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Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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Capsule Wardrobe Project 333, Planning, Packing, Paris, and the Unexpected

September 17, 2014  

I leave later today for Paris... and Yes, I'm excited!  It never gets old, and I never get tired of doing the same things, going the same places. This trip will be very different from most of my recent ones, because I'm going with someone who's never been there.  This will definitely add some new perspectives to how I see the city. My carefully schemed packing is going to be changed slightly, because the weather in Paris is quite a bit warmer than it is here in Chicago.  This makes me think AGAIN that it's only reasonable to be prepared for weather changes when you travel.

Last week, in Chicago, the weather went from air conditioning overnight to weather cold enough to wear gloves. ... View the Post

Start With Art: The Magpie by Claude Monet

September 4, 2014   In our mythical leisure, Belovedest and I watch art courses from The Great Courses. Our current course is The World's Greatest Paintings, in which we studied at some length the beauties of this:

 

 

Talk about mixing warm and cool colors to great effect!  I was irresistibly drawn to use this as a Start With Art subject. Note one really interesting innovation that I'm trying: rather than attempt to nail down two specific browns and greys, or one color to represent the damp and frozen branches, slats on the gate, and branches in the fence, I'm working with a spectrum of brown to darkest grey. Doing this frees you up to build a wardrobe around any color that might be found in the ... View the Post

How to Pack for Paris, again!

August 29, 2014  

Yes, there are lots more Four by Four Wardrobes on the way, but I like to mix things up a bit!

I don't leave for Paris and Amsterdam for 20 days, but I'm already starting to think this one through. This is a particularly interesting packing adventure, because I'm currently living in hot summer weather (well, hot, cool, stormy, and just plain strange...), but I know that it's going to be more comfortable in Europe. Unless it's not. Sigh...

As usual, I'm planning to dress in layers, so worst case cold weather means more layers, and worst case warm weather means just a shirt rather than a shirt and sweater. If it gets too extreme, I go shopping, or I stay in the hotel. One can't pack for every eventuality, ... View the Post

Pretty Much The Perfect Pack

August 8, 2014  

Although I had relatively little lead-up time for my trip two weeks ago, I feel like I had the perfect assortment with me.  This was a relatively easy trip for which to pack, because I knew my activities ahead of time, I knew the weather conditions, and I had access to laundry facilities - sort of the packing trifecta!While I almost always travel in pants, this time I just slid leggings under my favorite linen dress in order to stay warm in flight.  This crossbody bag is a fairly new purchase, and I really like it - it's light, lays flat, and holds quite a bit.  I admit that I might have been tempted to get the next size larger, so that my tablet would fit in it...

Please note that these are not ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Slot Machines and Packing

July 21, 2014  

Business travel is a conundrum for many of us, so I'm going to try to suggest a few ways, now and then, to approach the packing...Suppose, for example, that at the end of October, you are going to have/get to come to Chicago for a two day sales conference.  Literally only a day and a half of meetings, and then back on the plane.  You're going to have to bring a briefcase with both your laptop and tablet, so you don't really want a lot more to carry.  And being able to NOT check a suit case would be delightful...

Enter this:

So you can choose to wear anything from this little machine for travel - probably a cardigan, tee shirt and jeans, right? And pack the other six garments, as well as ... View the Post

What I Packed for Florida

May 30, 2014 I completely missed the backpacking around Europe experience - I never took a year off of school, and I never even WENT to Europe until I was 35... But I'm still fascinated by the whole experience of being THAT light on your feet - that self-contained.  So when a really nice Patagonia backpack made it into our home, I decided that I was going to give it a try.  At least once, just to know what it's like, I'm going to be a backpacker...

I loved it.  The incredible lightness of putting all of your luggage under the seat in front of you, and being able to walk for miles without wheels, was memorable.  I don't know that I'll ever do it again, but it was wonderful.

There were a few factors that made this ... View the Post

A Case for Overpacking

April 8, 2014   So a couple of weeks ago, very shortly after we got back from Paris, I learned that someone very dear to me was quite ill. I immediately offered to go help with their care-  I was thinking I would be gone for a day or two...   Normally, I have a pretty well-defined plan for emergency travel, which I outlined in a post here, way back when. To recap, this is what I recommended for a travel outfit:  

  and this is what I suggested one might pack...  

  But I was only going to be gone a couple of days, right? So I traveled in this:  

  and packed this (not exactly these garments, but these are a fair representation of what I DID ... View the Post

Three Garments – Four Seasons

April 1, 2014   The clothes I bought in Paris are going to have to do a lot of heavy lifting, so I've been giving some thought to how many different ways I can wear them.  Here are my ideas, so far...   First up, the dress that I bought at French Trotters.  It's not available, but it's rather similar to this dress (mine has a bit more clearly defined pattern).  I know that I can wear this with a turtleneck layered underneath, warm tights, boots and a scarf - I did that in Paris!  But I can also scale it back to just leggings and flats, or sandals and bare legs...  

 

 

  Next, I want to make sure that I get maximum utilization from my new striped tee shirt. ... View the Post

Warm Weather Travel in Navy and Coral – Step by Step

March 28, 2014  

Everybody's eager to start packing for warm weather destinations, and I'm often asked for specific color combinations - especially those with navy.  One of my most loyal readers asked me for navy, white and coral a while back, and I'm delighted to be able to finally fill her request.

 

The travel outfit is, as always, very uncomplicated.  Long pants, shoes with closed toes and heels, a cardigan, and a scarf are all essentials that I include.  

  If you're only going away for a long weekend, a six-pack will do.  Working with your three colors, you can choose six garments, a scarf and some accessories...  

  And you have all of these options to ... View the Post

How to Pack for Springtime in Paris: Sunshine and Clouds

March 22 2014   This post was originally on A Femme d'un Certain Age on March 28, 2012.  If you've never browsed through her ginormous archives, there' a world of loveliness there...   And if you're one of the lucky ones that wear yellow well, then GET TO IT!  The rest of us swoon with desire when we see it, and envy you your ability to look so fabulous in it...  

Grey blouse – Diane von Furstenberg, stud earrings – J.C. Penney, Scarf – Anne Selby, Blazer – Preen, grey pants – Reiss, silver loafers – J. Crew, grey sequined tote – Deux Lux    

Yellow sweater – Burberry Brit, grey tee – American Vintage, grey pearl earrings – Lord & Taylor, flower earrings & bracelet  – ... View the Post