Archives for September 2018

September 2018

A 10-Piece Packing Plan, and a Wardrobe for a Week in Chicago in the Autumn

September 28, 2018

I'm still out of town, and working on a laptop - if the images here need some work, please let me know!

love,

Janice A 10-Piece Packing Template Let's imagine that our heroine is coming to Chicago for a week, and is planning to pack 10 pieces of clothing. She doesn't necessarily know why, except maybe the idea of having 13 total garments feel about right to her... It's the way she's packed for years, and she has a pretty clear plan!

First, she chooses what she's going to wear for travel. It seems rather monotone, but a pretty scarf makes a lot of difference!

Next, she pulls out her template for the 10 garments to pack:

Because grey has been her wardrobe signature neutral for a long time, and ... View the Post

Marigolds! The Birth Flower for October

September 26, 2018

author's note - I'm working from Florida, on my laptop. Any drop in the quality/resolution of images is a result of that - I apologize profusely! It's quite the change from working on the monster monitor that I have in Chicago... If you see anything egregiously in need of repair, please don't hesitate to let me know. Love, Janice

Marigolds! So bright. So cheery. Such a nice step into fall... I'm a little bit stunned that someone would use them in a fragrance, but I'm not a "nose," so I might easily be missing something, eh?

Many of us might find this a tough color to wear, but remember that you don't necessarily have to have a ton of bright orange/gold in your outfit to pay homage to the flower, or ... View the Post

What Are You Buying for Autumn? I’m All Finished…

September 24, 2018

(yes, I know it's soon to be Spring in the Southern Hemisphere - I'm interested in that too!)

This is difficult for me - I'm not all that comfortable talking about myself! But I think we should all have a deliberate plan for the changing seasons, as far as being prepared in our wardrobes. So I'm sharing my purchases...

I've been gradually picking up things for... six weeks? Maybe longer! As soon as I saw a black and white flannel shirt, I KNEW it was coming home to me. And a new black velvet skirt was imperative - my old one is too big! My rain coat was chosen to see me through those wet but not terribly cold days - I don't have anything truly waterproof that covers the seat of my pants... Other things caught my ... View the Post

A Color Palette for All Seasons? Start with an Earthenware Plaque by John Bennett

September 21, 2018

I saw this at the Art Institute of Chicago last weekend, and was instantly smitten...

Our heroine saw it too, and noted immediately that, even though the colors here are all beautiful together, they also offer a range of possibilities for choosing garments for every season! First, she identified her "overall" color palette:

She then started thinking about what she would choose for autumn, from these colors. All of these colors, in their darker and richer incarnations, are perfect for the approaching cool weather...

She pulled together a perfect outfit without a lot of work... An entire wardrobe capsule in colors from this art wouldn't be tough at all!

With this success fresh in mind, she ... View the Post

Another “Gentle” Project 333 Wardrobe – 30 Garments based on Navy & Grey

September 19, 2018

Our heroine works in an office, where she is the real power behind... well, everything! She works from home part of the time; she only has to go into the office 2, maybe 3 times a week, in order to kick boxes and take names...

So she wants to strike a balance of authoritative, approachable (sometimes), and beautiful (she does have a private life!).

This is her template:

She likes to this of her first cluster as The Navy with a Twist Cluster

Yes, if she was feeling particularly full of beans she would indeed wear the striped tee shirt with the printed skirt!

Next, she wants something a little bit less assertive - something she could wear on Casual Friday. (hers is one of the offices that observes ... View the Post

Project 333 For First-Time Participants – 30 Pieces of Clothing!

September 17, 2018

Lots of us are used to having at least 40 or 50 garments available for the current season, so the idea of limiting all of our clothing AND accessories to 33 pieces seems daunting! But 1 thing that I'm pretty sure the creator of Project 333 would agree with - you should just start somewhere, and move on as you feel comfortable!

Therefore, I decided to build a wardrobe template that includes 30 garments - still fewer than many of us are used to seeing in our closets, but a pretty comfortable number...

When I look at this template, it seems like a huge number of pieces! But once you start pulling items out of your closet, it could fill pretty quickly.

