Art Archives - Page 50 of 85

What if I Get Bored Without Lots of Colors in my Wardrobe? The Wasp & The Pear by Gerald Murphy

June 20, 2018

Do you NEED color to be happy? A wide variety of colors? Lots of choices?

If this is you, then you can still travel with a capsule travel wardrobe - you just need to include a range of accents that all work with a neutral core. The neutrals give you all sorts of easy outfit possibilities into which you can insert a punch of color when you're in the mood. And when you want to be more subdued, you'll have that option too!

Let's start with an artist of whom I knew nothing until just a few days ago (I get the BEST mail from you all...):

While this painting clearly displays a strong affinity to great summer neutrals like khaki and ivory, it also includes some amazing accent colors. For this color palette, I skipped ... View the Post

When Your Wardrobe Plan Hits a Snag – The Kiss, by Max Ernst

June 13, 2018

It all starts out so well. You've got your art inspiration in front of you, and quite a few of your garments are clear in your mind...

The brown was hard to find, but you're really happy with the results:

This is a great start...

The turquoise wasn't too tough to find; the maxi skirt is going to be SO nice to have on vacation...

This is where the wardrobe is supposed to get fun - finding tops that work with both core colors, and that pull them together. But you find that the things you were thinking about packing are too big. Too small. Too worn out. Too much in need of laundering. But you really don't have time to do ANYTHING except rethink things...

This isn't a bad wardrobe, so far, ... View the Post

Revisiting Van Gogh, and Using Cool Sky Blue to Accent Navy and White

July 11, 2018

Someone wanted another visit to this painting, someone wanted some navy and sky blue together, and someone wanted to see another French 5-Piece wardrobe. Here, I present ALL of that, and more. First, let's enjoy this painting, and the idea of the shore...

Warmth, salty breezes messing up your hair, reapplying sunscreen... The stuff of a million dreams!

And although this painting seems pretty monochromatic at first glance, when you look carefully at it for a while you find a whole BUNCH of different shades of blue and green, as well as dark brown, and warm orangish-tan. (I'm ignoring the red signature, except for lips and nails!)

I start a LOT of my blog posts with a core wardrobe of classic, neutral, timeless ... View the Post

Can You Dress the Way You Decorate? A Tote Bag Travel Wardrobe based on William Morris fabric

June 8, 2018

It's a good question... Maybe you're not inspired by a painting, or a scarf, but you're really happy with the way that you've decorated your home. Could that be the basis upon which you build your wardrobe?

Heck yes! It's particularly easy if you have your key colors chosen, and if you have a few keywords that you use to describe your "home style."

For example: maybe this is the wallpaper in your bedroom? Or curtains in your dining area?

For many of us, summer is for traveling to graduations, and weddings, and anniversary parties etc. etc. Usually these trips are only for a long weekend, so there's no need to pack everything you own; you should be able to manage with just a tote bag...

You can ... View the Post

Start with Art: Building a Capsule Wardrobe by Revisiting Jack Pine by Tom Thomson

May 16, 2018

Someone asked me to revisit this most striking of paintings... Years ago I showed some outfits that were based on this work, but it's well worth returning to works of art from time to time. If you choose a work of art or other lovely image/object to be your style inspiration, you'll be coming back to it often, so why shouldn't we do the same here on The Vivienne Files?

As much as brown plays a really big role in the painting, I've chosen to not include brown in this wardrobe because it's terribly difficult to find for spring and summer! If you've got a good source of beautiful brown garments for warm weather, take advantage! That's the only way these colors will move back into the marketplace...

I'm imagining that ... View the Post

Instruments de Musique by Picasso, Revisiting for Spring 2018

She still doesn't really fit in... Back in January, when she went to visit a client with a number of co-workers, her uniqueness worked to her benefit... Maybe because she's inspired by this Picasso painting, it's not surprising that she's a bit of a square peg!

This is what she packed for that very successful adventure:

Now, she's been chosen to go meet the client with whom they have the most problems. Recurring, SERIOUS problems... She's ready! For the first meeting, with management, she's making things clear, in black and white!

