December 27, 2021
Now that we’ve all survived the extravagance and jollity of the early winter holidays, it’s time to remind ourselves that – most of the time – we need some practical, neutral clothes to serve as the base for our more wonderful and distinctive things…
I suspect that many of us got sweaters for Christmas or Hanukkah… (yes, a sweater you buy yourself is still a gift!)
If you’re trying to find an easy way to wear your new sweater, how about layered over a neutral column?
Charcoal heather turtleneck – Lands’ End; earrings – Chan Luu; charcoal knit corduroy pants – Lands’ End; scarf – Tasha; sweater vest – 1.State; loafers – Bella Vita
This is also a good way to bring a new scarf into an outfit in a way that really emphasizes the color(s) and pattern of the scarf!
Think about what fabric you want, and what cut. Do you want a more lightweight turtleneck? All natural fabric or a bit of stretch? Maybe you prefer moc turtlenecks? And some of us are going to want to stick with tee shirts, no matter what!
I like these:
A sweater with a pattern you’re not used to can be tamed considerably with a dark neutral column under it, and an accent solid scarf over it!
Navy turtleneck – Lands’ End; rose gold stud earrings – Ross-Simons; navy knit cords – L.L.Bean; pink cashmere scarf – Nordstrom; cashmere Fair Isle hoodie – J.Crew; loafers – Marc Joseph
That dress that you couldn’t resist for a holiday party at home can be worn in more than 1 way… I know this particular heroine wore an ivory turtleneck last week (with reindeer earrings!), this week it’s navy, and I have every reason to believe that she’s going to find a ruby turtleneck next week! Why not find a few ways to wear something?
Dress – Lands’ End; earrings – Eliou; navy turtleneck – Lands’ End; ivory cashmere scarf – Nordstrom; boots – Munro
If you’re unsure what to wear with your favorite neutral, off-white, ivory or bone are all good choices – they go with everything!
Forest moss turtleneck – Lands’ End; earrings – Candela Jewelry; knit corduroy pants – Lands’ End; heather muslin cashmere sweater – J.Crew; scarf – PJ Studio Accessories; loafers – Munro
Black and white has lots of possibilities… The shoes are NOT to be missed!
Black marl sweater – Nordstrom; earrings – Petit Moments; turtleneck – L.L.Bean; ponte knit pants – Liverpool; scarf – Topshop; oxfords – Thierry Rabotin
And if your “dark” neutral isn’t super-dark, you can still wear a column, layer over it, and accent with a scarf and shoes in a dark color present in your sweater…
Ribbed turtleneck – H&M; earrings – Candela Jewelry; twig corduroy pants – L.L.Bean; Fair Isle sweater – L.L.Bean; brown alpaca scarf – Alpaca Loca; loafers – Alfani
I got a pink cashmere sweatshirt for Christmas… I have LOTS of scarves with pink and black in them…
love,
Janice
p.s. Four years ago, we were inspired by a John Singer Sargent painting, and our wardrobe was brown, teal and ivory….
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The textures/patterns of the second layers really stand out against the backdrop of the columns of the neutrals. The patterns and details of the J. Crew cream sweater are just gorgeous.
😂 I have spent the last couple of days with a turtleneck under whatever I was wearing! love the J Crew hoodie!
I live in Arizona so I’m looking for ways to adapt this. I’d like to tie my scarves on my bag but I find they are too slippery and don’t stay put. Any suggestions for tying my scarves securely to my bag? Love your column even though I don’t wear layers, boots or coats.
I am so glad you have featured Lands End items in Forest Moss. I have been replacing black with Forest Moss in my wardrobe and have purchased many items in this color to wear year round. I really appreciate how Lands End commits to a color and will offer over a 100 items in that color. It makes it so much easier to build a core that coordinates.
I totally agree. I love the Lands’ End deep sea navy as it is a lighter shade of navy. I appreciate that Lands’ End offers it in so many items as well.
That’s good to know about Lands End Deep Sea Navy. I prefer a lighter Navy shade. This coming year, I need to replace several Navy pieces. Last year I purchased two navy tops and a pair of sweats from different stores. None of them matched!
One looked almost black.
The Forest Moss and Deep Sea Navy colors from Lands End do look great! I appreciate also that they make so many of these items available in plus size.
I too like the Deep Sea Navy from Lands End. After I replaced all the black in my clothing with either charcoal or navy, I found that the navy pieces didn’t always look good together – some looked awful. Very frustrating and now I know why I wore black for so long: Most black items look ok together when the textures are different, such as a cardigan and ponte pants. The Deep Sea Navy doesn’t seem to clash with navy from other companies. As a summer, the Forest Moss wouldn’t look good on me but I do like Lands Ends’ colors.
The Acanthus scarf from PJ studios is beautiful! I love how they modernized a William Morris pattern. I have added it to my wishlist.
I wear polonecks (as we call them) almost everyday and I always learn something new from your posts. I’ve not thought of accessorising an outfit of light and mid-tones with a dark scarf – this opens up possibilities for dark scarves that languish in my drawers and remain unworn. Great look back.
I thought the bookending of the dark brown scarf with the dark brown shoes was a nice touch here. Though this warm all-neutrals look wouldn’t suit me at all, I’m imagining it in a color like blue, teal, or purple and I think it has some potential!
That purple Lands End dress was way out of my comfort zone but who could resist the price? I figured I could always turn it into a pillow. I bought it and wore it for at-home on Christmas Day with leggings. I loved it so much I gave it a sniff and wore it again yesterday. The only reason I’m not buying more of the versions is I’m afraid I won’t wear anything else all winter!
And what would be wrong with that? I’m sure you would look lovely. Alas it is really warm right now in my part of TX so my turtlenecks are languishing and I’m wearing tees and blouses. Personally I love columns of color. I wear them often.
The dress reminds me of a fleece nightdress that I no longer wear. I’m wondering if my daughter could shorten it and transform it into a cowl neck top which I would wear.
Janice, I so needed this site today for the joy it brings!! I looked back and I remember how much I LOVE the brown, ivory and teal Wardrobe!! LOVE the Accessories Wardrobe as well!! So well done!! I pray you and yours have a very blessed New Year!!
I love the “dark column + ivory topper + print scarf” formula in both the grey and olive versions with the ivory adding a beautiful lightness to the wintry look and the print as the stand-out element…especially nice for those of us who look better with a lighter value near the face. I somewhat prefer this look with an open vest or sweater to take full advantage of the dark column, but the pullover version would be a great way to wear an ostensibly same color top + pants/skirt that don’t coordinate as well when worn next to each other (yellow-based olive and blue-based olive, I’m looking at you).
The black and white Oxfords are very fun…and I really like the silver version!
Each of these combinations is classic and elegant. The concept of a neutral column as a backdrop to more “statement” pieces is such a solid and smart way to dress. And those rose pearl studs! 😍