Art Archives - Page 13 of 63

How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: (Country Doctor) Night Call by Horace Pippin

March 13, 2023

She is ready to simplify. The recent report "Unfit, Unfair, Unfashionable" recommended that people living in 4-season climates should have a wardrobe of no more than 85 things - garments and shoes...

For winter, she's going to start here:

If she's going to have 85 items, that means 22 per season, with a bonus item; she's already decided that her bonus item will probably be a wool dress than can be worn all year!

The colors:

She's going to go outfit by outfit - 3 garments and a pair of shoes... And she's starting with jeans!

Next she starts with her black knit pants...

A simple grey and white outfit with jewelry:

And black jeans too! Her life is pretty casual...

She ... View the Post

Second Half of Six Paintings, 12 Months – March 2023

March 3, 2023

Let's check on our other 3 heroines!

Boy do I love these colors...

This heroine felt like she was in a pretty good spot for pants - she's got black jeans, and another pair of black pants; those of us who wear black could go for weeks with just these 2!

AND... she found 2 cardigans she loves, as well as 2 scarves that are perfect with the cardigans. So she grabs a black tee shirt to give herself that "column of a neutral color" that is so versatile, and away she goes!

Her wardrobe now has 11 garments - enough for a week-long trip, if she so chooses...

It's pretty easy to see how versatile this wardrobe can be!

If someone magically put all of this into my closet, I could certainly look pretty ... View the Post

First Half of Six Paintings, 12 Months – March 2023

March 1, 2023

I'm somewhat gobsmacked that it's already March...

Let's see what our heroines are up to!

Our first heroine is a pretty casual person - she would like to add some olive green to her wardrobe, in separates that she can wear with everything else in her wardrobe.

This is what she finds:

Oh, she now has so many possibilities! Relaxed, warm, but nicely pulled together...

She obviously can wear her new clothes together as 1 outfit, but she has other possibilities:

I love the autumn-y feeling that seems to permeate this wardrobe. This makes sense, once you look at her favorite painting!

Our next heroine has decided that she wants some dressier garments - not necessarily an outfit, but ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: In Vaudeville (Dancer with Chorus) by Charles Demuth

February 10, 2023

Everybody dance!

Options! She Wants Options...

She's not sure that she'll stay in the city for more than a day or two. She may stay longer...

Or she might get on a train out to some smaller town by her 2nd or 3rd day. She doesn't want to decide until she actually arrives in the city and get a feel for things...

Just to complicate things further (or simplify things?), she isn't sure how long she's going to travel. If she is good to keep going, she will keep going! But if home begins to beckon, she will return...

So she wants to have very little luggage. But she wants to be able to dress both up and down. AND she wants a range of colors - not all black...

She feels like she's ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Story! Travel Capsule Wardrobe inspired by The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

February 6, 2023

Hercule Poirot receives a letter from France, begging for his assistance. He tells his friend Captain Hastings that they can pack "a small suitcase each" and be on the way to France within an hour!

This is my dream life...

The oddest things will cause me to ponder what I might pack...

Of course, Captain Hastings is a man, but I've made the mental adjustment that I would want to appear conservative, somewhat unobtrusive, and appropriate for a range of activities - including lengthy conferences with incompetent police, attending inquests, and swimming in the Channel off the north shore of France...

I am in no way being guided by the cover of the book! But I'm making sure that our heroine has a suit - ... View the Post

Second Half of Six Paintings, 12 Months – February 2023

February 3, 2023

I must mention this: to me, this first heroine MUST be living somewhere warm, or at least warm-ish. It's hard to picture someone wearing this much ivory in a place where slushy streets are an issue!

Adding both the pink tee shirt AND the pants to her wardrobe this month gives this heroine a VERY pink wardrobe, but it's wise to grab things that match (or in this case - tone). Skipping 1 of these 2 pink garments because it feels like "too much pink" makes sense in the short term, but in the long term, having both pieces makes life easier...

Yep, this heroine likes pink. And she looks amazing in it!

