Tessa Faye O’Connell is a contributor known for her work at various fashion houses, specializing in media and public relations, currently working at Coach as its global PR director. She’s a mom of two, working to expand her influence in the fashion space through styling while also just making it out the door on time.
When tasked with creating a basic capsule wardrobe to talk about, I was overwhelmed, thinking, How could I possibly fit everything needed into one neat write-up? That was until I realized that wasn’t the point—the point was to have a base of pieces that could mix and match with all things in your closet as the foundation for getting dressed. Sometimes you just need an anchor item to pull something together, no matter the season. There are pieces that I’ve invested in and now rely on that always serve me.
And the bonus is they almost all mix and match with each other or can be layered with other pieces in my closet or new ones that I bring in. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize that’s the key question I ask myself when shopping: Does it fit with the foundation of what you already own so you’ll actually wear it? I’m not saying I don’t love something fun, but I like to make sure I’ll actually wear it within the foundations of my wardrobe.
These pieces make the outfit formula easy so that if I’m in a rush (four days out of five I am), I can always come back to them and rely on them.
Leather Outerwear
It works when you want to dress up, dress down, or layer over something. I’ve been wearing black but eyeing chocolate leather styles to soften items.
Reformation
Veda Sutton Jacket
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