Build a Capsule Wardrobe Archives - Page 26 of 87

Revisiting Edith and the Kingpin by Jack Vettriano

July 19, 2019

Remember Edith? She originally went to the resort after she had been ill, and then was invited back to interview for a hostess position...

Burning with Curiosity... He's there every day, at lunch. At the same table. He recognized her immediately, and gave her that cryptic half-smile that curls her toes...

She's frankly thrilled that she's wearing such an elegant uniform. They actually did alterations on her dress before she started working! Imagine...

After her interview, they decided to hire her immediately. They took her to the room that would be hers, on 2nd floor of the back wing of the hotel, where the staff lived. Women are on the 2nd floor, and men on the 3rd...

She was able to leave the ... View the Post

Start with Art: Red Pears by Helen Lundberg

July 12, 2019 It Finally Dawned on Her...

If she just carried her tote bag onto the plane, she could take the really cheap airline to visit her family. And since she visits them every few weeks, her savings could start to add up quickly! So she asked her mother if she could leave some clothes in the guest bedroom...

(no prizes for guessing the answer...)

So now, she can wear whatever appeals to her during her flight, and keep a stash of hot-weather clothes down there!

Her color palette is very muted, so she can wear the same things frequently and not be madly conspicuous. Not as if anybody in her family would ever notice, or comment!

For her current trip, this is what she will have at her disposal. ... View the Post

Start with Art: Vocal Fabric of the Singer Rosa Silber by Paul Klee

July 10, 2019

If you have information about Rosa Silber, please share; I couldn't find anything in English about her! We can certainly conclude that she inspired Paul Klee...

An Unusual Prescription But the conductor, the director, and her personal physician all agreed - go to the resort and sit on the veranda for 12 hours a day for the rest of the week! She needs warm, humid air in her throat and lungs...

She's singing the role of Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, starting next weekend! This is NOT the time to have her voice get weak and faint... but it's just that it needs rest. Rest? She can DO that...

It's only a 3 hour drive...

Maybe she will be able to eat her meals on the terrace? She can't go into the sun - even ... View the Post

Start with Art: Wall of Light White by Sean Scully

July 5, 2019

I love this artist... And this painting is a perfect ensemble of neutral colors!

We're Going WHERE? To her sweetheart's college Chess Club reunion, that's where!

She decides to pack on an outfit-by-outfit basis; she knows that the weather is going to be hot, so she's focusing on linen, and shorts, and a couple of tops that will cover her up if she wants to walk along the shore...

Since this reunion is going to be near the beach, she's bringing "water shoes"...

Even though she's not going to lie out on the beach, she knows that a couple of pairs of shorts will be handy!

Once she got everything arranged and ready to pack, she gave it a last look:

She plans out enough outfits, in her ... View the Post

Revisiting Art: Ornamental Composition for Social Spaces #14 by Kamrooz Aram

June 28, 2019

Last August, she pulled together a 4 by 4 Wardrobe based on her favorite wardrobe; she liked it so much, she thought that it would make a good base for a travel wardrobe too! Since the weather is warm, she's going to look for the lighter shades of her accent colors.

She's only going for a long weekend, so she knows that she doesn't want to pack a lot! And she recently bought herself a jacket and pants in her favorite green, so she knows that she wants to wear that while she's traveling...

She decides to be organized, and deliberate, in her packing. She thought about what 6 items she would want to pack...

She knows that the smartest thing to do, when packing very few items, is to stick to a core of ... View the Post

Start with Art: Second Season with Grey Fireworks by Helen Frankenthaler

June 16, 2019

Remember our friend the political candidate? Of course she won her election...

She campaigned wearing a small wardrobe based on this painting, and color palette:

Now, she's getting ready for the legislative session in the fall! She's taking the train to the capitol on Tuesday mornings, and staying until until Friday afternoon... Trying to get familiar with the routine, and the policies, and the procedures. Even though the legislature isn't in session, there's plenty to do, and so MUCH to learn...

Since she had such luck with her wardrobe during the campaign, she decides to make only the slightest of changes to her wardrobe plan...

