Capsule Wardrobe Plans Archives - Page 24 of 62

A 4 by 4 Wardrobe for a vacation to Tuscany, Florence and the Amalfi Coast

January 19, 2018

A true story - requested by, and written by, a reader! How much fun is this?

This was the color palette she requested:

She is finally getting to travel with her ADULT children. She doesn't have to worry about packing for them, or making their plane reservations, or making sure they've taken Dramamine, or keeping them occupied at the airport...

She can concentrate on packing for herself!!!

Her children will magically show up in Italy for a cousin's wedding, and then they will travel together afterwards - Florence and the Amalfi Coast!

She will probably stop in Switzerland en route to see a childhood friend.

She won't have to wake her children up for breakfast every ... View the Post

Brown with Blue – Start with a Scarf! Hermes Electrique

December 29, 2017

Recently, someone asked me to re-visit a post that I did over 5 years ago, in blue and brown...After 5 years, absolutely NOTHING shown in the original post was still available - I know that's not a surprise. So I have recreated the original outfit, and what was packed, as best I could - it's a rough approximation...

The hardest thing was that I could NOT find a trench coat in the same turquoise blue that was used originally, so I've migrated the entire capsule wardrobe into a more "brown and blue" color scheme, starting with a wonderful scarf!

I isolated the colors with which the wardrobe will be built; I didn't really define the style because I'm somewhat duplicating an existing ... View the Post

Brown with Teal & Cream – Expanding a Successful Travel Wardrobe

December 27, 2017

Remember when we visited this gorgeous painting?

Our heroine was sent off to visit a corporate service center because of a major client complaint... and this is (an approximation of) what she packed for that trip:

Global Service Director? Well, of COURSE she'll take the position! She's been doing the work for months, so it's about time she was given the title, the office, and the SALARY...

When they called her into the Executive Suite to give her the news, they cited her ability to get along well with people at all levels of the organization, without being abrasive or seeming to be too much "home office-ish."

She attributes at least a tiny bit of her success to her image - warm and ... View the Post

Can You Build a Casual Wardrobe from a “Dressy” Work of Art? Water Lilies by Monet

As much as the dressy wardrobe based on Monet's Water Lilies was a lot of fun, most of us don't dress quite like that on a regular basis!

So our heroine, who was so overwhelmed with invitations through the holiday season, decided to build an entire 4 by 4 Wardrobe around her favorite art inspiration, to take her through the rest of the winter...

One day when she was racing around shopping for holiday gifts, she realized that the outfit that she was wearing would fit perfectly into her "dream" color scheme; it has the right colors, as well as a floral watch and scarf, and some very "fluid" earrings:

She had been really organized when she built her holiday party wardrobe, so she thought that staying with a plan would make ... View the Post

Adding to a Successful Travel Wardrobe: Appaloosa des Steppes from Hermes

She was really thrilled with what she packed for the Holiday Party in New York; she had planned everything using her pocket square as the defining inspiration:

Her sweetheart told her that another, longer trip to New York would be in their near future - probably mid-February. So she thought that it would be wise to expand her current travel wardrobe...

She was going to try to balance clothes appropriate for those "business dinners" with things suitable for the sightseeing that she intended to do, so she needed to be very organized! If she puts together a 4 by 4 Wardrobe, and wears 3 pieces on the plane, she will have 13 garments to pack - she felt that this was a reasonable goal.First, to "plug in" her existing ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Appaloosa des Steppes by Hermes

You ask, you get! Tomorrow I'm going to expand this into a wardrobe for a longer trip...

please note that this scarf is a pocket square. it's MUCH smaller than a normal Hermes scarf, so don't order it thinking that you're getting an amazing deal, and then be crushed...

You Won't BELIEVE What Corporate Did...

her heart always sinks when her sweetheart start a conversation like this...

"They're having the Holiday Party in NEW YORK!!!"

"So does this mean we don't have to go?" fingers crossed...

"Quite the contrary - that's what's SO amazing! They're flying us all out - you included! - putting us up in a hotel AND giving us spending money!"

can we just have them give us cash instead? whoops, wrong thing to ... View the Post

Do Accessories Really Make a Difference?

