June 10, 2024
Maybe you really loved the black and white wardrobe on Friday, but you know that you don’t want to travel without some denim or chambray!
This scarf should set you up pretty well:
the text means “take care of the land and animals and they will give you life”
I’ve isolated the three shades of blue in the scarf, but I think you can be pretty flexible with this:
These four outfits are going to look familiar, but different. This is what The Vivienne Files is all about – the possibilities you have available with small changes. Nobody needs an entirely new wardrobe (well, almost nobody); most of us just need a few well-chosen updates!
Chambray blue tee – Lands’ End; earrings – Harfi; scarf – Echo; white linen shorts – Lands’ End; tweed bag – Talbots; sandals – Free People
Yes, her handbags are similar, but it’s not that easy to find a nice denim or denim-colored bag!
Earrings – Ella Woodhouse; scarf – Echo; chambray dress – Lands’ End; cardigan – J.Crew; bag – Rebecca Minkoff; flats – Vivaia
Never forget the potential of some socks! How I wish someone in the US carried 300 colors of socks…
scarf – Echo; shirt – J.Crew; Cardigan – The White Company; cashmere socks – Harrods; pants – J.Crew; loafers – Bandolino
If I had a lot of spare time, I would have edited the image of this bracelet, and written “VIVIENNE” in place of “your text”…
scarf – Echo; Black sweater – Lands’ End; white shirt – Caslon; jeans – GAP; bracelet – Little Words Project; sneakers – Vionic
This heroine has the following travel capsule wardrobe – I could go a long way with this in a backpack…
Here’s how our 10 garments fit into the Perfect 10 Packing template:
Even if you were just traveling with 4 outfits, you’d be in a good spot. But of course, there are other options!
If you combine Friday’s wardrobe with this, it’s still only 15 pieces. If you wear 3 while you’re traveling, you would only need to pack a dozen… hmmm….
love,
Janice
p.s. Ten years ago, we pondered the possibilities of adding a floral shirt or blouse to a Common Wardrobe. It can be done!
Like this wardrobe? Save it to Pinterest!
Looks like Mr. Lauren is getting a bit more credit in the scarf photo header than he should? Ah well, it’s Monday! As always, the wardrobe ideas are interesting! I’m currently working thru a color experiment (will it make it to a french five or stop dead at a single tshirt?) – even my mental vocabulary has been influenced by your blog!
Lilbear, if you don’t mind my asking, what color? I’m always interested in other people’s experiment, lol.
I found a bright pink/warm red on white floral pattern t on sale at Lands End for $5 and it was so cheerful, i caved and bought it, even though I Do Not Do Pink. After wearing it for a day & startling myself every time I saw my own reflection, I think it may end up as occasion-wear (masquerading as a dress when paired with a neutral shirt) or get handed on to a brighter-wardrobed relative. But the colors do work on me & I do love florals, so it has a year to grow on me before Decisions are made…. (And I busted out laughing when I saw that the lookback for today was deciding about a pink floral top! Janice is always so on target!)
I’m magical!
hugs,
Janice
Lilbear, this sounds too, too much like my *experiments*. 😆
Well Janice this is me all the way black and denim. Love the simplicity of it….! Thank you once again…. I’m inspired to repeat this capsule from my closet….and see what I can come up with …. Talbots always comes out with great purses… tempting and love the scarf ….so me!
Regina
You can’t get much more classic than this! When you put a nice white shirt with denim, it always looks good.
Never a fan of denim, I was disappointed to see it as the topic for today. But of all the posts I’ve seen, this would be the most wearable for me! I absolutely love it and could see me packing this for a trip. The scarf, of course, is beautiful though out of my price range.
Your posts remain one of my morning pleasures and enjoy the so much. I also love the first purse shown.
The challenge as I see it is refraining from establishing several wardrobes rather than just one! Thank you for sharing your ideas!
Margo,
I have the same problem. So many of Janice’s wardrobes have my name on them! I would need a much larger closet to satisfy them. I am struggling to learn to be more intentional with my purchases but then I see a top, or a dress, or whatever with major whappage and all my good intentions fly out the window.
This wardrobe is so very practical and I can easily emulate it with pieces from my current closet. But, right now, I’m in love with the brighter clothes.
I’m not a denim fan either as it is just too stiff a fabric which doesn’t suit my shape. I just swap out denim for blue linen or cotton.
Loved everything about this posting!
Okay I admit I have a pretty full closet. In my defense, I keep things for years, sometimes decades. I could never keep to just one color, but these posts are really helpful to me to organize things into color groupings to remix with my core of black, white, and grey (stone in summer). Whenever I have something that never gets worn, I check whether I have a “French five” in that color. If not, that’s usually why, and gives me the guidance to add something. Thank you for showing me how to shop my closet first! (And fill in holes that were previously mysterious)
Ha! Why didn’t I think of the French 5 idea? Thank you, Danielle, by way of Janice… I have a few malingerers. And I love that blue/black/white, maybe have to make some adjustments to my summer travel packing list, hmmm.