After the first day, she's going to tone it down a notch or two, and use a softer approach when she's meeting with the staff.

She knows that it's breaking the ... View the Post

Dame au Chapeau by Natalia S. Gontcharova Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 17, 2018

She's not a quiet, retiring type. She doesn't meant to be conspicuous, but it just seems to be her way! Maybe because she takes her style cues from this painting?

The last time the traveled - just after the winter holidays - she packed a simple, but eye-catching, travel capsule wardrobe:

She's off for a weekend symposium.... She's not presenting, so she plans to just sit back and listen...

She's packing what she considers to be the bare minimum for the weekend:

She loves the way that her wardrobe reflects her personal tastes; it's not something everyone would enjoy, but it gives her endless pleasure, and occasional real delight!

She loves the options of wearing a suit, or ... View the Post

Passion Flower with Hummingbirds by Martin Johnson Heade, Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 16, 2018 Our heroine is quiet. Subtle, but not without interest, and great depths...She draws her personal style inspiration from this moody, but beautiful, painting:

She traveled back in January with a warm, simple, but at the same complex wardrobe. That sounds silly, and like an oxymoron, but there's more going on here than will meet the casual, careless eye...

She's traveling again, with a wardrobe that looks uncomplicated, but which includes 2 neutrals and 3 accent colors...

The key here is that all of her accent colors will work equally well with olive green or deepest charcoal grey...

It's such an eclectic, but harmonious, little capsule ... View the Post

Fonds Marins by Lee Ungno, Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 13, 2018 She's an iconoclast - it's safe to assume that you don't know anybody with a wardrobe with color combinations like this! But she's happy, and we need to remember that happiness is a BIG factor when we choose what we wear...This is her dream painting:

She took a quick trip just after the winter holidays, for which she packed this most unlikely but lovely Tote Bag Travel capsule wardrobe:

She's on the road again, for another quick jaunt... Sometimes she's driving to see the World's Largest Ball of Twine, or maybe there's something very important and moving at the Art Institute of Chicago that she wants to see, so she jumps on the train...

Now that she punches nobody's time clock, she ... View the Post

Study in Verticals by Frantisek Kupka – Revisiting for Spring 2018

She likes facets... and doing difficult, serious work that requires her to be multi-faceted. So it's no surprise that her personal style guideline is this:

She's still wrapping up all of the documentation from a taxing negotiation from back in January... It was fully of drama - slammed doors, pounded fists, raised voices, and all sorts of threats to quit, or to fire people.... At least her travel wardrobe was under control - nothing else was!

She's now taking off just a few days, to sit under the trees, near the beach, and listen to the ocean...

She's sticking with dresses. It's how she feels most comfortable! And she's keeping things simple - she's had quite enough complexity in her life ... View the Post

A Colorful Moon by Alain Paillou – Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 11, 2018 She's always loved the moon... And found this unexpectedly colorful photograph to be the perfect inspiration for her wardrobe:

She was bowled over when she was told she needed to travel to the capital because of an issue with Probate Court! But when she received the expense check to cover her travel (and a bit of shopping), she was prepared to make some smart choices. This is what she packed for that most life-changing adventure:

She's still getting used to the idea of being able to retire... She just worked the last day of her 4 week notice to her employers, and she's heading away for a couple of days, to a city in Mexico of which she has heard a great deal...

She's not meeting a ... View the Post

Flowers in a Crystal Vase by Edouard Manet – Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 10, 2018 She's a soil conservation engineer... a job nobody understands...This is what inspires her - the richness of brown, and the beauty of what the soil can produce:

Just after the 1st of the year, she attended a conference of soil professionals. She packed carefully, and within her plan; she was delighted with the results:

One of the people that she met at her conference has invited her to speak to some of the classes at the University where they teach. THE University, as far as environmental issues are concerned.... She's thrilled, but doesn't want to go too "over the top." They will be walking through a bunch of plowed fields, after all. (yes, they have boots for her to borrow!)

The professor ... View the Post