Ensley’s Spring Capsule Wardrobe

(Check out my previous capsules: Summer 2017, Fall 2017, and Winter 2017.)

Drum roll please….

Almost two months later than planned, my spring/summer capsule is FINALLY here. Thank goodness.

One of the first things you may notice is that I didn’t include ANY Lilly Pulitzer in this capsule. (Shocking, I know.) I’m still a die-hard Lilly lover, but those pieces are  a mini-capsule of their own. The point of a capsule is to define your style and actually wear everything you own, and I wear all of my Lillys. Many of them are sentimental to me, and serve as my dressier/special occasion pieces in the event I have somewhere fun to go. This capsule is for my super casual nannying/working from home life vs.

If you read this post you’ll remember my winter capsule didn’t go so well. By that I mean my capsule 1) was too dressy for my oh-so-casual lifestyle, and 2) made me feel as though I had nothing to wear…ever. No thanks. While I had every intention of launching this season’s capsule March 1st, I realized it was better to take my time and build the perfect wardrobe vs. rushing to meet some arbitrary deadline. One of my favorite things about this capsule is that the pieces don’t exactly “wow” on the rack, but look amazing on. Whether it’s showing off my collarbone or just barely skimming my body, this has to be my most flattering collection to date.

So here you have it: the delayed but much more well-rounded spring capsule. Ta-da! Here’s what you’ll find:

• My Spring/Summer 2018 Capsule Wardrobe
• My planning process
• Items broken down by category
• How you can create your own capsule

And we’re off…

My style in 3 words or less: “yoga teacher-chic”

Color palette: white, grey, and black with pops of green and blue

Go-to outfit combos: Tank top +  jogger pants, tee +  stretchy jeans, blouse-y top and shorts

Planning: I started shopping for this capsule in mid-February, and it’s currently mid-April. Whew. I’ve never worked so hard on a capsule, which is also why it’s launching so late. After spending a winter with nothing to wear, I learned my lesson that to take my time building the perfect capsule vs. rushing for some arbitrary blog deadline. (But for real just finding a basic long cardigan that had zero wool took me forever.) Luckily, this capsule should be solid enough to last me through the summer, so hopefully I’m set for awhile.

Lifestyle: Casual, casual, casual. My biggest mistake for my winter capsule was having a ton of dressy outfits and nowhere to wear them. This spring/summer my life will be nannying, blogging, and teaching yoga. I’ll obviously be wearing workout clothes to teach in, but I wanted outfits that were comfortable enough to hang out at home in but put-together enough so that I didn’t look like a slob at carpool. I needed items that I wasn’t afraid to get dirty, since sometimes I’m taking the kiddos to the park, etc. Nothing too prissy here. Our weekends are also pretty chill and tend to involve meeting friends at breweries or a date to somewhere casual. Nothing that requires a stiletto heel, let me tell you.

Weather: HOT! Right now it’s lovely and hovering in the mid-70s everyday, but soon it’ll be 90+. But we’ve had some wacky weather this spring so I’m glad I included some cardigans and jackets. (The cardigans in last year’s wardrobe didn’t get worn a single time.) Plus, I wanted some light cardigans for those rare times I’m on a plane or when it’s randomly cold/rainy outside.

Special events/Trips: How is it possible that I’m beyond the life stage of going to a wedding every weekend? I love weddings. (Seriously, I don’t have a single wedding or bachelorette party on the calendar for the rest of 2018. Sad.) I’m headed to one of my bestie’s Harvard graduation in May, but I’ll mostly wear Lilly on that trip. Patrick and I are meeting my BFF and her hubby at a music festival in July, but I’ll probably be buying some cheap cut offs and tank tops that I don’t mind getting muddy/covered in sweat (plus a CamelBak backpack for all the hydration). At some point we’ll also go visit my parents and brother in Portland, and this capsule is perfect for that.

Still on the hunt for: A LBD that I can dress up or down (the midi and maxi in this capsule are pretty casual). Maybe some new TOMS because mine are starting to look sad. I’ve worn them so much!

TOPS

I tend to struggle in the summer because I want to feel comfortable without exposing too much skin. This season I stocked up on scoopneck tanks and tees that weren’t skintight and that would look great with a pair of jeans or joggers. And for the record I can never have enough black tops. 🙂

(From top left)

01 | White tank (I have this one and this one)

02 | White v-neck tee

03 | Lightweight white tunic

04 | Cropped tee (no longer available, from Girlfriend Collective) | similar | similar 

05 | Chambray shirt (old, from j.crew factory) | similar

06 | Grey piko

07 | Blue v-neck tee

08 | Black tank

09 | Dressy black tee

10 | Black piko

11 | Lightweight black tunic

BOTTOMS

Surprisingly, this is the category I’m most excited about. This one hasn’t really changed much in the past few capsules (Old Navy Rockstar jeans FTW!), but I wanted to change it up. I don’t love wearing jeans all summer, but sometimes shorts can feel a little too revealing. The solution? Lightweight joggers! Not sweatpants, mind you, but joggers in breathable fabrics that will look great with a tank tucked in the front. I can already tell they’re going to be my favorites this summer!

01 | Chambray joggers

02 | Olive joggers

03 | Black joggers

04 | Denim shorts (mine are from the Vineyard Vines outlet) | similar | similar | similar 

05 | White denim shorts

06 | White jeans

07 | Distressed jeans

08 | Jeggings

DRESSES/SKIRTS

Nothing too exciting here, since most of my summer dresses are Lilly and therefore not in this capsule. I’m SUPER excited about my new black midi (so flattering!), and can’t wait to rock the white sundress with a tan.

01 | White sundress

02 | Black midi dress

03 | Flowy black maxi (old) | similar

04 | Grey skort (old, from Athleta) | similar

OUTER LAYERS

The small but mighty category. Last summer I put a few super-heavy sweaters in my capsule, and needless to say they never got worn. But trips to Portland or the occasional chilly night call for a long sleeve, and these lightweight jackets are perfect. I’m also really excited that I found a cute long cardi that’s wool-free. I’ve already worn it with everything from my yoga clothes to my new jogger pants.

01 | Navy jacket

02 | Long cardi

03 | Olive jacket

SHOES

I’m happy to report that there’s not a single new pair of shoes in this capsule! All of these are tried-and-true favorites from capsules past, and I’m happy to keep them in the rotation. (Though honestly my TOMS have gotten a lot of love and could probably use an upgrade soon.)

01 | Dressy sandals | similar | similar 

02 | Gold wedges (old, from Loft) | similar

03 | Gold and nude wedges (old, DSW) | similar

04 | Ankle booties (old, Target) | similar

05 | Leopard “Birkenstocks” | similar 

06 | Slip-on sneaks

07 | Vegan TOMS in “Bobcat” | similar | similar | similar

 

Ready to create your own capsule? I’d love to help! Check out my capsules closet page for info on how we can work together. Thanks for sticking around until the end <3.