March 3, 2025
March! Even though we still have to wear winter clothes in Chicago, once it’s March we pretend that it’s spring. At least the days are long enough to go out for a quick walk after work – that makes SO much difference.
This month, I’m starting here, with a change/addition to our color palette:
This is the 12-piece wardrobe that our heroine has assembled through the first two months of her project:
Frankly, this wardrobe was feeling DARK. For a heroine with fair, freckled skin and hair somewhere in the red/russet family, it got to be TOO dark… So an executive decision was made to add ivory to this wardrobe. Well, you can call it bone, or unbleached, or off-white, but the effect is the same.
This is an important thing for us all to remember – our paintings (or whatever we’re using for an inspiration and guide) are just ideas, not laws! If you feel like you need a pink shirt, or a French blue cardigan, give it some thought, consider how your break-out garment will work with your existing wardrobe, and then proceed accordingly.
Our heroine decided to pick up three new ivory garments, after determining that she would be able to wear them all a lot of different ways. And she tossed in the 3/4 sleeve mango top, after realizing just how much she loves the short-sleeved version. This is always wise!
Ivory cardigan – Caslon; earrings – Miss Cecelia; sweet mango top – Lands’ End; ivory turtleneck – Lands’ End; olive boots – Spring Step; cotton/linen pants – J.Crew; crossbody bag – Betsy & Floss
Her Weekly Timeless Wardrobe template is filling up, although not in an orderly way! Which is fine – there’s nobody double-checking these things…
Now, our heroine’s 16-piece wardrobe is much brighter and lighter than the 12-piece version. And her excellent floral scarf has ivory flowers in it, so she feels somewhat vindicated in her break-out from her painting’s strict palette.
Options? I’m sharing a stack of them!
For some reason, 16 garments seems like a level at which options multiply quickly! For travel, this would suggest a three-piece travel outfit and packing either a Weekly Timeless Wardrobe for a season, or a Whatever’s Clean 13 Wardrobe. Or some other 13-piece beauty – so many possibilities.
Remember, there will be a blog post every weekday this week, because we’re looking at our Six Paintings; I like to keep them fresh in our minds…
love,
Janice
p.s. Earlier versions of this wardrobe can be found here: Christmas Day Introduction, January, February.
p.p.s. Ten years ago, it was bitterly cold in Chicago, but I was still keeping my clothing diary – even when it included big chunky snow boots!
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The ivory additions make this wardrobe so much more versatile. Great executive design.
I’m still in love with this floral scarf. 🌼
I find the colors to be rather midtone, but adding the ivory makes the colors really shine. I agree with you, this is a very good addition.
This wardrobe is surprisingly versatile and beautiful.
Honestly, I just love “autumn” colors. They are warm and inviting–but not always easy to find. You have made some amazing selections.
I have to smile at the “We pretend it’s Spring” comment about Chicago. It’s the same way here in Northern New England, too. Just this weekend, I pulled out my peach/pink/orange lightweight sweaters and I’m determined to start wearing them today. There may still be a great deal of snow on the ground, and March is young, so we’ll likely get more. But, I’m just DONE with Icelandic and Fair Isles (although I don’t want to jinx the weather by packing them away quite yet). When we choose that it’s Spring, it’s Spring.
I love 5 posts a week weeks too. I know it’s a lot of work, Janice, but thank you.
I hear ya! I’m just across the border from you in Atlantic Canada and Spring in March is almost always just a lovely daydream. We have lots of snow and our temperature is -18 C/-1 F.
I have a couple of warm sweaters that I purposefully chose in Spring colours: lavender and aqua. Those colours lift my spirits every time I wear them.
We had a snowstorm on Saturday so I’m claiming that March came in like a lion so I can look forward to it going out like a lamb. 🌷
😊. Just pulling out my spring cashmere this week… the only difference from the winter sweaters is the colors! Oh, and vnecks instead of mocknecks. Ah well. There are a few merinos waiting in the wings…
Yes, this is (more or less) the wardrobe that will look good on me.
(Dark, a bit warm blond hair, hazel eyes, warm rather pale skin with freckles)
I can wear rather dark, saturated colours as long as they are warm/have a warm hue? So I don’t need the addition of a lot of the off-white colour, but it suits me.
A lot of beautiful ideas already, I am curious for the other 9 months!
Thank you so much!
I don’t know how this black square happened, or how to remove it.
I also love the new addition of ivory. What a bright cheerful wardrobe. I’m also pretending it’s spring. After three days of gorgeous 60 degree weather, yesterday I shifted the darker heavier clothes out and lighter spring things in. That being said, we are more like normal again now with it 10 degrees colder and raining. I shall layer. And we always get what I call a “teaser week” around April where we all think it’s really going to happen and then it goes back into the May-June gloom. We call it Junuary…….
