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How to Expand Your Accessory Wardrobe: Winter Scene in Moonlight by Henry Farrer

January 23, 2017

On Friday, I expanded the original travel capsule wardrobe into a more complete "Four x Four" capsule wardrobe, but the real fun comes with adding more accessories!

When our heroine originally packed for her winter weekend on the farm, these were her accessories - lots of scarves!

Just for reference purposes, and to enjoy this painting one last time, this is her style inspiration:

For normal life, constantly wearing boots won't work, so we probably should start by getting her a comfy pair of loafers...

And just because I'm bracelet mad these days, another star bracelet could be a fun addition. It's a good thing that I'm in a shopping moratorium this year, because these ALL are very ... View the Post

Build an Accessory Wardrobe 1 Piece at a Time: Soir d’Octobre by Maurice Denis

January 6, 2017

Yesterday's capsule wardrobe based on Soir d'Octobre was pretty great, but we can't just leave our imaginary heroine like this:

Let's remember our inspiration:

So let's work step by step - just as we did yesterday - and add all of the essential accessories (and a few fun ones) to this wardrobe.

First, one must have shoes! This time of year, a pair of short boots is a nice warm choice:

sweater - L.L.Bean; shirt - Lands' End; leather pants - J.Crew; Top boots – Rockport; middle - Aerosoles; bottom – Ariat

I know that many women would want a handbag immediately, but for me, I don't feel dressed unless I'm wearing earrings!

Here, I decided to test-drive the theory that I ... View the Post

My Year Without Shopping – January 2017. The Reasons, The Method, and The Rules

January 3, 2017

Yes, it's true, and it's long overdue; I'm taking a year off from shopping! I've begun to feel just a bit too much like this:

Untitled (I Shop Therefore I Am) by Barbara Kruger

(By shopping, I'm including clothes, jewelry, and all accessories.) It's become apparent that I have a lot more clothes than I need, especially when considering my current life. It's not uncommon for me to spend at least 2 days a week in gym clothes - I'll wake up and put them on immediately, but then won't actually GET to the gym until mid- to late-afternoon. By the time I've finished working out and cooling down, (at least in the winter) it's time for me to shower and put on my pajamas! I could get ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe: Starting From Scratch: Evaluating and Balancing, based on Lightning over Colorado by Joe Randall

December 30, 2016

One last time:

Mr. Randall has a great eye, doesn't he?

When we left our wardrobe at the end of the day yesterday, this is where we were - 25 pieces, lots and lots of ways to wear them, a good balance of colors EXCEPT those 2 beige/brown pieces. I'm still not feeling comfortable with them...

If you need to catch up to where we are, check Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and yesterday's posts.

In order to evaluate this wardrobe, there are lots of options (see the various ways that I reviewed the "12 Months, 12 Outfits" wardrobes for some ideas), but I like to just sort by color and see what seems obvious.

The grey items look great - a little heavy on outerwear and sweaters, which ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe: Starting From Scratch: Personalizing the Basics, based on Lightning over Colorado by Joe Randall

December 28, 2016

When we left this wardrobe yesterday, we had nine pieces of clothing - a small assortment, but sufficient for two dozen outfits. And the wardrobe has a nice coherent look that's beginning to take shape:

Time to bring some more color into this wardrobe! The photograph from which we're working gives us options for a wide range of shades of purple, from the lightest pastel to the deepest violet blue. The differences between these 2 colors means that you will have outfits that "feel" two very different ways.And a bit more gold metal jewelry, as suggested by the clouds in the upper left corner of the photograph. The grey stones still anchor this necklace well within a grey-based wardrobe. (I hope!) Botkier has ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe: Starting From Scratch: Introducing Accent Colors and Accessories, based on Lightning over Colorado by Joe Randall

December 27, 2016

When we left this wardrobe, it was very neutral, and very simple - but this is the way to start a really functional wardrobe! If you get these building blocks in place early, your later additions will be effortless to wear, and you'll have lots of options...

