June 18, 2025
Say your trip with your navy wardrobe core went well, including what you packed! But you’d like to try some different accent colors…
How about using these two scarves as your inspiration? Of course you NEVER have to wear scarves if you don’t like them, but you can always use the images of them, and the colors included, to help you focus your travel capsule wardrobe:
Pink floral scarf – Elizabetta; green floral scarf – Jessie Zhao New York
To keep our comparison consistent, and to actually reflect how normal women wear their clothes over and over (as the planet asks us to do!), I’m using the same navy core that we used on Friday:
Tank top – Lands’ End; cardigan – Lands’ End; earrings – Sierra Winter Jewelry; bag – Talbots; skirt – Lands’ End; chino ankle pants – Lands’ End; shorts – Lands’ End; loafers – Lands’ End; sandals – Naot
Our heroine found the perfect shade of pink at Lands’ End, so she grabbed two different but very compatible garments. And her necklace is amazing…
Tee shirt – Lands’ End; earrings – Kendra Scott; tote bag – At Last…; scarf – Elizabetta; necklace – Barse; tunic – Lands’ End; flats – Mia
Her green accent “cluster” is long on tee shirts – she found the perfect color for THESE at Lands’ End too. (sometimes, it just all falls together…)
And I don’t know if you’ve heard, but canvas totes are a big thing now. The really trendy ones are styled like Hermes Birkin bags, which seems a bit over the top to me. But I’m not a trendy person!
Vibrant clover tee – Lands’ End; tote bag – Lands’ End; earrings – Open Edit; scarf – Jessie Zhao New York; agate bracelet – Michael Gabriel Designs; striped tee – Lands’ End; sandals – Talbots
Now, when our heroine gets ready to pack, she has an entirely different feeling in her wardrobe:
Although she still has a lot of different outfit possibilities. It’s important to remember that we don’t need to be able to wear the pink and the green together, so long as both of them look just right with our core neutral of navy…
I have some yellow accent ready to go (I was going to use them today, until I heard the outpouring of desire for green!); what other color?
love,
Janice
p.s. Ten years ago, I was changing buttons on my shirts…
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Before, I comment on the post, please may I ask which Style apps people use? I’d like one that I can upload photos of my garments and accessories but also one that will suggest outfit combinations and highlight gaps. Thanks in advance.
The rose pink capsule is perfect for me. The necklace is versatile to go with blue and green as well. I’m intrigued to know how it was made.
I wore one of my husband’s jumpers when I took him to the station early this morning. It’s a lovely spruce green, a colour that I wasn’t sure suited me. Guess which dept I’ll be shopping in for a winter jumper!
I just started using Altadaily. It suggests outfits and makes shopping suggestions, but you can ask it to suggest outfits based on your closet alone. It’s quite neat.
I’m pretty sure that Janice literally creates these posts from SCRATCH. Back in the day, she used Photoshop to remove anything that didn’t outline perfectly. She also is the one who highlights gaps herself. She’s pretty darn amazing!
I actually use PowerPoint to put together the images, before I convert them to PDF’s and then drag them into the WordPress website. I also use something very unattractively called Slazzer to remove backgrounds from images. I can afford to actually buy and use software for The Vivienne Files, because technically this is a business, and I can deduct these expenses from my taxes!!!
hugs,
Janice
For anyone who is looking for a free tool to remove backgrounds from wardrobe item images, I use remove.bg on my wardrobe images and it works great.
I found this article which compares several style/ wardrobe apps. https://www.myindyx.com/blog/the-best-wardrobe-apps
I don’t know anything about the apps but perhaps the writer’s insights will help you!
I use Open Wardrobe. I think it is exactly what you are looking for.
Wow, Janice, you’ve smashed this one out of the park! I hope I am using that expression correctly. What I mean is, I really love these two accent colours, not to mention that also I love navy as a neutral. This is so happy and spring-like. Cheers!
Perfect use of the baseball idiom! I personally sit at my desk and shout “Try Time!” occasionally, when I find something perfect…
hugs,
Janice
You are speaking my language, Janice. This is literally my closet—tons of navy and BRIGHTS. I am in love with these ideas. I could honestly recreate this in navy, pink and orange (in the place of green) right now, which will be incredibly helpful as I pack up my clothing for several months in anticipation of our move.
Navy is such a great base color because it works with everything. I do love to wear black in colder months, but honestly, navy just ‘feels’ more flexible for me. Navy and yellow? Gorgeous? Black and yellow? Bumblebee! Navy with orange? Fun! Black with orange? Hocus pocus! It just has so much more adaptability, not only as a column on its own, but also when paired with other colors.
I would love to see this same navy base wardrobe paired with tan and khaki…or other warm neutrals, mainly out of curiosity.
Wow the green items are fabulous. I also love green and navy together. I could definitely wear the pink and green together in one outfit. Very cool!
Beautiful
I’d love to see a darker red and gray-brown to go with it.
https://www.wolfandbadger.com/us/silk-scarf-chromatic-blooms/
That scarf is gorgeous! I see chambray/denim in the flowers too that would be great!
Ooooooh! I love this scarf and color palette! What a great find!
That is a gorgeous scarf. I went to the manufacturer’s website and WOW!!!
I love this collection and would not bat an eye at wearing the green tees with the pink button-down shirt. Maybe a little too watermelon-y for some, but I would do it!
Me too, Kathy! I remember a summer in my 20s (looong time ago) when my wardrobe was based on pink and green mix-and-match.
