15-Item Minimalist Capsule Wardrobe for Men (Fashionproof, Durable, & Smart)

A lot of people have asked me lately, if I could have one jacket, or one pair of boots, or one pair of jeans — what would I pick? These are part of the conversation about the term capsule wardrobe: a small collection of versatile clothes that would work well together in almost any combination and situation. So I thought hard and came up with one for you.

With “almost any combination” in mind, my capsule is for casual to business casual situations.

Below, I’ll run through the products I picked, some example outfits, and I’ll also give alternatives to each piece at different price points. Y’know, so that you don’t think I’m just some shill.

The Perfect Fashionproof Wardrobe in 15 Pieces

1. Raw Denim Jeans: Left Field NYC’s Greaser Fit
2. Tan Chinos: Taylor Stitch’s Foundation Chinos
3. Navy Chinos: Flint and Tinder’s 365 Chinos
4. The Basic Tees: Gustin’s Heavyweight T-Shirts
5. Long Sleeve Tee: Wonder Looper’s Double Heavyweight
6. The Dressy-If-You-Need-It-To-Be Shirt: Flint and Tinder’s Classic Oxford
7. The Chambray Button-Up: Proper Cloth’s Blue Indigo Chambray Shirt
8. The Casual Flannel: Thursday Boot Co’s Forever Flannel
9. Brown Suede Chelsea Boots: Thursday Boot Co’s Cavalier
10. Brown Tassel Loafers: Meermin’s Dark Brown Calf
11. Minimalist White Leather Sneakers: Koio’s Capri
12. Grey Crewneck Sweater: Industry of All Nations’ Alpaca Crewneck
13. Waxed Canvas Jacket: Flint and Tinder’s Flannel-Lined Waxed Trucker Jacket
14. Pea Coat: Buzz Rickson’s Pre-WWII US Navy Pea Coat
15. Leather jacket: Schott NYC’s Cafe Racer

Capsule Wardrobe Must-Haves: Versatility, Neutrality, and Durability

When you’re putting together your own wardrobe, you want three things: versatility, neutrality, and durability.

Versatility is key; I choose clothes that work in casual, smart casual, and even business casual situations.

Neutrality is another important element for easily mixing and matching your capsule wardrobe. I went with warm tones like cream, tan, brown, and green, but you could do cooler tones like black, grey, and burgundy. Blue and white work with either color palette.

Durability is an overlooked component. There are two things I mean here: well made clothes that won’t wear out, and classic looks that won’t go out of style. (I guess that’s a kind of durability and versatility.)

If you keep all of this in mind, you’ll have a capsule wardrobe you won’t need to refresh for years.

What is a Capsule Wardrobe?

Capsule wardrobe: a small collection of clothes that work well together in almost any combination.

With these 15 items, you’re set for just about every occasion (except formal) and all four seasons (though we left out shorts or sandals looks). There are enough combinations that you won’t repeat outfits too frequently.

3 x Pants: Jeans and Two Chinos

• Dark wash blue jeans go with everything on this list; opt for a straight leg fit to always be on trend.
• Chinos, one navy and one tan, work for casual to business casual situations.

Dark blue jeans made of raw denim — that means they haven’t been pre-faded — remain the king of casual pants.

I like the extra durability of selvedge denim. My current favorites are the Greaser Fit from Left Field NYC in Queens, New York, but there are cheaper alternatives at Naked & Famous, Brave Star, and Uniqlo.

Get them in a straight leg fit and you’ll never look like you’re chasing trends — plus they’ll work well with all three types of footwear I’ll show you later.

I’m recommending two pairs of chinos for versatile anywhere pants: while they technically have origins as casual military trousers, today they can be easily worn in business casual situations as well.

I picked a stretch and non-stretch option: Flint & Tinder’s 365 Chino in navy for a great stretch option, and Taylor Stitch’s Espresso Foundation Chinos for a sturdy, 100% cotton pick.

That Espresso color is right between brown and grey; not so brown that it looks like it’s from the 70s, not so grey that you can’t wear it with earth tones, and not so khaki that it looks preppy. (Though I’d just as happily suggest some classic khakis for the non-blue pants here.)

These are good value chinos, but solid alternatives are Buck Mason’s Paperback Twill for a more vintage, full legged fit, or check out J Crew’s Chinos for a huge array of fits for under a hundred bucks.

3 x Shirts: Button Up, Button Down, and a Flannel Shirt

• An Oxford cloth button-down and a chambray button-up are very versatile
• A heavy flannel for a casual patterned shirt.

I went with three materials for button-up shirts: chambray, Oxford cloth, and flannel. The first two look just as great worn casually with jeans or tucked into chinos for a smarter look — especially if combined with dressier footwear.

