Organized Charm: 5 Rules for Simplified Style

Monday, February 24, 2014

5 Rules for Simplified Style


You know that saying about not being able to see the trees for the forest? Or maybe it’s the forest for the trees? Whatever it is, that saying has a lot to do with… my closet. 

I feel like I cannot see the outfits for the clothes! Good grief. Sometimes I just stand in front of my closet and think: what are these clothes and where did they come from and why are there so many and how is it possible that there are so many and I still don't see anything I want to wear?! 

Please tell me I'm not the only one. 

I have clothes in my closet. Clothes in another closet. Clothes in bins. Clothes in the attic. And do you know what talking about all these clothes makes me want to do? Obviously, it makes me want to buy new clothes! 

I know I should be keeping up with what I’ve worn recently and what I could do without (probably all of it). I actually used to have a really nice Post-It system in place to monitor what I was/wasn’t wearing. But I switched closets recently and I just haven’t been keeping with it.

I need a better system for eliminating all of the excess!

Do you know who really has style figured out? The Italians. While the rest of the world is buying into what’s on trend for this season, they are steadily looking awesome in their classicly-Italian ensembles. I've been to Rome twice in the past 3 years and I would move there tomorrow if I could. I'm obsessed. And even through I absolutely LOVE it... I feel 100% underdressed the whole time.

Their style is just incredible.  And do you know what I find most appealing about it? 

It seems simple. 

It just seems so simple. 

So, here are 5 Italian-inspired style rules:
(and these are definitely becoming my new closet rules to keep out the excess!)




1. Don't buy into every passing trend. 
 Well, this is the first and probably the most important for keeping a decluttered closet. Do you ever feel like we’re going to look at our pictures 4 years from now and say: oh, look at my chevron shirt and my chevron rug and my chevron walls and my chevron pumpkin and my chevron dog… Must have been 2013!?

The Italians know what they like. They know what looks good. And they know what will be obsolete in 2 years. I want my closet to be more like that.





2. Choose quality over quantity. 
Which is much easier when you aren’t trying to amass a huge quantity of “trendy” clothing. It's also a lot easier to justify spending a lot on one piece of clothing knowing it will last a long time. Which is probably why I’m the only person in Italy walking down the street in a non-designer dress. Because I’m choosing 39 cheap and trendy dresses over 3 quality dresses. 

And just think of how perfectly I could organize 3 quality dresses!




3. Stick with classic cuts. 
Don’t you think it’s interesting that we still idolize Audrey Hepburn, Jackie O, and Marilyn Monroe as fashion icons? I mean, their looks were so timelessly elegant and classic that I don’t think they will ever be irrelevant. So investing in quality clothing in those same classic cuts has like a 100% chance of never going out of style. 

Which would probably also be great motivation to stay in shape so that we can keep wearing them!




4. Opt for neutrals. 
This is the thing that I am the most in love with. Nothing ensures an easier dressing process in the morning than already having all matching clothes. Can you imagine getting dressed in the morning and the decision is: “Should I wear this black shirt with these grey pants or this grey shirt with these black pants?”. I could make that decision after just one cup of coffee.



 

5. Accessorize with color. 
Well, of course color is an important part of life. And no one wants to walk around in just black and white and grey all the time. But saving color for accessorizing also saves a TON of money! And makes for 2,345,355 more outfit choices! And guess what? If orange is the big color this year and you’re super sick of it by next year… all you have to replace are some scarves and jewelry!

And I think that’s just awesome.






I am about to set off on my own little journey to creating a more Italian closet :)



Are you feeling overwhelmed by your closet? 
Do you have any advice for me or have any suggestions of other styles I might also like? 

{photos in this post are from Cosmo Italy}

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...