It’s no secret that I’m a massive fan of a good capsule wardrobe. Your clothes work harder, things don’t sit unused at the bottom of a drawer or at the back of the wardrobe, and there’s less waste of materials and cash in general. You also get to look really put together without having to make too much effort, so it potentially saves quite a lot of time and hassle getting ready during those dark, wintery mornings too.

If you haven’t tried making outfits from a capsule wardrobe before then don’t worry – as long as you’ve chosen items that go well together it’s easy to get mixing and matching to meet a whole range of requirements. Everything I picked out for this 20-piece AW 2020 collection is listed here, so you can see where everything came from or at least find things that are very similar to some of the items I’ve upcycled or bought second hand.

Let’s have a go at putting together a working week’s worth of clothes. All I’m going to do here is pick out five randomly chosen sets of blouses / jumpers and trousers / skirts, and show you how you can style them up or down to suit your needs or your mood. A good capsule wardrobe is also supposed to be appropriate to your general lifestyle, so this time around I’m taking local lockdowns and more working from home into account and it’s a bit more comfy and cosy than usual.

OUTFIT 1: Brown paisley blouse + straight leg blue jeans

Kick off Monday the right way with a chic, catwalk-inspired outfit (tuck the blouse into the jeans waistband for extra cool points), or keep it extra casual with a coatigan and trainers for nipping out on those local errands.

I’ve optimistically called Outfit B ‘Walk to the pub’ but if your local safety rules tighten then do feel free to repurpose this one as something to wear to a 30-person grouse shooting party or a large business meeting in a packed restaurant because we’re absolutely, definitely all in this together. But to hell with Covid Cummings and his sociopathically selfish cronies, I’m planning on being a responsible member of society this season and coordinating my face masks with my outfits while I’m at it.

OUTFIT 2: Stripy jumper + brown checked trousers

Several designers did multiple tones of brown in their collections for this season, so the outfit on the left is bang up to date yet also very easy to wear. How often does that happen in real life? It’s a win, take it. On the left we have something to keep you cosy at home without descending into a pit of endless loungewear by Tuesday lunchtime, which is also cause for a micro-celebration of some sort. That little bit of jewellery makes it just smart enough without trying too hard.

OUTFIT 3: Green check shirt + black jersey trousers

The outfit on the left is to show how easy it is to smarten up a fairly casual outfit in a hurry – a blazer saves the day and makes a sort of soft suit when paired with the same colour trousers. On the right we have something simpler for switching off and getting away from the endless alerts and alarms (because most online work meetings could probably have been a bloody email instead, amirite?).

I hate the word ‘shacket’ because it sounds like something you’d say when your dog’s had an accident on the carpet or something, but you could wear this shirt open as a jacket over a white t-shirt or other simple top to get another look out of it.

OUTFIT 4: Ecru sweatshirt + green utility joggers

It really has come to something when the most exiting thing to happen by Thursday is a trip to the supermarket or a high street chemist shop, but this is how we live now. At least you can look fabulous while you’re in one of those endless, slow moving socially-distanced queues or swerving to avoid some fool who’s decided to wear his face mask as a natty chin strap. Or, if the outfit on the right looks like less bother, you might be forgiven for staying home and ordering a cheeky pizza.

OUTFIT 5: Black top + black skirt

On the left we’re serving up sexy Halloween realness that’s kinda Quarantine Morticia Addams, and on the right we are kicking back with an extra cosy outfit for Friday night in. Think of it as the little black lockdown dress (the LBLD), handy for a very relaxed version of date night, elasticated waistband stylee. Move over Sober October, I’m getting ready to go all in for Netflix November – just call me Binge-y McBoxset while we all try to make the best of it.

Then all you have to do is throw all the main garments into the wash over the weekend, and do a whole new set of combinations for the following week. Easy peasy.

The whole capsule wardrobe can be found here, if there’s anything you’d like to know more about.

Do you have a favourite outfit or combination out of the ideas shown above? Let me know.