black Archives - Page 17 of 60

Start with Art: Honor by Elizaveta Egiazaryan

December 28, 2020

She's quite smitten with this painting:

So when they decided, at their family meeting, that they MUST turn down the thermostat and try to cut back their energy consumption, she wondered if the warmth of her flower painting could be translated into real warmth...

Her normal wardrobe is very strictly black and white, and has been that way for quite a while. She really doesn't need a lot of clothing these days, so she's been managing pretty well with just this:

She went back to her current favorite painting, and studied it carefully. Black and white are certainly here, but what makes the painting feel warm to her is the more cream and beige tones. And the luscious pink helps too!

So she created a color ... View the Post

Start with a Ruana: Echo Smoked Lilac Tweed Ruana

December 23, 2020

She loved the whole idea of a ruana, and when she saw this one, she was smitten:

She magnified the image as much as she could, and finally decided that these might be the colors that she would wear with it... if she decides to buy it!

But before she buys anything, she's going to sit down for a few minutes (maybe with a piece of paper and her favorite pen) and think about how she might wear this beauty...

Obvious 1st choice might be black pants and a pink sweater, but her pants will be her favorite velvet jeans, and the sweater will have some lovely textures. And fun socks - of course!

Now she stands for a good, long minute in front of her closet, thinking about the beige possibilities...

A ... View the Post

Choosing Accessories: Painterly Architectonic by Liubov Popova

December 7, 2020

Remember this most difficult group of colors?

Although it's a challenging work of art, it does include three easily-available neutral colors, and 2 really nice accent colors. Our heroine finalized her wardrobe with this, and it seems pretty practical:

But she wants, and needs, accessories! Let's accessorize a dozen outfits for her, and make some effort to use some things more than once. It would be sort of fun to have completely different accessories for each outfit, but that's not exactly practical...

First off, for those of us spending the majority of our time indoors, what's not to love about a pair of wool clogs? You could certainly dash to the mailbox, or around the block with the dog, wearing ... View the Post

Can You Build a Wardrobe with Colors that Clash? Start with Art: Painterly Architectonic by Liubov Popova

November 27, 2020 She Really Loves This Painting...

And she has all of these colors in her closet! So she figures that she will pull together her "Garde-Robe du Mois" (wardrobe of the month) for the end of November and the start of December based on this...

First, she's trying to figure out how often she will wear things, based on the "How Many Pieces of Clothing Should I Own?" worksheet.

She starts with 31 days - a longer month, perhaps.

And then, because she never leaves her home these days, she knows that she only wants to wear 1 outfit per day.

She will probably evenly split between 2 and 3 garment outfits.

And finally, she plays around with the "How many times do you want to wear each piece during your time ... View the Post

Start with Art: Adding Accessories – Colored Rhythm: Study for the Film by Leopold Survage

I'll be back off and on for a week or two until things settle... Your kind messages and support help keep me sane right now. much love, Janice

November 25, 2020

She's quite happy with how her wardrobe is progressing; she's basing her choices on this painting she just discovered, and the color palette she developed from it:

She has her clothes all ready:

This is already a pretty fun wardrobe, but she's eager to see what accessories will add. The perfect scarf is all this outfit needs - a pair of earrings and some loafers finish this outfit in a classic way!

A sweater with texture and a pendant with a real eye-catching pattern are perfect for a work day:

The turtleneck print is subtle but its just ... View the Post

Start with Art: Colored Rhythm: Study for the Film by Leopold Survage

November 18, 2020

a question first - does anybody else have ankles that get cold? I was out today, and saw many people appropriately bundled for winter, except they were wearing cropped pants with nothing covering their ankles... Shaking Up the Routine She still has to go to her office - she's often the only person there. But she sits by a window onto the street, and people often stop to read the real estate ads posted very near where she sits. So she feels that she has to dress nicely, even if she's alone!

In the normal world, she wears black and white, with accessories. She likes to mix patterns, and the austere discipline of her wardrobe pleases her.

But THIS year? It's time for some fun!

