Tag Archives: closet inventory

Winter ’18 closet inventory

by

Winter ’18 closet inventory

I had this notion that I could get away with not doing a closet inventory for this winter (for myself or to share) — just to say “hey, I have a few new things; recently did a whole sweater inventory; will work off last year’s mostly unworn Deep Winter Outfits (not enough deep winter last year); and here are a few new outfit ideas.” But when I got up to my elbows in trying to do that (by which I mean, up to about 2000 words), I realized too much has changed. Between my Slotober-inspired closet cleanout, some new things I’ve made this year, some of last year’s key pieces being dyed or deaccessioned, my recent Everlane staples order (itemized below), and my not being the exact same person I was a year ago (or last week), it’s really a different ballgame. I needed to do the inventory to get my head around what I’m working with. So here it is! And I’m feeling pretty good about the resonance between this and my mood board. (All-new outfits tomorrow.)

TOPPERS

– Toffee cable dickey
– Plum Anna vest
– Black Sloper sleeveless turtleneck
– Navy mod-Clyde vest (Elizabeth Suzann Clyde Jacket 2017, refashioned)
– Army shirtjacket (J.Crew 2014, refashioned)
– Denim shirtjacket (J.Crew c.2003)

TEES & TOPS

– White graphic sleeveless tee (Everlane 2018, printed by me)
– Grey wool muscle tee
– Black silk gauze shell
– Grey and black long-sleeve tees (Everlane, new)
– Black silk tie-neck blouse (Everlane, new)
– Plaid top
– Black silk smock (Elizabeth Suzann 2017, made in Nashville, no longer available)
– Chambray work shirt (secondhand)
– Chambray button-up

The new little black Everlane top doesn’t look like much on the hanger, but it is so pretty and versatile. I’m as excited to wear it with a cardigan and jeans as to a fancy holiday dinner out.

PULLOVERS

– Grey wool knit pullover
– Grey sweatshirt
– Black sweatshirt (Everlane, new)
– Blue cashmere pullover (Everlane, new)
– Ivory aran-gansey
– Striped raglan
– Fisherman sweater
– Grey cline sweater
– Charcoal sorta swoncho
– Black yoke sweater

I could have sewn the two long-sleeve tees above and the black sweatshirt here (I already have the Lark Tee and Linden Sweatshirt patterns in my possession) but am happy not to have had to. The blue sweater I could also theoretically have made, but it’s about a billion stitches and I would never knit such a thing. This may be the first sweater I’ve bought since learning to knit — certainly the only one in five years or more — and it does feel soulless, but it also feels easy and warm and comfortable and greatly needed, and I expect it to be with me for a good long time. Also worth noting: The sweatshirt and sweater are both thin enough to wear like t-shirts — under cardigans and jackets — during the coldest part of the year.

CARDIGANS

– Vanilla cardigan
– Camel cardigan
– Purple cardigan
– Black cardigan
– Mushroom shawl-collar

PANTS & JEANS

– Natural canvas wide-legs
– Clay wide-legs (Elizabeth Suzann Clyde Culotte, made in Nashville, sample sale 2017)
– Recycled denim wide-legs
– Denim wide-legs
– Natural denim jeans (Imogene+Willie, 2016, made in LA, no longer available)
– Threadbare jeans (Old Navy c. 2013)
– Cropped jeans (J.Crew Point Sur, 2016, made in LA, no longer available)
– Other dark denim jeans

SHOES

Not pictured, but basically all I’ll be wearing the next couple of months are my boots. I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed — of if I’ve ever noted — but I rely heavily on tan footwear. I typically don’t wear any colors from the warm side of the color wheel; I only wear neutrals, blues, greens and bluer purples. (The red-purple Anna Vest is the warmest thing in my closet.) So my mostly unconscious way of balancing all the cool tones is to incorporate shades of tan and camel and caramel and such, often in the way of shoes. I have sandals and flats in lovely shades of tan (and last summer went so far as to buy those amazing orange sandals!) but somehow since moving to Nashville I have only bought black boots. As much as I miss the tan effect in winter, I haven’t found the dream pair, but I finally broke down and bought the Everlane Modern Chelsea Boots in cognac, just based on how much I love my black pair. They’re not actually in my hands yet, but I can’t imagine there being anything wrong with them when they arrive.

