June 13, 2018
It all starts out so well. You’ve got your art inspiration in front of you, and quite a few of your garments are clear in your mind…
The Kiss by Max Ernst
The brown was hard to find, but you’re really happy with the results:
linen shirt – Uniqlo; lace-trimmed tank – Uniqlo; pants – J.Crew; shorts – J.Crew
This is a great start…
The turquoise wasn’t too tough to find; the maxi skirt is going to be SO nice to have on vacation…
cardigan – L.L.Bean; tee shirt – L.L.Bean; shorts – Lands’ End; maxi skirt – Lands’ End
This is where the wardrobe is supposed to get fun – finding tops that work with both core colors, and that pull them together. But you find that the things you were thinking about packing are too big. Too small. Too worn out. Too much in need of laundering. But you really don’t have time to do ANYTHING except rethink things…
white sleeveless shirt – Lands’ End; metallic gold tee – Banana Republic; striped tee – Veronica Beard; madras shirt – L.L.Bean
This isn’t a bad wardrobe, so far, but given the shortage of things in your closet that will span the turquoise/brown gulf, a new idea is called for! Especially if you’re packing at the very last minute for an emergency trip, you have to be flexible, right?
Your best option? Look at your closet, and see what you DO have that will work with your 2 colors that you’ve already chosen (pressed, folded, and packed!). Turquoise and rust brown could easily embrace dark chocolate brown, tan or stone, or navy. But for hot weather, I’m going to use white. By adding 4 white garments, this wardrobe essentially now has 3 neutrals, which all work together, along with a few (very few!) accent tops…
eyelet trimmed top – Calibe; sleeveless top – Eileen Fisher; shorts – L.L.Bean; cropped pants – L.L.Bean
Maybe this isn’t what you envisioned when you started packing, but I think this will work out just fine!
For this trip, bring more accessories than you might have originally thought. Turquoise and brown beads, gold metal with amber, or something that mixes turquoise and white would all be useful here.
There are LOTS of outfit possibilities here…
Have you ever done this? Started packing and then had to change direction in mid-suitcase?
I remember once going on a business trip and packing a jacket and dress that (it turned out) did NOT fit, when I finally got to my destination. I should have tried everything on before I left, but I didn’t… Not my proudest moment as a packing wizard, eh?
love,
Janice
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I like the combination of these colours and adding the white makes this a fresh, summery capsule.
Since following your blog for three years, I always pack a 4 x 4 capsule now for holidays as it seems to work out well and everything gets worn (well almost). I did have a mishap in Venice one year when six items didn’t get worn because they were either too tight and uncomfortable (I didn’t try them on before packing) or they weren’t needed (cardigans) because it was just so hot, even in the evenings. Luckily, it was a short break and essentially I managed with the equivalent of a common wardrobe (nine pieces) plus a dress.
Oh I did that once on a business trip! I packed a jacket/dress outfit that I LOVED, not realizing that it had shrunk at the laundry to the point that the dress was sort of a… tunic? I put it on anyway, thinking that I was exaggerating the problem, and ended up changing clothes at the first break in the seminar I was leading. Thank heavens the seminar was in the same hotel in which we were staying!
Lesson? If you have had a garment on in the last few weeks, TRY IT ON!!!
hugs,
Janice
Janice,
Ditto on the need to try things on before packing them ! We once had an anniversary dinner reservation at the former Regency Dining Room in the Williamsburg Inn, VA, which I always considered to be rather upscale . Well the top I had planned to wear fit, but the coordinating bottom did not ! Fortunately, a new Chico’s had just come into the Merchants Square area and I ended up having to buy a whole new outfit ! Oh too bad, huh ?
I love this color combination, although I don’t wear it as much now that my hair has turned grey.
I’m posting though, to address some comments from a couple days ago which I only saw last night regarding the new site design. If you’re having trouble getting the newest post (as I did again this a.m. on my desktop computer), try this: put a / at the end of theviviennefiles.com, that will trick your browser into grabbing the new version instead of serving you what it has cached.
