Start a Capsule Wardrobe With Archives - Page 124 of 157

The Bracelet Giveaway just got MUCH more interesting…

May 28, 2015

You might have noticed that, when I asked what color palette everyone preferred for a custom bracelet, there was a wide divergence of choice. Which is great - I love diversity!But when I tallied up the votes, there was no clear winner...

So I got in touch with our friends at She-Beads, and we came up with an even BETTER idea...

Leave me a comment here, tell me what 2, 3 or 4 colors you would use to make your dream bracelet. Next Thursday morning, I'll draw a winner, and that winner will have that bracelet MADE FOR THEM by She-Beads...

That's a pretty spiffy offer, I'd say!

If you're struggling for color names, check out this site, which has color names that you've never even heard of, or look at my earlier post ... View the Post

A Winner!!! And my new plan…

Remember that delectable scarf from Kathkath that they offered to us last week?

Well, Lorrie, send me your contact information so that I can forward it to Kathkath - because IT'S YOURS!

Congratulations to Lorrie, and thanks, as always, to all of you who hang around here with me and share my day...

I don't think I've mentioned it before, but Belovedest and I are moving, at the end of June. Just down the hall, but we've been given an irresistible offer on a REALLY irresistible apartment with a spectacular lake view, and so we're going to accept...

The new apartment is a 1 bedroom, which is a big step up for those of us who have always lived in studio apartments! But so far we've been very lucky - someone gave us an absolutely ... View the Post

Your Opinions, please

The extremely lovely people at She-Beads have made us an offer we can't refuse - they will make a one-of-a-kind bracelet for me to give away to one of you!

So, they asked me what color scheme I would prefer...

I have a preference - the colors of The Vivienne Files - greys, white and soft pink.

But in order to give us all a choice, I culled back through Pinterest to find the most frequently repinned images and color schemes, and the last four of these options came from there.

So which do you love the most? Which would make a gorgeous bracelet?

have a glorious holiday weekend, love, Janice ... View the Post

RED Cowboy Boots – Integrating a Wild Splurge into your Wardrobe

May 21, 2015

We've all done it. Something just CALLS OUT YOUR NAME... and the next thing you know, you get home, and you have a pair of red cowboy boots in your hands. Maybe not cowboy boots, but something that's outside of your normal wardrobe confines...

There's nothing wrong with this, if the item in question has true "whappage" - if it really strikes you, appeals to you, speaks to you on some deep level. Let's just figure out how to incorporate this newly exposed facet of your persona into your existing wardrobe.

These are the culprits in question:

And your normal wardrobe (I know, because you told me...) is grey and camel. Let's grab a couple of simple outfits with which we can work - jeans and sweaters are ... View the Post

A Dusty Pink Jacket: Integrating an Accent Color

May 20, 2015 Ahh, sometimes you receive a gift that's lovely, but... A dusty, soft pink jacket is a wonderful gift - there are few of us who can't wear this color successfully, but what if you've never before owned ANYTHING else in this color? Happily, a coat's a great thing to integrate into the rest of your wardrobe, because you can wear whatever you want under the jacket, add one well-chosen accessory, and everything will look pulled-together and thought out. Here's an example of the coat:

From here, your options are wide open! A beautiful scarf?

A beautiful bag is a great idea!

Lots of other possibilities...

And don't ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Stone: Unakite Jewelry

May 19, 2015 This was an intriguing request - one of you has fallen for jewelry with the stone unakite, and wanted to build their summer work capsule wardrobe (relaxed environment) around their jewelry! This was some of the jewelry I found:

One of the first things that I noted was that the accent color in the stone ranges from dark red and terra cotta to a much lighter and more delicate peach or apricot. While we could certainly go either direction, I opted for the lighter shade, to serve as a background for the design of the jewelry.

We wanted really simple clothes, so I found three "Cores of Four" in the three non-accent colors.

