How to Create a Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe (Cute & Functional)

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Girls Capsule Wardrobe for Spring and Summer
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We recently switched to capsule wardrobes for our kids and will never look back! This minimalist wardrobe method has greatly simplified our lives. We love it and our kids love it too! (Specifics on all of the items we chose at the bottom of the post.)

Here’s why I’m so excited!

What Is a Capsule Wardrobe?

A capsule wardrobe, if you haven’t seen them all over social media, is an intentional wardrobe method. It contains clothing that can all coordinate. Typically, capsule wardrobes are also minimalist wardrobes because they contain only what is necessary and little if anything else.

This is especially great for kids because:

  • Fewer choices means everything coordinates so picking outfits is easier.
  • There is much less to clean, fold, and put away so room cleaning is easier.
  • Less clothing means less laundry.

How to Plan A Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe

Planning is everything when it comes to a girls’ capsule wardrobe. Spending more time planning saves time, money, and stress with the finished wardrobe. Interestingly, after tracking it, I was able to save money with our new capsule wardrobes, even buying many items new, over buying mismatched items secondhand.

Here are some things to take into account when planning a girls’ capsule wardrobe (see how to plan a capsule wardrobe for boys here):

Color Palette

Kids often tend to pick clothes in their favorite colors so I built their wardrobes around it. I let them pick two main colors that don’t clash and then add in a third accent color. Everything else is in neutral colors like gray and black or denim.

Our girls often pick color palettes that include pinks, greens, aquas, or purples. Really any colors can work though as long as the two main ones don’t clash. All of my kids, but especially the girls, have really liked the process of switching to a capsule wardrobe. I find that they take better care of their clothing and they don’t seem to miss all the extras at all!

Mom win!

Favorite Clothes and Styles

I would wear jeans every day, but a couple of my girls hate them and only wear them if it is cold out or if camping. I built in wardrobe options that included leggings and comfy shorts and they almost always choose these.

My kids also typically all prefer simple styles like basic t-shirts and tanks without prints on them. I love the simplicity and often order several colors of the same shirt once they find one they love. My go-to for this is Primary, which offers simple clothing items in a wide variety of colors. TIP: Use this affiliate link to save 20% if you are a new customer.

Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe List for Spring + Summer

Once you have a color palette and rough idea of styles, it really helps to make a master list for your girls’ capsule wardrobe. I combine Spring/Summer into one wardrobe and Fall/Winter into a second one. The wardrobe list for Spring and Summer includes:

  • 10-12 shirts
  • 2 pairs of jeans
  • 2-3 pairs leggings
  • 4+ pairs of shorts
  • 1 pair of tumbling shorts to wear under dresses
  • 2-4 dresses
  • 1-2 skirts
  • 2-3 swimsuits
  • 2 pairs of pajamas
  • 6 pairs of socks
  • underwear and undershirts
  • sandals (1 pair)
  • sneakers (1 pair)
  • slip on shoes (1 pair)
  • dress shoes (if none of the above shoes can work for dressier outfits)

Online Places to Buy Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe Clothes (+ Discounts)

I often try to find as many items as I can from consignment stores. Any items I can’t find there, I buy from three online places where I can always find discounts:

  1. Primary: My current favorite online store for minimalist kids’ wardrobes. They carry high quality staples in solid colors that are easy to coordinate. They have pretty good prices and were perfect for solid color shirts, shorts, leggings, etc. TIP: Use this affiliate link and the code “AFF25PCT” to get 25% off and free shipping on a first order.
  2. Hanna Andersson: More expensive than Primary but I love that they have organic clothes for many items. Their leggings last forever and my girls love their jeggings over regular jeans. I get underwear, undershirts, and PJs for all of the kids here since this reduces their exposure to non-organic clothing by at least half. I also get girls’ swimsuits and jeggings here. Their clothes last a long time and can be passed down. TIP: Use the code “SPLASH15” on a first order to get 15% off through May 7.
  3. Thred Up: An online secondhand store that is searchable. I’ve found great deals on some name brands on this website. This link will give you a $10 discount on your first order.

Specifics of Our Girls’ Capsule Wardrobes

As I said, I stuck to the basics this year and chose colors and styles that the kids actually like to wear:

Girls spring and summer wardrobe shirts

All of the basic shirts for this year’s wardrobe came from Primary. These are all skinny t-shirts from Primary and the colors are (left to right): slate gray, raspberry, heather gray, pool and petal.

