Learn how to create a fall capsule wardrobe with a simple, flexible method for choosing colors, editing clothes, building outfits, and shopping intentionally.

I have been slowly moving in the direction of a capsule wardrobe for a few years now, but this past summer was the first time I actually took the plunge and committed to one.

And you guys…

I loved it.

Getting dressed was easier. Getting dressed was more fun. I wore my favorite clothes more often, and, perhaps my favorite part, I stopped feeling so tempted to buy things I didn’t actually need.

There is something surprisingly freeing about opening your closet and knowing that pretty much everything hanging there is something you genuinely love to wear.

So when it came time to put together my fall wardrobe, I knew I wanted to do it again.

But I also knew I needed to make a few changes from my summer capsule.

Because I live in Arizona.

And here, “fall” can mean 100 degrees in September while the rest of the internet is wearing chunky sweaters and drinking pumpkin spice lattes.

So my fall capsule is basically my summer wardrobe wearing fall colors. 😂

If you live somewhere cooler, you can easily adapt this method by swapping tank tops for long sleeves and adding layers, sweaters, and jackets. I’ll be putting together my winter capsule in November, when it actually starts feeling like winter around here.

The important thing isn’t following a specific capsule wardrobe formula.

It’s creating a wardrobe that works for YOUR actual life.

Here is the method I used to build my fall capsule wardrobe.

And HERE’S a link to everything in my closet this fall.

What Is a Capsule Wardrobe?

A capsule wardrobe is simply a smaller, intentionally chosen collection of clothing that works well together.

There are a million different capsule wardrobe formulas out there, and every capsule wardrobe expert seems to have their own rules about exactly how many pieces you should have, which categories you need, and how everything should be divided.

I don’t think there is one magic number.

My capsule is probably on the bigger side compared to some minimalist wardrobes, but it is still dramatically more simplified and intentional than my full closet.

And that’s the point.

For my capsule, I only count my everyday outfit pieces:

• Tops
• Bottoms

I don’t count:

• Church dresses
• Workout clothes
• Pajamas
• Outerwear
• Undergarments

Those things stay in my closet, but they aren’t part of the daily outfit capsule I’m choosing from.

Before You Start: Know What You Actually Wear

This might be the most important part of creating a capsule wardrobe:

Don’t build a fantasy wardrobe.

Build the wardrobe you actually wear.

For example, my summer capsule included shorts and skirts.

I barely wore either.

I don’t love how my legs look in shorts, and I really wish I were a skirt person. But wishing I were someone who wears skirts doesn’t magically make me someone who wears skirts.

So for fall, I’m skipping them.

Every bottom in my fall capsule is a pair of pants.

Could I have included skirts because a capsule wardrobe “should” have skirts?

Sure.

Would I wear them?

Nope.

Your capsule should make getting dressed easier, not give you homework.

How I Put Together My Fall Capsule Wardrobe

1. Do All Your Laundry

Before making any decisions, I did all of my laundry.

Then I put on my pajamas.

This is an important step because I wanted to see everything I owned at once.

No digging through the laundry basket. No discovering a shirt three weeks later. No convincing myself I needed something because I forgot I already owned it.

I wanted a complete picture of my wardrobe before I started editing it.

2. Start With Your Previous Capsule

I went through my summer capsule and immediately pulled out anything I didn’t love or didn’t wear.

If I didn’t wear something during the entire summer, I’m probably not going to suddenly become obsessed with it next season.

Those pieces went into my donation pile.

This is one of the easiest ways to keep your wardrobe from slowly growing back into the giant collection you’re trying to simplify.

If you didn’t wear it, ask yourself why.

Maybe it doesn’t fit right.

Maybe you don’t like the color.

Maybe it’s uncomfortable.

Maybe you keep thinking you’ll wear it “someday.”

Or maybe it simply isn’t your style anymore.

Whatever the reason, pay attention to it.

3. Pull EVERYTHING Out

Next, I pulled all of my clothing out of my closet.

Even the seasonal pieces I normally store up at the top of my closet.

I brought everything into my bedroom and laid it all out on the bed.

This is where the magic happens.

When everything is spread out in front of you, you can actually see how much you have.

And you start noticing things like:

“Oh. I own six black tops.”

Or:

“Apparently I have decided olive green is my entire personality.”

Seeing everything at once makes it much easier to make intentional decisions.

I started with my tops and sorted every single one by color.

4. Remove the Colors You Don’t Want for This Season

Once all of my tops were sorted into color piles, I immediately removed any colors I knew I didn’t want in my fall capsule.

This does not mean I was getting rid of those clothes.

These are pieces I still love and want to wear.

They just don’t fit the color palette I’m creating for fall.

So they went into my capsule storage bins.

I have three bins dedicated to clothing that isn’t currently in my capsule.

And that’s my limit.

I don’t have unlimited storage space, and I don’t want this system to turn into another way of keeping everything.

Having a physical boundary helps me stay intentional.

