September 10, 2025
Back to exploring the possibilities offered to us in this most beautiful painting:
If you have four neutrals colors in your plan, you (by definition!) should have four three-color color schemes that you can use for smaller wardrobes, like a single season, or for travel:
Our heroine is planning ahead to pack for the winter holidays. She wants to stick with lots of red, and some black and white because that feels festive to her! That’s really all that matters – pack what you want to pack! (I’m planning my packing for London right now, and I have to keep reminding myself of this…)
Earrings – Auree Jewellery; scarf – Banana Republic; sweater vest – J.Crew Factory; white cotton shirt – J.Crew; boots – Söfft; bag – Zatchels; black skirt – J.Crew
As far as she can tell, she’s going to have a church service to attend the evening she arrives at her sister’s home. That’s fine – it’s the holiday special service that includes all of the children…
And she’s prepared for the rest of the weekend; they don’t get really dressed up, but neither does one lounge around in sweatpants when one’s mother is around. Some mothers are like that.
Necklace – J.Crew; burgundy earrings – J.Crew; gold earrings – Talbots; wool scarf – Jessie Zhao New York; corduroy jacket – Alex Mill; burgundy floral shirt – Lands’ End; black cashmere v-neck sweater – Nordstrom; black knit pants – L.L.Bean; flannel shirt – L.L.Bean; corduroy pants – Alex Mill; black flats – Nordstrom; burgundy loafers – Gentle Souls
She knows her travel capsule wardrobes by heart, but she always double-checks that she didn’t overlook something. It’s possible to pack a perfect suitcase, except for something like forgetting to pack SOCKS!!! (I will never forget that trip…)
Our heroine has all kinds of outfit possibilities, from a simple monochromatic black and white outfit for a dressy dinner, to the flannel shirt and corduroy pants for time with the family…
Burgundy is so appealing; I wore it a LOT in the 80s, and have never gotten back to it. Maybe…
love,
Janice
p.s. Ten years ago, our wardrobe was built around cream, grey, orange and denim blue. What a surprising combination!
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What a nice capsule! And re individual pieces, I like the cabled vest, & the burgundy cords and corduroy jacket A LOT! 😊
Oh, I just remembered, in my 20s I had burgundy cords! Had completely forgotten those ones. I wore with an off-white & burgundy print brushed cotton shirt that had a little frilled collar. I loved that outfit!
I just dipped my toe in the burgundy pool. I haven’t worn it since middle school. Yesterday I received a burgundy silk blouse I’d ordered from Quince. https://www.quince.com/women/silk/silk-notch-collar-blouse?color=burgundy&productPosition=44&searchQuery=Silk+button+down+&tracker=searchPage__search_section__search_results It’s really lovely. Not a heavy silk but rather thin, which is perfect for Florida weather.
I seem to remember reading that burgundy is one of those “universal “ colors that everyone can wear. Quince has two different shades available.
I may end up with a French Five.
Thanks, Janice, for showing us so many different options.
Ok, I am SO ready for fall/winter clothes. But it’s 80 here this week. Must go shop my closet anyway, even if it is just to remind myself of what’s there. Otherwise I’m badly tempted to go binkers & start buying things! The burgundy is so gorgeous…
I am in love with this capsule. This is a wardrobe I could absolutely put together from my closet…albeit with red, rather than burgundy. Once I get my clothing back (I’m 2 months into a 3 1/2 month temporary residence, while my new house is under construction), I have more fun “playing” with my clothes and creating color palettes, much like this one. I am not sure I could have survived this transition time, had it not been for the inspiration I receive here TVF. Packing for 3-4 months, especially with a transition time seasonally, kept me in a specific grouping of base colors and accents. However, I do miss colors outside what I’ve packed. I didn’t pack red or black….and now, I’m craving them, like ice cream.
One piece to note about the LL Bean flannel listed here is that it’s meant to be an overshirt. It’s extremely thick and the two front packets are deep, which is great for carrying items on a hike, but not so much for layering under sweaters. If you want to stick with LL Bean, I’d recommend the sunwashed twill plaid shirt or the whisperweight flannel shirt. This is simply because these will layer better under knitwear. I live just 15 minutes from the LL Bean Flagship store…so I’m pretty much in tune with their offerings. The signature plaid camp flannel is YUMMY, but it’s an over layer.
