May 31, 2024
Yes, we waited as long as possible to get to the May bracelets, because our bracelet goddess was on vacation in …. SCOTLAND…
my envy knows no bounds…
In keeping with her Scottish adventure, her bracelets this months are right on point:
Highlands’ Heather Bracelets – Fierce Lynx Designs
For a longer trip, or a larger wardrobe, there’s a ton of ivory and bone hues to work with here…
Highlands’ Heather bracelets – Fierce Lynx Designs
Right now, we have quite a few heroines traveling to places that aren’t sweltering summer weather – Arctic cruises, north of Scotland, north of Finland… You all do some interesting things!
And I’ve been asked more than once for a travel capsule wardrobe that’s full of L.L.Bean clothes and their timeless aesthetic. AND many of us are excited about wearing pink. So this all comes together here, with a heroine setting off (maybe from a warm hometown) to a cool, autumn-like destination.
Cardigan – L.L.Bean; earrings – Amazon Collection; bracelets – Fierce Lynx Designs; shirt – Lands’ End; scarf – AllSaints; bag – Mango; pants – L.L.Bean; boots – Clarks
This heroine is only going away for a week and thus has decided that she’s going to travel with just 10 garments. Therefore, I went back into the Archives and dug out the Perfect 10 Packing template, and made a quick modification:
The bottom row of our original template included a top, a dress, and a v-neck sweater. I swapped out the dress for another pair of pants (this is a casual trip – if you’re going to want a dress, include the dress!). I also removed the very specific “v-neck” from the sweater description, although there are good reasons for looking specifically for that style…
THEN… I went looking:
cashmere v-neck sweater – Lands’ End; charcoal and pink tees – Lands’ End; flannel tunic – L.L.Bean; neck warmer – Hemprino; grey wool cardigan – L.L.Bean; floral scarf – Mango; wine cords – L.L.Bean; wide jeans – Uniqlo; hiking shoes – L.L.Bean
These should easily fit in a carry-on bag…
I hesitated for ages over the plaid flannel tunic and floral scarf at the bottom left. The orange in them isn’t in the bracelet anywhere, which slowed me down. But (a) they’re perfect together, and (b) they bring a bright cheer to this wardrobe that pleased me. Maybe in three months, when the world is full of cool weather clothing, I might have done something else…
Now, our template looks like this:
And our travel capsule wardrobe looks like this:
For a longer trip, I would add the original threesome of “top, dress, v-neck sweater” to get to a 13-piece wardrobe. If you want to bump up to 16 garments (assuming you’re traveling for weeks), one more second layer, a top, and either a skirt or pants would get you to that number in a logical way.
But how can one wear these things? I’m so glad you asked!
Writing about travel capsule wardrobes makes me sigh… Some day, I’m going to be SO ready to travel again!
love,
Janice
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What a lovely bracelet. And clothes. Great casual vibe.
Oh, and I just saw the leather goods are wine colored! Didn’t appear that way at first glance on my screen. Nice!
It’s the small touches, sometimes…
hugs,
Janice
I love this. Not exactly my colors anymore, but another travel capsule idea to keep on hand for the fall debate tournament season.
This is such a calm wardrobe. LLBean items are so classic and last a long time; I have some items well over twenty years old still looking great.
Quite lovely. Love the Pack 10 template. Have a lovely weekend everyone!
This is a good reminder. I often find it hard to pack for weather very different from what I’m experiencing at home – from summer in the Southwest USA to northern Scotland (Orkney) was a challenge! Love the colors in this. Since I can’t tolerate wool of any kind, I often buy sweaters in summer when there are more cotton options.
So tired of the dull colours and frumpy clothing…but thank you for the flashback way more my summer style because it is….summer!
The look back was fun. Almost like a French 5 plus a scarf. It really demonstrates the power of accessories.
I’m a big fan of this Fierce Lynx bracelet. Wonderful colors.
We are going nowhere cooler this summer. HOT!!! all the way.
Hello Janice,
I adore the clothes and think it appropriate for a casual trip
It makes me wonder if my travel plan is more of a whatever’s clean plan than a travel plan. . Mine usually includes a Jacket or coat.
Thought I had my head around the plan but not sure any more.
I would wear top bottom outer layer and jacket or coat to travel = 4 items. Then pack 2 bottoms and 5 tops + cardigan or jumper and an outer layer coat or jacket = 9 items in travel bag, making total of 13.
Am I making sense of the plan or have I gone wrong somewhere?
For a short 3 day trip I wear 3 things + jacket or coat (4 items) and pack 5 (2 bottoms + 2 tops + outer layer) OR 1 bottom + 1 dress + 2 tops + outer layer = a 5i pack + 4 worn = total of 9 tems.
All depending on the needs of a trip of course. . I think of it like the grid you use for a 6 pack when you wear 3 and pack 6.
I suppose it doesn’t really matter what it’s called as long as it makes sense and the clothes work well togethe.
Thanks for what you do it gives me ideas that I adapt to suit me
Susan, I agree, one definitely needs a coat in Scotland, no matter the month! There are cool and rainy days, so a raincoat is best, IMO.
Love the colors. I would happily wear all of this!
Janice,
When there is only one accent color shown, I grow restless for more , color craver that I am, but here the wine and pink strike me as being values of one another and provide much more interest, along with the plaid shirt. I always hesitate buying a colored pair of pants for fear of not finding a color matched outer layer . The gray for me would have to be a medium brown . I wish that I could wear gray, but the undertone is just too cool , as is taupe , for my complexion. .
