Build a Capsule Wardrobe Archives - Page 71 of 87

How to Pack for Springtime in Paris: Beige with a Touch of Blue

This originally appeared on A Femme d'un Certain Age in April 2012... as will all posts this week, the individual items may no longer be available, but the concept of the organization still holds true.

beige metallic cardigan – Vanessa Bruno, gold stud earrings – Roberto Coin, Trench coat – A.P.C., scarf (Early American) – Hermès, ivory tee – Precis, pants – Ralph Lauren, suede loafers – Tod’s, tote bag - Gucci

Sunglasses – Prism London, Beige tank – MICHAEL Michael Kors, v-neck sweater – Miu Miu, gold hoop earrings – Khleo, cashmere cardigan – Patagonia, printed dress - DVF, capris – Miu Miu, bracelet – Oscar de la Renta, cotton twill ... View the Post

How to Pack for Springtime in Paris: Neutrals with Texture

Since these images were created over a year ago, the products are rather unlikely to still be available, but the idea holds true... The original post was at A Femme d'un Certain Age, April 2012.

Cream wool cardigan – Paul Smith, black pearl and diamond stud earrings – Blue Nile, Black knit pants – DonnaKaran, back cashmere scarf – Barneys New York, tee shirt – Dorothy Perkins, Trench –- Day Birger et Mikkelsen, bag – Marc by Marc Jacobs, loafers - Asos

Sunglasses- Ray-Ban’s, Printed silk tee – Michael Michael Kors, stars tee shirt – Mulberry, brass & pearl bracelet –Lanvin, white tee shirt – MTWTFSS, Crinkle fabric skirt – Proenza Schouler, striped tee – Saint ... View the Post

I Worry too Much about Packing, Especially for Paris…

March 7, 2014 Do you worry too much about what to pack? Anticipation is a lot of the fun, but it's possible to reach a point in preparation where you drive yourself slightly nuts; I have reached that point with preparing for Paris next week. For a while, I would just wear something that I really loved, and then (after laundering) hang it onto the rack designated for Paris packing. Okay, so now about 50% of my closet is ready to pack. Clearly not going to work out, eh? And then I get panicky - what should I take? What if I forget something I really love? Will it all fit in my suitcase? You would think that I'd never done this before, or that what I pack will be the most important thing ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files FAQ: What if I Don’t Wear Black?

March 3, 2014 I knew this would be the next question - what if I don't wear black? You have all of the rest of the spectrum from which to choose, but realistically, grey, navy, brown or tan/khaki are the most obvious other options from which to choose. Let's try the same exercise as before, but with warm colors. Say you at least know that you prefer mostly warm hues - and these are your favorite recent purchases:

There's no outfit to be worn from these four - it just simply isn't possible for most of us to put together an ensemble here. But if you started with a basic core of neutral clothes in warmer tones (except for jeans, which are sort of the ultimate neutral):

Then you ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files FAQ: Do I HAVE to buy basic garments?

March 1, 2014 Every day, I get lots of emails with lots of questions. I like that, and I'm happy that you take the time to write to me. ([email protected]) As hard as I try, I don't really have time to answer everybody individually, but your questions make a lot of difference when I choose my content every day. The single question I'm asked the most: "Is it absolutely necessary that I own neutral, simple, basic, plain, boring garments?" Let me say this flat out - if you can find a naturalist community with consistently moderate temperatures and well-groomed walkways, you can go without purchasing ANY CLOTHING AT ALL for the rest of your life. I know this is reducto ad absurdum, but sometimes we need ... View the Post

How to Pack for Slushy Streets

February 14, 2014 Lucky me - I'm going to New York for a few days next week! Belovedest has to go to a series of meetings there, and we had a free plane ticket, and so... But this is a particularly dicey time of year to travel - there's no telling what I'm going to find for weather. So the first thing we have to always plan is what the "drop dead" plan is for cancellations, i.e., at what point do we go back home after a number of delays. But once that's settled, I also have to face that fact that I'm not going to be happy slopping around Manhattan unless I have serious footwear - specifically, my Bogs. And they're... bulky... really, really bulky... I could wear them on the plane, but I'm going ... View the Post

A Variety of Colors: A Simple Summer Wardrobe

February 13, 2014 I've been thinking a lot about how to plan a wardrobe that gives you options for a wide variety of accent colors. There are other way to go about this, and I'm going to figure them out, but my very first thought was the following. Here's what your summer wardrobe will look like, after we've worked out way through the steps.

