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Creating A Wardrobe

The steps below helped me create the wardrobe I wanted for my retired lifestyle. Perhaps sharing my process will help you curate a wardrobe you love.

First: Know your style. Your clothing, especially those you wear most often, will likely reveal your style. You can also get ideas from Pinterest, Instagram, and your favorite stylish women.

I’ve learned that my style is classic, elevated, and minimal. If you dissect the look I wore to lunch on Saturday, you will discover a plain white tee, black wool pants, and a denim blazer. I can and have worn these timeless elements for years in countless ways, from dressy to casual.

Second: Use your style as a guide to make purchases that relate to your lifestyle to ensure that what you have in your wardrobe works for you.

Sharp shoulders, pointed toes, shiny silver hardware, and high-contrast bold colors are the details that fill my style toolbox. I avoid small prints, ruffles, muted colors, and soft gathers. After I cleared out all the things that didn’t authentically reflect my style, I realized that everything that remained in my wardrobe felt like me, and as a bonus, everything seamlessly worked together.

Third: Work with your shape. Even if you don’t have a definable body shape, you should know how different body parts relate. Study your shape to determine if you are broader in one area than another, whether straight or curvy. Knowing your proportions lets you divert or attract attention to balance your figure. Avoid horizontal lines across your widest part if that isn’t what you like best about your figure.

For example, because I have an inverted triangle shape and a fuller bust, I avoid details that add more volume, such as ruffles, gathers, pockets, or ornamentation. Pants with flared or straight full-length legs look best and help balance the top and bottom halves.

Fourth: Measure your vertical proportions—long legs? Short legs? Short torso? Long torso? This is also important so that the clothes you choose work with you, not against you. Know your inseam (crotch to hem) and rise (crotch to the waistband). Knowing these measurements will make buying pants and jeans easier.

I always order pants online but carefully check the measurements and style descriptions. High waist styles with a leg opening larger than sixteen inches and an inseam of 30 inches or more are non-negotiable details for me.

Fifth: Identify the colors that work for you—your best colors will make you glow. There is a shade for everyone, and there are ways to wear a color, even if it’s not your best shade.

Many of the items I wear have been in my collection for years, so I share links to similar items. Blazer, tee, pants, belt, heels, bag, scarf, earrings, ring.

I hope these tips and examples are helpful to you. Links may allow me to earn a small commission without costing you anything.

44 Comments
  1. I always appreciate your styling insights Susan. Through the years I felt that most of my wardrobe was fairly plain but worked for my body type and lifestyle. Thank you for confirming that if I have pieces that can be interchanged, then I’m on the right track. All the best throughout 2025.

  2. Happy Sunday Susan !
    As usual I love your outfit. I really love your style.
    We are about the same size so I try to follow your tips and my wardrobe is becoming much like yours. I really like the blazer and I will be looking for one. We spend winters in Florida and summers in Michigan so I will only get to wear it occasionally. But I am excited to find one.
    Thank you !

  3. Happy New Year, Susan! Thanks to following you for ever since I discovered your first blog, I’ve finally learned how to dress and thanks to tips like those you’ve offered today, I’ve learned to figure out my own style. Like you, I’m retired. I’m 75, but thanks to what I’ve learned from you over the years, even when I’m just out running errands, I often receive compliments from strangers on what I’m wearing, even though I’m almost never dressed up! This post today is wonderful, with many helpful tips. Thank you, Susan.

  4. I like your style words, classical, elevated and minimal. When I retired I felt I was slipping into a very casual or frumpy style. I think I can use those same words to describe what I like to wear and if my wardrobe has these pieces in it then getting dressed everyday is easy. I can start very basic and add more to it (as in accessories) as needed. So this is a good way to make sure I don’t buy unnecessary items I’ll never wear.

  5. This post was another excellent source of information and inspiration. I have never had any issues knowing my best colors but my style was elusive. I would buy things in my colors and yet they didn’t seem to be that flattering. I finally gave in last year and paid for a stylist appointment. It was well worth the money and I would encourage anyone really struggling to find help. She nailed me and helped me with my style words. I learned the correct proportions and silhouettes for me. It was a great eye opener and now my closest is finally coming together in a way that fits me and my retirement life.

