bracelets Archives

Accessories “Families” based on Pantone’s Spring 2022 colors

January 12, 2022

It's time to look at some "new" colors. (Yes, I never cease to be amazed by the hubris of calling a color "new"...)

But the announcement of these colors does give us a chance to think about what accent colors we prefer, and what we might want to consider. During these VERY short days (in the Northern Hemisphere!), which are very VERY cold, something to brighten up your wardrobe routine isn't crazy...

Please note, when you're shopping for socks, make absolutely sure that you're ordering what you have in mind - some socks are NOT meant to be worn with shoes! They're for lounging, or sleeping, or maybe worn under heavy boots. Trying to get a pair of those into a trim little loafer is going to be disappointing... ... View the Post

Accessorizing a Swim Suit-Centered Wardrobe

April 9, 2021 She's Going to Swim, This Year On Wednesday, we started with this:

Our very happy heroine's travel capsule wardrobe is this:

But she can't travel - and she certainly can't go to the beach - with only 1 pair of shoes, no sandals, no hat, and no sunglasses!

So let's work our way through getting her travel wardrobe completed!

This is 2 of the most important things to pack; surely by now we all understand the need for covering up from too much sun, right?

If she's outdoors a lot, she may not need a mask constantly, but we're all going to want to have masks with us for the foreseeable future. Of course she wants a towel, and good sandals... I couldn't resist a cover-up too!

Simple earrings, the ... View the Post

How to Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet – June 2020

July 2, 2020

Yes, it's July, but we never got around to the beautiful June bracelet!

In all fairness, our beautiful jewelry designer is having to deal with getting stones and beads delivered, which isn't uncomplicated under our current circumstances. We can easily forgive things, these days...

The Moon Will be Full... And that's all she really needs to be motivated to go to the cabin for the weekend!

She's going to be dressed and in the car anyway because she has a doctor's appointment. Some things do NOT wait for the lockdown to end...

Nobody else much wants to come with her - even at the cabin, they have to be careful about not socializing closely with the other people who live around the lake. THAT means that ... View the Post

Choosing a Scarf: The PJ Studio Accessories Edition

June 11, 2020

After I looked for a while at the "Choosing a Scarf" post that I mentioned at the end of yesterday's post, I was determined that I wanted to try this idea again!

To me, a scarf is the quintessence of your style. It's a distillation of the colors that you like, as well as the overall kind of patterns or prints or images that delight you...

When I was scarf hunting, I bumped into this designer, and this assortment of lovely things:

As I did before, I'm choosing to show a handful of things that could be worn with each scarf in question. I'm not necessarily suggesting that you need to own all of these things, or that you would wear them all together (that might be overdoing things a bit...).

But what I do think ... View the Post

How to Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet – February

February 7, 2020

THIS is just perfect; what a great way to bring some cheer into your day, and some Mardi Gras spirit to your outfit throughout the year:

I was sorely tempted to dress our heroine in creamy silk with bright accents, but alas, creamy silk is not yet available from anybody I could see...

But there are ALWAYS options, if we think long and hard enough!

She Thought She Was Going to Mardi Gras for her vacation. But just a few days before she was to leave, the head of the Engineering Department told the Sales Manager that SHE should go to their biggest client for the launch of a number of system modifications. After all, she designed all of the carbon-neutral adaptations for the client operations - who better to ... View the Post

How to Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet – January

January 10, 2020

Time for another great bracelet! This is a special thought for all of you who love brown and all warm colors...

That little touch of the rust in the beads is lovely...

Just a Small Change of Habit... She quit buying coffee during the day at work. There was never any good reason to go downstairs and wait for coffee, when there's a perfectly decent coffee maker just down the hall. But SO many people used coffee as an excuse to be out of their office for 20 minutes, and it never occurred to her that it wasn't a good idea...

'Til she looked at her monthly expenditures! A couple of months of "office coffee" and she could take a long weekend someplace... warmer. Not necessarily beachy, but somewhere that was ... View the Post

How to Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet – December

December 11, 2019

Yes, I was going to start analyzing our 12-month Hermes scarf-based wardrobes today, but I thought it might be smarter if I got this GORGEOUS bracelet in front of you in time for upcoming gift-giving events. And remember, a nicely printed photograph of this bracelet (right-click on the image below, print it, roll it up and tie it with a piece of re-used ribbon), will be a lovely notice that this bracelet is on the way, if it doesn't arrive it time!

I'm going to tackle analyzing those wardrobes on Fridays. Should be educational - at least for me!

How lovely is THIS?

What great colors - warm and cool, neutral and accent...

She Wrote the Book Years Ago... Literally the first months out of ... View the Post

A Couple of Enthusiastic Recommendations, and a Question

First Cool Thing You may have figured out by now that my most beloved mother lives in Florida... which suggests warm weather, pools...

POOLS? You're not gettin' me in some skimpy little string-bottomed, fat-revealing piece of Lycra!

That was me, for quite a long time. But having children in the family changes all rules, so I took a chance, and I AM THRILLED.

I LOOK GOOD IN THIS!

Trust me. Take your measurements, be patient, and TRY THESE. I was so happy... There's a pool in my building! And a HOT TUB! And I can USE THEM BOTH!!!!!

excuse me, I'm shouting because I'm happy; it's a great reason to shout....

Yes, wrestling your upper torso into the top is a project, because of the built-in bra. But it's worth the ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet – November

November 20, 2019

Always one of the best days of the month!

THAT Phone Call...

She knew when the phone rang that it wasn't great. But a couple of weeks taking care of a loved one isn't a curse either - it's a privilege, and she's going to treat it as such...

It's not a dressy thing, but she still wants to look nice; she isn't going to have to do any really difficult manual labor. A bit of cooking, a bit of laundry, a bit of keeping her dearest one entertained and comfortable...

As soon as she looked down at her watch, and her bracelet, she knew roughly what she was going to pack. Grey because it's easy and neutral, and lovely, pretty accent colors to brighten up the days.

She knows that if she starts with a ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet – The May green and beige bracelet from Fierce Lynx Designs!

May 15, 2019

She knew immediately that it was just what she needed for her warm-weather wardrobe...

It suits her current color palette perfectly!

Why Don't You Come up For the Whole Week? She's GOT to finish the edits on her book. This week. By Friday. No jokes, no exceptions...

She had hoped to make it to her friends' home for the weekend...

It all seemed doubtful, until she picked up the call...

"Come up this evening and stay for the week; we've got electricity in the gazebo! You can sit out there all day, work, drink iced tea (until cocktail hour), and still be here to have dinner with us and spend the evening. The Wifi out there is better than in the house!"

Hmm... out of the sun, eating her ... 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

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

March 15, 2019

This is really exciting - one of my genius technical helpers here on The Vivienne Files ALSO makes jewelry. (don't you just hate these creative types?)

And she's going to make a special bracelet, each month, for US, here at The Vivienne Files!

Here's the first one:

How gorgeous is that?

So I'm thinking about warm weather, and lakes, and beaches, and summer homes...

My color scheme is this:

And I'm planning a wardrobe that you can pull together and then leave at the beach house until at least May or June. My plan is to wear super-light colored clothing, so that it feels summery. But I'll also make certain that our heroine has a few warm garments - spring evenings aren't always warm!

First up, ... View the Post