Chambray is my favorite material because it’s both durable and super versatile: it was originally used for workwear shirts as it’s not entirely dissimilar from denim, but the fact that it’s a plain weave fabric frees it from denim’s cultural baggage and makes for a textured shirt that can look surprisingly smart with chinos and loafers. I got mine from Proper Cloth, which makes really inexpensive made-to-measure clothes. For something a little cheaper see the chambray from Huckberry or Alex Mill.

But the most versatile shirt is the Oxford cloth button down, which I consider “the chino of shirts”: it can dress up to business casual or be right at home with sneakers.

To be honest, given you should always opt for blue for chambray, I should have gone with a white or an olive colored Oxford shirt. Those colors would work just as well with everything else here! Flint & Tinder might sell the best value Americana right now, but for a slimmer fit check out Taylor Stitch’s Jack shirt.

Meanwhile, it’s nice to have a cozy shirt that’s firmly casual, so I picked a good heavy flannel from Thursday Boot Company. It’s thick enough to wear as an overshirt but not so heavy you can’t wear it on its own. Thursday offers terrific value, but other good options for burly flannel are Pendleton’s Burnside and LL Bean’s 1912 Flannel.

3 x T-Shirts: Long Sleeve and Short Sleeve

• One white and one blue t-shirt will work with anything
• A cream long-sleeved tee is great for cooler weather

For t-shirts, I have a hefty white and a blue one from an American brand called Gustin. They come in a three-pack of white, navy, and black.

I also wear long-sleeve tees a lot, and my favorite at the moment is from Wonder Looper. It’s unbleached cotton, so it’s a versatile cream color. It’s a small brand that’s often sold out, though — I have a few heavyweight long sleeves from Gustin that I like as well.

1 x Crewneck Sweater

• Great for colder weather, and you can wear it for just about any occasion except formal attire.

I’m also tossing in a sweater for versatility and layering. I recommend pullovers instead of hoodies, which just cannot be dressed up. While it’s not as “earth toned” as everything else here, I like this light grey sweater from Taylor Stitch made of yak hair, but they discontinued it. Hey, now you know that I wear stuff even if I can’t promote it!

A great sweater for a capsule wardrobe is midweight, warm, and not too textured — this way it’s more versatile. For something that’s warm but not too bulky look for baby yak, cashmere, or alpaca — I’m a fan of Industry of All Nations because their colors come from the alpaca’s own hair, not dyes. Wills also sells a cashmere sweater that’s a little cheaper.

2 x Outerwear: Canvas Jacket and Wool Peacoat

• A casual waxed canvas jacket looks badass and keeps you dry in light rain
• A pea coat adds a bit of class to super casual outfits without looking out of place with smart casual or business casual outfits

Now, there are two outerwear pieces that I always recommend, and I think they will cover you in just about any situation.

The first is the Flannel Lined Waxed Trucker Jacket from Flint and Tinder. It’s very casual, but I like that it’s cheaper yet more abrasion resistant than leather, plus it’s a tough cotton jacket you can wear with jeans without doing double denim. Slightly cheaper waxed jackets can be found at Thursday Boot Co. and Iron and Resin.

For colder weather, I don’t think anything tops a navy pea coat. It looks just as good with a t-shirt as it does with a smart button down. Buzz Rickson’s makes a surprisingly inexpensive one made in Japan out of 36-ounce Melton wool: it’s an exact replica of a pre-World War 2 jacket worn by the US Navy.

Almost every brand makes a pea coat. But the only other ones I’ve seen that are this warm at this price or less are on eBay, where you can still buy literal pea coats from the World Wars that are still kicking just fine. You’ll probably have to replace the lining, but it still winds up an inexpensive buy.

3 x Pairs of Footwear

• Minimalist white leather sneakers are surprisingly versatile
• Brown suede Chelseas are my pick for most versatile boots
• Brown tassel loafers are the dark horse for footwear, working great dressed down with a t-shirt all the way up to a tie

Onto footwear, I have three recommendations: Chelsea boots, white leather sneakers, and tassel loafers.

Every guy needs a good pair of boots, and Thursday Boot Co currently offers the best balance of value, versatility, and durability. My pick for the most versatile boot from the most versatile brand is their brown suede Chelsea boot called the Cavalier.

You also want some sneakers that don’t make you look like a teenager. Opt for the minimalist, low profile kind in white leather — there’s almost no way to wear these wrong.

I really like Koio’s Capri for the brand’s emphasis on sustainability, but Thursday also sells an identical leather sneaker for half the price.

