The Vivienne Files

Capsule wardrobes inspired by art and nature

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Start with Art: Tete Blanche et Rose by Henri Matisse

June 10, 2019 Ride up With Me! "I'm going up to the beach house for the weekend - I'm going to drive, so you can just go with me!"

Her wardrobe palette is deeply invested in black, but for this weekend she eschewing the dark, and going straight-up pastels!

So she tossed her bag into the back seat...

She was expecting the air conditioning to be on full blast, so she pulled a shirt on over her tank top...

She doesn't expect to swim all that much, but she takes her suit along just in case! She does plan to walk along the beach a lot, so water shoes are definitely in the bag...

Generally, at least some people go out for a meal or two, or they go into town to buy groceries and browse around... She makes sure ... View the Post

Start with Art: Persia by Helen Frankenthaler

May 31, 2019 Sun She had worked on the report for 3 months. But when she turned it in, she could still only see places where she wished that she had more time - she could have done so more!

So when she was called into the manager's office on Friday afternoon, she assumed that she was going to be given notice. She was pondering how to pack the things from her desk with the least disruption to the people around her...

Imagine her delight when she was praised for her efforts, given a hefty bonus, and told not to come back to the office for 10 days!

She's going somewhere warm. Just to sit outside, and maybe walk around a little bit. She wants to see birds swimming on a body of water, and watch little children ... View the Post

April Showers Bring May Flowers…

May 8, 2019

And sometimes, flowers are what inspire you to update your warm-weather wardrobe...

Many of us have a pretty decent core wardrobe to carry us into the warm weather...

Many people could get through quite a bit of the summer with just these 9 garments - especially if you have to dress for work every day, and this is your leisure wardrobe.

But maybe you want to brighten up your core wardrobe with some pretty colors?

Even just one "French 5-Piece Wardrobe" in an accent color can give you quite a few new outfit options:

Maybe you're in the mood for orange?

Lace is fun for summer - not insanely dressy, just a pretty way to update a tee shirt...

The nice thing about getting a ... View the Post

Adding to a Starter Wardrobe in Black, Grey, Brown and Pink

May 6, 2019

When we left our heroine on Friday, she had assembled a small, but quite versatile, core wardrobe with 11 garments:

From here, our heroine's choices will depend on what she most needs for her day-to-day life, as well as making certain that she's prepared for those dressy occasions that catch one off guard. It is for the latter that I always suggest that ALL of us have a "nice" outfit in reserve. While you certainly can substitute pants for this skirt, if you're absolutely NEVER going to wear a skirt, for most of us this next outfit will come in handy more often than we might expect...

And we are kind of long overdue for getting this heroine a good jacket! The nice thing with this length of trench coat is that it ... View the Post

I Don’t Know Where to Start my Wardrobe…

May 3, 2019

I've been asked this a couple of times in the last few days - what do I do when I really have no idea where to start with my wardrobe?

Years ago I tried to think of how one could start a wardrobe from scratch; I think that my ideas might still be useful...

First up, I want our heroine to have some unifying inspiration to get her started; she's not stuck with this for the rest of her life, but it will at least help her focus her initial choices:

I can't emphasize this idea of mine enough - if you struggle to get dressed, make certain that you have a really GOOD, basic, neutral pair of pants. No studs, no embroidery, nothing that will make it difficult to wear your pants with all kinds of things...

And shoes. ... View the Post

April Travel – Start with Art: Street, Berlin by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

April 12, 2019

After retirement, they decided that they were going to travel to a new destination every 3 months for the first year! Just for a few days....

In the winter, they went somewhere warmer - I'm not sure, but it might have been Barcelona?

When our heroine and her sweetheart hatched this plot, our heroine chose this very evocative painting as her color inspiration:

Yes, April in Paris She's very excited...

Maybe a striped top is cliche to wear to Paris, but she loves her travel outfit - classic, simple, comfortable...

And since retirement is rekindling the romance in their lives, she's sticking with some pink accents. Something about pink just feels romantic to her. And her true love seems to ... View the Post

Trying to Forecast Weather – Packing for May in Ireland!

