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Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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A Travel Capsule Wardrobe in 3 Moods; Start with Art: Composition by Mainie Jellett

January 14, 2022

Curtain Call Her latest major work - a 3-movement symphony - is debuting this weekend, at the gala opening of THAT orchestra...

For years, these have been her colors, and her inspiration for clothing:

Mood #1 - Nervous, to the point of feeling "green around the gills" She's taking the train, and then will have a handful of interviews; it's not every day that a work by a woman composer is the finale of the Grand Gala!

note: this green turtleneck comes in 9 other colors...

Mood #3: Peachy-keen, after the concert! Once it's all over, she will be just fine! Since she gone to the trouble of making the trip, she's going to stay at least the entire next day, and possible into a 2nd day...

Her regular ... View the Post

December 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Resourceful Lynx Bracelets

December 22, 2021

THESE are so lovely:

And these bracelets have given our heroine the perfect inspiration for her upcoming travel:

Probably Gone for Months... They tell her. She's going to visit at least a dozen cities, and depending on who wants to meet with her, she could stay for almost a week in each city! Oh my...

And she really won't have time, nor inclination, to think about getting dressed! Further, she's hopeful that the publicity photographs from this tour will reflect an image of her as consistent, serious, but not grumpy...

So she built herself a uniform! A navy column, five sweaters, and she's ready to go!

The tank tops, tee shirts, and turtlenecks will all pack into 1 packing "sleeve." They go ... View the Post

Start with Art: Southern Window by Louis le Brocquy

December 17, 2021 Not Feeling Festive...

It hasn't been a festive year for her, and she is really struggling to get in the mood for her holiday trip...

But, assuming that she will be able to travel during the health crisis, she knows that she's going to have to pack! Her family doesn't do anything amazing for the holidays - she will spend a lot of days in the house with the older family members, and some time walking outdoors with younger people. Cooking, helping clean up, reminiscing...

She decides to pack mostly neutrals - grey, navy, brown, and ivory - with a couple of pieces in dark green. It will be an interesting challenge to mix things together, and will be somber enough to reflect her state of mind. This is NOT ... View the Post

Accessorizing a Navy, Ivory and Pale Pink Capsule Wardrobe

October 27, 2021

As nifty and attractive as this wardrobe is, it's really the accessories that make it work!

You may remember from last week that when I chose 2 pink garments to add to this wardrobe, I also added these accessories:

Lovely as these are, they will NOT be enough for any normal person!

For years, I've been trying to come up with a "Master List of Accessories" that everyone should have; for years, I have not succeeded!

And I think this is okay - accessories are far too personal to be structured in this way. One of my closest friends wear a TON of jewelry - literally at least 10 pieces at any one time. Another of my friends wear earrings - maybe - every now and then. I'm not going to give either of ... View the Post

A Common Wardrobe in Navy and Ivory, accented with Potpourri pink

October 20, 2021

I'm been looking at the Pantone Spring 2021/22 colors; looking may be as far as I get with some of them - there are a couple of truly odd colors on this list!

But we can always start with a neutral wardrobe core, and then use one of the more accessible of the colors for accent, right?

This version of The Common Wardrobe is not a long way from the original, shown below. The jeans are unchanged, the knit pants, long-sleeved tee and cashmere turtleneck are navy rather than black.

For other garments, I tried to stick with the original role that the garment played - 2nd layer, top, bottom - and then looked for a navy or ivory version, in a "long over short" option.

Today's heroine has been wearing her navy ... View the Post

Start with a Sweater: Sailcloth Fair Isle sweater from L.L.Bean

September 22, 2021

It wasn't a complicated request, but it has someone stumped: "Can I build a small wardrobe for going back to my office, using this sweater as the inspiration?"

My answer to most questions: Heck yes!

First things first - what colors are in this sweater, anyway?

A pretty straightforward color palette!

Let's start with a couple of outfits that our friend had in mind, and then a couple more that I imagined. You know that I'm always going to find a pair of ivory corduroy pants if at all possible:

Our friend very much wanted a light blue shirt - and I was able to find one that seems to be very close to the same shade as found in her sweater!