Her 3 new garments give her lots of new options, although her wardrobe doesn't have a wide variety of ... View the Post

First Half of Six Paintings, 12 Months – February 2023

February 1, 2023

I'm already at the point where it's better to break this post into 2 posts; it's a lot to digest (or to produce!) at 1 time!

The order of the paintings is different this month; I'm hopeful that I can remember to re-order them each month to keep things fresh...

First up - the train station!

Maybe it's the single-digit temperatures today, but I realized that all of our heroines could probably use a jacket (although these are NOT the jacket one needs for the dead of winter)... Another tee shirt is pretty important at this point, and jeans or other pants.

This heroine is due for something in beautiful soft green (called "eucaluptus steam" - it feels like a humidifier when you have a cold!), and a pair ... View the Post

Accessories! Project 333 based on Morris Graves/Rain by Kay Russell

January 30, 2023

Just to refresh our memories after the weekend, our current heroine is working on a Project 333 wardrobe based upon this painting and color palette:

Her plan is to include 16 garments and 17 accessories in her 3 month plan; the clothing that she's chosen is here:

She's going to be logical about this, and work her way through an assortment of outfits, making certain that she includes the appropriate accessories for each...

Finding both earrings AND a scarf in her favorite dusty green is a small victory, I'd say!

She's going to slightly dress up with her vest - a stunning pearl brooch, and some pretty loafers will do the trick:

Something warm and casual is always useful!

Her favorite ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Morris Graves/Rain by Kay Russell

January 27, 2023

This is her favorite painting:

She wants to tackle Project 333 for February, March and April! So she's starting with her favorite outfit, and with colors that she's drawn from her favorite painting.

Of course she can't include ALL of the colors in the painting; that would be overwhelming!

These were her choice:

And this is her favorite outfit, right now:

She tries to think of things that she ABSOLUTELY must wear through the rest of the winter - dark pants, and a denim shirt come to mind immediately:

Jeans? Heavens yes! And she really loves sweater vests, so she wants to include the vest that matches her blue cardigan:

There's no way she can omit her favorite outfit for outdoor ... View the Post

Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Two Geese in the Snow by Komori Soseki

January 25, 2023

Plenty of Firewood... She agreed to go up to the cabin for the weekend, with the understanding that (1) they would stop at the deli on the way out of town and get enough food, (2) there is enough firewood up there for at least 5 days, and (3) there are NO chores for her to handle!

Oh yes, and there are birds about...

In all fairness, she has 2 books she really NEEDS to finish in the next few days (for work!), so it's not all just hanging about reading gossip magazines...

She will, of course, walk outdoors from time to time, to catch some sun (if it's out!), visit with any animals that are about, and take a break from her work.

In addition to using a favorite painting as her inspiration, ... View the Post

Accessories! Project 333 based on Composition by Ernest Mancoba

January 20, 2023

It's the 20th already? Holy chocolate-coated Buddha on a stick... So Far, So Good... Our heroine has her color scheme all sorted:

And she has all of her clothing (except for 1 piece - that's the bonus #33 item!) chosen, too:

At a minimum, I'm thinking that this heroine needs 3 pairs of shoes, a couple of bags, and some jewelry. Maybe a scarf or two...

The best way I've found to make sure that you have what you need - packing, or planning a Project 333 Wardrobe - is to work your way through a number of outfits and think about what you want to wear with the clothing.

She can't easily resist gold loafers, and a matching handbag...

A backpack is always handy - many of us have started carrying ... View the Post

Build a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with Art: Composition by Ernest Mancoba

January 18, 2023

She had always liked to wear ivory, bone, stone - those light, neutral colors.

And denim. ALWAYS denim...

So when she saw this:

She saw her color palette for the rest of the winter, right in front of her!

Although her favorite colors are lighter and brighter, she will include her black pants, at a minimum! Sometimes, you need dark pants...

To start, she pulls her 3 favorite outfits from her closet:

She realizes early on that she's not going to have a "Whatever's Clean" wardrobe - some of her clothes just aren't going to go together. That's fine, so long as the majority of her garments play nicely together and give her options...

An excellent pair of black pants are so ... View the Post