The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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Japanese 24 Seasons of the Year – Tōji – Winter Solstice

December 21, 2022

The days start getting longer tomorrow! And while I'm quite ready for a big massive snowstorm (I love snow...), I'm also ready for a bit more daylight. 

We live in a place just a bit too far south, and too brightly lit, to ever see the Northern Lights. Sigh...

For no clear reason I can offer, this post turned into 3 pairs of outfits - maybe I'm thinking about the balance of the solstice?

First up - a 2-piece dress!

You could pack the 2-piece dress, and then this sweater and pants; you would at that point be ready for at least a couple of parties!

Doesn't this look frigid, and beautiful?

If you find a scarf that you like somewhere, it makes sense to look at that same retailer for ... View the Post

Start with a Bracelet: Legendary Lynx Bracelets by Fierce Lynx Designs

December 19, 2022

It Was - Literally - Decades Ago... It was her debut novel, and it was a blockbuster. She really never needed to write another book...

Of course, she keeps writing. And winning awards. (oh, she wins awards...)

And appearing at book conferences, and signings, and literary conventions and all that sort of thing!

She tries to keep a pretty low profile. She dresses in her usual "writer who lives in a little house on the edge of a little town near a big city" style, in subtle, neutral colors...

She rather likes her chosen style! Comfortable styles in slightly dressy fabrics...

 

But she's not kidding anybody - her fans will find her!

She has to admit, in her deepest heart, ... View the Post

Start with a Scarf: Leshy by Ilona Tambor

December 14, 2022

There are six different "Leshy" scarves...

It Happens Every Year, at This Time... Everybody who celebrates one of the "Winter Solstice" traditional holidays starts complaining that we should celebrate on the 21st... or that we should only decorate our trees with things that birds can eat...

And every year, at this time, there's a major academic conference somewhere that is centered around all of the forest deities and Druid-like ceremonies that are in season...

She's one of the world's authorities on Leshy, the legendary forest creature. Sometimes cruel, sometimes kind - he's pretty complicated! And he's NOT a brown bear; she's still going to wear the scarf.

For some reason, these conferences ... View the Post

Part 3 December 2022: Six Scarves, 12 Months

December 7, 2022

Our last 2 heroines! I grow attached to these projects...

First, let's visit our heroine with the Chrysanthemum scarf:

This heroine isn't planning to dress up much this season - she's more interested in warm and casual!

Her wardrobe of 40 garments looks coherent and very versatile:

And her accessories are wonderful - accessories make so much difference...

Her new garments can be worn more than 2 different ways (each), but she makes certain that she has at LEAST those options...

And now to my favorite heroine - the one who figured out that wearing brown and black together is magical!

THE BLAZER. Oh great shiny chocolate-coated Buddha on a bagel, THE BLAZER...

If I could wear ... View the Post

Part 2 December 2022: Six Scarves, 12 Months

December 5, 2022

Sometimes, heroines don't need sequins or beaded trim to dress up!

I think that it makes sense for most of us to have a beautiful blouse or top in our favorite accent color, though!

If you want to look luxurious and elegant, but NOT frou-frou, these tops might be just right for you!

Although relatively few of her garments are frilly or lacy, this wardrobe still has a pretty feel to it...

And her accessories are lovely... I'm always smitten with accessories!

Such a fun range of outfits are possible from this wardrobe:

This next wardrobe is finally starting to look coherent, to my eye. Sometimes it takes a while!

Our heroine stumbled onto a few pieces in her favorite shade of ... View the Post

Part 1 December 2022: Six Scarves, 12 Months

December 2, 2022

I always think of "finishing" these wardrobes for the December posts - but I'm realizing (after a TON of these posts!) that there is never a finished wardrobe. You might well be at a point that you have everything you need for the foreseeable future, but things will wear out. You will change your tastes. Your body will change. Oh, how things wear out...

So for this last post, I'm adding jeans to EVERYBODY'S wardrobes, as well as a couple of tops...

