January 1, 2020
I finally made my scarf choices – holy handbags of happiness, THIS was a project!
But here they are – I’ll explain my choices after you’ve had a chance to look them over…
navy lion and peacock scarf – Aspinal of London; mint green “A” Floral scarf – Aspinal of London; mustard “A” Floral scarf – Aspinal of London; Earth Mandala scarf – GISY; magenta Robins scarf – Aspinal of London; shield scarf – Aspinal of London
All but 1 is from Aspinal of London. I love Hermes scarves – but these from Aspinal cost 36% of what an Hermes scarf costs! That’s a big thing for most of us, I imagine.
First up, I knew I had to include this scarf. This will be the “navy-centric” wardrobe, including that lion beige/camel color as the 2nd neutral. I suspect that there will be some rust accents in this wardrobe before the end of 2020, as well as a simple white shirt or tee shirt…
All of the outfits for this month are basic, as befits the start of a disciplined new year, and some tidily well-planned wardrobes! (knowing full well that I’m going to see something really stunning and go somewhat off the rails, eventually…)
scarf – Aspinal of London; feather earrings – Saks Fifth Avenue; cardigan – L.L.Bean; tee – J.Crew; cobalt socks – American Eagle; pants – L.L.Bean; loafers – Kenneth Cole
I’m not sure, but I may have chosen this second scarf just for the sheer prettiness of the mint green! But I’ve wanted to include a wardrobe with some denim shades, and I thought that some camel wouldn’t go amiss, either… This wardrobe is going to require some attention to the colors of our heroine’s leather goods. Hmm….
scarf – Aspinal of London
While I initially thought that I would start this wardrobe with jeans, I realized that camel garments are HARD TO FIND! and that I’d be smarter to grab these pants while they are available. That’s generally good advice if you want to include camel in your wardrobe – be prepared to strike when the iron is hot!
scarf – Aspinal of London; flower hoop earrings – Elise Tsikis; cardigan – L.L.Bean; tee shirt – Lands’ End; socks – Universal Thread; loafers – Steve Madden; camel pants – Gauge81
Why yes, it’s the same scarf! I’m going to hate myself for this, but I really wanted to work with grey and warm accent colors. Don’t be at all surprised if a touch of pink or blue sneaks into this wardrobe by mid-summer!
scarf – Aspinal of London
I’m already thinking that this could be a fascinating wardrobe…
scarf – Aspinal of England; citrine earrings – Alok Jain; washable wool cardigan – Banana Republic; tee shirt – Caslon; socks – Old Navy; suede loafers – David Tate; corduroy pants – Lands’ End
Here’s the lone scarf that’s NOT from Aspinal of London. I found this on one of my favorite accessory sites: Wolf & Badger. I know that it’s maddeningly tough to find olive most of the year, but this scarf also includes lots of tan and a darker brown…
scarf – GISY
I love the quiet simplicity of these garments, punched up with those cool earrings and really nice loafers. Red socks are options, but always fun!
scarf – GISY; unmatched geometric earrings – Contour Studio; cardigan – L.L.Bean; bright cerise tee – J.Crew; red socks – Falke; loafers – Johnston & Murphy; pants – L.L.Bean
I just wanted to look at this scarf a lot! My thought right now is that this heroine’s wardrobe is going to be mostly black and white, with a whole BUNCH of different shades of pink… I’m just mesmerized by this image – I wonder why?
Yes, cords and a silk shirt. Toss on your hard-working cashmere cardigan and you look elegantly casual. Or casually elegant. Or just really great!
Completely without intention – this bird-themed scarf outfit includes earrings from Jenny Bird, and a pair of shoes (named the Starling Loafer) from Birdies! You couldn’t script this any better!
scarf – Aspinal of London; earrings – Jenny Bird; cashmere cardigan – L.L.Bean; silk shirt – Equipment; socks – Topshop; loafers – Birdies; black corduroy pants – Lands’ End
I’m going to TRY to build a mostly warm-weather wardrobe for this last heroine. I love the classic image on this scarf, and the opportunity to bring light rust and deep terra cotta accents to a bone and black wardrobe – it should be a challenge!
Since this heroine’s not wearing accent socks, I hooked her up with perfect nail polish. Yes, her pedicure doesn’t show when she wears espadrilles, but her manicure is always visible…
scarf – Aspinal of London; mother of pearl earrings – Teressa Lane Jewelry; bone cardigan – Eileen Fisher; black sleeveless top – Halogen; espadrilles – Sam Edelman; nail polish – Chanel Le Vernis in “Particuliere”; linen pants – Vince Camuto
What do you think? Just off the top of my head, I’m afraid that the Robin Scarf is going to lure me willy-nilly into wanting to wear pink! And the last wardrobe might inspire me to finally get my warm-weather clothes into some sort of order…
I hope you like my choices!
love,
Janice
p.s. Back in 2017, we were starting this very same project, with 6 Hermes scarves…
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Love the bird scarf, and the unintentional puns. Maybe she could also get some Allbirds shoes!
