teal Archives - Page 2 of 6

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

April 17, 2020

Happy Birthday to my amazing mother!

What a beautiful piece of work THIS is:

She Doesn't Think Anybody Noticed... But she's been pretty... slack... about getting ready to telecommute each day. So she's turning over a new leaf - out of bed, SHOWER, do NOT put the clothes back on that are on the floor beside the bed. Earrings. Maybe a dash of lipstick. She needs to look (and more importantly, FEEL) like she's working...

This is her inspiration:

Her sweetheart isn't working, so she creeps out of bed at the appropriate time, and gets dressed from clothes she's now stashing in the hall closet!

It doesn't much matter from the waist down what she wears, but anything that's going to show when she's ... View the Post

Start with Art: Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe based on Arara Azul by Victoria Ragna

March 26, 2020

This is a LOT like yesterday's post, I admit. Not because I'm inherently lazy (although I could be, given the right circumstances...) but more because someone asked yesterday about wearing accents of teal, aqua and soft blue with navy. I HAD to show how well many of these garments work just as well with a slightly different neutral.

(yes, grey would be lovely...)

This is very much the same color palette as yesterday, except the shift away from black...

After a LONG summer... They're free to travel again! She's been planning for months for this trip...

What kept her sane through the summer was the ability to go outdoors and watch the birds. It had never been a hobby before; they had had a bird feeder ... View the Post

Start with Art: Building a Travel Capsule Wardrobe based on Sea Change by Helen Frankenthaler

May 20, 2020

Such calming colors....

It's not a complicated color palette, but it's certainly beautiful!

She's Ready to Dress Up... Now that she's free to travel again, she does NOT want to pack jeans, nor sweatpants, nor a sweatshirt. Frankly, if she doesn't see her casual clothes for a LONG time, she won't mind!

They're going to take the train into the city, and stay in a hotel near the harbor. She wants to be able to see the sea from their room; it's been too long.

They've had months to plan this trip, and dream about it. Leisurely walks, holding hands. Lovely, lingering dinners. Sitting in a café by the sea, watching the waves and sipping a cocktail.

Nothing strenuous - they don't have a ... View the Post

Start with Art: Building a Travel Capsule Wardrobe based on Icebound by John Henry Twachtman

March 20, 2020

The first day of Spring! And our anniversary...

Quite Enough Solitude, Thank You... Now that they're free to travel again, they're making plans...

Their favorite apartment in their favorite city is available for a few days, and they are OFF!

No more wearing sensible sweatpants and warm shirts while working from home. No more being sensible PERIOD, for a while....

They've walked miles every evening in their neighborhood; they've exhausted pretty much any avenue of exploration left to them! Now, in their favorite city, they're going to go down every alley, every turn that seems uninteresting, any corner that appears to lead to a dead end...

This will eat out - of COURSE they will! But they will ... 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

Start with a Scarf: Lion and Peacock Scarf by Aspinal of London, in navy and camel

December 6, 2019 She Decided to Branch Out...

She's worn navy with pastels for decades... And she's now ready for an update!

She's always felt drawn to camel. The richness, the warmth, and elegance. And she's been told repeatedly that it was a color that she could happily wear. But she starts small... something below the waist!

Success! But the real camel item that has always caught her eye is a lovely cardigan...

Now she's feeling positively emboldened! She looks closely and her scarf and sees a beautiful shade of blue; would a matching sweater and flats be wrong?

But she's not going to rely entirely new purchases - when she look in her closet, she realizes that her aqua sweater would be perfect with ... View the Post

Start with Art: Landline Blue by Sean Scully

November 22, 2019

Can You Get Out of Work on Monday? Because Friday is the anniversary of our first date...

"And I would like to take you into the city for a long weekend... We could dine out, and go to a concert, and just have a lovely time together..."

"There's an exhibit at the museum of paintings by one of our favorite artists - we could go there too!"

Of COURSE she'll get out of work on Monday. She had no idea when their first date was, until she was reminded. And her true love was indeed exactly right!

Who's going to turn down a long weekend with a sweetheart so thoughtful, and with that kind of sentimental heart?

love,

Janice

p.s.

2 years ago we looked at another teal ... View the Post

Start with Art: Heron in Snow by Ohara Koson

September 25, 2019

Oh dear... I may never look at another artist... (except of course I'm going to the Art Institute of Chicago tomorrow, and I'll see something else that catches my fancy...)

But this artist is pretty amazing! His style lends itself perfectly to inspiring a minimal palette, and if you're using tan/beige as a neutral, the color of his backgrounds is meant for you...

Ornithologists Have Conferences too... She's studied waterfowl since she could see. She loves herons, swans, pelicans... there's really no bird that she doesn't admire.

Her favorite Saturday activity is to get to the lake early, and set up her camera and tripod. Then she sits, quietly, sipping coffee from her thermos, and waiting for that ... View the Post

I Want to Pack ALL of my Clothes!

March 23, 2018

All of my clothes are lovely - why can't I take EVERYTHING with me on vacation?Well... of course this isn't going to work, but it's a legitimate question that I think about every time I'm going out of town - if I take everything that I own that I really love, I'm just going to end up moving away. (don't tempt me - I LOVE to move...)But let's be adults about this for a few minutes; choices are hard, but must be made. Let's walk through an example to see 1 way to make these decisions rational, if not any easier!

Start with the spring into summer wardrobe:

The first thing you want to do is get EVERYTHING out in front of you, or at least on a list. Visibility is really key to see where redundancies ... View the Post

Can You Plan Your Accessory Wardrobe? Madame Paul Escudier by John Singer Sargeant

December 28, 2017

Our heroine from yesterday has a tidy and very well-planned wardrobe, after her few additions to what she used for business travel. But she's in pretty serious need of some accessories, I'd say!First off, let's remember what her inspiration is for her wardrobe:

Our heroine finally got her well-deserved (and long overdue!) promotion, and picked up a few more garments to finish up her wardrobe. She's going to be traveling a LOT...

But she didn't buy anything BUT garments - no more shoes, scarves, nor jewelry. That's just not fun!

Although she's made her reputation at work for her empathy and her ability to provide coaching and correction in a warm and constructive manner, she is at heart also a ... View the Post

Brown with Teal & Cream – Expanding a Successful Travel Wardrobe

December 27, 2017

Remember when we visited this gorgeous painting?

Our heroine was sent off to visit a corporate service center because of a major client complaint... and this is (an approximation of) what she packed for that trip:

Global Service Director? Well, of COURSE she'll take the position! She's been doing the work for months, so it's about time she was given the title, the office, and the SALARY...

When they called her into the Executive Suite to give her the news, they cited her ability to get along well with people at all levels of the organization, without being abrasive or seeming to be too much "home office-ish."

She attributes at least a tiny bit of her success to her image - warm and ... View the Post

Teal for the Holidays? Three Different Approaches!

November 23, 2017

Happy Thanksgiving in the United States! (well, heck, Happy Thanksgiving to everybody...) I know that I should be plying you with news about "Black Friday" sales, and lots of gifty stuff, but you will get quite enough of that kind of information without The Vivienne Files piling on, right?

So I'm going to respond to the overwhelming demand for teal for the holidays by looking at it with 3 different neutrals partners... Nothing like a bit of excess for today (says the woman who fully intend to have at least 2 desserts, and then work it off tomorrow in the gym...)

First up, three gorgeous teal pieces, paired with a core of black silk:

The blazer is shown with velvet shorts at Nordstrom, if that ... View the Post