November 27, 2023
This is supposed to be the time of year when our schedules are busiest, and when we have the most challenges taking care of everything that we want to do…
I’m not sure; I suspect that some of us run into these kinds of pressure at any time of year!
My suggestion? Every Thursday evening, and Sunday evening (your choices may vary), assemble a Wardrobe Cluster of 4, 5 or 6 garments that all go nicely together. Make sure you’ve chosen accessories, and that the appropriate shoes are clean and in good repair, too!
This might make weekends, and early days of the work week, a bit easier…
I see this color palette as being perfect if you’re not expecting bitter cold weather, or if you just look lovely in pastels:
If you know that you have these clothes clean, pressed and ready to go, you have one fewer thing to worry you!
Rose wash cardigan – L.L.Bean; pink agate earrings – Pink Piglet Collection; flower earrings – Chan Luu; lake blue tee shirt – L.L.Bean; floral tee shirt – Lands’ End; scarf – Echo; heritage stone pants – L.L.Bean; loafers – Anne Klein; straw tote – Clare V.
If I felt at all sure that Belovedest would wear a silk scarf, this would be it! He’s our chef, and he wears these colors wonderfully:
This is a lovely color scheme – mostly neutral, but with a bit of subtle accent!
I’ve discovered, since I’m home SO MUCH of the time, that clean, neat sweatpants, without ribbed ankles, can pass for “normal” pants much of the time…
Forest moss turtleneck – Lands’ End; earrings – Anthropologie; fingerless gloves – Portolano; scarf – Echo; winter sky sweater – Alex Mill; brown chore jacket – Lands’ End; Blundstone boots – L.L.Bean; leather tote – L.L.Bean; sweatpants – Lands’ End
Please note that these earrings are described as grey? Anthropologie has a lot of seemingly mis-named colors in their jewelry right now…
If you like this shade of green, Lands’ End has A LOT of things available right now in this color...
Our third heroine is wearing a wonderful urban photograph scarf!
In a wardrobe of more than 4 pieces, a pretty yellow sweater or tee shirt would be a great addition…
I’ve looked and LOOKED at this next image. I love it – everything about it just makes me happy, and I don’t wear camel! But I should isolate what it is that appeals so much, and replicate it in my colors… Black and purple, maybe?
Tan cotton cardigan – L.L.Bean; earrings- Isabel Marant; scarf – Echo; black tee – L.L.Bean; black cotton sweater – J.Crew; jeans – L.L.Bean; socks – J.Crew; tote bag – Madewell; boots – Jeffrey Campbell
I’m trying, after I’ve done laundry and ironed, to sort out at least a couple of outfits to have ready if I’m running behind schedule – do you do this?
love,
Janice
p.s. Just 4 years ago, I was pondering the various ways in which we could be prepared for holiday dressing; who would know that 3 months later we weren’t going ANYWHERE?
p.p.s. Does anybody in the downtown Chicago area know of someone who does excellent alterations? Specifically, someone who could re-line a blazer, or be entrusted to hem something in silk velvet? I’m struggling…
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Again, these scarves and your wardrobe designs are all beautiful. While I like Mimi’s style and cookbooks, I look ghastly in that green. I love the Rei wardrobe and have similar pieces except for the scarf.
Love the black and camel! As to your question about having outfits ready to go – yes! I actually use an app where I have pictures of all my clothes and then I build outfits. I can pick a pair of pants and see what I were with them, grab and go. The app also tells me which pieces of clothing I’m not wearing much so I easily correct that by either donating or working into my clothing plan. 🤓
Could you please share the name of the app, Lori? It sounds amazing!
Best wishes,
Julie
I don’t know which app Lori is using but I use Stylebook. It does this and much more.
I don’t know, there’s just something about black and camel, isn’t there? I have all these pieces in my wardrobe(minus scarf). Been changing from black to navy for the most part – not getting rid of black, just not buying any additional pieces as I think the navy suits me better now. However that particular combo is just so classy looking. I’m not sure I like the image of the Mimi wardrobe, but I can see myself wearing those items. Weird. I try to lay out my clothes the day before. Mainly so I can look at them in light. If I don’t, I often get to school and find that clothes I put together in the artificial light of our dark bedroom are incorrect shades and don’t really go together as well as I thought they did when I put them on.
Black and camel is so classy.
Well it’s camel and charcoal grey for me. I can’t seem to get enough of it. I like to decide on my outfit for the next day the night before then I can assemble all the pieces and deal with any wrinkles. I make bad sartorial choices in the morning so it’s good for me to not have to.
Hmm, pretty much my whole wardrobe consists of LL Bean garments of the sort listed in the first example, and the idea of pressing any of them has never even entered my mind. Do other folks here iron these kinds of clothes?
hahahaha I don’t press anything. That’s what knits are for!
