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My 2022 Fall Wardrobe

Now that it’s officially fall and our weather here in Philly is actually cooperating this year, I finally got my closet switched over for the season. I always get questions about it, so I took some pictures to share with you.

I try to keep my closet well-edited at all times by pruning out clothing I no longer wear throughout the season, so I didn’t have to do a major closet purge. This was more about taking the summer clothes out and moving in the rest of my fall stuff in.

Yes, I’m one of those women who keeps only clothing for the current season in my closet. I only want to see my viable options when I go to get dressed in the morning.

In fact, I would go a step further and say that I only keep clothes that I am currently wearing in my closet, because I don’t keep anything that doesn’t fit my current body or my current lifestyle in there.

That’s the difference between your closet and your wardrobe.

Your closet may house out of season clothes, or clothes that don’t fit, or clothes that belong to a lifestyle you wish you had or think you might return to, or clothes that look dated but might come back in style some day, and basically any clothes you don’t really love so you never reach for.

Your wardrobe is comprised of the clothing that you currently wear. This is an important distinction because it’s so much easier to put outfits together when you keep only what you are currently wearing in your closet.

To that end, I keep out of season clothes, clothes I love that don’t fit, and anything I think I might want in the future but not right now in plastic bins in the basement. I donate or sell everything else, and things I purchase for the blog that I don’t intend to keep (or I’m not sure about) are kept on a rolling rack in my bedroom.

How My Closet Looks Today

For this post, I’m sharing my personal wardrobe for the fall season. Because of my job as a fashion blogger/influencer or whatever we’re calling it this month, my wardrobe is never static. I’m always cycling things through, but this is currently what you see when you walk into my closet.

I don’t have a huge closet, but it’s all mine. (Paul has one on the other side.) We had Closets By Design do our closets right after we moved to this house a little over 4 years ago. Also, my walls are not yellow. I don’t know why they photographed that way. They’re Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray, just like our master bedroom.

The drawers in the center house my undergarments, socks, pajamas, and workout tops and shorts; and the bottom one is a laundry hamper. The shelves above them are mostly sweaters, but I have some jean shorts (in case it gets warm again) and activewear tucked in there. I’ll remove those to make room for more sweaters when winter weather sets in. (Most of my sweaters from past years are still in the basement.)

That center section is flanked on either side by hanging space for tops and pants. I hang my jeans and pants on top and shirts and jackets on the bottom. This configuration makes it easy to see what I have because the pants don’t stick out as far as the tops do.

My blue jeans are on the top left. I used to arrange them from dark to light, but now I have them grouped by style. It makes it easier to find what I’m looking for and remember what I have.

My tops are on the bottom left, and I also have them arranged by style and formality rather than color. It doesn’t look as pinterest perfect, but it makes it easier to put outfits together.

The wall adjacent to the jeans and tops is where I keep my shoes and booties. I went back to organizing my shoes by style this season. You may remember, I tried doing them all by color for spring/summer, and it looked pretty, but it wasn’t very practical.

I plan to adjust my shelves so all the booties are together, but I didn’t have time to move them around before I took these pictures.

I hang my pants and non-blue jeans on the top right, and my jackets are on the bottom right. I could probably weed out some of the jackets, but I’m still waiting to see which ones I don’t reach for now that the weather has cooled off.

Over on the right wall, I have two shelves where I keep some of my handbags. The rest are downstairs in my office. These are the shelf dividers I’m using up there.

Then I have longer hanging space below that. That’s where my dresses and jumpsuits go. And because I don’t keep a lot of dresses, I’ve also hung some of my workout jackets and long sleeve workout shirts there for easy access.

My fuzzy leopard print Barefoot Dreams cardigan and Athleta Pranayama Wrap are also tucked in there. I wear one of those every morning over my pajamas before I get dressed for the gym or the day.

So yeah, that’s about it! I have a dresser in my bedroom where I keep some of my out of season clothes, as well as items I don’t wear much — like extra pajamas and workout gear, shapewear and strapless bras, bathing suits, etc. But everything I wear on a regular basis goes in my closet. It’s so much easier to figure out what to wear when it’s all together in one place.

And I always get asked about my hangers. They’re wood-look plastic coat hangers, and I love them, but they were discontinued and I can’t find anything else quite like them. I only have a set amount, and when they get full, I start removing things from my closet that I don’t love anymore.

I think I’m the only person who doesn’t care for the velvet hangers. I feel like my clothes stick to them and don’t slide easily on and off. And I don’t want to hang things that close together anyway. I like some space between my hangers. It’s easier to see what I have, and it makes the closet space look nicer.

