Do you buy the same wardrobe staples in multiple colours?
We all love a style tip, and one of my earliest fashion memories is my mum telling me she buys her favourite wardrobe pieces in multiple colours. It’s always stuck with me as an interesting way to curate your wardrobe, making complete sense if you find a fit or style you absolutely love and it’s available in colours that are classic and suit your personal style.
Over the years I have begun to do this in my own wardrobe, quite unintentionally at first, but have come to realise I have quite a few multiples of my most hard working wardrobe essentials.
Finding the perfect fitting jeans can be a never ending search, so when I found the perfect pair of high waist straight leg jeans I ended up investing in 3 different colours, a classic blue, black and white. It just made sense. I end up wearing all three each and every week, rotating them into my looks with ease.
Mind you, I didn’t splurge all at once, rather added one colour, fell in love with their fit and then decided to invest in an additional colour later that season or the following one. By then I knew I would get the wear out of it, which size and fit to buy and how I would style them back with the rest of my wardrobe.
I would say this approach is best practised with your capsule wardrobe, the pieces you invest in that never date, rather than this season's trendier pieces. And sticking to a palette of black and white with the occasional neutral will ensure you don’t end up with an item that doesn't get the same wear as the original colour.
Another multiple I have fallen hard for over the years is the Matin twill tie jacket, and have just added my third colour of the same jacket in the new season beige colour. I’ve also invested in the Esse tank in black and white, RE/DONE’s classic tee in white and black, and the Deiji Studios 03 linen set in white, black and oatmeal.
When I buy for the store and curate our offering each season I constantly find I’ll stock the same style in multiple colours, especially when it’s a stand out classic. Matteau’s Summer Chino is available in black, white and sand and I couldn’t resist doing the same in their classic pocket shirt. As I mentioned, it just makes sense.
Adding the same style and shape in a fresh new colour instantly gives you new outfit options, but without the learning phase of working out how to wear it. The new addition immediately feels like it's part of your uniform, making getting dressed each day that much easier.