How to Build a Bamboo Capsule Wardrobe

Short answer: A capsule wardrobe is few pieces that work together. The rule is simple: two or three colours, one material, and only pieces that work in at least two places. Bamboo viscose makes it possible, because the same fabric works underneath, on its own and as a layer.

Colours first

It is not the number of pieces that decides whether a wardrobe works, but whether they can be worn together. Choose two base colours that go with each other and a third as an accent, and stay with them. Then any top works with any bottom, and you do not have to think about it in the morning. That is also where most wardrobes fail: not because there is too little, but because nothing goes with anything.

The layer underneath

Start from the inside. Underwear and socks are worn every day and decide how the whole day feels, and they are also the cheapest to replace. Buy few sets of the same style rather than many different ones, so they wear at the same rate and can be replaced together. See bamboo underwear for women and bamboo socks for women. That is the part of the wardrobe worn most and thought about least.

The two or three tops

A t-shirt, a long sleeve and a hoodie in the same quality cover the year, if the colours go together. The t-shirt is worn on its own in summer and as a layer in winter, the long sleeve covers most of spring and autumn, and the hoodie is what comes on and off. See bamboo t-shirt for women and bamboo hoodies for women. Three tops in two colours give more combinations than ten in ten colours. Buy the long sleeve a shade thinner than you think, because it has to fit under something.

The test of whether it works

A piece belongs in the wardrobe if it works in at least two places: at home and out, on its own and as a layer, summer and winter. If it only works in one place, it is not part of the capsule, however nice it is. That test removes most of what ends up at the back of the cupboard, and it is easier to apply than a count of how many things you are allowed to own.

Why the material should be the same

When everything is in the same material it behaves the same: it is washed the same, dries in the same time and drapes the same. That makes it possible to wash the whole wardrobe together at thirty degrees and hang it dry overnight, and that is what makes a small wardrobe work in practice. The full range sits under bamboo for women and bamboo for men. See also the softest basics.