Girls spring and summer wardrobe bottoms

Top row from left to right: plaid shorts from consignment, green shorts from Thred Up, black gym shorts from Primary, jeggings from Hanna Andersson, black and gray livable leggings from Hanna Andersson.

Bottom row: Primary heather gray tumble shorts, Hanna Andersson organic undershirts, Hanna Andersson organic underwear, Primary heather gray tank, Primary mint tank, gold-toe ankle socks.

Girls spring and summer wardrobe dresses and accessories

Left to right: Primary reversible dress in raspberry/red, primary black skirt, Matilda Jane dress (from a friend’s party), Primary short PJs in raspberry (they also have a set of organic longer ones from Hanna Andersson), Primary cardigan in heather gray.

Other Items:

  • Dresses: The girls each had a couple more dresses in coordinating colors that aren’t pictured. I got these at a local secondhand store. I tried to pick versatile and well-made dresses that could work for church or everyday wear.
  • Swimsuits: The girls each have 3 swimsuits since we swim a lot in the summer. They are all from Hanna Andersson as these seem to be the most heavy duty by far and I like their cuts and styles. TIP: Wait for a sale to get swimwear … they run one at least once a month.
  • Underwear: They obviously each have more than three pairs of underwear. To simplify things, I ordered different patterns of Hanna Andersson organic underwear for each of them. One has solid colors, one has stripes, and one has dots. These all three came in several colors so they have a variety but know which are theirs.
  • Sweaters: They also each have a thick sweater that we bought from a local place when visiting friends in Canada. These have enough grow room to be part of their wardrobes for several seasons and they wear these on cool nights in the spring.
  • Outerwear: I didn’t count wetsuits, camping camo, or special occasion dresses in their basic wardrobe.

System for Matching and Hand-Me-Downs

With a few girls in a row who like to match, I’ve found I can easily hand down any high quality clothing and have them match for several years. This is another reason I’m willing to buy new items from quality companies. To simplify the process of sorting their clothes, I use a dot system. Here’s how it works:

  • Each child is assigned a number of dots. The oldest gets one dot, the second oldest gets two dots, etc.
  • First, I put this dot with a permanent marker on the collar or tag of the shirt where it won’t show from the outside.
  • When they are sorting, they each know to look for their number of dots.
  • Then, when the oldest outgrows an item, I add another dot and it becomes the second child’s clothes.
  • There is a separate dot system for boys and girls since their clothes don’t really overlap. So the oldest boy and girl each get one dot, etc.

A Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe: Bottom Line

The beauty of a girls’ capsule wardrobe (or one for boys) is that it *should* reduce stress and laundry. This is the system that works for our family and I love it. I’d had enough friends ask about it that I decided to share. This exact system will certainly not work for every child or family.

If the mere idea of trying to do a capsule wardrobe stresses you out … don’t do it! Or just pull a couple useful tips that work with your routine.

One of the reasons this system works so well for our family is that I already have to do laundry more than once a week because of the number of people in our house and the amount of laundry they all create. Find a system that works for your family, and hopefully some parts of my system will be helpful to you in figuring out yours. Also, if you use any of the places I mentioned, make sure to use the discount codes!

Your turn! Any great tips to share for how you handle kids’ clothes in your home?

Girls capsule wardrobe

Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

20 responses to “How to Create a Girls’ Capsule Wardrobe (Cute & Functional)”

  1. Melissa Avatar

    Thanks for this post. I’d love to see a fall/winter capsule wardrobe for girls! <3

  2. claire Avatar

    Hi Katie! Your capsule wardrobe for kids’ posts have been so helpful for our family!! I’m curious if you have ever written one (or would write?!:) for fall/winter and what pieces you tend to use for those seasons? Thanks!

  3. Cheryl Avatar

    Any updates on what you included in the kids’ winter closets? I just started this past Spring using a capsule wardrobe for myself, and can really see the benefits if I can do the same for my 7 yr old. Thanks!

  4. Stephanie Avatar
    Stephanie

    Hi, I found your post when researching capsule wardrobes for my kids. Just wondering do you have the list of # of items for your fall/winter wardrobe? I’m getting started on that now so i can use my Gymbucks to fill in any gaps. I have 1 girl, and 2 boys ( one is a toddler).

    Thanks!

  5. Michelle Avatar
    Michelle

    This is great! I have heard of this system and wanted to do it for a while. We do a version of this with neutral bottoms and colorful tops but still end up with a ton of extra clothes that they don’t wear. I think listing out the specifics of each wardrobe is a great idea before starting.

