a Scarf Archives - Page 17 of 35

February 2019 -12 Months, 12 Outfits – based on 6 Hermes Scarves

February 1, 2019

First things first: after much consideration, I'm going to continue to use the Appaloosa des Steppes scarf, even though the design elements in the scarf are indeed from Kyrgyz rugs. I contacted the Kyrgyzstan embassy to ask if they were concerned or offended by this, and never received a response. After I read the Hermes website description of the design, I felt that they were using the images respectfully. I can't swear to this, but unless I get better information, I'm going to carry on. (to catch up on this conversation, check the comments on last month's installment of this series)

But don't ever hesitate to contact me about things like this; I will always take your concerns very seriously, and try to respond ... View the Post

12 Months, 12 Outfits – based on 6 Hermes Scarves

January 2, 2019

Here they are! It took me a while to choose, but I think I'm going to love these...

First up - black and white with NO red... I'm interested to see how far I can go with just 2 shades of blue as accents. Given the success of the strictly navy and white wardrobe from last year, I'm optimistic!

This year, I thought that I would start with color palettes for each scarf - I think this will make it easier for me to make certain that I'm focused, and that each month's outfit will have a good chance of working nicely into the overall wardrobe.

I'm starting with the most uncomplicated outfits possible - lots of white tee shirts! It's easy to forget how useful these kinds of garments can be...

This next ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – December 2018

December 3, 2018

Our heroines are getting holiday outfits! It might not be what they most need, but it's almost December, and in many of our lives, that means parties are coming thick and fast...

When I looked at this first wardrobe, I realized that our heroine didn't have a black cashmere cardigan! (I know, billions of people make it through life without one, but a wardrobe heroine certainly can make a case for one...)

And yes, I'm going to show you velvet jeans a lot - I am currently wearing a pair, and I'm smitten. They come in eight colors, including emerald green, a stunning bright pink, amethyst, sapphire, and lovely gold. I sized generously but not insanely large, and they fit wonderfully...

This outfit is dressy by ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – November 2018

November 2, 2018

The purchase of a serious cold-weather coat is not something to be taken lightly! First up, a ton of people will see your coat - far more (at least in a city) than will ever see anything else you wear. And of course, coats can be expensive, so you don't want to flounder around through 2 or 3 of them to get what you really like...

To clarify what's going on here, for newer readers: I started back in January by choosing six Hermes scarves, and then assembled six similar, but different, outfits - one each to "go with" each of the scarves. Each month, on or around the 1st of the month, I add another outfit, and we continue to evaluate how each wardrobe progresses.

The little square up in the top left corner ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – October 2018

October 1, 2018

It's the most fun day of the month, here at The Vivienne Files! Because I'm working on a smaller-than-normal computer monitor, I decided that I was going to make some deliberate wardrobe choices for our heroines, this month. I took a critical look at the various wardrobes, to date, and made some selections for October that fill in some (to me) pretty critical gaps! Let's see how it worked out:

This heroine didn't have a white shirt! To me, that's an easy choice to fill. A simple black cashmere sweater, and tan pants that pick up the color of the border of her scarf make a classic outfit that's perfect as a background for her scarf.

So her overall wardrobe, and accessories, look like this:

One of the ... View the Post

Choosing Accessories for a Project 333 Wardrobe? How about a template…

September 14, 2018

Monday I built a 4 by 4 Wardrobe based on this lovely scarf from the Metropolitan Museum of Art Store (they have a LOT of lovely scarves...)

Before we dive into accessories, let's remember what our final color scheme was (remember, I had to change the colors halfway through building the wardrobe!):

And the wardrobe was this; yes, I could easily have re-arranged these items to put the camel-colored items into the 2nd row to be the 2nd neutral. Proof that these templates are guidelines and NOT rules!

I've been thinking about accessories a lot... Maybe we can organize them the same kind of way we organize clothes? Let's start with the stuff that most of us MUST have (although bear in mind ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: William Morris Patchwork Scarf

September 12, 2018 Class Action Settlement She had completely forgotten that she was part of this class for the lawsuit - all she had done was fill out a few documents and mail them to the attorneys. So when she received a letter telling her that she was receiving a cash award as part of the settlement, she was delighted!

