April 22, 2022
You know that it’s “klee an in clay”? There once was a book by that title that helped us pronounce all sorts of art and music names properly; well worth grabbing if you see it used…
Well, when I started this post, I wasn’t at all sure WHEN you would get to see it; they’re working on the internet and cable in my building – fifty-some floors of rewiring! Outages and glitches are built into this process; if I am going to miss a date I will post a note from my phone so you know I’m okay!
SO!!! Let’s get Wednesday’s heroines some accessories!!!
For reference, and for pleasure, let’s remember that this is the art from which we started:
Let’s go back to our core of 10 pieces of clothing. There’s no reason in the world that one couldn’t wear any number of outfits JUST from these 10 garments; they’re basic, but that’s okay…
White tank top – Lands’ End; beige cotton sweater – L.L.Bean; white tee shirt – Lands’ End; beige silk-blend tee – H&M; short-sleeved linen shirt – J.Crew; white ¾ sleeve cotton cardigan – Nordstrom; stone shorts – L.L.Bean; white linen pants – J.Crew; oatmeal linen ankle pants – L.L.Bean; white chino shorts – Lands’ End
So I wanted to start with a few accessories that will be nice for all four of our heroines, and that will dress up our classic, simple outfits.
Clover gold & pearl earrings – EnRoute Jewelry; seashell stud earrings – Ottoman Hands; gold & crystal small hoop earrings – Spells of Love; gold and white bracelet – Arms of Eve; canvas tote – Dagne Dover; straw bag – Mali + Lili; gold sandals – BC Footwear; canvas shoes – Keds
Why yes, I’m smitten with the clover earrings…
First, let’s revisit Verda’s French 5-Piece Wardrobe…
When turned loose for a period of days, weeks, or even years, she assembles this lovely wee assortment of accent accessories:
Willow bough scarf – David Watson; hoop earrings – Paisie; stud earrings – Lavani Lewels; bracelets – Arms of Eve; sneakers – Roxy; sandals – Slaye; bag – Aldo
NOW, when we look at everything in her summer wardrobe, we can see a LOT of possibilities…
(I have actually printed out all four of these “updated wardrobes” and hung them on my massive corkboard above my desk; sometime I need to take a photo of it all to share with you!)
Something about that straw bag poised just in front of the scarf pleases me no end…
Next, let’s remind ourselves of what Rose chose as her accent garments and first accessories:
Linen shirt – St. Cloud Label; earrings – Vintouch Italy; floral tee – M Made in Italy; sandals – Dolce Vita; skirt – P.A.R.O.S.H.
How much fun can I have look at pink accessories?
Scarf – Type B Collection; stud earrings- Sorelli; drop earrings – Eye Candy Los Angeles; translucent bracelet – Urban Outfitters; clutch bag – Urban Expressions; sneakers – Keds; tote – Laura Jackson Design
All of these wardrobes include 13 garments – enough for many people for a week of travel. If someone threw this at me (in a suitcase, of course!) and ordered me out of Chicago, I would have to decline, but I might run off with the bag…
Azula’s accent purchases look very comfortable, and reminiscent of the color of the sky outside my window!
Blue topaz earrings – Samuel B.; tunic – L.L.Bean; plaid shirt – L.L.Bean; shoes – LifeStride; linen blend pants – H&M
Her accent accessories are lovely – who would think that there would be a straw bag with a perfect blue handle?
Parrots scarf – Talbots; round earrings – Lonna & Lilly; butterfly earrings – Amazon Collection; bracelet – Savvy Cie; beige print scarf with blue border – Daige; straw bag – BTB Los Angeles; sandals – Cliffs by White Mountain
If someone doesn’t attack me with Rosa’s wardrobe, they can always toss this one my way…
The aptly named Sunny chose cheery yellow accents – I love this tee shirt…
Cotton sweater – L.L.Bean; earrings – Talbots; striped tee shirt – L.L.Bean; pants – BP.; sandals – Franco Sarto
Her accessories are wonderful – note she treats herself to a pair of “sun” earrings and a celestial bracelet…
Silk bandana – Debbie Tzima; yellow stone earrings – Giani Bernini; sun earrings – Bling Jewelry; bracelet – Anzie; linen scarf/shawl – You by Tokarska; tote – Lolas Bag; sneakers – White Mountain
This wardrobe gives her the option of bright yellow and white, muted beige, an all yellow outfit – she can be as noticeable or as subdued as she wants!
If you had to wear one for a week, which would it be?
love,
Janice
p.s. Seven years ago, I did the first of MANY “packing for a weekend in the city” posts. This one is mostly brown, with teal, ivory and orange accents…
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I shouldn’t like Sunny’s wardrobe, but I do – mainly for that huge wrap scarf. It’s exactly what I think the summer version of what I am wearing right now should be, but in a colour i would never touch.
Same here!
This really shows what can be done with a very basic starting point. It is encouraging, because my wardrobe is very basic and just a little boring. I think I could make it so much better with a little effort and focus. They all are amazing, but the yellow really works. Although I don’t wear yellow. I like it but it doesn’t like me.
Azula is the real me. I could pick up this bag at the departure lounge and have a great trip. Sunny is the fantasy me. I wish the younger brunette me had worn yellow. The way you have combined the yellow with these neutrals would have worked so well. Just wouldn’t work with the salt and pepper. I did have a beautiful soft flowy yellow maxi skirt in the early 80s though that I loved wearing with a white blouse or T.
I’m split between the blue and the yellow. And I do really love the yellow – which I wear. In fact I wore yellow yesterday. I may wear it again today after seeing this post, although I had a green outfit laid out…. we are taking a road trip in July, and I hadn’t decided on my packing list. I think I’m getting inspired.
