September 7, 2023
Art can be the inspiration for your accent colors; your favorite neutral doesn’t actually HAVE to be in the painting!
It translates as “Forest Clearing in Fog with Moon”
“You Know it Could Snow…”
Yes, she knows…
But they’re going for a couple of weeks, and she has no intention of cancelling, or coming home early, just because of a little bit of cold weather!
Navy cashmere crewneck sweater – J.Crew; earrings – Kendra Scott; blue tit brooch – Fable England; light blue lambswool scarf – Hortons England; teddy jacket – J.Crew; pants – J.Crew; navy cotton turtleneck – L.L.Bean; boots – Blondo
So she start her travel capsule wardrobe with a warm jacket, and 2 warm sweaters!
Cotton cardigan – J.Crew; aquamarine earrings – Starfish Project; tee shirt – J.Crew; corduroy pants – Xírena; scarf – The Met Store; jeans – L.L.Bean; sneakers – Ecco
She realistically understands that most of the time, the weather will be cool – possibly even chilly. She is not a child, and she knows how to dress warmly!
Also, she knows how to choose pretty things that make her happy!
Hat – Lands’ End; aquamarine necklace – Smilla Brav; earrings – The Met Store; navy snowflake scarf – The Met Store; muted blue tee – Lands’ End; gloves – Lands’ End; striped scarf – Lands’ End; teal shadow tee – Lands’ End; fleece cardigan – L.L.Bean; striped tee – Lands’ End; loafers – White Mountain; bag – Vera Bradley
She loves the way her travel wardrobe echoes the feeling of her current favorite painting…
This is a casual road trip, so she didn’t pack a dress or a skirt – for this vacation, a fancy meal might involve a menu and a service person, but not a white tablecloth in sight…
She’s delighted with her options:
Frankly, after this summer, the idea of some show showers sounds kind of fun – bracing and invigorating!
love,
Janice
Yes, a lot of this stuff is from the same place – if you find a company that is carrying your favorite color, it’s not crazy to stock up! It could be ages until you find a trove of your favorite color again…
p.s. Seven years ago, we looked at another “navy-based” wardrobe, with burgundy and pink!
Like this wardrobe? Save it to Pinterest!
This is perfect. Simply perfect.
Shadow teal is calling my name. What a lovely capsule!
That is a perfect packing template.
This is a lovely group! The evoked emotion of it is “restful.” Coat? Sweaters? I can only dream as the heat index in North Carolina will be 105 today!
Leaving for Yellowstone tomorrow morning or I would consider ordering a BUNCH of this capsule, oh well next time!
I love everything about this capsule – colors and garments and accessories! Knocked it out of the park, Janice!
Beautiful!
A casual capsule in navy, denim, and blue/blue-green tones is right up my alley. I love seeing the jaunty bird pin and lovely multi-tone stone necklace in this capsule because casual doesn’t have to mean un-accessorized! I always like seeing these sneakers; they come in some really great colors, too – including a “grey rose” that is such a pretty shade of taupe (on my screen anyway). The “petal rose” is a fascinating rusty pink.
I couldn’t agree more with the idea of stocking up when a brand/store is carrying a color you really like. There is truly no easier way to get pieces that will effortlessly coordinate in the column/suit/twin set color formulas than buying in the same color from the same brand. Obviously I don’t buy everything just because it’s the same color, but I make a point of searching for everything available in the color on the website before placing my order so I know what’s there; if I can add on that simple “marine teal” tank top that matches the “marine teal” cardigan I fell for (or whatever), it makes life easier.
I remember pondering in the comments a few years ago about whether I should buy the light yellow tank that was available in the color of my cardigan and went for it when Janice kindly suggested that yes, it made sense to buy because I like the modern twin set look. I ended up buying the ankle pants too, and I could not be happier with that trio of items!
Of course, there are many others who would NEVER wear light yellow pants, so that would not be a point of consideration for them. But perhaps they would find tops in sleeveless, short-sleeved, and long-sleeved versions in the same color really useful for navigating variable weather or just the changing seasons by being able to pop in the appropriate top while leaving the accessories, etc., unchanged. Relevant to recent discussions about dressiness/levels of refinement, you might buy a casual T, a smart casual top, and a dressy blouse/sweater in the color so you can more readily adjust for various events/occasions from a daily walk to a nice dinner out. (Liz Klebba at Closet Play Image calls that last idea “thinking in threes”.)
