May 1, 2020
It catches her eye every time she’s on the website. She has wondered how she might wear it, if she were to treat herself…
Finally, she decides to actually try to PLAN an outfit or 2, from current garments and some possible other lovely things she’s seen. She does want to buy something for spring, and starting with this cardigan might make sense. If you keep daydreaming about a piece of clothing after you’ve seen an image of it, you might want to think seriously about how much you’re attracted to it, right?
She is fond of a wide range of neutral colors, so there are plenty of possibilities…
First off, there’s no reason that you can’t just wear a cardigan in a different color over anything neutral and relatively monochromatic! Although lovely sapphire earrings don’t hurt to make it all look like our heroine has a plan when getting dressed…
Earrings – Forever Creations; cardigan – L.L.Bean; tee shirt – Goodnight Macaroon; shorts – Lands’ End; water sandals – L.L.Bean
Blue and grey look perfect together – this dress and sweater share the same level of intensity, which makes them seem to be made for each other. And sodalite appears to be almost the exact blue of our cardigan…
Sodalite necklace – Joias do Rio; cardigan – L.L.Bean; dress – Gap; clutch bag – Alexander Wang; sandals – Gabor
By now, our heroine is pretty convinced that she should grab this sweater while it’s still available in her size! But she ponders what it would be like with white… Some stripes, and matching sandals! How fun would this be, going out for a summer lunch?
linen top – Lands’ End; cardigan – L.L.Bean; scarf – Payal Luthra Ecologies; white linen pants – Lands’ End; sandals – Kork-Ease
She hadn’t really considered wearing her new cardigan with camel, but when she saw the perfect blue and gold bracelet, it suddenly all made sense:
Gold earrings – Marie June Jewelry; cardigan – L.L.Bean; camel cashmere tee – Everlane; bracelets – Alex And Ani; skirt – Dorothy Perkins; pumps – Franco Sarto
When she ordered her cardigan, she went overboard and ordered a striped tee shirt in the same shade of blue. (yes, you’ve seen this tee shirt before on The Vivienne Files!) Now, she’s got even more options!
Sunglasses – Kate Spade New York; earrings – Kate Spade New York; cardigan – L.L.Bean; striped tee – L.L.Bean; espadrilles – Rampage; pants – L.L.Bean
Frankly, she wasn’t at all sure about how her cardigan would look with navy. But she got a new scarf as a gift (some clever hinting here…) and now the 2 colors seem made to be together!
Earrings Samuel B.; scarf – Emily Carter; linen dress – Marks and Spencer; cardigan – L.L.Bean; sandals – Amalfi by Rangoni
What do you do when something absolutely grabs your attention, and pops into your mind when you aren’t doing anything even vaguely related to it?
When I had ongoing whappage for my pink cardigan, I realized that I might as well just GET IT OUT OF MY SYSTEM and grab the sweater. I haven’t regretted it…
love,
Janice
p.s. Monday I will have our “6 Scarves, 12 Outfits” post ready, and then Tuesday I’m going to re-start the Weekly Timeless Wardrobe. Even though the weather still feels like a warm winter day, I’m going to pretend that summer is coming…
p.p.s. Seven years ago, I was back from some trip (who could remember?) and I was chock full of opinions about how to travel smarter…
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Oh my, this is me!! The cardigan is my absolutely favorite color and, of course, I have one. You have shown me new options that are hanging in my closet. My favorite combo has always been gray and medium blue! Thank you for always inspiring me!
I, too, have been looking at that sweater. Have you read the negative reviews? They say the shoulder seams are sewn inside out. Is yours that way?
I have this sweater in the grey and yes – the shoulder seam is inside out. You can see it on the picture Janice has. I like the look myself. This sweater looks really nice on and washes beautifully. I washed on delicate and air dried it.
I think that shoulder seam is a style detail rather than a mistake….but if someone doesn’t like it, it’s fortunate that LL Bean accepts returns without any trouble. Such a lovely colour, isn’t it?
So enjoyed this post!
Definitely putting this on my list, my teeny wardrobe is taking a beating since I’ve been staying home, a new cardigan fits the bill, thank you
I bought this cardigan last winter after seeing it featured here. It turned out to be one of my most worn items. The cashmere adds softness and the color makes me happy. Thanks for the recommendation!
I have this cardigan in this beautiful blue and an ivory called “sea salt”. Looked for the same cardigan in a medium pink yesterday, but to no avail. I do not wear scarves at all, but I love to take this cardigan and just throw it over my shoulders. It provides just the right amount of warmth when the conditions might turn a bit chilly.
All of these outfits are so lovely, but the white one with the soft linen top…I couldn’t stop looking at it. (I have discovered from your site that I LOVE the the way light to medium colors look in linen; something about linen fabric renders stripes especially divine. Turns out I’m a sucker for that soft faded quality of the color.) Then when I realized the Lands End striped linen top was available *in plus size* *in a multi-color stripe* *on sale*…major whappage! The question isn’t how to wear it in my existing wardrobe. It’s how to wear it FIRST. This post also encouraged me to pull the trigger on a white cardigan from Lands End that I have been eyeing for a while. That’s a versatile basic that I could really use.
