Remember, her original wardrobe inspiration was this:
After a few weeks of settling in, she had met new friends and discovered a new routine of activities, interspersed with delightful leisure… And she realized that her love of wearing jeans was a reflection of her need for relaxation, which was now being fulfilled! So she decided to invest in a few new ensembles, to give herself a few more wardrobe options.
Her new home was a perfect combination of urban and rural: street lights on poles in the front, fireflies among trees in the back; city water in the front, a natural spring (far) in the back; mail delivery in the front, owls in the back.
So she like the idea of nice clothes that would show her affinity for nature, for green, for floral and leafy, while still being eminently appropriate for all her new activities.
Her first shopping foray resulted in this:
pants – Simply Be; ballet flats – Me Too;
cardigan – Tory Burch; navy tee – L.L.Bean
She realized when she got home that she’d gone a bit bright, and bit “printy,” but when she pulled her new pieces into her existing closet, she was delighted!
She lived with her new things for a while, wore them all frequently, and was quite happy. But she still felt the allure of denim… And then she realized – denim doesn’t HAVE to be blue! So her next shopping trip was started with a clear goal, and then lots of latitude to build around that central pair of jeans.
jeans – J. Crew; lace tee – Oasis;
flower earrings – Lauren by Ralph Lauren; cardigan – Tommy Hilfiger
And just as she had realized that jeans don’t have to be blue, neither does a tee shirt have to be a plain knit fabric. A tee shirt with flowers woven in!
The weather began to warm up, and she decided that her next shopping foray would be for shorts – not too short! Her ratio of 2 tops to each bottom was working well, so she planned to stick with that. And another little touch of the floral? Why not?
earrings – Orchard Jewelry; scarf – Mosaic;
print tee – Ojai Clothing; sandals – Birkenstock
She is so contented, in so many ways…
Now, in mid-summer, this is her overall wardrobe. She’s ready for anything, and she loves everything she owns. For her, it’s the perfect wardrobe:
love,
Janice
Your woven-floral T makes me think of the documentary "Dior and I" where Raf Simons wants a Sterling Ruby artwork woven into the fabric rather than printed on top of it, arguing that creating the fabric with the design gives it a depth that it can't achieve by just stamping the print on top.
It's a great documentary, BTW.
So true. Materials production methods matter so much in the final result and this documentary is as almost as much fun as a visit to a textile museum.
A really lovely and quite eclectic wardrobe! Thank you and Happy Easter for Sunday…. Chris Australia. X
Hello Janet,
I have been following your blog for several years. I have redone my wardrobe in colors the colors pearl gray, black, white and accents of lapis and red. I always have something to wear.
A suggestion for you as a way of thanking you for your postings: Would it be possible to put the link for the garment on the garment instead of below in the text? It would be so much easier to click on a garment, than trying to find the correct item and the link?
Mmm mmm mm. Swap out the floral tops and solid bottoms for solid tops and floral bottoms, switch to a duskier pair of sneakers and birks and I am in summer heaven! The green capris outfit and the lace tee/white jeans outfit suit me like nobody's business.
Not for everyone – this wardrobe would probably look a little "retirement community" in the glamour of a major city…but for those of us who live out in the countryside where canoeing and horseback riding are more the norm than museum hopping, it is a delightful set of options to dress appropriately for an active lifestyle and still feel put together and feminine. So much yes.
Sue G
You might be surprised, at least in Chicago, which is SUPER Midwestern, these would all be great. New York, not so much… and Paris, who could guess? With the right attitude, you could wear ANYTHING there….
hugs,
Janice
Stunning! Thank you for all the ongoing inspiration!
Janice,
While I would not wear most of the patterned tops with the patterned toppers, I love the variety that it introduces, which gives me a sense of completeness, if that makes any sense. All bases are covered with both solids and patterns, colors and neutrals ! Variety should be my middle name ( it isn't ) !
Proving once again that you are a genius!
yes, you are genius. I also love fiction because we can design the story however we like. You have put together a very special grouping here. maybe our heroine decides to have a part time job in a lovely local art gallery and needs a few dressier options………
A neat addition to the story, Deb. Perhaps our heroine will be another Chris Wadsworth.
Robyn in Tasmania
Oh Deb from Vancouver, that's a really neat idea to explore.
Second!
One more thought — I also appreciate seeing that not everything has to go together, there could be some — ahem — very interesting print combos in this grouping !
I second Shrebee! I like the variety of the prints and patterns. The gray and white graphic sweater, for instance, a gives a totally different impression from the floral cardigan — so our heroine isn't always "the floral lady." Some days all solids, some days all one color, some days floral, some days graphic, some days stirped… it's a relatively small wardrobe with a lot of looks. I have learned a lot from following these!
Fabulous!
This is gorgeous! I'm so glad you continued her story! I'm sure she needs to attend all kinds of events in the future! 🙂 That Tommy cardigan is fabulous! Some really great options here.