By Season Archives - Page 2 of 17

Want to Expand a Core Summer Wardrobe? Start with Art! Untitled (Red) 1956 by Mark Rothko

May 15, 2024

Sometimes, you don't have any explanation for what you love... Our heroine felt completely smitten when she saw this:

She already has her core summer wardrobe in hand, with navy and white, and coral accents.... but these colors. OH THESE COLORS!

I feel this way about shades of purple, so I'm sympathetic...

She takes a good look at her current summer wardrobe, because you don't want to just fly off in all directions without any thought at all...

And then, she shops! This might look like a ton of stuff to add to your summer wardrobe, but I have a hunch that if many of us collected everything together that we buy between early May and the end of August, it's as much as this or more!

I know that I can ... View the Post

One Way to Plan a Summer Wardrobe

May 13, 2024

It's not happening yet in Chicago, but I understand that much of the world is already living with hot weather - too soon for me!

July is too soon for hot weather, for me. I could live in an Arctic climate, I swear...

If you wear a uniform much of the time, or you just are efficient with your clothes, you don't need a huge wardrobe for any season. Remember the Weekly Timeless Wardrobe? This is what I suggested for a core summer wardrobe from that scheme:

Unless you've completely changed sizes, or all of your clothes were destroyed, you probably already have at least a few things for summer. This is a plan to help make sure that you can actually get dressed every day - a guide to filling in the ... View the Post

March 2024 Start with a Bracelet – Sunny Lynx Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

March 29, 2024

She's pretty happy... she needs an entirely new warm weather wardrobe!

And she's starting with this as her inspiration:

She knew all along that she wanted navy and bone to be her neutrals, and when she saw these bracelets, she realized that orange would be an AMAZING accent color.... You don't see it every day!

She's a sensible woman - she started with her neutral colors, making certain that she included shorts, a pair of pants, and a skirt...

Here's where the fun started - sort of! Orange isn't the easiest color in the world to find! But she managed...

yes, I'm working with this computer ON MY LAP in a room at a skilled nursing facility... I owe Alison at Fierce Lynx Designs a big apology, ... View the Post

Looking for Unique Accent Colors? Start With a Scarf – Emiliano Ponzi Scarf by Echo

March 15, 2024

Some of us like lots of colors in our wardrobe. And sometimes, we're looking for an inspiration for a new accent color (or two...)

How about this clever and beautiful scarf for some inspiration?

Let's assume that our heroine wears black as one of her neutrals, and is interested in adding at least a couple of new things to her warm-weather wardrobe in black. She then has three really "off the beaten path" accent colors from which to choose!

Most of us can stand to replace summer pants every few years, and a nice cardigan is never a bad choice. But this year, instead of a black & white striped tee, how about butter yellow?

For some of us, this dress might feel short - others might find it just ... View the Post

Want a Warm, Simple Spring Wardrobe? Start with Art – Labor by Norbert Schwontkowski

February 23, 2024 This Year, She Wants to Keep Things Simple... Simple, like this:

She doesn't want too many things. She doesn't want lots of flowers or stripes or novelty prints. She wants calm...

Her colors are going to be drawn from this painting - she's going to use the wee table legs as her excuse to include some brown in her Spring wardrobe!

She starts with rose... this is really what caught her eye first, when she found "her" painting.... that rose wall!

Next, she finds her beige things. They're not all the same color, and that's just fine. Beige is nice that way...

Knowing that Spring isn't always warm, she feels drawn to the idea of including some brown in her wardrobe...

And last, she wants ... View the Post

January 2024 “Six Paintings, Twelve Months” – Part 1

January 1, 2024

Happy New Year!

Let's go! I'm going to try - for the first few months - to be logical and methodical about building these wardrobes, rather the way an adult might go about buying clothes...

Just in case you want to look back to where we started, this will take you there!

Let's start with this most elegant painting:

Last month/week, we started this heroine out with the most basic of garments - but still enough for a couple of outfits!

Since this heroine lives where it's pretty cold, she thought that dark pants might be logical - it could snow! Maybe...

And she wanted an accent cardigan...

