May 10, 2024
She knew it was time for a change; for years, she was known for her subtle wardrobe of shades of ivory and beige… She loved it, but she knew that it was time to brighten things up a bit.
She’s been dressing like this for ages:
earrings – Kendra Scott; cardigan – Alex Mill; linen shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sandals – Sam Edelman
earrings – Nordstrom; cashmere sweater – J.Crew; linen tee – J.Crew; chinos – L.L.Bean; sneakers – Veja
And then this caught her eye. She even felt that – when much younger – she had looked like the woman in the scarf.
After thinking about it for a few days, she finally took the plunge and ordered!
She looked at her scarf – very closely – for quite a while. After sleeping on it for a night, she isolate this color palette as a starting point for her wardrobe evolution:
Some patience, and a little bit of shopping, got her to these slight but meaningful changes in her favorite outfits:
scarf – Echo; earrings – Farra; cardigan – L.L.Bean; linen shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sandals – Mephistos
scarf – Echo; earrings – Nine West; cashmere sweater – J.Crew; linen tee – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sneakers – Allbirds
Nothing racy, nothing terribly daring…
And she kept looking at her scarf, and at herself, and at her feeling about her wardrobe…
‘Til she came to this:
These outfits feel quite different for her. But still comfortable – surprisingly comfortable!
scarf – Echo; earrings – Swarovski; cardigan – Woolish; linen shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sandals – Mix No. 6
scarf – Echo; pink tourmaline earrings – Mounir London; cashmere sweater – J.Crew; tee – J.Crew Factory; pants – J.Crew; sneakers – Superga
At this point, she realizes that she can try any color she wants, and if it doesn’t work out, there’s really very little harm done – used clothing and accessories can be resold. Thus, she jumped right into the deep end of daring accent colors!
These new outfits attract a kind of attention she’s never experienced…
scarf – Echo; earrings – Toolally; cardigan – Boden; linen shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sandals – Kork-Ease
scarf – Echo; yellow jade earrings – seree; cashmere sweater – J.Crew; tee – Lands’ End; pants – J.Crew; sneakers – Cariuma
There’s one last step that she’s never dared to take – wearing black! But her scarf relies on black for definition and detail – why not give it a try?
Her new outfits are simple and subtle, but feel like a big breakthrough for her!
scarf – Echo; earrings – Kate Spade New York; cardigan – Lands’ End; linen shirt – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; sandals – Nordstrom
scarf – Echo; earrings – Kendra Scott; cashmere sweater – J.Crew; tee – Lands’ End; pants – J.Crew; sneakers – Skechers
For me, the biggest wardrobe shift I’ve made has been to wear brown. I don’t know why – I have brown eyes, and some brown hair left. But it never appealed, until now!
love,
Janice
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This “evolutionary” narrative with its vibrant choices is wonderful. I, too, have “evolved” back to browns after all the you-must-wear-black years. I’ve always felt most comfortable in browns.
If the heroine had looked in her youth like a woman in the scarf, she’s probably Bright Winter or True Winter (Snow White type). So she chose the best colors for her! I would consider red as well…
I’m such a goober that I actually gasped when she brought in the black and thought, oh no, I hope she doesn’t go from all beige to ask black when she’s just added bright pink and yellow! 😂👀
Great job as usual, Janice.
I shared your blog with a fashion group recently and I hope some of them subscribed.
Have a great summer, it’s really right around the corner.
Robin
So… If it is neutral -esque, a pair of pants. But otherwise, new color = twin-set, earrings, 2 types of shoes. I love it! I think the 2 pairs of shoes allows you to see if you prefer the color more dressy or more casual, and the top/cardigan to test the color closer to your core or as more of an accent (cardigan). I bet this makes a great travel option, similar to the black core many cardigan opera heroine.
Great job as always! Happy Friday
One of my very favorites, and such a terrific idea for how to gradually make things work. And funny that I read your 10-year-old advice just now after I did some J Jill website shopping. Mentally checked stuff in my closet, tried to determine the colors, and tappd the fatal order button. I do have plenty of packing tape!
At the start of reading this post, I wondered if you would add accents. This is so versatile.
Like you, I started wearing brown about two years ago. I can’t recall why I avoided it. I wore it quite a bit when I was a teen. After several decades not wearing it, I got re-draped for color and really saw how flattering brown is.
I’m so pleased you added the pink and yellow. I love the new palette.
Very nice – great way to end the week – Have a lovely weekend everyone
I like the addition of colours it makes a lovely collection of anything goes together 13 items . These colours have the same dept of colour and would all play nicely with each other I think Janice calls this an anything’s clean wardrobe. Meaning you could get dressed in the dark and wear any selection of clothes and still look put together. My only concern is the addition of so many shoes. It would work just as well with less shoes especially if used thus group to pack for a trip or for a summer capsule wardrobe.
I love that the blue pants kind of read like denim and seem to go with all the options. I have a similar chambray pair that I wear that way.
I really like this. It feels so much more wearable to me than the black columns with accent 2nd layers. I always feel drawn to the off white/beige groupings but can’t wear beige! How weird is that? The colored T’s really made it work for me. Same with the colored tops added to the black sets shown earlier this week.
Here’s another thing that feels weird to me, even though I can see the idea and feel okay about, when it hits my body I just feel like a goober, kind of inside out. A dark column with a light 2nd layer feels so off while the suit look feels just fine where the accent is inside. I think partly I don’t like that the dark color can show thru a little on the weave of a cardigan.
The light columns shown today with the accent on top feel just fine because the accent is darker than the off white. Hmmm. Anybody else feels like this?
I love the scarf. Wish the lines and her hair were navy instead of black!
Way off topic, but with the high solar activity, my Aurora app says you have a 50% chance of seeing it in Chicago tonight and should have clear skies.
Thanks for this! We have so much ambient light (and SO MUCH of it is waste – why are office buildings brightly lit 24/7? Motion sensors on the lights would solve this…) that I’m not sure we will be able to see, but I’m excited to know that it’s a possibility. The extreme activity of the Northern Lights should continue for a few days, I believe…
This is the downside of living in a city – the inability to really SEE the night sky!
hugs,
Janice
This scarf has Audrey Hepburn vibes. So a skirt and cool sunglasses would be good additions. Having had cold weather up to last week, we have had some very warm days which has sent hubbie into the loft for summer wear.
The night sky was clear on Friday for the Aurora which was seen all over the UK and Ireland. Spectacular! Such wonderful colours!
I’m so thrilled that so many of my friends (including you, of course!) got to see the Aurora! I saw it once, in Iowa, in about 1980, and I will never forget it. What a gift from the sun, eh?
hugs,
Janice
Am I the only woman on the planet that, when wearing a long column of white or cream, feels as if I’ve just escaped from a cult? I want to love this look. But, on me, it gives off “waiting for the mothership to beam me up” vibes. I will live vicariously through the rest of you, while I wear a long column of navy, pink or gray. Sigh.