I press almost everything: t-shirts, cardigans, cargo pants, silk scarves. Partly it’s because I only buy clothes that are primarily natural fibres so they need a quick once-over after laundering. The main reason, though, is that I love to care for my clothes and make them look as lovely as possible; it just feels good to bring a slightly worn garment back to life through pressing, removing pilling, snipping off loose threads etc. Of course all of that takes time, so I make the choice not to put any time into cooking! ;)
Ah, you are my true soul mate! There are few things I find more gratifying than seeing my closet, all neat, tidy, full of clean and pressed clothes!
Everybody will not share this feeling – that’s normal, and fine. But I’m glad that you’re out there, sharing the vibe with me…
love,
Janice
I have a hand held steamer handy if a garment needs it and I avoid ironing as much as possible!
My husband taught me early in our marriage to just hang up his wet shirts, pulling out any wrinkles and shaping the collars as I do, then letting them air dry. I’ve been doing all our clothes that need pressing that way for 28 years now. I only iron for special events or if something is really bad.
I do own an iron. Not sure exactly where, but if I ever need it, it’s stashed somewhere in the basement… Totally with you on wash & wear clothes!
You might try posting your alteration question on sewing.patternreview.com. This community can find the answer to most sewing related questions.
I love the last scarf. It’s maybe my favorite so far. Love the holiday street scene. Tokyo? I see the yellow in this as gold accessories. Camel and black are classics.
Janice,
I would ask a bridal shop or tailors for a referral for alterations. Good Luck.
Carla
Thank You for what you do! It brings me such joy to peek in every week at your insights. I haven’t found “my” colors yet, but I’m getting closer ☺️. From you, I’ve learned that looking great IS possible for ME. Thank You so much!
The muted blue color of the “Winter Sky” sweater is gorgeous, and I think would look equally good with cool neutrals as it does the dark olive-y green. The pastel scarf + cluster is my favorite of the three…probably because we have multiple accent colors. I’d just sub in a pair of blue jeans with darker shoes and be ready to go.
I did my winter closet switcheroo this weekend just in time for cooler weather to arrive; we have a high of 19F today. So I’m finally ready to really look at the sweaters in these posts :D
We used Advanced Cleaners at 1717 N Western at the recommendation of the owner of Richard’s Fabulous Finds, a vintage menswear shop on North Ave. They did a great job with my cocktail dress and with my husband’s vintage suit (our wedding clothes).
Camel is another neutral that really provides a canvas to add a very wide range of other colors and neutrals. If you like the way it looks on you, it is also friendly with greys (light to dark), brown, navy, and a range of brights. I love it with red! Imagine that camel cardigan and the pants with a red turtleneck and accessories.
Great idea for wardrobe management, Janice.
There is a dry cleaner/alterations place I’m going to try out on S Dearborn b/n Harrison and Polk . . .
Fabulous – let me know how it goes!
xoxo,
J
I love the black and camel mini wardrobe too.
It’s the definition of classic style and exemplifies the “Old Money” aesthetic perfectly. The column of color, casual “suit” appeals to me to create length and elegance in an outfit. The individual pieces look comfy and easy to wear too.
I love the Mimi wardrobe – the vibe is just perfect, but I can’t do olive. I think I’d sub it out for a dark teal and maybe make the blue sweater more of a periwinkle.
Every weekend, before I put up the previous week’s laundry, I make five work outfits from what is still in my closet. That way I can make sure that I’m wearing more of my clothes, and since I work 4/10s, I have one extra outfit. Then the night before, I pick one of the outfits and pull out accessories and underthings and set it all out for the next morning. This works for me, since I’m terribly indecisive in the mornings and not quite awake at the time I have to leave the house.
I’ve been thinking of trying one of the wardrobe apps but haven’t committed yet. Does anyone have a specific recommendation?
I use style app. Not all the features though. Mainly I track how often I wear something and cost per wear. You can make outfits, and save favorite outfits, but I found I never looked at that part of it. I think others on this forum take advantage of more of the features.
I use the Cladwell app and I love it! It takes some noodling around to take full advantage of what they offer, but I like that sort of thing and I’m very analytical, so that appeals as well. The app has links to almost 20 sample capsule wardrobes in different styles to help people too, which is quite fun to peruse.
For clothing alterations you could phone fabric stores and as your question. Good luck!
Ask, not as! Sorry
Stylebook only is for iPhones. If you have Android, the closest I’ve found is Your Closet. It’s old and hasn’t been updated in years, but still works nicely for tracking wardrobe usage, outfits, etc.
Have you ever written an article how you wear your scarfs?
I thought when I saw black and camel that this post would pass me by. Then I saw the lovely pastel Wendy Goodman scarf. That is so pretty. Thank you for the look back about holiday dressing which led to another look back on the same theme. It’s good to be reminded of these things. I love being able to jazz up the materials of my outfits whilst still staying true to my style. I bought a pair of teal velour trousers recently.
Janice, your Wardrobe Cluster idea is brilliant! Planning outfits in advance can indeed simplify hectic schedules.Have you tried exploring the site for discounts on any of the mentioned brands like Lands’ End or L.L.Bean? It could be a fantastic way to save while curating your well-thought-out clusters. Also, I’m curious – what’s your go-to color scheme for the upcoming season?