December 4, 2017

I think you already know my answer to this one! But let's revisit the Van Gogh seascape, and the 4 by 4 Wardrobe for cooler weather that we based upon the colors and overall style of that painting:

I didn't actually try to figure out how many outfits are possible from these 16 garments, but I'm pretty comfortable asserting that there are at least a couple dozen... Some will have a "balance" that you like more than others, but it would in theory be really tough to put together an outfit that was completely unacceptable to the general public!

To show how much accessories can add to this wardrobe, I've put together 10 outfits - 2 for each of the "bottoms." I've made the clothes somewhat small, and the ... View the Post

Will Winter White Dress Up Navy? Let’s See…

November 29, 2017

Winter White (aka cream or ivory) is such a pretty option in cold weather! You of course have to be very cautious about street splashing on your lovely pants, but that's well worth the bright change of pace that this color brings to classic navy (or any other color!).

Two of these pieces are deliberately and obviously dressy, and two are more timelessly classic. Yes, I have an abiding passion for cabled sweaters; in cashmere, in an unexpected color, they can be absolutely lovely!

As I always do, I'm starting with a few classic pieces in navy, and navy with off-white. With just these 9 pieces you could travel long and far...

The cardigan can be pretty "grounded" with paired with a solid navy core, or go ... View the Post

Can I Wear Grey for Dressy Events? Heavens YES!

November 28, 2017

I was asked to show some options for cool colors - especially including grey - for dressy events in cooler weather. Grey can be so elegant...

First I went "shopping" for cool clothes - mostly in silver grey, but I could NOT resist that luscious aqua sweater! It also comes in grey, as well as a really light beige heather, and a glorious bright but heathery blue... The aqua and the blue are such uncommon colors to see this time of year - you won't see yourself coming and going on the streets...

To provide us with a basis upon which we can build some outfits, I'm referring back to A Common Wardrobe in grey that I used a few weeks ago. Realistically, you could easily wear both the grey sweater and the gorgeous ... View the Post

Revisiting A Casual Summer Wardrobe – Seascape by Van Gogh

Almost FOUR YEARS AGO I built a casual summer wardrobe around this painting - you can see that my brain was at that time beginning to come up with the "4 by 4 Wardrobe" concept upon which I now often rely!I was asked to revisit this painting, and I thought that it would be interesting to use the 4 by 4 system, and then to carefully analyze the results in a variety of ways...

I'm always a big fan of making sure that every wardrobe has a solid core of dark neutral garments. If your choose to forego this step, make sure that you have a good alternative plan! Many of us would struggle to get dressed without these core pieces:

Even though this isn't particularly illuminating at this point, I'm still going to put these garments into the ... View the Post

What IS Dressing Up? Taking a Warm Common Wardrobe into the Winter Holidays

November 24, 2017

Of course I've been thinking a lot about what it means to say that you're "dressed up." In the absence of showing more skin than usual, I think I've learned that there are four ways to go about this process:

Anything metallic or sparkly - if you can find a garment in one of your colors that features some sequins, some beads, or metallic thread, the dressiness quotient is automatically raised. Ruffles, bows, or other trim that you would not normally wear. Swapping out an ivory cotton shirt for an ivory silk shirt with a bow at the neck can make a world of difference, while filling exactly the same role in your wardrobe. Swapping for a fabric with more texture or shine. Satin, velvet, lace, or brocade are all ... View the Post

I Need a Wardrobe For Client Meetings and Dressy Evenings! Start with a Scarf: Vintage Rose by KathKath

November 21, 2017

Yes, you saw this scarf a long time ago - KathKath actually gave me one to give away to one of you! But now they've made this beautiful pattern available in both silk and a cashmere blend, AND in both rectangle and square shapes...

Our heroine is long past the point where she worries about wearing pink to an interview. A floral watch and slightly floral earrings are just part of her personal style; if her potential employer doesn't think they're acceptable, she's the wrong fit for the job! (oh, the years it took us to get this much confidence, eh?)

In order to make sure that our "working from home, occasional meetings and dressy dinners" heroine doesn't get carried away ... View the Post