Tote Bag Travel Archives

Building a Wardrobe Gradually? Start With Art – Abstraction Blue by Georgia O’Keeffe

May 30, 2025

We've visited this painting twice before, with our heroine who has the lucky habit of dashing into the city for a last-minute date! Opera, or maybe ballet or orchestra - the opera season doesn't last all year, sadly...

First, she was headed to a ballet matinee on January, and then in March they were able to snag some opera tickets!

In all cases, she packs her tote bag full of beautiful things based on this color palette:

Back in January, she used a navy cardigan/skirt/pants trio as her core, upon which she added four tops:

When our heroine considered what she might add to her bag if they decided to stay in the city for a few more days:

In March, when they went to the opera, this is what ... View the Post

A Weekend Away? Start With Art – Abstraction Blue by Georgia O’Keeffe

March 12, 2025

Remember our heroine from January, who was traveling into the city to go to a ballet matinee? Her inspiration painting is this luscious wonder:

Her wardrobe is solidly based upon blue, and this is her preferred color palette:

Friday afternoon... she's working from home. Wearing something... comfortable.

"Put on something pretty - I've got EXCELLENT tickets for tonight's opera!"

"I thought they were sold out???"

"Yup, but my boss has tickets, and she can't make it. She knows how much we love opera, and she's GIVING them to us..."

"celebratory noises..."

"I will be home in just a bit, so I can change clothes; we'll drive into the city and stay over 'til Sunday..."

She knows exactly what she's ... View the Post

When Your Color-Scheme Doesn’t Happen – Start With Art – Abstraction Blue by Georgia O’Keeffe

January 8, 2025

"I've got tickets for the ballet matinee on Saturday!

We can go downtown Friday night, have dinner, go to the ballet on Saturday and then have dinner AGAIN, and then come home after brunch on Sunday..."

She can manage this - it won't take much for clothing... Something for Saturday that's dressy but comfortable, and something Sunday for brunch and the ride home...

And she's dreaming of packing a soft, water-colored, shades of blue and green travel capsule wardrobe!

The ride downtown is easy - a navy "suit" with her "glacial teal" tee shirt, and her stunning scarf...

Her navy skirt is perfect for this kind of adventure - it's soft and comfortable. And she has a lovely pink sweater that will be ... View the Post

Want a Fresh Palette? Start With Art – Door of Light by Akada Misao

October 30, 2024 Just For the Night... They tell her that's all she needs to do - just meet with the core workers, take the whole staff to dinner, and then come back the next day.

Unless she gets stuck, because of air traffic, or a strike, or volcanoes...

She's not THRILLED about the trip, so she decides to be inspired by something as unlike work as possible:

She seldom wears yellow. But she's in the mood to shake things up a bit, so this is going to be her color palette. She knows that for a longer trip, she could easily add lots of beige, and bits and pieces of green...

It's not a madly dressy office, so she knows that she doesn't have to dress up. Comfortable pants will make all the difference if she's stuck on a ... View the Post

An “Unfavorite” Color: Start with Art – Euphorbia by Pae White

October 25, 2023

She loves this - it's actually a HUGE tapestry! but MUSTARD?

The colors are the colors of the sports teams on which her children play! Maybe that's why she loves it...

Except. She hates mustard! She doesn't even like the food - no deviled eggs in her life...

But sometimes, she needs to wear a mustard sweatshirt... sigh...

Happily, she adores grey and burgundy - especially together!

Maybe it's a football weekend. Maybe it's a soccer tournament weekend...

Or just a visit to see her kids! Whatever, she's got a plan...

This is what she takes with her - sometimes she switches her outfits around, but this is always her travel capsule wardrobe:

What can you do with 8 garments? ... View the Post

Tote Bag Travel that Starts with a Bracelet: Dazzling Lynx Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

October 23, 2023

Yes, she's starting early. She knows full well that her friends will start planning holiday events, and she wants to be prepared. She's particularly eager to be able to pack just a few garments in a tote bag, for those overnight, 2-party weekends...

She's not crazy - there are lovely holiday things available right now that are selling out quickly. Nobody seems to be keeping deep inventories these days!

She's starting here!

