Now that I've started on this journey, though, I've realised that achieving the kind of simplicity I dream of isn't quite so... simple. If I was just a little more fiscally secure, this whole thing would be a piece of cake. However, chucking out the entirety of my Florence & Fred based wardrobe in order to repopulate it with timeless chambray from Whistles just isn't realistic for someone on an average salary with rent, bills and a portion of medically necessary tikka paneer to pay for each month.  

That's not to say I haven't been brutal about the seek and destroy process. I've purged my wardrobe of nearly all the bobbly tops, unflattering playsuits and too-short bodycons from 2008. But this process is quite a messy one. Once half the stuff has been bagged up and shipped off to the charity shop, the bits you feel are too expensive to give away will need a temporary home before they're sold on eBay (and don't get me started on the rigmarole involved in that). If you're super organised (I'm not) you can probably execute this portion of the project with military precision. But as I'm a bit lazy and partial to sustained procrastination, I've ended up with a rail of rejects at the end of my bed - a temporary measure which is becoming more permanent as each day goes by.

Even as I'm going through this somewhat messy process, though, I'm starting to see the benefits that living a more sartorially simple life can offer. For one, figuring out what my personal style is and choosing pieces that fit in with that has been surprisingly liberating. I no longer feel the need to follow every trend that comes along. Instead, when shopping I will only buy something that is:

a) comfortable;

b) versatile; and

c) enduringly stylish

That the items in my capsule wardrobe should also be good quality AND within my budget goes without saying, and ticking both these boxes at once will be challenge in itself. But I'm very much aware that this is a process and that I'll learn important lessons as I go along. Which items are worth spending more money on? Which budget brands offer the level of quality I'm after? Which accessories are worth the investment? These are the kind of questions currently circling around in my head amongst the crisp white blouses and classic loafers I'm dreaming of incorporating into my new, streamlined closet. And they're questions I'll hopefully start to answer on this blog, thereby helping anyone else on this 'journey' (queue the intro to Elbow's Day Like This...).


~ Fern x