Lastly, I think a brown tassel loafer is the perfect option for shoes that can work with a suit as easily as with a t-shirt. Stick to smooth brown leather over suede if you want the option to dress up your loafers.

Meermin Mallorca has the best value in the game, but for something a little sturdier you can check out the dressier J. Fitzpatrick or the more versatile Grant Stone.

Capsule Wardrobe Outfits

You should really watch the YouTube video of this article to see me plow through dozens of possible outfits — it took me all god damn day to shoot — but below I’ll give you a few choice fits starting from dressy and winding up more casual.

Business Casual Outfits

• Navy or tan chinos
• Blue chambray button-up or any Oxford cloth button-down.
• Brown tassel loafers (smooth leather)
• Tuck your shirt in and wear a belt

For our business casual capsule outfit, I wear dark navy or tan chinos; I don’t wear jeans. I’ll add an Oxford cloth button-down (toss on a tie if you’re feeling it) or a chambray button-up, so long as it doesn’t have safari style workwear pockets. If you want something a bit warmer, you can throw on the crewneck sweater.

The best option for footwear is leather tassel loafers, but suede Chelsea boots can work fine if you’re not wearing a tie. It’s important to note that different offices have different standards for biz casual and they might not love your suede boots. But white sneakers, as great as they are, can’t be worn business casual!

Also, avoid T-shirts, loud patterns, flannels, and workwear fabrics like denim and canvas.

For bonus points, you can buy a used tweed sport coat on eBay for under $100 and have it altered. Tweed is super durable and every Dad is selling his sport jacket there; I got four off eBay myself.

Smart Casual Outfit

• Pea coats and sweaters
• Oxford cloth button-down or chambray
• Suede Chelsea boots, tassel loafers, or white leather sneakers
• Chinos, no jeans

There is a lot of overlap between business casual and smart casual. It’s true that most smart casual dress codes will allow well fitting, dark blue jeans, but I stick to chinos just in case jeans are considered too casual.

The main difference with smart casual is that suede and minimalist leather sneakers are allowed, and you can safely untuck your shirt if you so choose.

But if it’s smart casual you should avoid t-shirts, and it’s possible that your flannel won’t be welcome — like denim and canvas, flannel does have its origins as workwear, after all.

You’ve still got tons of options from your capsule wardrobe here: chambray and oxford shirt, both chinos, and any of the footwear options.

Casual Outfit

• Almost everything we’ve listed can be worn casually
• Jeans, sneakers, flannels, canvas, t-shirts, and suede all lean more heavily in the casual direction

Pair raw denim jeans and a t-shirt with Goodyear welted Chelseas, tassel loafers, or leather sneakers for a great-looking but casual outfit. An untucked Oxford cloth button-down or a chambray button-up becomes plenty casual when paired with jeans or a waxed jacket.

Casual doesn’t mean ill-fitting, make sure your clothes fit properly so you look intentionally put together.

Minimalist Outfit

• Solid colors, no patterns or contrast stitching
• You really can’t go wrong with chinos
• Definitely no logos
• Minimalist white sneakers and suede Chelsea boots work best

Although the term minimalist is bordering on overused to the point of being meaningless, we are still going to run with it here.

The goal is to look presentable without flair. Minimalist, low profile leather sneakers are a staple here, but brown Chelseas also work. The key to minimalism is to avoid unnecessary ornamentation or patterns — and definitely no logos on your shirts.

Workwear Outfit

• Durable workwear fabrics add very casual vibe to your outfits
• Boots are the best footwear
• You can tuck a chambray shirt into chinos and elevate casual to smart casual

It’s amazing how fabrics change the entire orientation of an outfit: denim, canvas, leather, flannel, and chambray are all classic workwear fabrics. You can mix and match them without worry. Remember that these all lean casual, especially when you double or triple them.

That said, tan chinos, Chelsea boots, and a chambray button-up can lean smart casual, especially if you tuck in your shirt and wear a belt.

Bonus Tips

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations. I’ll give you three bonus tips.

1. You can swap the colors of the boots and the jacket (so it’s a brown canvas jacket and tan boots) and just about everything else here still works out
2. I’m almost never without this leather messenger bag from Indonesia’s Cravar, a really cool small brand.
3. If it’s not cold enough for that pea coat, a brown leather jacket like Schott NYC’s Cafe Racer, which I’m wearing in the pic below, goes with just about everything here as well — except the loafers.

Wrapping Up

There you have it: the cheat code to hundreds of combinations through 15 easy-to-acquire items to make the “ultimate” men’s capsule wardrobe. If you want more tricks and tips for buying durable casual menswear, subscribe to our YouTube channel.