July 1, 2024
And just like that, the year is half over! We’re past the longest day of the year, if not the hottest… Change is the only thing upon which we can rely, but it still never ceases to surprise!
Our first heroine is being very intelligent, careful and disciplined this month…
Her painting inspiration is this:
And the very complete and coherent wardrobe with which she starts the month is this:
With these accessories:
Even though I haven’t worn navy since (literally) the 80s, I could cheerfully toss all of this into a bag and travel for a long, long time…
Our heroine looks at what she has – very carefully – and realizes that she owns neither a simple navy & white tee shirt, nor a pair of white summer pants. White jeans are great, but when the temperature hits the 90s Fahrenheit, something a bit cooler is in order!
So also doesn’t have a white tank top; she has a white sleeveless buttonfront shirt which is a summer workhorse, but something that just slips on is so useful. You can wear it alone in hot weather, or under a v-neck sweater in the dead of winter…
And the scarf? It looks pretty plain, but has some texture and a bit of sparkly, so it’s just the ticket for a monochrome outfit that needs something with some oomph. Maybe she won’t wear it for another 3 months, but that’s okay – carpe diem with things that are perfect for your wardrobe!
Striped tee – J.Crew; French blue linen shirt – Alex Mill; white sleeveless top – Lands’ End; reversible bracelet – Mine Finds by Jay King; linen pants – J.Crew; striped scarf – rag & bone; leather espadrilles – Toni Pons
Oh yeah, she probably has to get on a waiting list for the French blue shirt, but since it’s something that she plans to have for the rest of her life, what’s a few weeks?
Her wardrobe doesn’t really look different now, just more sufficient:
And her accessories just get more and more lovely:
But let’s get down to brass tacks – how will she wear these new lovely things?
Next up – Rothko!
Just to help us remember what’s what, this was her wardrobe at the end of June:
And these were her very delicious accessories:
Compared to the well-organized and disciplined shopping of our first heroine, this friend just wandered into a store to see what might appeal… She got LUCKY!
linen blazer – J.Jill; necklace – Talbots; print tee – J.Jill; tote bag – Talbots; print dress – J.Jill; pink tee – J.Jill; sandals – Steve Madden
Some month or another, this heroine is going to settle down and buy ALL NEUTRALS, but this wasn’t the month!
Her new wardrobe is even brighter:
And her accessories continue to delight me – the earrings here are particularly appealing, and I can’t put my finger on why…
There was a bit of concern that all of these accents might be hard to fit into outfits, but everything worked out well…
Today’s final heroine is working with a pretty challenging painting:
She was drawn to this because of the combination of bright and pastel accents with a beige core; so far, she’s leaned into the brights more than the pastels…
Her accessories cover a lot of bases!
This month, she went all-in for pastels, to the point that she didn’t even both to look for a pair of pants or shorts! But she’s kind of a fanatic of scarves, and so she grabbed a couple when she found them.
Yes, sometimes you buy a winter scarf in July, because it’s perfect for you, and because you’re smart enough to know that waiting until October means being disappointed…
An important note on this heroine’s shopping – she’s had good luck for MONTHS shopping at Boden. Last month, she grabbed a mountain of yellow garments there, and in earlier months she found both orange and green.
When she was starting her shopping for this month, her initial idea was to fill in with a couple more of the green (or orange) garments from Boden. Which are now nearly sold out. Long gone in her size.
It can seem crazy to buy three or four pieces from one place, only to buy the SAME things in two other colors. But these colors were perfect for her, and the silhouettes were timeless and versatile. Maybe she should have taken the leap? Yes, she would have a lot of bright solid clothes, but in the years to come when she keeps wearing and wearing them, she would have felt pretty smart…
Instead, she decided to pursue pretty pastels:
Pink pearl earrings – Ninemoo; muffler – Echo; pink tunic – Lands’ End; blue poplin shirt – J.Crew; long-sleeve tee – L.L.Bean; pink tank top – Lands’ End; silk scarf – Jessie Zhao New York
Her updated wardrobe now looks more balanced for brights and pastels:
And her accessories look softer, too!
Does our heroine have a ton of new outfits? Heck yes!
