The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

The Vivienne Files - Page 174 of 261 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

Travel Capsule Wardrobe Packing with Scarves: Missoni

October 31, 2014   One of my most loyal readers recently purchased this scarf and wanted to know what I would do with it - the answer is, of course, a LOT. One of the many joys of a scarf from Missoni is that they contain a wealth of colors that you wouldn't otherwise put together. I don't know why I saw bright pink here - when you get your nose right up against the scarf, it's not really there. There's teal, as well as a softer sage green, quite a bit of light blue, some slate greyish blue, navy... Lots of things to consider...   Missoni scarves are available in a lot of places, and often on sale. Different vendors get different designs, so if you have your heart set on one particular color scheme, don't forget to check ... View the Post

A Capsule Wardrobe Project 333 Update, and a Request

I don't talk about it much, but I am pursuing Project 333 in an effort to really learn WHAT I wear most, and what I should thus be keeping in my wardrobe, and perhaps investing in when I start shopping for clothing again.  (I don't plan to buy anything for at LEAST 2 or 3 months, at this stage...)   This is the clothing that's currently in my Project 333.  I've got two things in here that aren't making much sense - the short-sleeved COS dress is wonderful, but I'd have to layer it, and for some reason that seems to keep it in the closet rather than on the back.   And the blue jeans?  I don't HAVE blue jeans anymore...  They got to be so much too big that they were donated.  Things are not pretty when ... View the Post

Start With Nature: Autumn Leaves, a Four Pack

October 29, 2014   Over the weekend, we had an absolutely beautiful day on Saturday - bright, clear, and warm enough to walk for miles.  As we neared home, we passed this tree, and Belovedest took a photo of it for me.  

In order to really hone in on the leaves, I've cropped down the photograph to a handful of leaves, and isolated just three colors.  It's easy to get overwhelmed when you see something beautiful - focusing really closely on one small thing can help a lot to clarify which colors captivate you most.  

  This seemed like a wonderful opportunity to find a beautiful winter coat! A core of brown, simple clothes make a good base...  

  For an overnight business trip, ... View the Post

Start With Nature: Panicum Shenendoah, aka switchgrass… a Four Pack

October 28, 2014

  So what do you do if your favorite color scheme includes colors that are just plain difficult to wear together?  This beautiful grass (growing in the Lurie Garden, about a 10 minute walk from chez nous) includes some striking colors, but it isn't at all simple to find ANYTHING, clothes or accessories, that include the two colors...  

  But these are really pretty...  

  So you just have to accept that you might wear them separately most of the time, until and unless you find things that bring the colors together.  As long as you stick with your neutral core, these kinds of "color conundrums" aren't really limiting!  

 

  love, Janice ... View the Post

Living the (Fantasy) Life…

Maybe you remember my post about not being a movie character?  That's got to be one of the most difficult parts of wardrobe discipline...  The "pop up" ad that I'm seeing most often is the beautiful picture at the top...  Not that she's not pretty, and not that the dress (is it a dress?) doesn't look fabulous, but REALLY????  This is what I most need for fall?  In downtown Chicago?  I think not...

Just a loving reminder to think for youself... ... View the Post

Start With Nature: Ornamental Cabbage – a Four Pack

Why do I feel confident suggesting that this may be the only fashion ensemble in history that was explicitly inspired by a cabbage?  But I don't feel very apologetic about this - these cabbages look more like big, gorgeous flowers, with subtle colors.  Frankly, if you find colors that you like, they can come from ANYWHERE, and you never have to tell your secrets! 

It would certainly be possible to go with more pink, and a couple of different shades, but I was in a green mood...  There could also be some white in this combination, and you could use black in place of the dark grey.  I can't stress enough that you should see what YOU want to see in these colors, and adjust your choices accordingly.  The only ... View the Post

Start With Nature: Chrysanthemums – a Four Pack

October 24, 2014   Okay, some of these colors aren't easy to find, and they might be a little bit much for your entire wardrobe.  But if you have a core in taupe (or brown, or navy, or black), these colors as an accent could be a lot of fun!  

  Just as a reminder, these are the Starburst Chrysanthemums I photographed a few weeks ago - they are now frozen and quite dead, but I will love this photograph for quite a long time.  

Stumbling onto the scarf was really key!  It has the accent colors of the deep coral, the softer rose, and the yellow - everything after that was relatively simple!  Here you can see where having the core items of a coat, trousers, boots and a tote bag in your neutral ... View the Post

It’s all about packing…

This is a cheery six pack to look at on a grey day... especially since I felt the first snowflake this morning!

Check up at the top of the page - the Packing links are there!  I'm going to be working a bit more on them...  A lot of them refer to guest-posting that I did on another blog; I'm going to revise those links to take you directly to the full post, on the other site.  But for now, I think you'll find LOTS to inspire you to start pricing plane tickets! love, Janice ... View the Post

New Pages for Reference!

Look up at the top of the page, right below where the Paris pavement spells out Vivienne - you'll see new links to A Common Wardrobe, and to Project 333.  On the Project 333 page, there's a link to a free worksheet that you can use for planning your own personal Project 333.   Remember these beauties from Project 333 of years gone by?  I think the power of accessories grouped by a theme, color scheme or motif is exponentially greater than the power of accessories on their own.  Yet another reason why having a plan for your wardrobe makes good sense!  

 

 

  ... View the Post

Two Questions….

I'm trying to put together pages of links to the various series of posts from here on The Vivienne Files, and it's pretty time-consuming.  

That said, I'm planning to do pages for The Common Wardrobe, Four by Four Wardrobes, Whatever's Clean (I am starting to really love that one!), and Start With Art. Any other series for which you'd like to have ALL of the links collected onto 1 page?  Let me know...

And these are recent pictures I've taken - would any/all of these make good wardrobes?  As usual, let me know!

Love, Janice

                       

        ... View the Post

We are SO ahead of our time!

  October 18, 2014

When we were in Amsterdam last month, we of course went to the Rijksmuseum. They have lots of Rembrandt's, some Vermeers - it's worth the effort, trust me. It's a museum that will linger in our memories for the rest of our lives.

But there was one thing there that really caught my eye - our TICKETS!

 

 

  Both of the paintings are in fact details from The Night Watch by Rembrandt - arguably the crown jewel of the Rijksmuseum collection. But note the color schemes on the left side, drawn from the paintings! Remind anybody of our Start With Art? These two bit posters were outside the entrance to the museum. The first is colors taken from The Milkmaid by Vermeer:

  And this is ... View the Post