Have a great day, everyone!
Thanks for the information, Ellen S.
I’ve just been reading your post,& it’s so nice to see beautiful, well put together combinations, everyone seems to be wearing a version of pyjamas these days, thank you, am loving the enthusiasm and passion
I have been eyeing a pair of burgundy pants for a while and this post has prompted me to pull the trigger. I have three big trips coming up this fall and winter and this wardrobe is such an inspiration. I really should start thinking about packing. My first trip to Canada is in 3 weeks! The vest in navy and the boots (they come in navy; Whoop! Whoop!) are two other items I am considering. Although this heroine does not sport my colors for the most part, her style is right on! I always appreciate these posts, Janice.
I, too, am more than ready for fall clothes – they are my favorite. However, it is still too warm here. Has gone down into the 70’s, but still a little much for my fall items. I am wearing a plaid flannel shirt as a topper today though – the best I could stretch it! Love this wardrobe. I remember having burgundy cords. Also navy and tan. Gosh, how many years ago was that? I can’t even remember. IN any case, this is just outstanding. Thank you
This is a perfect inspiration capsule for all my Fall/winter debat tournament travel weekends. I do love burgundy. I used to have a lot of it, but had a detailed color analysis done which decided I am a Clear Winter leaning to Clear Spring. Go figure! No muted or deep shades for me anymore! So I got rid of most of my burgundy and olive items, and I am thoroughly enjoying all my bright, clear colors. I do miss burgundy, though, especially in Fall/Winter weather, so I’m thinking of carefully adding some back in, maybe as a French Five. Because why not, if I really like it??? I still have my awesome burgundy Moc Martins and a few other accessories that are begging to be worn. This post has inspired me.
I really like this color palette, the inclusion of both black and burgundy columns, and the two print shirts in this capsule! (I hope those burgundies look as fab together IRL as they do on my screen; nicely done.)
I don’t think I could travel (or live) without t-shirts, though perhaps this heroine is comfortable and suited to the crisp shirts instead. I would definitely be sneaking a t-shirt of each color into my suitcase; I have never regretted having too many base layer t-shirts on a trip.
I personally do not like traveling by plane in tall boots because I get so hot on airplanes. But I get it that if you want them for your trip, this is the only reasonable way to do it. I think many other heroines seem to find airplanes cold so this probably works well for them.
If I substitute grey for camel, I have a ready made travel capsule. These are my go- to colors. I have a burgundy midi skirt, but on most of my quick trips, I will sub in one more pair of pants. Heading to MA next week for a 5 day trip. This capsule should cover it. Can’t wait to try it out.
Oh, I love this capsule.
Such beautiful pieces.
I also like wearing burgundy.
Okay! Now you’ve gone and done it! You’ve made me want to go back to black and white and add some burgundy/wine which I really haven’t worn since my college years. But I will be strong and not succumb to your temping inspiration! But it’s all so beautiful! Thank you!
Oh! And I’m with Sally on the need for base layer t shirts.
I looked at your wardrobe post from 10 years ago. Would love to see an update!!
Perfect capsule!
My go-to colors differ, but the style concept really works for me. It’s the skirt! It’s that key piece that dresses allll the way up and looks amazing with more casual pieces. I’m still looking for mine in chocolate brown. Espresso is a bit dark, but I could live with it.
I brought a tan/brown, ivory and bluebell/denim adding coral & harvest red accents with me to Austria.
Spotted on the train from Munich: a woman in a light tan top, pink skirt,light tan sneakers and light tan cabled tights. She wore a pink jacket and carried a pink, ruffled umbrella! And she looked smashing! 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙
I could use this capsule for my fall-winter anywhere capsule! These are “my” colors. I’m moving toward a Basic Capsule, an Extended Capsule, and adding a few Just Because pieces. Still planning to keep the count to 40 with another 7-10 pieces of LBDs and suits. This is SO helpful. Thank you.