The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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Five Accent Colors with Five Neutrals

October 12, 2022

Ah, the last 5 Pantone colors from New York Fashion Week! Just to make things interesting, I brought along five different neutral color "clusters" to test-drive with these VERY varied colors...

To me, this peachy color cried out for some camel...

And I think these are perfect together!

For about the ten thousandth time, if you look good in yellow - WEAR IT! It's not easy to wear for some of us, and it's such a great accent...

I'm picturing this heroine living somewhere that's warm most of the year, so her favorite neutral is white:

I think this is lovely - the top outfit, on a rainy day, with the right coat and umbrella, would cheer up everyone you saw!

I'm tempted to wear ... View the Post

Five Accent Colors with Winter White and with Beige

September 30, 2022

Why yes, Pantone found additional colors at New York Fashion Week...

Which is fine with me, because I could look at accessories 'til the cows come home! And since I live in the city, that would be forever, right?

Let's start with this classic red; yes, this scarf is an investment. But you could wear it at least once a week during cool weather, for the rest of your life. I'm finding that I have some scarves that 20+ years old, and that I still adore. 

I've chosen ivory (Winter White?) and beige as our wardrobe core colors to "test drive" this batch of accent colors. While I wouldn't wear white pumps in this lifetime, I know a LOT of women who wear them through the year and look just lovely.

And ... View the Post

Four Accent Colors with Charcoal Grey, and 1 with Navy Blue

September 26, 2022

Let's take a look at the second five "London Fashion Week" colors, as shared with us by Pantone...

You probably remember from last week that I showed the first 5 colors as accents to navy blue; I'm going to hold onto that navy for this bright green. It just seems to be the right thing to do!

This is the minimal, core navy wardrobe that I was using:

At least in my eyes, these colors are made for each other. While these outfits feel a lot like spring, let's bear in mind that we dress to flatter ourselves, NOT to match the calendar!

For the last 4 accent colors, I decided to see how they look with charcoal grey. This wee core wardrobe is more casual than the first; what you choose will depend on ... View the Post

1 Dress, 14 Ways to Wear It

August 31, 2022

Tomorrow, I'm going to start the "1 Dress, 100 Days" project, sponsored by Wool&, and completed by hundreds of other women. I'm very excited...

My dress will be the Sierra Tank Dress - 100% wool and softer than you can imagine. Mine, of course, is black!

I plan to Instagram what I wear every day and put it here on The Vivienne Files. That means there will be posts here EVERY DAY for the next 100 days - although many of them will be pretty brief. On my normal "off days," I will show you what I'm wearing and make any observations or comments about what I think about the whole process.

But what can one do with the same dress for 100 days?

Wear it alone, with accessories, or wear it with something under ... View the Post

Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Taisho – Large Heat

July 22, 2022

Well, this is timely! I was just out on Michigan Avenue, the temperature is around 90 degree Fahrenheit, and the most comfortable women I saw were wearing loose dresses...

And so was I!

The most important thing to remember on days like this is to stay hydrated! And of course, protection from the sun is critical...

It's possible to wear black, if you've got your route planned so that you can stay on the shady side of the street! If you're not sure about how sunny it may be where you're going, you may want to choose something in a lighter color.

This is how it feels...

Even if you're somewhere surrounded by buildings and pavement, you can wear pretty flowers!

You might find that ... View the Post

Indulging in Jackets and Sweaters

July 20, 2022 I think this might qualify as a "Sometimes Extravagant Wednesday"... Treating Yourself... I know that dressing in a solid column is somewhat controversial, but it's also so popular that I wanted to see what possibilities could be found for both navy and olive...

Getting dressed is easier when you wear a solid column every day, but if you're looking for things like matching loafers, you might find that shopping can be challenging!

For a heroine committed to wearing her column, she might have tiny wardrobe of pants and shirts, and then TONS of sweater and jackets, scarves, and nifty shoes...

There are so many color possibilities - I can't think of any color that she couldn't wear with navy!

