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Home » Pretty But Relaxed? Start With a Dress – Two Piece Linen Dress in Thistle from Alex Mill

Pretty But Relaxed? Start With a Dress – Two Piece Linen Dress in Thistle from Alex Mill

March 28, 2025

A honeymoon? Somewhere warm? Sign me up!

She’s all set for what to wear for her wedding, but her travel wardrobe is still under construction. She knows she’s starting here:

Shirt – Alex Mill; necklace – Classicharms; narrow scarf – Lancel; skirt – Alex Mill

There’s no question that the weather will be warm where they’re going – actually legitimately hot during the day! She has no plans to swim, but definitely intends to be at the beach.

And for once in her life, she’s NOT going to worry about laundry. It’s her honeymoon, for heaven’s sake! Maybe not her first honeymoon, but that’s neither here nor there…

So bridal white it is!

White linen top – Lands’ End; earrings – Vic Stone NYC Fine Jewelry; sleeveless top – Lands’ End; palazzo pants – Lands’ End; bracelet – Ettika; skort – Lands’ End; sandals – Talbots

At this point, she decides she’s going to pack all pretty pastels. It will be the last time in her life she does this, so she’s going to do it right!

And who doesn’t love this color? They call it French blue, but it’s not terribly far from periwinkle:

French blue top – J.Crew; necklace – Saule Label; shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; scarf – Elizabetta; shorts – J.Crew

Pretty almost rhymes with pink, doesn’t it? At least in our hearts…

Earrings – Classicharms; tee shirt – Alex Mill; scarf – Scapes by Elizabeth; bag – Talbots; sandals – Talbots; shirt – Alex Mill

Now THIS is a honeymoon wardrobe!

It’s pretty self-evident how this wardrobe can be worn, but it’s much fun to actually picture a few of the outfits:

Of course she will be able to wear all of these things when she gets home; maybe she will combine this with her usual navy and beige warm-weather gear…

love,

Janice

p.s. Ten years ago, our heroine works as a temp, and only needs a small work wardrobe…

Pretty But Relaxed Start With a Dress - Two Piece Linen Dress in Thistle from Alex Mill

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03.28.25 18 Comments

Tags: pastels, Start With A Dress, travel capsule wardrobe, warm weather, white
<<Adding a “Difficult” Color to Your Wardrobe – Alex Mill Moss linen shirt and skirt10 Ideas for Wearing a Navy Ponte Knit Dress>>

Comments

  1. Ellen S. says

    March 28, 2025 at 8:44 am

    This is a great idea! I love all of the pieces you’ve selected to go with the skirt and top. The skirt and top are part of this same family you’ve been highlighting and I can see how versatile these pieces can be.

    I can’t help but wish this two piece dress was a bit more lavender or pink. I love the idea of it, but the color reads sort of hazy grey to me, rather than lilac. Does anyone else feel that way? Just one or two shades deeper would make a world of difference. However, of the Spring colors just make me smile. I’m READY!

    Reply
    • AK says

      March 28, 2025 at 10:08 am

      It seems the retailers are offering more than a few murky colors this year, not really straightforward! But, that said, an expert like Janice can manage to make this one work!

      Reply
      • Sally in St Paul says

        March 28, 2025 at 10:59 am

        I think this is a nice Soft Summer type shade, but I too would personally prefer the color to be more saturated and less greyed-out. I don’t dislike it in this capsule, but a color with a bit more oomph would be a prettier match to the other light colors in the palette in my opinion. Paired with silver metallics, I might like it better than with the gold metallics, though overall I really like the gold in this capsule since it adds a somewhat unexpected bright quality to it.

        I didn’t realize that I’m not very fond of quite greyed-out light purple tones. There are many similar shades of blue, green, yellow, pink, and peach/coral that I do like a lot, but I personally need my light purples to be clearer and more saturated than this for them to ‘spark joy’. Interesting!

  2. Beth T says

    March 28, 2025 at 8:52 am

    Lovely wardrobe. Though I can imagine that she has a few evening/cocktail dresses too.

    Reply
  3. Kim says

    March 28, 2025 at 9:18 am

    Absolutely beautiful choices! My favorite so far!!!

    Reply
  4. AK says

    March 28, 2025 at 10:13 am

    The various sets are lovely! I can see the palazzo pants, white top and gold accessories as a dinner outfit. I LOVE metallic sandals. Whether your jam is gold or silver (or both!) they really elevate a look.

    Reply
    • lena says

      March 30, 2025 at 11:25 am

      I agree. I’m traveling to a business conference in Florida this summer and the palazzo pants and peplum top are exactly what I had in mind for a dinner outfit. And the neckline is perfect to keep it business appropriate. Love it with gold accessories. Toss in the skort and other white top and it’s terrific white core to add to a lovely taupe linen core of four to complete the neutrals portion of my summer capsule wardrobe.

