Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature
January 22, 2015 Denim blue is a great, versatile and flattering color, even when the fabric isn't denim! Imagine these six garments, along with a pair of real jeans, a white shirt, and a couple of tee shirts - the perfect simple travel capsule wardrobe. I'm ready to go on vacation ANY TIME NOW...
love,
Janice ... View the Post
June 17, 2014
It's a question that's as old as The Vivienne Files - if you're starting a capsule wardrobe from scratch, how do you start?
What an ambitious question! But after thinking about it for three years, I'm going to give it a try - a step by step approach to rebuilding your wardrobe from the ground up.
Before you buy any garments at all, you've got to make a couple of decisions. One thing you'll have to work out for yourself - which silhouettes suit you best. I'm really not qualified to answer this question for every woman, but I encourage you to address this question on your own; you know better than anybody else in the world what shapes and sizes of garments suit you best...
But the next question - truly critical - is ... View the Post
April 28, 2014
I said on Saturday that the idea of a wardrobe slot machine could be expanded, and one of my dearest friends was eager to see how this would play out. For some of us, the idea of getting dressed for work every day is just plain annoying - nobody is going to pay much attention to what we're wearing, as long as we're appropriately dressed.
So I promised her that I would show an example that would give her more than a week's worth of shirts or blouses (i.e. six), and then show how it could be expanded. Six top layers x six shirts or blouses x six pants or skirts =216 combinations.
She could literally shop once a year and then forget about work clothing for a long time... In the hottest ... View the Post
April 26, 2014
I've been in the live-in caretaker role for quite a while now - since we got back from Paris, I've only been home a handful of days... In order to uncomplicate my life, I just put some clothes into a backpack and hopped on the train, hoping for the best. Turns out that my instincts were great - I was wearing three garments, I packed six, and there was literally NO combination that wasn't wearable. I felt like my clothes were a perfectly weighed slot machine upon which I couldn't lose...
These were the clothes that I had with me: (okay, these aren't exactly the same garments. My cardigans are from Lands' End, and are years old. My denim shirt is from J. Jill and is no longer available. Everything else is Eileen ... View the Post
October 28, 2013 I found, after a few days of travelling, that the shirts and sweaters that I had packed gave me a lot more options than I had anticipated! A reminder: these are what I had in my bag:
Of course, I could wear any of these except the cardigan on their own. But as the weather, and my location, shifted, I began to experiment with different ways to layer these 5 garments. I discovered that, ultimately, I had a DOZEN options. In the coldest weather, I was able to layer three tops together for maximum warmth, and thus the Triple Top Secret was born!
But I quickly realized that, if I had chosen JUST a little bit more carefully, I could have had even more ... View the Post
Cardigan jacket – M Missoni, Cardigan – Fat Face,
Long-sleeved shirt – Organic by John Patrick, tank – Topshop, Dress – Peacocks.co.uk,
Sweater – Rag & Bone, Pants – Levi’s, Skirt – Stella McCartney
1. Shoes – Pas de Rouge, Scarf – Dennis Colomb, bag – Coach 2. Brogues – Robert Clergerie, necklace – Francoise Iberl, earrings - Mawi
3. Boots - Wetseal, scarf – Reiss, sunglasses - Fendi 4. Moccasins – Tod’s, ring – Swarovski, bracelet – Alexis Bittar
5. Flats – Chloe , scarf – Liberty of London, bag – Mulberry
6. Penny loafers – Fratelli Rossetti, Labradorite earrings – Monica Vinader, necklace – Citrine by the ... View the Post
Gray cardigan – Dolce & Gabbana, Grey tee – topshop, Grey sweater – The Row, gray trousers
– Burberry Brit, Black blazer – Rag & Bone, black tee shirt – Derek Lam, black pants –
Rag & Bone, black draped skirt – Vivienne Westwood
Brown cardigan – Hope, tee shirt – Michael Stars, brown sweater – Vanessa Bruno, brown pants
– Edun, cream blouse – Theory, cream sweater – Topshop, cream corduroy pants – Twenty8Twelve,
cream skirt – Maxmara Studio
Chambray shirts – J. Crew, chambray skirt – A. P.C., Pants – Levi’s Made & Crafted, camel
jacket – Forte forte, camel shirt – Equipment, camel ... View the Post
Cardigan – Kain Alva, Blue linen shirt – Aubin and Wills, Orange tan – Topshop, White tee shirt – Vanessa Bruno, Orange Linen pants – J. Crew, White linen pants – Marc Jacobs, Silk skirt – Bruce II, silk scarf - Hermes
The wardrobes just keep getting harder! The request for this wardrobe was: "I am a short, graying brunette in her early 60’s woman who lives in the South (think 4 seasons with an emphasis on hot & humid but occasional snow/ice). I think Katherine Hepburn with more colors would be my inspiration. Casual, few skirts/dressy itesm, but chic. I love the colors of the sunset and sky plus silver/pewter jewelry with black, charcoal or dark jeans as the ... View the Post
