pink Archives - Page 3 of 21

I Love Them, But Will I Wear Them? John Fluevog boots

February 25, 2022

Sometimes, you just give in:

So when our heroine was very politely requested to accompany her partner to a weekend conference in a big city, she thought that these would be her perfect slightly rebellious keynote for her travel capsule wardrobe...

She's not going to go completely nuts; she's just going to assemble a wardrobe that will show off her fabulous new boots to their best advantage!

On her own time, when she's sight-seeing, she WILL wear her new boots. At the various dinners, she may wear them, but she chooses to pack a pair of more conservative pumps too!

Since soft rose and dark green are already her favorite colors, it wasn't terribly hard to assemble a travel wardrobe to wear ... View the Post

Start with Art: Lucinda by Sofia Bonati

December 31, 2021 An Expert in Medieval Flower Illustrations...

You know, those flowers that appear in the ornamented capital letters at the beginning of a manuscript chapter?

Or in the dividers between sections of a breviary, or other sacred document?

She knows why that particular flower was chosen, and what it means!

It's a niche bit of study, and she is the acknowledged master of it!

From the time she chose her thesis topic (a few years ago, to be honest!), she realized that her wardrobe made a great deal of sense if it was the black of print, the ivory of old paper, and the shades of rose and lavender that are the colors of most of the flowers. If they were colored, of course!

So when she travels to ... View the Post

November 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Fierce Optimism Bracelets

Robyn! Coordinated Granny Woodstock! Send me your mailing information, because YOU have won the Mumbai Paisley scarf!

November 26, 2021 She Has Complete Confidence...

The weekend is going to be pretty much ALL parties. Well, after almost 2 years, everybody wants to get together. They won't all be full-on "parties" with decorations and centerpieces and such, but they will still be festive gatherings...

There once was a time when this kind of trip would fill her with dread; she would pack 2 big suitcases, and bring a huge chunk of her wardrobe with her. Even then, she never felt that she was dressed appropriately.

It weighed on her mind, on her confidence, and on her self-esteem.

But after ... View the Post

Start with Art: Revisiting Understanding by Parscha Mirghawameddin

November 24, 2021

Remember this heroine? Nobody seemed to think that she was beautiful, except her! And possibly someone that she met while traveling....

"Did You HEAR What She Told Her Great-Nieces?!?!"

"You mean the part about moving to the city?"

"NO!!!! The part where that silly frog ring is her engagement ring!"

silly is in the eyes of the beholder - this ring is legitimately very fine jewelry...

"Well, I knew that she met someone while she was there, but I assumed that it was just a platonic thing; what's someone her age doing getting involved romantically?"

What's someone her age doing? Feeling beautiful, feeling loved, having buckets of fun, and treating herself to all sorts of frog ... View the Post

Accessorizing a Navy, Ivory and Pale Pink Capsule Wardrobe

October 27, 2021

As nifty and attractive as this wardrobe is, it's really the accessories that make it work!

You may remember from last week that when I chose 2 pink garments to add to this wardrobe, I also added these accessories:

Lovely as these are, they will NOT be enough for any normal person!

For years, I've been trying to come up with a "Master List of Accessories" that everyone should have; for years, I have not succeeded!

And I think this is okay - accessories are far too personal to be structured in this way. One of my closest friends wear a TON of jewelry - literally at least 10 pieces at any one time. Another of my friends wear earrings - maybe - every now and then. I'm not going to give either of ... View the Post

A Common Wardrobe in Navy and Ivory, accented with Potpourri pink

October 20, 2021

I'm been looking at the Pantone Spring 2021/22 colors; looking may be as far as I get with some of them - there are a couple of truly odd colors on this list!

But we can always start with a neutral wardrobe core, and then use one of the more accessible of the colors for accent, right?

This version of The Common Wardrobe is not a long way from the original, shown below. The jeans are unchanged, the knit pants, long-sleeved tee and cashmere turtleneck are navy rather than black.

For other garments, I tried to stick with the original role that the garment played - 2nd layer, top, bottom - and then looked for a navy or ivory version, in a "long over short" option.

