A: 26 items
(*not including pjs, tanks, underwear, and socks – quite obviously uniform!)
A child capsule wardrobe is not a term for having a fancy wardrobe, it is the opposite. The purpose of a kids capsule wardrobe should be saving you time and money, they grow out of clothes so quickly it only makes sense for us to spend less and keep a fewer amount of clothes.
My hack is pieces that will last more than one season, a child’s capsule wardrobe is to simplify your life, no secret formula is needed.
Like Mummy, I have a choice of how to dress – dressing is a big part of expressing yourself and making your personality shine, celebrating who YOU are. Lucas has begun being super vocal about what he chooses to wear recently, and I have seen the spark in his eyes and a spring in his step when he feels good in what he wears. On the weekend he is either superman, spiderman or a combination of both, trying to assert his independence and test his limits, sleeps in his football kit.
We can say goodbye to trying to buy items over a few days to a week, but do still feel free to add as you go along my fave places are H&M and Uniqlo – but remember the golden rule is to keep it at twenty six to thirty items if we had to go a little bit over just not more. It is advisable to make one trip, all up to you how you would like to add more items, anything to make your life hassle free if you ask me. I usually take one trip to the Westend and pop into Arket and get the main skeleton of my son’s closet.
A kid’s capsule wardrobe ideally includes between twenty six to thirty items of everyday wear.
That means each season keep roughly seven tops, seven bottoms, and three dresses for girls, or if you want to make things super convenient yet playful and fun playsuits for the girls or denim dungarees or matching co-ords for the boys. Any item of clothing that comes as one like playsuits and all-in-ones, onesies, dungarees even matching co-ords are a dream, convenient as you don’t have much time to think about putting a three to four-item outfit together, and can be way cuter at times. Also, who says co-ords are just for adults? Lucas has a cute matching tracksuit from Arket. I need to emphasise the skeleton of twenty-six items does not include p’j sets, tanks, underwear and socks. If you wanted my advice on those multiple items you need a lot of, invest in 10 pj sets, and 10 tank tops, your discretion when it comes to underwear and socks. I would go for a relatively cheaper option for items such as pj sets, tanks, underwear and socks. Us Mum’s do love a good bang for our buck, attempting the whole let’s shop at Primark or the high street can suffice at the best of times – for the skeleton of a child’s wardrobe you want it to last a whole season.
We are mindful about how we shop for the little man, they grow so fast, a disposable plate-either of clothes is not our jam. I have desired quality over quality whilst not buying items with extortionate price tags because let’s face it, with the economy right now times are hard. It is a necessity to jump on the sustainable bandwagon, and a place of sustainable transparency is desirable.
And so the best bit…
I discovered Arket, the sister company of H&M.
You can keep a fun & colorful wardrobe for longer with Arket kids.
Since Lucas turned 3 we would make that regular trip up the West End to shop at Arket our favorite one is in Covent garden, making a whole day of it. We take a visit once every start of the season to choose his wardrobe. A cheeky hack for being 2 steps ahead of yourself, shop in the sale which usually takes place over the summer holidays so I take this opportunity to pick up a few bits for the next season, just remember to grab a size up from their size now.
So a twenty-six staple pieces are a good start to create a substantial capsule wardrobe; 6-10 tops which consist of t-shirts, vests, fun/smart tops, 6-10 bottoms; and a hero piece, which means a piece that he can wear on a special occasion. I am yet to apply the second-hand clothes for the kids as this can be tricky – I have found a new online marketplace’ ‘Too Trendy to throw away’ you can buy and sell your children’s wardrobe, most are luxury brands so this might prove to be somewhat of a challenge definitely worth the look in.
Checking to see if the materials are good for our beloved planet…
I take time to read each label/material for every garment I pick up – check to see if the materials are friendly to the environment, low impact materials. Let’s face it, tough love truth as I wish to rely on Brands to be fully aligned with their values like the HM group promising sustainability you always still need to check it out for yourselves and educate yourself first-hand if they claim to be implementing the circular route.
Everything in Arket truly exudes what they claim as beautiful everyday life, a modern-day Nordic market and lifestyle destination for men, women, and kids. Like much of the HM group, they are transparent about being sustainable backed with primary evidence of this on their website with a downloadable fact sheet about figures on the brand’s goals and aspirations, and stats to be more sustainable. They do operate a little differently than HM and COS but educate yourself and do your research.
There you go, click here get your checklist. To begin creating a capsule wardrobe you will need to go through a checklist, check of the skeleton of what you need, see what you already have and what you need to add? that is where you need to begin.
Once he has grown out of his items I re-sell or hand them down, the whole cycle starts with recycling even our children’s clothes voila we have helped doing our bit for the planet – you can thank me later.
PRINTABLE KIDS CAPSULE WARDROBE CHECKLIST HERE FOR BOYS
PRINTABLE KIDS CAPSULE WARDROBE CHECKLIST HERE FOR GIRLS