May 26, 2016
Okay, I’m more than a little bit smitten with Ms. Gontcharova’s work…
Composition by Natalia S. Gontcharova
For someone who wanted to base their entire wardrobe around this work, there’s also a bit of green in here:
When I Am An Old Woman… (blah, blah, blah)
Yes, we know, you’ll wear purple. But she’s been wearing purple FOREVER…
earrings – Matta; watch – Fendi; pants – L.L.Bean; tee – Uniqlo; cardigan – Viyella; scarf – Halston; flats – SoftWalk; cross body bag – Longchamp; suitcase – Victorinox
She wears every shade of it. She buys her entire wardrobe with an eye to how well it will work with “her” color…
Henley – Majestic Filatures; skirt – Uniqlo; sandals – Loeffler Randall; bracelet – Achara; square scarf – Mila Such; shorts – L.L.Bean; dress – Uniqlo; evening bag – Sondra Roberts; earrings – Luis Banda;
necklace – R.J. Graziano; pumps – Calvin Klein; v-neck tee – L.L.Bean; tunic – L.L.Bean
And she mixes multiple shades of purple without hesitation, and without apology.
Someone once told her that she had eyes like Elizabeth Taylor’s; but she knows that it was only the reflection from her blouse…
love,
Janice
The most important line is "she mixes multiple shades of purple without hesitation, and without apology."
That eliminates a lot of angst right there.
I wish I had the conviction to mix shades like that.
This is so pretty! That charcoal gray dress is wonderful.
The grey and purple go well together- to me this is both chic and restful.
Hmmm, on second thoughts -serene is a better word than restful
Love it – always had a "thing" for purples/mauves/lilacs (perhaps it's because I also have dark, dark blue eyes) :-)
I'd love to do a capsule wardrobe at some point with just the one "bright" colour (I narrowed things down a lot last winter with mostly red & pink accents) but I think it wold be fun to choose just one for say a 2 or 3 month period of time (I love colour too much to stick to just one for always with my neutrals). It would also be fun to see if people at the office even noticed!
Old is a state of mind. Color is life!
Love the dress and the fact that it is ponte and comes in several colors. I've been looking for a long time for a dress like this – thanks for finding it for me! Also, enjoyed browsing at Novica.com. The jewelry is both beautiful and affordable and it's a great way to empower artisans around the world.
My colors! I just snagged that Halston scarf for $19.99! Thank you!
I find the notion of choosing one perfect colour and using it's many shades and tones with neutrals intriguing. My problem would be twofold, choosing the one colour and not being detoured by other colours.
Deb from Vancouver
I am in love with the Majestic Filatures top!
I love this approach to all the shades of one color. My Grandma loved purple and it looked lovely on her. So I have a soft spot for purple. Always reminds me of her. Very nice combination with the grays.
What a beautiful travel capsule, and I am SO glad she didn't bring a red hat, lol! I wear grey and purple – often together -more in the winter, and cannot wear the lighter shades of purple at all – nancyo
Dear Janice!
Unrelated to this post, I want to thank you for completely changing my wardrobe and my taste! I am following starting from scratch series and for the first time in my life I have something to wear! My main challenge was limiting my palette in terms of color, since I used to wear lots of color, and it took me lot of time thinking and deciding. Since I can't give up any color I limited my palette for the season by postponing other colors for other seasons. Here it is https://www.pinterest.com/veselestvari/starting-from-scratch-summer-2016/
Today I returned from yet another shopping and resisting sales and less quality items is still a struggle but each time I'm getting better. Now I purchase on sales only those garments that are 100% compliant, no compromises. And paying the full price too, it is something new for me, but I know I deserve it. I know my Mom would be so glad for all this.
I can feel this transformation touches me on a deep level – in fact that is the best thing that had happened to me. Thank you, Janice, from the bottom of my heart!!!
Greetings from Croatia
I had a look at your Pinterest page and great work. I have found that having some sort of system be it Starting from scratch, Project 333, Common wardrobe, start with art or something that you have produced yourself certainly improves the way your wardrobe items work and play with each other. Each to their own… Everyone is different but we can learn from each other. My system wouldn't for other people. Restricted colour schemes mean that makeup (lippy) can be streamlined to a couple of shades. I have stopped shopping lots but The Vivienne Files do entice me to look at items on the web. Carol S
love this wardrobe, I do love purple in every shade
Belinda
I've seen some women who have taken the "I shall wear purple" to heart- and pant, hat, jacket and bag, and look like walking Concord grapes. I love how you have softened purple with grey. I also like a purple with a bit of blue in it, not too bright, so it reads like deep twilight and that's a hard hue to find.
Love your wardrobe concepts! I would like to breakdown my wardrobe into capsules. (Maybe?) I have a lot of clothes in various colors, but not really that many mix and match outfits. I follow fashion (by career and training, though retired this year) and I love a LOT of fashion colors so, I will have a difficult time narrowing down to a few. Especially, right now; I have recently transitioned to silver grey hair, and not really sure yet which colors still look good, on me.
I have never looked great in black, so I pulled out all my navy pieces; but a lot of the navys clash with each other! Also, my grays come in fifty shades, many not matching. Taupe is worse! My few beige and Camel pieces do not go together, and all look horrid against my face, and hair. (People tell me I am a “warm Spring” but I disagree)With the current trend of matchy-matchy, I’m sunk
How do you handle matching colors, while shopping?
Thanks
Penne
Either buy things from the same company, or carry pieces with you if you shop in person in stores. I’ve seen a lot of men in Europe wear navy garments that don’t all match perfectly (think of a topcoat over a suit) and it looks fine. Of course, it’s an acquired taste…
And if you don’t agree with the color advice you receive, do your own thing! I’ve had my colors “done” twice, and the advice could NOT have been more different! So I kept on wearing black and white, figuring that I know myself better than anyone else could!
hugs,
Janice