January 24, 2025
After I posted the “sister skirt” in purple on The Vivienne Files, there was quite a bit of interest, excitement, and chat. I love that!
Frock Tales – the brand of the skirts – has quite a lot of alluring things available. Gorgeous skirts, a purple dress that I DO NOT NEED, and some really pretty tops. One of the skirts that attracted a lot of attention was beautiful shades of green and blue, accented with golden yellow. If it were still available in the full range of sizes, I would be writing about it!
But instead, today we’re going to think about this skirt a bit…
I’m not going to try to come up with a color wheel for this… But I’m already thinking that I’m NOT going to try to put a pink top with this, nor probably a bright Kelly green, because those colors are just small touches in the overall print. Sometimes, trying to pick out each color in a print doesn’t work as well as one might expect!
This first outfit is pretty obvious, but still something I could wear three times a week in the hot weather:
Turquoise tank – Lands’ End; earrings – The Pink Reef; clutch bag – OhSun; sandals – Bella Vita; skirt – Frock Tales
Wearing this skirt with white feels fresh, crisp and uncomplicated. Keds may not be your footwear of choice, but sometimes tennies are a good option!
White v-neck tee – L.L.Bean; earrings – Harfi; bag – Berber Leather; skirt – Frock Tales; white leather sneakers – Keds
If I bought this skirt, I think I would have to have the sandals too – aren’t they nearly perfect? Certainly close enough to have some fun!
Dark twilight blue tee shirt – L.L.Bean; earrings – The Pink Reef; necklace – Kamaria; sandals – Naot; skirt – Frock Tales
Bright navy looks good here – and the translucent bracelet is fun for hot weather…
Polo sweater – L.L.Bean; earrings – Jardin; blue bracelet – Smilla Brav; skirt – Frock Tales; sandals – Paloma Barceló
You could even wear this skirt for something a bit serious – not TOO serious, but pairing it with navy accessories and a navy sweater brings the exuberance down to a calmer level:
Navy sweater – L.L.Bean; earrings – Panacea; bag – Likhâ; skirt – Frock Tales; ballet flats – Bernardo Footwear
This last heroine decides to mix things up – a pretty linen top in navy is a calm partner for our skirt, but then she tosses in both turquoise AND bright green. And why not?
Linen top – Boden; set of earrings & bracelet – Donatello Gian; bag – Moda Luxe; skirt – Frock Tales; sandals – Marc Fisher
And to close, I really wanted you to see this; it’s clever, intelligent, and very correct! It comes from the writings of Sarah Lazarovic. I just bought her book – I’ll give you my assessment as soon as I’ve finished.
love,
Janice
p.s. Ten years ago, we looked at the possibilities of an all-white wardrobe with grey, or turquoise, or celadon green accessories. I still love the way these accessory families look!
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Love this! Just had to order the shoes!!!!!! lol A couple of those bags were calling my name, too.
My comment needs a clarification. Ordered the Naot sandals. Love the colors!!!!!
Me too!
The clarification was not even needed!
While I can get behind the colors in this skirt, I have to admit that something about this skirt reads very hippie to me. Whether it’s the large amount of smocking at the waist or the batik-looking print, it’s so far out of my comfort zone that it is an abundantly clear miss for me. I feel deeply uncomfortable with the vibe. I think I’m just too traditional about my prints and cuts. No offense to those who are swooning. It’s just not my cup of tea.
That being said, the colors are yummy. I’d just probably go for a paisley or a floral with a far more structured waist—similar to this one from Boden: https://us.boden.com/products/isabella-cotton-sateen-skirt-multi-paisley-pome
To me it has “bought in Florida own vacation, worn almost every day there, and never worn again” vibes.
Since I live in Florida, I could get great cost per wear out of this. Except for maybe this week. Brrrr
While I do like the floral skirt shown, I actually prefer the Boden one, inexplicably. I prefer the shape of the first skirt and the pattern/colors of the second. Much to ponder…
Honestly I think this skirt is a little bit out of Janice’s typical vibe too – and I love it! Sometimes even a preppy classic lady needs something funky or festive – or springlike! And yes different! Obviously it’s not for everyone. But clearly just because all your sweaters are solid crewneck twin sets doesn’t mean you can’t wear this, if you do want to!
