The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step 13: More Accessories!

July 9, 2014  

In my one-woman crusade to encourage the wearing of jewelry, today we'll look at some possible additions to various Starting From Scratch capsule wardrobes.  

This addition doesn't necessarily mean shopping; it's entirely possible that these beauties are already lurking in jewelry boxes or dresser drawers. Let's bring them into the light!

And you all know that I'm a firm opponent of the "it bag" phenomenon, but I do believe that having more than one bag is entirely reasonable. A bag in one of your accent colors, or in each of your neutrals, isn't outrageous, especially if the bags serve different purposes, or if they make you really happy! (which, after all, is the whole point of your ... View the Post

Choosing a Scarf: A Bright Summer Accent

May 31, 2014  

Some of us aren't going to be wearing white all summer long, nor will pastel accessories work really well for everybody.  So I'm going to revisit the idea of buying a summer scarf, but this time working with a base of navy linen clothes...  The idea of picking up a couple of bright accessories to update my summer wardrobe is very tempting!These are the scarves:

Red Cayenne linen blend scarf – Halogen, Blue Blithe linen blend scarf – Halogen, turquoise gem linen scarf – Halogen, gold shine linen blend scarf – Halogen,  pink cyclamen linen blend scarf – Halogen, blue royal linen blend scarf - Halogen And the simple navy garments:

Top – Hobbs, shorts – Dorothy Perkins, dress – ... View the Post

Choosing a Scarf: A Soft Summer Pastel

May 29, 2014  

Even in the warmest weather, a lightweight scarf can be useful - last weekend, in the heat of Florida, I used my simple gauze scarf to keep the frigid breezes off of my neck and shoulders more than once!But what color to choose?  You know you want to wear your new scarf with your white summer clothes, but there are so many options...

  These white clothes have been digitally "tarnished" a bit so that we can actually see them on the screen. In real life, they would be sparkling, crispy white.  

  When you're tempted by a variety of colors, it might help to think about what ELSE you have (or might want to purchase) in that color that would help give your outfit a "planned" look ... View the Post

Neutral Accessories: Shoes Part 2

May 16, 2014   This is the second half of the Neutral Accessories: Shoes post that I started yesterday.   Although I'm trying to show all of the 14 neutral colors that I've included in my Combination of 3 Neutrals document,  I chose put both of the shades of grey together.  Similarly, I've put natural and khaki together... In both of these cases, the number of items available are so small that it didn't make sense to break them into separate listings!    

 

love,

Janice   Looking Back:

  2012 - one of my favorite paintings of all time - I got to Start with Art: Monet Water Lilies.   2013 - Sometimes I need to be reminded of my Project ... View the Post

Neutral Accessories: Shoes Part 1

May 15, 2014  

One of the keys to putting together a truly effortless wardrobe is to assemble the minimum necessary clothes and accessories, so that getting dressed is a nearly foolproof exercise.Once you've made it through the most difficult step -  deciding what your basic neutral is going to be -  you just gradually stock up on basics and move forward...

The most important accessory?

Neutral Shoes

You've got to have shoes.  Not a ton of them, and not with insane stupid heels, but a few good timeless styles that can take you almost anywhere.

For my world, I narrowed down all of the world's available footwear to six pairs:  a pair of flats, a pair of pumps, some loafers, a pair of sandals, some ... View the Post

What Shoes Can I Wear with Navy Clothes?

April 25, 2014   It's a question that comes up often - what are the best shoes to wear with navy clothes?   Well, men have, for generations, worn black shoes.  Nobody would expect them to wear anything different; navy shoes worn with a navy suit would be inappropriate for most men in most business settings. I've never felt that there was anything wrong with women doing exactly the same thing...   Or you can thrown yourself into the project of finding navy shoes that work with your clothes. Generally speaking, I think this means looking for about the darkest navy you can find that doesn't look like black. But then you've got to make sure that you keep your shoes together and that they don't migrate into your black ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files FAQ: Are Accessories Necessary?

March 4, 2014   Do you have to buy and wear accessories?  Absolutely not - except most of us will have to wear shoes... But I very strongly feel that just a few well-chosen accessories can make a world of difference in how the simplest of garments come together into ensembles.   If you're not comfortable wearing scarves, find a way to just throw one around your neck one day and then do your utmost to ignore it for as long as possible.  Make sure your first scarf isn't anything floaty or filmy that's going to blow up into your face at the first opportunity.  Maybe something quite small, tied up and out of the way so that you won't even really see it...   Jewelry is also pretty useful - earrings especially ... View the Post

Chic Sightings: Variations on a Sweater Theme

February 26, 2014   Yesterday's double posting was, in fact, a mistake on my part - the pattern mixing post was supposed to be this morning's post.  But I'm having well-documented issues with Blogger, and they chose to give you the gift of two posts yesterday; who am I to argue?   So today I thought I'd share a small post with a few quick observations I made in New York.    First, most women in New York are NOT amazingly beautiful and well-dressed.  They might be slimmer than the national average, but that might just be because one walks a lot in New York. (and if you take the subway, you climb a LOT of stairs...)   Secondly, pretty much the entire city wears black coats.  Maybe grey. ... View the Post

Dabbling in the Trends: Pattern Mixing

February 26, 2014   I saw mixed patterns in almost every window display in New York - along with color blocking, it was the ubiquitous fashion suggestion for spring.   You know perfectly well that I'm not a big believer in the following of trends, but sometimes a fleeting style element might catch your fancy.  There's nothing wrong with buying one or two things that clearly demonstrate your connection with the here and now, and that indulge your love of the trend in question.   Pattern mixing is tough...  It requires a pretty astute eye to pull together different garments in different patterns.  That's why I really like the idea of buying one garment in which the patterns are mixed for you.  Let the ... View the Post

Neutral Accessories: Scarves, Part 1

December 11, 2013  

As much as I love to use a scarf as an accent to an outfit, once the weather starts to get cold, I find that I often turn to my black, black and white, or grey scarves.  A little bit of texture, a subtle print, or a pattern can lend a lot of interest to a monochromatic outfit.Tomorrow, I'll show you scarves from the other 8 neutral colors - I'm now including rust and teal as neutrals!

  love, Janice ... View the Post

Neutral Accessories: Earrings, Part 2

December 7, 2013   I love the subtle colors of some of these earrings - the brown diamonds are unexpected, and low-key, but very appealing...  And once you learn that certain semi-precious stones are perfect for your neutral color choices, your hunt for jewelry can be much more focused.   A couple of earrings here are gold, withOUT a stone of any sort, but I chose them because they felt like they had the right... aura?.. for the neutral in question.  Some colors are just plain difficult to find!  

love, Janice ... View the Post