  6. I admire your style, Susan, and have learned so much from you. I have wasted so much money over the years on pretty things that just don’t fit my aesthetic. I thought I had to follow trends to keep from looking “old.” Instead of old, I felt uncomfortable. Now straight leg pants and ankle pants in summer, jewel colors as an accent, flat shoes and a bit of bling keep me feeling current. Thank you for your example.

  7. Very informative post. Thanks you. I love your style. I have long legs and have a hard time finding pants that are long enough. Some manufacturers offer tall pants but don’t allow for a roomier crotch area. I am 5’8 and wear a size six and need 32 inch length in pants. Hard to come by.

  8. One day last fall I was grocery shopping, wearing jeans, a red blazer and shoes and was stopped twice by women half my age to tell me they liked what I was wearing! Another time, a young server at a casual restaurant commented on my attire; both incidents surprised me. I guess I don’t expect that younger people will pay attention to those of us who could be their grandparent, but clearly, that’s not always the case!

  9. Over the years of reading your blog you have helped me create a style that works for my casual lifestyle. I’m still drawn to clothing that worked before I retired, but I know to look and move on. I live in an area where people dress very casually and a bit outdoorsy. I feel comfortable wearing nice jeans or corduroy pants and a sweater in the cooler months of the year. I often add a scarf or simple jewelry to finish off my outfit. In the summer, I like straight legged jeans and tees with a simple necklace, earrings and a belt. I often get compliments too. I think you’ve been instrumental in refining my look to always add those details that pull an outfit together. It helps to have a simple make up and hair routine that is easy to do every morning too. So thank you for helping me to find the way that works for me. That’s what sets you apart from other bloggers. You are always encouraging your readers to find their own style which could very well be entirely different than yours. Have a terrific week and my best to Mr. Mickey and your family.

  10. I am happy to see more scarves in your recent looks. Scarves are some of my favorite accessories. I hope they are coming back to the fashion forefront.

    1. Since my twenties, I’ve loved wearing scarves to add color, texture, and warmth to my looks. Hats are another accessory I embrace, even if I am one of the few who wear them now.

  11. Thanks to your posts I have created my wardrobe uniform- jeans , a black blazer or black cardigan and
    either a black or white blouse . I have found I can dress these simple things up or down for anything I am doing . Thanks for sharing all your wisdom with us !!

  12. Hi Susan! Thank you for a great article! The second point was a rather aha moment. I have a top in my Closet from last summer….it looked so cute on the model. Reading this I now realize why I never wear it! It’s not my style or color!!! What was I thinking ?
    Perhaps you could do an article on those proportions you mentioned. More details on what they mean in choosing clothing?
    And one more thing-my hands and nails are a wreck in this very cold weather. Could you write another article on your current favorite products and routine?
    Thank you so much for your wonderful advice and hello to Mr. Mickey

    1. Knowing your proportions allows you to divert or attract attention to balance your figure. For example, avoid horizontal lines across your widest part if that isn’t what you like best about your figure.
      Olive oil is my best winter survival tool. Put it on your salad and your skin.

  13. Great to see you wearing scarves again a pop of colour like the one you are wearing in this post and the last post are
    so you Susan . They really do suit you . I always loved the blue one with Indian chiefs on I can’t think of a better way to explain it, the word won’t come to me .I purchased on myself it really is pretty. Well it is 2am in UK and I am having one of those restless nights Love the denim blazer so smart . Ethnic that’s the word lol

    1. I enjoy wearing scarves to keep warm and add pops of color in cooler weather.
      Pamela, not sleeping much is also part of my life. I suspect that our hormone treatments have something to do with that.

    1. My techniques are always super easy. This one includes folding a square scarf into a triangle and draping it over my shoulders, then make a simple knot above the bust.

  14. Hello Susan
    That is a great look. It does bring to mind the challenge I find in choosing the best jacket for an outfit. I have a few jackets but struggle with how to wear them. Would a post on just jackets be possible? All the best.

  15. You mention that you look for a pant with a 16″ leg opening. I have never seen that measurement included. I looked at the pants that you listed and don’t see the measurement there. Can you point me in the right direction? Thanks You, I have enjoyed your post for years!

    1. J.Crew is one of the companies that includes leg opening measurements under Size & Fit in the description. A few other companies do as well. If it isn’t listed, I look at all the photos more carefully. If the pant legs are too straight or narrow, they are not right for my thick calves.