. . .

So this is 39 garments (26 of them handmade or modified!), but in reality there are maybe 20 that will be crucial and worn on repeat, and a few that will be worn only a couple of times, whether due to weather or favoritism. For instance, there are 8 pairs of pants here, but on any given day the real question is: Am I wearing my natural wide-legs or my Point Sur jeans. Maybe I’ll do a wear count this season.

(ICYMI: How to make a closet inventory)

.

PREVIOUSLY in Winter 2018 Wardrobe: Queue Check November 2018

Not-quite Fall closet inventory

by

Not-quite Fall closet inventory

As much as I wish it were the onset of Sweater Weather here, I’m trying to be super realistic this year and just straight up accept that it will likely be late October before I can put on an actual sweater. So rather than taunt myself by including pullovers and cardigans in my not-quite-fall inventory, I’m pretending for the moment that they don’t even exist. What I can do now is start in on some lighter and/or sleeveless layering and switch (mostly) from sandals to closed shoes, and those little tweaks will at least make me feel like there’s a progression happening. I’m thinking of it as Sweater Vest Weather. If the temperatures do drop, I’ll be pleasantly surprised and will have no trouble reaching for the sweaters! Otherwise, you won’t see them here until I get to do winter-ish outfits (but if you care to see them in the meantime, I did a full sweater inventory last month right here).

I alluded yesterday to the idea that I’m organizing Slow Fashion October this year around the process of assessing, editing and (re)building a slow closet, and for the sake of this inventory and my need to change things up a bit, I’ve jumped ahead and pulled a few new/old items from the periphery of my closet to breathe some new life into the things I’ve been wearing ad nauseum.

That said, I’m holding off creating any kind of Make list until I’ve completed the deeper dive that’s about to happen. Right now, I’m all about what I already own. So above are the 33 garments that will form the backbone of my wardrobe for this in-between moment and beyond. It’s quite late at night as I’m putting this together, so I only have time to highlight the few recent or resurfaced things. For details on the rest of the items, please scroll back through the closet inventory archive.

ROW 1

— Khaki cotton blazer (J.Crew c. 2009)
— Black cotton kimono sweater (Elizabeth Suzann, sample sale 2017, no longer available)
— Blue striped kimono jacket (2018)

For ages, a blazer was my favorite kind of garment in all the world — I wore one nearly every day. When I moved cross-country I donated most of them to Dress for Success and kept only two, one of which I’m suddenly eager to dust off and start wearing again. I’ve also decided to hang onto the previously debated Elizabeth Suzann kimono sweater thingie and give it a chance. Many are the times when I was unconvinced about something and wound up addicted to it, and since it’s already in my possession I feel like I should try. If that doesn’t happen, I know there are plenty of people who’d like to give it a good home. And I’ve also decided to let my pajama-y Wiksten Kimono (which I lovingly refer to as “my housecoat”) leave the house. It’s the lightest imaginable layering piece and gives me a hint of that fall feeling without creating any real warmth.

ROW 2

Second from the left is the ES Clyde jacket I refashioned into a vest in May, and far right is the State Smock that was white in previous inventories but I indigo dyed at Squam in June.

ROW 4

Second from the left is an Everlane sleeveless tee that I screenprinted under the tutelage of Jen Hewett in SF last week. The op art is an old piece of my husband’s, and there’s a second one with a cactus drawing on it so both will turn up in future outfits. (They’re not likely to be white for long, but it’ll be great while it lasts.)