I just wish that (some) companies didn’t change their colors quite so frequently! It makes it hard to complete your little set in that color later on if they’ve switched from “marine teal” to “sea teal”…a slightly greener teal that clashes with the “marine” version…in the space of a couple months.
The Brother Rabbit scarf just made me smile.
I love these colors! I would make the shirts v-neck, but I would happily take this on a vacation.
This is the alter ego of our heroine yesterday arriving at the Gare St Lazare from Normandy. She’ll use the Paris Metro to travel to the next station for the train that will take her on holiday in the mountains. These colours so appeal to me. I love the lookback too.
I really like this and style wise it works for me besides being really great color wise. For where I live, SugarLand (Houston) it would be too warm even for our coldest days so for me I would have short sleeves t’s and lightweight joggers instead of corduroy. But I could take this as is to visit my daughters in MI, CT and CO.
One August, I took the girls to visit my parents in northern Montana. We accompanied them to a causal backyard wedding of a girl from their church. It was cold! Dad kept saying, “I bet there’s going to be snow!” Guess what? The next morning we awoke to snow on the ground! We managed to come up with something for them to wear to go out and play, of course we didn’t have warm jackets and mittens. There was even enough snow for them to make a 2-3’ snowman. They were so excited. So if someone says, “It could snow,” my response might be “Oh, I hope so!” It might just be the fluffy stuff of memories!
I am very attracted to this capsule. My eyes took one look and went “Yes!”. Then I started to analyze how I would actually live with it. Oh no. First the colours, while gorgeous are a little too muted for my complexion, so the teal shadow and muted blue need to lose the grey and become more saturated. The navy works well, but there’s a lot of it. Maybe change out one of the second layers and one of the trousers for that great forest/hunter green. Then I can’t wear long sleeves under something so the long sleeve tees need to go. Tank tops are my go to there. Finally I might keep the cashmere but any cotton or wool is a no go for my sensitive skin. *Sigh*
The take away here for me is that the eyes can deceive. But if I engage my brain I’ll be better off in the long run.
Any way, a beautiful capsule, Janice. If it weren’t so wrong for me I’d be all over it. Lol
Beth T, I had the same thought about the Normandy Train heroine :) Janice, the painting is beautiful, and as soon as I saw it, I thought “I’m going to love this wardrobe”. And I do. It’s wonderful in every way. I have become someone who can wear a LOT of navy, and the accent colours fit right into my closet. I like the teddy bear coat and the navy sneakers. And those aquamarine stud earrings. Actually, I just reviewed the entire wardrobe, and I like and would happily wear everything! I was struck by the scarf with the stripes oriented widthways, but is that an American thing, maybe, like sports team colours? In conclusion, I’d love the wardrobe exactly as it is, in my closet, and the painting on my wall, thanks!
OMG! I love everything about this. The title of the painting is so evocative. Would it be wrong to totally replace my current wardrobe with this one?
Yes. Unless you do it over a long period of time!
hugs,
Janice
This is a gorgeous painting and so soothing! I love the muted blue and have been making some additions to my wardrobe in that shade to soften my navy items. For some reason, I just don’t wear green. It doesn’t feel right on me, so probably is not my best color. However, shades of rose have been calling my name. I can picture a relaxing painting with shades of blues and roses; it would probably involve the sea at sunset.
Sally, you are spot on for repeating that we may find unexpected ‘treasure’ when we check for other items in our colour. I regularly check for my favourites. Lily, rather than an immediate switch, maybe you could do just the accent colour for now to see if you really love it?
I like Sally in St Paul’s idea of the three tops varying from casual to less casual. (Thinking in three’s) this also works for varying weather to make a wardrobe more flexible throughout the year. As Allison experiences I too cannot tolerate long sleeves under a sweater and go for sleeveless or short sleeves. I often look at two suggested tops as a ‘wear one or the other but not both together’ option. I cannot in a million years conceive wearing a turtleneck under another sweater maybe if it is sleeveless..but that’s a hard maybe;)
Would also like to see a painting muse that actually has some colours that a) are not muted and b) are not ‘autumnal’
For instance some nice hard contrasts or funky combinations. You can do it Janice!! Looking back you’ve worked your magic in the realm of the unexpected a few times.
Well, the next wardrobe is VERY muted, but after that I will grab a painting that’s really “out there” and see what I can do! The next wardrobe is a question of proportions…
hugs,
Janice