The Vivienne Files - Page 97 of 269 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

Start with Art Accessory Families

November 7, 2018

This is the time of year when my email begins to fill up with requests to write "gift guides" on The Vivienne Files... As if I know what kinds of things your friends and family will want for gifts! All I can do is show you pretty things that I see; you still have to make the difficult gifting choices yourself!

So I seldom do these, but The Met Store is exceptional. Anything inspired by art, and that helps support a wonderful museum, is alright by me...

My plan is to start with beautiful art, choose a simple garment that might be something that this particular heroine might love, and then add some accessories. Let's see how this works... Of course one would probably not wear ALL of the accessories - but I like ... View the Post

Chrysanthemums! The Birth Flower for November

November 5, 2018

I've been thinking about chrysanthemum colors for weeks! As soon as the first halfway cool day arrives in Chicago, a hundred flower beds get dug up, everything in them gets tossed in the garbage, and mums are planted. Thousands and THOUSANDS of them, all over the downtown...

These are my 2 favorite colors:

I was eager to see how these colors would accent simple, neutral outfits or dresses... I went a little bit overboard on the accessories, but I like to give a range of options. These different vignettes would offer dressy or more casual ways to wear the same clothes, which is always wise!

One could wear this black dress a half dozen times between late November and the first of the ... View the Post

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

November 2, 2018

The purchase of a serious cold-weather coat is not something to be taken lightly! First up, a ton of people will see your coat - far more (at least in a city) than will ever see anything else you wear. And of course, coats can be expensive, so you don't want to flounder around through 2 or 3 of them to get what you really like...

To clarify what's going on here, for newer readers: I started back in January by choosing six Hermes scarves, and then assembled six similar, but different, outfits - one each to "go with" each of the scarves. Each month, on or around the 1st of the month, I add another outfit, and we continue to evaluate how each wardrobe progresses.

The little square up in the top left corner ... View the Post

Instruments de Musique by Picasso, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 31, 2018

She's not quite like anybody else in her office... and she uses that to her advantage! She first really showed her skills during a trip to a client back in January. Since her success was so complete back then, she was then sent to her firm's most difficult client in April. The firm became so dependent on her to handle clients that she had to fly straight to a contact signing from her August vacation. Happily she manages these situations well!

So she wasn't particularly stunned when she received a bonus at the end of the fiscal year. Well, maybe she was a little bit surprised - it was a pretty substantial bonus!

After some thought, she decides that she'll save most of the bonus, but that she's going to take a long ... View the Post

Paysage de Neige by Renoir, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 29, 2018

She enjoys peace and quiet. Solitude. A chance to curl up and read, or go for a long walk...

When she went to the resort in January, everybody thought she was crazy. But she knew that it would be beautifully deserted and melancholy, in the best possible way! She enjoyed that trip so much that she went back in April - partly for the relaxation, and partly because she made a new friend!

Their friendship grew - when she visited in August she spent most of her evenings with her new and dear friend... But She was Surprised... When they were talking about her next visit, and her friend tossed out the idea: "why don't you just bring a bag of clothes up here and leave at my place?"

Well okay!

Before she walks to ... View the Post

Passion Flower with Hummingbirds by Heade, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 26, 2018

She's a mystery. Not to herself, of course, but most people who don't get to know her really well are fascinated and intrigued by her quiet, circumspect demeanor. Back in January she traveled to somewhere warmer, and packed the most unusual (but efficient!) assortment of clothes... When she had another trip in April, she packed a stunning combination of olive and grey, with ochre and pink accents! She finally had a break in July and went to a couple of baseball games... She certainly has her own preferences and tastes, eh?

Her very distinctive color palette is taken from her favorite painting. It's dark, a bit somber, but quite lovely, all at the same time...

I don't know where she's going for this trip - I ... View the Post

A Colorful Moon by Alain Paillou, Revisited for Autumn 2018

OCtober 24, 2018

Our oh so lucky heiress! She found out about her inheritance back in the late winter, and began searching around for a 2nd home. She visited Mexico, and loved it, and then she visited Paris, and really loved it! But she's still undecided...

Friends suggest that she stop by Ireland for a few days... THIS is a great idea...

So she studies her signature painting, while she thinks about packing for a few cool, damp days:

She knows that she should plan for cool, rainy, sunny, breezy - basically anything's possible!

She's just setting the stage to go back for a longer visit, so she doesn't need to pack much... But when you're going to Ireland, it's always wise to have warm pajamas, a hat and gloves or ... View the Post

Dame au Chapeau by Gontcharova, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 22, 2018

Ah, the inadvertently conspicuous college professor... She made a short trip (which we never discussed...) back in January, and then to another symposium in April. Her professional qualifications get her invited to all sorts of places to speak to classes - in July she got out of town for a couple of days to hang out with summer-school students! This Invitation is Different... Really different. Negotiating the final details under which she will be a guest lecturer at that university for A YEAR!!!

She's qualified. She's eager to do it. But she's got to pack!

Deep breath... Focus on the art that is her favorite, and that serves as her personal style guide:

She knows that it's going to be cold on the train, so ... View the Post

Flowers in a Crystal Vase by Manet, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 19, 2018

Our heroine is a soil conservation engineer. Lots of people don't quite understand what she does... but she gets to go to conferences with others who do what she does, and that helps! She's so well regarded in her profession that she's often invited to speak to groups of students, which she loves... And when one of her peers made an amazing discovery, she was the first person they called to share the work and the excitement.

Okay, maybe the dirt isn't that exciting to everyone... but her inspiration is actually the beauty of flowers - especially as seen in this painting and color palette:

In fact, that big discovery back in the summer was VERY big! In fact there's a conference upcoming around what she and ... View the Post

Blue by Kinuko Imai Hoffman, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 17, 2018

Our heroine is an educational coordinator, who spends a great deal of her time visiting schools... Back in January, right after the holiday break, she was bundled up and spending a couple of days in a classroom with some issues... And then back to check on them in April! Even though there were no classrooms to visit during the summer, she continued to try to understand the students in her area by attending their favorite music festival. A bit of a fish out of water, but she had a wonderful time!

This heroine has the most disciplined of wardrobes, based on the stark but beautiful simplicity of this painting:

One thing that our heroine has never really advertised to her co-workers is the meticulous care that she ... View the Post

Study in Verticals by Frantisek Kupka, Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 15, 2018

She's a mediator. A negotiator, but her position in any discussion is in the middle, trying to bring the 2 conflicting sides closer together. She loves her work, even when she has lengthy, complicated projects! Her personal life doesn't suffer because of her work, though - she's been to the beach back in the spring, and she and her spouse make the time to do some excellent dining, too. Her packing is always spot-on, because she focuses her purchases carefully around her favorite painting:

It's the Longest Strike Anyone Can Remember... People in the downtown area are used to walking past the picket lines; lots of businesses have cancelled any relationship with them, because they won't cross the picket ... View the Post

Shallow Deep by Wassily Kandinsky Revisited for Autumn 2018

October 12, 2018

Remember this heroine - the intrepid teacher who took 20 of her 6th grade students to New York City for a few days? She went back to NYC by herself in the spring (and spent quite a bit of time in The Met Shop...) During the summer she applied for, and was interviewed for, a position that would help organize field trips for students all over the state...

Her style inspiration is a whimsical, colorful painting:

So With Her New Job... of course she got the position - who else could begin to understand these projects as well as she does?

She has to travel back and forth between the city where she lives (and where she has an desk in the local offices) and the state capital, where the State Board of Education is ... View the Post