Build a Wardrobe with 10 Basic Pieces

You wake up early, shave your legs, curl your hair, do your makeup. You go to the closet to find an outfit that will do justice to your beauty...and staring you back in the face are two dozen shirts you bought because they were on sale or they were a size smaller than you normally wear or your friends said they would look good. There are too-short jeans and faded slacks. A dress that shows your underwear lines. In short, nothing to make you look as beautiful as you know you are.

Getting out of the rut is certainly doable. Step one: purge. Get rid of everything in your closet that doesn't fit, doesn't look good, or doesn't make you excited to get dressed.

Step two: replacing your wardrobe. This is not about going shopping and finding the right mix of affordability and pretty or grabbing something off the rack because it grabs your eye. It's about finding the pieces that can mix and match and make you look good no matter how you wear them.

Neutral suit: Find the color that pairs best with your complexion, but go for something neutral - black, gray, tan, brown. Consider your clothing needs, too, to choose the right color. The benefit of a great suit is that it can be worn as business attire but can also be worn separately - the pants with a nice sweater, the jacket with jeans and a t-shirt. As you're trying the pieces on, make sure to see how they each look alone as well as together. (In other words, do the pants still look great when the jacket isn't covering up your thighs? Does the jacket fit well enough to work without the whole ensemble?)

Jeans: In some offices, dressy jeans are okay, at least on Fridays. At the very least, a good pair can see you through dinners out and game nights with friends. While you may have knock-about pairs for hikes in the woods or running to the grocery store on Saturday morning, you need at least one dressier pair to go out in while still looking casual.

Camisole: It will be pretty much impossible to make sure every shirt you buy fits you perfectly, and if you did, you would have a pretty boring wardrobe. Besides, different amounts of cleavage are appropriate for the office, church, restaurants, and other places you go. A long camisole that comes up high on your chest and cuts straight across is the best stand-by to make sure all your shirts look appropriate and lovely. If a shirt is too short and shows your stomach, the length of the cami will take care of that. If it shows under the arms or between buttons, the cami will be there as an added layer of protection. And if the neckline is too low, a cami with a straight neckline lets you still wear the shirt. Buy one in a neutral to match or in a bright color to pop.

Dress: The two standards here are comfort and color. Find a dress in a neutral or plain shade - it doesn't have to be black, but a solid color is easier to accessorize and wear over and over. And comfort should really be an overriding factor as you put together your entire wardrobe. But especially with a dress, which can so easily be too constricting. Something sleeveless that goes to about the knees would be easy to dress up or wear as a sundress, depending on the circumstances.

T-shirt: Not talking about a "My husband went to Hawaii and all I got was this stupid T-shirt" t-shirt here. A fitted, solid-color T can be worn with jeans, under a jacket, with a skirt, basically in any situation besides maybe a ballroom. The real benefit of this is it's so comfortable that even if you're dressed in a suit, you feel like you're still wearing a little piece of your pajamas to work.

Coat: This is true whether you live in Milwaukee or Malibu. But the type of coat differs. In colder climates, find something lined to do the job between summer and true winter coat weather. In warm climates, find something thin that just adds another level of visual interest to your look - and hey, air conditioned buildings can be cold too. In rainy climates, be sure to get something water-resistant that will add a little weather protection. In any climate, find something fitted with a belt that matches your size - thin belt for thin frames, thick belt for heavier frames. Consider the length, too. If you're already a short person, don't get a coat that will swallow you up; rather look for something that comes to just below waist.

Blouse: Some people say a white blouse is essential. Really, it is more important to find a color that you look and feel good in and that pairs well with your other pieces. Again, though, something solid is best because it can be teamed with print skirts or camisoles. It's a great stand-by to wear under your suit, but it can also look great with jeans, open or buttoned, or over a dress like a jacket.

A-line skirt: Bottom line, an A-line looks great on everyone. A solid is always a winner, but a print can also be a great addition to your wardrobe if you find a print that's not too crazy (i.e. that will go out of style super-fast) and that has lots of ways to pair. So a pink skirt with magenta polka dots, pretty as it may be, probably isn't the best staple to rely on because it's limited in what it will go with. A gray skirt with light blue stripes, though, would go well with many shades of tops and accessories.

Flats: These shoes, if you find the right pair, are comfortable and go with absolutely anything. You can walk distances in them, stand in them for a long time, run for the elevator, stand on a stool to reach the extra paper towels without falling over. They slip on in seconds, so they take virtually no time in your getting-ready routine. They are perfectly appropriate for important business lunches, fancy anniversary dinners, and preschool playgroups. Look for something with arch support that lets your feet move and expand as the day goes on, and you'll probably forget you're wearing shoes at all.

Bag: This is a great place to show your personality. Buy big ones, petite ones, polkadotted ones, ones with a pictures of cats, whatever. But first, find a fall-back bag for when you wear something that doesn't match any of the fun ones. This stand-by should be a moderate size and not too fancy or too casual. Think of what you actually need and use - pockets? a big compartment? built-in billfold? This should be the bag you can grab when everything took too long and you're just trying to get out of the house alive; you need something you can grab and go without thinking too much about it.

After you buy these 10 things, you've got your foundation. Accessorize with other fun pieces you spot or with jewelry to spice it up.