Some people may think that having a minimalist wardrobe is boring. Wrong! Having a minimalist wardrobe just means you have a closet full of intentional pieces that are high quality and versatile. And the best way to dress up that minimalist wardrobe is to accessorize! Accessories are your friends! They add spice, pizazz, and individuality to your look. But don’t go crazy and start collecting all the things because then you’ll just end up with clutter. Here are some tips on how to pick versatile accessories for your wardrobe capsule so you can add that spice to those “boring” outfits!
Why Minimalism?
What’s so appealing about a minimalist lifestyle? I’ve lived my life on both ends of the spectrum…as someone that collected a ton of things and had a closet and garage full of items and as a minimalist that was very intentional with what I bought. And there are pros and cons to both. But a minimalist lifestyle really is freeing! It’s liberating not being tied down to what you buy and own. It feels good to not let consumerism consume you! It’s empowering to be intentional with what you buy and bring into your home.
A minimalist lifestyle really helps you focus on things that matter most. It helps you collect experiences and memories instead of things. It helps you be wiser with your money and your time. But having a minimalist wardrobe doesn’t have to mean you look ugly and boring. You can build a beautiful closet that isn’t overflowing with clutter!
How Minimalism Increases What You Have to Wear In Your Closet
When you put more thought and intention in what you purchase, you build a better closet. It’s easy to buy things just because they’re on sale or they’re pretty. But when you consider the tips on how to build a wardrobe capsule, you can have a closet of clothes that you can mix and match and love!
Being more intentional with the colors, style, and quality of the clothes that you buy can actually increase what you wear in your closet. When you put some thought and strategy in it, you build a closet you love! Have you ever opened your closet to see a closet full of clothes but you feel like you have nothing to wear?! It’s because you’ve bought a hodge podge of colors, styles, and quality that don’t mix well together. It’s a bunch of random pieces! But when you limit what you buy and make sure it’s versatile, high quality, and timeless, you build a closet that has less but does more!
How to Choose Accessories for a Minimalist Wardrobe
When it comes to choosing your accessories for a minimalist wardrobe, you want to consider a few things:
- You want your accessories to be timeless
- You want your accessories to be versatile
- You want your accessories to be high quality
- You want your accessories to have personality
Timeless
When choosing which accessories will go well with your wardrobe, make sure you pick pieces that are timeless. Accessories that you will wear for years! Accessories that are classy and functional. Pieces that you can pass down. Sure, you can add a few trendy pieces. But the ones that you’ll reach for over and over will be the ones that are timeless.
Some of my favorite timeless pieces that I’ve invested in are from Quince. Quince offers high quality, versatile, and timeless pieces for a fraction of the cost. They take out the middle man in the process so it helps lower the cost of fine jewelry. I love their gold, silver, and diamonds!
Versatile
You definitely want to pick versatile accessories! Pieces that can be worn in different seasons, with different looks, dressed up or dressed down. You can wear those versatile pieces on their own or layered with other pieces to create different looks. Those versatile pieces will allow you to have less but still look great.
High Quality
Who wants to invest in pieces that will fall apart or break or wear down after only a few wears?? Not me! Make sure you choose wisely and invest in higher quality pieces so they’ll last longer! By making a bigger investment up front, you’ll actually end up saving money because the cost per wear ratio will be better.
Personality
When considering what to purchase, make sure you take into account your personality! If you like color, then add some flare! If you like clean lines, then add classy pieces. If you like simple, then look for minimal pieces. Don’t sacrifice your personality when you’re trying to live a simpler life. You can still embrace your personality and individuality.
I like to look for fun jewelry pieces when I travel! I’ve collected items from Singapore, New Zealand, Rarotonga, and Dominican Republic. I’ve gotten handmade pieces from Navajo artisans. All of those unique pieces are some of my very favorite I have in my collection because they have personality.
Check out this guide to know how to determine what jewelry looks best on your skin tone.
Types of Accessories for a Minimalist Wardrobe
Now that you know you should look for accessories that are timeless, versatile, high quality, and have personality, what types of accessories should you look for? You should be looking for glasses, watches, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, scarves, belts, shoes, and purses. Anything that will add a little sass or sparkle or extra element to your look. All of these pieces will add character to your outfit. They can be mixed and matched.
My Favorite Accessories
You will always find me wearing earrings, a ring or two, a simple bracelet or few, and a watch. These are all timeless and versatile pieces. I like to invest in high quality pieces that will last for years! All of my accessories are either sterling silver, leather, or real stone. And they all add just the right amount of character to my outfits!
I prefer to support smaller slow fashion brands. They make great quality pieces and you support a brand that is trying to grow. Here are some of my favorite places to buy accessories:
Jewelry- Quince, Able, Nickel and Suede
Purses- Able, Quince, and Sapahn (these are the BEST versatile purses! They’re handmade in Thailand and are amazing quality and fun style. Save 20% with this discount code: JOELLEN20)
Shoes- Sarah Flint (Sarah Flint shoes are handmade in Italy and are not only gorgeous but are so comfortable! Are they worth it?? I think so! Save 15% with this code: SARAHFLINT-CCJOELLEN1)
Glasses- Warby Parker
The Best Makeup for a Minimalist
One of my favorite accessories to wear is makeup! It’s a great way to help you look polished and put together. But makeup can easily get out of hand! You can collect the makeup clutter really quickly. The best makeup for minimalists is this cool custom palette from Seint! Everything you need, minus mascara, will fit into one palette! Your foundation, concealer, contour, bronzer, highlighter, blush, powder, eyeshadow, eyeliner, brow, brow gel, lip conditioner all fits into one compact. It’s amazing!!
When buying makeup, it’s really important that you get the right colors…it will make all the difference! But how do you know what colors will work well on you?? You have a few options:
- You can take a quick Seint Color Match Quiz for a general suggestion on your colors
- The Seint Color Match Guide will help you pick out your own colors and products.
- For personal makeup help, take the Seint makeup survey. This will help me know how to help you best. As a certified makeup artist, I will give you personalized makeup recommendations that will look amazing on you.
- You can go directly to the Seint online store and choose a collection. Simply click on “Find My Shades”. Scroll through the images and choose the grouping of women that most closely matches your skin tone. Then add to cart. Super simple! You can learn more about each collection here: Collection No. 4, Collection No. 8, Collection No. 12 (I personally think the No. 12 collection is the best option! You get more bang for your buck and it comes with my two favorite brushes!)
So, let’s prove the notion wrong that minimalism is boring! Just because we have a simple wardrobe doesn’t mean we have to look frumpy, ugly, boring, and bland. Add some fun versatile accessories as a minimalist to your capsule so you can look and feel your best!
Here are other blog posts you might enjoy:
Unlock Radiant Skin with Oliveda’s Skincare
Fast Fashion VS Sustainable Fashion: A Guide To Apparel
Winter Essentials to Stay Warm and Stylish
6 Habits to Improve Self Confidence
Modest Swimsuits for Spring Break
How to Prep Your Face for a Great Makeup Application
About the Author
JoEllen is a licensed aesthetician, certified makeup artist, and certified John Maxwell coach, speaker, and trainer. She works with women helping them look and feel confident. She loves teaching women simple beauty techniques so they can feel empowered to try it at home. Her motto is that when you look and feel good, you do good!
*This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to purchase an item featured in this post, I get a small portion from the sale. Thank you! It does not affect you at all.