And then she saw what she was receiving, and she was overwhelmed...

"Take that trip to Paris that you've wanted..." She didn't have to be told twice!

So she started to plan, starting with her favorite scarf:

She's only going to go for a few days, and her primary goal is to do some dining... maybe a few nice lunches in the better restaurants. She's learned that this is a good way to get an excellent meal ... View the Post

When Your Wardrobe Plan Hits a Snag – Start with a Scarf: Japanese Irises

September 10, 2018

Our mythical heroine has her scarf chosen for her Capsule Wardrobe, and she's full of optimism!

And while she wants to keep her wardrobe casual, she's still going to indulge in a few pieces of clothing in more feminine, dressy fabrics...

She goes to her closet and picks the 4 garments that she absolutely, positively wants to include in her wardrobe for the autumn:

In some ways, this is a great start, because these pieces all work seamlessly together - 4 garments = 4 outfits!

So with her colors and her style inspiration in front of her, she begins to shop. Since it's going to be cooler weather (she hopes!) in the next few months, her first thought is for another shirt - a nice plaid should do ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – September 2018

September 3, 2018

No holidays at The Vivienne Files! I would never miss the chance to share one of these "6 outfit" posts...

Even though very few of us are seeing cool/cold weather, I firmly believe that it's smart to get your cold-weather clothes ready in advance. Nobody's going to give us 3 days warning that autumn is about to smack us down!

I loved the gold scarf with this otherwise monochromatic outfit...

We are far enough into the year that I now need to have a separate page for clothing and for accessories! Admittedly, a heroine who owned this wardrobe might not have NINE pairs of shoes for 9 months...

While the accent colors here are very unexpected for a "black-focused" wardrobe, I think that this wardrobe is ... View the Post

Want to try Project 333 for Autumn? How about Starting with a Scarf?

August 10, 2018

If you're not familiar with Project 333, it's Courtney Carver's brilliant idea to cut your entire closet back to 33 items, for 3 months.

I think a lot about Project 333 - it's a very tidy way to experiment with a smaller wardrobe. And it works beautifully with a 4 by 4 Wardrobe, and a stack of accessories! Let's pretend... It Was a Gift No matter how much she loves a beautiful scarf, she wasn't likely to buy it for herself! But when someone hands it to you, all beautifully wrapped, and presented with so much love, what's a woman to do?

To her, this was the perfect opportunity to organize her wardrobe for upcoming cooler weather, and for school-related functions which always seem to crop up as soon as autumn ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe in 12 Months, 12 Outfits – August 2018

August 1, 2018

Oh, THIS caught me off-guard! Somehow, I managed to forget that a new month was coming... But I did manage to get this done in time - taking care of my readers are a really important part of my life! Still, if these links are a complete hash, or if this just doesn't make any sense at all, let me know and I'll work on it some more...

This is the time of year to look for the perfect outfit for the upcoming cooler weather. Maybe it's that "back to school" feeling that I get this time of year, but I like looking for a nice skirt outfit for each of our 6 wardrobes...

While this outfit might feel a little bit "Pittsburgh Pirates" to some, putting the scarf on with these pieces breaks up the black and gold, and brings ... View the Post

Can Accessories Tie Together Clashing Colors?

July 4, 2018

Some of us felt pretty uncomfortable with the grey Common Wardrobe paired with warm citrus-hued accent colors. That's okay - everybody is NOT going to like every color combination in the world!

So I thought that I would try to bring the colors closer together visually by choosing accessories with that goal in mind...

This is the color scheme with which we are working, based on this really cool painting:

While the first wardrobe from this painting - with brown and beige neutrals - looked great with gold jewelry, now that we've changed our core neutrals to cool grey, I'm thinking that silver jewelry is the direction to take...

It's always reasonable and smart to have a plan when you're pulling together ... View the Post