Chapter Three

I’m aware that I haven’t written a post in a loooong time. So long that my writing muscles feel rusty beyond composing legal documents. Mostly because I haven’t been inspired, and I have a rebellious streak that wants to flaunt all the advice to be consistent. As well I have thoughts about creating digital excess. I know online content is not affecting the earth’s environment but I feel like too much of it pollutes my inside space and I like the idea of creating and consuming it sparingly. I’ve been turning my phone off sometimes for the entire weekend and it actually feels like I’m getting a weekend when I do this. I’m not missing anything. My friends know where I am. I feel peace.

The other reason I haven’t made a post is because I’ve been writing about The Creative Pragmatist book and I got a bit stuck on chapter three which is called The Closet and felt intimidating. I wasn’t sure how to handle it. What I ended up doing is going through the items that Amy recommends in this chapter and creating a “summer” clothing capsule to wear for a couple of weeks. (I put summer in quotes because this is the Bay Area and what is summer anyway).

If you were hoping to see one of those photos of a few well-ironed pieces hanging spaciously on a rail…I’m sorry.

It was fun but also distressing to pull all the clothes I never wear off this rack and just leave the ones that are in regular rotation, which coincidentally lined up with the types of things Amy calls Without Fails (WOF). Also I kept adding pants. I realized doing this that I tend to focus on pants more and wear simpler tops. I’m a pants person.

Let’s get into the chapter. Basically Amy breaks the closet down into three parts. WithOut Fail (WOF), In & Out (I&O), and Have to Have (HTH).

WOF’s are the meat of your closet. They’re the basics which in Creative Pragmatist land aren’t quite basic but all have a unique quality that expresses your style personality while still being versatile and neutral. Amy goes through each of the categories, the button-down shirt, the jacket, the tee, the sweatshirt, etc and describes what attributes each should have. There are eleven categories in total.

After reading these descriptions I went through my closet and picked out a couple of items that fit each category and that’s how I created my current capsule. I was going to write out each category and show pictures of the items I chose but that seemed so laborious I decided not to. If you’d like me to list all the categories from the book let me know in the comments and I’ll go back and edit.

Here’s an outfit I created with two of my WOF items. Fig. E on Amy’s list: The Sweatshirt. She says it should have a mixture of polished and chill and I feel like this one (different color still in stock) from Caron Callahan hits those notes as the stripes make it unique but the slouchy oversized fit keeps it casual. And I’m wearing my Fig. K Track Pants pick. One thing I love about Tibi is their creativity with track-style pants. I like how this outfit is just a sweatshirt and athletic pants but it doesn’t feel basic. The pants in a different color. Shoes are Mephisto Hedina. Bag is old Loewe.

Here’s another outfit with track pants and a simple top from my capsule. In this one the clothes are very basic although the shape of the Winslow pants will forever be true love to me. And I jazzed it up with some more colorful accessories.

Old Acne Studios ballcap. My favorite long sleeve tee from Goldie. Tibi Active Knit Winslow pants. The Row Hugo clogs. Same bag as above.

One category I’m really lacking is WOF dresses. I have a lot of special summer dresses that I never wear, but not many versatile basic dresses where I can play around with layering. I did find this crinkle dress in one of my garage storage boxes and thought I could use it as a WOF, but I had a hard time styling it and ultimately went with a classic Amy hack and tied a cardigan around my waist to give it a more modern vibe. I don’t think it’s the versatile piece I’m looking for and it might go back into retirement.

I have no idea where this dress is from as I removed the tag and I’ve had it for years. The best sheer sweater. Old sandals from Wales Bonner. Same bag.

The next category is In & Out (I&O). Amy says these are the one season stand out pieces that might feel trendy but if you mix them with your WOF’s they’ll make your personal style a little more potent. They are the runway-inspired pieces that would look overdone if you tried to create a whole runway look, but can add impact to the basics in your closet when mixed in the right way. I’m going to categorize the pink Tibi skirt I bought this year as an I&O (although it could also be a WOF) since it has added an extra punch to my basic clothes, as seen below where I styled it with a simple tank and button up shirt but I think the color, longer length, and ultra shiny material of the skirt make this a bit more special.

Old BSides tank. Old Caron Callahan button up shirt. Tibi skirt. The Row Dune flip flop. Same bag.

One category I’ve added that Amy doesn’t mention are tunics. I love them and wear them a lot because I hang out at a health/pool club with my friends about once a week. They’re definitely more seasonal pieces so I’ll put them in the I&O category. Here’s one I wore last week to the club:

Malia Mills Giamini tunic. Old Elizabeth Suzann silk pants. Same shoes and bag.

The last category is called Had to Haves (HTH) and I’m guilty of buying too many of these pieces. They’re the weirder items that trigger an emotional response when we see them because we imagine a version of ourselves wearing them. As someone with a very active imagination I’ve done this So Many Times and wasted So Much Money. One thing I do these days is ask myself how I’m feeling when I want to shop, and I write that emotion down. This has helped me in curbing impulse purchases as often I’m feeling some kind of way and I’m using shopping to distract me from that mood. I challenged myself to wear one of my HTH pieces this week which are these leopard print loafers from Jamie Haller. They were an impulse buy as I’m not much of a loafer person and I’ve barely worn them, but I like them here with a more athleisure outfit.

Short sleeve leotard from Eurotard. Tibi Winslow pants (sold out). Jamie Haller leopard loafers (sold out). Same bag.

Even though I stalled out on this chapter, I think it’s been the most helpful one of the book so far as I’ve had a chaotic approach to building my wardrobe and I like the idea of creating mini capsules and being more intentional without too much restriction, a perspective that Amy generously offers. I already put this into practice today as I was looking at the Aflalo sale and I saw a beautiful silk tunic and wanted to imagine myself floating around in it and then I realized…ohhhhh this is not a WOF, this is an HTH moment and I so don’t need that tunic.

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I wanted to add a couple of other things I’ve discovered through the miracle of Substack over the last several weeks. I can’t even remember where I saw this…it was in the comments of a post I don’t normally follow. A woman was talking about getting a personal bra fitting done and she mentioned a store in Oakland that takes appointments for fittings called Revelation in Fit. I made an appointment and it was great! I bought an everyday bra I’d never have found on my own which fits really well, is so comfortable, and has great lift. Here it is.

The other thing is this great post by Steph Robinson with recipes from the Mayr clinic in Austria which is one of my life goals. Since I can’t go there right now I’ve been making the soups she shared and they’re so good. I made the potato one last week and this week I did the broccoli and zucchini. They make a great light meal with buckwheat biscuits.

That’s it for me! Have a great rest of the week everyone. I’m hoping to be back soon with some more outfits from my seasonal capsule and the next chapter of the creative pragmatist which is called Proportions and looks very fun xoxo