ROW 7

Left is the linen-cotton pants I made a couple weeks ago, and center are my tissue-thin old beloved jeans that have now made their way into the queue at Indigo Proof, for those of you on the edges of your seats about that! (Or is that just me?!) They’ll be back with me soon, shored up except for the giant hole in the thigh, so that one will have to be patched, but I’ll be able to wear them again!

.

PREVIOUSLY in Wardrobe Planning: Spring ’18 Mood and Strategy

SaveSave

SaveSave

Sweater inventory, part 3: The pullovers

by

Sweater inventory, part 3: The pullovers

And wow, we’re back to entirely black/grey/natural. I guess you could argue I know what I like, but this actually surprises me. When you look in my closet you see mostly a lot of blue clothes, definitely assorted blacks and neutrals, a little green and a little purple. I had no idea my only blue sweater at this point is the weirdly blue Bellows in progress, or that the only color in my sweater collection falls within the cardigans. That is certainly something I’ll be bearing in mind going forward.

The other surprising thing is simply that I have 10 pullovers, or nearly so — 5 I knitted (and 1 more in progress), 1 Meg knitted (which also means I have one Meg sweater in each of my three categories!) and 3 remaining storeboughts. It was just a couple years ago that I was lamenting the fact that I had essentially no pullovers, by which I meant I had the little cotton L.L. Bean fisherman and the two wintry turtlenecks (no handmades), and nothing for in-between weather, which is what we actually have here in Nashville. In those two years, I’ve amassed 6.5 handknit pullovers — and I still have almost nothing for the in-between!

Once again, click through on any sweater for complete pattern, yarn, modification and other details—

HANDMADE

Black lopi raglan (Feb 2016) — 100% Icelandic wool, worsted weight
I get away with a lopi pullover in Tennessee by virtue of its being cropped and elbow-sleeved — and I am really eager to wear it this year with wide-leg pants — but it definitely stays in the closet until the humidity is well and truly gone. Any dampness at all in the air, and this is a no-go. But it’s cute and cozy and quick and inexpensive and I love it.

Striped raglan (Dec 2016) — Silk/merino/cashmere blend, sport weight
This is the thinnest, lightest-weight sweater I’ve made, and with the fiber content this one is truly a 3-season sweater here. It’s also crazy cute and easy to throw on with just about anything. I think the only reason I don’t wear it even more than I do is that it feels a bit delicate to me! Just because I’m used to thicker, more rugged sweaters. But it’s a total gem.

Black yoke sweater (Feb 2017) — Merino/cashmere/silk blend, aran weight
If you told me I could only keep one sweater from my whole collection (for some horrible, unthinkable reason) I would choose this one. I love the yarn, the fit, the memories of bending it to my will, the way the scale of the yoke patterning cooperates with my big shoulders. Everything. Can’t wait to wear it again.

Fisherman sweater (Aug 2017) — Merino/cashmere/silk blend, aran weight
This is my holy grail, the thing I wanted to make when I learned to knit, and omigod it was so much fun charting the vintage pattern and knitting the whole of it. Even after taking steps to scale this down a little bit, though, I still think there’s a little too much of it, so I’m going to attempt to shrink it and/or might find it a new home with a taller friend. I would happily knit this again — in fact, I’m kind of dying to! — so there’s no down side.

Grey pullover (Dec 2017) — Rambouillet/Wensleydale blend, worsted weight
This one would be the ideal everything/everywhere, better-than-basic grey sweater … had I not opted to knit it in such an incredibly warm yarn. As it is, it’s a truly amazing winter sweater. But it leaves me wanting a non-wool counterpart in a heather grey shade that’s just as perfect as this one.

