6 Items of Clothing That Will Take You Anywhere

The standard capsule wardrobe normally consists of around 37 items. I’ve been thinking about it, though, and I reckon I could get by on just 6 – assuming I didn’t have to deal with any extremes of weather, or unexpected excursions requiring specialist clothing, obviously!

Here are my six essentials – and bear in mind that this is a purely personal list, so the usual caveats apply: these won’t work for everyone, and your own list might be totally different! (And I’d love to hear what you’d put on it, if so!)

// THE CLASSIC TRENCH

Yeah, yeah, I can hear you yawning from here! I always feel like I should apologise for liking so many of the classics, because it obviously makes me as basic as it’s possible to be, but I’m not going to apologise, because, well, I AM pretty basics, really, and I can’t help the fact that I love the classic look. I actually own more trenchcoats than is really reasonable, but that’s because I really love them: no, they may not be a “wardrobe essential” for everyone, but they make me feel instantly put-together, and I love the way they can be dressed up or down, as required. The style above is from Spartoo, who have tons of different colours in stock, if the classic beige /camel doesn’t work for you.

// THE PENCIL DRESS

I’m not calling this an LBD, because although the dress pictured is, indeed, a little black dress, I’d actually prefer a green or white one – I just couldn’t find the right image! I’ve more or less lived in stretchy pencil dresses this year: as with the trench, they can be dressed up or down depending on how you style them, and they’re as comfortable as jeans – maybe even more so, actually. Speaking of jeans, though…

// THE PERFECT BLUE JEANS

When I’m not wearing a pencil dress, you’ll normally find me in jeans. They just work for my lifestyle, and I always feel good in them, so who cares if they’re one of those items some people like to turn their nose up at? Not me …

// THE BRETON TOP

My love of a stripe top is so well-documented at this point that there’s absolutely no point in adding to that, so suffice to say that I literally – LITERALLY – couldn’t live without one. Or, you know, 20.

// THE SILK CAMI

Most of my camisole tops aren’t actually silk, but you get the idea. These instantly dress up jeans and skirts, and have that effortlessly stylish look about them: what’s not to love?

// THE POINTED STILETTO

If I had to choose just one style of shoe to wear for the rest of my life, it would be the pointed stiletto. Of course, I WOULD need a pair in every colour imaginable, but it still counts as one item, right?

So, tell me: what are your wardrobe essentials?