If those three bins are full, I’m not adding another five bins just because I can’t make decisions.

I have to edit.

5. Choose Your Fall Color Palette

Now comes one of my favorite parts: choosing the colors.

I like to choose:

3–4 neutral colors + 2–3 accent colors

For my fall capsule, I chose:

• Black
• White
• Beige
• Coffee/chocolate brown
• Blush
• Olive green

The specific colors don’t matter.

You might choose navy, gray, camel, burgundy, denim, and rust.

Or maybe your entire personality is black, gray, and leopard print.

You do you.

The purpose of choosing a color palette is simply to make sure your pieces work together.

6. Choose 2–3 Tops From Each Color

Once I had my color palette, I started choosing my tops.

I selected about 2–3 tops from each color pile.

But I wasn’t choosing three versions of the exact same shirt.

I wanted variety.

So I looked for a mix of:

• Tees and tanks
• Casual knits
• Blouses
• Solids
• Stripes
• Prints

The goal was to have enough variety that I didn’t feel like I was wearing the same outfit every day, while still keeping everything cohesive.

Anything I didn’t choose went into my capsule storage bins.

And this is where I started to see how much easier getting dressed was going to be.

Because instead of looking at an entire closet full of possibilities, I was looking at a much smaller collection of pieces that I already knew I loved.

7. Make a Shopping List

Do not go shopping yet.

This is important.

Once you’ve chosen the pieces you already own, look at what’s missing.

For my fall capsule, I realized I needed:

• One olive top
• One blush top

That’s it.

So now I have a very specific shopping list.

And yes, I’m excited to shop for those pieces!

But there’s a big difference between intentionally looking for two specific pieces and scrolling through a clothing website thinking, “Well, I don’t have THIS one…”

This method keeps me from buying things unnecessarily.

I’m shopping to fill a gap—not to fill a cart.

8. Choose Your Bottoms

Once I had my tops chosen, I hung them back in my closet.

Then I started the exact same process with my bottoms.

I pulled everything out and sorted my pants by color.

And then I started editing.

For my fall capsule, I decided to keep one pair of pants in each of my capsule colors:

• 1 black pair of pants
• 1 white pair
• 1 beige pair
• 1 chocolate brown pair
• 1 olive pair
• 1 blush pair (this also went on my shopping list)

And then I kept three pairs of jeans in different washes and fits.

That gives me enough variety without having a closet full of pants I rarely wear.

The biggest thing I looked for was versatility.

I wanted my bottoms to work with as many of my tops as possible.

Ideally, I can grab almost any top and almost any bottom from my fall capsule and make an outfit that works.

That’s what makes a capsule wardrobe so helpful.

You’re not just reducing the number of clothes you own.

You’re increasing the number of combinations that work.

10. Put Everything Away and You’re Done!

Once I had chosen my tops and bottoms, I put everything back in my closet and dresser.

The pieces I didn’t choose were either:

• Donated
• Stored in my three capsule bins

And that’s it!

My fall capsule was ready.

Don’t Get Too Hung Up on the Number

One of the things I don’t love about some capsule wardrobe advice is how focused it can be on the exact number of pieces.

30 pieces.

25 pieces.

33 pieces.

Whatever the magic number of the day happens to be.

If having exactly 30 pieces makes you happy, go for it!

But I don’t think the number is the goal.

Intentionality is the goal.

My capsule may be bigger than someone else’s.

That’s okay.

I want enough clothes to give me variety, but I don’t want so many clothes that getting dressed becomes overwhelming or that I feel like I need to constantly shop for more.

The goal is to open my closet and see a collection of clothes that I actually love.

And if I can mix and match almost everything?

Even better.

A Capsule Wardrobe Should Fit Your Life

This is the biggest lesson I’ve learned from doing this.

Your capsule wardrobe doesn’t need to look like mine.

If you live somewhere cold, you may need sweaters, coats, boots, and layers.

If you live somewhere warm, your capsule might look more like mine.

If you wear skirts every day, fill your capsule with skirts.

If you hate skirts, don’t own a single one just because somebody on Pinterest says you should.

If you work from home, your wardrobe will look different from someone who goes into an office every day.

If you have a casual lifestyle, you don’t need a closet full of dress clothes.

If you love dressing up, you probably need more than someone who lives in jeans and sneakers.

The best capsule wardrobe is the one that reflects your actual life, your actual style, and the clothes you actually enjoy wearing.

Not the wardrobe you think you should have.

And Maybe the Best Part…

My favorite thing about my summer capsule wasn’t actually having fewer clothes.

It was what happened because of it.

I stopped shopping as much.

I stopped feeling like I needed something new every time I got dressed.

I wore my favorite pieces over and over.

And I realized that having more options doesn’t necessarily make getting dressed more enjoyable.

Sometimes, having the right options is enough.

So that’s my fall capsule wardrobe method.

It isn’t the official capsule wardrobe formula.

It’s just the one that works for me.

And honestly?

That’s kind of the whole point.