Ok, so you’ve cleaned out your closet. Congrats! You’ve weeded through what’s working and not working in your wardrobe. Everything that doesn’t fit your body or your lifestyle (and the things that you no longer like) are gone. And you’re left with what fits well, what works for your life and (ideally) versatile styles that you love. But if it feels like some things are missing, what should you do?
Figuring out what’s missing (what I call the ‘holes’ in your wardrobe) is a crucial step in updating your style. Because your life evolves and your style evolves with it. And you may need things now that you didn’t need before.
The holes in your wardrobe are essentially a shopping list. When you shop, you want to deliberately fill these holes (as opposed to just buying what’s ‘cute’). Think of it this way - you go food shopping with a list, because it makes sense to just buy what you need. And the same thing goes for clothes shopping - you go with a list to buy specific things that will add to the functionality and style of your wardrobe.
But, if you’re not sure where to start. Or you have absolutely no idea what’s missing. Here are three places you can look to determine where the holes are in your wardrobe.
LOOK AT YOUR BASICS
Basics are an often overlooked (but completely necessary) part of your wardrobe. After all – it’s so much more fun to shop for an exciting new top than it is for simple layering pieces, right? But these simple, versatile styles are what make your outfits work – they’re what you pair with your more interesting styles, and they’re the items that you grab on a regular basis.
Take stock of your basics as the first place to fill holes. Because you’ll never get out the door in complete outfits without a dependable range of basics. Check for not only what’s missing, but also what may be worn, stained and needs to be replaced.
What are basics? These are the styles that you can wear in a ton of different ways that work with so many things in your closet. T-shirts, neutral tops, jeans, solid pants and versatile shoes are just the beginning of your basics. And don’t think that basics are plain and boring. If you love color, a red blazer can be just as much of a basic as a black cardigan – it just depends on how wearable it is in your wardrobe.
LOOK AT YOUR CLOSET
When you did your big closet clean out, were there categories of things that you tossed a lot of? Did you get rid of your fun tops because they were more for clubbing than casual girls nights out? Or did you toss a bunch of jeans because they were torn and stained beyond repair?
Look at your closet for things that are lacking, because they are a good indication of the holes in your wardrobe. And you should not only be looking for holes in categories, but also holes in style.
Do you have a range of tops - colors, neutrals and print? And different sleeve lengths? Do you have dresses that function for casual weekends as well as dressy nights out? Do you have jackets to wear inside as part of your outfit (as opposed to the ones you only wear when it’s cold or raining)? Read this for some essentials that I recommend to many of my clients.
LOOK AT YOUR INSPIRATION
If you followed my guidelines on updating your style, you’ve done some inspiration work in order to figure out what you really like (and if you didn’t, read this article). So, look back to that inspiration to figure out what’s missing from your closet. If your Pinterest board is full of cute skirts for spring/summer, do you have any? If the style bloggers you admire are always wearing printed flats, are there some sitting in your closet? Looking at the details of the style you want to achieve will get you that much closer to expressing it in your wardrobe.
And if you’re still not 100% sure what you need to round out your wardrobe, here’s what to do: Grab a piece of paper and a pen and put in on your dresser (or start a note in your phone). When you get dressed in the morning and have a hard time completing an outfit, write down what’s missing. And you don’t necessarily need to write down the exact item (for example, a denim jacket). You can simply write down the ‘hole’ that needs to be filled (a casual jacket to wear over sleeveless tops). And then once you have a list of holes, it’s time to go shopping – so read this for the other ways you can prepare for a successful shopping trip and this for how to shop better online.
Are you ready to figure out the holes in your closet, but you want a partner in the process? Click here to read about virtual and in-person sessions and contact me to discuss how we can evolve your style into something that makes you feel amazing, every day.