I'm planning this wardrobe more or less on what ... View the Post

Choosing Accessories for a Project 333 Wardrobe? How about a template…

September 14, 2018

Monday I built a 4 by 4 Wardrobe based on this lovely scarf from the Metropolitan Museum of Art Store (they have a LOT of lovely scarves...)

Before we dive into accessories, let's remember what our final color scheme was (remember, I had to change the colors halfway through building the wardrobe!):

And the wardrobe was this; yes, I could easily have re-arranged these items to put the camel-colored items into the 2nd row to be the 2nd neutral. Proof that these templates are guidelines and NOT rules!

I've been thinking about accessories a lot... Maybe we can organize them the same kind of way we organize clothes? Let's start with the stuff that most of us MUST have (although bear in mind ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: William Morris Patchwork Scarf

September 12, 2018 Class Action Settlement She had completely forgotten that she was part of this class for the lawsuit - all she had done was fill out a few documents and mail them to the attorneys. So when she received a letter telling her that she was receiving a cash award as part of the settlement, she was delighted!

And then she saw what she was receiving, and she was overwhelmed...

"Take that trip to Paris that you've wanted..." She didn't have to be told twice!

So she started to plan, starting with her favorite scarf:

She's only going to go for a few days, and her primary goal is to do some dining... maybe a few nice lunches in the better restaurants. She's learned that this is a good way to get an excellent meal ... View the Post

When Your Wardrobe Plan Hits a Snag – Start with a Scarf: Japanese Irises

September 10, 2018

Our mythical heroine has her scarf chosen for her Capsule Wardrobe, and she's full of optimism!

And while she wants to keep her wardrobe casual, she's still going to indulge in a few pieces of clothing in more feminine, dressy fabrics...

She goes to her closet and picks the 4 garments that she absolutely, positively wants to include in her wardrobe for the autumn:

In some ways, this is a great start, because these pieces all work seamlessly together - 4 garments = 4 outfits!

So with her colors and her style inspiration in front of her, she begins to shop. Since it's going to be cooler weather (she hopes!) in the next few months, her first thought is for another shirt - a nice plaid should do ... View the Post

Experimenting with Project 333 – 20 garments and 13 accessories?

September 7, 2018

Wednesday I experimented with a different approach to Project 333 - in which I built a template for 4 5-piece "clusters" of clothing:

Partly to showcase 2 of Eileen Fisher's "new" fall colors (Midnight and Nutmeg), I pulled together this wardrobe:

If we're going to be really strict with Project 333, this would only leave us 13 accessories for this wardrobe! But let's bear in mind the LAST thing the creator of Project 333 wants is for us to feel limited or constrained by this process - she just wants us to be thoughtful...

That said, I'm going to see what I can accomplish with only 13 accessories, just as an exercise in planning and in limits! If nothing else, it's educational to see what you really want ... View the Post

Do You Want More than 16 Pieces of Clothing for Project 333? I have a thought…

I've heard you - many of you are concerned that 16 pieces of clothing won't be enough for a Project 333 Wardrobe for the upcoming autumn... (even if you're not participating in Project 333, the exercise of editing and focusing your wardrobe can never be a bad idea, eh?)

How about we bump up the number of garments to 20, chosen in "clusters" of 5 garments each? For me, I think this might be just about right! This is what I'm thinking:

For reference purposes, I pulled together a wardrobe following these guidelines, using "new" Eileen Fisher colors of Midnight and Nutmeg. (the other colors that she included are Dark Red Lory (huh?), Raisonette (a lovely wine), and Monterey (a dusty dark rose). These all look wonderful ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – September 2018

September 3, 2018

No holidays at The Vivienne Files! I would never miss the chance to share one of these "6 outfit" posts...

Even though very few of us are seeing cool/cold weather, I firmly believe that it's smart to get your cold-weather clothes ready in advance. Nobody's going to give us 3 days warning that autumn is about to smack us down!

I loved the gold scarf with this otherwise monochromatic outfit...

We are far enough into the year that I now need to have a separate page for clothing and for accessories! Admittedly, a heroine who owned this wardrobe might not have NINE pairs of shoes for 9 months...

While the accent colors here are very unexpected for a "black-focused" wardrobe, I think that this wardrobe is ... View the Post