And this is what inspired her! ... View the Post

Start with Nature: Revisiting the Common Shelduck

October 21, 2020

She's been driving down to visit them at their lake house on a regular basis for a few years now... Her first trip was in the dead of winter; a bit of warmth and sitting outdoor was delightful!

After the pandemic started, she was down earlier in the summer to take advantage of their cooking frenzy...

Now, they're talking about having her come for the entire winter! Why not - it's not like she's having buckets of fun being in her apartment almost all day every day!

And she wouldn't mind seeing some birds...

"Come down for the weekend and we can discuss it; you can have the bedroom and bath that you had back in the summer, and you can work on the desk in your bedroom. We're upgrading the wifi..."

"If ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – Shine On by Fierce Lynx Designs

October 14, 2020 We Want to Record Your Acceptance Speech...

Well... it's one thing entirely to win an award in the middle of a pandemic, but quite another to be invited into the city for the weekend...

But they offered a hotel room for Friday, Saturday AND Sunday night, if she could come into the recording studio for an hour or so and record a video that they could use when they announced all of the winners. So into the city they go!

Her original plan was to use 2 accent colors, but she struggled and STRUGGLED to find a good "bridge" garment or scarf, so she finally just threw her hands up in the air and decided on a full-tilt pink and black weekend!

Sometimes you have to know when you aren't going to find the right ... View the Post

Start with Art: The Dark Lady by Anna Katrina Zinkeisen

September 28, 2020

Oh MY...

Her bow inspires me...

She Just LOOKS Serious... She always has, even as a child. She wasn't a sober child, really. But her resting face was always pensive...

But she wisely took a positive aspect from this impression that she left - she could dress in practical, gorgeous dark colors - they suited both her coloring and her demeanor!

Thus, when she was forced into the head office for a couple of days of 1st quarter 2021 planning (a woman can dream!), she has no trouble packing:

yes, some of this will look very familiar, but quite different when different colors are involved!

These meetings aren't overwhelmingly dressy, but it's always smart to be prepared for the lovely dinner to ... View the Post

Start with Art: Untitled by Svenja Deininger

September 25, 2020

Another wonderful artist...

Pulled in SO MANY Directions... It's what life has been, for quite a while. But she has a chance to get away for just a few days - it's her turn to go take anything she wants from her great-aunt's home...

She has always allowed herself just a little bit of "all for her" in her life, and in her wardrobe. A wise, careful woman can do great things with a black, camel and cream wardrobe, of course.

But someone who needs to express herself, just a wee bit, is going to grab an occasional accent color!

This isn't going to be a case of rummaging through dusty stacks of worthless debris... her great-aunt had some amazing costume jewelry, beautiful scarves, and some books that ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Butterfly Wings from Echo

September 7 2020 Pollinators! Yes, people who study pollinators have conferences - EVERYBODY who studies almost anything has a conference most years! And she's going to this one...

Her travel capsule wardrobe is going to be based on this beauty:

Most of her colleagues study bees - and rightly so - but her specialty is butterflies! And so she's going to wear her scarf often, building a wardrobe around these colors:

For no good reason she can think of, she's going to wear her white jeans to get there. She's not worried... She's more thrilled with her new blazer, and matching earrings:

Weather reports for her destination are all OVER the place, so she's going to take her black shirt with her, so she can wear it under ... View the Post

Chic Sightings: Black Tops!

September 4, 2020

Just in the last few days, I've been out a bit, and it seemed that ALL of the beautifully-dressed women I saw were wearing black shirts or tops of some sort!

I'm going to notice these things, of course. And this is such a great way to get dressed - especially for those of us who are top-heavy, or who prefer to downplay the top half of our bodies. Everybody can picture wearing a ton of different things with a simple pair of black pants, or black skirt. I need to remember that the opposite is equally possible!

Of course, my favorite winter outfit in a black cashmere turtleneck and faded jeans...

Let's look!

A black top doesn't have to be a simple tee shirt - this top has a subtle Swiss dot pattern woven ... View the Post