This scarf, in her travel outfit, is much more beautiful than you ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – The June denim blue and golden brown bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

June 14, 2019

They've rented their favorite cottage for the week of her birthday. They swear that they're going to take care of everything and that all she needs to do is relax and enjoy herself...

She's going to make getting dressed for the week as painless as possible, starting here!

Her color palette is going to be the simplest possible - positively foolproof!

She stands by her closet for a moment, and then quickly grabs four chambray garments. She loves her dress for those times when wants to feel "dressy" but in a casual way - nobody understands this but her! And her cropped pants and top match, so they look somewhat like a jumpsuit when worn together...

Most people might not pack a cashmere sweater for a ... View the Post

Start with Art: Tete Blanche et Rose by Henri Matisse

June 10, 2019 Ride up With Me! "I'm going up to the beach house for the weekend - I'm going to drive, so you can just go with me!"

Her wardrobe palette is deeply invested in black, but for this weekend she eschewing the dark, and going straight-up pastels!

So she tossed her bag into the back seat...

She was expecting the air conditioning to be on full blast, so she pulled a shirt on over her tank top...

She doesn't expect to swim all that much, but she takes her suit along just in case! She does plan to walk along the beach a lot, so water shoes are definitely in the bag...

Generally, at least some people go out for a meal or two, or they go into town to buy groceries and browse around... She makes sure ... View the Post

Start with Art: Tribute to Franz Marc – Foxes by Becky Kelley

July 7, 2019

I have to confess - I can't confirm where I've seen this painting, or where I got this image, or if this is the real title and artist. I've tried searching online and come up empty-handed. Maybe it's just me? She's Not Really Comfortable... She spends most of her time with artists. She's an artist agent, and she represents some amazing people! And when she's with them, it's all very casual - never business attire, seldom dressy...

But one of her clients is going to have a show at a small, but very important museum, and she has to go make certain that all of the details are just right! So she's settling on a tidy, but quite vibrant, color palette...

She frankly doesn't own much that qualifies as business ... View the Post

Start with a Jacket: Travel Six-Pack

June 5, 2019

I saw her in O'Hare last week, wearing a deeply amazing and eye-catching jacket...

I've chosen NOT to use that jacket as the core of this wardrobe, because of both the price and limited availability. But it wasn't difficult to find another beautiful jacket in a bright and joyous mix of prints!

Destination: To Be Determined! She's going to Europe, but beyond that, nothing is definite. Maybe cool, maybe warm...

So she's dressing for the unexpected...

Since she's not sure where she's going to go (probably where the train tickets are least expensive!) she's packing small, and very versatile:

She's erring a bit on the dressy side, because she plans to sleep quite a bit, and do some very lovely ... View the Post

Spring Travel: Pilgrim of the Absolute by Brian Fahlstrom

May 22, 2019 She's Very Excited... Her company is organizing a pilgrimage from Paris to Mont-Saint-Michel! She's never been there... She's arranged for pilgrimages from Paris to Chartres, but this is new! (in an ancient kind of way!)

She's going to drive up from Paris, along the route the pilgrims will walk. She will stop to walk small segments of the route, to make sure that there aren't unexpected construction issues, or other blockages that will be a problem... And she needs to pack with a plan; her rental car is tiny!

Our heroine starts with her inspiration painting and color palette:

The weather will be warm when she lands in Paris, but she knows that she would be insane to fly without a cardigan or other warm layer; ... View the Post

May Travel: Knitting a Stocking by Sir Francis Grant

May 20, 2019 She Could Scream... but it wouldn't help... She's supposed to visit a client, to help them choose which software, and for how many people, they will buy. But she's being given shockingly little direction about how to prepare! So she channels her inner calm knitting woman:

She was told that the office is very casual.

She was told that the office is casual, but that she needs dressy clothes to meet with executives.

She was told that it was always really warm in the office.

She was told that they run the air conditioning so high that it's like a meat locker there.

AGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

She can do this...

When she arrives, she's just going to stop by the office to drop off her laptop and some information ... View the Post