Beautiful combinations. Good job.
I love this. What a great capsule. Wonderful way to start the week.
I love this capsule! I wish had the ability to create a more manageable wardrobe into something like this. When I go shopping it’s like “squirrel!” I’ve even taken a list, didn’t help. But I love getting your emails and dreaming of what could be!
Janice,
Just counting the pieces of various functions. Two toppers and if you divide the dress into 1 top and 1 bottom, that then makes 5 tops and 4 bottoms . I have a long weekend trip coming up, and while I like a clean top for each day for a short trip, I can do with just two bottoms being used over the 4 days , one of which I’ll wear coming and going . You have taught me so much over my years of enjoying your posts — thank you, thank you ! My inclination is still to overpack, but the one time that I tried to minimize, I ended up regretting it ! One of these days I’ll get it just right — just call me Goldilocks with the three decisions !
The last few posts I’ve found myself counting the items and placing them into a slightly different template than the Perfect Ten. I’m seeing a 1-2-3-4 template that makes it easier for me to plan for short-trip travel that I now take on a monthly basis.
1 x Dress
2 x Toppers
3 x Bottoms
4 x Tops
Note: Each top is a specific type ie: sleeveless, short sleeve, long sleeve, sweater. Making sure one of these is a button down adds a lot of versatility as it can be worn as a standalone top worn under or over another top. And like you said, creating a “dress” from a top and a skirt adds a great deal more options!
I’m on my third trip using this formula and love it. I travel on a cheapo-personal-item-only airline each month (Allegiant) and this capsule fits perfectly into my 17x14x8 Baggolini tote along with my toiletries bag, laptop, iPad, iPhone, cords, mouse, clipboard, several file folders worth of paperwork, three! pairs of glasses in their cases, a water bottle, and I confess, travel snacks that take up the entirety of one of the outside pockets. My second shoes that I pack are flats. That could be a problem in the cooler seasons when I need to switch to booties and will need to pack my sneakers. But so far it is working fabulously.
This is genius! But I have to ask – THREE pairs of glasses? I travel with clip-on sunglasses, and a spare pair of my tri-focals. I’m assuming computer glasses? If you read this, come back and share!
hugs,
Janice
Lena,
Thanks for this idea. I am also a personal item only flyer (Allegiant and Spirit). Not easy, but one can fit a surprising amount in a 17x14x8.
This scarf is one of my favorites. The color scheme, graphics, personal story are charming.
Janice – the three pairs of glasses are sunglasses, readers, and driving. If only I could get a decent pair of bifocals, that would bring it down to two pairs, but alas, the last three pairs just haven’t worked out so I gave up. The good news is my eyesight has improved so I only need glasses for very close and very far! Most of the day I am free of glasses!
I knew you would have a logical answer! Being free of glasses is a blessing, isn’t it? I just flat out don’t wear mine when I’m working on the computer, and much of the time I don’t wear them at home because I know where everything is! It’s only when I leave the apartment that I’m absolutely sure I wear them…
hugs,
Janice
Love this! You have incredible style and always look forward to what you put together.
Lovely capsule and perfect for my lifestyle. I prefer the blues to be clearer with no grey undertones but apart from that it’s perfect.
LOVE this! Nice transition from spring to summer, Janice!
Love this wardrobe as well as Fridays. Perfect. I already have similar items in my closet, including a denim handbag.
Thank you so much for including denim! It is a mainstay for me. I am working to add different bottoms but here in the PNW I feel like almost everyone, all the time, wears denim (unless you have to dress up for a job). I am sure that is an overstatement, and perhaps just for my age range (almost 50), but I love it and there is lots of it here. So thanks Janice!!
My base wardrobe is in this color palette! I’ve been reading your blog lately and experimenting with my wardrobe in new ways for the past few months. I love wearing black or white pants, but I’ve found that they need washing after every wear thanks to my toddler. So jeans or jean shorts are my daily uniform except the one day a week I treat myself to wearing my white pants. I love reading your posts and imagining new possibilities!
Such a great scarf! I’m completely obsessed with the beautiful artwork! My only bummer feeling, on so many of these magical scarves, is that I’d be desperate to show off the artwork, but it gets hidden in the wearing. Are you ever tempted to frame them?
I’ve never been tempted, but I live in one of those places where you don’t really hang anything on the walls, because you don’t want to distract from the view of the lake! But it’s definitely something that people do – I know that Hermes had a system for hanging scarves (unframed, which seemed a little risky to me) that they sold for years. Heck, they may still sell them…
hugs,
Janice