I love a grey shirt - I can't explain it at all! ... View the Post

Start with A Scarf: The Robin Scarf in Midnight Blue, from Aspinal of London

September 8, 2021

  Bird Watching, of a Sort... She started with this - it was an irresistible urge to own this scarf that got it all rolling...

 

The color palette was pretty obvious - she already had plenty of grey and navy with which to work...

Her only plans for her trip are to sit in a cafe, or a restaurant, or outside a museum, and watch the world go by. Bird watching - if you use the term "bird" to refer to young women!

She just wants to see youth, and individuality, and distinctive personal style as worn by the women of her favorite city. She's happy to just look appropriate, and be warm and comfortable!

So she starts with her travel outfit:

She doesn't really know how much she can get ... View the Post

Start with Art: Stargazing by Helen Frankenthaler

August 13, 2021

Happy Friday, the 13th!

We often ponder the merits of having a LOT of accent colors in a wardrobe... I think this post might offer an idea of how to manage them all!

This heroine understands that she needs quite a bit of navy to establish a base for her wardrobe. After that - watch out!

She starts with this - yes, it looks familiar:

Of course, I would be perfectly happy with this - I'm content with neutrals. But our heroine has other ideas, starting with bright blue!

Just out of curiosity, this is what her wardrobe would now look like with these additions. Yes, it gets her to a "4 by 4" Wardrobe plus 1 garment:

But she's just getting started - let's toss in 4 pieces in bright ... View the Post

July in August 2021 Start with a Bracelet: The Fierce Explorer Bracelets

August 11, 2021

It's nice to know that I'm not the only person around who gets their dates confused and loses track of time! An Open-Ended Plane Ticket The settlement was large, as was only fitting. She quit her job the next day, and now she's going to start her roaming where the weather feels like early fall; as soon as the weather gets too cool, she's going to hop a train and head a bit south...

Eventually, she will have to buy clothes. But that's for later...

She knows that she's only packing a carry-on bag. Originally, she planned to limit all of her clothes to navy and grey, but then her bracelets caught the light...

She's going to wear her current favorite outfit on the first leg of her voyage...

And she's ... View the Post

What does a 13-Piece Weekly Timeless Wardrobe Look Like?

August 9, 2021

Why yes, this is supposed to be the Weekly Timeless Wardrobe...

BUT...

Some week this summer, I completely lost count; I can't believe I missed a number... and I can't face looking for any more sleeveless tops! I'm going to assume that you all have a pretty clear idea of what a sleeveless top looks like, and what it will do in your wardrobe...

So instead, I'm going to address a couple of questions that came up when I showed you a couple of Weekly Timeless Wardrobes last week.

First, the question that I was asked the most was about having lots of prints in the wardrobe - could you actually have 4 of the 13 garments in print and still have some versatility?

In the wardrobe above, I traded out the ... View the Post

Can You Pack Nothing but Your Personal Uniform?

August 4, 2021

Yes, I am going to do the "6 Scarves, 12 Months" post on Friday! I've sort of lost track of what month it is; maybe the delay will make it a little bit easier to find things for that "back to school" feeling I always have in August!

But first, let's think about this interesting question that I received...

The gist? Our heroine knows what she likes to wear, but she feels like she should "mix it up" a bit when she travels.

To which my reply is HECK NO - stick with what makes you feel best, and what feels most like you when you get dressed. We all, collectively, need to move away from this idea that we must have a widely varied wardrobe!

She dresses like this in cooler weather:

I'm hypothesizing that our ... View the Post

Summer Wardrobe Ideas: 2 Weekly Timeless Wardrobes

July 30, 2021

It's a question that's turned up in my mail a few times this last month - "What exactly would a summer Weekly Timeless Wardrobe look like?" "Would this be enough clothing for me if I wear a uniform for work?"

So I offer a couple of possibilities...

First up - navy and white with shades of blue for accent - classic summer colors:

For reference purposes, these are the 13 garments that I have included in my Weekly Timeless Wardrobe list; you can (of course!) adapt these to suit your needs and preferences!

If I only needed "real clothes" for evening and weekends, this would probably be sufficient for me. Of course, you still need gym clothes, and swim wear if that's something you do, but for normal ... View the Post