Wednesday, if all goes as planned, we will visit the other three heroines to see what catches their eye in the month of July!
love,
Janice
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Good morning! Lovely blues! (It’s a great wardrobe—I’m using it, since I have so much navy.)
But I was looking forward to the reds, too—??? I take it they’re coming in next post??
Thanks so much for your work on these capsules!
Reds on Wednesday – I’m going to start that as soon as I’ve got breakfast for my Mom under control! I really love working on that painting… in my next life, I’m going to have a red and grey wardrobe for a while.
hugs,
Janice
Sweet!
I frequently purchase multiples of the same item in different colors (or not!). Sometimes, it’s rather difficult to find pieces I like that fit well and work in my wardrobe so multiples are welcome. I don’t mind being a bit boring that way.
On the other hand, it can bite me in the but when my style shifts. As I sit on three notch collar short blazers I no longer want to wear….
Love the wardrobe for the Magill painting. Looks like my closet, although I do keep a few bright colors for days when I need a “pop” of something different (Kelly green, hot pink, even red).
I love the Magill, even though I know I would need some other colors to keep me from being bored. LIke m.m., my wardrobe is a preponderance of royal blue and periwinkle, and then a few orange and magenta items for pops of color. In the autumn I add a forest green. I do really love the O’Keefe wardrobe so I’ll be looking forward to that on Wednesday. Thank you Janice and I hope you had a great birthday! I always say I”m going to buy myself a carrot cake and then I never do because I”m the only one that will eat it. Maybe just a piece out of the store bakery :)
Once again these do not disappoint! The accessories are always so well thought out and just plain fun! I love the Magill and with a few French fives thrown in one could be totally set. Have a great day everyone.
Oh, how I love the navy capsule! THIS is the wardrobe of my dreams. But one question: where did the blue & white embroidered blouse come from? I don’t see it in any of the past updates.
It’s from Boden, and it can be found here:
https://shopstyle.it/l/cc3Rk
If you use this link, it gets me a wee commission on anything you buy from Boden during this visit. Any time you’re looking for colorful, Boden is the place to start!
hugs,
Janice
I do like a semi-structured linen jacket in the summer (Rothko addition). I would add one to the Magill wardrobe. Ideally, I’d like navy or blue but for the time being, I have one in white. I do like this wardrobe ever such a lot. I’ve fallen in love with blue again.
After last week’s successful lilac haul from the local charity shops, I’m going to try and do a ‘purple’ wardrobe for my forthcoming holiday. However, with the lack of purple bottoms. I shall have to add grey and navy bottoms (I do have a lilac skirt). I’m tempted to add in teal too. Shades or purple and teal is one of my favourite combinations. It would be nice if a purple floral dress hoved into view too. Sadly, the purple Lands End maxi dress I bought a few years ago is now too small – ahem!
The Rothko is growing on me as a colour combination, though I’d never wear it. The necklace you found this week is genius. The Paul Clee is becoming a bit busy. Im just wondering how likely it is for a bright’s lover to suddenly wear pastels. I was at an event at the weekend where I saw two ladies in smart pink trouser suits – one was salmon pink and the other pastel pink.
I have a swarm of purple tops, and I always wear them with jeans or black pants. The chances of me finding and buying purple pants for myself are just about zero, but that’s NOT going to keep me away from my purple sweater and sweatshirts!
The Klee is confounding, but I think of her as the heroine who wants a LOT of variety. There are those among us who feel this need, and I’m trying to accommodate her varying moods…
hugs,
Janice
Hi Beth, My first thought when I saw the Klee also was “that’s very busy” and then I look at my own wardrobe, and I think that maybe if everything were laid out on a page it also could look “too busy” A lot of things are in the same color family/range, but then I have the odd aqua green outfit I love, and goes surprisingly well with a larkspur (periwinkle) top, and the magenta, which I can also wear with the periwinkle tops, and even the couple of orange things I have I wear with blue and periwinkle. I’m kind of with Sally from St. Paul on mixing the brights and the pastels, but that’s just me.
