April 14, 2023
Isn’t this lovely?
Lake Geneva with Mont-Blanc at Dawn by Ferdinand Hodler
I’m realizing that it’s entirely possible to use a painting (or any other image or object, frankly) as inspiration for a wardrobe even if that image doesn’t include your core neutral!
I know, I should have realized this years ago…
Here’s how I’m showing this; note the navy outlines in the color wheel…
Frankly, this wardrobe only includes 3 navy pieces out of the 9 total – that’s a small number of neutral garments!
And this wardrobe only has a pair of jeans and a pair of shorts for bottoms; this is a heroine who’s going to be spending a lot of time in her swimwear, so this works out for weekends…
But first, she has to drive up to the lake!
Vest – Alex Mill; earrings – Anthropologie; small silk scarf – Soft Strokes Silk; linen shirt – Finley; jeans – L.L.Bean; Echinacea bracelets – Fierce Lynx Designs; bag – Paravel; loafers – Eastland
If you like sweater vests, this is a wonderful time to look for one. They seem to be everywhere! I particularly like this one (it also comes in beige) because it can be worn without anything under it, AND because it has a matching cardigan!
Silk scarf – Hortons England; gold earrings – Kendra Scott; blue bead necklace – Stay Salty; pink earrings – Kendra Scott; pink bracelet – Arms of Eve; navy cardigan – Alex Mill; coral quartz gauze top – L.L.Bean; cool blue linen shirt – L.L.Bean; navy shorts – L.L.Bean; rose wash heather tee – L.L.Bean; pink striped linen shirt – Boden; navy sandals – FitFlop; crossbody bag – Betsy & Floss; pink sandals – Dolce Vita
You might be the person who wants to toss a pair of khaki shorts in to your bag – I certainly might consider it…
But still, this is a pretty functional weekend wardrobe:
Her outfit options aren’t infinite, but they don’t need to be!
Right now I’m fascinated by navy. It’s so infinitely “mixable” that it’s maybe the most practical of all possible neutrals.
Navy lovers, hang around!
love,
Janice
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The coral quartz gauze top is perfect… a pretty and sporty cut in a gorgeous color. This capsule is functionally fabulous. The boyfriend jeans and loafers! 😍 I have a similar pair from Talbots and I wear them about 70% of the time.
I’m with you on navy. I just discovered the bright navy suggested as a better-than-black neutral by House of Colour for springs—and I’m obsessed with it.
Oh! I am so onboard the Navy train. Thanks!
Me too! I’m looking forward to some navy-centric posts.
Also on board the navy train. This is a lovely wardrobe. Happy Friday everyone
Oh, yeah! I reduced my wardrobe to things I really wear and guess what? Navy, denim, chambray, soft white. My eye likes all the colors, but I wear navy/denim. I do add the occasional black, berry, olive or teal item.
What wonderful timing! A serene and beautiful painting and lovely wardrobe. NAVY (& denim) is my CORE neutral! Soft Coral, Blush, & ‘Rose Wash’ – current accents faves :)
I like this wardrobe….but where’s the swimwear? Maybe you could expand it to include swimwear, a cover-up, towel, water shoes and a few more things in case our heroine would like to extend her stay.
I personally have never matched my swimwear to my overall wardrobe colours, but I don’t see why you couldn’t.
This new approach is brilliant. Especially Navy!
I just looked at the Alex Mill site and found the “quilt” jackets they are selling. They are taking antique quilts and cutting them up for fashion clothing pieces???? As a quilter I’m having a real problem with this. They state they are “vintage” quilts – with normal wear and tear. Vintage quilts being destroyed, some from the 1800’s, sewn into jackets and hats and sold with an astronomical price tag. They don’t even state if the rest of the quilt was damaged or salvageable. Appalling. I follow the Vivienne Files every week – and mostly find great advice and companies to support. Just don’t think I could ever support a company that engages in a practice like this.