Shop My Closet

This isn’t everything in my closet, but it’s a pretty good representation of what I have and the pieces I would replace if I had to start over right now. Unfortunately a lot of my favorites are no longer available, but this is my personal closet so that’s just how it goes.

Tops & Sweaters

This is quite a mix, with some short sleeves and tanks alongside cozy sweaters. It’s still transition season here in Philly, so this section will evolve quite a bit over the next few months.

Jackets

I like to have a good variety of lightweight jackets in the fall because the weather is so variable. I usually wear these over t-shirts and or floral tops.

Jeans & Pants

I pretty much live in jeans, so I have quite a few, but there’s quite a variety of style and colors in here. By the way, a lot of these are 25% off right now because both Saks and Neiman’s are doing a Friends & Family Sale. Note the Vince Crop Leggings are 25% off! I wear the medium, for reference.

Dresses

I don’t wear a lot of dresses, so I don’t keep many either. I do have a couple of sweater dresses in the basement that I should bring up, but most of these are my year ’round classic dresses that I keep in case an unexpected event crops up. Some I’ve had for years, so I try them on every so often to make sure they still fit.

Shoes & Boots

As you can see, I’m still in transition mode over here. There are some sandals in here that I’ll move out when the weather turns cold for good. I also have more wintry styles in the basement that I haven’t brought up yet.

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34 Responses

  1. Over the past few years I’ve started turning my closet into a wardrobe, thanks to you. It’s amazing how much easier it is to pick out more stylish put together outfits, and faster. And this doesn’t mean one needs to have more clothes either, it’s just using the ones you already have in more ways. And I actually enjoy getting in my closet and pulling out the old season’s clothes and putting the new season back in. I put on some music and make a nice drink and enjoy! Thanks for this great post today.

  2. Would you mind giving an approximate number of each clothing group you normally have in your closet, such as 10 pairs of jeans, 6 blazers, 5 pairs of boots, etc.? My husband thinks I have an unrealistic idea of how many items of clothing I need per season to survive:) Thank you.

  3. Definitely a dream closet!!! Like you I only have the current season of clothing in my closet. And trying hard to make it a capsule wardrobe! We have the typical 70’s ranch so my master bedroom closet is a double size but I only get half! Since we have a spare bedroom now, I’ve moved my off season items from the basement into that closet. I love those hangers you use, but due to my small closet I need the slim line ones. I did have the velour ones but have since cha fed them out for the slim line plastic hangers from Walmart. I only use the velour for a few wide neck tops that kept sliding off the plastic ones. I’m not a fan of looking at all different colored hangers in my closet, so I stick with what matches the plastic hangers, off white. I wish I had the space to hang my jeans! I have to keep mine on a shelf, so I do a tri-fold with them, keeping the hem on top, that way I can see the different style hems, frayed, straight, etc. When I look at the “stack” of jeans I have on my shelf now, I must think I’m a fashion blogger! Haven’t purged them yet, but looking at your organized closet always inspires me to organize!! Have a great weekend!

  4. This has inspired me to organize my closet this weekend, cannot wait for some semblance of organization. Lots to donate as my workwear is truly not needed as I now work from home.

    For the most part, this time of year, do you wear denim jackets are part of your outfit inside?

  5. I love your closet! Mine is a 10’x9′ walk in, but it’s under the eaves so I am limited to a single rod (the side walls are too short to double up) on one side and two dressers on the other. I am not a fan of the velvet hangers, either, and bought my white wood ones from the Container Store. Like you, I have a set amount, and all of my clothes must fit on that rod. My shoe storage is my biggest problem area. I have hanging pockets on my rod, plus several cubbies under the hanging clothes in my closet, another one in my bedroom – more or less I have one wherever I can stick one… not ideal! But I love shoes and boots.

  6. We are in the process of remodeling a small home and decided that rather than spend money moving walls, we would use the tiny 3rd bedroom for a closet. I’m so excited to get to that part of our remodel, but right now we’re just hoping to be out of our motorhome on our property and into the house by Thanksgiving! In the meantime, I’ve been collecting ideas for closets. I bought a set of your white hangers because I don’t like the “flocked” ones we have for just the reason you stated, Jo-Lynne. Loved the white ones– so if you find a reasonable substitute please let us know. I’m particularly looking forward to hanging my jeans (I easily keep 10 pairs in my closet all year round except for summer) as no matter how I arrange them in their folded state, I end up unfolding to find the right length/rise/leg style. I know. Champagne problems!

    1. Haha, “champagne problems” is a new one to me! But I agree — I can’t imagine having to fold my jeans and figure out what is what. I don’t even like folded sweaters, but I don’t have a better way.

