The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

The Vivienne Files - Page 90 of 269 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

May 2019 – 12 Months, 12 Outfits – Based on 6 Hermes Scarves

May 1, 2019

I was fascinated to see how much these wardrobes became versatile this month; when a wardrobe gets to about 10 garments or so it seems to be the critical mass...

So this is your "dial-up warning;" there are lots of images here!

Here's the first scarf and color palette:

As always, I'm assembling simple outfits with timeless garments that can be worn through the summer, and can be mixed in with other items in a wardrobe...

I so easily could travel with this:

This heroine's new garments are quite versatile...

Would this be a fun color palette for someone with greying hair? I find this idea very tempting...

A pretty tank top is such an easy way to brighten things up...

This ... View the Post

Spring Updates? Or Maybe Mother’s Day?

April 29, 2019

I'm not good with dates - I forget birthdays (except my own, and Belovedest's), if we hadn't got married on the 1st day of Spring I would struggle with our anniversary, and let's not even get started on the holidays that changes dates every year!

But Mother's Day in the US is coming up soon... If you're still lucky enough to buy gifts for this occasion, it's time to give it some thought!

And yes, your mother would want you to have something pretty too...

If your wardrobe could use a bit of freshening up, a new accent color for warm weather is a fun option to consider; for this post, I just found cardigans that I liked, and then built around them. A pretty cardigan over a neutral outfit ALWAYS makes things feel new ... View the Post

Packing Small for a Group Trip – Warm Weather Ideas

April 26, 2019

Oh my... She knows that she's going to have a good time, but she's also a little bit concerned about the logistics of traveling with so many friends...

Mostly, it's about luggage! Everybody has been instructed that they can bring ONE 22 inch suitcase, and a carry-on bag that's small enough that they can hold it on their lap for at least an hour. That's pretty specific.

So she suggests the following thoughts to her friends:

She has also given some thought to what her friends should consider when they're choosing what to pack. It might be over-managing, but she thought that it might be useful if everybody was on the same page, so to speak...

Her personal travel outfit? Her favorite warm-weather standards, ... View the Post

April Travel: Start with Art – Madame Leon Clapisson by Renoir

April 24, 2019

Ah, our heroine the opera singer! Remember her from back in January?

She's not the star, but she channels her inner diva quite well!

Most of the time, she's in a costume, so she doesn't need to pack a lot... This week, she's off to her favorite city, to finish up the "regular" opera season with a role in 1 of her favorites. She's had a good season...

This is her inspiration, in so many ways!

She realized long ago that she's made to wear dresses and skirts! So she focuses on navy dresses, with cardigans, jewelry, and scarves to add that bit of drama and femininity that she loves so much... (she was BORN to be an opera singer...)

She loves working with such a neutral, almost predictable base in her ... View the Post

April Travel: Start with Art – The Bounds of the Intellect by Paul Klee

April 22, 2019 Warmth She's has reddish-brown hair for most of her life. And freckles. And warm brown eyes. All her life, she's been happy to dress in a quiet, subdued way that accents her coloring. Sometimes, she dresses to match herself! And other times, she chooses subtle greys that contrast perfectly with her overall warm appearance.

When she saw this painting, she knew she had a winner! It even includes accents of orange, which she's never tried, and a deep maroon red, which she loves for her nails and lips:

She knows that people don't wear a lot of brown in big cities... And they never seem to wear brown at the home office. But given that her offices don't HAVE a dress code, she's not concerned. She's going to show up for ... View the Post

April Travel – Start with Art: Verre et Paquet de Tabac by Juan Gris

April 19, 2019

Remember our heroine who helps non-math types learn to work with data and statistics? She's on the road again!

She likes structure, and clear-cut plans. She was wise enough to realize that she would NEVER find clothes in this "wet cardboard" color, so she substituted her favorite bright yellow/gold for the beige... This is her inspiration:

She likes bright, and cheery, and she's happy to hold the attention of her "students" while she's persuading them that numbers will not hurt them...

Because she works for an advertising agency, she doesn't have to get super dressed up, but she always likes to have something with her to look businesslike. You never know when office managers and assorted executives might ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – The April monthly bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

April 17, 2019

 

Why yes, I am buying this one NOW...

These are colors in which I can (and do!) live...

Summer Long Weekends... In the United States, there are 3 "built-in" long weekends during the summer - Memorial Day, at the end of May, the 4th of July, and Labor Day, at the end of August. Clever women manage to sneak in 1 or 2 more...

This heroine and her family have decided that they're going to take a handful of "medium-sized" road trips this summer and see some attractions within a 4-hour drive of home.

It's going to be a treat, though - they've committed to hotels with pools, and at least 1 good restaurant nearby!

And so our heroine is putting together her travel wardrobe for ALL OF THESE TRIPS... ... View the Post

Could You Wear Your Dresses in Different Ways?

April 15, 2019

WARNING: This idea may very well NOT appeal to you. And this is as it should be - nobody should love EVERYTHING that they see; that would be ruinous for one's budget, and be completely the antithesis of developing a personal style!

That said, I know a couple of women who do this and it works quite nicely for them...

First, we start with a dress that is roomy - some space around the (preferably v-neck) neckline, armholes that aren't tight, and an overall silhouette that's got some flow:

This is a magnificent dress - simple, but beautifully well-made. And it could hang in your closet most of the time. That would be a sad waste of a lovely dress, and an eye-popping investment...

But do you own any of these ... View the Post

April Travel – Start with Art: Street, Berlin by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

April 12, 2019

After retirement, they decided that they were going to travel to a new destination every 3 months for the first year! Just for a few days....

In the winter, they went somewhere warmer - I'm not sure, but it might have been Barcelona?

When our heroine and her sweetheart hatched this plot, our heroine chose this very evocative painting as her color inspiration:

Yes, April in Paris She's very excited...

Maybe a striped top is cliche to wear to Paris, but she loves her travel outfit - classic, simple, comfortable...

And since retirement is rekindling the romance in their lives, she's sticking with some pink accents. Something about pink just feels romantic to her. And her true love seems to ... View the Post

April Travel – Start with Art: Rhythmisches by Paul Klee

April 10, 2019

Ah, our friend who just got the job running a quilt museum! She's going to her first quilting conference...

Her work surrounds her with colors - brilliant colors, brilliantly combined by (mostly) women with unsung artistic skills. As much as she loves the colors, she has decided to dress more neutrally - she doesn't want to distract from the beauty of the work that she's curating. Thus, she's chosen a simple, but quite interesting, painting as her travel wardrobe inspiration:

She will be going straight into seminars as soon as she arrives, and she will be met at the airport from an official of the conference, so she's wearing a dress to fly in! (it's a short trip, in all fairness...)

In order to keep ... View the Post

April Travel: Start with Art – Briqueterie a Tortosa by Picasso

April 8, 2019

 

Remember our friend who designs installations for solar panels?   Happy for her, she's now traveling in warm weather! No more the "leave the snow, get off the plane in sweltering heat!"

So she's packing light - just enough to visit her clients, and the construction sites...

This painting is her inspiration:

She's driving to her next clients, so she's wearing sandals on her trip! Normally, she doesn't fly in sandals...

Many of her clients can be hard to read, at first. Some of them want her to put on a hard-hat and steel-toed boots and climb ladders (she doesn't go quite that far...) and other just want to sit over a cocktail at the country club and review the plans. So she tries ... View the Post