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Home » How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe with a Backbone – Start with Art: Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe with a Backbone – Start with Art: Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney

February 14, 2017

I’m long overdue to make something clear – your choice of wardrobe inspiration does NOT have to be some work of fine art, nor some fabulous creature from nature. If you’re inspired by a work of art that’s frankly commercial and designed simply to be pleasant and decorative, you should apologize to NOBODY!

For example, someone brought this artist to my attention:

Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney

Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney

This painting is very romantic, which is perfect for today, and it brings to us a delightful color scheme:

Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney with style notes and color palette

This is a great scheme if you sometimes want a dash of bright color in your outfit, but if you also want to have the option of wearing shades of grey. Let’s see how that actually works when I put real clothes into the backbone template we built last week…

blank template for a Wardrobe with a Backbone

I’m starting with many of the same pieces that you’ve seen before in the prior wardrobe, but I’m shifting the overall wardrobe just a touch more dressy, by removing the shorts and adding in a 2nd skirt. I love a nice pleated skirt…

5 grey garments to form a Wardrobe Backbone

pencil skirt – J. Crew; jeans – L.L.Bean; dress pants – J. Crew; capris – L.L.Bean; pleated skirt – Marks & Spencer

 

Let’s start by finding four tops that correspond with the four “color” colors in the palette:

four accent color blouses and sweaters

Blue top – Lands’ End; red top – Lands’ End; yellow blouse – Max Mara; green sweater – Kettlewell

 

To fill in the other side of the template, let’s stick with shades of grey and white, including that workhorse cardigan and it’s matching sweater:

four sweaters and tee shirts in grey and white

Grey cardigan – Lands’ End; short sleeve sweater – Lands’ End;

 

Striped tee – J. Crew Factory; white tee – L.L.Bean

 

The template clearly has two distinctively different sides to it now, doesn’t it?

a Whatever's Clean template with a Wardrobe Backbone, in grey and brights

As always, let’s pull together some outfits, just to ensure that we’ve not gone astray in our choice of garments:

three ways to wear a charcoal grey pencil skirt
three ways to wear a charcoal grey pleated skirt
three ways to wear charcoal grey dress pants
three ways to wear charcoal grey jeans
three ways to wear charcoal grey capris or cropped pants

Just to make sure that you’re absolutely clear on this – your favorite painting doesn’t have to be in the Louvre, your favorite color scheme doesn’t have to be taken from some rare, endangered exotic bird, and you don’t have to explain the things that move you to ANYBODY. “Chacun à son goût” (each to is own taste), as the French would so wisely say.

Tomorrow I’m doing the accessories – just wait ’til you see some of the beauties I’ve found!

love,
Janice

PS – For other planning tools, including the latest Pantone Color Planner, check out the Planning Documents section of the website.

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe with a Backbone - Start with Art: Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney

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02.14.17 23 Comments

Tags: brights, grey, Start with Art, Wardrobe Backbone, Whatever's Clean
<<How to Accessorize a Capsule Wardrobe: Head by Pablo PicassoHow to Pick Accessories for a Grey-Based Wardrobe – Start With Art: Paris Dreaming by Peter Rumney>>

Comments

  1. Jazz says

    February 14, 2017 at 9:02 am

    Lover of colour that I am, I find myself strongly drawn to your capsules that include 3 or 4 accent colours like this one.

    Reply
  2. Zaidie Brown says

    February 14, 2017 at 11:02 am

    My wardrobe scheme is drawn from the film The Labyrinth (the David Bowie one). No one realises, just as they wouldn't if it were a more high brow inspiration.

    It also has to pass my "style statement test". I've been influenced a lot by this blog!

    Reply
    • Anne in MN says

      February 14, 2017 at 2:37 pm

      Is it glittery? I love that movie so very much and it always astounds me every time I watch just how much everything glitters. Happy to see another Labyrinth lover out there!

      Reply
    • Zaidie Brown says

      February 15, 2017 at 8:17 pm

      Some diamanté, some lace and some pearls but mostly layers and comfortable clothes. It wasn't until I realised I was wearing a "Sarah" outfit a lot and had another outfit in the worm colours that I gave in and embraced my favourite. Oddly enough I no longer get wardrobe boredom and feel well put together. Just needed the right inspiration as I'd tried and failed with building wardrobes using Janice's guidelines before.

      Reply
  3. cheryl :) says

    February 14, 2017 at 12:19 pm

    Love the fun painting and love the great pops of color in this wardrobe! Happy Valentine's Day Everyone. :)

    Reply
  4. Cheryl K says

    February 14, 2017 at 12:51 pm

    About that inspiration – I have a much smaller budget than you, well your pictures anyway. My capsule inspiration was a scarf from Old Navy. (a year ago) The scarf has Olive, blush, wine and off white stripes. I added navy to add my jeans. It's been a year and there are enough colors and I have enough pieces that I still love it. (Although I may pull out some old red stuff today since it is Valentine's.)

    Reply
  5. Virginia says

    February 14, 2017 at 1:31 pm

    Some of my favorite pieces of "art" have been greeting cards. Beauty is where you find it.