  7. Hi! Wow your closet is amazing! Thank you for sharing your way of organizing the space to save time when dressing each day 😊
    Love your posts!
    PS—ordered some of your new jewelry, can’t wait til it gets here!

  8. I love, love, love posts like these. It’s so much fun to see someone else’s closet. My seasonal transitions are getting easier now that I only have one child left at home. I have room for my out of season clothes in the other bedrooms’ closets.

  9. Wow!!! Great post. Could you just come and shop for me and organize my closet for me? LOL I do like my clothes hung by colors in my closet. It makes it is so much easier for me to know how much of what color I have of each, so when buying I don’t go over due buying too much of one color and it makes it easier for me to dress. I do organize the color sections by type of shirt when I take the time. I even did my husbands side by color and it helps, since I buy his clothes. I know, I’m probably the only one who buys her husbands clothes, but he’s just not into it or a shopper.

    1. LOL…I also buy my husband’s clothes, even his shoes, socks, and underwear. He’s happy bc he hates to shop. And I organize his clothes by color.
      Thanks, Jo-Lynne, for this post. It is immensely helpful to get a peek into a wardrobe expert’s closet. I was most interested in quantities and colors. Really, thx for all you do for us!

      1. Well, I’m really not an expert, lol. But I have had to figure out how to reconcile my desire for a smaller edited wardrobe and a job where I basically get paid to shop constantly, lol! At any rate, I’m so glad it’s helpful.

    2. Kathy, you’re not alone, I also buy my husband’s clothing “all of it”. He doesn’t mind at all since he’s not a shopper unless he goes to the auto parts store/grocery store.

  10. PS Thanks to you, I’m doing much better on purging my closet. I was one to hold onto things because they were still in good shape, or might come back in style…..but we all know how that goes…..they tweek things just enough you don’t want to wear them again. I just got rid of a good size bag and it felt good. Still work to be done. I grab for the same things anyways, so find I don’t need as much as I use to. I just like clothes and style, so get more because I like to have different things. 🙂

    1. I get that. I do too, that is why I purge so often, lol. It may seem wasteful, but I do resell or donate and hope that someone else gets to enjoy what I no longer need or want while it’s still in good shape.

  11. I just received your bracelets and wanted to let you know. They are absolutely beautiful and perfect! I got the silver/gold cuff (the one that sold out) and small silver one. I love them both!
    I always enjoy these posts and get motivated to purge, and then I see something else I want to purchase and defeat my plan. But I am trying to invest in nicer quality pieces. I did purchase the Vince pant on sale. Am tempted to try the Vince Henderson. I did purchase them in the past, but they were too big and I didn’t reorder.

  12. I’ve really learned to simplify my closet over the years… if I don’t wear it anymore and it doesn’t bring me joy then out it goes. As I’m getting older I’m more interested in buying staple pieces and focusing more on quality then quantity. I will spend less on trendy items if I’m giving one a try or feel they’ll just be around one season. Once fall comes to an end I’ll start adding my winter items.., it’s still too nice to add them in quite yet maybe by late October-November.. I’m not interested in looking at turtle necks or things I wear only for the holidays yet!
    Beautiful closet!

  13. I’m also not a fan of those velvet hangers. Everything sticks to them and they’re somehow wider and straighter than I’d like, pushing out the shoulders of my clothes and sometimes even stretching out the material. I much prefer hangers that are more “sloping”, if that makes sense. You have a beautiful closet. In Europe, built-in closets aren’t as common as in the US, so I actually have a separate piece of furniture called a wardrobe and it would probably fit in your closet 3 or 4 times!

  14. I am turning a bedroom into my spare closet in my home. I am originally from So. California and I moved to the Midwest where it is much colder and we get to wear clothes! Yay! But after being here several years, I cannot get the hang of closet transition and am constantly searching for things or forgetting what I have. So I am now designing this room closet and I couldn’t be more excited! I love how simple your closet is and I am going to hang my pants on the upper level now! Thank you, thank you! And I bought the Aquatalia Brigitte Luxe boots after seeing how cute they were on you. I normally would never choose those! But I love them now

  15. I see you keep your summer and winter shoes/boots together. Because I live in PA with four seasons, I keep all of my clothing and shoes together. It’s too much work for me to move things, especially in the “shoulder” seasons here or if we vacation in a warm climate over the winter. I do want to pare down my items. Where to store shorts and T-shirts? I practically live in them all summer and my drawer space is filled with workout wear, PJ’s, etc. I think we all fill to our allotted space. I also love color, so my closet has a lot more color to organize and curate.

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