Charcoal swoncho (Meg-made, 2012) — 100% wool, aran weight
The other sweater Meg gave me earlier this year. It’s more sweater than poncho, but the shape of this one definitely changes the equation from if it were a pullover with long, cuffed arms, which would make it strictly for really cold weather. As it is, I can get away with it in borderline cool/cold weather, depending what I pair it with.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Ivory aran-gansey (begun in June 2018) — Cotton/wool blend, worsted weight
I can already tell you I am going to wear the crap out of this thing. The fabric is so incredible, and 3-season friendly. Plus it’s the perfect bridge between the shrunken cotton L.L. Bean number below (which is cute and useful but not warm or cozy at all) and the heavy wool fisherman above. An ivory sweater for every month of the year, I say!

READY-TO-WEAR

Grey cable turtleneck (H&M men’s, 2002) — Wool blend, worsted weight
I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, I bought this sweater in the men’s department at the first U.S. H&M store when I was in NYC launching a magazine in fall of 2002, so it has all sorts of very specific memories attached to it. It is definitely looking worse for wear at this point, and only gets hauled out a couple of times per winter anyway, but I’m hanging onto it until I have a suitable substitute. Because on the days and nights where it makes sense, I am very happy to climb into it.

Grey cropped turtleneck (J.Crew c. 2009) — Cashmere, sport weight
This was an epic clearance score back when I was all about scoring everything I ever wanted an mega-clearance. It has been very loved and worn, has a few little holes and bare spots, but it’s still the softest, coziest thing I’ve ever owned. Having cashmere around my neck on a cold day is heaven. So I can’t seem to quit it.

Ivory fisherman (L.L. Bean c.2010 but still available) — 100% cotton, worsted weight
Like I said, this is cute and useful, not cozy as it’s a really ropy cotton, but I do love getting to put it on each year when my mood is fall but the weather is not quite there yet. It’s been in my closet almost ten years at this point, and is welcome for a long time to come.

V E R D I C T S

At this point, it’s hard to argue that I “need” any more pullovers, but it is a genuine issue that most of these are warm enough that it limits their wear and utility. It means they’ll last forever, of course! But to the extent I make any more pullovers for life in TN, they need to be non-100% wool. And a little color wouldn’t hurt!

Bottom line from all of this: I have 26 sweaters in my closet or in progress, and it’s a pretty epic collection! Not a throwaway in the bunch. What a nice place to be after these years of effort.

.

PREVIOUSLY in Sweater inventory: Part 2, The cardigans and Part 1, Vests and other sleeveless

Sweater inventory, part 2: The cardigans

by

Sweater inventory, part 2: The cardigans

Oh look, some color! I presently own 6 cardigans — 4 knitted by me, 1 knitted by Meg, 1 ancient storebought — and have 2 more in the making. Two shades of purple and one blue, two shades of camel, plus mushroom, black and natural. But no grey cardigan? Yep, still no grey cardigan.

If you had asked me, I would have said I had more than 6 cardigans in the closet. I think the cardigan sweater is one of mankind’s greatest inventions and a true wardrobe hero. They’re also useful where a woolly pullover is often out of the question but a wool layer that slips on and off is defensible.

Again, each of these is linked to the corresponding full-length FO post, so if you want further details on any of them, just give it a click—

HANDMADE

Purple Trillium cardigan (March 2014) — 100% wool, worsted weight
My sweater from the Tag Team Sweater Project, so it will always be near and dear to my heart. This is Michele Wang’s Trillium pattern, and I absolutely love this sweater in so many ways. I love how light yet warm it is (it’s Shelter); I have never had a cardigan that sat so well around my shoulders; the shape of it is just great. But I will always and forever wish it were grey and therefore more versatile.

Black cardigan (Sept 2016) — Wool/alpaca/linen blend, worsted weight
I’ve gone back and forth a thousand times about the length of this cardigan. There are days (or outfits) where the cropped length is perfect, and days where I wish it were longer. I think the only solution is to literally have it both ways! It’s a simple Improv sweater, fully documented here, and I love the fabric of it more than I can say (it’s Purl Soho’s Linen Quill, held double). It’ll be the first sweater I reach for when the humidity leaves us alone.

