Minimalist Edge

Why white might not be the best color for a minimalist wardrobe

May 18, 2020

DISCLAIMER: This post contains affiliates links, while they certainly help me they also allow me to provide you with practical examples without having to worry about copyright, please don’t buy anything you don’t need, don’t love or can’t afford.

White shirt with a question mark

What? Dude what can be more minimalist than a pure white shirt?

Yes, I know what you’re thinking, bear with me though.

Think about it, what is your goal in applying minimalist to your wardrobe? In my case it was mostly about not having items holding me down and taking up mental energy so I can focus on more important things in my life.

And there lies my main problem with white, it’s just not very practical.

Think about it how long do your white T-shirts last you? If you are like me very rarely more than a year.

Why is that? Because gets dirty very fast and very easily, and white clothing goes from looking clean and fresh to dirty and sloppy very fast.

We instinctively know this and is probably why we feel extra cautious about spilling our coffee when wearing white, but really, doesn’t this completely defeat our purpose? Wasn’t the goal to switch mental energy from our wardrobe to more important areas of our lives? So why are we doing this to ourselves?

All these problems are even worse in the case of white pants, jeans, or shorts, which with catch dirt insanely easy, and you better pray it doesn’t rain since a puddle can completely ruin your item.

OK, dude, I get your point, but white is so versatile, what alternatives do I have?

I had great success with various shade of greys for tops. They tend still to be very versatile while being a lot more forgiving to a little bit of dirt and other life’s inconveniences. Here are a few examples:

So is there anywhere where you think white is still worth it?

Well, glad you asked, yes there is.

Leather white sneakers are the most versatile shoe wear out there bar none, plus they can afford to get a little dirty without looking like sh*t, and indeed actually look a little better when they are less pristine in some casual outfits, they also tend to be decently durable, but there are still white, I go through a pair about every year, I haven’t found significant durability differences between brands and price points as long as you’re not going low end. You really can’t go wrong with Stan Smith’s since they are a classic

White straps can make your outfit pop and are relatively easy to clean.

I hope this article helps you. I wasted way too much time and money trying to make white work so you don’t have to. Hopefully.


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