      Reply
  5. Ally says

    March 28, 2025 at 12:32 pm

    Pretty but meh. Unfortunately a full palette of pretty pastels scream elder boomer blue haired ( not in a funky way;) ladeeee. I agree that the pink should be more saturated or perhaps just ditch it for a deeper rose, coral or even fuchsia. Not sure I’d duplicate the long sleeve blouses, I get that some women don’t like a show of arms but at least have variety in the long sleeved tops.
    The skort would be left at home. There is something annoyingly prissy about skorts. Wear a knee length skirt or Bermuda shorts. I know a lot of private golf clubs don’t allow shorts but let the skort clad proceed to the greens, which has more to do with patriarchy than modesty.
    Jeez I hope she doesn’t have a pastel maribou trimmed negligee and mules for the boudoir…

    Reply
    • SewLibrarian says

      March 28, 2025 at 5:39 pm

      Ally, you cracked me up! And I confess that my first thought was this is pretty, but I couldn’t wear it because it would show my age which happens to be older than I would like! I stick with what I know looks good on me – clear colors, bright colors, white, and navy for summer. I add gray and some black for fall and winter. However, I can still appreciate Janice’s work at coordinating the garments she finds into a coherent and workable wardrobe for the right person.

      Reply
    • Beth T says

      March 30, 2025 at 1:59 am

      Oh dear – no hope for me then 😅

      As I get older, I veer more to these soft muted pastels. Their “ice” quality suits my soft summer cool colouring. I still wear mid to dark tones but more on my bottom half or in autumn/winter.

      I’m not an “elder, boomer, blue-haired (not funky) ladeeee who plays golf”. I doubt I ever will be. I’d be a menace on a golf course.

      My hair is going white/silver naturally from the underneath hair out. People ask me if I have highlights done but it is completely natural and even. Every time it is cut, more white and silver shows through. I’d like to dye it lilac just once.

      Reply
      • MmeP says

        March 31, 2025 at 6:36 am

        Re lilac hair: DO IT!! There are some fantastic temporary hair dyes out there; some where you shampoo with it and you get a color — that absolutely will wash out (with a plain shampoo). I have turned my hair purple for an occasion; the color lasted for about a week and a half, gradually lightening shower by shower. Do not hesitate to fulfill this dream.

      • Janice says

        March 31, 2025 at 7:27 am

        Punky Color is what I use – it smells like Kool-Aid, and actually conditions my hair! I’m going to try pink for spring…
        love,
        Janice

  6. Susan says

    March 28, 2025 at 12:49 pm

    I adore this wardrobe! In the last few years I’ve really been drawn to pastels

    Reply
  7. Julianna says

    March 28, 2025 at 1:27 pm

    I expected to like the thistle more, but oh, that French blue calls to me! Truth be told, I could get a lot of wear out of the thistle; it would work with my hair colour and skin tone. I just might wear it with more muted blues and pinks. And have a separate cluster of the blue, white, and pink. Talk about having your cake and eating it too!

    Reply
  8. Andrea Charlton says

    March 28, 2025 at 5:58 pm

    This wardrobe really made me smile! I had a holiday in Fiji recently and I could see this collection working really well for resort life there, with the addition of a few swimsuits and a sun hat. I thought you might be interested in the Occitain bleu pastel, which is what I think of as French blue – it’s a dye made from woad that fades naturally to a near-grey. https://fitforartpatterns.com/2022/11/15/pastel-blue-of-occitanie-france/?srsltid=AfmBOoqyfqaX0RPM1up_dhB6bbZ02cZudtudr0bIDa5WAtL3QcF6LNN2

    Reply
  9. Pepper from Minnesota says

    March 28, 2025 at 6:21 pm

    I love everything about this wardrobe! I’m a huge fan of pastels, and I would totally add this to my dove gray and navy cores. I’m planning a trip this summer with white and blue as a wardrobe base. This inspires me to maybe pack a couple of my favorite pink tanks and tees too. And those palazzo pants? Perfection! I’m definitely going to be on the lookout for a pair of those!

    Thank you Janice!

    Reply
  10. BeeeBeee says

    March 29, 2025 at 11:51 am

    FYI: The greyed out tones are a gift the the minority of women who have chosen to wear their hair gray. Even if you are covering your gray, the loss of pigment continues in the fading color of your eyes and in your skin tones, so it may still be a more flattering option. The more saturated colors often leave leave those with graying locks looking washed out.

    In fact, it is so challenging for me to find the much-needed muted colors that I often shop in the men’s section. As most men don’t color their hair as the muted tones are more readily found there.

    Just something for the younger readers to consider.

    Reply
  11. lena says

    March 30, 2025 at 11:29 am

    Would love to see this paired with the navy and beige warm-weather gear!

    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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