The Vivienne Files - Page 187 of 262 - Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

Neutral Accessories: Shoes Part 1

May 15, 2014

One of the keys to putting together a truly effortless wardrobe is to assemble the minimum necessary clothes and accessories, so that getting dressed is a nearly foolproof exercise.Once you've made it through the most difficult step - deciding what your basic neutral is going to be - you just gradually stock up on basics and move forward...

The most important accessory?

Neutral Shoes

You've got to have shoes. Not a ton of them, and not with insane stupid heels, but a few good timeless styles that can take you almost anywhere.

For my world, I narrowed down all of the world's available footwear to six pairs: a pair of flats, a pair of pumps, some loafers, a pair of sandals, some ... View the Post

How to get “stress dressed”…

May 14 2014 I am asked this question often - is there anything I can do to be prepared when I have one of those mornings and I just can't get dressed? Today's a particularly appropriate day for me to write this, because I'm wearing my version of this today - head to toe black with accessories... For me, the best way to be prepared for this is to have ten items - six garments and four accessories - specifically assigned (in my mind, at least) for these days when everything feels like it's falling apart. You can work this in any color scheme, and the garments in question are an excellent base for both a travel wardrobe or a new simpler closet. You have to accept that you're going to wear a very simple ... View the Post

Start With Art: The Girl with A Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer

May 13, 2014

The most beautiful color scheme, combining warm tobacco brown, black, and brilliant blue and golden yellow highlights... That Vermeer guy was good!

One nice warm outfit, for in transit, or for a sudden cold snap, and some beautiful silky solids...

A simple outfit, and a nice basic dress:

A much less basic dress, and a warm-weather outfit with an over-shirt for air conditioning.

And a few extra pieces, for versatility!

love,

Janice

Looking Back:

2012 - one of my readers had a piece of jewelry that she wanted to wear more, and so I suggested What to wear with a ... View the Post

Looking Back…

2011

May 10th - I described how I struggled and how I was Traumatized by Trench Coats. May 11th- She's pretty opinionated! Vivienne Veto: Long Toenails... (ick)

2012

May 10th - When I wrestled with cleaning out my closet, I faced A dilemma, and a wardrobe math solution. May 11th- I love these questions - someone asked me What to wear with a scarf: Hermes l'Ivresse de l'Infini.

2013

May 10th - I forced myself to answer the question "Do you actually WEAR your favorite clothes?" May 11th - One more post in which I was Closing the triangle of Hot Pink, Turquoise and Orange; traveling again with Hermes Fleuri de Provence. ... View the Post

How to Shop via Mail Order, Successfully

May 10, 2014

Within an easy 30 minute walk of where I'm sitting right now, there are at least a couple of hundred clothing stores - good, bad, and absolutely ridiculous. But as often as not, I order new clothes over the internet and have them delivered here to the apartment. And I find, more and more, that the things that I buy through my computer turn out to be better purchases than those that I pick up in the store. How does this happen?

I've finally (53 years into the project) learned that there are some definite advantages to sitting in one's own home, making clothing decisions. Trying to figure out the reasoning behind all of this lead me to some guidelines that might work well for you, too.

Just buy some ... View the Post

Chic Sightings: Black Cardigans – Great Dresses

May 9, 2014 Now that summer has arrived with crashing suddenness in Chicago, the quality of Chic Sightings has changed completely. At lunch time today, it seemed that half the women walked out of their cubicles wearing a black cardigan... As soon as they got into the sunlight, the sweaters came off, and beautiful dresses, lovely shoes, and perfectly-chosen jewelry took center stage.

love, Janice

Looking back:

2012: One of my readers asked me about how to use a monochromatic scarf, in What to Wear With an Hermes Scarf: Peinture Fraiche.