The fact that the pink cardigan is even a deeper value than the pink tee and the pink collared shirt add “ flavor ” for my taste !
I would have loved to have seen this broken down into “add 1 piece at a time “ ! It’s your analytical thinking process that I enjoy reading the most ! As well as seeing the variety of outfits from the selected garments !
Yes, like Shrebee and Susan, I liked the deeper pink of the cardigan in this wardrobe. I like matchy matchy as well, Susan :) I haven’t worn burgundy since the 80s! but I was so drawn today to the wine-coloured cords! Maybe it’s nostalgia. I had a pair of a similar colour back then, which I wore with a cream and wine plaid blouse with a little bow at the neckline, and a cream rope belt. I think that might have been the first time I bought a top and bottom at the same time that were intended to go together. (It took me a while to get my head around some of the principles of effective shopping!) And in today’s wardrobe, I like the sneakers and the boots a lot, also. Lovely wardrobe, thank you Janice, and lovely bracelet.
Agree with shrebee like the different pink colours as I don’t like things too matchy matchy because they feel like a uniform and I like variety.
Susan
I just got back from a trip and used much of this template, thank you so much Janice. I changed one pair of pants to a lighter weight and had included a few short sleeve tee’s as we had cold and warmer temps. My best buy was a windbreaker from LL Bean which was much needed and could fold up in my purse if I did not need but we did run into a fair amount of rain lol
I really liked that the flannel shirt and floral scarf included a non-palette colour. It felt to me like a real life wardrobe where you have a preferred palette with just a few colours but hints of other colours creep in with plaids and other patterns. When I first started using a capsule wardrobe it really challenged me on defining my palette when I had hints of other colours in my clothes but I have learnt to relax now. As long as overall I stick with my blues, white, black and grey, the odd hint of pink in my blue flannel shirt or red sleeves on a white t-shirt just provides a bit of variety and interest and everything still goes together.
Wine, pink and grey is one of my favourite combinations. However, I tend to wear it in autumn/winter because wine seems just a little bit dark for summer. Wine is readily available in winter. Also, I fail every year to find wine coloured cotton or linen trousers and skirts (gap in the market?). Even dark pink would do. I do wear pink and grey in the summer with light green/teal.
As yesterday was 1 June, I really did think that the time had come to swap my wardrobes. I’ve been in winter gear for far too long because it was wet and cold well into May in the UK. However there were occasional spikes that made me think that summer was round the corner. I have this consigned my dark grey and wine cords to a sack.
In sorting out clothes, I’m always aware of the vagaries of the UK weather. Even in high summer, the temperature can drop 10C after a thunderstorm. A change in direction of the wind from the south and west to north or east can sometimes happen too. If the Gulf Stream shifts north or is too far south that makes us colder too. For that reason, we are always prepared for all eventualities.
I have kept aside a couple of polo necks in light grey and lilac. A couple of pastel jumpers and a lilac fleece that are a bit thicker are kept too. A few long sleeve shirts in pastel colours.
Then I found my flannel shirts which I haven’t worn this year. I’m not sure why, so I shall ponder on that one. I keep a teal one to wear as a second layer on country walks. A light blue, pink and navy is being kept out for now.
I looked at the grey, pink and wine one. Shall I keep it in or out. Then I read this post. It occurred to me that wearing it with light grey jeans and over a wine/plum camisole or t-shirt would be a ‘lighter’ early summer choice. I can roll the sleeves up too.
I am becoming painfully aware, that instead of having a huge wardrobe of loosely co-ordinating clothes from which to make multiple outfits, I would find it easier, if I created a few specific co-ordinating outfits that I know look good (favourable comments). I would have to consider which is the best combination but when I fancy wearing a particular colour combination or I have a specific event to go to, I will have a readily available complete outfit including jewellery, shoes and bags. Life would be simpler. That’s not to say that I couldn’t mix it up a bit but for the most part, I don’t want to have to think what to wear.
As someone who lives just 20 minutes from Freeport, Maine, the home to the LL Bean mothership, I can attest to how fabulous their products are. My pieces from almost 20 years ago are still going strong! This beautiful Autumn capsule would work for a trip to New England, as well as Scotland, just as easily.
The only thing to be mindful of about LL Bean clothing is that the fit can be a bit inconsistent. It’s sometimes on the larger side, and other times quite narrow. it all depends on the item. My best advice, when buying from Bean’s (as we affectionately refer to it in New England) is to try on a bunch of different silhouettes and find ‘yours’…the one that fits your body shape and style. Once you discover it, and it may take some trial and error, it will not change much over the years.
Also, Bean’s has some adorable cotton dresses and beautiful swimsuits right now for warm weather.
Hello! Long-time reader, first time commenting though. Thank you so much for this blog – I love it! I just have to say that I adore this template! I’m potentially starting a new position where I need to be out in the world instead of working from home, as I have since before the pandemic. There is lots of local travel however, and I will probably be in a different office each day of the week. So I need some new clothes, not all the new clothes, and I think I just found my perfect template to keep me in check and coordinated. Thank you, thank you!
Thanks for taking the time to let me know – that kind of message on a Monday morning will keep me going all week!
hugs,
Janice
Janice, I am not sure I’ve ever seen the Perfect 10 Packing template. I love it. Thank you for sharing it from the archives.