warm weather Archives - Page 2 of 31

Start with a Scarf: The Iridescent Hummingbird Silk Scarf by Emily Carter

May 19, 2023

A Wedding at the Lake She's not convinced that she would want to drag a long white dress across the lawns, boat ramps, errant piles of discarded bait etc., but it's not her wedding!

But she will be beautiful, and just dressy enough to be festive!

She's one of those women who would be happy wearing all black, all day, every day, but of course you can't do that for most weddings - especially one that's immersed in nature!

So she focuses on her favorite scarf, and chooses her wedding outfit (and other garments) accordingly...

She looks lovely in green and blue - her family will be beyond thrilled to see her in a dress, and a green dress at that!

And an off-the-shoulder top for the rehearsal ... View the Post

Year 2 – Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Rikka – Beginning of Summer

May 12, 2023

Is it beginning to feel like summer where you are? (assuming Northern Hemisphere, of course; I know that some of you are moving headlong into autumn and winter!)

Chicago has finally warmed up; now that I have looked at warm weather clothing for a few days, I think we need to consider adding accents - maybe prints? - to our wardrobes...

The first interesting accent that caught my eye was this cognac sparkle tee. Sparkle! Cognac! What's not to love?

for all of us who are short-waisted (i.e. the distance from our neckline to our waist is shorter than the distance from our waist to our hipline), cropped tops might be just the right length!

the leaves on trees around here seem to have appeared ... View the Post

Start With a Skirt: black & white gingham linen

May 10, 2023

It's easy to look at a garment and think that you know how to wear it - we are, after all, adults. Mostly.

But it's easy to lose sight of possibilities; one of you is quite smitten with this skirt, but wasn't sure that there were enough options to make it worth including in her wardrobe.

Let's think...

This is the skirt - it's easy to see the appeal, if you're among the "black & white" crowd!

Let's start with the obvious - a white sweater, black & white jewelry, and a very modern pair of two-tone flats:

Similarly, a black sweater, bag and flats are easy choices. Adding pearls and shiny earrings help balance out the lightness and print of the skirt:

Any white blouse could be worn ... View the Post

Second Half of Six Paintings, 12 Months – May 2023

May 8, 2023

Let's see what our second trio of heroines has been up to!

The first has decided that she would like to own something sort of like a suit, so she finds a cardigan/blazer and pants that match. She can't resist the Liberty print shirt - it goes with so much of her wardrobe!

This is her wardrobe now; it might not suit many of us, but I can see this on the right woman...

Her accessories are a soft and feminine delight:

Her new outfits show that even an unusually light and delicate wardrobe can be versatile:

Our second heroine made a pretty big decision about her wardrobe this month!

The main character in her inspiration painting is wearing what appears to be a pretty dark purple coat. ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: King Charles III Coronation

May 3, 2023

Regardless of your feeling about royalty, or coronations, let's suspend judgment and enjoy this beautiful scarf!

Shamrocks, daffodils, roses and thistles!

And you KNOW how nice the scarves are from PJ Studio Accessories...

I decided that our heroine is going to use navy as her packing neutral, and draw all of her accents from her lovely scarf:

A Dilemma, of Sorts... Our heroine's still not sure how long she will be able to travel for the Coronation - at this point, she may only be able to be away for 1 night!

And we don't have to assume that she's going to London - there will be lots of places where she could meet up with friends, watch a lot of festivities on television, and then celebrate around ... View the Post

Year 2! Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Kokuu – Grain Rain

April 26, 2023

Why yes, 2 seasons in 3 days! It's sort of like living in Chicago...

(at least if you live with me, where being forgetful is a way of life!)

Given the scattered and disorganized way I'm living these days, I thought that a really simple, comprehensive little cluster of clothes might be something useful for me; I could open my closet and find clothes that I can wear for anything from warm to reasonably cold...

It's kind of like the stress dressing that I've addressed in the past; having enough ready any time, just in case you're suddenly invited out to lunch, or for a walk, or for a meeting with your tax preparer! (THAT is stress...)

If the weather is cool, a shirt, sweater, pants and closed ... View the Post

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

April 21, 2023

Ah, the timeless beauty of pink and navy!

