March 29, 2023
I love this too!
Spring Blossom by Valerius de Saedeleer
This heroine is committed to switching to a warmer, lighter wardrobe, although it’s a bit difficult; those of us who wear a lot of black might find this change a challenge!
She’s starting with the same 8 beige garments are her 3 friends…
cardigan – GAP; linen shirt – J.Crew; pointelle tee – Alex Mill; natural jeans – L.L.Bean; dress – J.Crew; long-sleeved linen shirt – J.Crew; shorts – L.L.Bean; linen pants – J.Crew; sandals – Miz Mooz; loafers – Koio
Her accent garments are a great assortment:
White linen shirt – J.Crew; terra cotta tee – L.L.Bean; black linen tee – J.Crew; green cabled sweater – Peraluna; Dahlia print blouse – Stacia; green cotton top – East; white chino shorts – J.Crew; black linen pants – J.Crew
She’s pretty happy with how her 4 by 4 Wardrobe looks…
And when she gets all of her things in her closet, she loves the way it looks; she can already see all kinds of options, from crisp black and white to warm green or rust with beige…
But as ALL clever heroines will do, she assembles a range of outfits in her mind, just to be certain that she will be able to get dressed without stress!
You know, if I ever go to Egypt, I will need to wear less black… hmm….
love,
Janice
p.s. Nine years ago, I started my endless journey to figuring out an optimal wardrobe size…
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When I first saw the painting I thought: well, those don’t look like spring colors. Although I like the painting I associate those colors more with fall – but of course you made it work.
I love the painting. Why can’t you wear black in Egypt?
I’m just thinking it would be too warm. I won’t be able to go for years, so I will have plenty of time to research what I need to pack!
hugs,
Janice
I remember being surprised at seeing Bedouins wearing black (in Lawrence of Arabia, perhaps, or a documentary) many years ago. Your comment prompted a search and I found this article in Nature. You won’t have to change a thing 😀.
Wonderful! Now I just have to figure out when I’m going…
hugs,
Janice
Forgot to insert the link 🤦🏻♀️.
https://www.nature.com/articles/283373a0
And this listing includes the next sentence of the abstract which explains the mechanism.
https://www.cabdirect.org/cabdirect/mobile/abstract/19812610896
Ho, boy! Get in my closet right now! I don’t wear crew necks; otherwise, there’s nothing here that I wouldn’t love to wear. I do hope you’re planning on adding accessories to this wardrobe.
I always esp. enjoy seeing heroines with wardrobes in transition. The switch from a black/white dominant wardrobe to warmer, lighter palette is an interesting one…and I think that this might be a common dilemma as plenty of women can end up in black and white even if it’s not the most suitable for their own coloring. (Because it’s “professional” and “chic” and “slimming” and readily available in stores and a million other reasons.) I took the expansion 4 to be items from her pre-transition closet that she’s keeping along with the new beige, orange, and green items in her new palette.
It’s interesting to consider where this capsule falls in her transition process. I’m guessing she’s already gone through a couple of transition stages already, such as (1) adding prints with black and warm accent colors; (2) adding a few solid pieces in warm accent colors; (3) adding a few beige pieces. I would guess that going out and buying 8 pieces in a brand new color would not be step 1 for most of us from either a financial or sustainability perspective. I interpret this heroine as one who has had some success with pieces in her new palette and is now building out her core in her new primary neutral.
I LOVE wearing prints, and I know this enthusiasm is not universally shared, but I think a transition wardrobe like this really benefits from having prints that held bridge the gap between the old colors and the new. The dahlia blouse is such a great choice for her new palette, but a couple of prints that include just a bit of black would feel right here too.
I am looking forward to seeing this heroine’s accessories most of all, as that may be where we really see the two color palettes integrate.
I also love prints in tops. Hides a multitude of sins.
I think this can be a nifty summer capsule. To make it work for me, the black would be swapped for light brown & the rust to things that were not near my face. However, the green…gosh, I just love it. Frankly, I never met a green I didn’t like. And, amen to the comments re ending up with black even if unflattering. Why do the manufacturers and designers think every woman needs a black dress, jacket, pants, skirt, etc?
I think that this capsule would benefit from two pieces that can be worn as layers over other tops. I suggest one in black and one in green. I often need to add a layer to spring outfits.
I think this is the PERFECT add-on for my Tree of Life wardrobe. ❤️❤️❤️
Although my daughter says it is snowing in Indiana, have a beautiful spring day!
I discovered VF about one year ago when researching travel wardrobes. Started reading from the first blog and, through great diligence, got caught up in very short order. Such a treasure trove of actionable information! This is my first time to comment. These are my colors (though I often swap out black and insert navy as my neutral)! Oh you temptress, Janice! I clicked on the link for every accent top in this capsule. Let’s see, between Easter, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, my birthday. . .yep, I can justify every single one!
Thank you for the awesome work you do on behalf of women from every corner of the world!