From reading your comments over the past few years, I get the impression that your wardrobe is full of colour and surprises. You embrace colour in amazing combinations and tonal values.
I on the other hand love colour but it is all soft or muted whether it is light, medium or dark in tone. I don’t suit striking contrast or blocks of colour. My outfits must blend.
I’m with you there Beth! I too have to blend or I look washed out and sickly.
Hi Janice! I love the entire blue collection but tried to scroll back through previous posts and can’t find links to all the accessories? Can you guide me as to where to look? Thanks!
You should be able to find the link when the accessory was first added. Sometimes it takes a little time/effort to look back at everything and figure it out!
https://www.theviviennefiles.com/tag/six-paintings-12-months/
This will take you to ALL of the posts from this year, so far. If there’s something specific with which you’d like help, let me know!
hugs,
Janice
As a longtime reader, I’ve begun to keep a page of your wittiest and undeniably truest lines of wisdom. Here’s another from today that’s rock solid.
“Yes, sometimes you buy a winter scarf in July, because it’s perfect for you, and because you’re smart enough to know that waiting until October means being disappointed…”
It’s easier to make this winter scarf decision when you shop with intention and have a distinctive palette in mind.
I’m flattered! I do try to cut down to “the nub of the gist,” as we used to say in advertising. When I write these posts, I write them, and then I go back and cut out about half of what I’ve written…
hugs,
Janice
The French blue linen shirt in the blue wardrobe is absolutely gorgeous – a perfect blue that looks amazing in linen. (Oh the money I save by Alex Mill not believing in providing size inclusiveness!)
It’s funny that the Rothko wardrobe is described as “brighter” since my thought on seeing the July additions was “oh that’s nice, we’re adding some muted accents now.” To my eye, the optic black and white are much brighter than the dusty tangerine and soft candy pink of the new pieces. I liked seeing a couple print garments added to the mix too, and thought they looked good with the white. But in such a small wardrobe, I’m not sure where I fall on the practicality of items that don’t work very well…or at least very easily…with one of the two neutrals; I’m just struggling to reconcile the bright black with the muted prints.
The pastels in the third wardrobe are…well, when I saw the updated All Clothes image, I actually winced from seeing the brights and pastels together. I think it’s the bright canary yellow juxtaposed with the extremely pale pink and blue colors that clashes so painfully to my eye. But I need to remember something I know I’ve said here before multiple times – a wardrobe exists to make great outfits, not as a work of art to sit and stare at. The beige neutral does seem to work well with both the warm-toned brights and the cool-toned pastels in the wardrobe. Now I will say that the choice of warm and cool, bright and pastel, does surprise me a bit – this is clearly a heroine who values a type of variety that I find atypical. Who is this chameleon of a heroine who can wear both that yellow and that pink and blue happily with her own coloring? I do appreciate how this particular wardrobe is showing me that colors that might work together in a piece of art do not necessarily translate well into a personal wardrobe, either because of awkward tension between the colors or how the colors are likely to look on the heroine in question. (You may love this wardrobe; if so, I’d love to hear those varying opinions and what makes it work in your view.)
Hmm… I can envision a Black lady with really rich dark cocoa skin color looking amazing in that third wardrobe… One of the ladies I work with has that shade and I’m always most impressed at the way these kinds of colors pop on her.
It definitely looks good on the right person.
But I also think pastel and clear colors don’t quite fit.
I want to combine as many items of clothing as possible in my closet.
These are amazing and wonderful collections. Your work is always inspiring. Being a lover of Paul Klee work, I do admire the diversity in this wardrobe. I’m trying to find a link to the the warm white/off white flat shoes but have been unable to do so. I wonder if you can help me in this regard.
Here’s a link to them:
https://shopstyle.it/l/cc4z9
Thanks for asking!
hugs,
Janice
Thanks very much for the link. BUT…OK it’s official –– I’m an idiot. The shoes I’m really interested in are the white/off white flats in the Mark Rothko suite. Sorry to put you to the trouble again but I really like those shoes. Your help in finding them will be greatly received.