Oh, I love this! I also wear mostly navy (and white) with a few brights. This would be a fabulous travel capsule, both the colors and the types of clothes. You could switch out the shorts for another pair of pants or skirt if shorts wouldn’t work well at your destination, and I might add a pretty patterned blouse of some sort. But, otherwise, I’d throw it in a suitcase and hop on a plane tomorrow if I could!
The two different accent colours with the neutral base give you the opportunity for two completely different vibes. For travelling, you can really change up your look this way. What a perfect illustration this wardrobe is. A coloured tee shirt and a scarf can go a long way. Interestingly to me, neither of the accent scarves include the neutral navy colour. Note to self!
I noticed the lack of navy in the scarves, too, and thought that was interesting. Honestly, I kind of prefer when the scarf has a bit of the neutral color in it, especially when it’s a dark neutral like black or navy. These scarves scream for a pairing with white rather than a dark neutral to my eye. Not that they don’t work, but just that I would prefer the navy to feel a bit more intentional and integrated.
Several of us have noted in the past that navy neutrals on TVF are typically on the very dark end of the navy spectrum, and I get it because dark navy is the easiest version to find and to match together. (I have dark navy in my closet, too, including some Lands End pieces.) I like the dark navy a lot with the bright pink and green solid pieces, but the lighter feel of the striped top, print scarves, and floral tote bag did not quite meld with the dark navy for me. I’d prefer to see a lighter shade of navy or one of the softer alternatives to navy, like denim/chambray.
Maybe my reaction to the navy is because my personal coloring (both hair and skin) is on the light end of the spectrum, so a dark navy can stand out in a not-great way unless it’s more integrated into the outfit. Heroines with some darker tones in their coloring might find that the dark navy harmonizes more easily.
I think a couple white pieces would be spectacular with the capsule as well. I would wear the pink and green accent colors together for sure, and naturally I would seek out at least one print garment that combined the colors.
The flamingo charm necklace is really cute and well chosen for this capsule! I am feeling inspired to make my own version; the only difference being I would simply cut an image I like and place it in a bezel tray with a glass cabochon (or even more environmentally friendly, make a paperboard pendant with the image glued on top and covered in glaze) in place of the “genuine turquoise stone pendant surrounded by a vibrant desert picture under a clear quartz overlay”…which surely is not the correct information for this pendant because flamingo does not equal desert and if there is turquoise there, it’s been completely covered, which would make no sense. I think it’s likely that the pendant actually is a bezel/image/domed glass situation and that the listed description is from an entirely different piece of jewelry.
Totally agree! The whole description screams AI to me 🤣.
I would love to see this with lavender and gray
I second this.
Yes, lavender, light grey (silver)!
Now you’re speaking my language! My wardrobe consists of navy and bright, saturated colors with a few white garments for hotter weather. This is the perfect green for me and I could see myself wearing this capsule if I subbed coral for the pink. And yes, I wouldn’t hesitate a moment to wear the two accent colors together. I also love prints so I’d add a printed garment that combined the two accent colors. Thanks, Janice, for the inspiration you provide.
“I actually use PowerPoint to put together the images, before I convert them to PDF’s and then drag them into the WordPress website. I also use something very unattractively called Slazzer to remove backgrounds from images.”
Navy fills a huge part of my wardrobe and I love it with the green accessories, but your skill takes my breath away; I wouldn’t know how to start!
I used to do presentations ALL THE TIME at work, so the images were easy. Everything else I just searched for videos on the internet to explain things!
In fact, I’m pretty much an amateur…
love,
Janice
Love this capsule, so cheery. As for using yellow as one of the accents, I would go with red to create a wardrobe of primary colors to make a bold statement. But I also like Tamara’s suggestion of lavender and gray for a capsule with a softer look. Another accent pairing could be teal/turquoise and rust/orange for a different feel.
I’ve only tried Indyx which I mostly liked. It’s very good at removing backgrounds. I like that the default is showing your newest/recently added added items. I didn’t like that it would suggest that I wear wool turtlenecks in the summer without me tagging everything with a season. It lumps garment and accessories together, which is not how I think of my wardrobe. It’s wonderful to be able to ‘shop your closet’. I’ve premade heaps of outfits so when I’m pressed for time or feeling uninspired I pick a garment and see what outfits include it.
I use Stylebook, i have not tried any others. Found it was a lot of work to start with but now enjoying it.
Love the brights as well, these are 2 of my accent colours, i also have turquoise and violet, would love to see those together or maybe violet and yellow, so many possibilities.
I’m also a fan of pink and green together. I’m still wearing black instead of navy as my base color.
This capsule would suit me perfectly. And, yes, I would wear pink and green together.
If you were to keep the navy and use one light neutral and one bright accent you could try: navy, cream, coral or light grey & geranium red. I think aqua is pretty with navy. Apricot or tangerine.
Like Sally, I wear a lighter navy. My hair is white and eyes light gray. Pastels wash me out and jewel tones or brights are too stark. I rely on the ever elusive perfect off white and clear, mid-tone colors as accents. I would love to a clear lavender and off white used.
I think you have hit a home run Janice! So many comments and suggestions for colour (yes, I am Canadian, lol) combinations. And it looks like you could do something similar with a clearer navy and have a whole new series. And even something for those who don’t wear scarves often but get inspiration from a scarf and translate it into patterned tops. Please don’t stop, we love your inspiration.
Hi Janice,
I wanted you to know I ordered the navy belted cardigan, tank, and chinos from Land’s End based on this post. I also ordered the tie cardigan in the light beige color it’s offered in. The cardigans are a nice double knit and remind me very much of some Eileen Fisher pieces I used to have.
I think with these four items plus a print blouse and some jewelry/accessories, I have a very nice capsule for my fall business trip to NYC.
Thanks for what you do!