I agree, Kathy. I’m also a quilter and have family quilts that have been passed on in less than perfect condition. But… I wouldn’t cut them up as I could repair them. OTOH, I’m aware that not all quilts can be ‘saved’ – and there’s only so many repositories for them. Nonetheless, I don’t think I’ll be buying from Alex Mill either.
Many thanks, though, to Janice for giving us such a great weekend wardrobe! It’s a lot of clothes, but would be super if I could leave it at “the cabin” for the summer ;-) Love, love the linen shirts, although I’ll sew mine.
I’m going to ask them to give us more information about the quilt thing; I love their clothes, and really don’t want to quit buying from them, but I do need to know the full story on why they’re cutting up quilts!
hugs,
Janice
Thank you for looking further into this issue.
Not a quilter, but was gifted family quilts from my husband’s family as an engagement gift so I appreciate the beauty and craftsmanship of them. I was curious by your comment so went to the Alex Mill website. A short search shows that the Alex Mill collaborated with Blank Supply to make the one-of-a-kind vintage quilted jackets and hats. It seems both brands are small shop businesses that focus on reworking/repurposing items and fabrics to create new pieces. Apparently, the proprietor at Blank Supply is a quilter herself who learned the art from her 100 yr. old grandmother. When you read the story behind these brands you get the sense that there is appreciation for the materials and items being repurposed. They seem to view their repurposing as a way to preserve the history and create new art in the process.
Personally, I think there is beauty in recreating something new from something old, especially if the items were not being used. Plus it seems like the prior owners of the quilts didn’t have appreciation for them as they were willing to sell off the items in the first place.
You’re correct that it is not fully clear from the website how many quilts were acquired and used for the collaboration. However, what would be the alternative to not using them? Rotting in some attic or storage space? Being sold for scrap and dumped in a landfill?
Big thanks to Janice for showing another great capsule! I’m a huge fan of Navy, especially in the warmer weather. I even switched to navy as a base color for my swimwear, cover-up and flip-flops to coordinate my gear! This one in particular speaks to me because I love using the accent colors shown in my wardrobe. We spend a lovely and serenely peaceful week in Lake George in the Adirondacks every August. So I’m imagining my take on this painting for my vacation week wardrobe. Janice, I so enjoy reading everything you post, and appreciate all of your hard work in putting these wardrobes together!
I am also a quilter and understand your concern. I have seen many unused, unloved quilts at yard sales and thrift stores being listed for $10 to $20,(and often unsold) when I know the maker spent many hours (80-100?) on her piece of art.
I would much rather that quilt made into a garment to be worn and loved, than to be treated as garbage.
Hopefully the quilts I make and gift will be used until they are threadbare, but once I give them away I have no control.
I absolutely love the idea of old quilts being made in to something new and used! My mother quilted and she took old worn quilts and made teddy bears and other animals from them. Some she made into pillow shams, some into pillow fronts. Some pieces were used to put a patch on jeans. My aunt made gorgeous rugs from old wool pants and skirts. This to my mind is far better than rotting away out of site or going into a landfill. Not all of us are capable so I for one would purchase from Alex Mill.
I love navy too! I would love to see more with navy as well. Especially brighter pops of pink, turquoise and yellow… those might be my spring capsule colors. :) Thanks Janice!
I really like these soft sunrise colors with navy and denim. The linen/cotton twin set is a nice find.
Me too, & I’m looking forward to more treasures in navy :-)
I certainly am not going to disagree with other’s opinions and reactions, strongly held. I am just offering a counterpoint. There are many things that are old and beautiful that were once valued but are no longer appreciated or valued. I have seen this at estate sales, sadly. This is not to say other’s reactions are unmerited.
It’s probably a bit late to make a comment as it’s now Monday. I love the colours of this. The pink is gorgeous. Navy is one of my core neutrals though I prefer lighter navy. I’m not a fan of denim as a material but I do like the colours. In this painting I also see ocean blue/teal blue/greyed blue. These are a softer combination with pink.