    Reply
  6. Lesley says

    February 14, 2017 at 1:54 pm

    My current inspiration is a knitting project using a multi-color yarn (teal, greens, browns, grays and orange-yellow; Noro silk garden sock 360 for any knitters out there). When finished I'd like to see what you, Janice, would do with it.

    Reply
  7. Throckmorzog says

    February 14, 2017 at 1:58 pm

    Decades ago my mother made me a quilt from all my baby and toddler clothes, and I still look good in those colours…it's wonderful to sleep in clolours that I look good and feel confident in. Somehow, I never thought to use it as color inspiration for my clothing choices. Such a simple, but important, piece of advice: Chacun à son got, wherever you find it. : )

    Looking forward to the accessories for this wardrobe!

    Looking forward to the accessories choices!

    Reply
  8. Nancy/n.o.e says

    February 14, 2017 at 3:55 pm

    This couldn't be more timely, as I am putting together a travel wardrobe for this week(!) using a strong core of gray. Because of bad feet, I usually start my capsules from the ground up, literally, by choosing my shoes first. I recently bought a pair of gray Munro oxford shoes that you featured a few weeks ago, and I am excited to pack them for this trip! – nancyo

    Reply
    • Janice Riggs says

      February 14, 2017 at 4:16 pm

      I adore my Munro short boots so much that I really go out of my way to show their shoes on The Vivienne Files. Those oxfords call my name SO MUCH…. (discipline, discipline…)
      hugs,
      Janice

      Reply
    • Nancy/n.o.e says

      February 14, 2017 at 4:44 pm

      The oxfords are really wonderful. And Munro's range of sizes/widths indicate that it might be a new perfect brand for me. My checkbook is not thrilled but my feet are, lol. – nancyo

      Reply
    • Janice Riggs says

      February 14, 2017 at 4:58 pm

      Agreed, but I'd rather have 3 or 4 pair of perfect shoes than a huge closet full of things that aren't comfortable and are of poor quality. I'm starting to think really hard about a six-pair shoe wardrobe…
      hugs,
      J

      Reply
    • Lena says

      February 14, 2017 at 11:44 pm

      Please keep thinking about the shoe wardrobe. I'd be thrilled if I could settle on a dozen pairs of quality footwear. I have the space and the number fits well with the 12 months / 12 outfits plan I am following along with this year.

      I also really like it when you do wardrobes with 3 or more accent colors!

      Reply
    • Amy says

      February 15, 2017 at 6:56 am

      Nancy, I have to plan around my shoes too. The Abeo brand from The Walking Company has been a lifesaver.

      Reply
  9. Annalisa Walker says

    February 14, 2017 at 11:15 am

    Your blog is my favorite and this post in particular just gave me some great ideas!

    Reply
  10. Janice says

    February 14, 2017 at 5:17 pm

    Yes inspiration can come from
    Anywhere. My inspiration for winter is a lovely brown, tan, teal, turquoise, navy and olive printed Peruvian alpaca cardigan I rarely wear as I'm allergic to wool, but it totally inspires my winter wardrobe. For summer I refer to a lovely seascape photograph with tans, blues, aqua and deep blue ( navy), and touches of light gold/yellow and peach. It is so calming that I wanted my wardrobe to have the same affect on me. Janice Collins, Washington DC

    Reply
  11. Maurita says

    February 14, 2017 at 11:10 pm

    I love this series! And … shoes. I seem to have Birkenstock shaped FEET … and have spent the last decade wearing clogs and sandals because they're the only things that are comfortable. But today I have a new pair of Birkenstock SHOES – Arran model – black leather sneakers with the original footbed inside, and nice roomy toes. So now that I have lace-up shoes, clogs, and sandals, I'm ready to make a 13-piece travel wardrobe for spring in Budapest/Vienna/Nuremberg.

    Reply
  12. Angela says

    February 14, 2017 at 10:30 pm

    How do we send you suggestions? I enjoy your blog so much and see that sometimes you work with reader's suggestions. I recently found myself in possession of a splurgy tote that cries out for a wardrobe… :)

    Reply
    • Janice Riggs says

      February 15, 2017 at 12:02 am

      Write to me at [email protected] – I'll put your idea into the pile!
      hugs,
      Janice

      Reply
  13. Amy says

    February 15, 2017 at 7:02 am

    I'm leaving on a weeklong trip to the Azores on Thursday. I have that short sleeved gray Land's End sweater with a different cardigan. I might have to consider packing those 2 pieces now.

    Reply
  14. Anonymous says

    February 15, 2017 at 11:07 am

    Janice, these are gorgeous colours! And the scarves… I love them! This makes me want to take all my clothes out and make them into whatever's clean thirteens just for the fun of it :-)
    Thank you so much for this post and all of the others past and future.
    Helen

    Reply
  15. Catherine p says

    February 16, 2017 at 2:23 pm

    Really love this wardrobe with its great pops of color!

    Reply

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The Vivienne Files is a unique personal style blog with carefully-selected capsule wardrobes based on color palettes drawn from works of art, nature, and more. It helps women buy less clothing, and to love what they buy. Read more...
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