I am an engineer so I don't have to dress very professionally most of the time. I also prefer to mostly buy more ethical clothing, but have had really hit or miss luck thrift store shopping, plus I hate the chaos and overstimulation at mine.
Here are the key items I wear in my "capsule (working on it...)" wardrobe:
2 pairs jeans in different wash colors, Democracy, bought for $40 ea at Nordstrom Rack. Will switch to Everlane when these are no longer wearable
1 pair splurge pants from Everlane, black, that I wear anytime I have to be professional/fancy ($78). Could find cheaper secondhand online?
1 pair black Columbia pants bought at REI, don't remember price but used 20% coupon and dividend. Quick dry, my go-to for travel
3 tops bought at Banana Republic Outlet, $14-$22 ea, solids/classic design for longer lifespan
2 Royal Robbins short sleeve tops bought at REI on sale, ~$20 ea, usually closer to $50?
1 Carve Designs top (another splurge last year. LOVE and wear every time it is clean), bought at REI, was over $40
3 tops from my Stitch Fix (pre-MMM) days that I absolutely LOVE, although I don't remember the brands, $30-$50 each
1 top from Tentree (constellation shirt, wearing today, LOVE), $38, bought earlier this year when I fell off the "no unnecessary clothing" attempt
1 3/4 sleeve top, Toad & Co, bought from REI, don't remember price, looks nicer/less casual than most of my clothing
1 heavier button down sweater from L.L.Bean, grey, can be worn with everything
1 old black button cardigan from the Gap which I've had for probably 15 years...may be time to retire it because it's in pretty rough shape
1 grey sweater from Athleta, picked up on clearance for about $30.
1 long sleeve nice Banana Republic Outlet top; don't remember what it cost because I've had it several years now.
1 black wrap cardigan from Pact, may take over for the old black cardigan that should be retired
3-4 tops I bought several years ago from ModCloth. I wouldn't buy from them again; mediocre quality, but I still wear the items I have. Various brands.
That's most of what I wear, along with a couple cheap tops I still have from Target. I find the Target stuff doesn't hold up that well, except for a couple black tops I still wear. I am in the process of whittling down my closet and only keeping things I REALLY love. I'm adopting the "I won't buy it unless I would be willing to pay full price" attitude, although I still try to find a good deal. I'm trying to wear more clothing that is of a higher quality/lower environmental impact. Most of what I wear is black, grey, which a few jewel tones in there. Reducing my color palette really helped me to put together more of a "capsule" wardrobe. Now I need to go through and get rid of the things I just don't wear anymore.
Going forward I'll stick with:
Everlane (expensive but I'm finding more secondhand, will look at secondhand first)
multiple brands carried by REI (Carve, Columbia, Royal Robbins, Patagonia)
occasional "fast" fashion from Banana Republic Outlet, but rarely