Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature
April 18, 2014
I'm always intrigued by how many outfits you can pull together from a well-chosen capsule wardrobe, so after I built yesterday's ensemble, I started pulling together outfits, just out of curiosity...Remember, these were the 24 garments with which I started:
There are almost certainly more possibilities here; I threw in the towel after I passed twelve dozen...
love, Janice ... View the Post
April 17, 2014 Another visit to this concept, keeping the beige linen (I'm SO lazy...) and using navy as our other neutral. I'm going to try to explain the steps for choosing these items in more detail, so that you can recreate what I do in your own closet.
Also, I want to address the question of having multiple pairs of dark neutral pants. Often, we're told that "you shouldn't own three pair of navy pants", but I heartily disagree, because of the wide variety of navy pants that you might own. In this particular example, I've included very narrow navy capris in a cotton fabric, a wide-legged trouser (full-length), and a silk-like palazzo pant. My feeling is that these three pants give three very different outfits when ... View the Post
April 16, 2014 One of the most popular posts I've ever written was asking if Coco Chanel was right when she told us that a woman only needs two suits to be well dressed. (find it here) I'm often asked how this idea translates for those among us who wear mostly casual clothing, and who don't really have any use for a suit. So these are my thoughts: First off - the equivalent of the black suit - a cardigan, capris, pants, and a dress:
and then a similar approach in beige - another cardigan, linen pants, a pair of shorts and another:
First add-on is a couple of "twin-sets" in accent colors. But only one cardigan, and a linen shirt to take the place of the ... View the Post
April 1, 2014 The clothes I bought in Paris are going to have to do a lot of heavy lifting, so I've been giving some thought to how many different ways I can wear them. Here are my ideas, so far... First up, the dress that I bought at French Trotters. It's not available, but it's rather similar to this dress (mine has a bit more clearly defined pattern). I know that I can wear this with a turtleneck layered underneath, warm tights, boots and a scarf - I did that in Paris! But I can also scale it back to just leggings and flats, or sandals and bare legs...
Next, I want to make sure that I get maximum utilization from my new striped tee shirt. ... View the Post
February 19, 2014
What a gorgeous painting! And the colors are so perfect for warm weather... (of which I dream right now, as I watch the white-out snow storm outside my window...)
A few of you have expressed a concern about wearing light colors below the waist, and so for this wardrobe I'm going to avoid that. Also, I've been asked to include a maxi skirt in capsule wardrobes, so today I've found one!
A dark core of four - useful for most of the year, and an essential base upon which we're going to build this plan. Navy is so perfect for warm weather; if you're concerned about the colors matching, plan to buy all four items at once, and maybe from the same place.
Yes, this is the second grouping of four green garments ... View the Post
February 18, 2014 This painting has such gorgeous colors, and for a summer travel wardrobe the options are wonderful... I'm starting with a core of four - I'm a really strong believer in the usefulness of having a core of neutral garments around which everything else can revolve. The colors don't have to be dye-lot matched, but they should be chosen with an eye to being wearable together. And getting your shoes taken care of frees you up to go just a bit wild later on in your second and third waves of shopping!
For summer, shorts and capris. Then when you branch out into tee shirts, this painting gives you a wide variety of colors from which to ... View the Post
February 15, 2014 This beautiful work is Abstract, by Nicolas de Stael, and these cool, subtle colors are amazing for the upcoming summer. First, I'm looking for a neutral from within this painting. If you're comfortable wearing white, or if you have a good relationship with your dry cleaner, I would start with the crisp clarity of white for the initial four summer garments. Sandals that pair white with silver, and some silver loafers, might be all the change you need to update your existing wardrobe in this direction. If you're nervous about wearing this much white, substitute the deepest petrol blue...
If you've got budget and ambition to add to this summer wardrobe, look to the cool ... View the Post
February 13, 2014 I've been thinking a lot about how to plan a wardrobe that gives you options for a wide variety of accent colors. There are other way to go about this, and I'm going to figure them out, but my very first thought was the following. Here's what your summer wardrobe will look like, after we've worked out way through the steps.
Assuming that you're going to be carrying over a few garments from your cold weather wardrobe, I've pulled together this core of four in grey. I'm also including neutral footwear - canvas sneakers, and a simple pair of suede loafers.
As much as I know that the point of this is to introduce lots of accents, I think it's pretty important that we ... View the Post
February 11, 2014 What are you going to pack?? You need to know the answers to three questions: (1) How long am I going to be away? (2) What am I going to be doing? and (3) What kind of weather can I expect? Then you have to choose your colors. The easiest way to do this is determine what trousers you want to wear for travel, and build around that. Having the right travel outfit is the most important choice! In this case, it's monochromatic khaki/tan, with accents of deep rose... Having a cardigan for travel helps you adjust to changing temperatures, gives you something to wrap around little peeps who need a cuddle, and helps cover up any unexpected ... View the Post
February 8, 2014 Ooh, it's nice to dream of summer clothes and warmer destinations! Some of you are headed out with family for vacations that suggest shorts, capris, and flowing summer skirts and dresses, and the colors navy and pink are ALWAYS requested! So here's a plan that starts with a long weekend, and then adds key garments if your trip is longer than that. Always, for travel, I will recommend long pants, real shoes with toes and heels, and a cardigan - I always find airplanes are cold... This outfit has the added benefit of giving you two core garments in navy around which you can work throughout your vacation.
A couple of pretty skirts, a pair of shorts, a dress (that will ... View the Post
January 3, 2014
This painting is currently at the Art Institute of Chicago, as part of the Celia and David Hilliard Collection exhibit. I'm not sure if it's oil - I suspect it might be pastel - but it captivates me immediately...My impressions from this were of warmth, and simplicity - clear lines and powdery soft colors, with matte finishes.
“A Mysterious Hand Leads to Another Path” – Jan Toorop, blue topaz ring – Zayd Makarim, blue linen tee shirt – Isabel Marant Etoile, natural linen shorts – Comme des Garcons, denim blue sandals – Popet seafoam linen dress – Paul Smith, scarf – U-NI-TY, silver sandals – Dr. Scholl’s
“A Mysterious Hand Leads to Another Path” – Jan ... View the Post
December 16, 2013
You probably remember that we started last Friday with a core of six garments that would be suitable for a long weekend, and then on Saturday, I expanded the capsule travel wardrobe to a 12-pack, for cooler weather. Now I'm going to do basically the same thing, only oriented toward a much warmer visit...Again, six carefully-chosen garments:
Shorts - I like white, but you could easily choose black or petrol. A great printed tee shirt that includes all three of your colors. A beautiful fluid top in your accent color, and A skirt that combines your accent color and either of your neutrals. Another top - dressier than a tee shirt - that can be worn with either of your neutrals, and A ... View the Post
