I’ll never forget the day I knew I had been shopping for clothes all wrong. It was a Wednesday in November, and like many weekday mornings, I had woken up running late for a meeting. I threw on the first outfit I could find—flats, not quite clean trousers, and a casually draped linen shirt.
As I stood in front of my closet trying to will an outfit into existence, I realized that despite having so many articles of clothing hanging in front of me, I had absolutely nothing to wear. Every piece in my closet was either worn-out, wrong for the occasion, or else barely worn items I’d bought on impulse and never loved. Looking at my half-hearted outfit in the mirror that morning, I knew something had to change.
I had spent years shopping for whatever was new and cheap: sale bargains, trendy fast fashion staples, convincing myself that anything was a “good deal” if I could stretch out the math to make the cost-per-wear low enough. Most of my closet was full of abandoned trends and hobby hobbies I no longer cared about.
There were very few proven pieces I had bought years ago that I knew I would keep forever.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had gone shopping and walked away with something that would last me years, rather than weeks. I’d fallen into the trap so many of us do: chasing the dopamine hits of new purchases and catching myself back at the stores weeks later because I “didn’t have anything to wear.” That was years ago. Today, I’m still honing my approach to shopping and improving my wardrobe little by little.
I still enjoy buying clothes as much as the next person, but I’ve learned to shop mindfully and curate my wardrobe with intent. Here’s how to do it too: Step 1: Know What You’ve Got (And Want To Keep) The first step to building a great wardrobe is taking inventory. You need to know what you’ve got before you can figure out what you want or need.
I started with my clothes—I emptied my closet of every piece of clothing and tried everything on. If it didn’t fit or I knew I wouldn’t wear it, I donated it. I was brutal.
This was embarrassing at first—I thought I knew what I had until I saw the pile of clothes I was ready to part with grow higher and higher. I couldn’t believe how much money I’d wasted on clothing that didn’t fit me, wasn’t practical for my lifestyle, or wasn’t just plain fun to wear! But there was a silver lining—I also discovered lots of forgotten gems I had totally overlooked.
Going through my closet gave me a chance to really edit down what I owned to only the things I loved. When I finished cleaning out my closet, I did the same for my shoes and bags. Every item of clothing I wanted to keep had to earn its place on my shelves.
If an item didn’t make me feel good when I wore it, it wasn’t keepers. What I ended up with when I was done was a weird mish-mash of old favorites I knew I would keep forever and lots and lots of gaps where I knew I needed versatile basics to fill out my wardrobe. I realized I had fifteen sweaters but no everyday grey sweater I actually liked, countless dresses I never wore but not enough shirt dresses I could wear to work.
My shopping list was already pretty long! Step 2: Learn How To Patiently Build Your Wardrobe Instead of running to Target every time I had a gap in my wardrobe, I took a deep breath and started building my wardrobe one piece at a time. I made a list of all the things my wardrobe was missing, and every time I went shopping I looked for pieces that would help me slowly build out my closet.
I purchased well instead of buying a lot. For example, instead of buying three shirts I liked when I went shopping, I tried to narrow it down to one. Rather than spending £60 on three shirts, I spent £120 on one really nice silk blouse that I knew I’d wear over and over again.
Building a wardrobe you love takes time. There will be times when you fall back into old patterns and buy things you don’t need. (Trust me, I recently did this by buying a dress on impulse for a friend’s wedding that I knew wasn’t really “me” as soon as I tried it on.) And yeah, it feels pretty crummy when you’re trying to build mindfulness about how you shop to walk out of Zara empty-handed. But trust me, it also gets easier.
The more I added beautiful, practical pieces I truly loved to my wardrobe, the easier it became to wear clothes I already owned. Instead of constantly buying new, I found myself shopping—and enjoying clothes—less. I realized this wardrobe revolution had happened when a friend of mine ran into me in the street (literally) a few months after I’d started this process. “That coat is beautiful,” she said, clearly admiring my coat. “Is it new?” “No!” I laughed. “I’ve had it for ages—it’s just I finally have some other clothes that I want to wear underneath it!” For years I had wasted money on disposable clothes that I would instantly replace as soon as they went out of style.
