August 15, 2015
We have looked at soft and warm accents, and strong warm accents, so now it’s time to look at some really beautiful soft, cool touches in a capsule wardrobe. Someone mentioned sea glass as an inspiration, and so I chose a bracelet to anchor my color wanderings, and then went looking!
(I have the very BEST job….)
When I was looking about, I kept in mind that I wanted organic, soft items, that held onto the warmth of the summer sand (I mean the beige neutral clothes…)
As with all accent color purchases, the colors don’t have to be perfect matches. If you keep wandering around the same general color(s), you will find that things either match or blend pretty well without a lot of effort. This is supposed to be fun, not exhausting and painful!
Note: generally speaking, tourmaline earrings often cost a FORTUNE. Maybe 2 fortunes, depending on your definition. These (the upper left corner) are positively reasonable, and come in blue, green, and pink. If I weren’t on a pre-travel shopping moratorium, I’d have the pink ones in a heartbeat…
Tourmaline earrings – Anthropologie; sleeveless knit top – Armani; scarf – Laura G.; band bottom tee – European Culture; 3-stone bracelet – Bourbon and Boweties; baroque pearl earrings – Mizuki; starfish seaglass bracelet – Shoptiques; sleeveless bow-tied top – Chloe; watch – Relic; cardigan – J. Crew (similar here); pleated top – DKNYC; necklace – Kenneth Jay Lane
Mother of pearl would be another nice touch here – I picked it up in the face of the watch, and the hoop earrings are baroque pearl, but there’s a lot of other possibilities…
As always, we’re still chasing these 12 pieces of clothing around. The wrap top and asymmetric skirt have received a lot of attention, as much for their stratospheric price as for their undeniably appealing design. But always remember, I’m more about ideas than I am about telling you what to buy. There are lots of things to learn from these examples, without ever going into a store.
Stone metallic cardigan – J. Crew; natural cardigan – Uniqlo; nude tee – Need Supply Co.; heather wheat tee – J. Crew; brown tee – J. Crew; tan linen top – Maison Rabih Kayrouz; ivory sleeveless shirt – J. Crew Factory; shorts – Loft; dress – Ter et Bantine; skirt – Maison Rabih Kayrouz; ankle pants – Uniqlo; jeans – Lafayette 148 New York
We are still going to see these core accessories some – especially those workhorse shoes! But it’s always wise, once you’ve chosen a core color scheme, to make certain that you have a handful of really excellent quality accessories that will be able to pitch in week after week, in a wide variety of situations, with a wide range of outfits.
Gold stud earrings – Kendra Scott; hoop earrings – Marco Bicego; antler and brass earrings – Ralph Lauren; bangle bracelets – David Aubrey; fabric wrap bracelet – Swarovski; infinity love bracelet – JCPenney; wristlet – Purse Power; ring – Arabel Lebrusan; gold wedge sandals – Isola; ombre tote – Cole Haan; ballet flats – Athena Alexander; beige flat sandals – Charles by Charles David
As always, the outfits are appealing, and cover all sorts of possible activities:
I’m always going to include this Common Wardrobe template, because I always refer back to it. As much as The Vivienne Files is about inspiration and beauty, I don’t want us to lose sight of the fact that an intelligent grounding in a sound wardrobe plan is the best way to look good without wasting our retirement funds!
As much as we’ve almost worn out these twelve core garments, I’m really tempted to visit them one last time, with turquoise and maybe a touch of purple as our accents… What do you think?
love,
Janice
PS – For more color inspiration, check out the latest Pantone Color Planner and other documents in the Planning Documents section of the website.
Oh so beautiful and relaxing! I am in the southern hemisphere winter, chilling out, and eagerly waiting for spring and summer to arrive. The clothes are so cool, floaty and flowy. Thank you Carol S
I love these colours, and as a spring, they suit me. However, I would be interested in having this palette for work. Is there any way to make these dreamy colours more polished and professional>
Cheers,
Jess
I'll second this. The way you use colour, texture and types of accessories to create the moods to fit your storylines has been so good to observe and I've learned a lot. Would you be able to create a grid or simmilar to help us better understand how to create the desired mood in our own wardrobes? Thanks Jazz
These colors with a brown base are just beautiful together…I also love your choice of shoes. Have a wonderful Saturday, Janice!
Love the seaglass – so much I bought a car that color – but not so much with the tan. Am wearing it with grey and white this summer -and a darker aqua – and have been quite pleased. This is a great collection. Thanks.
So very pretty. I could see exchanging the lightest core garments for a chocolate brown and carrying on quite nicely into Fall.
Oh my. How perfect and how perfectly lovely!
Oh, oh,oh….swoon. Yes please for turquoise with a bit of coral…..pretty please?
Deb from Vancouver
Turquoise and purple make me think of abalone, which would fit in well with your seaside theme
Another vote for turquoise and purple. Thank you for asking!
Candice
These colors are beautiful. I love the soft greens, but I've been reading that greens aren't that good with silver/gray hair, which I'm transitioning into. I've heard it can cast a greenish tone on your hair. I'm going to wait til my hair is grown out and see.
I am definitely wearing fewer green items since I stopped dying my hair but the seaglass colour and soft greens that have more blue than yellow in them still work well for me. As I have blue-green eyes, I would hate to give up on green. Silver/grey hair definitely changes our clothing choices.
Oh yes, turquoise and purple please :)
I second that!
Gwendolynn
Yes please to turquoise and purple – they are my favourite and for me learning to bring the beige in as a light summer neutral instead of navy or white!!!!
Beautiful colors that gently evoke all things summery. The seaglass would work with greys, too, I think. I'd love to see a turquoise and purple version.
Here's a much cheaper (although clearly not as nice) alternative to the expensive linen skirt
http://www.stellacarakasi.com/collections/pants-skirts/products/perfect-bias-cut-skirt?variant=1625035780
Oh how I love these colors! Please do the turquoise!
Very pretty combinations!
Lovely!
Janice,
Your blog has inspired me to look at my clothes in a new light and put together outfits I never would have created before. I get at least one compliment a week from folks I've known for years. No one believes me when I say I'm approaching my 61st birthday between the outfits you've inspired & excellent skin care.
Though I could never afford the beautiful clothes you showcase (rural school teacher), I can usually find reasonable facsimiles when hunting for bargains in my local stores. Thank you for making this "old broad" look new again!