Here's where things got ... View the Post

A 4-Piece Travel Capsule Wardrobe in Pink, Blue, and Purple

May 18, 2015

You've seen scarves from kathkath.com on The Vivienne Files a LOT in the past: I used a beautiful pink scarf here, a rose printed one here, an amazing blue landscape scarf here, and one of my favorites - a marble printed scarf - here.If you leave me a comment below, telling me what you found on kathkath.com that you loved the most (or telling us anything else kind and loving), you will be entered to win this little (90cm square) beauty:

Yep, this is a 90 centimeter square scarf - same size as Hermes scarves. It's a glorious design - they have a close-up photograph of the pattern, and it's delectable... So of course, I'm using this as the centerpiece of another "no-effort" weekend travel capsule ... View the Post

Building a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Bracelets: Effortless Memorial Day Travel

May 16, 2015

Chicago, and the Chicago area, has some of the greatest companies making beautiful clothes and accessories. Last Saturday, at that absolutely wonderful Fashion Expo in Millennium Park (aka my front yard!), I also had the pleasure of stumbling across She-Beads. Don't be fooled by cheap imitations! (I love that sentence...) These designs and patterns are FORMED IN THE CLAY, and will not rub off, scratch off, or otherwise be diminished in the way that painted or decaled jeweled can be. Their site has a video of them making beads - it's amazing that these crafts can exist and we don't know anything about them. There are creative and skilled people everywhere...

I was thinking about what sorts ... View the Post

Problem-solving from a new point of view

May 15, 2015

When confronted with something that needs "fixing", I think the human race is hard-wired to add something to the situation:

another memo another study another throw cushion more salt another coat of polish

etc. etc. But what if you considered the possibility of removing something, instead? There have to be almost as many "remove" possibilities as there are "add" ideas. This could double your possible solutions. And we haven't even considered the possibility of just leaving things be, as they are... love, Janice Looking Back: 2014: Neutral Accessories: Shoes Part 1 2013: Chic sighting: ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Joss Sticks, a Silk Story Scarf

May 14, 2015 A local scarf maker - she travels, takes the photographs, makes the scarf, writes the story behind the scarf, and shares it with all of us! You must visit her site...

I've used shades of brown, a warm beige, and that divine red:

This is a Four by Four wardrobe meant to break rules - starting with a printed skirt! This isn't always something I'd recommend, but in this case, the skirt was irresistible, and it didn't interfere with the versatility and the options inherent in this capsule wardrobe.

And I'm working with two shades of the 2nd neutral. This is also a variance from my usual pretty strict adherence to one color, but as with the printed skirt, these two shades ... View the Post

Start With a Scarf: Orange Hermes Art des Steppes

May 13, 2015 It's never too late to pull out a scarf that you've owned for years and recommit yourself to building around it, and wearing it more! One of you has been living with, and loving, this scarf (a cashmere and silk blend wrap) for quite a while, but feel like there's more to be done with this lovely thing.

My first move with any scarf is to take a good look at it, from a distance, with my eyes squinting, and see what neutral colors seem prominent to me. I then look for colors that "jump out" - those are accents. This is the color scheme that I saw in this scarf. Bear in mind that I could easily find more colors - there's no one "correct" color scheme here!

I'm thinking of this scarf for ... View the Post

A Red Handbag: Integrating a New Accent Color in a Capsule Wardrobe

May 11, 2015

Red seems to be a color that a lot of us want to incorporate into our lives; I've received a few emails asking specifically about what to do with either a red handbag or red footwear (check out my post on integrating red cowboy boots)! Maybe a red sweater or dress is too bold, but smaller doses of red can be beautiful with literally any neutral color. I don't know of another accent that can be used as widely, and as universally, as red.

So I found a bag I really like; while this bag is styled very much like a tote bag, it's really just a medium-sized barrel shaped handbag or shoulder bag:

And I'm going to work with a VERY modest assortment of grey clothes this time. In addition to being a great way to illustrate ... View the Post