    Question – where did you get the multi-colored shorts? We didnt’ see them on either of the sites you mentioned and my daughter likes them.

    Thanks,

    Michelle

  6. Kirk Avatar

    Love this post! So many helpful tips. Do your kids swim in a regular chlorinated pool? If so I’m curious how you combat the chemicals? I’d love for my kids to swim more but I have my concerns.

  7. Amber Avatar

    Katie,
    Do you do a capsule wardrobe for yourself as well? I’m looking for some ideas for one for me.

  8. Tiffany Avatar
    Tiffany

    I have been researching kid’s wardrobe capsules and really like your post and find it helpful for me to get an idea of where to start. I have 4 kids and the oldest 3 are girls (10, 7 & 4). My girls love to wear dresses but in the summer with camps & lots of messy outdoor activities they really need shorts & t-shirts too, so do i just make their capsules a little bigger to fit our needs and add a few more dresses since they are worn quite often and not only for church or nicer outings? Also is there a way to incorporate more prints & patterns and not only solids or is there a specific reason so many capsules seems to be devoid of prints/pattern pieces? Thanks so much for the help!

    1. Wellness Mama Avatar

      Hey Tiffany! I definitely think a few extra pieces that would work for church or nicer gatherings would be fine. And patterns are great! I think most people stick with solid colors because they’re easier to mix and match. but if you find a pattern that works in several different outfit combinations, go for it 🙂

  9. Karen Avatar

    My kiddies are all grown but when they were little they didn’t get any clothes with pictures I used l.l. bean because of the quality. I figured the licensing people don’t need my funds. Thank you.

  10. Mary Avatar

    I love the girls capsule wardrobe. I am a retired woman and would love to see a similar capsule with links on where to buy the clothing that would really be helpful. I know it sounds sort of crazy – I have seen capsule wardrobes for younger, working women with children and it doesn’t fit the bill for my needs. Something to think about! Putting together a workable wardrobe is something I have always struggled with. Just a suggestion.

  11. Hélène Avatar
    Hélène

    We also use open shelving for all but underwear n socks, and those little plastic drawers are on the shelves also. Everythings seen instantly rly, n is quick to grab when needed n put away when clean. We hang very, very little…my two girly girls AND I use about 18″ space on a closet rod, total. Yes, i have very few dress clothes lol Yes we keep coats elsewhere. But still…
    My goal is always, store out of season n not rightfitting (grow into for girls, shrink down to for me) clothes. Have as FEW as possible clothes 🙂

    1. Amber Avatar

      Your kids have a lot of clothes in their wardrobe. I can’t imagine how much they had before you switched to this method.

  12. Hélène Avatar
    Hélène

    I rly do like this total coordinated concept. We shop exclusively 2ndhand except underwear and deep clearance Walmart finds. We live in an ultra cold climate that gets blisteringly hot still in summer. So we have to have extra layers, tights & snow clothes, along with very cool, lite fabrics only appropriate for our very short hot time. If we lived in a reasonable climate and/or could afford to control our indoor climate better, tshirts and soft skirts/bermuda shorts or jeans would definitely rule.
    Its also a helpful concept for fulltime RVing families, overseas missions families, co-housing families (forced or voluntary living with another family so space is super precious), etc!

  13. Hélène Avatar
    Hélène

    For school age kids, I rly like the no jammies, bathe them nitely n dress them in tmrw’s clothes to wear to bed. This assumes they wont get brkfst on the clothes, yes. And aren’t late bedwetters, yes. And dont wear frilly, ruffly, scratchy clothes, but mostly simple, comfy pcs such as you describe.
    They get up, make their beds and voíla, are ready for the day!
    My kids like jammies and frilly stuff sometimes too. They also often sleep where its very cold or hot so have to compensate in the bedtime clothing.
    But starting over again, this is what I wud do. Wear leggings at the very least to bed in winter and then out the skirt over it at waking. Or wear comfy shorts to bed in warm weather. Tshirts always work as do comfy long sleeved shirts.
    We have to simplify our lives somewhere in our extreme consumerism culture. I think kids will thank their parents when older, actually.

  14. Rene Shonerd Avatar
    Rene Shonerd

    Great post! I used this method to creat a seasonale wardrobe for my daughter when she was a toddler. Back then, It wasnt called a capsule, it was just common sense. It worked great. Once she hit school aged, she wore uniforms to school, so we translated the concept to fit school clothes, church clothes and weekend wear. Now that were getting closer to middle school, it is getting harder, but the concept still works well and keeps you from buying too much stuff that they will never wear.

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