The ballet flats? They are here:
https://shopstyle.it/l/cc9hA
happy to help! hugs,
Janice
are these the ones you meant? https://www.nordstrom.com/s/minnetonka-pepper-espadrille-slide-sandal-women/7710466?color=CORAL+DESERT+PRINT&utm_channel=low_nd_affiliates_influencer&utm_content=&utm_term=3323486&utm_source=impact&utm_medium=affiliate_influencer&utm_campaign=ShopStyle%20Collective&irclickid=zBB0aj0YNxyKW9jSXz1S5VygUkC0oETgEUsVQA0&irgwc=1. they were in the march posting on this painting.
This month I have to say the Magill is looking absolutely fabulous. I don’t usually wear the bright clear blues, mine are more muted and soft, but this wardrobe is still one I would happily wear.
The pink orange black and white would look lovely in the right woman, but not on me at all. Black, orange and bright pink just don’t work with my coloring.
And as for the final wardrobe…well…it’s definitely not for me. If I removed the orange, green and yellow I would be totally in love though. I adore the beige and cream neutrals, and the pastels are all right up my alley. Soft pink and soft blue…chef’s kiss!
Thank you so much for your hard work! I’ve found so so much to learn from on this site. Even, and maybe especially, from starting to understand what I don’t like, so I don’t mistakenly get some and then never wear it. Orange and I do NOT get along. Nor bright yellow. Nor warm greens.
Cool, soft and muted, those are my best colors. 100%. And I feel so good about my color choices now.
And yes that look back reminds me of when I got started with the Vivienne files a few years ago. The Starting from Scratch was what first caught my eye and got me hooked. And now I read your blog eagerly each time it comes out.
Many thanks!! And happy fourth coming soon!
Janice,
I see two different people being inspired by the Klee as it offers options for those who prefer bright colors and for those who like wearing pastels. As I age and my coloring softens, I am leaning more and more toward the muted pastels for Summer . The combination of both the very bright and the muted within the same wardrobe might appeal to a whimsical personality, who is clearly a mood dresser, but it would not work for me , based upon my own coloring, though I defend the right for anyone to have the mixed saturation closet contents ! The former Iris Apfel comes to mind with her outrageous colors and personal style !
Love the blue Magill-based wardrobe! It just gets better every month. Can’t wait to see Wed’s post.
Happy Canada Day to any fellow Canadians out there. These wardrobes are all just amazing and I can see so many different women wearing these. I am still drawn to the Klee but my take on the pastels would not be quite that soft. I would want lighter but still with a clear not muted colour. Hard to find that. Cant wait for Wednesday and those glorious reds.
Happy Canada Day! Hope you had a good one.
Even though the colors are all wrong for me, I’m beginning really to like the Klee wardrobe. I love the variety of colors that offers so many choices because I get bored wearing the same thing over and over. I’m beginning to find the blue wardrobe a trifle boring, and the pink and gold wardrobe is just too much of those two colors, but that’s just me. I’m looking forward to Wednesday’s post with the Georgia O’Keefe painting for inspiration.
I agree – I love the blues, but they just don’t “pop” for me without a bit of a contrast. As someone who actually wears a lot of the colours in the Klee (I have naturally strawberry blond hair with pale/rosy skin and blue eyes), I can say that I do have both brights and pastels in my closet. You’re right that these pastels might be a bit too desaturated, but I also think they can be worn alongside a bright in the same colour family quite nicely.
I want to combine the blue wardrobe with the red-gray one from Wednesday.
Of course with half the clothes.
For the pink curry capsule, I’m still in favor of a medium gray instead of black. But I think the concept is good to choose any color you want for a b/w: red-blue, green-blue, petrol-purple…
I love the combination of purple yellow & rainforest
My favorites come Wednesday.
I’m so glad I came back and read the rest of the comments added since I looked at the post Monday morning. Magil is my favorite and I agree with what Amanda said about adding in a French 5 for variety.
Typically I feel like I drool for the beige based wardrobes even though I can’t wear them. But today I was left feeling kind of blah. The pastels seemed to pale, as if the pieces had gone thru the wash too many times. And the brights seemed just too much. I agree with Sally, just bc something works in a painting doesn’t mean it will be awesome for me, in my closet, or on my body.