August 3, 2026
Time to drop in on our graphic and typography expert. You just have to imagine that she has a clear view of how things look on paper or on screen; that doesn’t necessarily translate into a crispy-edited wardrobe! But we are doing our best for her…
First, her beautiful painting inspiration:
By the end of July, we had migrated her wardrobe onto a 56-piece wardrobe template:
This is how it looks in a color-sorted, more relaxed view. Sometimes the grid is the most helpful, and at other times you need the more “mixey” look at things:
There’s no grid for accessories! I’ve been thinking about a plan for accessories for at least 15 years, and I still conclude that they’re the really personal part of a wardrobe. Thus, they defy structure!
This month, since our heroines are absolutely deluged with possible purchases, I’m going to try to focus on what seems like a gap in each wardrobe.
For me, I felt like this heroine could use more black! (heck, I think everybody could use more black!!!) (just kidding!)
Right now, she has 9 black garments, which in a wardrobe of 32 pieces, is 28%. Not quite what one would expect for someone’s dark neutral…
This raises the question – is this the right dark neutral for this heroine? Or has she just been caught up in the uncommon abundance of green garments, and just not gotten to filling in black things?
black cotton sweater – J.Crew; black linen shirt – J.Crew; merino cardigan – L.L.Bean; black linen top – Caslon; black tee – Lands’ End; black long sleeve tee – Lands’ End; black sleeveless top – L.L.Bean; jeans – J.Crew; black linen crop pants – Caslon
I’m working with the assumption that she really does WANT to wear black – especially with autumn hovering on the horizon!
So let’s stock her up with some classic cold weather, relaxed things:
Small silk scarf – Lilia Munn; sweater vest – Mavi Jeans; cashmere turtleneck – Lands’ End; earrings – NEST Jewelry; sea salt cotton shirt – Duluth Trading; corduroy pants – Coldwater Creek; loafers – Gentle Souls
Now, her template looks a little bit more as if bone and black are really her neutrals!
And when everything’s in her closet, black will assume it’s rightful place as the dominant color:
Her accessories are so great – a balance of bright and muted…
Now, all our heroine needs to do is wait for those first cool days!
Has anyone else ever rushed the season, and worn an autumn outfit on a really WARM September day? I remember a sweater, a plaid skirt, and a matching plaid scarf…
love,
Janice
If you’d like to look back at the history of this heroine, you can find all of the earlier posts here: Christmas Eve Preview, January 2026, February 2026, March 2026, April 2026, May 2026, June 2026, July 2026
p.s. Ten years ago, our heroine was packing a six-pack for a business trip by choosing clothing that matches her hair, eyes, and complexion!
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This painting, and this wardrobe, continue to grow on me. While I didn’t connect with this painting or wardrobe, at the beginning of the year. Now? I just love it. I have always liked the colors, but I just wasn’t sure it was practical. You have created magic here!
I especially love the earrings in this month’s selections. My birthday is in December, which has Turquoise as a birthstone. I don’t wear silver, and because most turquoise jewelry has a southwest aesthetic (which is in conflict with my preppy one), I perk up when I see turquoise paired with gold–and in an elevated way. I also believe every woman needs a good black turtleneck…it’s a winter wardrobe workhorse. I’d love to see a long sleeved black dress for Autumn too!
I rushed wearing winter clothes and it was a miserable experience. Even though Canada does have true winters and cold weather, our summers can get very hot. That included September.
I was excited about my new school clothes (in a grade 8 or 9) and wore my favourite new outfit in the first week of school, just after Labour Day. The morning was cool’ieh as I chose my outfit but the day began getting really warm by midday. I was gasping all afternoon and deeply regretted my outfit choice. I think it was thick pants/trousers and a sweater. 🥵
I’m sure that my mother asked me to rethink my outfit because the day would warm up.
That’s EXACTLY what I did, and at about the same age… Fashion was more important than good sense back then!
hugs,
Janice
I did the same, and even remember the outfit: a long-sleeved button-down shirt – stripes of white (1″?) alternating with narrower stripes of a yellow and green floral pattern. It matched with a butter-yellow skirt – faux leather! I could not wait to get home and get out of those clothes that day.
Oh, my gosh, I did the same thing. I was always so excited about the first day of school. Growing up in Southern California, however, we didn’t have a real Autumn. It simply didn’t exist! But, I wanted to wear the Fall outfits I’d see in Seventeen Magazine (that I read religiously from the time I was about ten onwards). However, living in Maine for most of my adult life, and now as a teacher myself, we still have excitement for the first day of school…but the temps are far too hot still for cute sweaters and plaid skirts. I have tried to shop the end of summer sales for a special, fresh first day outfit in lighter weights.
