June 3, 2026
Let’s see how our “professional listener” is doing! For what it’s worth, I was picturing this woman as a psychiatrist, psychologist, counselor or such…
Her inspiration art:
She REALLY doesn’t care if any of her clients or co-workers remember what she wears; she’s much more concerned in helping people… But she does want to look nice, and she likes to think that her choice of colors gives her a warm and calm image.
And she has russet hair and aqua eyes…
At the end of May, her wardrobe looked like this:
And these are her accessories, so far:
Our heroine is trying quite hard to stick to her wardrobe template. Last month, she bought both pants AND a dress, which left her with “template openings” for three tops and a second layer.
She can do that!
The cardigan felt like something the woman in the painting might wear, if she were among us now. And then, after some searching, she found a simple trio of tops, in three colors and three different but classic styles.
The scarf? Will be wonderful for helping mix shades of brown, in cooler weather. But she decided to buy it now and make certain that she has it in hand. Sometimes, we have to plan well ahead!
Cotton cardigan – J.Crew; scarf – The Met Store; ivory tee – Lands’ End; handbag – J.Crew; cowl-neck top – J.Crew; teal camp shirt – Coldwater Creek; sandals – J.Crew
Her “first half” template is complete, and looks just about perfect…
When the clothes are strewn about in a more relaxed image, you can easily see lots of ways to wear all of these clothes. A plan is a beautiful thing, if you stick to it!
Every month, her accessories look more and more like her…
How will she wear her new things? Let’s see!
I think matching one’s wardrobe accent to one’s eyes is a wonderful idea. I was in a store yesterday when a young man was trying on clothes with his wife and his sister advising him. They kept steering him to the blues that matched his eyes…
love,
Janice
Want to look back to see how our heroine got to this point? The earlier posts can all be found here: Christmas Eve Preview, January, February, March, April, May
p.s. Ten years ago I must have been hunkered down with my mother, because The Vivienne Files look pretty skimpy. So let’s just go back five years, and think about being prepared for anything by having a “Stress Dressing” plan…
This is my favorite painting of the lot. While this isn’t a wardrobe that works for me personally, I do like individual pieces very much. I especially love these accessories, which could work with many wardrobes in many hues. For this month’s additions, I just adore those sandals and pocketbook. They’re wonderful choices!
As someone with a lot of doctors, psychiatrists and therapists in my family and circle of friends, I can really see this as a soothing palette to provide a safe space for patients. After my husband died at a young age, I needed to seek out help. His illness was so fast that it left us little time to process what it meant before he passed away, which in and of itself was traumatic. The first two therapists I sought out were LOUD. They meant well, but they both kept trying to ‘fire me up’, when what I desperately needed was someone to help me find peace. Their clothing reflected this. By the time a family member found someone who was a good fit for me, I was a mess with little hope I’d ever feel better. When I walked into the 3rd psychiatrists office, I felt like I was coming ‘home’. It had a woodsy feel and while I’m not an outdoorsy person, it was the first place I’d felt a sense of calm in the storm. That’s what this wardrobe feels like to me….the calm in a storm.
Love you, strong lady!
xoxo,
Janice
Love you too! And thank you….I have to tell you that during those first years after I lost Jeff, your blog was an incredible comfort to me too.
I’m touched, and honored….
love,
Janice
Good for you in persisting until you found the therapist who was a good fit for you. We all process grief in different ways, and it’s worth the search to find the best solution for helping us move forward.
I do like the serene calmness of this painting, though the brown is not my colour and I’d pick ivory over cream. There are various shades of light green/teal that I can pick out. If you were so inclined, you could make this an emergency packing list. My ‘restful choice’ would be navy or grey with lavender or light blue.
Same!
I thought these weren’t my ‘colors’ (so much brown!), but the outfits you pull from the collection are lovely. I could see myself wearing them!
This wardrobe is very calming. I also have aqua blue eyes which can change to a little more green depending on the colours i wear. I often wear blue greens and get lots of compliments on my eyes. I think matching your eye colour can be a great choice for many people.
I could easily live with this wardrobe, maybe adding pops of coral. Very Southwestern vibe. Since my eyes are also aqua, I use that color along with turquoise and teal for accent colors. And I always get compliments when my clothes match my eyes.
I am so jazzed to share that I used my newfound “set” knowledge this week. As a high school teacher I have to be at our graduation ceremony this weekend and we are supposed to be dressed up in darker colors. I don’t really have anything that fits the bill so I have been looking and trying to figure out what to wear. I found at Kohl’s a set of knit skirt and top in burgundy that are a matching set and look good on me and will look good separated and combined with other things! I’m so happy and the set series helped me to look for it!