This article was originally published in the column A Glass Half Full at angelmansyndromenews.com.
Time is something we don’t get back. However, I’m always looking for ideas to free up extra minutes in my day. As a caregiver to my 13-year-old Angel, Juliana, my goal is to offset those responsibilities by keeping other areas of my life simple. Surprisingly, something as odd as a capsule wardrobe saves me a lot of time and effort.
A capsule wardrobe is a way of dressing that involves fewer, key pieces of clothing. The whole movement is based on the fact that we wear about 20% of what’s in our closet 80% of the time. The goal of the capsule is to simply pare down to that 20% and wear it.
I’m a queen at cutting corners. Whether it’s using delivery services, organizing my house, or living a minimalist lifestyle, I believe in the mantra that “less is more.” My life is full enough as I juggle the ups and downs of Angelman syndrome. So when I can make a task less complicated, I do.
Many years ago, I decided to try a capsule wardrobe. I stumbled upon the concept after reading a few blogs. I don’t think there was a big “aha!” moment that led me down this path; I simply wanted to get dressed quickly and easily. When you’re taking care of someone else, necessities like getting your 13-year-old Angel dressed chip away at getting out of the house on time. I knew I could make the process easier.
Wear this, not that
Juliana knows her body parts and is quite competent in assisting with her daily dressing. I select her clothes the night before and get everything else ready that she needs. This collection includes her lunch, which adheres to her low-fructose diet. Although her diet is not as restrictive as ketogenic eating for seizure control, it has little processed food and requires more prep.
After handling Juliana’s needs, I’m pooped when it’s time to plan for my day. I don’t want to spend a lot of time figuring out what to wear. Consequently, I’d rather not waste the little free time I have on sorting clothes or shopping. That’s no offense to all the fashionistas who love shopping and assembling the perfect outfit. I have a dear friend who shops when she wants to relax. But for me, respite is reading or doing absolutely nothing.
When a capsule wardrobe is no longer a hot trend, I’ll have no plans to abandon it. It’s been much too good for me. On top of that, the time and energy I’d lose simply wouldn’t be worth it.