I fully understand the temptation of autumn! But I am also wondering how she is surviving the summer with just one skirt and one dress and no shorts? Or is one of the pants made of linen?
Sorry, two dresses!
Oh, now I see, the April pants are linen!
I like this wardrobe. In my mind, I refer to it as the ‘goth-beach glass’ set. I think this is calling for a black skirt or LBD, dark jeans, and richer aqua for fall.
I agree – another pair of jeans! And maybe a denim jacket? I would add more black shoes.
I’m a little surprised that 28% seems low for black, when the pie chart shows it at 25%, as well as light denim and bone. There are only 3 light denim pieces, so that seems like the underrepresented neutral to me! At this rate, the green and light denim should be swapping places in the pie chart.
Ah, I’m not really good at showing wardrobe proportions in the graphs – sometimes I tend to make the accent color “pie slices” larger than they would be if they were strictly representing their percentage of garments! I like to make then visible, and that throws everything out of proportion.
These wardrobes are a work in process, and the percentages are going to rise and fall as our heroine shops…
Also, you have to remember that any wardrobe that’s not 75% black seems wrong to me!
love,
Janice
Laughing with Janice.
I agree with Ellen St. This painting was not my favorite when they were first presented, but it has evolved into my favorite based on the clothing types that are being selected.
I also want to agree with Diana. Some of these wardrobes skew cooler weather imho. At least, I see a preponderance of cooler weather clothes in comparison to warmer clothes. But when I look at my own wardrobe, I see the same proportion of cool to warm. This defies logic because I live in the American south. I adore cool weather clothes and tend to overbuy. Despite this quirk, I have enough warm weather clothes to get by, but my heart doesn’t sing.
I adore cool weather clothes and have far more than I need in TX but the heart wants what the heart wants! I always think it’s because I was born in October. I do choose cotton over wool but gosh I’d love to “need” more fall/winter duds.
I feel there is enough black! If you are interpreting the painting ivory is more
Prominent than black and the light denim is very obviously a large part of the overall look.
First time I have been underwhelmed by a painting but really like the resulting wardrobe. Only change for me would be switching the bone to white, especially for anything near my face, bone is not flattering at all but black, aqua and the green yes please! Although I do not care for green in the past year I have received many compliments on two ‘Kelly green’ tops that I purchased because they were on sale…so I am trying to include the shade in small amounts,still not sure it will earn a large place in my wardrobe.
BTW those earrings!!!!!! So gorgeous with the black cashmere turtleneck which I own….they are a splurge but WOW!
Agree with the others – those earrings are perfect!! So is the scarf for this heroine… and I think she needs a lot more denim representation for daily wear.
Janice, I get your newsletter, always lovely to read from you. Today (and I think once before), I got it twice. Same Email adress, same time, same content. I don’t mind. It’s just possible, that my Emailbrowser might think it is spam if this happens more often. You might want to check your email settings.
Other than that: today: lovely colors, lovely clothes.
That bit about wearing clothing too warm for the weather? Done! This also reminds me that, in 2019, denim jackets were having their moment in Paris — in July! They were paired with pretty, usually floral, well-cut midi dresses and sneakers. My son and I were amused to see how far so many would go to maintain the look on a hot day. I’m in the west where everything seems on fire. Extreme heat and wildfire smoke make the very thought of warmer clothing painful. September is now reliably hot. Btw- if aqua was reliably available right now, our heroine could use it as a summer neutral. The few aqua items I have look amazing with so many colors,
This wardrobe ebbs and flows for me. Some months I feel totally drawn to it, others, not at all. Not feeling the love this month. In part that is probably due to the addition of more black, but also the showing of outfits with the cream pants and black together. Just too much contrast for my light coloring. Still, much anticipation for every installment!
I understand that lots of people wear a lot of black for many diferent reasons. However, anyone who is outside a good bit in the summer realies that black absorbs a lot of heat and is uncomfortable on a hot, sunny day. My last few years of teaching may have ben mostly in airconditioned rooms, but I also spent a lot of hours on parking lot duty. Dark colors were definitely hotter. Therefore, the tradition of wearing lighter colors in the summer makes sense to me.
different,realizes, air conditioned Should have edited!
This is a favourite to experiment with for Spring/Summer next year. I would swap black for navy and my screens show silver grey and light/mid chambray. I probably wouldn’t need a huge capsule but it would be fun to wear more turquoise and green/teal than I do now.