Now I was too busy enjoying my wardrobe as it was to buy anything just because it was new. A wardrobe isn’t built overnight. Instead of tossing out your old clothes and starting from scratch buy one thing at a time.
Think of having a great wardrobe as more of a marathon than a sprint. The key is taking the time to buy better. Shop sales, yes, but wait for high-quality pieces you really love to go on sale instead of buying whatever catches your eye at a discount.
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A couple of my favorite pieces are things I waited MONTHS to purchase when they went on sale. Step 3: Aim For Wardrobe Cohesion Once you start buying better, you’ll naturally start curating your wardrobe toward pieces that work really well together. I love shopping the same tried-and-true pieces in different fabrics every season.
Last season I picked up a beautifully cut blazer in beige that matches everything in my closet—I’ve worn it multiple times already and can’t wait to pair it with new things come spring. One of the best things about a cohesive wardrobe? Nothing “matches.” The key to having a wardrobe that feels cohesive is buying classics that will never go out of style, then mixing and matching those staples to create outfits you’ll love.
Bonus points if you can find colors that work really well together so most of your clothes match, but honestly I barely notice or care that half my clothes are black and white these days. High-quality clothes really do feel different than everything else in the stores. I used to scoff when people talked about “fabric quality” like it was magic.
Now I get it—I could feel (and see!) the difference between my cheap old college tees and something that was knit to last. Good clothing feels like it was made to stand the test of time. Not only will spending more mean your clothes will literally last longer, but you’ll also feel like you can wear that sweater for years.
Nothing replaces experience when it comes to learning how to shop. But a few tips will help you start thinking about building your wardrobe the right way: Buy to fill gaps, not just for fun. Yes, shopping should be fun, but if you’re trying to mindfully curate your wardrobe you’ll save money and stress by only buying clothes you need to fill specific holes in your wardrobe.
Buy clothes that will get lots of wear. Try putting together entire outfits in your head or on your closet floor before you buy that “just-in-case” shirt. If you can’t think of anywhere to wear it with what you own, consider whether you really need it.
Have realistic expectations. You’ll never be able to overhaul your wardrobe in a day, week, or even a month. Have patience—building a wardrobe you love takes time.
Most of us don’t have perfect closets. But if you know where you want to go, you can start curating yours to get a little closer every time you shop. For me, that meant building a wardrobe I actually enjoyed wearing that was perfect for how I live my life.
Here’s how I like to break down my wardrobe formula: Clothing I love + How I actually live my life = Formula for my perfect wardrobe Think about what you love. Do you hate floral prints? Or loathe how wrap dresses feel around your waist?
Maybe you love bright colors, or vintage clothing, or tailored trousers. Knowing what you love to wear is the first step to knowing what you should buy. Understand how you live your life.
I used to buy clothes for a version of myself that didn’t actually exist. Once I realized I never leave the house without leggings, I stocked up. But I also realized that because I work from home, I never wore blazers or formal shirts anymore.
Why was I buying them? Build around those fundamentals.
Once you know what you love and understand how you’ll actually wear something, you can start shopping mindfully and curating a wardrobe that fits your lifestyle.
Pinterest and Instagram are great for building out wardrobes along a certain aesthetic—you just have to know what you’re looking for. Buying less means you end up buying better. I used to think that in order to build a perfect wardrobe I’d have to buy more clothes.
Instead I’ve found the opposite to be true: if I’m thoughtful about what I add to my wardrobe, I actually find myself buying less stuff. How’s that for ironic? Need some shopping inspiration?
The internet is full of great resources to help you understand what will work for your wardrobe. My favorite boutique for building a perfect wardrobe is Wardrobe by Vera, which specializes in high-quality basics that are made to last. Learning how to shop is a process.
But if I can overhaul how I look at buying clothes, so can you. Trust me, once you start building your wardrobe with intent, you’ll wonder how you ever lived your old shopping habits.