I feel like spring hit Minnesota earlier than usual this year. I’m not very ready to venture out of my apartment into the hallways and stairwells of my building, but I’m enjoying spending time on my balcony in the comfortable spring weather, watching the birds fly, the trees bud out, and the Mississippi River flow by. I hope spring comes your way soon, Janice. Happy May Day, everyone!
Janice,
You must have read my mind ! I have a crinkle fabric dark coral shirt jacket that coordinates with a striped top that repeats the coral color, and includes white. But I have been wondering what else to wear it with ? So voila— here is my answer— other neutrals in my warm color family ! I can use as bottom colors, navy, beige, stone, or even Chocolate brown! Thanks for solving my dilemma ! Oh and I love this blue color that could also work for me . It could be my cool accent color within the same module as the coral colored garments ! I like to include both warm and cool accents for a variety of looks ! Now I need more print tops to pull things together . I confess that it is easier to start with a print instead of with a solid color , then hoping to pick up that color within the print .
Janice,
With respect to the retro post, have you fully exploited all of those unusual color combos that were suggested ? They sounded like fun !
Probably not, and I don’t even remember what they were! Remind me and I’ll get on them…
hugs,
Janice
I succumbed to 9 sweaters I saw online. Part need, part boredom, part incredible sale prices.The first three came and the fit was atrocious! Why don’t retailers include actual garment measurements in their descriptions? The 9 sweaters were everything from brights to muted, cool toned to warm. I have given up on the idea of color capsules. And online shopping.
I would love to find a cardigan or jumper in this colour sold in the UK. It would fit in very nicely with my blue, pink and grey clothes. I’ve been on every website I can think of and the choices are pale blue, bright electric blue or navy.
I would suggest you contact L.L.Bean. They’re quite nice people, and they might be able to send you a sweater without bankrupting you with shipping charges. Nothing to lose!
And I agree, it can be so hard to find colors that make your heart sing…
hugs,
Janice
I have this very cardigan after having seen it first on the Vivienne files. I Bought it for myself for Christmas from L.L. Bean when they were doing a free postage offer to Britain on orders over £75. It is very easy to spend this amount on their website and as taxes are included in the price you do not get a shock when you go to the checkout. It is a beautiful shade of blue. I even bought a matching sweater. It was my best Christmas ever!
Thank you Janice I did exactly what you said at the start of this post.
big hugs!
Janice
Thanks Morag and Janice. I’ve not bought clothes from US sites just in case they don’t fit. Your comments give me a bit of confidence to do so. I’m just wondering how they compare in size? I’m a 12-14 in UK sizes but I’m only 5 foot tall. I sometimes find cardigans and jumpers too long in the body and arms but Petite fit assumes that you are skinny….
In the US, Petite does NOT assume that you’re thin – I wear a lot of Petite Large because I’m wide across the back (muscles!!!) and have… a generous… upper torso. Generally I have plenty of room in my Petite things…
hugs,
Janice
I’m assuming that in order for you to get credit for my purchases, all I need to do is go to the store’s website through yours. Is this correct? While you won’t get rich, at least yiu will be appreciated.
Thanks, Peggy B.
That is indeed the way to give me credit – it’s not a lot of money but it does add up, and it keeps the lights on chez moi! (well, Belovedest does chip in quite a bit…)
I’m so grateful that you’re thinking of my wee enterprise at this time; it’s very kind of you!
hugs,
Janice
I think you may have featured the turtleneck in the same color/fabric last fall, no? Anyway, I bought the turtleneck in a mad impulse before your post and the color was so bright-for-me that it sat in the shelf for at least 2 months before I put it on. Then I wore it and wore it and wore it. It is a lovely shade of blue that works with black, navy, denim and tan – hooray! Wearing it always picked up my day a little bit also. I would wholeheartedly recommend the cardigan. Cashmere/cotton is a fantastic blend, both warm and light.
Beth, Janice is correct petite in American sizing is not like British sizing. Having said that I am a 10-12 medium in LL Bean size and a 14-16 medium in Lands End UK. Petite would be fine for you, but these sizes sell out fast. I am a Marks’ size medium (12-14) and am 5′ 4″ tall. I love it when I see something on this post that I already own thanks to Janice. I had never heard of Lands End before reading the Vivienne files. Expensive normally but do good offers and brilliant sales. U.S site has much bigger choice. Hope this helps,
Morag.
Thanks Morag for the hints about sizing. That’s very useful.
Lands End have very similar coloured cardigan.and there are a few other things I like on offer. I bought a pair of navy cords in the autumn and had the company hem them to the right length for my very short legs. I’ve washed them several times. They haven’t shrunk or lost their colour. I shall buy some more this autumn. Lands End have a concession in Debenhams, though goodness knows whether that company will survive for much longer.