warm weather Archives - Page 26 of 37

Build a “Six-Pack” Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting With… Art? Fabric?

January 13, 2017 The Art Institute of Chicago currently has an exhibit of velvet fabric, tucked away in the basement rooms that seem to be reserved exclusively for fabrics. It's a small exhibit, but SUCH beauty...

Mental Health Break

It sounds terribly dramatic, but she really just wants to see her toes... with polish, if possible!

So a long weekend away, at a very un-chic beach. Renting a very un-chic suite with a kitchenette...She wants to wear something on her lips that isn't Carmex or ChapStick...

She doesn't want to "dine." She wants to walk, on sand, maybe in her bare feet!

She wants to carry a tote bag with a snack, something upon which to sit, and maybe a ... View the Post

Vacation Report, and a Few Extra Thoughts and Goodies

July 6, 2016

I'm back! Both back from my vacation, and back from Florida... both were quite lovely. I must admit that I missed blogging A LOT, which didn't surprise me; this is one of the great jobs of all time...Just as a reminder, this is what I packed for my 8 days in Central Florida. At the last minute, my black shirtdress was supplanted by a red linen dress. For the 4th of July weekend, a red dress is never a bad idea!

I was very happy with what I packed. Unlike what you might see in more "beachy" locations, central Florida is a place where you'll see quite a few people wearing black - head to toe, even! So I didn't stick out too much like a sore thumb.... And my silk shorts are perfect - absolutely perfect. ... View the Post

A Capsule Wardrobe Dilemma, and What I’m Packing for Florida

June 24, 2016 So I realized a couple of weeks ago that I wasn't wearing these 2 cardigans NEARLY as often as I felt that I should...

Every time I would pull out one of these sweaters, I just couldn't get an outfit together that really felt right.In a bit of a funk, I went back to my own best advice, and realized that a lot of my basic summer clothes in black were either too big, or too...faded/droopy/saggy/limp/icky for public consumption.

So I picked up these - the Original Core of Four:

After those arrived and were well-integrated into my wardrobe, I got wild and bought these 4 tops:

It turned out that I was wise to stock up on summer basics, because... well... the ... View the Post

12 Months, 12 Outfits in 6 Capsule Wardrobes: June

June 7, 2016

These are really SUCH fun...Remember, these are our six original color scheme/inspirations for our capsule wardrobes:

Dresses this month! If you're not a dress wearer, I encourage you to reconsider; check out these... things, to wear under dresses. Your thighs will be SO much happier... They revolutionized my relationship with dresses!But if you're certain that a dress isn't for you, you could always substitute a simple top and capris or shorts, of course!

This jewelry was chosen to echo the detailed, intricate patterns in each of the garments shown on the scarf:

Earrings – Wirabhuwana; tote – Longchamp; denim dress – Dorothy Perkins; bracelet – Achara; sandals – Sam Edelman

Now ... View the Post

Building a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: 2nd of the Portraits Theatraux by Natalia S. Gontcharova

May 25, 2016 I don't know how many of these Ms. Gontcharova did, but I'm going to try to find them all:

Not a color scheme we see every day! I opted to use pure white, rather than try to match that "faded paper" color. My assumption is that the original might have been on white paper - can anybody confirm or deny?

She Yins, She Yangs "Do you think she's completely... normal? I mean, sometimes she looks so aggressive, and other days she's just so calm and quiet..."

"I don't know if she's normal or not, but she must have a GIGANTIC wardrobe..."

"And EVERY Friday, she's got that tote bag with her... Who's she kidding - she goes away EVERY ... View the Post

How to Wear a White Blazer and Navy Pants? I Have LOTS of Ideas…

May 7, 2016

A couple of you have expressed an interest in seeing a white blazer in a capsule wardrobe on The Vivienne Files, and I'm always happy to try to oblige! White blazers seem like the most obvious handy piece for warm weather, don't they? And my first instinct was to show them with a simple, timeless pair of navy pants; an easy pairing to pull on Monday morning when you don't know what to wear, but you know you have to look good!

But then I was stumped for an accent color; someone had asked for aqua, and someone else for teal...