Cardigan – Pure Cashmere; tee shirt – L.L.Bean; shirt– J.Crew; pants – L.L.Bean; Jeans – L.L.Bean; loafers - Donald J. Pliner

One of the joys of working with this photograph is the wide range of accent colors available. All sorts of pink, lavender, lilac and deep purple colors can be taken from this image. It's so beautiful...And in observance of the strong warm coloring in the top left color of the photo, I'm going to see if we ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe: Starting From Scratch: The Core Pieces, based on Lightning over Colorado by Joe Randall

Join me on this adventure! Someone wrote to me last week, after I showed this amazing storm photograph, asking if these colors could work as accents for a capsule wardrobe that is mostly grey.Well... maybe. I'm going to give it a try, to see how it works. But I have a real concern: all of the shades of pink and purple will be glorious accents to the grey wardrobe, and would be madly flattered by black leather goods and silver jewelry with pink, lavender or purple beads, stones or pearls. HOWEVER... introducing the warm browns and tans into the mix immediately makes me think that I need to use gold, rather than silver, jewelry. And I'm not at all sure where the leather pieces will fit in....

Nonetheless, we shall endeavor to make ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Femme au Col Blanc VERSION THREE

December 23, 2016 A Lengthy Get-Away... She traveled for the winter holidays, and she traveled to a much warmer destination. But now, she wants to travel from one cold city to ANOTHER cold city, and then take the train to a nice warm break in the countryside... Dressy and casual. Warm and cold. What's she going to do?

Stick with the plan!

Her favorite colors - dare she say her signature colors?

This travel outfit worked so very well for her at the holidays - no need to fix what isn't broken. And when she gets to the next city, she'll be ideally dressed for a leisurely lunch while waiting for her hotel room to become available. It's always wise to think about how your first hours will be spent when you've arrived ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Femme au Col Blanc by Marc Chagall VERSION TWO

December 22, 2016

Done with Winter (for a weekend, at least) Our heroine is ready for a couple of days of warmth. She'd like to see her toes... It's the same heroine we've been following all week; she's referencing her first color scheme, seen here:

Since she's leaving a cold climate, long sleeves, a sweater, and "real" shoes are essential: earrings – Stephen Dweck; scarf – Echo; cardigan– L.L.Bean; tee – Stella McCartney; bracelet – Vera Bradley; loafers – UGG; tote –Louise et Cie; jeans – L.L.Bean But once she's on the ground for the weekend, she's VERY hopeful that she's going to be able to wear capris, and sandals, and tee shirts, and bright ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Paysage by Pablo Picasso

December 20, 2016

New Year's is MY Holiday... After the madness that was Christmas, our heroine decided that she's going to go away for a long weekend for New Year's Eve and Day... So she sends her core 4 garments to be cleaned (of course she washes her own jeans!) and starts making plans.

Because it's the new year, she's feeling the desire for a pretty spring flower pink, and lovely sky blues...

Dress – Lands’ End; tote – Louise et Cie; earrings – Stephen Dweck; scarf – Roberto Cavalli; bracelet – 1928; gloves – UR; boots – Sarto; coat – Ermanno Scervino

So she switches up just SIX things that she packed for her last trip (and decides to wear her amazing leafy-trimmed coat) and gets ready to set ... View the Post

Start with Art: Femme au Col Blanc by Marc Chagall

December 19, 2016

I saw a TON of art when I was in Paris, so you're going to be inundated with "Start with Art" capsule wardrobe for the foreseeable future! I think anybody who has met me can appreciate why this painting caught my eye immediately:

I loved the clarity and simplicity of this painting - the color scheme is a refreshing change from seeing black and white with red so frequently. (not that I'm going to quit wearing red any time soon, but I do understand that it's ubiquitous...)

She's NOT Feeling Christmasy... Some years, you just don't...

But she knows that she has to look beautiful for a couple of days, so she breaks out her favorite colors (no red, thank you!) to accent her best ... View the Post

12 Months, 12 Outfits in a Navy-Based Capsule Wardrobe: An Evaluation

December 1, 2016

Back in November, when we left this wardrobe, it was in pretty good shape. Eleven outfits had been collected into a pretty coherent, and pretty comprehensive, capsule wardrobe that would see most people through a great many of their activities:

As I've said before, no wardrobe is ever really finished. Clothes wear out, or get damaged. Our sizes change, and sometimes, we just plain get completely fed up with a garment that we've worn a lot, and feel the need to replace it. So it's useful to have a few different ways to really look at a wardrobe and determine what might be needed, or useful, or helpful, to add. I thought of a couple of different ways to evaluate things...

First off, I thought that ... View the Post