The 1:2 Rule | How I Plan My Wardrobe

Marie Kondo. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. All over the world, people are Marie Kondo-ing their belongings, and for good reason.

I can’t tell you how many bags of clothes I donated after reading this book. Bags, upon bags, upon bags. For years, I clung onto clothing, for one reason or another, that I didn’t connect with. It was such a freeing feeling to finally be able to let go, and have a closet full of things I truly loved.

Fast forward a few years, and I had another revelation. While it was freeing and satisfying to have a closet full of things I enjoyed wearing, something was missing: cohesiveness.

WHBM Skirt Suit, Size 00P (see review here)

I addition to having a Marie Kondo-ed wardrobe, I wanted to have a functional wardrobe. If I have 20 tops I love, but each top only goes with one bottom, that doesn’t feel functional.

The 1:2 Rule | How I Plan My Wardrobe

As I was redoing my wardrobe, I tried to follow a 1:2 rule. One piece of clothing needed to work with two other pieces of clothing. Another way to think about it was that I needed to be able to wear a piece of clothing in more than one way.

Take this skirt suit for example. In addition to wearing it as a full suit, I could wear them as separates as well. I could wear the skirt with my black, white, or gray turtlenecks. I could wear the jacket with my black pants or black skirt. Likewise, I can wear this black turtleneck with my black and white skirt, navy skirt, navy pants, gray pants, etc.

With the 1:2 rule, I increase the versatility of my closet. I have more outfits to choose from, but less pieces in my closet. Ever since I adopted the 1:2 rule, getting dressed for work in the morning was a lot less stressful.

How do you plan out your wardrobe? Let me know in the comments down below!

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