I’m someone who suffers from major street style FOMO.
I used to show up to a faraway land, only to gaze longingly at a woman in a chic shawl or another in cute lace up shoes. “Darn! I should have packed that.” Suddenly, I wasn’t paying attention to the thing I had travelled thousands of miles to see and focusing instead on what I left behind
Out of self preservation, I now study the fashion at the destination ahead of time, so I can stay present. But I’ll be honest, I’ve been totally befuddled building a capsule wardrobe for Paris for 4 weeks. My current Google search history reads a 100 versions of “How to build a capsule wardrobe for Paris in June”
Now that I am 3 days out from travel, here is what I learned from building a capsule wardrobe.
I doubled down on the basics. White tee shirts. Jeans. Blazer. Long sleeved white shirt.
Sometimes, in life, that’s all we need to double down on. The basics.
I cut down on the decision fatigue. As an entrepreneur, I’m making hundreds of decisions a week. Now I can make one less decision around how I show up. I can focus on what I am going to Paris for, which is client work and much needed down time.
I can be adaptable and flexible. The range of activities include client strategy days, birthday dinner for a friend, exploring future retreat location in Bordeaux, yoga in the Tuileries, and lazy Sundays walking the Bastille market. The weather is also expected to swing from the low 50s at night to the mid 80s during the day. Careful planning and preparation means every scenario has been accounted for.
Quality over quantity. As I turned 50, I pledged to only buy classic investment pieces. No fast fashion. It meant paying a bit more, but my capsule wardrobe is built with intention and purpose. I’ve laid out all the combinations in pictures so I have them. Each item must be able to be worn at least 2 other ways.
The discipline used to invest in my wardrobe carried into other areas of my life. My health and well-being now have structured plans. So do my business goals.