I think these colors are timeless and flattering to most of us too!

The Big Challenge She never knows if it will be nice and toasty warm or damp and nippy...

So she brings her swimsuits, as well as long underwear for sleeping! Best be ready for a range of temperatures...

And for non-aquatic activities, she packs this:

One really doesn't need to pack a ton of things for a weekend; you need to get dressed on Saturday and Sunday, and maybe Monday if you're really stretching your time off!

The cardigan and long pants make almost everything else in her wardrobe useful, even on cold days! Warm socks are never wrong, too!

So she has choices, warm or ... View the Post

Version 2: Start With a Scarf – Safari Square by Beatrice von Tresckow

April 19, 2023

Let's do this again, only differently!

Some different accent colors, and navy as our neutral!

She doesn't make it up to the lake EVERY weekend of the warm weather, but she is probably there at least 2 out of 3...

For no good reason she can offer to anyone, she wants to wear navy this weekend!

This wardrobe is exactly the same size as her wardrobe from Monday, but it's also entirely different! What fun...

If you like blue, this should be appealing:

As with her earlier weekend wardrobe, our heroine has plenty of options for a 3 day break...

Eventually, our heroine is going to take a couple of weeks off; maybe combining her 2 "long weekend" wardrobes will work for that?

We shall ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Safari Square silk scarf by Beatrice von Tresckow

April 17, 2023

This will brighten up your summer!

And how many accent colors could one find here? I'm starting with these 3, but I'm not finished with this scarf...

It's not that long a drive up to the beach house...

But once you're off the main highway, it seems like a different world...

Our heroine is fearless in the face of dirty clothes - she wants to wear white in the summer, and so she shall!

It's a wardrobe that strikes terror in the hearts of those of us who are messy, but she's so happy with this:

She has plenty of outfits to get through a long weekend, although if it gets TOO cold, she might find herself in a pickle...

It was over 80 here yesterday; tomorrow it's supposed to ... View the Post

Start with Art: Lake Geneva with Mont-Blanc at Dawn by Ferdinand Hodler

April 14, 2023

Isn't this lovely?

I'm realizing that it's entirely possible to use a painting (or any other image or object, frankly) as inspiration for a wardrobe even if that image doesn't include your core neutral!

I know, I should have realized this years ago...

Here's how I'm showing this; note the navy outlines in the color wheel...

Frankly, this wardrobe only includes 3 navy pieces out of the 9 total - that's a small number of neutral garments!

And this wardrobe only has a pair of jeans and a pair of shorts for bottoms; this is a heroine who's going to be spending a lot of time in her swimwear, so this works out for weekends...

But first, she has to drive up to the lake!

If you like sweater vests, ... View the Post

Adding Accessories! Start with Art: Spring Blossom by Valerius de Saedeleer

April 12, 2023

The last of the "beige-based" wardrobes - and probably my favorite! (of course, this is the only wardrobe with any black in it...)

This is the wardrobe for our last heroine; she has a lot of beige, but her accent colors are unusual, and make quite a statement!

I suspect that this heroine will also find herself with a few pairs of colorful sandals!

Even though our heroine only has 2 black garments, I think that black sandals make sense for her; they bring a real balance to a simple outfit like this:

If you love lime green, indulge in some peridot jewelry too! You'll have it forever...

Floral earrings with a floral top seems nice to me; keep the rest of the outfit nicely muted...

Of ... View the Post

Adding Accessories! Start with Art: Drei Häuser By Paul Klee

April 10, 2023

I really love this painting - it seems so simple, but the more you look at it, the more the colors make themselves clear and distinct...

You may remember that this heroine assembled this wardrobe for the eventual arrival of warmer weather:

I haven't yet thought of a better way to add accessories than to go through a wardrobe and put together a bunch of outfits, and then make sure that each outfit can be dressed up (or down, I suppose?) appropriately. I don't think that there's a rigid checklist of accessories that everyone should own - some women don't wear jewelry, some don't wear scarves, some don't carry a handbag... You get the idea!

I enjoyed this - these colors are beautiful and ... View the Post