Then I realized - this is one of the very FEW starting points in modern clothing that can lead to almost ANY accent color; the only color that might be tricky is beige, but I bet I could ... View the Post

12 Months, 12 Outfits in 6 Capsule Wardrobes: May

May 2, 2016

Warm weather's coming! (I type, as I'm sitting in fleece running tights and a sweatshirt...)When I was pondering what we needed to add to these capsule wardrobes for May, I kept coming back to the idea that we need to be prepared ahead of time for the first warm days. Even if it's no more of an event than going to watch your neighbor's kids play soccer, you don't want to be caught off guard and unprepared. That's how badly conceived impulse purchases make their way into your closet!

First up, a reminder of the 6 scarves that we're using as our unifying themes for the capsule wardrobes, through the 12 months:

Navy– Hermes Voyage en Etoffes; camel – Hermes Tyger Tyger; beige –Hermes Le Voyage de Pytheas; ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Gulf of Saint Tropez by Claude Matisse

April 4, 2016 Summer's coming...

And some people are embracing the bright colors that come with the warmer weather:

This Year, A Uniform

They can call it a Jitney, but it's really just a bus. A very crowded, and often very overly air-conditioned bus. And she rides it EVERY WEEKEND in the summer, to get to the shore. But this year, she is NOT going to go through a bunch of angst and constant pondering about what to pack into her tiny bag, that she always ends up holding on her lap. This is it:

If her friends get tired of seeing her 2 dresses at brunch, the heck with them.... If she destroys this pair of shorts somehow, she'll buy another one just like them. She's ... View the Post

Building a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Autumn Trees – The Maples by Georgia O’Keeffe

March 28, 2016 You have sent me SO MANY beautiful art ideas - I'm going to dedicate a few days to addressing some of them. Fear not, the "1 at a Time" wardrobes will be back....

A travel wardrobe not for the faint of heart - but what beautiful, subtle colors:

She Has 24 Hours Well, she could take longer, but her plan is to spend her entire 1st day in town walking around, looking, listening, feeling her responses. By the time she goes to bed the first night, she's going to decide - yes or no - if she's moving there.

If she decides that she won't move there, she has the rest of the long weekend to enjoy her time off. But if she decides yes, she has the rest of the long weekend to find an ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe of Accessories: Lime, Coral, Beige and Cream, 1 Piece at a Time

March 17, 2016 This wardrobe cried out for a bright floral tote bag... I managed to avoid the temptation and look for things a little bit more restrained. The original wardrobe step by step can be seen here; this was where we started:

Take care of the essentials first thing - shoes and a bag!

The coral color put me in the mood for some rose gold...

Some of these shoes you've seen before, but I like them, and I think they're terribly versatile!

The overall warm feeling of this wardrobe suggested GOLD to me.

Three choices here: (1) ornate, (2) small and simple, or (3) statement, but still streamlined. Choices are a good way to isolate what ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe of Accessories: Navy, Beige, Turquoise and Yellow, 1 at a Time

March 14, 2016 Maybe it's the unseasonably warm weather here in Chicago, but this wardrobe felt very summery to me...

We always have to start out with a couple of basic, essential accessories...

I thought that I'd introduce some pearls here - to pick up on the pearl/off-white color of the cardigan. I like to tie outfits together through these small, but powerful, little color "echoes."

Theoretically, this particular outfit would be better balanced with dark shoes, but I'm assuming that you're going to carry a dark bag, which will serve the same purpose. Let's not go completely nuts trying to do everything perfectly!

If you're an avowed "watch avoider," you can always just ... View the Post

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe in Brown, Cream, Aqua and Golden Yellow: 1 Piece at a Time

February 27, 2016 Wow, this was much more difficult than I expected it to be!

This is really a great color scheme - the accent colors are sufficiently different from each other that introducing them into an outfit gives you two very different sensibilities...And I didn't set out to find so many pieces from one source, but when I found that they had matching pieces in brown, it didn't seem like a bad idea!

So the matching brown pieces made it impossible to resist getting a brown shell, too. I think of this as a wardrobe that's ideally suited for changeable weather, or for those of us who have hot flashes...

I love this yellow...

Cream and brown together are an ... View the Post