Camel Channel cardigan (March 2017) — 100% baby camel, worsted weight
This modified version of Jared Flood’s Channel Cardigan pattern was easily one of my most pleasant knitting experiences — from the baby camel yarn to the rhythmic stitch pattern, it was just truly delightful. And I love having this sweater on me, although I do wish I had gone with the lighter shade of camel. It’s a slightly difficult color to pair with things, not as truly neutral as you might imagine. I also blocked it at the end of last season and inadvertently lengthened it in the process, so I need to do it again before sweater weather gets here, when I’ll be very eager to put it on.

Vanilla cardigan (Dec 2017) — Merino/cashmere/silk blend, aran weight
I love this yarn (Arranmore) so much I made three sweaters out of it last year, and you can’t go wrong with a big cozy ivory cardigan. This one’s a definite closet workhorse. It’s another super-simple Improv, spelled out in full detail here.

Mushroom Amanda shawl-collar (Meg-made, 2014) — Wool/nylon blend, aran weight
Meg’s modified Amanda cardigan, which she gave me at the start of the year and I look forward to wearing this season. This mushroomy grey isn’t a color I would have chosen for myself but I like it and think it should be simple enough to incorporate into my wardrobe. And I’ll no doubt have it on nonstop at home on cold nights, too.

READY-TO-WEAR

Camel cable cardigan (J.Crew c.2007) — Wool/nylon blend, sport weight
This is one of my all-time favorite sweaters, from the shape and fit to the absolutely perfect shade of “camel.” The camel Channel above is literally camel-colored, as it’s spun from 100% undyed baby camel fiber, but it’s a little more pinkish-brownish and less neutral than this dyed color we call camel. I knitted the other one as an understudy, basically, so I would be able to let this one go once it gets too ratty, but I don’t think I can do that without actually making a perfect replica. Meanwhile, I need to replace the leather buttons that have been destroyed over the years by cleaners.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Blue Bellows shawl-collar (begun in early 2018) — 100% wool, bulky weight
I set this one aside this spring when it still needed a fair bit of finishing but wouldn’t get worn for months. I was right about everything I said at the time — really excited to finish it up and figure out how to wear it.

Purple lopi (2016/17) — 100% Icelandic wool, worsted weight
I know, not a cardigan! Not yet. My plan is to steek it into a V-neck cardigan, for fun and because that will at least triple its chances of being worn in TN.

V E R D I C T S

While the overall woolliness of these is undeniable, it’s not quite so much of a concern as it is with the pullovers (coming tomorrow), since they are inherently vented, and easy to slip on and off. Still, my impulse to knit a grey cardigan in non-100%-wool yarn was a good one, albeit abandoned. Formulating a Plan B on that is in order.

.

PREVIOUSLY in Sweater Inventory: Part 1, vests and other sleeveless

Sweater inventory, part 1: Vests and other sleeveless

by

Sweater inventory, part 1: Vests and other sleeveless

The thing about making a wardrobe — especially trying to be conscientious at the same time as having a blast with the making part and feeding my unabashed love of clothes — is that it can be hard to see the forest. A little over four years after cleaning out my fast-fashion mess of a closet, moving to a new state and climate, and slowly rebuilding a smaller, more thoughtful wardrobe for myself, I’ve now reached a point where my closet is full. It’s a narrow little 1953 closet, but I still don’t want to exceed its capacity. I like my small closet — it’s like portion control, you know? But I’m at that troubling point where it’s hard to put away laundry, and I have a stack of castoffs happening, and I know there are probably a dozen hangers holding things I don’t actually wear … So I’m planning a systematic reassessment for Slow Fashion October (and will be inviting you to go through the steps of a conscientious clean-out along with me).

