Jewelry Archives - Page 7 of 9

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 a Bracelet – The May green and beige bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

May 15, 2019

She knew immediately that it was just what she needed for her warm-weather wardrobe...

It suits her current color palette perfectly!

Why Don't You Come up For the Whole Week? She's GOT to finish the edits on her book. This week. By Friday. No jokes, no exceptions...

She had hoped to make it to her friends' home for the weekend...

It all seemed doubtful, until she picked up the call...

"Come up this evening and stay for the week; we've got electricity in the gazebo! You can sit out there all day, work, drink iced tea (until cocktail hour), and still be here to have dinner with us and spend the evening. The Wifi out there is better than in the house!"

Hmm... out of the sun, eating her ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – The April monthly bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

April 17, 2019

Why yes, I am buying this one NOW...

These are colors in which I can (and do!) live...

Summer Long Weekends... In the United States, there are 3 "built-in" long weekends during the summer - Memorial Day, at the end of May, the 4th of July, and Labor Day, at the end of August. Clever women manage to sneak in 1 or 2 more...

This heroine and her family have decided that they're going to take a handful of "medium-sized" road trips this summer and see some attractions within a 4-hour drive of home.

It's going to be a treat, though - they've committed to hotels with pools, and at least 1 good restaurant nearby!

And so our heroine is putting together her travel wardrobe for ALL OF THESE TRIPS... ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – The March monthly bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

March 15, 2019

This is really exciting - one of my genius technical helpers here on The Vivienne Files ALSO makes jewelry. (don't you just hate these creative types?)

And she's going to make a special bracelet, each month, for US, here at The Vivienne Files!

Here's the first one:

How gorgeous is that?

So I'm thinking about warm weather, and lakes, and beaches, and summer homes...

My color scheme is this:

And I'm planning a wardrobe that you can pull together and then leave at the beach house until at least May or June. My plan is to wear super-light colored clothing, so that it feels summery. But I'll also make certain that our heroine has a few warm garments - spring evenings aren't always warm!

First up, ... View the Post

November’s Birthstone is Topaz, or Citrine… Some Ideas!

October 30, 2017

I always love these months when we have a choice of stones - although November is a little bit strange because the average observer won't know the different between topaz and citrine... Which is a good thing; gold topaz aren't all that common, while citrine is pretty easy to find!

As usual, I'm starting with 6 really basic outfits in 6 neutral colors - 3 cool and 3 warm. Sweaters and corduroy pants are a good uniform this time of year in Chicago!

This first bracelet makes me swoon, just a little bit...

If you want to wear a "warm" stone with "cool" clothes, don't forget to look for stones set in silver, rather than gold - that balances the impression of the stones quite a bit.

And while we're remembering ... View the Post

October’s Birthstone is Opal! A Few Ideas…

September 22, 2017

Opals are difficult - I think before you spend a lot of money on one, you're going to want to do your homework! That said, I'm the last person to throw rocks at you if you choose to wear a fake... life's too short for me to judge anybody on the basis of their stones...

It's worth remembering that opals come in all sorts of colors...

You don't need to wear a million pieces of jewelry, if the ones that you DO wear are lovely. (and if you handbag is completely amazing...)

These earrings would be really flattering - that luminous blush color near your face would look good on anyone.

There are opals that come in this color, but these are frankly fake. But if you like them (and ... View the Post

How to Wear the September Birthstone: Sapphires… ooh…

August 30, 2017

Sapphires are so beautiful, but they are really expensive... Feel free to find fakes, or stones in a similar dark blue, and wear without apology; you owe no explanation to anybody for what you can and can't afford to buy! Or where in your budget you choose to be extravagant or frugal...

With budgets in mind, I've chosen to show a lot of second-hand jewelry in this post (as well as a couple of handbags that are still absurdly expensive...). I think that we all are going to need to become much more open-minded about purchasing things that aren't brand spanking new, if only for the benefit of the environment... (and isn't "brand spanking" just about the weirdest phrase ever?)

For this first dress, that collar needs a ... View the Post

August Birthstone: Peridot!

July 24, 2017

THIS is a tough color - it's really difficult to find any sort of accessories in this lime-y shade of green. But I think that it's a unique accent color that's well worth considering. If you're not comfortable wearing it close to your face, don't discount the beauty and the impact of a ring and/or bracelet...

As the weather remains really warm here in Chicago, I continued to build these little vignettes around dresses, although a couple of the dresses are decidedly more autumnal in feel - some for now, some for later!

I mentioned on Friday that I feel like the best balance for a wardrobe to lean much toward accessories, in a ratio to garments. On Friday when I got dressed to go out, I put on ONE dress (more than one ... View the Post

Can You Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe Around a Bracelet?

June 30, 2017

Of course you can! And our heroine here on "Financially Reckless Friday" is going to do just that. (really, I am going to settle on these posts on Wednesdays, I promise...) It WAS Illegal... And they owe her a LOT of money. Now she has to fly back to the Federal Court Offices to sign the paperwork and pick up the check!

She decided to spend the weekend there, in order to take in a concert of a favorite violinist, so she felt that a bit of shopping might be in order; she certainly wants to be appropriately dressed for her legal encounter, and her other activities...

So she starts at Alexis Bittar, where she falls under the spell of a bracelet:

She can immediately see the possibilities - serious black ... View the Post

July Babies – Did you know that Carnelian is ALSO your birthstone?

June 28, 2017

Yes, I know everyone was expecting to see rubies, but I found that working with rubies was a lot like working with the emeralds back in May - very expensive, or else very traditional and staid.

So I did a bit of research and found that almost every month of the year has more than one birthstone - we love having choices!

Carnelian is particularly cool to have as a birthstone because it's very affordable and it comes in a range of colors from a pale, almost blush shade, to really deep, dark red.

And please note, I don't think you'd wear ALL SIX of these accessories at one time; but I could easily see 3 or 4 of them...

love, Janice

Can You Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe Around a Piece of Jewelry?

June 21, 2017

I'm thinking that these kinds of posts could be known as "Wildly-Extravagant Wednesday..." A Ridiculous Business Trip She loved the ring from the moment she saw it, and now she wears it every day...

So when they told her that she had to fly to headquarters on Friday JUST TO DELIVER A FOLDER... she decided that she was going to stay through the weekend and go all-out. See an opera, do some serious dining, and people-watch...

She's got to go straight to the office when she lands, so she's going to fly in "grown-up" clothes. The flight's not all that long, so this will be fine - not a lot different from sitting at her desk for the morning. (except she doesn't have to do anything any more taxing than ... View the Post

June’s Birthstone: Pearls!

May 22, 2017

Well okay, I've also read that we get moonstones, AND alexandrite, but I'm going to concentrate on pearls. They're my all-time favorites... (I've actually never owned a diamond engagement ring, because I'd really always rather have pearls...)

And I'm going to get this out of the way right up front - these pieces are not all genuine pearls, and none of these pieces is expensive. There are smarter bloggers than me who can tell you all about real pearls, and glorious pieces of jewelry that include them (yes, Passage des Perles, I'm looking at you!), so I thought I'd concentrate on more modestly priced treats... Joy should not be confined to those with abundant disposable income...

For lack of any better idea, ... View the Post