Happy New Year. I’m loving this selection. I do wish you had chosen the darker cognac brown as your other neutral for the first scarf (lion and peacock). I can see wearing each and every one of these six choices. I love mustard, olive, ivory, denim. Although I don’t wear black and white, that pink blouse would make it work for sure. Such a flattering color! I’m so looking forward to this project. Thank you for your gift of creativity.
I agree! That cognac color is my go to for leather accessories.
So digging the gray and mustard! Aaaahhhhhh 😍 Happy New Year!
The robin scarf and that pink with black is going to be MINE! Happy New Year.
I love these scarves! Do you know what their measurements are? I couldn’t find anything in the description on the website….or maybe I was missing it somehow…. These are really lovely. I have purged black from my closet and switched to navy. I am quite partial to the pink “A” scarf you did not choose – it’s gorgeous! Looking forward to the rest of the year! Happy New Year!
I think they’re all 35 inch squares…
Hugs,
Janice
The Robin scarf is my favourite, although I would switch the black for charcoal grey and the white would be a silver birch colour. I would also widen the pink spectrum to include some of those lovely mulberry/plum shades. My second favourite is the Peppermint Floral scarf, although again, I would have to switch the marigold/camel colour for a rose beige (if I could find any). Great choices!
I love those mulberry and plum shades as well. I think they will go well with the lighter pink.
Those are my 2 favorites, too. I would do exactly the same as you describe with them both.
Love the mint and the pink. Can’t wait to see how the wardrobes pan out.
Happy New Year!
Great choice, there is an Aspinal in the London St Pancras station close to the Eurostar trains which will make it very satisfactory to go in and browse on my next trip in 2 months!
I love a cool colour palette, so I guess the robin scarf will be it for me or the floral peppermit, but what an option they are, so full of promise. I’m looking forward to see the next installments.
I like the looks of the new year. Love the bird-themed scarf. It’s just lovely.
I’m excited to see what inspiration these scarves will bring in the year to come.
Happy New Year, Janice!
I could use the Birds scarf as my inspiration right now, although I don’t wear white or black or pink. But the aubergine of the owl, the deep wine leaves and the rusty brown fox and deer, and the base of grey are all my colors!
I mean the Robin scarf…
I love all the scarves. I can’t wait to see what you have in store for us this year. Happy New Year!!
I am so glad you picked the Robin scarf!! Love the scarf and the colors. Looking forward to outfit choices for all of the beautiful scarves in 2020.
Oh I’m so excited to see where these go! The last one is my neutrals so I’m sure you’ll give me some great insight!
This will be tricky for me. There isn’t one scarf that speaks to me. But I love almost all the clothes and the colors you have pulled for each scarf. So it will probably be one from column A, one from B this year, with the hope that I will have chosen a coherent wardrobe at the end of the year.
Oh Janice,
You’re killing me — I LOVE all of your choices here, even though some are not my color schemes ! It should be a great year as you flesh these out — looking forward to it !
These are all gorgeous – looking forward to seeing them all unfold in 2020. Thanks for sharing your wonderful eye with us.
I always look look forward to your scarf wardrobe reveals–but this gray and golden yellow wardrobe already has me smitten. Thanks for introducing me to Aspinal of London–and the happiest of new decades to you!
Yayyyyy! I like the choices a lot … A good mix of cool and warm colour schemes. I’ll be closely following Peppermint A and Robins (another coincidence!) My own version of the A scheme would have navy and charcoal neutrals with White, mint and light blue for accents. Very happy with the clothing choices too – I just know that the clothes you add will keep my loyalty swerving from scarf to scarf all year. I hope it’s a great year for you Janice, especially health-wise and with plans for the book. And of course travel! Fingers crossed for the 18th. x
After the TWO missed trips, crossing fingers is helpful! I was a bit jinxed last year…
hugs,
Janice
“Holly handbags of happiness” 💕💞💕
This is now my most favorite expression of joy!!!
Beautiful choices once again. I look forward to seeing how the wardrobes build this year.
The strangest words live in my brain; no wonder I have insomnia sometimes!
hugs,
Janice
Ordered the Lion and Peacock. Looking forward to playing along this year. Thank you for all the great posts. Happy New Year!
What a FUN way to begin the new year! Thank you, Janice, for choosing such a wide variety of color palettes. I look forward to the first day of each month!
I GASPED when I saw the Earth Mandala scarf. Iit is exactly what I have been waiting – it has ALL of my accents and neutrals. And fortunately, there were still two left on the Wolf & Badger website so I scooped it up 🙂 Cannot wait to play along!
