Capsule Dispatch: Up Top
Last week, I set up how I think about building a non-minimalist—AKA fun—capsule wardrobe, where I promised to break down what, and why, I picked out for it.
It made most sense to start with the densest part of my capsule wardrobe, tops.
I think the fact that there’s a dispatch devoted to The Upgrade Shirt is justification enough to include this in my capsule. It’s a Blue Broad Stripe Cotton Poplin Button-Down Shirt that I wear at least once a week. If I were going minimalist, this would definitely make the cut.
Whether I’m working or hanging out, it’s highly likely I’ll be in an Oxford cloth shirt, so it makes sense to have at least two in the mix. I opt for a solid sky blue and a pink stripe OCBD, instead of the usual blue and white you’ll see in a lot of capsule wardrobes. Blue is a classic and works well in my color palette, and the pink is a great accent in an otherwise neutral wardrobe. Oxford cloth is easy to wear and easy to care for, and washing them twice a week if needed only makes them softer.
A few years ago I was firmly team OCBD only for this style capsule wardrobe, but in the last couple of years I’ve found myself wearing more and more spread collar shirts. For my capsule I wanted one spread collar dress shirt so I went with a made-to-measure (MTM) version of the Sky Multi Stripe Poplin Spread Collar Shirt (below). It fits me perfectly and it has my late maternal grandparent’s initials monogrammed to the cuffs, and the multi stripe gives it some subtle visual interest beyond just a simple stripe.
In addition to the more structured collar of that shirt, I added a cotton/linen denim spread collar shirt that works great on its own or to dress down a blazer, and, because I simply cannot stop wearing it, a vintage Brooks Brothers spread collar sport shirt (middle, top image). It’s a lovely washed medium blue, it’s incredibly soft, and the texture is a subtle way to add some visual interest to an outfit.
So far, that’s six shirts across seven days. As I don’t mind doing laundry, this is totally feasible for me. Throw in two white short sleeve tee shirts, and one cream long sleeve thermal, and a week of fits is covered for me. These could be black, grey, navy, whatever color makes sense for what you wear most (or more importantly already have in your closet).
This has only a small margin of error for spills or days that require multiple outfits. After I put these up in my closet, things felt a little thin, so I added two more shirts: my favorite navy polo, the Matt Hranek-designed Sunspel Riviera Formal Polo, and a MTM Sid Mashburn dress shirt in a brown bengal stripe. The brown gives me something a little different among my mostly blue and white shirting options.
There are a number of winter days in Austin warm enough to wear one of these shirts without another layer, but when the temperature finally dips, out come my beloved layers. I think every good capsule has two crewnecks—one cotton and one cashmere.
Although this list is more about my capsule wardrobe, I think everyone should have a grey cotton crewneck sweatshirt in their closet. I have a loopwheel one from The Real McCoy’s, but you can find great ones from the likes of Reigning Champ and Todd Snyder x Champion. The grey cotton crewneck is as at home dressing down an OCBD and chinos as it is over a tee for Sunday errands.
As much as I love knitwear, I don’t live somewhere that gets cold enough to justify having many sweaters in my closet. Of the few I have to pick from, the one that gets worn most is an Oatmeal wool/silk/cashmere blend from The Armoury x Drumhor. Good cashmere is not cheap, for good reason, so this is a piece worth hunting used, which is exactly what I did. This is a good place to inject some more color in the form of deep greens, reds, burgundies. Or if you live in a place with colder winters, you might want to opt for a shetland or some other heavier wool sweater in place of thin cashmere.
TL;DR
Solid Sky Blue OCBD
Pink Stripe OCBD
Sky Multi Stripe Poplin Spread Collar
Light wash Denim Cotton/Linen Spread Collar
Vintage Washed Blue Spread Collar
Navy Formal Polo
Brown Bengal Stripe Spread Collar
White Tee x2
Cream Long Sleeve
Grey Cotton Crewneck Sweatshirt
Oatmeal Wool/Silk/Cashmere Crewneck Sweater
Up next I’ll break down the pants, and after that outerwear/tailoring/accessories.
Until then, if you’re got other jawn-related questions, hit me in the comments or reply to this email.
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