There’s been a lot of talk of capsule wardrobes across the girly parts of the interweb in the past few years. And the premise behind it is a valiant, yet flawed thinking.

 A capsule wardrobe is something you spend time, money, and energy into investing.

 When you curate your capsule wardrobe, it will be higher quality is than your old wardrobe.

A capsule wardrobe will help you dress better, because it takes away another choice to make in the day.

To all this thinking, I say – screw that.

A capsule wardrobe has been unjustly thrust upon our society. In a bit to get us to buy Lululemon and having only neutrals in our closets, it’s taken away one of the most creative parts that we have during our days – dressing ourselves.

I’m writing all of this, keeping in mind that I’ve dressed up all of three times in the past year (hi pandemic!). But I do have a vision of how I want to be dressing and how I can do that with what I currently have. Clothing definitely makes up so much of a person’s identity. It shows people the way that you’re thinking about yourself, how you’re feeling, the person you want to portray outward to the world, or even the person you want to hide.

I say, fuck a capsule wardrobe.

Have choices in what you wear. Have a ton of clothes to choose who and what you want to be today, how you want to feel, and what your comfort level is. There is way too much that you say without saying it, so limiting yourselves to three tops per season just doesn’t fly with me.

This also takes away the fact that our bodies, budgets, and tastes are changing all the time. Spending $50 on a pair of jeans right now might be all I can afford.

Having only a smattering of clothing has a minimalist, nose-in-the-air quality to it. A small choice of what to wear each day will elevate you, sweet child who shops at Urban Planet. Wal-Mart jeans maven throw those out! Spend $250 on THESE jeans! You’ll wear them forever. It’s utter bullshit – I’ve had tops from Garage for 10 years. I’ve had yoga pants from Zellers (RIP) for over 17 years. Some of my underwear is…. a disturbing number of years old.

The quality of a piece of clothing is, ultimately, how much quality you put into wearing and caring for it. If you follow the instructions and don’t overwear something, it can last so damn long. Even some skanky little tops from Ardene lasted a few years when the sheer feeling of the fabric had me thinking it wouldn’t last a wash cycle. Great job, Ardene-no-s!

Don’t feel pressured by these influencer/Tuber/Tok-er types that tout capsules wardrobes. They get free clothing every week. They do not dictate your life, style, choices, or creativity to express yourself.

If you’ll excuse me, I have to take my own words to heart and wear something killer. And grab a drink.