brown Archives - Page 23 of 30

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step 5: Accessories round one

June 24, 2014

Now that we have enough clothes in our capsule wardrobe to put together at least a handful of combinations, it's time to pause and make sure that we're truly heading down a path which we like; if we want to change courses, now is the time!

At a minimum, wearing coordinating accessories with your wardrobe will keep you from making that excuse in your mind - "this wardrobe isn't working because I don't have the right earrings (watch, scarf, bag); when I get THAT then it will be okay." So let's take a break from clothes and take a look at our accessories. Unless you're making a completely radical change of colors, you might find that you have accessories already in your collection which will work beautifully ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step 4: Jeans and a Shirt

June 21, 2014

From the very beginning of this capsule wardrobe project, some of you have been clamoring for a pair of jeans. (actually, someone sent me a shockingly rude email when I didn't start with jeans; nobody should care so very much about what a blogger suggests...)

So now we're going to find a wonderful pair of jeans in our first neutral - yes, this gives us a core of four, which I consider to be a great starting point for a wardrobe.

When you're looking for jeans, try on lots and lots of them. And don't worry about price - more expensive jeans aren't automatically anything special, and inexpensive jeans might fit you beautifully. Just don't compromise on the quality of the denim, nor on the construction. After ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step 3: A cardigan and tee

June 20, 2014

After much consideration, I decided NOT to start our capsule wardrobes with a suit, but I'm going to now pull in a second layer garment that can give you "suit-like" utility if you want it to. These two pieces could certainly be purchased as a true twinset (I personally adore twinsets), or you can find pieces that are closely related in color but not matchy-matchy.

You can buy a cardigan without any buttons - a waterfall style - but make sure that it's nice quality, and doesn't look like "the cardigan that I keep on my desk chair all the time in case it gets cold in the office". And do bear in mind that a cardigan that buttons can be worn without anything under it - as a sweater in its own right. A handy ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step 2: Shoes

June 19, 2014

Now that you're in the process of having your new and wonderful trousers altered to fit perfectly, it's the ideal time to make sure that you have the right shoes in our capsule wardrobe.

Let me vent. If you're one of those people who has a stack of shoes under their desk at work, or piled into a file cabinet drawer, it's about time to stop that. Trust me, the CEO does NOT keep a wardrobe of cheap shoes in their office. In fact, I'm willing to wager that absolutely nobody on the executive committee keeps an assortment of footwear under their desk. If we're in an office environment, let's measure up to the highest standards we can manage.

Whew! thanks for letting me get that off my chest...

Now, choosing excellent ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch Step One: A Nice Pair of Pants

June 18, 2014 Many people would tell you that you should start building your capsule wardrobe with a black suit. And there's an undoubted crowd who would vote in favor of a little black dress. (for me, personally, that's where I would start...) But after wrestling with this question for weeks, I've finally decided that most of us might find the most utility, and the most immediate transformation of our wardrobe, could come from investing in a really NICE pair of pants. Trousers. Even (very unpopular word) slacks... If you've changed sizes, a new pair of trousers that fit you perfectly will immediately elevate all of your old blouses and shirts. If you want to improve the overall quality of your ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe from Scratch: Choosing Color Schemes

June 17, 2014

It's a question that's as old as The Vivienne Files - if you're starting a capsule wardrobe from scratch, how do you start?

What an ambitious question! But after thinking about it for three years, I'm going to give it a try - a step by step approach to rebuilding your wardrobe from the ground up.

Before you buy any garments at all, you've got to make a couple of decisions. One thing you'll have to work out for yourself - which silhouettes suit you best. I'm really not qualified to answer this question for every woman, but I encourage you to address this question on your own; you know better than anybody else in the world what shapes and sizes of garments suit you best...

But the next question - truly critical - is ... View the Post

Neutral Accessories: Shoes Part 2

May 16, 2014 This is the second half of the Neutral Accessories: Shoes post that I started yesterday. Although I'm trying to show all of the 14 neutral colors that I've included in my Combination of 3 Neutrals document, I chose put both of the shades of grey together. Similarly, I've put natural and khaki together... In both of these cases, the number of items available are so small that it didn't make sense to break them into separate listings!

love,

Janice Looking Back:

2012 - one of my favorite paintings of all time - I got to Start with Art: Monet Water Lilies. 2013 - Sometimes I need to be reminded of my Project ... View the Post

Start With Art: The Girl with A Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer

May 13, 2014

The most beautiful color scheme, combining warm tobacco brown, black, and brilliant blue and golden yellow highlights... That Vermeer guy was good!

One nice warm outfit, for in transit, or for a sudden cold snap, and some beautiful silky solids...

A simple outfit, and a nice basic dress:

A much less basic dress, and a warm-weather outfit with an over-shirt for air conditioning.

And a few extra pieces, for versatility!

love,

Janice

Looking Back:

2012 - one of my readers had a piece of jewelry that she wanted to wear more, and so I suggested What to wear with a ... View the Post

I Want to Dress Like an Empire-Style Hotel Room

April 9, 2014

This is a typical room in the Hotel des Grands Hommes, in Paris. The colors and the details in this room can inspire a beautiful wardrobe. The colors words that I focused on were taupe, beige, camel, apricot, slate, gold, copper and bronze. I was looking for soft, patterned, draped and refined looks...

The striped colors of the headboard drew my eye to this sweater - it's softness confirmed my choice. And the combination of apricot and charcoal with a detailed scarf were irresistible.

I loved this coat, and the ornate flats appealed.... and the draped tunic dress, with warm tobacco leather leggings and metallic ballet flats are a ... View the Post

I Love Ornate Details…

March 13, 2014 Maybe your living room looks like this... Okay, maybe your dream living room looks like this!

But like so many of us, you have a simple wardrobe that works for your everyday life:

But if you pay attention to the details, you can incorporate that style that you love into your everyday outfits. A touch of lace, a bit of muted floral, and some silk in the place of where many of us would wear cotton.

So you have quite a few outfits that are still very low-key, appropriate for your life, but still include that touch of luxe that warms your heart.

Keep to the same philosophy for your accessories - ... View the Post

I Want to Dress Like a Chalet…

March 11, 2014 These kinds of rooms are really popular, and many of you wanted to know if this whole feeling or sensibility can be conveyed in a wardrobe.

What can we take from this photo and those of similar rooms that will help us make informed choices about what to add to our neutral wardrobe? Words that I immediately identified included wood, bone, beige, ivory, ethnic and Native America prints, warm textures, tone-on-tone layering. Starting with this base wardrobe:

Three garments that aren't a really wild stretch, but that start expressing your taste:

Lots of easy ways to wear these...

Add in some ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files FAQ: What if I Don’t Wear Black?

March 3, 2014 I knew this would be the next question - what if I don't wear black? You have all of the rest of the spectrum from which to choose, but realistically, grey, navy, brown or tan/khaki are the most obvious other options from which to choose. Let's try the same exercise as before, but with warm colors. Say you at least know that you prefer mostly warm hues - and these are your favorite recent purchases:

There's no outfit to be worn from these four - it just simply isn't possible for most of us to put together an ensemble here. But if you started with a basic core of neutral clothes in warmer tones (except for jeans, which are sort of the ultimate neutral):

Then you ... View the Post