February 14, 2025
It’s always a dilemma – you see something you admire/love, but you’re not quite sure WHAT you’d do with it, if you make the decision to purchase…
What about this sweater? If you look lovely in soft shades – especially in beige, tan or taupe, this might call your name:
For no good reason I can identify, I decided that I would look at this sweater through the lens of the Wardrobe Slot Machine – a system in which one chooses nine garments that are foolproof for assembling outfits. This is the blank template:
Thinking about buying a top suggests that your first question would be about what bottoms you would wear with your new sweater. Jeans? Chinos? Cords? And do you have shoes to wear with your new outfit that will feel right?
I suggest these:
Heritage stone chinos – L.L.Bean; jeans – L.L.Bean; dark khaki corduroy pants – L.L.Bean; boat shoes – Vince
For me, the next step would certainly be thinking about what I would wear under the sweater – I seldom wear a sweater without a turtleneck, cotton shirt, or blouse underneath. You can wear a sweater alone, but layering is an option that gives you some choices of color accent, will keep you warmer, and will mean that your sweater won’t have to be laundered nearly as often. So I thought of these – as well as a scarf that picks up a wee accent color in your sweater:
Ivory turtleneck – Lands’ End; chambray shirt – L.L.Bean; linen scarf – Pashmisy; burnt sugar silk blouse – Everlane
Lastly, this is a VERY optional step, but a handy one: With your six garments you’ve chosen, what other second layers might look just right? And another accent color scarf – never a bad idea! Years after all of these clothes are long gone, the scarf will live on…
Now that these garments are all assembled back in our Slot Machine template, you can see the possibilities!
While you can picture all 27 outfits without my help, I’m still going to pick out a few, just to make these imaginary outfits more concrete in our minds:
You could – in theory – assemble a 9-piece capsule wardrobe based on any garment. The big trick is probably finding the colors that work with your original garment, and which are available in your wardrobe, or the larger retail world!
love,
Janice
p.p.s. I just finished A Bunch of Pretty Things I Did Not Buy by Sarah Lazarovic, the genius inventor of The Buyerarchy of Needs. I don’t know that I would buy this book in the (paper) flesh, because you can read it in about an hour. However, owning it digitally might make sense. She has a LOT of pages that are worthy of being printed and posted in your closet, or on your inspiration board…
Yes, we read at least 2 or 3 hours a day. We seldom watch television except for rugby!
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The one bright pop of color with a neutral column is really perfect.
I just have to say that this mocha/beige/tan trend is really turning me out of the stores.
It can be pretty on the right person, I’m sure. But is that all there is, designers??
I jumped for joy when I saw this post. I love sweaters and I especially love Fair Isle sweaters. Although these colors would so no suit me I love the slot machine approach and all the outfits are lovely. Happy Friday, and Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone~
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Great post today… Definitely works for me living so close to the coast. Thank you .
Happy Friday, Happy Valentines’ Day! While the colors aren’t for me, I love this slot-machine decision approach. I think it would be a great way to pack for a short trip if there is a specific garment you want to bring along. For example (next fun dress-up holiday is … St Pat’s?) suppose you were to go on a trip around the 17th of March and you wanted to pack a really fun multiple-shades of green outfit for your themed bar-party; but not every day of the trip is a chance to go so all-in on green; what coordinating pieces would you pack to flesh out your suitcase/backpack? Alternately (which I have done) : this is my newest purchase, I’m going to visit my sister for the long weekend, I’m WILL wear this piece; what else do I bring.
Great way to use the slot machine! Thanks for the ideas, as always Janice!
I am seconding Janice’s recommendation for “A Bunch of Pretty Things I did not Buy.” I do own the digital version, and I must say it is a little frustrating because each page takes a little while to load due to the illustrations. Maybe buying it second-hand is the way to go? I think the author would approve.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
I believe this template is my very favorite one, even though these colors would do me no favors. I’ll keep this in mind when packing for summer trips. And I’ll check out the book recommendation. Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone.
Janice,
As I have aged , these muted warm colors are perfect for me ! However, the scale of most Fair Isle sweater patterns is overwhelming for my smaller features, so I have to choose something else .
I have always loved your slot machine template, and I just add an additional level of tops for longer trips . I like to wear a fresh top each day .
I agree with you on the scale issue. I’m 5’2″, 110 lbs. Whenever I buy a larger scarf, larger scale print or large piece of jewelry, it gets left unworn.
I love the quiet soft effect of this. Beautifully put together. Doesn’t matter that I wouldn’t wear it; the artfulness feels good.
We can all create wardrobe artfulness in our own colors!
love,
Janice
The slot machine technique! I love it. It is exactly how I started dressing in college and always find that it makes the most sense for me. Thank you for bringing it back up!
I love Fair Isle too but this is not a Fair Isle pattern. I also get turned off by beige.
However the Maximise your ROI articles were excellent. I remember going such an exercise when I was gifted a burgundy, pink and silver grey paisley scarf. It really brought my wardrobe alive as I dragged everything out of my wardrobe in those colours. I suddenly had a new colour combination which has been a favourite ever since. Thanks Janice for the inspiration.
Choosing your style preferences is such a tricky business. When you originally ran the Weekly Timeless Wardrobe, I learnt a lot about my style. I love pattern and not a great fan of plain BUT I will wear plain if it is textured. Even a simple rib is enough to lift it.
I’ve just added a “new to me” dark blue handbag with a swathe of raised blue flowers on it. Continuing my blue journey from last year. It will be nice as a neutral summer bag. The spray of flowers is more “me”. I shall give my navy woven bag to a friend who has a retro/vintage stall.
Beth – you’re entirely right! I changed the title to be more accurate!
thanks for keeping me on track,
love,
Janice
I think you mean yoke, unless you’re drawing attention to the gold/mustard shade . . .
