The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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Love Black and White with Pink and Purple? Lucinda by Sofia Bonati

January 22, 2025

She's a specialist in flowers. As they appear in medieval manuscripts, as decorations for big fancy capital letters, or inserted as a border, or a section break. Many people don't realize that the choice of flower in each location is important, and has meaning!

She's a rare person...

She's recently written a guide to flowers found in documents from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance. It's not really a technical book - more of a guide for the layman who finds these sorts of things fascinating! Her publisher has invited her to New York for a couple of days for some final proofing of the cover design and the "blurbs" that will be on the back cover. Dinner will be an event, every night she's ... View the Post

The Finishing Touches: Start with a Bracelet – Fierce Serenity Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

December 20, 2023

One last visit to the navy, grey and Larkspur wardrobe - this heroine needs a few accessories to round out her 4 by 4 Wardrobe...

Remember, this is our basis. I don't know if anybody noticed - I added dark navy borders to the "pie pieces" so that we can visualize our 2nd neutral:

This is the assortment of clothing that our heroine is taking with her. If I were her, I'd be packing long underwear to wear as pajamas, and someone suggested a down vest too!

She also had chosen some lovely accessories - not enough, probably, but still lovely...

She stands. She looks. She thinks. 

luggage won't pack itself!

Her idea is to work her way through a bunch of outfits, and make certain that she ... View the Post

Expanding Your Wardrobe: Start with a Bracelet – Fierce Serenity Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

December 18, 2023

Of course you remember this bracelet - it was only last week that I first shared it with you! 

And this was the small wardrobe that our heroine took with her on her long weekend of serious reading!

It turns out that our heroine is headed to campus for a month for a special symposium about Changing Political Ideologies in Western Democratic Systems! Riveting, eh?

Since she was so happy with her wardrobe from her "reading weekend," she decided to use that as the base for her 4 by 4 Capsule Travel Wardrobe for the month that she's away. Sensible, I'd say...

After looking at, and remembering wearing, her core garments, she decides to add a 2nd, darker neutral. And she feels like she wants a blazer ... View the Post

A “Six-Pack” that Starts with a Bracelet: Fierce Serenity Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

December 11, 2023

She's got FOUR books to read before the term starts in January. These aren't lighthearted novels - these are serious studies of political philosophy...

She can do this!

And she's not even nervous about it, because she has a plan.

She's going away for the weekend, to someplace beautiful, but otherwise not the kind of place where there are lots of things that she likes to do! She's not going to hike, or cross-country ski; she's going to sit in her room by her fireplace (yep!) and read. 3 hours in the morning, 3 hours in the afternoon, at least...

She will dine, beautifully, in the dining room of the hotel, and then make an early night of it! Maybe more reading in bed?

She's not going to stay in ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Bracelet: Transformational Lynx Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

February 15, 2023

She's ready for a big change, and she's going to use this bracelet as her inspiration:

For decades, she's worn navy with pink, or light blue, or pale yellow... It fit in with her office and her job. But now...

She started with the bracelets, and THEN she saw the coat! She was wearing sneakers with green stripes, so it seemed fated... A divine brooch, the perfect scarf, and some wee earrings were all she needed:

Gradually, she added a few things to her wardrobe, while she held onto her favorite work skirt and pants:

Suddenly, she finds that she's prepared to present her new color palette at almost any activity in her social life:

She's excited about the options of soft lavender or deep, ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Scarf: Signature Peacock Print Scarf by Luna & Avery

February 13, 2023

Our heroine didn't even TRY to resist this scarf!

She knew, with a long weekend trip ahead, this would be a great inspiration:

For travel, she mostly wants to be comfortable! She chooses to wear her short boots, rather than try to pack them. And her scarf is the perfect accent for her navy "suit" and lavender tee shirt...

She knows that she wants to bring jeans, and her favorite navy cashmere crewneck sweater. Then she hesitates... her lavender cardigan and shirt? They will be perfect with either jeans or navy pants, and the cardigan can also be worn over the tee shirt in which she is traveling.

Hmmm, what else? She knows that she is going to a dinner that's going to be crowded and noisy - she ... View the Post

Start with Art: #96 by Marcel Rozek

October 26, 2022

 

Eloping...

Everyone assumes that they're already married - and that they've been married for years!

On Tuesday, they decided to make it legal, for so many reasons...

They dashed over to the Justice of the Peace in the middle of the afternoon, when they got a phone call that they could sneak in during a gap in the schedule. They went dressed in their "work at home" clothes!

And now, they're going to sneak off for a long weekend together!

They're going to their favorite city, for a few days of museums, concerts and dinners. Nothing over the top, but lovely and romantic!

She's never packed for a last-minute honeymoon before - but she things this will work just fine!

How can she ... 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

Weekly Timeless Wardrobe #28 – A Dark Neutral Long-Sleeved Tee Shirt

September 20, 2021

I'm a big fan of long-sleeved black tee shirts, as I learned just today as we were moving... There's nothing like having a couple of young men pile ALL OF YOUR CLOTHING in front of you to make you swear off of shopping for at least a week or two!

But these come in handy in all kinds of ways - warmth, a dark background for jewelry or a scarf, a sobering touch with a lively sweater...

If you're not a fan of black, maybe charcoal heather is more your speed!

This is very much the same outfit as last week, with a different tee shirt, earrings that match, and boots that do pretty much ALL of the work... holy handbags of Buddha, those are some boots!

Here I kept the same pants, switched the sweater to ... View the Post

July in August 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Fierce Explorer Bracelets

August 11, 2021

It's nice to know that I'm not the only person around who gets their dates confused and loses track of time! An Open-Ended Plane Ticket The settlement was large, as was only fitting. She quit her job the next day, and now she's going to start her roaming where the weather feels like early fall; as soon as the weather gets too cool, she's going to hop a train and head a bit south...

Eventually, she will have to buy clothes. But that's for later...

She knows that she's only packing a carry-on bag. Originally, she planned to limit all of her clothes to navy and grey, but then her bracelets caught the light...

She's going to wear her current favorite outfit on the first leg of her voyage...

And she's ... 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