Archives for 2014

2014 - Page 4 of 26

An Embellished Cardigan: How to Dress Up a Starting From Scratch Capsule Wardrobe

November 20, 2014

A frequent concern for many of us this time of year is how to take our normal, everyday clothes, and make them "party-worthy". I don't like to buy a whole new outfit for a party - I'd much rather figure out a way to elevate the things I already own through the purchase of one strategic item.

There are a couple of different ways to do this; today I'm going to explore the possibilities inherent in a cardigan with some sort of beaded, embroidered or metallic detailing.

If you don't want to buy a new sweater, this is a great opportunity to do something crafty - I've seen some amazing sweaters dressed up with ribbon embroidery, or hand beading, done by the sweater owner. In one case, the initial embroidery ... View the Post

How to Choose a Winter Coat to Wear With Black

November 19, 2014

This is a project I'm working on in my own wardrobe right now, and I understand from comments and emails that I'm not alone! I personally have decided that I'd like to get a longer, straight, NOT double-breasted, possibly concealed button wool coat. For our entertainment here, I pretend that I've either completely lost my mind, or won the lottery (which I have NEVER played), and I've indulged in some absolutely exquisite coats. Even if you'd never consider buying a coat this expensive, they're always worth looking at in stores in order to be better educated about quality fabrics and construction. That way, when you get around to buying your own more moderately priced coat, you can try to come as close as ... View the Post

How to Wear Black and Brown Together, or How to Incorporate an Expensive Garment into A Common Capsule Wardrobe

November 18, 2014 It could happen to anyone of us - you're minding your own business, and then... you see it. The garment that makes your heart sing. Something that you admire aesthetically, that looks perfect on you, that is beautifully made, from gorgeous materials, and that will last the rest of your life... But OWWWW... it's expensive. The biggest question to answer: can I wear this wondrous garment frequently enough to make it worth the purchase price? I'm NOT going to say it's an investment, because only in a few cases will you be able to sell something for more than the purchase price, which is the technical definition of an investment. But in a way, if you get more joy from something, and it enhances your image, ... View the Post

Monday Morning Giveaway: L’Armoire Ideale des Paresseuses

I suspect that I've given this away before - I know I've written about it! It's a funny little guide (in fairly easy French) about building an ideal closet if you're lazy - who can't enjoy that? Copies of this float in and out of my library without explanation; I suspect they might reproduce...

The "Paresseuses" is a series of books, and a blog. Check them out; there are fewer more entertaining ways to improve your French language skills!

So leave me a comment, and please let me know what your biggest wardrobe challenge is as we move toward the "winter" holidays. (Winter in the Northern Hemisphere, but I always REALLY want to hear from those of you in other climates, please!) Sunday evening when I'm working on next Monday's ... View the Post

How to Choose an Etro Paisley Scarf

November 15, 2014 If you're looking for a scarf investment that can rival Hermes, don't overlook the beauty that comes from Etro. I bought an Etro scarf for my honeymoon (in pink and black chiffon...) and I will treasure it forever. Etro pretty much OWNS the idea of paisley, and they make them in as many color combinations as you can imagine... So how do you choose? Maybe take a look at the sweaters or shirts with which you would hope to wear your scarf, and work backward from there.

This scarf is particularly well suited for autumn, and for the winter holidays. You can wear the muted green (or brown, or tan, or black), or you could bust out with a bright red. The earrings just sort of felt like they wanted to be ... View the Post

Starved for Options

November 14, 2014

When B and I go to Paris, we have a standing joke that we share - basically, think of jewelry in some relatively uncommon design or motif (like a bracelet that are a bunch of hands holding each other, or earrings that look like lily of the valley), and without fail, somewhere along our walks, we will find said jewelry, and a million other things we would never have imagined... I contrast that right now with the offerings in the US, where most department stores costume jewelry departments are dominated by no more than 5 designers, and maybe three other recognizable names. There aren't any small boutiques downtown that carry smaller brands, so if I'm going to make my purchase in-person, I'm ... View the Post

Start With Art: Trumpet Creeper by Abby Williams Hill

November 13, 2014 Isn't this beautiful? One of you sent it to me, and it captivated me immediately. The vertical layout, the soft background, the muted shades of green and blue, the accents of warm rust, gold and orange - what a wonderful painting. There are so many things about this that could serve as inspiration and focus: the colors, the organic nature of the image, the soft blending of the background colors, the use of about a billion shades of bluish green - there's just no end to the ideas that can come from this one work of art. (but that's probably true, for the right person, of any work of art, right?)

This was my chosen color scheme - a base in very dark navy, accents of all those ... View the Post

#2 How to Choose an Hermes Scarf: Sous l’Egide de Mars

November 12, 2014 Yesterday's post was so much fun that I thought I'd take another pass through this idea: building little outfit vignettes in order to facilitate making an expensive and/or important personal style purchase. These ensembles here don't necessarily have to be about buying a scarf - I'm thinking of undertaking this exercise for the purchase of winter coats too... This scarf is called "Sous l'Egide de Mars", which means (more or less) under the aegis of Mars. It's lots of pieces of armor, as near as I can tell, and thus is all about war. Still a madly pretty piece of work, as their scarves always are.

As always with me, I'm starting with a simple outfit in a solid ... View the Post

How to Choose an Hermes Scarf: Le Songe a la Licorne

November 11, 2014

This isn't a question I get every day: a reader has decided that she wants to buy this particular design of Hermes scarf - Le Songe a la Licorne. (it means the dream of the unicorn - I have no idea why...) She stated that she wears a lot of camel/tan/beige, and was leaning toward a winter coat in either blue or rose. Whew...

But this is really an interesting question - how DO you choose from among a variety of colors (for anything, not just an Hermes scarf), when there's a wide variety available? My suggestion is that you think about what the other items AROUND the potential purchase might look like. Do you already own the jewelry, or shoes, or whatever, that will make the outfit ... View the Post

Start With Art: Are you More Renoir or Laurencin?

November 10, 2014 Two of my favorite artists, and two subtly different approaches to the feeling of romance and femininity. Renoir is very traditionally (late 19th century) soft, ruffly, dainty floraly kind of feminine. Laurencin, very much like Chanel who is the subject of this painting, gives us a little bit sleeker vision of womanly grace and beauty.

How do these subtle differences translate into your personal style - your choices of accessories and garments? Both are beautiful and appealing, but there are substantial differences, if we study the paintings long enough. These were some of my thoughts:

For jewelry, Renoir art gives me the feeling of delicate, carefully jeweled pieces with a lot of detail, and a ... View the Post

I haven’t been dancing…

But I am pretty tired... The weary ladies above were (I believe) dancing in some Bacchanalian fete, which would probably leave me flat on my back for a week!

I love pre-Raphaelite paintings. I know they're considered sort of terribly plush and dramatic and just generally over the top, but I love them anyway...

Love, Janice

... View the Post

Start With Art: A Shelf of Books -> a Summer Wardrobe

November 7, 2014 You really, seriously, can get inspiration anywhere, if you keep your eyes and your aesthetic heart open to what's out there. This absolutely wonderful picture was sent to me - what a delightful mix of softly faded colors.

It wasn't at all hard to come up with a color scheme. Many of you ask about how I build color wheels - I use the graphing gizmo in PowerPoint. I use PowerPoint for all of my vignettes, because it does everything I need. Just insert a graph into a slide, and then change the colors and sizes of the various wedges to suit your preferences. You have a new, beautiful mnemonic for your wardrobe colors, AND you have a new skill to put on your ... View the Post