A Spring/Summer Capsule Wardrobe for Boys

Capsule wardrobes are my ticket to not be overwhelmed in laundry. Without mountains of clothes to wear, I can’t find myself drowning in laundry to wash and fold and put away. Capsule wardrobes keep things simple, and with three young kids, I need simple!

What is a capsule wardrobe?

A capsule wardrobe is a carefully selected assortment of clothing pieces that can work together to form a cohesive wardrobe.

To see how I like to choose pieces for my kids’ capsule wardrobes check out this post. Or see how to build your own mom capsule wardrobe here.

Shopping for Little Boys 

I find shopping for boys to be way more difficult than shopping for girls. There is such a limited selection! Especially because I like to choose pieces without logos or characters or crazy colors or patterns. Finding solid, classic clothing can be challenging, but it can be done.

We happily inherit hand-me-downs from my nephew and a couple of friends. I love pulling out staple pieces to keep. I can usually count on solid colored bottoms and a few plain T-shirts. What I don’t get for free, I shop around at thrift stores and children’s resale shop to fill in the gaps.

Spring & Summer Capsule Wardrobe for Boys 

We live in Texas where we basically have two seasons- cool and hot. Spring leaves us with a tail end of the cool weather, and throws us right into the hot even before summer is officially here. This capsule wardrobe can handle cool mornings and evenings and our hot midday temperatures. And the intense heat of our summer.

I’m a big believer in letting kids be comfortable in what they are wearing. My son isn’t a fan of collared shirts, so this capsule wardrobe doesn’t include any. We’re also still working on getting dressed independently so this wardrobe doesn’t include any real buttons or anything that is hard to put on.

This capsule wardrobe features 16 main pieces plus three pairs of shoes. I didn’t include socks and underwear. I also keep an extra outfit exclusively for the car and a few play/painting clothes that we use at home for especially messy days.

My son is almost 4 years old, and plays outside for many hours a day, and is incredibly rough on his clothes. Almost all of his wardrobe is secondhand- I cringe buying new when I just know he is going to put a hole through it or stain it before he outgrows it.

Bottoms 

I like to keep the bottoms totally basic to make them super versatile. I go for a pair of denim shorts, khaki shorts, bright colored shorts, Navy shorts, a pair of jeans, and a pair of khaki joggers.

Tops

I keep the tops simple too. My son is happiest in a T-shirt so that’s what we have most of. I try to include one nicer shirt for dresser occasions.

T-shirts get a lot of use in our house. Stains and holes do happen so I find I usually have to replace one or two of these during the season. But I try to replace as needed rather than start with more.

• Blue striped T-shirt
• Orange pocket T-shirt
• Striped Henley shirt
• Yellow striped T-shirt
• Gray pocket T-shirt
• Multi-stripe muscle tank
• Green color block short sleeve T-shirt
• Solid jersey muscle tank 

Outerwear

It warms up quickly in Texas, but we’ve actually had a pretty chilly spring so far. We like to have a light cardigan on hand as well as a fleece hoodie.

Since we don’t need these very frequently in the spring and summer, I always size up when I’m buying. It usually works out that something from the past fall/winter still fits or something from next fall/winter will fit, even if it’s a little big.

Shoes 

We do three pairs of shoes for warmer months: tennis shoes, sandals, water shoes, not including work boots for at home on our property. 

 

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Simplify & Enjoy

A capsule wardrobe for kids is a fantastic way to cut down on the laundry chores, help foster independence by letting children choose their own clothes each day, and reign in the budget. Creating a capsule wardrobe for my children has been such an important factor in simplifying our lives so that we can actually enjoy it.

I’d love to know your thoughts on a capsule wardrobe for kids. Would this work for you? Let me know in a comment!