Everything looks so much more finished now with accessories. I still would happily take everything but the pink at least from a colour standpoint. Actually noticed that if one could wear all 4 accents, this would probably get a person through 2 full seasons. It’s lovely to look at. Thanks Janice.
I love them all so I would eliminate all the beige items, just not my colour and keep everything from each of the heroine’s wardrobes. If only……..
You could get rid of the beige, keep the white and all of the pastels, and wear them with navy…
hugs,
Janice
That sounds perfect, Janice! Thank you.
Love your idea!
These colours don’t suit me, but if I had to choose, I would say the blue wardrobe. I have a deeper cornflower blue in my wardrobe that is similar. Good job Janice, as always!
Delectable. I like the addition of hints of pale blue in the pink and pink in the pale blue collections. They go well together and both these collections, I could run with. I have never had courage to wear white, so light grey, ivory and light/mid blues are my neutrals.
Just as we have neutral clothes, choosing neutral accessories as a starting point is equally useful. A couple of months ago, I sorted my jewellery by colour and metal just to see what I had and where the obvious gaps are. I was amazed to discover how much I had in silver or grey metal, pearls, crystals and clear sparkly stones. These are always a stand by and I wear them a lot, particularly layering with other accent pieces. My biggest accent groups were blues and purples, not surprisingly. Teal, jade, aqua and abalone are tricky to find, so I expected that my greens would be fewer. I just keep my eye out for suitable additions. However, pink had the fewest items, even though I wear it a lot in the summer. Pink stones are not common in shops either.
One question – does anyone still use scarf clips? I remember, they were very common in the 80’s and early 90’s, but seem to have fallen out of fashion. I found mine again recently and think that I might wear them, particularly with chiffon and ‘silky’ or satin scarves that never stay put.
I vote for rocking the scarf clips, Beth T. I think this is a good place to distinguish between changeable fashion and style. To me, they are timeless classics that add sophistication and/or whimsy (depending on the specifics of the clip) to a look, though they can look a bit staid if everything about the outfit is too old-school. I’d make sure that I had some modern touches to the outfit so that I don’t look like a time traveler from 1985.
I wonder what you mean by an outfit looking ‘old school’ and the modern touches that prevent it looking from 1980’s. I struggle with the concept of making vintage look ‘edgy’ and/or modern.
Beth T, if you are committed to a vintage look, go for it. For myself, I would add something current to the look so it doesn’t look straight-up vintage.
I remember a woman – probably around 30 years old, so not a teenager – who ALWAYS seemed to dress in 100% ’40s and ’50s vintage. She was very pretty, and to see her on the street was always a stunning pleasure!
She very much did her own thing…
hugs,
Janice
I forgot to add an Ask earlier. Janice, I love a great many of the earrings you feature, but due to an extreme sensitivity to metals, I am limited to 14k golds and platinum. Would you sometimes show something for someone that has a metal allergy or just wants a curated collection of ‘better’ jewelry? I’m a save up kind of person, so that would be ideal. Right now I am planning to put back a tidy sum for a pair of white jade earrings in the hope that I will find some to go with a vintage 50s white jade necklace that I recently acquired & had refurbished. Vintage pieces can be great, but often need a significant sum to be ‘wearable’ again. Restringing or replacing damaged components adds up quickly. Most items cost 4 times the purchase price to be made wearable, but I feel like it is a great investment in a unique piece. Thanks again.
I would happily wear them all! But if I had to choose just one, this year I would choose the green. I’m loving these variations on a theme posts.
i love yellow. I actually followed the link and bought Sunny’s sweater!
These capsules all look great accessorized, and the addition of those pieces made it crystal clear that none of them fit my own personal style! (Which is GREAT. It’s valuable to see something that is lovely and realize, It’s wonderful but it’s not for me.)
EXACTLY! Learning what you don’t like is an essential part of learning what you DO like; you can’t draw something unless there are areas both inside and OUTside the lines…
xoxo,
Janice
Hi Janice! So Sunny nosed ahead of Azura just because of that shawl. Thank you for including closed-toe shoewear for those of us who can stub their toe on a rug.
Love the colors in the look-back post -orange!!
Verda is still not a good friend..actually her sister Olive is ! Rose, Azula and Sunny are my BFF’s;) so glad you threw in some scarves as the beige is not friendly with my complexion though I am ok with bottoms in that neutral.
Rose is my baby granddaughter’s name and pink looks lovely with her black curly hair, stunning blue eyes and fair ( but not pale) complexion!
Thanks for the book recommendation! I find joy in the spelling and pronunciation of various names from around the word— so this was fun to preview.
I keep going back to the inspiration piece for these wardrobes— just lovely.
And Sunny’s sunny earrings have sparked my imagination.
Thank you for the book recommendation. Found it online.
If I could leave you a suitcase filled with Rosa’s wardrobe by your front door, please know that I would gladly do it!! You have taught me so much about Art, heroines, wardrobes and accessories.
I appreciate you & your wealth of knowledge that you share with us readers.
Have a lovely weekend.
Verda but subbing Azula items for all the white in the basics and nixing all silver jewelry for yellow gold would be lovely for me. Love how much a basics wardrobe can change so much with a small selection of pieces and accessories. The colors in the flashback are definitely my colors too.
Oh, the flashback is much more me! But I love seeing these wardrobes unfold… I am learning so much! Thank you Janice!
One of these colors looks good on me, so I wouldn’t pick any, but I really enjoyed this and it’s given me lots of ideas.
That linen scarf sent me straight off to find one in my color & budget, and it looks like a lot of us had the same reaction. Now if we could just get you credit for Etsy purchases! (Although I encourage everyone to take another look at the Support the Vivienne files tab – the list of retailers has gotten rather longer over time! I’m going to doublecheck those vendors before I click the buy button on any site not listed…)