June 29, 2026
Happy Birthday To Me! I should be sitting in a cafe in Paris when you read this…
It seems from your emails that traveling in September is very popular – except for that whole “warm weather? cold weather?” question.
Of course, we all watch the weather like hawks before we leave, and we adjust accordingly. But it’s comforting to have an idea before you start flinging clothes into a bag…
How about a centering inspiration, in the form of a scarf WITH LEMURS!!! I love the detail of their striped tails throughout this:
These are the colors that I chose to try to find. Is anybody else having the experience that LOTS of things are sold out, or are only available in strange assortments of sizes? It’s a bit maddening…
I’m starting to really like the plan of packing with three core outfits, and then adding in a few more tops and a dress. You can take your time choosing accessories, and you will already know what goes with what when you put things in your suitcase.
Finding an excellent shade of teal was a good start:
Kelp tee shirt – Eileen Fisher; earrings – The Met Store; scarf – Lost Pattern NYC; cardigan – L.L.Bean; handbag – Radley; ankle-length chinos – L.L.Bean; gold flats – Sam Edelman
More teal, with perfect shoes! And a cardigan in the darkest shade of brown I’ve included in our palette:
scarf – Lost Pattern NYC; earrings – Anthropologie; kelp linen tank top – Eileen Fisher; cotton & silk cardigan – Banana Republic; pants – Eileen Fisher; ballet flats – Everlane
Maybe you’ll never need your sweater vest. Maybe you will wear it without anything under it! And just maybe, it will save you on that cool, drizzly and grey day…
Earrings – Karine Sultan; rich ginger cotton vest – Lands’ End; ribbon scarf – Strathberry; linen shirt – Alex Mill; chinos – Lands’ End; sneakers – Easy Street; tote – Longchamp
A simple dress, a hot weather top, and a tee shirt that can be layered or worn alone. I’m rarely a fan of great big earrings, but these caught my eye!
Earrings- Dhwani Bansal; linen dress – Alex Mill; sleeveless sweater – Lands’ End; belt – Nordstrom; tee shirt – Coldwater Creek; cognac slingbacks – Franco Sarto
If you wanted to stick with our frequent habit of having a 13-piece travel capsule wardrobe, you could certainly add an ivory tee shirt, or a print top in these colors. I couldn’t find a print top, but your lucky is certainly different from mine!
This wardrobe would be great for a long trip during which you wanted to be sure of lots of options. When you’ve sent two or three pieces of clothing to the laundry, it’s comforting to know that you can still look good!
Of course, if you wear a uniform for work, this might be all of the “real” clothing that you need for late summer, shading into autumn…
love,
Janice
p.s. Five years ago, I did some shopping, and had some thoughts about linen. I’m delighted to report that everything that I bought on the day in question is still in my closet! I came within inches of packing all of it for Paris…
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Bonne vacance and Happy Birthday!!! I hope you are luxuriating in a Parisien cafe drinking a crème and that it’s cooled down a bit for you!
Happy birthday, enjoy Paris. I found this and thought of you…….someone who loves purple is called a porphyrophile.
Happy birthday! I hope you enjoy your time in Paris, and that it is not too hot there.
Happy Birthday and stay cool!