Decluttering toward a capsule is different from decluttering in general, because the test is not "do I like this" but "does this combine".
The test is combination, not affection
A garment you love that goes with nothing is not a capsule piece. It can stay in the wardrobe, but it is outside the system.
Remove the palette outliers first
The fastest improvement comes from removing the two or three colours that fight everything else, not from reducing volume.
Count before and after
Outfits per piece is the number that should improve. If it does not, you removed the wrong things.
The pass
The pass
- Identify your two or three base neutrals from what you actually wear
- Pull everything outside that palette into one pile
- From that pile, keep only pieces that combine with three or more things
- Count tops times bottoms before and after
- Box the outliers rather than removing them permanently
- Note which combinations failed and what would fix them