I had a chance to see Courtney Carver speak in Vancouver a few weeks back and wanted to share some of my take aways from the event.
First, if you haven’t heard of Courtney and her minimalist fashion project, Project 333, I’ll get you acquainted. Courtney has been writing and speaking about simplicity through her blog BeMoreWithLess.com for many years. I’ve linked to her blog posts and writing often. Her minimalist fashion challenge called Project 333 began almost seven years ago and continues to have a large and dedicated following. Below are the rules for Project 333.
- When: Every three months (It’s never too late to start so join in anytime!)
- What: 33 items including clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear and shoes.
- What not: these items are not counted as part of the 33 items – wedding ring or another sentimental piece of jewelry that you never take off, underwear, sleep wear, in-home lounge wear, and workout clothing (you can only wear your workout clothing to workout)
- How: Choose your 33 items, box up the remainder of your fashion statement, seal it with tape and put it out of sight.
- What else: consider that you are creating a wardrobe that you can live, work and play in for three months. Remember that this is not a project in suffering. If your clothes don’t fit or are in poor condition, replace them.
Courtney was in Vancouver speaking and I was lucky to score tickets to her second night after the first night quickly sold out (Vancouver loves her!).
Takeaways from Courtney Carver’s Tiny Wardrobe Tour
I didn’t know what I liked. This statement from Courtney really stuck with me over the evening and into the days that followed. While Courtney’s speaking engagement was under the “The Tiny Wardrobe Tour” banner, her talk gave us so much more as she delved into her personal life and journey towards simplifying.
One thing Courtney talked about was that her idea of herself was of someone that loved shopping. As she went further along in her minimalist wardrobe experiment she saw that she actually didn’t love shopping. She loved the pick me up from buying something new. She loved the temporary high of a purchase, the distraction from any worries in her life. She didn’t love shopping but she also didn’t know what she really liked. It was a slow process for Courtney to get back to things that had fed her soul as a teen: photography and hiking. Finding out what she liked, becoming curious again, was a big part of her simplifying journey.
There is no perfect capsule wardrobe. I think Courtney kind of blew a few minds with this statement. There is no item of clothing that will make you feel your wardrobe is complete. This idea of perfection, this idea that theres is something out there that we can buy that will make things perfect and complete, is what keeps us shopping and consuming. We’re never satisfied. As Courtney shared she used to buy clothes for her clothes. It was never enough. It will never be enough. You need to let go of the idea of perfection.
Make your rules for your life. There were a lot of questions about wardrobe choices and counting for people’s different lifestyle needs. Courtney kept coming back to the same answer: create rules for what works for you. If you are just starting out and you have a lot of jewellery, count it as one item. Same for if you have a strict formal dress code for work: count work clothing as one item.
I wanted to share with you that Courtney has a new book coming out in December called Soulful Simplicity. One reviewer basically called it next level Marie Kondo and after hearing Courtney speak I’m excited to read it myself (pre-ordered and coming to me end of December!). Courtney has some great extras for anyone that pre-orders that you can find here . *I’ve ordered and paid for the book with my own money – this is not a sponsored post.
Have any of you tried Project 333 or any other minimalist fashion experiments? What was your experience like? I naturally gravitate to a small wardrobe but I’m thinking of being a bit more deliberate and using the Project 333 guidelines.
Also, shout out to the lovely Minimalist Mom readers that came over for a chat after Courtney’s talk. Always fun to meet other people trying to navigate parenthood with less stuff. Stay strong on the kid’s clothes ladies (it does get easier).
When I moved for graduate school a little over 12 years ago I had enough clothes to wear a different outfit daily for 9 months and 67 pairs of footwear. That first week in the new place I cut that down to 2 weeks worth of every day outfits, 2 weeks of fitness clothes and I think 5 pairs of shoes. That worked well for me for a few years, Then I decided to cut it down to 1 week. Then I decided to cut it down to 4 workout outfits, 2 work outfits and three pairs of shoes.
A little over two years ago I decided to wear black yoga pants, a white tank top and a navy blue t-shirt every day. I bought 3 of each. I also have 2 pairs of jeans to wear in the winter if we need/want to go outside to do things. My Dad made a comment about my yoga pants life a few months ago. He said he totally understands but he’s afraid others won’t when I show up in yoga pants when he dies someday. I told him I’d buy something more appropriate to wear to his funeral. I now have a funeral tunic to wear over my yoga pants.
It’s nice to not have to think about clothing.
I love this!!! Thank you for sharing Amy and go you 🙂 This is the kind of bold ‘know yourself’ wardrobe shift that Courtney is urging people towards. It’s different for everyone but the goal is the same: living comfortably in clothes that suit you and your life.
I love the philosophy behind the project. Still working on applying it – I don’t actually own more than 33 items of clothing right now, but have the opportunity coming up over Christmas to completely revamp my wardrobe – we’re moving from a climate where merino thermals make perfect sense 8 months a year to the tropics.
Everything I don’t love has already gone as the weather warms up and I just keep cycling through the same 6 pieces, alternating cargo pants with shorts for hot days (which, incidentally, are still cooler than my new homes winter overnight minimums!)