Oh, it is SO out of my normal wheelhouse! But the world shouldn’t dress the way that I do – that would be boring, and just plain wrong…
love,
Janice
This skirt is my vibe and mostly my colours (apart from the green). I have a turquoise floral cotton skirt that is a similar style with deep sheering and it is also tiered, so even more hippy in style. The sheering is deep enough to wear as a strapless sun dress (not that I would). It comes under the “Use what you have” in the Buyerarchy of Needs as I have had my skirt for at least 20 years, and possibly 25. The shop that I bought it from closed in 2006. I wear mine as a maxi skirt and it is so cool in summer.
My experience of buying blue-green and turquoise tee-shirts to go with a background colour in a skirt is that the tee-shirt has to match exactly. If it is slightly the wrong shade, then it just looks ‘off’. I tended to wear my floral skirt with white or dark navy because it took me a long time to find the right turquoise which was actually Azure Blue. I bought so many tees thinking that they would be right and weren’t. Moral – take the skirt with you on your shopping trip and look at them together in natural daylight at home, then return it to the shop if it doesn’t match. There is nothing worse than a drawer full of the ‘wrong’ tee shirts sat hoping for the right match to come along – get rid. The deep shearing and full skirt also dictates the length of the tee. Long tees look wrong. The best tee comes just to the bottom of the shearing when you wear the skirt.
My favourite outfit is the third one with the purple tee-shirt. The intensity of the colours is a stand-out for me. It is described as Dark Twilight Blue but I think Heliotrope or Periwinkle would be lovely too. The tri-coloured sandals are such a good match. My favourite bag is the Berber leather tooled bag. You could wear delicate or chunky jewellery depending on your vibe. Mine is semi-delicate.
I would have an orchid pink bag and/or a pink cardigan/jacket if I was wearing it with the white tee-shirt as a contrasting colour. I wear my own blue skirt with pink as a contrast, even though there is no pink in it. I’m not sure that I would wear this skirt with a navy top but navy sandals would be OK. Navy seems too heavy to be a dominant colour.
Well done for getting us to think about our wardrobes and how we can find a new outfit with garments we already have.
The turquoise tank is my favourite; I like the flow of colour in the presentation. I often struggle with the same issues when I wear a print as a bottom. So thanks for explaining why I often put either a black or white top on; keeps its clean looking and understated.
But the buyer archly of needs is brilliant….I’m making a poster of that and putting it up in my closet. (I’m a retired social worker so I so “get it”.
It’s an excellent reminder of what we can really do with what we are already blessed with.
Regina
Love the colors in this, and the purple (dark twilight) outfit is my favorite. Have a great weekend everyone!
And those blue and purple Naot sandals are to die for.
I’ve owned that Sarah Lazarovic book for many years and I love it as well! Can’t wait to see your review. I wish I could say that I abide by the advice more.
I don’t comment very often, but have to say Thank you! This was love at first sight- skirt and Naot shoes! I’m not a clothes person but these two speak to me. So glad I didn’t see the Buyerarchy of Needs prior to ordering.
This would toughen up nicely with a black moto jacket and boots!
Yes! That would look fantastic! It would also look great with a white leather moto jacket and sneakers for a more summery tough look.
Thank you EVER so much for this post. I think I could wear a print skirt, sandals, and simple top most days of the week, April through October. Add bike shorts in case my skirt flies up, and a light cardigan in case it’s suddenly chilly; also a pair of earrings and a bracelet, and I’ve got half my summer wardrobe all set.
When packing, I’ve found that prints can be problematic and are best reserved for the first top layer. Stick to solids for the bottoms and second layer. Not that I don’t like this skirt. I would also pair it with a green top if I could find the right shade for the skirt and one that flatters me. All the tops and accessories are spot on. Even though I like contrast between light and dark colors, I would probably keep things light with this skirt – medium or royal blue, not navy. Black could work okay but not my favorite.
What a fun skirt, great colours. I love those Naot sandals as well! Have a great weekend everyone.
I love clothes with patterns.
And I prefer to pick up a color from it.
I really like the turquoise, white and lavender outfit and the sandals. And picked out the perfect accessories again. 🤩💎
I’ve been looking for the right ‘background’ color for one of my skirts for a long time.
LOVE the Buyerarchy of Needs – would make a fantastic poster! And I’d love it as a set of blank notecards. Thank you for sharing!
Get in touch with the author – I think she should definitely be producing items using the Buyerarchy, and profiting from her intelligence!
hugs,
Janice