As others have said, I was fond of the old site’s masthead. I do wish I could get the search function on the mobile version–seems to be missing altogether, at least on my iphone. And, I don’t really like clicking to get the comments (which I had to finagle a bit to get at all on my iPad, but that was a tech issue on my end). All this white space seems to be the current rage in web design (I’m seeing it in several re-designs), but results in a lot of scrolling.
Thank you for the tip about adding / after theviviennefiles.com! It worked like a charm and took me right to the current post!
I have always tried on clothes before packing because I want to be comfortable – a first priority with clothes whatever the occasion, but especially when traveling. I once had a dream in my teens that my tight pants ripped in back and there was nothing I could do for blocks and blocks of my walk on a crowded street. So ever since.. I never wear pants that are too “tight” – snug maybe, but…
This wardrobe is surprisingly lovely and the addition of white/ecru is perfect for summer and does not seem like a necessary afterthought but just another work of a wardrobe genius! Would love to see accessories for this one! Janice Collins, Washington DC
I love these unusual color combos! I can picture lots of turquoise jewelry with this wardrobe. Thanks for finding me some more brown basics.
Love the 4×4 approach to packing! Particularly surprised at how well the striped T looks with the brown bottoms. Thanks for showing us such fabulous colour combos.
BW
PS: So glad the site access issue has been fixed. I now see the most recent posting from your Home page.
I love this warm caramel brown. It would be great with my hair. I’m on the hunt! The white and turquoise make it sing SUMMER!
My first post baby business trip was this kind of disaster. I’d lost my baby weight and foolishly figured that meant I’d be the same size. Well, anyone who’s had a baby knows that things don’t always end up back where they started! Always try on everything is my new motto.
No dress? ?!!
I only started doing a full pre-pack try on a few years ago and its made such a difference to the success of a suitcase. It’s now like aperos before a meal, something just a good as the meal itself!
Hugs, x.
Great idea to add the white! Looks like summer!! Accessories could make a lot of impact here. I don’t try on things that are in regular rotation, but any special occasion garments or anything not worn in a while gets tried on. I think most of us have had a similar experience.
Maxi skirts, sigh. They look so appealing but IRL not so wearable. I can wear them, but most sold these days are cotton interlock, or poly- and they are too hot. In the city, they get stuck in revolving doors, are murder on escalators and get dirty. I have given up on them, preferring midi length if I want a longer skirt.
Turquoise is one of my favourite colours to wear, a summery effect but not pastel.
Love the color palette! It is very similar to what I have chosen for autumn. It is interesting to see that one of accent colors can be present just as one of the colors in the print.
I wish if you could tag your capsules with seasonal analysis names. Although I don’t mind to substitute colors in my mind for the nuances from my pallete (it is Dark Autumn).
In the course of 3 years of following and studying, I almost covered the basis and now I DO have something to wear! It is stil work in progress but much better than ever. So now there is nothing I really need to purchase. As a result I can now and than purchase outside of my purchasing comfort zone e.g. more expensive that I am used to.
Regarding trying on, even when I plan in the evening what I will wear, in the morning after I try it I often change my mind, more often than not. So important to try on beforehand (including footwear).
Try-ons are a must before packing as I learned on a winter holiday. I had a vintage cocktail dress that fit like a dream that I saved for years for a special event. When that event arrived I had it dry cleaned and packed it carefully for New Year’s Eve dinner at a remote resort with no shopping. Discovered while dressing for dinner that the pleated chiffon bodice had not been pressed correctly and was a weird droopy cowl off the bustline. I had no broach or sewing kit to recover the mess and ended up going much more casual in a repeat wear to dinner. A few months later I gifted the dress to an acquaintance who arrived underdressed for a party and asked to borrow something. I was let down and never gave the lovely dress a second chance.