{"id":23,"date":"2018-10-23T17:05:18","date_gmt":"2018-10-23T21:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thefrench.com\/?p=23"},"modified":"2025-01-23T13:09:25","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T18:09:25","slug":"5-piece-french-wardrobe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefrench.com\/5-piece-french-wardrobe\/","title":{"rendered":"5-Piece French Wardrobe: How to Get Started"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When searching for a better approach to style and seasonal shopping, I came across a new kind of dressing: the 5-Piece French Wardrobe<\/strong>. At first, I thought: wait, is this one of those capsule wardrobes that make 72 outfits out of just 5 pieces? Do you have to get rid of everything in your closet except for 5 items? It sounded incredibly unappealing to me at first, but I continued to learn about it just to be sure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It turns out the “5-Piece French Wardrobe” is actually somewhat of a misleading name!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 5-Piece French Wardrobe is simply a better<\/em> way of creating a capsule wardrobe \u2013 and no, your wardrobe isn’t limited to just five pieces!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concept stems from the idea of a “capsule wardrobe,” a way to organize your closet based on the essentials, which became popular in the 1960s and 70s. Women who created capsule wardrobes rejected the notion of American consumerism and over-consumption in favor of slimming down one’s closet to focus on the essentials. They avoided trends and kept only the basic garments that were worn often and fit incredibly well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The problem with the capsule wardrobe is that even though it serves its purpose to reduce waste, eliminate the superfluous, and stick to the basics, there’s just no fun in it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the French do nearly everything better when it comes to fashion and style, enter the 5-Piece French Wardrobe. The French version of the capsule wardrobe<\/a> began to gain popularity among style connoisseurs because it allows women to have more than just what they need<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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About the 5-Piece French Wardrobe<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It isn’t known who first promoted the idea of a “Five Piece French Wardrobe” but I found it mentioned on Fashion Spot threads as early as 2005<\/a>, where one member explains that French women only buy 4-5 quality pieces each season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women in France establish a strong foundational wardrobe of basics first so they can easily incorporate the 5 statement pieces they purchase into their outfits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key is to choose 5 pieces you really love so you do not get tired of them after that season. Think of them as timeless investment pieces<\/a> you’ll truly cherish forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aforementioned Fashion Spot thread references another<\/em> thread on the French style which cites the book A Guide to Elegance<\/a><\/em>, by Genevieve Antoine Dariaux, a French fashion guru who spent most of her life living in Paris before retiring in the south of France, as inspiration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Whoever coined the term, the Five Piece French Wardrobe philosophy certainly took off by 2010, when fashion blogger Sabrina Meijer of AfterDRK<\/em> wrote about her goal<\/a> to stick to purchasing five splurge pieces each season, and later shared which 5 items were on her wishlist<\/a>. Meijer even goes as far as calling it a “French wardrobe secret.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since then, many more fashion bloggers have written about their experiments with the French approach to style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Get Started with the 5-Piece French Wardrobe<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here is how to try out the 5-Piece French Wardrobe system for your own closet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 refers to the number of new items you can purchase each season, excluding basics. These could be anything really \u2013 a splurge item or a statement piece \u2013 and allow you to have a little fun with curating your wardrobe!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get started with 5-Piece French Wardrobe system, you need to purge anything you no longer wear or that doesn’t fit right, identify your core wardrobe basics, and lastly, choose the 5 new items you wish to purchase for your wardrobe that season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technically, fashion has two seasons: spring\/summer and fall\/winter. If the idea of only<\/em> making 10 new purchases a year scares you, then you can break the year down into 4 seasons your first time around!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out with the Old<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Adopting the 5-Piece French Wardrobe is a great time to cleanse your closet of your old clothes that don’t fit right or are too trendy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took me a really long time to learn that it’s not about what<\/em> you buy, it’s about how<\/em> it fits. Purchasing the latest designer dress in a size too big can ruin the entire look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ever wonder why those French Instagram influencers<\/a> look so good in a plain white t-shirt and jeans? It’s because they know what fits them and flatters their bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why are wrap dresses so popular in France? Because they’re almost universally flattering to all body types!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep the basics that fit you well, and say goodbye to the ones that don’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the 5-Piece French Wardrobe Basics?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now that you’ve done a wardrobe cleanse, it’s time to take inventory of your basics and see what’s missing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What exactly constitutes a “basic”? Well, this question will be answered differently for everyone, but here are some general guidelines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n