This wardrobe has been a lovely study in a couple of things:

How you can bring an accent color into your wardrobe without matching every piece (both the green and the pink here have garments that don't match!) How many pairs of pants you can have in your ... View the Post

Start with Art: A Peasant Woman by Edgar Degas

November 30, 2022

 

Why yes, it suits her to a T...

The Confectionary Rep...

She goes to all of those gigantic food conferences - she's responsible for over a dozen of the booths that showcase small chocolate and caramel makers...

She doesn't have to actually be IN the booths - she hires lovely staff for that! But she does get to wander around, offering samples to people, and chatting with customers who seem to be legitimately interested...

She loves dressing in "chocolate and caramel" colors, with a touch of ivory whipped cream!

One company has mentioned that they might started making chocolate-covered cherries!

She sees a beautiful red sweater in her future...

love,

Janice

p.s. ... View the Post

Accessorizing! Adding to a Navy, Green & Yellow Wardrobe

November 28, 2022

It has only been a few days - I'm sure you remember the wardrobe that we looked at last Wednesday!

I left that heroine with almost no accessories...

My favorite approach to adding accessories to a wardrobe is to choose a range of outfits, and then accessorize each outfit with what they need. After the 2nd outfit, I find that I can start re-using shoes, at least!

If you can find a lovely pair of shoes in your accent color, consider grabbing them! Some of us don't feel comfortable with accent shoes, but other people look amazing in them:

A seasonal brooch and a dressy bag will make it possible to wear an otherwise "not really dressy" outfit to all kinds of events:

Accent socks! And a scarf ... View the Post

Building a Cool Weather Wardrobe 1 Garment at a Time

November 23, 2022

This is her favorite outfit, right now. She wants to build a small wardrobe for the upcoming couple of months using this as her starting point:

Normally I would suggest her first garment should be a clean shirt, but that's not going to look much different - her green sweater covers most of her torso so the shirt isn't super visible...

But swapping out sweaters? This will make a big difference in how her outfit looks:

NOW, we find her another top to wear under either sweater. I've chosen a turtleneck because (1) it's wintertime in the Northern Hemisphere and (2) it will show under her green sweater!

Next obvious thing to find is another "bottom." Our heroine assures me that she doesn't want ... View the Post

Start with Art: Le Grand Bois by Auguste Morisot

November 18, 2022

This is where she's going, more or less...

1/4 Mile off the blacktop road... You know when these are the directions, you're going to be off the beaten track!

And that's what she needs - she has writers' block...

Normally, she would go sit in a café and people-watch, but this time she's going to look inside for inspiration, rather than outside.

She's only going for a couple of days. She's got enough coffee and food for breakfast, and maybe lunch. She WILL go into town for dinner...

But she will have no internet connection. No Wi-Fi, no streaming video, no texting... the cabin has a landline, and a television that gets 3 network channels.

Quiet, dark, and trees...

She's a ... View the Post

Start with Art: A Winter’s Tale by K. Neil Swanson

November 11, 2022

Wouldn't this make a wonderful scarf?

And for those of us who love navy, this is a beautiful inspiration!

Do You Know Someone Like This? Her Christmas tree is decorated with birds. She has bird feeders outside her windows. She just loves birds - she doesn't have to explain this to anybody!

And so when she's assembling a wardrobe for cool weather - especially for a trip! - she turns to her favorites animals for inspiration.

She starts with her essentials:

Her chosen inspiration has a wide variety of possible accents, but these are what she's chosen for this particular wardrobe:

She could probably pull together an outfit that clashes a bit, but generally speaking this is a "Whatever's ... View the Post

I Love It, But Will I Wear It? Grey (?!?) Twinset

October 31, 2022

It's described as grey on the Boden website, but it really looks more taupe to me, and to the reader who wrote to me with her concern...

What do you do if these sweaters arrive in your home, and they're lovely and fit beautifully and you really like them, but they're a color that is completely new to you?

My first thought is to treat this color like an accent color; if you can find shoes that match, it's a bonus!

The cardigan could be worn over any other color with the same intensity and saturation i.e. any soft, kind of muted pastel...

Of course, you can always wear the 2 pieces with pants or a skirt in your favorite neutral...

Yes, you've seen this skirt before! I've found that my pleated ... View the Post