But it’s also about to be sweater season, and I have one on the needles that will be finished soon, and you all know that means I’m thinking about what I want to knit next. So as a precursor to my fall wardrobe planning and my Slotober clean-out, I’m going to take a minute here to assess my sweater collection. I’ve made a lot of sweaters in the past 6-ish years, and not even I have a clear picture of which ones remain in my closet (many having been given away or auctioned off) or what they add up to — other than I know on the whole they skew too warm.

So I’m going to take a look at these particular trees before making decisions about the forest come October. Staring today with …

The sleeveless sweaters

Well, just compiling that image grid is already informative. I had no idea my sleeveless sweater collection was 100% black/grey/natural. There used to be a camel-colored turtleneck, at least, but it got auctioned off last year.

Of these 8 sweaters, 5 were knitted by me, 1 was knitted by my friend Meg, and 2 are “storebought,” so to speak. Please note each one is linked to the original post where you can find any and all further details about the patterns, yarn, mods, etc.

HANDMADE

Grey vintage waistcoat (April 2015) — 100% wool, worsted weight
Vintage knit-for-the-troops pattern from the V&A website; super small-batch yarn from sheep I followed on Instagram, first time experiencing the magic of inset pockets, and a fantastic garment. I love this thing, but haven’t worn it in a year or two — the buttons need attention. So that’s on my Slotober to-do list.

Black sleeveless turtleneck (Sept 2015) — 100% wool, superbulky weight
This (and its camel predecessor) is the sweater that became my Sloper tutorial/pattern. I’m excited to wear this with all my wide-leg pants and loafers when the humidity lets up and the temp starts to fall — that is a match made in heaven. (Ali McGraw would approve.)

Cowichan-ish vest (Nov 2015) — 100% wool, superbulky weight
Made during the Cowichan-style Knitalong of 2015, this is still one of my favorite things I’ve ever knitted. It will get more wear this fall, as I’m eager to wear it with my natural and recycled denim pants, in particular.

Black Anna vest (April 2016) — Alpaca/merino/silk blend, worsted weight
I knitted this version of my Anna Vest pattern during the knitalong in spring 2016, and love it in the black. This yarn has proven drapier than I would have liked, but it’s still holding up well and I expect to keep on keeping on with this one. (For everyone about to ask: I am planning to release this for individual download as soon as I can find some time to make a few tweaks and get it laid out, etc. I don’t have an ETA at the moment! But I promise, it will happen.)

Sweatshirt vest (May 2018) — Wool/cotton blend, worsted weight
This one I finished in the spring just before the humidity kicked in, so I’m excited to get to start wearing it soon.

Ivory Meg sweater (2013) — Wool/silk blend, worsted weight but very open weave
Meg made this for me five years ago, and it’s always been a little snug in the armholes, but I do wear it a few times a year regardless — and obviously it has a lot of sentimental value as well.

READY-TO-WEAR

Grey cable vest (2009) — 100% wool, superbulky weight
Banana Republic celebrated some giant anniversary in 2009 with their “Heritage Collection” that included this killer cable vest that I ran out and bought and wore incessantly for the first two winters — the perfect winter-in-San-Francisco garment. (And by winter in SF, I mean November through August.) I wrote here about how this was one of a couple of things that inspired me to learn to knit. I haven’t worn it in a few years, but I know we’ll have another torrent love affair at some point, so it stays put regardless.

Black ES kimono sweater (2017) — 100% cotton, worsted weight
Er, is this a cardigan or a vest? However you categorize it, I bought this at Elizabeth Suzann‘s sample sale in early December of last year (looks like it’s no longer available) and have yet to wear it. It looks amazing on my friend Rebekka for whom it’s named, and on nearly every staff member who was manning the sale that night, but on me it just feels a little schlumpy. I actually like it best worn upside down. I keep thinking I’m going to put it up on one of the ES resale sites, but I can’t seem to bring myself to do it — the more I pull it on (during packing planning sessions or whatever) the more it grows on me, so maybe I’m keeping it after all. If nothing else, it’s excellent loungewear, although it’s a lot of closet space for that. (Good lord, are they really going for $1000??)