Love all the scarves! Not at all easy to pick a favorite. Can you please add a link for the shoes in the first set? Can not tell if they are navy or black but I love them !
Beautiful scarves, Janice! I especially like the blues in the peacock scarf and the magenta pinks in the robin scarf. I never wear pale pinks or blush tones, but those deeper pinks are in my closet!
Looks like a fun year to come with all of these lovely scarves. The Aspinal scarves are beautiful, and I love the Wolf and Badger site as well. I’m cheering for the Robin wardrobe, and the Lion (although I would also choose cognac or deep caramel as the second neutral. – nancyo
Great choices Janice!
That Robin scarf is wonderful, and it comes in other amazing colours too.
However, I see kind of more bright pinks/magenta in this beautiful scarf. Maybe that because I cannot wear muted/soft shades??!
And, I’m afraid you might not be able to resist the colour with such an amazing scarf in front of you every day:)
The robin scarf IS my wardrobe colors, including the wines and plums. I would buy it today if I weren’t on such a close budget. I will be following that one closely. I love seeing all the wardrobes as you grow them.
I’m thrilled that you’ve chosen the Peppermint scarf as I received that as a Christmas present this year. Camel is a bit warm for me, but I’ve worn it with stone coloured pants and a lilac cashmere sweater so far. I’m really looking forward to seeing how you develop it through the year. I live in Ireland, a climate you’re very familiar with, so could I ask you to please bear me in mind when working with it. Wishing you all the very best for 2020.
Sue
Sue, I could never forget Ireland for a heartbeat! Belovedest and I are planning to move there soon…
hugs,
Janice
Happy New Year and new decade! I’m looking forward to seeing your ideas for the lion and peacock, the peppermint A and the pink Robin’s. I hope you might suggest alternative neutrals to camel/beige as you develop these wardrobe choices. Hope you have a good year.
Thankfully not one scarf is a compelling purchase! I am looking forward to seeing the wardrobes evolve and “shop my closet” or maybe a thrifting project. Thanks Janice for the inspirations.
Hooray for a hot climate wardrobe! Such a good idea. This hot climate girl will be following along closely. Also, I’m happy and relieved to see a couple of outfits with dark top/light pants combinations. My giant shoulders are thankful.
I’ve been following along with these wardrobes for several years now. One of my favorite things to do is imagine who I know that would wear each palette well, and then spend the year with those people in my mind. Very fun!
Happy New Year!
I waited for this year’s selection with great anticipation, and, I am disappointed. The colors seem to be mostly muted and not suited to my “Bright, Clear, Spring” best colors.
I will enjoy watching them all unfold and perhaps select some bright blue and true red pieces, and hope for a 2021selection that will be just right for me! And all other bright springs as well…
These scarves are all mouthwatering beautiful! Just what I needed on a blah winter day contemplating my wardrobe of navy and charcoal. I am really looking forward to seeing what you do with them.
I love the first scarf, and I love the color combination of the last scarf. Looking forward to this unfolding. Thanks so much! Lise
Happy New Year! I’m looking forward to seeing how these wardrobes pan out. I still have a navy and teal wardrobe from 2016 pinned to my favourites, so of course the Lion and Peacock resonate for me!
I’m also loving the last bone and black wardrobe, with rust accents. This is going to be really interesting to see develop. You are an inspiration as usual.
They are all lovely, but I will be waiting especially eagerly for the terracotta, rust, ivory, and black additions. With the occasional teal or olive accent, that is my own wardrobe! Happy New Year, and thanks for these lovely inspirations.
Camel/tan seems to be the color of the year! Unfortunately those shades as well as black are not great for this light summer. However, looking forward to the floral peppermint evolving with denim. Maybe one of these palettes will really speak to me as they develop. Looking forward to the year!
I will be looking to see how they develop as well. Will admire from afar. Camel/tan and black are not good colors for me. Too bad, none have a navy and gray base.
What a lovely collection of scarves and colors. I am so much looking forward to seeing how they evolve. Especially the tan/black/rust combination is so in my colorrange
Thank you and all the best
These scarves are beautiful! I especially like the Lion and Peacock and the Robin scarves. Looking forward to seeing how you develop these wardrobes!
I’m so happy that you like them – it took a LONG time to make the choice!
hugs,
Janice
OOooooo, the Robin Scarf is going to be the wardrobe I’ll watch this year, I think. That’s going to be lovely!
I love the magenta robin scarf, but adore the teal version. I have loosely followed your process of building a wardrobe around it and come up with a version that I like so far. It is far from complete. However, I have a greater respect and admiration of all the work you put into these! Oh, my. You are so talented and tenacious at sifting through all the trash (need I say, skinny models wearing things 3 sizes too small) available.
Thanks, again! Happy New Year!!