Courtney L Sanders

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Hey!

It's been a minute since I've updated you on my capsule wardrobe project.

Last time I wrote about it, I (1) defined my style by creating a capsule wardrobe Pinterest board full of the general looks I want my capsule wardrobe to contain and (2) determined what my uniform (everyday go-to looks) would be.

As a refresher, I'm a girl that loves neutrals with pops of color...

...who wouldn't mind wearing a loose top, skinny jeans, and ankle boots everyday.

The only problem is, all summer I was drawn to inexpensive, "statement" pieces which means I spent exactly zero effort building my wardrobe foundation. As a result, I was looking through my wardrobe the other day and realized that I still can't get dressed! At least not in the color palette and uniform that is my style. Ugh. So I started from the drawing board again.

I threw everything out.

Well not everything. There are a few statement pieces that I would never ever get rid of, but all those almost cute summer dresses and too-tight shorts? Yeah, those had to go. All in all, I think I donated or sold about 70% of my wardrobe. I am left with just enough to get dressed for work + a few pairs of jeans and some t-shirts. After staring at my empty closet, I did what I always do (I'm type-A, duh!) and made a list of things I need to buy:

My Capsule Wardrobe "To Buy" List

Bottoms
Black tailored trouserSlim, ankle cut
Stone/Khaki/Grey/Tan tailored trouserLess heavy fabric than the black pair, slim/skinny cut
Dark Denim, mid rise skinny jeans
Black Pencil Skirt
Casual, light colored A-line skirt
light colored, tailored shorts
Tops
Thin, long sleeve v- or u-neck top in black
Thin, long sleeve v- or u-neck top in flattering accent color
Black tank top
White tank top
2 trendy blouses in a high quality fabricSilk or satin work, pick flattering colors
Black 2 button, 3/4 sleeve blazerHigh quality but not too business-y
Tan/Stone/Khaki/Grey 2 button, 3/4 sleeve blazer
Black 3/4 sleeve, v-neck, fitted cardigan
Perfect white button up shirt
button up in another color (blue)
Black V-neck sweater
Cream Chunky cable knit sweater
Basic white tee
Basic heather grey tee (loose)
Basic black tee
Blue chambray shirt
Dresses
Work-ready LBD
Going out LBD
2 printed daytime casual dresses (low in color contrast)
Jackets
Trench coat
Olive/Gold/Light Blue Sporty lightweight jacket
Black motorcycle jacket
Bags
Charcoal or Black tote
Tan tote
black clutchneutral hardware so it can go with silver & gold
Shoes
Classic Black PumpsRegular leather, not patent leather
Sexy, strappy black heels
Black knee high boots
Black ballet flats (can be textured)Or should I opt for d'orsay flats?
Dressy gold sandals
versatile nude wedges/heel
Loungewear
Black leggings
Low cut tanks

So you can see from the above that I pretty much need everything! (I'm kinda shocked I was able to get dressed everyday...) The bolded items are my "high priority" items, meaning I need to buy those items first (see the "One Track Mind" method from this post).

Dutifully sticking to my list, last week I brought home my first glorious capsule wardrobe piece: a perfect pair of classic black pumps.

This was a big deal for me not just because I checked a high priority off my capsule wardrobe "to buy" list but because I did it via a philosophy that up until this point, I was struggling to adopt: buy less, choose well.

"Choosing well" isn't always the easiest thing to do because choosing well often means choosing the more expensive option. I definitely learned that the hard way.

You see, before I buckled down and bought the above perfect pair of classic black pumps at Saks Fifth Avenue for a cool $150 (more on that in a sec), I went the cheapie route and bought some almost perfect black pumps.

Now these almost perfect pumps only cost me $16. I was selling my clothes at Buffalo Exchange after clearing out my closet and I saw these bad boys on the shoe rack. I was especially attracted to them because they have a low, angular cut on the bridge of the shoe, which is the style of pump I had been looking for for months. Thinking "Hey these are only $16!!!" and "What have I got to lose?" I bought them right away and gleefully ran out the store.

I should have known I was in for a world of hurt because there were a few things wrong with that whole situation:

I told myself 2 YEARS AGO (!!) that I wasn't buying anymore faux "patent-leather" pumps. They scuff up too quickly, are hard to break in, and can't be repaired if you chip the patent leather finish.
The low price of these shoes wasn't so much an issue as was the brand. These shoes are from a lower-end brand I've had problems with in the past.
They were tight on my feet when I tried them on the store. But I rationalized that I could break them in (see #1) and bought them anyway.

It should come as no surprise that after two days of wearing my $16 almost perfect shoes, the sides and heels of my feet were completely rubbed raw. Choose well I had not done. And I couldn't even take the stupid shoes back.

A Lesson in Splurging vs. Saving

After browsing the mall to blow off some steam, I sauntered into Saks knowing good and well there was nothing in there I could afford. Still, I figured at least looking at some gorgeous, expensive shoes would make me feel better.After winding my way through the shoes section I landed on the clearance rack and saw my dream shoes. Like my cheapie shoes, these too sported the low, angular cut I had been looking for but unlike my cheapie shoes, these were made from real Italian leather complete with leather soles (not thermoplastic elastomer, or TPR soles). I tried them on and instantly loved them. For high heels, they were surprisingly sturdy and comfortable. I had no problem walking on the marble-floored part of the store.The only problem was, these shoes were $150. Granted, that was the clearance price since they had been marked down from $295 but still! I mean, DANG! $150 though??? Even after experiencing the horrors of my $16 knock-offs, I still couldn't justify buying the real thing. At least not yet.For the next week or so, I kept thinking about those shoes. I continued pinning dream outfits to my pinterest board, noting how great everything would look with a pair of REAL classic black pumps. Le sigh. I knew I wanted to buy those shoes but I still needed a little "push". $150 for one pair of shoes is a lot of freakin' money. (At least for me, since I'm a thrift and consignment store queen!)On my next shopping trip, I was leisurely drifting through Anthropologie (I'm always in Anthropologie looking around. Sometimes I go there just for the smell!) and I came across this book:

Because I already have the Parisian Street Style book from this series (my obsession with French women is what started this whole capsule wardrobe kick, remember?) I was super intrigued. Leafing through the book, I came across one quote that stopped me dead in my tracks:

She who buys cheap, buys twice.

My stomach turned because I knew how true that was for me. And not just for my most recent transgression with the $16 shoes, but over the course of my "classic black pumps" wearing journey. You see, I fell in love with classic black pumps MY FRESHMAN YEAR OF COLLEGE and have been buying a new pair nearly every six months. I was a freshman in college 8 YEARS AGO, which means, on average I have purchased (and subsequently thrown away) 16 (!!!) pairs of almost perfect black pumps. At an average price of, let's say $35, that's $560.$560 down the drain, over the course of 8 years and what did I have to show for it? Nothing.$150 suddenly didn't seem so expensive anymore. I walked over to Saks and bought the shoes.

How to Shop Going Forward

So far, I am super pleased with my purchase. My perfect black pumps are gorgeous on, they don't tear up my feet, and most importantly, I truly believe they will last me a long time. I've officially stepped off the "buy cheap, buy twice" hamster wheel.My plan going forward it to continue to seek out high quality versions of my remaining wardrobe needs, but to try to get them on clearance or on sale. Since I'm focusing on buying one item at a time, I'm saving up to make sure I can afford to spend a little more where needed.