V E R D I C T S

Ok, I’m clearly still undecided on that last one, but the rest of them will keep their place in the closet, with the grey vest slated for new buttons in October (if I don’t get to it sooner). These definitely skew heavily wool, and even superbulky in several cases, but their sleevelessness is what makes them wearable in Nashville. Still, any future additions should be lighter weight and/or non-wool.

.

PREVIOUSLY in Wardrobe Planning: High-summer wardrobe doldrums

Summer ’18 wardrobe: Closet inventory

by

Summer ’18 wardrobe: Closet inventory

Across the top row of this grid are what I’m calling the fixer-uppers: four pieces that need a bit of work before they can actually factor into my summer wardrobe. But I’m including them here in my summer closet edit anyway, as motivation to get it done:

– The tuxedo-pleated and ruffled cotton top is a garment I think of as a summer closet necessity. I always and forever love a sweet eyelet or ruffled white top (such as the one seen yesterday), paired with camo or faded jeans or beat-up khakis. I’ve been missing this element the past few years because I have this one, from J.Crew many years ago, which hasn’t been wearable for a while but I haven’t managed to replace. So I’ll be making that a priority and using this one as a stand-in when it comes to making outfit projections tomorrow. This one needs a dye job if it’s to continue on, so that’s two priorities in one photo: dye this one and make its white ruffled replacement.

– The (formerly) white linen shell is the one that got in with the blue load of laundry and now needs to be dyed a more decisive blue.

– The unfinished Clyde Jacket was a sample-sale score late last year, and I need to carve out and finish off some nice deep armholes to make it a super-funtional smock-vest.

– The jeans. They’re too thin to patch and too dear to let go, so I’ve got them on the waitlist with Indigo Proof! I’m hoping Rain can shore them up sufficiently, and hoping to have them back before the summer is over.

As those are fixed, they’ll join these ranks:

CAMISOLES, TANKS AND TOPS

– Camisoles in green, indigo and black ikat
– Meg-made sweater tee
– Sweatshirt vest
– Linen muscle tee (Everlane 2017, available again at the moment)
– Sleeveless tee in striped hemp jersey and black hemp jersey
– Blue-striped shell (also: black silk gauze version)
– Dotted chambray tunic (Endless Summer, made by a friend)
– Blue striped Fen top
– Plaid top
– Black chambray top
– Chambray button-up
– Tobacco linen tunic (Nade 2016, no longer available)

VESTS AND SMOCKS

– Denim vest (J.Crew, ancient)
– Black Anna vest
– Smock x 3 (State Smocks, upcycled, available on repeat — mine are all from 2017)

Also my beloved old trench-style vest (J.Crew c. 2010) seen here.

PANTS

– Canvas wide-legs
– Recycled denim wide-legs
– Clay wide-legs (Elizabeth Suzann Clyde Culotte, made in Nashville, sample sale 2017)
– Camo wide-legs
– Denim wide-legs
– B/w palazzos (Ace&Jig 2017, no longer available)
– Chinos (J.Crew 2015/16, no longer available)
– Linen palazzos (Elizabeth Suzann Florence, made in Nashville, sample/modified 2017)
– natural denim jeans (Imogene+Willie, 2016, made in LA, no longer available)
– dark cropped jeans (J.Crew Point Sur, 2016, made in LA, no longer available)

I’ve pulled out those old J.Crew chinos again, gonna give ’em another go, and I’ve got the b/w Ace&Jig pants in here but I think I may be selling them. They’re just a little too big, and combined with how gauzy/flowy they are, it’s a bit much for me.

DRESSES

Whoops, no, not factoring in any dresses right now. While I’m sure I’ll wear some of them — especially when we get into the thick of the summer soup — they’re not just key players for me, so I figure I might as well not fool myself about it.

