December 1, 2017
The last month of these wardrobes! Although these outfits might not be exactly what our assorted heroines most need, we’re going dressy – just because we can…
Scarf – Hèrmes Carré en Boucles; sweater – Eileen Fisher; necklace – Virgins Saints & Angels; skirt – Eileen Fisher; bag – Nathalie Trad; ballet flats – Kate Spade
There’s a world of lovely velvet around this year – take advantage of this chance to stock up! I’m particularly taken with the idea of a black velvet skirt – Lands’ End has one that’s lovely…
This wardrobe has a unique character – just those few pieces of that rusty color make so much difference!
As always, the new pieces we’ve added work well with what was already in the closet:
Oh, these pants are SO lovely…. sigh….
Scarf– Hermes Flanerie a Versailles; earrings – Chan Luu; sweater – J.Crew; bag – Loeffler Randall; shoes – Botkier; pants – Sania Studio
This woman has such a distinctive style; is she blonde, you imagine?
The sleeves on this sweater make so much difference…
How much fun would it be to sneak in brocade pants with winter boots and a down vest? Why not?
Yes, you’ve seen these velvet pants before, but TRUST ME, they’re really lovely. They are both comfortable and swishy/soft/elegant. I love a good swish!
Scarf– Hèrmes Au Bout du Monde; earrings – Alexis Bittar; sweater – Dorothy Perkins; velvet pants – Uniqlo; bag – La Regale; flats – Badgley Mischka
I could live in this with no problems, and I’m generally not smitten with navy for myself…
These pants… trust me…
And the touch of sparkle in the sweater would be such a fun touch when worn with more casual pieces – I like the mix of moods, especially this time of year.
I might have put myself in a pickle here – this is a slightly cooler green than we’ve had in this wardrobe so far… Some women would comfortably mix the various shades of green, but others might find it troubling. Frankly, I just couldn’t resist this silk tunic; the comfort of silk and the ease of a tunic… what’s not to love?
Scarf – Hèrmes Collections Impériales; necklace – Ashley Pittman; silk tunic – Eileen Fisher; velvet pants – LULU the label; bag – Gianni Bini; bronze flats – TJMaxx
This wardrobe really shows a unique personal style, to my eyes. I can almost picture this woman…
The tunic makes everything dressier, and I’m not really uncomfortable with the mixed shades of green. Your mileage may vary, but mixed shades of the same color can look great, if you are happy with what you’re wearing.
I searched and SEARCHED for these shoes… Sometimes, you compromise a little bit on quality to get exactly what you have in mind!
Scarf – Hèrmes Etude pour un Iris Arc-en-ciel; earrings – Banana Republic; sweater – Uniqlo; satin pants – St. John Collection; bag – Nina; flats – Gap
This wardrobe is so pretty – I would buy this entire thing for my mother if it made any sense at all for her life!
This sweater is the prettiest shade of blue – it doesn’t need a lot with it.
An “over the top” ensemble here! But I wanted you to see this blouse – it’s really extraordinary. If you ever choose to splurge on something like this, enjoy it as often as possible.
Scarf – Hèrmes Chemins de Corail; earrings – Heidi Daus; blouse – Marni; velvet pants – Banana Republic; bag – Fendi; flats – Ferragamo
I like both the warmth of the colors here and the variety of red and orange accents. This wardrobe could take you anywhere…
It might feel odd to wear a blouse like this with casual pants, but something this special needs to be worn often and in a variety of ways. Even jeans would look completely different when worn with this!
I’m already scouting out next year’s scarves – can I assume that I should engage in this exercise again?
And I will, in the next few days, analyze each of these wardrobes to see how successful they are, according to a variety of arbitrary standards. The only true measure of a good wardrobe is the happiness and confidence of the heroine wearing the clothes, of course!
love,
Janice
For more in the 2017 “Build a Capsule Wardrobe – 12 months, 12 outfits” series, check out the following articles:
- January
- February
- March
- April
- May
- June
- July
- August
- September
- October
- November
- December
- Evaluating our 2017 wardrobes…
Looking for more ideas? Follow along as we build a new capsule wardrobe in 2018.
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Yes! I vote to do this every year!
I love all your gala December choices–and, yes, by all means, new scarves for the new year!
Janice,
Oh that Marni blouse ! Now maybe I can find something similar in a thrift shop ! Yes, miracles can happen ! Your December choices are both festive and lush — I’m in the mood for a velvet long skirt or trouser — in brown — wish me success ! Or a velvet jacket — might be easier to find .
