September 4, 2019
My favorite post of the month! Although I love everything I give you, I must admit…
For new readers, the thesis is this: in January I choose 6 Hermes scarves from the new season, and then, for a year, I add a new outfit each month to six gradually growing and developing wardrobes. It’s fascinating to see how the wardrobes evolve…
Even though the weather is still quite warm (in the Northern Hemisphere, that is!), this is honestly the time to start getting your fall and winter outfits together. The selection is best now, both for styles and sizes. And having these outfits ready for that first cold day gives you both a sense of security AND something to anticipate! (it’s good to have something wonderful to enjoy when the weather turns, right?)
silk scarf – Hermes; shirt – L.L.Bean; vest – L.L.Bean; scarf – Eileen Fisher; boots – Blondo; gloves – Nordstrom; cords – Lands’ End
As always, these pieces look great with the rest of each heroine’s wardrobe:
These pages, with all of the garments, are tough to put together, but I think they’re a lovely way to really SEE a wardrobe. Visibility is important; can you find a way to see more of your clothes?
These outfits came together very easily!
Are you in the mood for some shades of purple?
I love this plaid shirt, so I made it work! This uses the very darkest shade of purple that is present in our scarf…
Navy fleece vest – Lands’ End; purple scarf – Isidoro C’cahuantico; flannel shirt – L.L.Bean; gloves – Lands’ End; boots – Aquatalia; navy corduroy jeans – J.Crew
You will note that this year, I didn’t use down vests for each outfit. There are so many other options that I thought I should spread the love around a little bit… How nice would a fleece vest feel on a cool, damp day?
These outfits weren’t quite as easy to pull together; my detour into darker purple was a little bit limiting. But no wardrobe has to be perfectly interchangeable; you aren’t under contract for perfect versatility! Stick with neutrals for more expensive core pieces, and your shirts and sweaters can encompass the full range of colors that you’re using…
I’m always a bit excited to revisit this color palette…
Could this shirt be more perfect? And yes, I would wear the scarf and shirt together in a heartbeat, since the vest breaks up that large chunk of printed shirt. Otherwise, the 2 prints might be a bit busy for some of us…
peach cotton shirt – Lands’ End; vest – L.L.Bean; scarf – Free People; mittens – Isotoner; boots – Dr. Scholl’s; pants – Lands’ End
These colors are just great together….
I’m a one-woman crusade for mixing more casual clothes in with skirts and dresses… French women do it!
A very modern scarf with a very classic color palette:
I was SO tempted to find a different vest, but I kept coming back to this one. It’s a statement, without being outrageous in any way…
silk scarf – Hermes; navy & white plaid shirt – Caslon; burgundy faux shearling vest – Caslon; scarf – Marina D’Este; burgundy cashmere gloves – Bloomingdale’s; burgundy boots – Trotters; navy corduroy pants – L.L.Bean
I’m not sure about the balance of navy and beige in this wardrobe; time will tell!
When you’re headed out in hot weather, but you know that you’re going to need a 2nd layer to stave off the ravages of air conditioning, don’t forget your button-front shirts!
I’ll let you in on a badly-kept secret: I think I included 1 too many accent colors for this upcoming wardrobe…
But I like all of these accents…. sigh…
silk scarf – Hermes; orange plaid shirt – L.L.Bean; orange vest – Vineyard Vines; ivory infinity scarf – Evelyn Monteza; ivory gloves – Isotoner; brown boots – 27 Edit; brown corduroy pants – L.L.Bean
In December, I would like to analyze the completed wardrobes; I can already see something here that I might have done differently! But this is the normal way with wardrobes – they’re NEVER going to be perfect, and we can’t beat ourselves up because what’s hanging in our closet doesn’t look exactly like something on the internet. That kind of pressure serves nobody…
For a heroine who’s comfortable wearing red and orange together, this is no problem. But these outfits weren’t easy to find…
To our final scarf – I love this design (and Belovedest gave me this scarf in the black and white color combination!) The addition of green to this palette may prove to be wise, or not…
Yes, I have this shirt on order; I need a new flannel shirt and this ticks ALL my boxes! (it comes in Petite, which makes button-front shirt possible for my sturdy torso and short arms!)
silk scarf – Hermes; black & white flannel shirt – Lands’ End; olive vest – Barbour; olive scarf – Banana Republic; black gloves – UGG: olive boots – Bueno: black corduroy pants – Lands’ End
Olive green is annoying… This wardrobe might suffer from a range of greens that aren’t happy dancing together…
The scarves are essential to tie these outfits together into coherent ensembles…
This month I’m really loving the grey and shades of orange wardrobe. I know that I look like a 3-day corpse in orange, but the overall harmony, and variety, of that wardrobe appeals. This month!
What’s your favorite? Do you wobble back and forth between a couple of them?
I’m going to try REALLY HARD to figure out what appeals to me in these wardrobes, and try to apply that learning to my own happy closet…
love,
Janice
p.s. Glance back to 2 years ago, when I was doing this same post with 6 different scarves! The wardrobes are so similar, yet SO different…
Like this article? Save it to Pinterest!