Today's heroine has been wearing her navy ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Homecoming Mum by ImageDiary

September 10, 2021

When ImageDiary released this scarf, it was meant to be a "one of a kind" piece. I bought it immediately, but realized that she really SHOULD make more than just one... it's that beautiful!

So Scottie has agreed to have 5 more produced, if there are orders for them. This scarf is huge, and breathtakingly lovely. Trust me... This Year, She's Going... After her book was on the Times Best Sellers list for most of the winter and spring, she began to get invitations. She expected that.

But when she was asked to be the Grand Marshal at her college's Homecoming Parade, and flip the coin for the big football game, she was... conflicted.

College wasn't the party and socializing fest for her that it can be for so many ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Our Echo giveaway winner!

July 9, 2021

Sharon was our winner! And her choice of scarf was...

But we're going to be looking at VERY different colors than normal with this scarf!

Sharon is dreaming of a wardrobe for a getaway to Italy! Her dream includes ALL of the good stuff: museums, churches, shopping, a boat tour, lounging in cafes, romantic dinners, and maybe an alfresco concert!

Where's my ticket?

Sharon was thinking of a short getaway because she lives in the UK, but I went a little bit overboard with her packing! Summer clothes pack small...

I was trying to be careful about modesty - I can't count on both hands (and feet!) the number of people I've seen turned away from churches in Italy because they weren't appropriately dressed. ... View the Post

13-Piece Spring Wardrobes – Rose and Chambray, Grey and shades of Purple

June 16, 2021

Oh, you all are SMART! This turned out well, I think...

Yes, there's only 1 cardigan, because I just never saw a denim-colored one that I liked. But when I saw my mother wearing my denim shirt over her tee shirt, I knew I had the answer!

Even with prints above and below the waist, this wardrobe has lots of possibilities:

Just for reference, here's the garment list. I want to remind us all that this isn't a hard and fast list - it's a guideline, just like everything on The Vivienne Files. Nobody should tell you what to wear...

I discovered something interesting, and sort of weird, when I was putting together this next wardrobe: when I searched for "purple," I got all sorts of shades of pink, and ... View the Post

May 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Desert Lynx

May 28, 2021

They Might Buy a Camper... But they're renting one for a long weekend first, to see if it's what they're hoping for...

Limited clothing space, for sure! So she's planning carefully...

There's no point in calling just 1 outfit "In Transit," since quite a bit of their time will be on the road! But one must start somewhere, and this is where our heroine is starting:

She's sticking with cropped pants - no shorts because she does NOT want the back of her thighs sticking to the seat!

And driving shoes, because she might get to drive. Maybe...

So for the 3 or 4 days that they're away, our heroine will have this wardrobe from which to choose; frankly, it's difficult to put together a bad outfit ... View the Post

Can Accessories Tie Together a Wardrobe? Start with Art – Courtesans Strolling Beneath Cherry Trees by Utamaro

May 7, 2021

Ah, it looks relaxed and pretty, if being a courtesan is your thing!

You may remember the 16-piece Four by Four wardrobe that we assembled, based on the colors in this painting:

The big question from many of you was that I hadn't really mixed the rose with the neutrals in the outfits that I showed last week. I think that those "mixed" outfits felt naked to me without something to blend the rose accent with the neutrals. So that's what I've looked at first!

For example, these sandals that seem to be silver, with a gold buckle, and splotches of color on them, are perfect with this simple tee shirt and shorts:

And these next sandals have rose and black in the striped part! And yes, this is a pretty dressy ... View the Post

Weekly Timeless Wardrobe #8 – short-sleeved light neutral shirt

May 3, 2021

It's starting to feel like summer clothes might actually be useful this year!

What we're looking for this week is the "go-to" shirt for warm weather, to be worn either as a shirt on its own, or as a shirt-jacket over a more bare top:

Pink as a neutral is fun, because it looks like an accent color so often!

yes, this is the same black cardigan and pants that we saw last week; being able to wear clothes in lots of different combinations is sort of the point...

If you're wearing a top that's sleeveless and maybe scoop-necked, or open in the back, having a shirt to wear over is good sun protection, air-conditioning protection, and modesty protection!

Maybe your light neutral is warm rather than ... View the Post