April 1, 2026
No April Fools here… Just a heroine who has her eyes on a bigger office, more responsibility, and a better paycheck!
She’s chosen this vivid work of art as her inspiration and source of her disciplined color palette:
Her palette is here; she’s decided that she’s going to include white in this. White makes a ton of sense for almost every wardrobe, but it’s particularly appropriate for an office environment:
At the end of March, our heroine had a 16 piece wardrobe for work. Sixteen garments is barely enough for a week of work, but she’s been making it work, so far!
Our heroine looked (and LOOKED!!!) for her petrol blue accent color, and wasn’t able to find anything she loved. So she decided that it wasn’t something that was going to worry her! Sometimes, you have to be really patient when you have decided on a color that you want to wear as an accent.
I can vouch for this – one of the reasons that I’ve purchased 3 pieces from Eileen Fisher this spring (dress, shirt, sweater) is that she has a shade of purple available! I can wait a really long time for one of my three favorite companies to make anything in purple…
One thing our heroine learned early – wearing a dress to work changed the way she was treated by people in higher-ranking positions. So when she saw another dress in navy – a very different style than her first dress – she opted for it! An accent cardigan is always useful, and a pair of tee shirts that she can wear under any of her cardigans will be worn a lot.
She would love to find a navy suit – even if she didn’t wear the pieces together very often, she realizes that a navy blazer with matching pants (or skirt, or BOTH!) would be brilliantly useful…
Ribbon scarf – Vince; yellow cardigan – L.L.Bean; wavy square earrings – Jenny Bird; shirtdress – Boden; navy tee – Lands’ End; striped tee – Primary; tote bag – Samsonite
Her wardrobe template is so tidy! It would be nice to find that accent blue, but she can always find a white top or two, as well as more green, pink or yellow:
Wouldn’t this be a simple way to pack for a really long trip? Yes, it would require a pretty big suitcase, but you have a ton of options…
Our heroine has plans for how she’s going to wear her new clothes!
I wish that I’d had a plan like this, 45 years ago when I started working! The money I’ve wasted… sigh…
love,
Janice
earlier installments about the building of this wardrobe can be found here: Christmas Eve Preview, January, February, March
p.s. Ten years ago, we were revisiting six wardrobes that were based on the colors and designs of six Hermes scarves. It’s interesting to me to see how my approach to these wardrobes has changed!
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Right now, a bright blue like that is hard to find. I’m old enough to know that colors come and go. She WILL find that blue when she least expects it. And, isn’t it always the case that, when you decide on a palette, there’s always a unicorn color you can’t find immediately? 🤔 I hope our heroine can find some great summer looks.
Even retired, I think a blazer, skirt and pants combo would be wildly useful for the same reason I love a two-piece “dress.” Separately, the top can work with a variety of other bottoms, even elevating a casual look. The bottoms can go with a range of looks. And, when you need something verrrry understated for a banquet or sober for a funeral that pantsuit or skirt suit is ready! I think it’s appropriate to wear navy, grey and a few of the browns to a funeral if you don’t wear black. After all, what’s the use of having that one outfit hanging in your wardrobe for just one occasion?
The problem that I with a top/skirt combo in lieu of a dress is that I wear and wash the top more frequently than the skirt resulting in the top fading in colour.
That is definitely an issue. I made a two-piece dress years ago and my mother advised me to always wash them together, even if only one piece had been worn. I followed her advice and they always looked great together. Just a thought in case you come across a two-piece dress you’d like to buy.
The money we all wasted. Wardrobe building is really hard. No one teaches us (at least, no one taught me). It was all trial and error. Lots of errors.
Add in the fact that the fashion industry was telling me all these “truths” about how to buy or how to look. It took me a long time to think through some of those truths and realize they were nonsense for me and my life.
I take solace in the fact that I *am* learning and improving every single year.
I so agree. I have bought far, far, FAR too many things on impulse in my 60 years on this Earth. Some were huge hits that I wore for years. Others? Sat in my closet until, they went into the giveaway bag. I am trying to be far more intentional right now.
I love everything about this wardrobe and this painting. You did such a great job, Janice!
To anyone on the fence about the yellow cardigan from LL Bean: I was at the flagship store last weekend, buying a gift. (I live on the Maine coast, just ten minutes from Bean’s, so it’s a typical weekend stop for me..). I am in love with the yellow cardigan, even though I don’t wear yellow! It’s a sturdy cotton….and on the thicker side. It’s beautifully made, but it’s NOT an uber lightweight layer. It’s perfect if you want to wear it in cooler Spring and Fall temps, but for anyone living in a warm all year ’round climate, it might be a bit thick. That being said, it’s soft and cozy and I’d buy it in a heartbeat if I could wear the color. I’m going to buy it in the Navy or Deep Lake color…I just have to decide which one.
We also have an L.L. Bean store in Indy which is nice so you can see the actual colors in person since colors are not always accurately printed in catalogs or depicted online.
As for the cardigan…I bought this a year or so ago in the color Hyacinth along with a matching turtleneck, tee shirt and checked flannel shirt. Calling this cardigan sturdy is a nice way to put it. Recently I planned to wear it, put it on, and it just felt too heavy. And other L.L. Bean cotton sweaters of mine also lean towards being sturdy. The yarns are thicker, not as soft. I imagine with time the sweaters will soften but if you hesitate to wear them, how long will that take? My Lands’ End cotton sweaters tend to be softer and lighter.
I’ve made my share of clothing mistakes over the years. What’s funny is to see yourself in photos when wearing certain clothes that are no longer in your wardrobe. Then I think – what happened to that top, pants or dress? How many times did I wear it before I let it go? It’s shameful how many articles of clothing churn through our lives. Which is why having a more thoughtful approach like what we see here is better for our pocketbooks and the planet.
I would wear a jacket style cardigan or knitted to impress.
This wardrobe is so solid. I hope she finds her petrol. My daughter just bought a t-shirt in that color with rose pink accents in the graphic, and it looks lovely on her.
This palette is lovely and sophisticated. Although not specifically petrol blue, Chico’s has some nice items in “blue lotus” that might look quite nice with these pieces.
This is basically my wardrobe. She could do with “Deep Lake” blue from LL Bean for that petrol color, I think. That’s what I do.
I am a cool summer and would wear all of this save for the yellow (which I just don’t like on me) and my actual wardrobe looks a lot like this with all navy blue as my base colors.