She's one of those women - we all know one - who seems to carry her own illumination system with her! She walks in the door and people start to smile...

For years, she's kept her color palette VERY limited; it gives her lots of opportunity to find things that are amusing, ... View the Post

October 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Fierce Clarity Bracelets

October 22, 2021 She Knows Why She's Going...

She hasn't traveled in forever. Well, almost 2 years. And her friends are surprised that her first choice destination is a "retreat spa..."

There's meditation. There's massage. There's long walks in an undeveloped woodland area. There's excellent food...

There's NO getting up at dawn for 5 hour meditation sessions.

There's NO limit on how much you may speak, or to whom.

There's NO requirement that you spend an hour a day every day in the kitchen peeling turnips, or other such things...

Yes, she's spent a lot of time alone, but she hasn't really taken time to pay attention to herself. NOW, that's her plan...

She's not at all sure what to pack - she's heard that ... View the Post

February 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Confident Lynx

February 22, 2021 You Could Go By Yourself... She looked at her favorite bracelet - the Confident Lynx...

She's going to do this - she's been anticipating this Cathedral Tour weekend for ages, and she's not going to miss it just because nobody she knows wants to go too!

So she starts to plan...

It won't be bitter cold by the time of the tour, but she knows that she wants to dress rather warmly, because old stone buildings are never toasty...

Since she's going to be alone (well, there will of course be other people on the tour!), she wants to make sure that she can lift her own luggage and manage it without having to resort to the kindness of strangers! So she arranges a tidy black core of clothes, and ... View the Post

Start with Art: Lunar Halo over Snowy Trees by Goran Strand

February 8, 2021

Yes, it could be "Start with Nature," but I feel that this images owes a LOT to the photographer, and thus to me it is art... A robust discussion is welcome! It's supposed to start snowing by sunset... And so she's packing and going to be on the road by lunchtime!

Her favorite Bed and Breakfast has her favorite room available...

So she pauses for a second, and closes her eyes:

She's not really planning to do much of anything except walk outdoors, eat when summoned to do so, and read...

Okay, maybe a nap...

So it's pretty simple to get things together!

She can wear what she already has on, swapping out her slippers for good boots:

So long as she has her charging cord for her books (what ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Tom Baker’s Doctor Who Scarf!

August 30, 2019

When one of my favorite people in the whole world wants me to try something, I'm there for him! EVERY TIME!!! She's An Event Coordinator... And she's being sent to another property to supervise a Doctor Who convention. Her kids bought this for her; they thought it was hysterically funny....

She looked at the scarf for a few minutes, and then had an epiphany! She loves camel and olive, and she realized that this could work...

She bought a couple of sweaters to pick up her "new" accent colors, and found that it was indeed possible to pull together a travel capsule wardrobe using a VERY unlikely color palette...

She forced her kids to come into her room before she packed, just so they could see what ... View the Post

April Travel: Start with Art – Between Breath and the River 4 by Susan Osgood

April 5, 2019

Remember our friend the flooding expert? She's very busy...

This is her art inspiration, and her wardrobe color palette:

She's traveling to the Midwest United States, to help determine where bulldozing or other changes in the immediate terrain might help clear standing water from some flood areas. She's studied the maps, and thinks that she knows what her suggestions will be. If her map analysis is correct, she only expects to be on-site for a day or two...

Still, she's not sure if she's going to have to actually go out and SEE any of the locations in question. (there's one that spot she really feels that she should visit in order to be exact about her plan for drainage...)

So she's going to have shorts, ... View the Post

Instruments de Musique by Pablo Picasso – Inspiring an Unusual Business Tote Bag Travel Wardrobe

January 18, 2018 A Square Peg...

She knows it - she doesn't fit in the way most other staff at her firm does... She works the difference to her advantage.

Many of their clients are as different from her co-workers as chalk is from cheese. She's MUCH more like the clients... and that helps!

Often she can get insights and answers that elude much more senior staff... They marvel at how she does it...

She fits in with her co-workers, superficially, but if someone was paying close attention they would see that she's got her very own approach to things!

One would think that the orange suitcase might be their first hint? Or maybe the concrete necklace...

love, Janice

p.s. Now that I've built ... View the Post