I broke out my red/white/blue plaid top last week. I am SO ready for fall! I did wear it with shorts. But, as you point out, when it is 98 degrees (& humid in the south) outside and 68-70 inside, one needs a cover over a sleeveless top. But this post does push to the front of my plan that I need to invest in some black booties this year. I keep seeing the “Blondo” brand and am researching them for durability and flexibility. Our falls and winters aren’t very snowy but it does get quite wet. And I’m thinking of searching for some gloves with personality, too, to throw into the mix.
Thank you again for the time and hard work you put into all of the posts but especially the monthly one! It is the favorite of many of your devoted fans! ??
These collections are developing beautifully but my preference remains with the Rosace de Janos wardrobe. The cooling of my autumn skin tone and greying hair means I need bright colours on top to give me definition which fits right in with the first collection. Somehow blues and pinks have crept into my personal wardrobe without me realising it but those colours simply sit well with me at this time. The Rosace de Janos collection with touches of pinks and greens allows my wardrobe to be seasonless as well as encompass a range of options from casual to more formal. Thanks Janice for helping me to focus my wardrobe.
I enjoyed the last wardrobe this time. You may have to live in a hot climate for this, but the woman with this wardrobe might consider wearing the green vest over the black sleeveless top and dress. I have black cotton vest I wear this way over tank tops in the late summer, and I’ve really enjoyed being able to layer even when it’s hot. The grey and pink wardrobe is by far my favorite of this collection; for myself I’d trade the peach for a dusty plum and be very happy.
I love seeing what you do with all of these. To me it is just like magic that you can do this with all these different color palettes. There is no one in particular but I do find elements in some of each that really speak to me – I love that olive vest soooo much I stopped in the middle of your post and ordered it!!!
Have you thought for next year of continuing basic weekly wardrobe for accessories, footwear, and outerwear? Fashionable rain boots have me stumped. I’m going to go look at those blondo’s.
Thanks for all you do, Janice!
I feel like I got the last olive vest in existence….and then, it is sooo dark as to be almost black! I took a chance also on a smaller size running a bit large – fit like a glove, but with no room for a sweater. It is a beautiful vest, if you are truly a size 10 & a bit curvy and are looking for a very, very dark olive green vest, you will love this. I am crushed : (
We’re all different. I can’t imagine why you think you’ve got too many accents in the Jeu de Soie wardrobe, that’s my favourite. And of course red goes with orange!
bless you!
hugs,
Janice
OMG that faux shearling vest from Nordstrom. I’m SO tempted to get the olive-ish color. SO tempted…..
I can see you wearing that SO MUCH!!!!
xoxoxoxoo
Each month I see a wardrobe that seems to be skewing too much in one direction, ignoring one of the colors. Then the next month comes and you pull that color in balancing the whole wardrobe. I’ve been following your posts for about two years and I’m finally beginning to see a cohesive wardrobe based around neutrals of navy/gray and summer accents of pink/chambray blue and adding wine in the fall. While I can’t buy a whole new outfit each month, as time goes on and I stick to my plan, I’m seeing it all beginning to come together. Thank you for the continued inspiration. p.s. I would also love the gray/coral wardrobe, but it would make me look sickly too.
I can’t picture fitting a flannel shirt under a cardigan. I tend to wear men’s flannel shirts and my cardigans are more fitted. I can wear my flannel shirts as cardigans.
Holy moley, Janice – sensory overload! Or better, a FEAST for the senses! Loving all the colors, and imagining the textures of all those gorgeous pieces. I’d love to pile them all on a bed and just wallow around. You truly are an artist in how you choose these pieces and put these wardrobes together. I am often inspired by you as I stand in front of my closet – or open suitcase! Please know how much we enjoy these painstakingly-crafted collections.
These are simply yummy combinations. My adorable daughter just started teaching and needed an overhaul to transition from college to professional. I’m glad I bought her a few investment pieces in high school (they still fit!) She’s Asian and happens to look lovely in bright, clear colors so I relied a lot on black as a base. But, she’s also fantastic in all the blues as long as they’re clear in tone. So- that first capsule of blue/black/white is wonderful for me to get ideas to add to her wardrobe. She has to be careful about putting grays or browns next to her face–and our outdoor/casual location plus classroom kind of eliminates too much white (unless its summer.) So we decided royal blue is a pretty good neutral when you consider how many blues AND an occasional shot of red or coral will work with it (and my daughter’s complexion.) Again…I love your website and continue to learn from it.
I like the orange vest. Looks warm and orange is great color for walking at autumn. You can feel like the part of the nature and even if the weather is no good, your mood could be OK. With neutral accessories (scarf, gloves and boots) looks nice. I’m waiting for jeans and bag from October to put together another casual outfit.
The brown wardrobe is really interesting. At first sight looks like there is a lot of questions, but later it turns out there are more out of the pretty solutions.
I’m still thinking about navy and brown. They are still separate in this wardrobe. It’s pity, but maybe it’s better with so many visible accent colors.
I look forward to your choice!
https://sewrandom.blogspot.com/2019/10/12-months-12-outfits-september.html
I had everything well before 9/30 but this has been a crazy fall…finally got some pictures! Not much sewing this month, lol, all I did was hem the pants.