February 25, 2019

Honestly, if I could tell you with any degree of certainty what the weather is going to be in May in Ireland, I would be doing something to make a fortune, like buying penny stocks and selling them for millions of dollars. The weather requires that level of omniscient genius!

But you can be strategic, right? Let's start with a beautiful photograph of an Ireland shore, to help define a color palette:

Okay, time for strategy. First, you can't take ALL of your wardrobe with you, so you have to make some smart choices. If we accept that it's not possible to pack for every possible kind of weather, I submit that it's smarter (in the spring and summer) to carry with you clothes for cooler weather, working with the ... View the Post

Shopping for Paris! Thanks to Talbots…

March 22, 2018

Yep - a sponsored post! It's always a fun occasion to sit down and browse through the Talbot's site, mentally trying on different pieces and pondering how I'd wear them, and how they might work with my existing wardrobe...And since I think I'm FINALLY going to make it to Paris in May, I thought that choosing some things with that trip in mind might be a way to add to the anticipation that's already almost out of control. (for those of you who haven't heard, I had to cancel a trip to Paris in December because of a fibromyalgia "interlude," and then ANOTHER attempt to go in February was rendered completely impossible by the worst flu I've ever had...)

Talbot's asked that I specifically look at their RSVP selections - ... View the Post

Sage and Blush! A French 5-Piece Wardrobe, with Camel

March 12, 2018 I don't think I've ever pointed this out specifically - your French 5-Piece Wardrobe doesn't have to be all one color! It probably should all go together, if only to make wearing it easier, but 2 colors that are beautiful together could be a great idea...  

Imagine that you've already pulled together your camel and ivory Common Wardrobe for spring...

 

Yes, this is the same wardrobe from Monday the 5th - and the shirt is NOT (at this very moment) sold out... You would already have a good many ways to get dressed in the morning without really even thinking - that's handy when you're in a rush, and distracted!

When you add just the 5 new items you purchased for spring, your options ... View the Post

Strawberry Red! A French 5-Piece Wardrobe with stone and white…

March 8, 2018 It's not quite red, and it's certainly not pink. It's STRAWBERRY! (Yes, I adore strawberries...)  

It's a bit soft, and a bit warm, and just not quite like any other color. I think it would be flattering on a great many people, too...So if you're starting with a simple, timeless core wardrobe in stone and white, you're already in a pretty good spot for spring. (Yes, you've seen this wardrobe before!)

Plenty of subdued, elegant outfits are possible...

But the addition of that beautiful strawberry gives you cheery possibilities that are idea for a cloudy day...

Realistically, I think almost any color would look great with this stone and white core...

love, Janice ... View the Post

A Ted Baker Scarf-Based French 5-Piece Wardrobe

May 7, 2018   You don't have to follow the Pantone colors - make your own very personal "French 5-Piece Wardrobe" by starting with something that has some real "whappage" in your life!   For me, that might often be a lovely Ted Baker London scarf. (No, I have absolutely no business relationship with them... sigh...)   You go shopping - see the scarf - and the path is clear! A couple of simple, timeless garments, classic earrings, and a summery tote, and your spring is ready to start.  

Imagine if you were devoted to wearing black and white - you had this lovely 10-piece Common Wardrobe available for spring. (Yes, you've seen this wardrobe before...)

You would already have a wealth of lovely ... View the Post

A French 5-Piece Wardrobe in Ash Rose (with Camel and Ivory!)

It's not easy to find camel, nor ivory, but I did my very best! And I included this print shirt (although I know I've used it before) because I like it a lot.... Sometimes that all that's required!So before we go off in search of a pretty French 5-Piece Wardrobe for spring, let's assemble a very practical, but lovely, Common Wardrobe:

As should always be the case with a well-chosen Common Wardrobe, plenty of combinations are clearly available, for a wide range of weather and dressiness:

Here's where the fun/work starts! Even though Pantone tells us that this is one of the colors of the year, not a lot of clothing companies have jumped onto this particular bandwagon. That said, a big of persistence turned up some really lovely ... View the Post