazy! Remember: Just because you didn’t include a colour in your palette doesn’t mean you can’t wear it ever again. Your colour palette is only supposed to be a guide for helping you build a more cohesive wardrobe. So keep it simple and focus on colours that are truly essential to your style.

  How to use your colour palette

  TO REBUILD YOUR WARDROBE FROM SCRATCH

  You can use your colour palette like a blueprint to build up a wardrobe that not only reflects your style but is also super mixable. Here’s a quick preview of that process (you’ll learn all about how to overhaul your wardrobe in chapter 13): First, you need to identify which colours are still missing from your current wardrobe and to what extent (there’s an exercise here to help you do just that). Then, when it comes to writing a shopping list for your wardrobe overhaul, you can specify roughly how many pieces you still need in each colour and what your priorities are. Always prioritise main colours, because they will have the biggest impact on how well you can express your style.

  TO MAKE SURE NEW PIECES FIT INTO YOUR WARDROBE

  Once you have built up a core set of pieces that reflects your colour palette, you can start using your palette more like a rough guideline while you are out shopping. There’s no need to wear exclusively the colours from your palette, but make sure that each new piece at least works with several of the colours in your palette so you know you’ll have something to wear it with.

  Next steps: Tailoring your current wardrobe to your colour palette

  Once you have selected a versatile colour palette, compare it to the clothes that are currently in your closet. How many pieces of each colour do you already own? Add a quick note about your findings to your style file, like this:

  I already own plenty of pieces that fit two of my main colours: black and navy blue, but none whatsoever that come close to my third main colour (teal). I’m also relatively set in terms of my two neutrals (dark-wash denim and charcoal). For accent colours, I own a couple of lavender pieces, but not enough. My other three accent shades (mint, red and a lighter blue) are non-existent. In summary: I need a lot of pieces in teal, a few more in each of my three missing accent shades, and perhaps one or two additional lavender pieces.

  You’ll use your note to write a shopping list for your wardrobe overhaul later here.

  Take your wardrobe to the next level and streamline your morning routine! Plus, learn the secret to making sure you never again have nothing to wear.

  Working with outfit formulas is one of my favourite techniques for building a mixable, versatile wardrobe (and the third strategy that you can use to map out your ideal closet).

  What’s an outfit formula? It’s a recipe for a specific combination of items that you can wear in lots of different versions. If you like, you can also wear an outfit formula like a uniform, with very little variation. If you’re into the idea of having a set uniform, you’re in good company – some of the biggest style icons of our time wear a version of their uniform over and over again, from US Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour (sunglasses, a patterned knee-length dress, heels and a chunky necklace) to fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld (slim-fitting black slacks, a black blazer, a white shirt with a high collar, a tie and gloves). Here are some examples:

  • Flared jeans + simple camisole + cardigan + flat sandals

  • Pencil skirt + knit sweater + blazer + heels

  The idea is that you choose a few outfit formulas that reflect your style and which you feel confident wearing and then curate several different pieces that you can mix and match for each ingredient of your outfit formulas. For example, if one of your outfit formulas is A-line mini skirt + button-down shirt + slip-on mules, you could stock your wardrobe with two A-line skirts, three button-down shirts and two pairs of mules, all in different but mixable colours, patterns, and materials.

  That’s only seven pieces in total – but those seven pieces give you twelve different outfit combinations to choose from! And that’s only for one single outfit formula. Imagine if you had three outfit formulas hanging in your closet. Not only would you have three times twelve distinct outfits to choose from, you could also mix them all with each other, style them up with accessories … et voilà: you’ve got a wardrobe that’s packed with different outfit options that all fit your style.

  Of course, not everything in your closet needs to be a part of one of your formulas. Think of your outfit formula as your style staples. You can wear them as per recipe but you can also modify them and mix them with the rest of your wardrobe, perhaps add an extra layer like a jacket, and then top everything off with accessories, hair, and make-up.

  How to select outfit formulas for your style

  Complete these next three steps in your style file!

  STEP 1 LOOK AT WHAT OUTFIT FORMULAS YOU ARE ALREADY WEARING

  Even if you hadn’t heard of the concept before, it’s likely that you already have at least one or two outfit formulas in rotation at the moment. Do you tend to wear some type of slacks or chinos with a looser-fitting shirt and ballet flats for work? That’s an outfit formula right there! And your go-to mini dress + ankle boots + coat combo? That’s another one!

  Go back over the two weeks’ worth of outfits you documented for chapter 2 and list every combination that comes up at least three times. Then take a moment to think about why you keep wearing each particular formula and cross out any that you are not wearing for a good reason. Good reasons would be that it makes you feel confident, it’s super comfortable, or you simply love the look of it. Repeatedly
wearing a formula because you are stuck in a rut, want to cover up, or couldn’t think of anything else to wear, however, would be bad reasons.

  STEP 2 FIND OUTFIT FORMULAS THAT REFLECT YOUR IDEAL STYLE

  Just like every other aspect of your wardrobe, your outfit formulas should above all reflect your personal style. So once you’ve made a list of all the outfit formulas you are already wearing, take a few minutes to look through your style profile and mood board and figure out which outfit formulas would best reflect the overall look you want to go for. Essentially, an outfit formula is a specific combination of silhouettes, so pay special attention to any inspiration you collected on cuts and silhouettes and also all information you gathered during your fieldwork stage about how you like things to fit. Add your favourites to the list of outfit formulas you are already wearing and liking.

  STEP 3 CHOOSE YOUR FAVOURITE OUTFIT FORMULAS TO GET STARTED

  From your list of contenders, choose the two to four outfit formulas that you (1) think best reflect your style in terms of the silhouettes you like and (2) would feel super comfortable and confident in. If you have to wear very different types of clothes for work, you could split these up and choose two formulas for work and two for evenings and weekends. For now, choose only your absolute favourites; you can always add more later if you need to.