I’ve missed your comments for the past couple of weeks. Hope life is well with you. I’m always loathe to swap wardrobes just in case we get snow or other unseasonably cold weather. I just wear lighter colours. We often have a mini heatwave in April then it reverts to nondescript weather from May to July. A ten degree drop has quite an impact no matter what time of year.
Yes! The ivory is much needed in this wardrobe. Love it now. We were in the 70s the other day and now back down into the 40s. It’s a roller coaster of weather.
As beautiful as all your wardrobes are, I am coming to the realization that I have certain things I wear on repeat and to be comfortable and feel confident in my clothes, I need to stick to these items. This heroine seems to embody my general style choices.
That said, I have determined I could really work on my shoe wardrobe and other accessories to spiff things up a bit. What is more fun than some cool kicks? I love the style of this heroines shoes and accessories as well as her clothing. Well done!
This is a stellar executive decision. Ivory (or another light neutral) can fix a lot of outfit dilemmas. Your outfit suggestions are absolutely beautiful.
Maybe too pricey but this top would make an amazing addition to this wardrobe for summer https://www.saksfifthavenue.com/product/vince-blurred-poppy-silk-pullover-blouse-0400020969077.html
For 100% silk, that’s about a normal price, assuming it’s well-constructed. The sale price looks like it was much easier to swallow! It might still be available somewhere; it would be worth doing a bit of an internet search if one was truly smitten.
love,
Janice
I am OBSESSED with this top. I can truly see this being a year ’round piece. I will put this on my wish list. I don’t mind spending more for seriously high quality pieces if I know I’ll get lots of use out of them. I’m actually wearing a Vince sweater today–his pieces last forever. The one I’m wearing is grey cashmere and it’s form 2014. It still looks great!
Also, keep an eye on sales. Saks has some great ones!
Gorgeous blouse. Love an “edgy” floral; definitely not too twee.
Perhaps in another life, I wore these colours. There is something very restful about them. They just blend together beautifully. Thankfully, I can see these colours worn by my autumn husband and daughter.
Ivory is a good choice for anyone. I have a couple of ivory tops when my normal colourful self needs a break. I’m wearing grey and ivory at the moment and have a purple boucle cardigan to wear when it gets cool this evening.
Spring is definitely coming in southern UK, though there are still night frosts. The past few days have been sunny and warm enough to not need a coat in the afternoon as long as you are wearing a thick second layer. The early snowdrops came out a few weeks ago. Crocuses, aconites and narcissi are showing their colours. Daffodils are beginning to bloom and I can see tulip leaves pushing through. Yesterday I saw a large bumble bee which is always a good harbinger of spring. Sadly bumble bee populations are down again. However, the harbingers of doom are forecasting snow from 11 March. We shall see.
I like the addition of ivory to freshen up the mid-tone colors in the palette, but I also approve because an entire wardrobe (as opposed to small travel capsule, etc.) with only a single neutral just feels very restricting to me. And with fair skin and russet hair, our heroine will no doubt shine in outfits with a bit more value contrast than what’s she’s had available up to now.
On duplicating the mango top in the longer sleeve after liking the short sleeve version…I wouldn’t bat an eye if these were simpler styles like t-shirts but the distinctive feminine blousy silhouette of these two (and the puffy sleeves which make layering a challenge) do give me pause. I wouldn’t do it personally in a wardrobe this small, so I will amend the statement “always wise” to “always wise to consider thoughtfully.” From the sample outfits, it may be that our heroine really loves this style of blouse as a stand-alone piece (it’s the only top styled this way), so for her, it might make sense to have two slightly different versions to clear up a potential laundry bottleneck, especially if she is deeply committed to this accent color. I personally would choose to diversify with a similar blouse in a different color…even a darker orange like the tone of the dress would be my personal preference. But of course our heroine’s intrepid personal shopper has to make selections from the existing real-world retail landscape, and I applaud all these additions as very well done.
Looking forward to these posts. We are having some really lovely warm weather with some real chill thrown in. I never mind since summer will hit way too soon and with a vengeance. I like to pretend it’s fall when it’s still blistering hot in Sept/Oct. Have a great day everyone.
Oh, we start with fall MUCH earlier than the actual weather shift! Everybody wants something different, and a change, so long as it’s a harmless change like weather. Otherwise, don’t mess with my life – I’ve got it arranged – don’t change anything!
love,
Janice
Janice,
I always include an off white or ivory top when packing, or wardrobe shopping, as I need that light value below my face. Great colors here, love it ! I’m keeping all of my clothing options
available in my closet right now, as we vary here in PA from 18 degree windy Arctic blasts to balmy 60’s and rain !
I love the mindset of embracing spring, even when the weather doesn’t quite cooperate yet! Adding ivory was such a great call—it really lightens things up and brings a fresh contrast to the darker pieces. And the reminder that inspiration is flexible, not rigid, is so important. A well-loved color or piece can make all the difference in how a wardrobe feels! Looking forward to seeing how the new additions mix in. 😊