SHOES

– Sneakers (Veja Wata, brand new!)
– Faux-snake flats (J.Crew 2017, made in Italy, no longer available)
– Tan flats (Solid State Studios, 2017, handmade in LA, custom order)
– Black huaraches (Nisolo Ecuador, 2017, responsibly made in their own factory)
– Tan sandals (J.Crew, c. 2009)
– Black sandals (Jane Sews, 2016, no longer available)
– Black patent flat clogs (No.6 Alexis, made in US, brand new!)

Of the 34 garments pictured, I’ve made 17 over the past five years (that’s half! plus one linked but not pictured); 2 were made for me by friends; 4 were made locally; 2 were made in LA; 3 are upcycled/refashions; 1 is from eminently transparent Ace&Jig; 1 is from Everlane, who swear they only uses the good factories so, y’know, fingers crossed; and 3 of the remaining four are from more than 5 years ago (the other one being a couple-few years old). Like I keep saying: It’s a slow process, building up a slow closet, but this is proof that if you keep at it over the course of a few years, it can be done!

All that aside, check out this lineup alongside yesterday’s mood board. How in-the-zone am I?

Summer ’18 wardrobe: Closet inventory

PREVIOUSLY in Summer ’18 Wardrobe: Mood and color

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

Deep Winter wardrobe: Closet inventory

by

Deep Winter wardrobe: Closet inventory

Somehow, winter set in without my having had a chance to properly “plan” for it. And whereas normally in January I’m well into a spring-forward frame of mind, we’re having a hard-core winter this year and I have to expect it to hang around awhile. So there’s no mood board, or make list, or any of my usual strategizing to be had. There’s just looking at what garments I have to work with (below) and figuring out how to put them together (coming up) for optimal warmth and comfort.

I actually have a whopping five (technically six) new seasonally-appropriate things in my closet since the last of the Wardrobe Planning posts —

– I started and finished my grey Cline pullover and my ivory cardigan
– I finished my natural wool pants
– At Elizabeth Suzann’s December sample sale, I scored a pair of clay canvas Wide Clydes, as I like to call them (they are decidedly not Culottes!), and a navy canvas Clyde Jacket that for some reason was abandoned before receiving sleeves. ($38!!) I adore it.
– And oh yeah, number six was that grey wool sleeveless tee that I haven’t managed to wear yet. Itchy.

And there are two things outstanding: the blue Bellows currently on my needles, which I hope to complete by month’s end, and the purple lopi pullover-to-cardigan conversion, which I’m more motivated to actually act on!

So apart from those two standing in the wings, here’s the full cast of Winter characters—

STARS OF THE ENSEMBLE

Deep Winter wardrobe: Closet inventory

ROW 1) fisherman sweater, grey pullover, boiled wool pullover (J.Crew 2014), striped raglan pullover, yoke sweater

ROW 2) vanilla Improv cardigan, camel cardigan, purple cardigan, black Improv cardigan, black Sloper turtleneck

ROW 3) white linen shell, striped muscle tee, chambray tunic (made for me, unblogged), grey wool tee (questionable, see above), black gauze shell (and tee equiv)

ROW 4) chambray button-up, plaid tee (me-made, unblogged), silk smock (Elizabeth Suzann, 2017), denim vest (J.Crew, ancient), navy canvas vest  (Elizabeth Suzann sample, 2017)]]

ROW 5) natural wide-legs, canvas wide-legs (Elizabeth Suzann sample, 2017), camo wide-legs, dark cropped jeans (J.Crew Point Sur, made in US, 2016), denim wide-legs

SUPPORTING CHARACTERS AND CAMEOS

Deep Winter wardrobe: Closet inventory

My Cowichan-ish vest and Anna vest, my State Smocks, my lone ratty old turtleneck sweater (H&M men’s, 2012), and a ragtag bunch of t-shirts, flannels and other jeans.

I’m in good shape! Outfits coming up …

.

PREVIOUSLY in Wardrobe Planning: November sweater weather

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave