The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

The Vivienne Files - Page 246 of 269 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

Chic Sighting: Burlington Massachusetts Mall

Sigh...  My trip wasn't really fruitful, in terms of Chic Sightings.  Midway Airport in Chicago is NOT the place to look for fashion icons...But I was in the Burlington Mall on Sunday, and saw a lovely young woman - long blond hair, no makeup, radiant smile, and this colorful ensemble.  She looked comfortable and happy, and it didn't hurt that she was with a very attractive young man!

Tee & cardigan – J. Crew, Jeans – Awear, pearl stud earrings & heart necklace - Tiffany, bag – Bottega Veneta, ballet flats – Jimmy Choo   ... View the Post

12 ways to wear a blouse: Hot Tips by Frances Patiky Stein

May 3, 2012

Actually, she included 24 ways to wear a blouse, but some of them were a bit... unusual...

Blouse and matching skirt:

Blouse and pencil skirt:

Blouse over tee shirt with matching skirt or shorts:

Blouse with trousers, or AGAIN with a matching skirt:

Blouse as a jacket over a tank top and trousers, or with white trousers:

Blouse with matching trousers, worn as a jacket over a striped or a solid tee shirt:

I'll be away for a few days at a family celebration, so I won't be posting, or responding to comments and emails. Rest assured, I'll be back here Tuesday late morning, after my ridiculously early work shift!

love, Janice

PS - If you are looking for more color ... View the Post

A Travel Capsule Wardrobe – Packing for summer on the coast of Maine

A dear reader asked me for some suggestions about what to take for a summer on the coast of Maine.   She has these garments (well, garments very similar to this) that she currently really likes:

white linen shirt – Ralph Lauren, orange striped tee – Debenhams, navy striped tee – Sandro, purple striped tee – Splendid, white shirt – Marc Jacobs, white & dark wash jeans, denim jacket – Adriano Goldschmeid, black shirt – La Garconne  

And she told me that she really likes blue, so I suggested the following additions (some of which she may already have), as well as some essential accessories.   A few possible combinations follow.  Enjoy! and dream of the beach...

Blue cardigan – Paul Smith, white tee – La ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a scarf: Hermès Belles du Mexique in blue, grey & rose

It would be so easy to build an entire wardrobe around these shades of rose, grey, taupe, coral, peach and slate blue...

 

Taupe dress – D&G, taupe open-toe pumps – Rupert Sanderson,   

taupe sweater – J. Brand, satin pants – Acne, taupe oxfords - Camper  

   

 

Angora cardigan – Stine Goya, grey suede flats – Corso Como, grey dress – Love Moschino,   

cream sweater – La Garconne, faded pink jeans – Isabel Marant, Taupe short boots – Tilly Rose  

     

 

 

Coral knot-front top – Dorothy Perkins, denim skirt – MAJE, sandals – Musa,   

biker jacket – All Saints, white espadrilles – Andre ... View the Post

Chic sighting x2 – at the bakery counter

Some amazing color combinations, on some VERY nice, and lovely women...

Argyle cardigan – Pringle of Scotland, blouse – Tory Burch, earrings – Elizabeth and James, tote bag – Barneys New York, short boots – Acne, – Burberry Prorsum  

Down vest – Moncler, scarf – Barneys New York, sweater – Ralph Lauren, jeans – Old Navy     ... View the Post

The price of a manicure

Years ago, after I turned 30, I decided that absolutely nothing was more important to me than to travel. It became, for me, the primary criteria by which every purchasing decision was made: "Does this get me closer to an airplane?"  If the answer was no, then I at least paused before proceeding.

The upshot of this discipline is that I was able to go to Europe twice a year, spending about 3 weeks there in total each year.  My co-workers exhibited a constant combination of annoyance, jealousy, and just plain incomprehension as to how this could be done.  

Here's how:

As soon as I got a cell phone, I disconnected my land line. Packed lunches. Coffee from the free office coffee maker, rather than the expensive cafe ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a scarf: Hermès Passementerie in camel & grey

We've been chatting a lot about camel and grey together, and this scarf was the perfect opportunity to introduce a couple of outfits with those colors.  Toss in a bit of soft blue, a little bit of yellow, and a dash of coral...  What a great scarf upon which to build some looks!  

Stud earrings – Monet, Camel wool pants – Michael Kors, Sweater – Costume National, loafers – Tod’s, pearl stud earrings – Lord & Taylor, grey dress – Love Moschino, pumps – Salvatore Ferragamo      

Silver earrings – Touch of Silver, Sweater – Lela Rose, jeans – Allsaints, boots – Acne, silver bracelet – Touch of Silver, Cap-sleeved top – Liv, denim skirt – Wrangler, sandals – Dorothy ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a scarf: Hermès Les Parisiens in black

Someone asked me to suggest a few outfits to go with the lovely Les Parisiens scarf.  This particular coloring is a perfect opportunity to mix warm beiges or browns with black, so I took that as my motif.Please note that I'd be more than happy to suggest outfits to go with any scarf - it certainly doesn't have to be Hermes.  Just post a comment with a link to a picture of your scarf, or email me a picture at [email protected], and I'll take a look!

Dress – Ralph Lauren, pumps – L.K.Bennett, black sweater – Steven Alan, suede jeans – Current/Elliott, boots – Nicole Ranger    

Brown pants – Burberry London, black silk & cashmere v-neck, two-toned leather flats – Sesto Meucci, black cashmere ... View the Post

my wardrobe: some pattern & texture with my black

These are the eight winter garments that I've chosen to keep, which I wear in order to leverage the all-black core items already chosen to survive the wardrobe purge  (you didn't really think that I wear unrelieved black every day, did you?)

First I show my additions to my edited wardrobe, and then below, I show all of the items that have been specifically chosen (so far) to stay, through the first four stages of the curating and distilling process.

Yes, I really love argyle...

  ... View the Post