Assuming that you're going to be carrying over a few garments from your cold weather wardrobe, I've pulled together this core of four in grey. I'm also including neutral footwear - canvas sneakers, and a simple pair of suede loafers.

As much as I know that the point of this is to introduce lots of accents, I think it's pretty important that we ... View the Post

Warm Weather Travel in Brown and Pink – Step by Step

February 11, 2014 What are you going to pack?? You need to know the answers to three questions: (1) How long am I going to be away? (2) What am I going to be doing? and (3) What kind of weather can I expect? Then you have to choose your colors. The easiest way to do this is determine what trousers you want to wear for travel, and build around that. Having the right travel outfit is the most important choice! In this case, it's monochromatic khaki/tan, with accents of deep rose... Having a cardigan for travel helps you adjust to changing temperatures, gives you something to wrap around little peeps who need a cuddle, and helps cover up any unexpected ... View the Post

Warm Weather in Navy and Pink: A Long Weekend, or a Week?

February 8, 2014 Ooh, it's nice to dream of summer clothes and warmer destinations! Some of you are headed out with family for vacations that suggest shorts, capris, and flowing summer skirts and dresses, and the colors navy and pink are ALWAYS requested! So here's a plan that starts with a long weekend, and then adds key garments if your trip is longer than that. Always, for travel, I will recommend long pants, real shoes with toes and heels, and a cardigan - I always find airplanes are cold... This outfit has the added benefit of giving you two core garments in navy around which you can work throughout your vacation.

A couple of pretty skirts, a pair of shorts, a dress (that will ... View the Post

Still Dreaming about Paris, and Packing…

February 4, 2014 Really, we're not leaving until mid-March! But I always do this - start planning weeks ahead of time. I rationalize it that (1) anticipation is a substantial part of the fun, and (2) if I plan carefully, I won't have to pack so much, and I can catch garments that need mended, or shoes that need tended, before it's too late to make the necessary fixes. When I left off planning, it was Tuesday morning - and I'm sure we're going to go to the Musee Guimet. It's Asian art, it's beautiful, and it's usually quite empty. We go there almost every time we go to Paris, and we're never disappointed. Our plan for this day might include taking the train out to La Defense, the business development in the west of Paris. ... View the Post

From Dream to Suitcase

January 31, 2014 We'll be in Paris soon, and I'm already daydreaming about what we'll do while we're there... First off, I'm trying really hard to look upon the whole flying process as positively as possible. I can sit for 8 hours without a whole lot of trouble - I've done it at work for decades, so being on an airplane isn't that big an adjustment. I can hold hands with Belovedest, relax, and listen to music or some of my favorite apps on my phone. I've recently downloaded Insight Timer, which has dozens of guided meditations that are grand for relaxing... and then I can switch to one of the many apps that is just one long soundtrack of thunderstorms. A bottle of water, some skin serum, and I'm good ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Packing Outfit by Outfit: Pink, Maroon and Black, for Business Travel

January 21, 2014

The weather's cold, and you've got to go on a business trip. A SERIOUS trip...Start with a comfort garment - the favorite cardigan will make you happy, and will suggest your color scheme too! Choose a couple of outfits that ensure that you bring all of the pieces of your black suit, add a couple of jazzy red garments, and you're all set for business events. One simple dress, and everything will fit in a carry-on bag.

A black winter coat, and some gloves, will be needed here, of course:

First day in the home office - better look serious!

And you know they're going to take you out to dinner...

Second day in the office is a lot more mellow, ... View the Post