I think it’s time for me to have a cocktail and call it a week!
love,
Janice
I love the colors as they tend to suit. I recently saw something similar to the slot-machine. It was called the Sudoku packing method. It really demonstrates how one can travel with a pretty small wardrobe. Another cold/cool front moved through coastal TX, so I’m wearing my warmer sweaters while I can. Happy Valentine’s Day.
Learned something new today, float stitch. I can make today’s indecisive heroine’s decision easy for her. If it’s $249 and you’re not sure, that’s a no.
That is a beautiful sweater, and I love the wardrobe! I’ve been knitting again, and the colour combo is one I wouldn’t have thought of, but certainly works!
Happy Valentines Day to all. Insightful as ever, thank you Janice. I love these types of sweaters but as an inverted triangle they make me look like i have huge shoulders, but I do appreciate them on others. Have a wonderful weekend.
You say that as if having huge shoulders is a bad thing! Remember in the 80’s we all wore metric tonnage of shoulder pads to try to look like you do naturally!
love,
Janice
First of all, well done, you! I am all about sweaters, as someone who lives in Maine, I’m in them for a good 6-7 months per year. This one is a beauty! I found a very similar one from CaBI about 4 years ago, but with green as the color not, rather than yellow. It’s a winner! I do wear it often and with many of the ideas seen here…I swear you’ve read my mind on this one.
Ladies, I promise you that there are MANY options for Icelandic style sweaters that don’t have to break the bank, especially this time of year. Check the sales! You can easily get something similar for 50-75% off at many stores. This is the time to shop for ‘wear now and wear next winter’ styles!
I hope everyone had a delightful Valentine’s Day that was filled with love!
While the colors are not for me, I think it is a very pretty sweater and a very smart way to integrate a special piece into your wardrobe. I am going to have to try it for my spring/summer clothes.
Also, for those who want to read “A Bunch of Pretty Things I Did Not Buy,” remember that you may be able to get that book from your library rather than buying it. I just put a hold on it from my library system (it’s not in my local branch, but it is in another branch and will be shipped to my branch, so yay!).
I came to the realization years ago that with the volume of my reading, I would go broke (and run out of space) if I kept buying books. So I decided to use my library to feed my reading (and video and audio book) habit. I always tell people that my library card is the most valuable thing I own!
Stepping off my library soapbox now… :)
Libraries are essential for our civilization and culture too! The more of us who have library cards, the more funding (well, in theory) the library will get. Everybody get out there and get your cards!
love,
Janice
The wardrobe pieces are lovely but the colours are very ‘meh’ but so is much that is on offer at retail these days.
I am curious though…would any VF reader really ask “I love it but what should I do with it?” That seems to go against everything I’ve on this site read over the years.
At 249.00 I agree with a previous comment, if you have to ask…leave it on the rack.
I love the slot machine. When I first went back to work in an office (part time) I used it to buy a starting wardrobe. It takes a little discipline stick to nine garments that all go together when you’re shopping, but the result is so useful! And its easy to expand it to a second slot machine, or to 1 or 2 more bottoms and 4 or 5 tops (if you don’t need a lot of third) layers, or to your “core of four” wardrobe.
I am between sizes right now after gaining a little weight, and I had to go buy more pants for work. I didn’t want to spend a lot, because I’m hoping I don’t have to wear them long, but the weight is stubborn and may just turn out to be my post-menopausal shape. So I bought nice pants, in case I end up needing them long-term, but end-of-season specials–most of which turned out to be wide-legged. That’s not my normal style, and a lot of my second layers (I work in a very cold office) don’t look good with them. So I assembled a small selection of my clothes to choose from every day, and it’s a lot like a “slot machine!”
I don’t know what people don’t when they’re between sizes. My regular size is too tigh, but in most brands the next size up is huge and looks terrible. Any hints????
Gail, from quite a few years of post menopausal experience, weight will go up not down. And stay. Stubbornly. As to the between size thing I have no good solution, as I have dealt with that, too. Relaxed fit tops and stretchy pants have helped me to some extent. Find a single pair of really nice pants in your style, present size and dark neutral and invest in them. The money won’t be wasted and you’ll feel great in them.
I buy up a size and take everything in–especially waistbands. But I rarely find clothes that fit off the rack, so I have to alter everything anyway, so it’s not a hardship for me. And because I know I’m more likely to gain weight than lose it, I leave big seam allowances when taking in, so I can reverse the alterations.
I adore the Slot Machine method and personally find it incredibly useful for packing for a weekend away that has a purpose like work or funeral etc.
One of the most useful aspects of the slot machine approach (which wasn’t showcased in this article) was to have a different level of smartness for each row / column. So you end up with 9 clothes that all match that have very wide range of applications.
Thanks so much Janice for the weekend to Sydney where I had to balance time in workshops supervising technicians to taking the team out for dinner to discussions with Dealer Principles who like all people in sales dress fancy and then personal time at the harbour taking myself for drinks!! I mapped it all out in a slot machine in a powerpoint and I packed with confidence. Just was one thing I didn’t have to stress about when I arrived.
I hadn’t remembered the slot machine template, so I went back and read all of the previous slot machine articles. They were so helpful! I find the 4×4 a little overwhelming, and the slot machine idea felt much more manageable for some reason. Thanks for featuring it again, Janice!
Well it’s a TON smaller – the difference between 9 and 16 garments is a big difference! Once you get this one mastered, you can gradually add onto each row, and then add a row, and THEN you’ll be in the 4×4 world.
It’s a process, and a learning experience, except for me, who wakes up in the morning full of these ideas! Demented…
love,
Janice
Lovely! Might also wear this with dark brown cords and boots in colder weather.