The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

Home » Start a Capsule Wardrobe With » Page 89

Start a Capsule Wardrobe With Archives - Page 89 of 157

Blue by Kinuko Imai Hoffman – Revisiting for Spring 2018

April 3, 2018

You might remember that back in January I assembled a very simple, but (to my mind) fascinating little Tote Bag Travel capsule based on this work.

The palette suggested by this is very limited, but I think that's part of the challenge/fun - especially for someone who thrives by being creative with constraints:

When we left our heroine visiting classrooms, just after the winter holidays, this was her travel wardrobe:

Her visits continue through the school year, even as the weather warms... And she adheres to her very disciplined wardrobe. Her goal is to be a calming, familiar presence in the classes she visits...

 

The weather's getting warmer, but it's still cool enough for a long-sleeved ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – April 2018

April 2, 2018   It SHOULD be Spring, but it's iffy, at least here in Chicago...So we'll go with an outfit for warmish weather - capris that are primed for warmer weather, but (with 1 notable exception!) tops that still cover us up a bit...For those who are new to this adventure, it works like this: I start the year by choosing six Hermes scarves (for no good reason except that they're beautiful, and have amazing color combinations!) and then each month I add another outfit to six wardrobes - each based upon the colors and overall "feeling" in one of the scarves.

First, the simplest of colors and styles, with classic jewelry and snazzy shoes!

This is what this heroine now has in her wardrobe - a few options available, I'd ... View the Post

Revisiting a Start With Art: Edith and the Kingpin by Jack Vettriano

March 30, 2018 When we left Edith, she was deeply smitten with a gentleman that she had... encountered... at the resort to which she had been sent to recuperate from a recent illness...So when one of her friends wrote to her that the resort was looking for a new hostess for the luncheon salon, she determined that she was going to get the job!"You're going to do what?"

"Well, it's only 5 hours of work (10 to 3) five days a week, AND I get a room at the resort for the season, and I get all of my meals provided, AND I get paid. It will be almost like being a guest there, except that I'll get to meet everyone, and I'll get paid to get a bit of exercise..."

Her parents are not convinced, but they recognize that expression on her ... View the Post

Can I Make a Capsule Wardrobe with my Gym Clothes?

March 28, 2018  

It's a frequent question - does the idea of a capsule wardrobe work when we're talking about clothes for athletic activities? Heck yes! If you like black, it's really difficult to avoid a capsule wardrobe, because so MANY athletic garments are black. But even if you source out different colors, there's no reason at all not to have a plan and a structure for the purchase of your sports apparel...And this works for any sport - golf, yoga, running, weight-lifting...

So let's start with a favorite outfit - a tee shirt and capri athletic pants, with a cropped sweatshirt to top it all off. I'll assume that you have the appropriate shoes and socks, as well as any sort of sun protection or hair control ... View the Post

Daisies! The Birth Flower for April

March 27, 2018

I think that daisies are popular for lots of reasons - in real life, they're a great cut flower to buy because they're generally very inexpensive, last a REALLY long time, and the buds will actually open after you buy them...

For ornamental purposes, they're simple in design, familiar to almost all of us, and for many people have associations that make us smile...

So if you want to add a daisy or five to your wardrobe, you have options:

If you don't want the actual daisy - but the "feel" of the daisy, you could wear white with any color in the world (I don't think I need to show you how to do that!), or you could choose to add a dash of yellow to your wardrobe... (yes, this is indeed the 2nd month in a row ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – March 2018

March 1, 2018

Who couldn't be happy that it's finally March? (I swear, I think February might have been the longest month of my life!) Let's buy some sweaters and skirts, if only in our imaginations...

For some reason it's become a tradition for me to include canvas shoes or espadrilles with the outfits in March. Some of them are a stretch, I'll admit!

This wardrobe is unlike anything else I've ever assembled!

Seriously, couldn't someone get married in this outfit?

I think this is become really pretty...

There's something about stripes with dots... especially in navy! (and the espadrilles have little round perforations...)

I'm loving this one too... It all feels very easy to wear...

There was ... View the Post

Daffodils – the Birth Flower for March! How perfect…

After watching the Six Nations rugby yesterday, and seeing daffodil hats, and lots of daffodils pinned to coats, it seemed only perfect that today we look at them as the March birth flower...(Daffodil Days are a Cancer Society fund-raiser...)

For many of us, yellow feels like an inherently difficult color, but never discount the impact (and the fun!) that you could have with a yellow pedicure, or yellow sandals... but you can always wear the image of the daffodil in silver - no worries about unflattering yellow!

And I'm convinced that the flower in the middle of that very bright scarf is a narcissus...

Disclaimer - Yes, I'm using the same pants and shoes for most of these outfits. This is NOT because I'm bone-deep lazy (although ... View the Post

Revisiting the Red Tulip Scarf, and some Unpredictable Navy

February 22, 2018 You might remember a travel capsule wardrobe for a brave (some might say daring) heroine a couple of months ago...This was her inspirational scarf, her style guidelines, and her color palette:

A Conference, Alone.... After the lecture that she attended before the holidays, she joined a group that did a lot of research in the subject that she found so fascinating. So now, they're getting together for a weekend conference to discuss their finding and their next steps. She's VERY excited...

It's just a couple of days, so she won't need a lot of things. Mostly they'll be sitting around a conference table talking, taking notes and sharing ideas... There's 1 nice dinner planned, and as usual she's going to take ... View the Post

My 2nd Most Popular Post – Project 333 for Warmer Weather – Shifting Basics

For a couple of years when I still had an office job, I tried to participate in Project 333 - wearing a 33-piece capsule wardrobe exclusive for at least a month. This post shows how I was trying to migrate certain pieces out of my capsule wardrobe, and what I would substitute as the weather warmed up...

The general thesis behind this idea holds true for any garment in which you seem to live... If you wear jeans constantly in the autumn and winter, maybe you could consider denim capris, or shorts, or maybe chambray pants for warmer weather? The same garment, in terms of color and cut, but lightened up...

Should I look into these "substitutions" more in the future? Let me know!

(And yes, planning for warmer weather right now feels ... View the Post

I Read, I Watch, I Listen…

February 2 2018

As much as it might seem that I work on The Vivienne Files for 16 hours a day, I actually do have leisure time! Recently, I've received a few emails about what I've been doing for entertainment, so I thought I'd share...

If you haven't seen this movie, you really should! Unless you hate paintings, of course. EVERY FRAME of this film is an oil panting - the use of color, and the transitions between scenes, and the recognizable paintings - everything will amaze you. The number of people in the south of France with Irish accents was amusing, too!

And I agreed to watch this because I was outnumbered in the room - generally, war movies creep me out, and often give me nightmares. But this was well worth making an ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – February 2018

I'm still not sure why I always add a dress in February - a long-standing affection for Valentine's Day? Or just a desire to make sure that I'm well prepared for dressy spring events?

It's not quite expected to accessorize a classic black dress with bright spring green...

I didn't find a beige dress that appealed, so I thought that this delicious cocoa brown would be perfect with this scarf, or with a grouping of blush pink accessories.

The red is probably the most expected accent color with a navy dress, so I ignored that and chose teal instead!

This green isn't as yellow-ish as the greens used last month, but since it's a dress, it doesn't have to be "dye-lot matched" to the other neutral in this wardrobe... And ... View the Post