I’m very much looking forward to some intentional wardrobe purchases. There’s enough to get me through the first few months in what I have, so I plan to find quality lightweight versions of my favourites, and indulge in some pretty floaty dresses. But after I’ve thought about it a bit!
I’ve never followed the actual rules for the project 333, but more or less have subscribed to the overall idea of having basics that you can mix and match, and that less is more. I’ve definitely noticed that since I’ve pared down my wardrobe and have been more intentional with it that I take better care of my clothes and feel ok spending more on higher priced, quality pieces (no more target clearance rack for me!–at least not very often 😉
My own rules for a super simple wardrobe:
(1) Color: Almost everything in black.
(2) Have two “uniforms:”
Everyday: black cardigan, tee shirt and pants. (Several identical tee shirts and pants. A few cardigans in different styles and weights.)
Special occasion: black open-front cardigan and short-sleeve, knee-length dress. (For weddings and funerals as well as other special occasions.)
(3) Bags and footwear: Not too many. And again, all in black.
(4) Jewelry: Not too much. For everyday: Simple small hoop earrings that are comfortable to sleep in. Water-resistant watch. Plain wedding band. (No engagement ring.) For special occasions: Pearl earrings and necklace.
(5) Color and pattern: Add color and pattern with scarves.
(6) Three things to which I say never, ever, no matter what: No heels. No hose. No shapewear.
Undoubtedly, many people would find this extremely boring. But I find it quite liberating.
lucky you.. I was in Vancouver for 3 weeks, left the week before Courtney arrived, was so torn that I was missing this event. Started project 333 a few years ago.. Never had 33 items.. but did a strict analysis of what excess was in the closet.. it has helped me a lot to par back after being a High end fashion store manager for years, had so much clothing!!
lost my333 mojo the past year struggled to get organised.. now starting to knuckle down again to minimise the excess that has crept back in the closet. Ironically I long ago realized there is never a perfect anything, my body keeps changing its needs on me, so its make it work for now.
I actually wanted to say thank you for triggering this thought at the end of your blog.
“Stay strong on the kid’s clothes ladies”
my 4 year old grand son lives with us and his drawers are exploding at the moment. Really must par back as the washing machine works fine keeping him in cleaning clothing with extras to spare.. Kids do not need excess either!! Life valuable lessons are learnt young!
Yeah I love Courtney. She draws a line and sticks to it, and she’s totally content with her decisions. I have my own capsule wardrobe and I blog about it too, but I don’t stick with 33 items. Mostly in the summer I have less than 33 items, and sometimes in the winter I have 30 – 35 items. It just all really depends. For me it’s not about having an exact number of clothing pieces and accessories, it’s about minimizing stuff and stress. Thanks for sharing, I really enjoyed your post.
I’m 50 and have only recently discovered the colours I truly enjoy wearing, after years of wearing stuff that everyone else was, because I thought I had to copy them to fit in or be accepted. I didn’t have my own personal style. Sometimes I think back and remember certain items I used to own and wonder about all the clothes I have bought over the years and it feels so wasteful to me. Now I can fit all my clothes including jackets & coats in my bedroom closet. I no longer have a dresser. I keep extra shirts & sweaters in a few baskets in my closet. Its probably strange to some people but it works for me. It’s super easy to get dressed in the morning & I have more colours & options that I truly like & fit my 50 something body. It also helps that my husband has his own small closet in another room! lol
I LOVE Project 333 and Courtney’s writing in general. I’ve just done my Autumn/Winter wardrobe (I’m in the UK) and this time I removed all the other clothes (Summer stuff, special occasion etc) from my wardrobe completely and put them away in another room. It’s so nice to see the small capsule collection that’s left with lots of room! Before I started simplifying my clothes were so tightly packed in that I could hardly get anything in or out!
Well, let’s see. As a person who detests shopping, and fashion, and rules in general, this is one aspect of minimalism that has been hard for me to get behind. My reaction to the 333 project has always been sorta like, um… seriously? Like, what is this? Minimalism for people with OCD?
BUT, a few years ago I encountered a crisis – my home got infested with carpet beetles. Carpet beetles are one of those insects that was virtually unheard of a generation ago, but since the banning of DDT they’re making a comeback. The eat natural fibers like wool or cat hair or dust, and the larvae nest in dark places like closets & drawers, and they’re REALLY hard to get rid of. Long story short, I had to toss a good chunk of my clothing, and pack up most of the rest of it in air tight containers. (I also had to rip out the carpet, get rid of half of my furniture & belongings, and steam clean everything else – but that’s another story.)
The experience has been eye opening, to say the least, and I have learned that I need WAY less clothing than I thought I did. Since the only things I can have out of the sealed bags and boxes are things that I wear enough to wash frequently, it has taught me to prioritize in a way I never did before, and given new meaning to things like “favorite” where clothing is concerned. And I have to say, there is a feeling of freedom that comes with a sparsely populated closet. Who knew?
Soooo, perhaps Courtney isn’t totally crazy after all. I’m still not gonna count my clothes though! 🙂