At this very early stage, she has an almost foolproof wardrobe; getting dressed in the dark might not ... View the Post

Assemble an Autumn Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Lonely by Erika Giovanna Klien

August 30, 2023

Sometimes a painting just grabs your attention and won't let go; that's how she felt about this...

Yes, she has almost black hair, and eyes that are either aqua blue or green, depending on something she can't quite figure out...

So for her upcoming trip, so thought that this would be a great inspiration!

Until the last day or 2 before she leaves, she's not sure what she will wear in transit; she decides to assemble her wardrobe far ahead of time, and then just choose her travel outfit when she knows what the weather will be.

Start with the neutrals, with some essential accessories:

yes, these are the same 5 grey pieces from last week!

Now the fun starts! She's been collecting tops ... View the Post

Year 2 – Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Taisho – Large Heat

July 21, 2023

Why yes, I DID miss the previous season - July 7, Small Heat. This year, Chicago is having a VERY cool summer, unlike so much of the world. It makes thinking about warm-weather clothing sort of difficult!

But let's pick up with the current season...

At this point in the year, when major retailers are pushing cool-weather clothing at us, we can at least find nice dresses...

If I were to only own 1 dress, this might be a candidate. The dark background would make it easy to wear dark tights and flats, with a navy sweater, in cool weather:

Similarly, this dress is made to be worn with a cardigan or blazer:

I'm currently wearing the black version of this dress, with amethyst jewelry to match ... View the Post

Year 2! Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Kokuu – Grain Rain

April 26, 2023

Why yes, 2 seasons in 3 days! It's sort of like living in Chicago...

(at least if you live with me, where being forgetful is a way of life!)

Given the scattered and disorganized way I'm living these days, I thought that a really simple, comprehensive little cluster of clothes might be something useful for me; I could open my closet and find clothes that I can wear for anything from warm to reasonably cold...

It's kind of like the stress dressing that I've addressed in the past; having enough ready any time, just in case you're suddenly invited out to lunch, or for a walk, or for a meeting with your tax preparer! (THAT is stress...)

If the weather is cool, a shirt, sweater, pants and closed ... View the Post

Adding Accessories! Start with Art: Drei Häuser By Paul Klee

April 10, 2023

I really love this painting - it seems so simple, but the more you look at it, the more the colors make themselves clear and distinct...

You may remember that this heroine assembled this wardrobe for the eventual arrival of warmer weather:

I haven't yet thought of a better way to add accessories than to go through a wardrobe and put together a bunch of outfits, and then make sure that each outfit can be dressed up (or down, I suppose?) appropriately. I don't think that there's a rigid checklist of accessories that everyone should own - some women don't wear jewelry, some don't wear scarves, some don't carry a handbag... You get the idea!

I enjoyed this - these colors are beautiful and ... View the Post

Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Shunbun – Vernal Equinox

March 20, 2023

I'm writing this on Saturday morning; the temperature is WAY below freezing... sigh...

The first day of spring is my anniversary! 19 years - it seems like almost 2 decades...

I was thinking of pretty outfits for Easter, or some other wonderful Spring dressy occasion. Having one truly lovely outfit in your closet is only right!

A dress with smocking looks MUCH better on a person, rather than just stark in a photograph...

First sign of Spring in a lot of the world:

A pretty blouse or shirt can be worn a lot in the warm weather - with a skirt, certainly, but maybe shorts?

At a distance, this skirt doesn't seem to have much pink in it - you need to ... View the Post

Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Keichitsu – Awakening of Hibernating Insects

March 8, 2023

I can't really make a good connection between emerging insects and a well-planned wardrobe... except...

Maybe we should start thinking about how we will dress when we can bring our knees, ankles, elbows and other body parts back out into the fresh air! Heaven knows that my knees haven't seen sunlight in months!

If you're in the mood to freshen up your warm weather wardrobe, THIS is the time to start looking. I think that the hang-over from the pandemic has made retailers reluctant to stock up on merchandise; I'm seeing lots of things sell out, far before the clothes are in season. Hmm...

I think it makes good sense to take a careful, critical look at things like flip flops, white pants, and anything that ... View the Post