2013: Balancing concerns about coverage and climate can be a challenge, and I tried to address this concern about Dressing modestly in a hot ... View the Post

Building a Capsule Wardrobe by Starting with a Scarf: Dark Pool version 2

May 8, 2014 Maybe, when you first saw this painting (or scarf) you saw the end of it with the black and red accents, and not the pastels...

The way you fold a scarf can make a huge difference in what's shown or concealed - the beautiful Mai Tai is a master at showing you how this works (and just, in general, how to wear a scarf to brilliant effect.) So if you're more drawn to the high-contrast interpretation, here are some very different ways to approach the same neutral garments that I used yesterday. (I know, I'm lazy...) Using black or white instead of a pastel immediately changes the whole feel of the capsule.

Scarf – Elizabeth Blackadder’s Dark Pond, sweater – Uniqlo, ... View the Post

Start With a Scarf: Dark Pool by Elizabeth Blackadder

May 7, 2014

A couple of years ago, the National Gallery of Scotland held an exhibit of the works of Elizabeth Blackadder. I've been hard-pressed to find an actual picture of the painting from which this was drawn, but this is a great scarf, with some interesting possibilities.Today I've chosen to focus on the accent colors on one end of the scarf - the pastel apricot, rose and light blue, in order to see how they will work with the murky, sophisticated greyish green that dominates the scarf:

This sort of olive/grey shade is tough to find in clothing, but well worth seeking out if it appeals to you and is flattering - it has a depth that looks sophisticated, and lends itself well to a wide variety of garments. And ... View the Post

Start with Art: The Libyan Sibyl by Michelangelo

May 6, 2014

I am often asked to consider basing a wardrobe or a travel capsule on this most lovely of Michelangelo's works, and I have to admit that I find her sort of intimidating! The unusual color combinations, as well as the overall strength and power of her image are so striking that my brain goes a bit blank after studying her for a while.

Let me quote, at length, the excellent www.moodbook.com site's description of her:

"The Libica, or Libyan Sibyl brings pre-Christian prophecy to a close. With a graceful movement, displaying her lovely shoulders, her foreshortened arms, and the lowered profile of her fine head with its gold tresses, she lays aside the open book as if about to close it. It is a large and cumbersome ... View the Post

The Vivienne Files – Looking Back

2011

Dreaming about Paris, I talked about the joys of Paris shopping: Diwali.

2012

As we looked at all of the (sort of) timeless advice from old style books, we considered 12 ways to wear a blouse: Hot Tips by Frances Patiky Stein.

2013

I'm always thinking about travel! This Navy and Hot Pink Capsule travel Wardrobe based on 2 scarves still looks pretty attractive- clothes surely shouldn't lose their appeal after 1 year, right? ... View the Post

A quiet moment of total incredulity, in place of a rant…

Belovedest and I were married at the Chicago Cultural Center - the former Chicago Library. It's just a couple of blocks from where we now live, and it's a treasure of downtown Chicago.

On Saturdays, they schedule civil wedding ceremonies every 15 minutes in one of the beautiful rooms that overlooks Michigan Avenue. The whole crowd is great fun - weddings about to happen, or wedding that are just ending.

The rest of the time, the center has concerts at lunch time, a small cafe, a center with tourist information, and temporary art exhibits...

And now, it has these stickers on all of the doors. ... View the Post

A Winter Capsule Wardrobe, and the Full-Year Assortment, from Ma To-Do List: Dressing

May 2, 2014 Let's see if we can jointly make sense out of all of this, shall we? First off, working from the list of garments in Ma To-Do List: Dressing, I chose these garments as the Winter Capsule:

Yes, they suggested sleeveless tops for layering. The authors are in France, not Chicago... In order to anchor all of this in some neutrals, I'm going to pull in seven simple, neutral garments to act as the core of all of these lists.

So I pulled out the outerwear and the swim suit, and this is the ensemble wardrobe that you have if you take their four "capsule wardrobe" suggestions together:

Frankly, I think this isn't a bad wardrobe at all. There are enough ... View the Post