Are you taking votes for next year? Favorite series on your blog, so I hope it continues.
https://www.hermes.com/us/en/product/les-tresors-d-un-artiste-scarf-90-H003119Sv05/
https://www.hermes.com/us/en/product/appaloosa-des-steppes-pocket-square-45-H893067Sv03/
https://www.hermes.com/us/en/product/suite-et-poursuite-scarf-140-H672892Sv08/
oooh, that Appaloosa de steppes scarf in the dark red, black, and white (with a touch of gray)! Yes please! – nancyo
It's only a pocket square – not that there's anything inherently wrong with a pocket square, but I've always used to 90cm squares. I could just do a separate post with that scarf, though…
hugs (Margie & Nancy!),
Janice
I would love to see it as the basis of a wardrobe!! And will be eager to see if the scarf for next year's black-based wardrobe will have that great garnet/bordeaux color. Or the gray wardrobe, for that matter (love that dark red as an accent!) Thanks for all you do, nancyo
I noticed it was small, but loved it. You pick whatever you want, as you are the one who has to look at it all year. We just get to enjoy the results.
Yes, please keep this an annual exercise!
Do you think KathKath or ImageDiary would be interested in creating a scarf specifically for this series? Women supporting women in business is big on my radar.
Examples from these small women-owned businesses:
http://kathkath.com/product/vintage-rose-luxury-square-scarf/
https://imagediary.com/shop/46i2guvdi395h0m00w9573gau8xm8e
I'm afraid that it's too late for either of them to get a scarf into the series next year, but I will definitely ask both of them. (Image Diary is a friend of mine…)
What a great idea – maybe for 2019 we could find six scarves from women-owned companies?
hugs,
Janice
I love being a friend of yours AND an avid follower of this fabulous blog.
Love the idea of 6 scarves produced by woman owned businesses!
I purchased the KathKath vintage rose scarf when I first saw it here. I then stole your wardrobe building technique & applied it quite successfully. I have a curated weekday wardrobe that pleases me every time I enter my closet.
I am in the process of paring down my play clothes using the "joy" pallette.
Thank you for sharing all you do so generously.
Yes definitely do again. This series has been great fun!
Love this series! Please repeat next year! Have a lovely weekend.
I'll add my voice to the "Yes please!" call. This is such a fun way to watch and learn about the wardrobe-building process. I have imagined the pink and beige wardrobe as belonging to a youthful white- or grey-haired lady. Wishful thinking, perhaps.
Robyn in Tasmania
Different pieces catch my eye every time you post one of these. Please continue!
I, too, am voting for you continuing this series. Love to see what you pick each month. I could live in the beige, orange and red wardrobe and be one happy woman!!!!
I vote yes please! Love this series! Supporting women owned companies is a great idea for the future too!
Yes, please! next year for sure. I've loved these posts.
Love from the warm tones-greens-browns-and golds wearer.
I think the second one is my favourite for me, it is how my summer wardrobe colours are shaping up now I have some plan for what I am doing thanks to you.
I look forward to the scarf based wardrobes every month so yes please for more again next year.
What a delightful project! I've totally enjoyed following it. I sure got a shock, though, when I followed a link to those satin pants and found they were $937 CAD! We can dream.
I really love this series and hope you'll do it again next year. It shows a simple way to build a cohesive wardrobe that doesn't take loads of planning.
I add my voice to those who would like this series to continue next year, and as a lover of Hermes scarves, I'd like to see you use them again in the coming year. As for this year, my heart was with number three all the way through.
Keep it coming! I love it!
I love the Hermes scarves you choose, but I wondered if you have ever considered starting a wardrobe with a Karen Mabon scarf? I find her scarves so whimsical and fun. I've never bought anything from her, but I'm always tempted to do so.
How long does it take to complete this article? I have read through other blogs, but they are cumbersome and confusing. I hope you continue to have such quality articles to share with everyone! I believe a lot of people will be surprised to read this article!
happy wheels
Ditto! I’ve really enjoyed these. ???
Dear Janice, this is true tesaurus of ideas! I will be returning to these many times, I can already see that. More I look an individual wadrobe, the more and more I discover how valuable it is. Thank you for including the links at the bottom of each article. I must admit that it would be more convenient if you could make the whole wadrobe on one page, I find it impossible to navigate between 12 pages to find the specific part of each page so I took print screens of pictures into a power point presentations to be able to study (and replicate) the whole wadrobe, but I lost descriptions in the process. Please could you copy each wadrobe into its separate article?
Sania from Zagreb