Everything from relaxed ... View the Post

Let’s Look at Some Pretty Things…

July 18, 2022

For those of us who really already have enough clothes, this can be a weirdly sad time of year. Lots of people are throwing themselves willy-nilly into pre-season sales (and buying some things that aren't really all that nice...), and we just can't justify buying yet another black skirt, or pair of navy pants...

But we can buy accents and accessories!

Like this deeply, profoundly beautiful scarf:

 

I think this scarf is so beautiful that I gave it it's own page!

But that's just the start - I think that this lace collar is so pretty; I can see it over a crew-neck sweater or dress is any number of colors...

For those of us who really love purple, there are so beautiful scarves available. ... View the Post

Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Geshi, Summer Solstice

June 20, 2022

I'm finding it hard to believe (okay, maybe hard to ACCEPT) that tomorrow will be the longest day of the year. It feels like the weather here in Chicago just "hotted up" in the last 2 weeks...

But let's think of the Solstice as a chance for celebrating our extreme daylight (or darkness, if that's your hemisphere!). And that means a chance to treat ourselves!

 

I think many of us worry about our clothes quite a bit, at the expense of paying good attention to our accessories. Maybe, for balance, we should celebrate the Solstice with a self-gift of something beautiful? For those among us who wear a lot of earth tones, this might be a palette to consider:  

I'm not sure what neutrals are best ... View the Post

Adding Accessories to a Wardrobe: Start with Art – Sunlight on the Road, Pontoise by Pissarro

May 30, 2022

This is the painting that inspired our heroine:

And this is the wardrobe that she assembled for the upcoming summer months; she lives in a nice mild climate...

Of course she needs accessories! Most women will at least want some shoes, and I suspect that most of us also like a couple of pieces of jewelry, a bag, and possibly a scarf or two...

But there are no rules - if you really AREN'T a jewelry person, or a scarf person, don't force yourself to be someone you're not. There's nothing at all elegant or beautiful about being untrue to yourself!

For the sake of fun, maybe our heroine is going to use this template as a guideline for her summer accessories:

Where does one start? Our heroine decides ... View the Post

May 2022: Six Scarves, 12 Months

May 2, 2022

Let's visit our gradually growing wardrobes, based on beautiful scarves from PJ Studio Accessories!

This month, it was SO easy to shop for this wardrobe! I can't imagine how I personally would get through the summer without a shirtdress in a light fabric...

Each of these wardrobes now includes 19 garments - pretty much enough to get through the summer! If you're inclined to participate in the "21 Garments, 21 Days" challenges, any of these wardrobe plus a couple of tops would get you through the next 21 days pretty easily. Yes, some of these garments are skewed a bit toward cooler weather; some substitutions might be needed...

All the shoes you might need - from boots to sandals! 

How might ... View the Post

Adding Accent Accessories – Start with Art: Vocal Fabric of the Singer Rosa Silber by Paul Klee

April 22, 2022

You know that it's "klee an in clay"? There once was a book by that title that helped us pronounce all sorts of art and music names properly; well worth grabbing if you see it used...

Well, when I started this post, I wasn't at all sure WHEN you would get to see it; they're working on the internet and cable in my building - fifty-some floors of rewiring! Outages and glitches are built into this process; if I am going to miss a date I will post a note from my phone so you know I'm okay!

SO!!! Let's get Wednesday's heroines some accessories!!!

For reference, and for pleasure, let's remember that this is the art from which we started:

Let's go back to our core of 10 pieces of clothing. There's no reason in the ... View the Post

A Few of My Favorite Things – April 2022

April 6, 2022

I've never done this, in the 12 years (!!?!!?!!) that I've been writing The Vivienne Files - just show you a bunch of stuff that caught my eye!

But I realized a few days ago that my "cool things to remember" file was getting stupid big, and so I thought that I could just show you items outside of the context of a wardrobe. You're adults - you'll figure out how these could be worn!

Everything here is from 1 website: wolfandbadger.com. I've been to their stores in New York and London, as well as ordering things from them. Their service is excellent...

And since all of these things come from small designers, you really could email a designer to ask questions! For example, if you madly admire a pair of red earrings, ... View the Post