The Vivienne Files - Page 199 of 269 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

The Vivienne Files FAQ: What if I Don’t Wear Black?

March 3, 2014 I knew this would be the next question - what if I don't wear black? You have all of the rest of the spectrum from which to choose, but realistically, grey, navy, brown or tan/khaki are the most obvious other options from which to choose. Let's try the same exercise as before, but with warm colors. Say you at least know that you prefer mostly warm hues - and these are your favorite recent purchases:

There's no outfit to be worn from these four - it just simply isn't possible for most of us to put together an ensemble here. But if you started with a basic core of neutral clothes in warmer tones (except for jeans, which are sort of the ultimate neutral):

Then you ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files FAQ: Do I HAVE to buy basic garments?

March 1, 2014 Every day, I get lots of emails with lots of questions. I like that, and I'm happy that you take the time to write to me. ([email protected]) As hard as I try, I don't really have time to answer everybody individually, but your questions make a lot of difference when I choose my content every day. The single question I'm asked the most: "Is it absolutely necessary that I own neutral, simple, basic, plain, boring garments?" Let me say this flat out - if you can find a naturalist community with consistently moderate temperatures and well-groomed walkways, you can go without purchasing ANY CLOTHING AT ALL for the rest of your life. I know this is reducto ad absurdum, but sometimes we need ... View the Post

Start with Art: From Mount Darling by Peter Simpson

February 28, 2014 So this is your dream:

And maybe this is your current reality:

All the more reason you should consider shopping your dream, and at least wrapping your immediate self (i.e. your body) in the calm, soft, organic and tranquil colors of which you dream. Start small - a simple silk tunic that can be worn with any pair of pants you own... This tunic, all on it's own, could raise your spirits for a few days! Maybe some blue shoes, or a bag. And your next pair of jeans could certainly be green rather than something more predictable and conformist...

So many shades of blue from which to choose - but you don't really have to choose! ... View the Post

Struggling with a “Good Deal”

I get lots of offers, and I'm sure you do too. Often, I find myself thinking about the offer a whole lot more than I really should, and a LOT more than the offer deserves... How to sort this out? Advice welcome; let me share with you my current dilemma.

I just received this in the mail. I have a very well-documented love of Eileen Fisher clothing and design, so seeing this in my mail will of course immediate spark my interest - at least to see what she's got new and interesting for this season called "spring", which I don't understand, here in sub-zero Chicago...

Flip over the mailer, and I get more intrigued:

If there's ANYTHING I like more than a tidy list of garments, I don't know what it is. ... View the Post

Chic Sightings: Variations on a Sweater Theme

February 26, 2014 Yesterday's double posting was, in fact, a mistake on my part - the pattern mixing post was supposed to be this morning's post. But I'm having well-documented issues with Blogger, and they chose to give you the gift of two posts yesterday; who am I to argue? So today I thought I'd share a small post with a few quick observations I made in New York. First, most women in New York are NOT amazingly beautiful and well-dressed. They might be slimmer than the national average, but that might just be because one walks a lot in New York. (and if you take the subway, you climb a LOT of stairs...) Secondly, pretty much the entire city wears black coats. Maybe grey. ... View the Post

Dabbling in the Trends: Pattern Mixing

February 26, 2014 I saw mixed patterns in almost every window display in New York - along with color blocking, it was the ubiquitous fashion suggestion for spring. You know perfectly well that I'm not a big believer in the following of trends, but sometimes a fleeting style element might catch your fancy. There's nothing wrong with buying one or two things that clearly demonstrate your connection with the here and now, and that indulge your love of the trend in question. Pattern mixing is tough... It requires a pretty astute eye to pull together different garments in different patterns. That's why I really like the idea of buying one garment in which the patterns are mixed for you. Let the ... View the Post

Start With Art: An Interior from Architectural Digest

February 25, 2014 This photograph was sent to me as a suggestion for a wardrobe - and what a great idea. This photograph prompted, in me, ideas of wood, stone, natural fabrics and textured fabrics. While I'm going to start with mostly colors in the beige/brown/grey families, there are definite hints here of green, blue and orange that would be great accent colors here.

Another question I've been asked is about the possibility of purchasing garments one at a time, so this is something we're going to try here. And the idea of not matching colors exactly - the colors in this wardrobe (with one exception) won't be identical matches... So here we go! First off, wouldn't you like to be sitting ... View the Post

This is Why I Blog

February 24, 2024

Thanks so much to the reader who steered me to the New York Times Magazine article: Sign of the Times/Slaves No More by Cathy Horyn. It ends thus:

...a woman of indeterminate age who knows what she likes and has shrugged off what she no longer has any use for, and maybe never did. If that sound rather limited, that's the point. I'll stick with the same paint colors and my lovely old kilt, because, it turns out, there's a surprising amount of harmony in unremarkable choices."

(emphasis is mine)

Timeless. Elegant. Classic. Simple. Unique. Beautiful. Maybe not the words by which I live, but definitely words that inform and illuminate my style choices.

love,

Janice ... View the Post

When Starting With Art goes Haywire: Van Gogh’s Bedroom in Arles

February 20, 2014 One of my readers has been shopping with this great Van Gogh painting in hand... She's got a solid core of gorgeous gold items:

And she's picked up some light blue clothes too, which she doesn't like to wear with the gold:

And she's also picked up a few tee shirts in the accent colors of the painting:

So now, she's got this assortment of clothes. Everything, on it's own, is beautiful, but she's not finding that this is as versatile as she would like.

One of the charms of Van Gogh is that he combines difficult colors in innovating ways, and isn't terribly dependent on neutral colors. It's a glorious way to ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting With Art: Shopping with a Van Gogh Seascape

February 19, 2014

What a gorgeous painting! And the colors are so perfect for warm weather... (of which I dream right now, as I watch the white-out snow storm outside my window...)

A few of you have expressed a concern about wearing light colors below the waist, and so for this wardrobe I'm going to avoid that. Also, I've been asked to include a maxi skirt in capsule wardrobes, so today I've found one!

A dark core of four - useful for most of the year, and an essential base upon which we're going to build this plan. Navy is so perfect for warm weather; if you're concerned about the colors matching, plan to buy all four items at once, and maybe from the same place.

Yes, this is the second grouping of four green garments ... View the Post

Start With Art: Jackpine by Tom Thomson

February 18, 2014 This painting has such gorgeous colors, and for a summer travel wardrobe the options are wonderful... I'm starting with a core of four - I'm a really strong believer in the usefulness of having a core of neutral garments around which everything else can revolve. The colors don't have to be dye-lot matched, but they should be chosen with an eye to being wearable together. And getting your shoes taken care of frees you up to go just a bit wild later on in your second and third waves of shopping!

For summer, shorts and capris. Then when you branch out into tee shirts, this painting gives you a wide variety of colors from which to ... View the Post

Start with Art: Abstract by Nicolas de Stael

February 15, 2014 This beautiful work is Abstract, by Nicolas de Stael, and these cool, subtle colors are amazing for the upcoming summer. First, I'm looking for a neutral from within this painting. If you're comfortable wearing white, or if you have a good relationship with your dry cleaner, I would start with the crisp clarity of white for the initial four summer garments. Sandals that pair white with silver, and some silver loafers, might be all the change you need to update your existing wardrobe in this direction. If you're nervous about wearing this much white, substitute the deepest petrol blue...

If you've got budget and ambition to add to this summer wardrobe, look to the cool ... View the Post