  16. Thank you for your tips about a plain cotton long sleeved tee that is the base of your wardrobe Susan. I have them in many colours too and buy them very affordably from Super store in Canada. They are $19.95, are organic cotton , come in great colours and wash beautifully. I buy mine in a medium and roll up the sleeves a tiny bit. Your posts help me keep inspired and on track as I continue to curate and augment my wardrobe.

  17. Another helpful post! Thank you. 5’7″, rectangle shape, and my style words are classic, minimal, and effortless…my style guides are price, how long (# of seasons) will I wear this, and must be comfortable. You have given me so many inspirations and aha moments. Much appreciated and best to you and yours.

  18. Today when I went for my haircut I took your “before and after” hair photos from a couple of posts ago to show my hairdresser the amazing contrast in the two. I walked in looking like your “before” photo and walked out with the best cut ever, with almost an inch of length trimmed away and a styling that looked like your “after!” I felt so lovely with the new cut! 🙂 What a wonderful difference this cut made! My stylist actually took my photo–after I added with my warm wool hat for this very cold day in West Tennessee! Thank you, Susan, for your great hair post!

    I am still culling out the items in my wardrobe from a while ago, trying to leave only the classic ones that can be worn so many ways. It is hard to remove items that I love but haven’t worn forever! None the less, I want to have less clothing and will eventually get there. Thanks for your excellent advice and examples that give encouragement along the way.

  19. I love your style, Susan, and just had an aha moment realizing it’s my style, too, even though I’m 5’3” and curvy. I changed my clothes 4 times before going to a book club meeting last week and ended up with a black blazer and black pants over a tee. I wore my new pointy toe leopard heels that you posted recently. My friends all raved about my shoes! So thank you! I am about to try the bra that you recommended, although I vowed I’d never order another bra on line. From what I read in your comments they work with you if the fit doesn’t work the first time. Thanks for all your tips!

  20. Hello, Creating a wardrobe is all about combining functionality with personal style, ensuring you have the essentials while expressing your unique flair. It’s a blend of thoughtful organization and creative self-expression!
    Keep going on these types of wonderful Blogging, Thank You.

  21. Great post! I liked your steps to knowing your style and choosing a wardrobe in that style. I need to go through mine to see what I wear often and what I keep putting back in the closet. I know my body shape and pant measurements to help. I’m slightly curvy with a defined waste. My shoulders are reasonably broad so never wear shoulder pads. My thighs and legs are my heaviest areas so slim pants are often a no-no unless more straight legged.
    I love your posts and classic looks.
    Sue

  22. Not clear on your non-negotiable rules – you mention no high rise and no more than 16 inches wide – I followed your directions to the 70’s flare on Gap and a couple of others all with 20 inch openings. Have I misunderstood your current preferences? Thank you, Susan for all your posts.

  23. I’m sorry, Susan, I have just realized that your post is probably saying that you always do buy high rise and more than 16 inches rather than the reverse.

  24. You wear a scarf like no one else I have seen. Not every lady can carry that look. Your selection is always spot on for your outfit and adds just the right finishing touch. When I open one of your blog posts I know I am going to see classic, ladylike outfits.

    Hope everyone in your family is enduring these cold days.

  25. Thanks for the informative post! Just wondering do you also apply olive oil to your face and neck? My hair stylist uses castor oil on her face and neck but I am concerned about the long term effects of such. Also, not receiving your posts via email I did receive previous post but not this one. Take care, all the best with family.

    1. Olive oil is the best for hair, skin, and nails, as well as salads, beans, and sardines.

      Because of Google’s changes in October, mass emails such as newsletters are now blocked from delivery. I am working on something that will hopefully remedy the situation.

  26. Since your last closet post, have you thinned the herd (reading under “Second” above)? Or are you referring to an earlier time.

  27. Susan, I come back to this post because, after reading it, I was able to purchase a similar denim blazer. I wore it for the first time yesterday with black slacks and a teal lightweight sweater and scarf. Wow! I can tell this is going to be a real workhorse in my wardrobe. It also has the tiniest bit of stretch, so it was comfortable for the entire afternoon. I can’t wait to see what classic spring and summer pieces you share. A lighter jacket that serves the same purpose would be wonderful.
    Thank you!

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I share tips and inspiration for using what you already have in contemporary ways. Defining words include effortless, classic, refined, discreet, and elegant. My style is chic, minimal, and timeless with a bit of edge.