A Capsule Wardrobe

I've always been drawn to the idea of a capsule wardrobe. It seems easy and time saving as well. Trouble is, after a while I always got bored. Or distracted by something I saw on line or TV and before you knew it, I'd veered off course. Recently, however, I've been working to refine, update and streamline my closet and my life and the capsule is back. I found the blog The Vivienne Files and this great post about capsule wardrobes. It's based on a book called Ma To-Do List by Jeanne-Aurore Colleuille and Laure Gontier and has 3 main points.

1. Dictate your rules: This defines what you want and how you see yourself. Short sleeves? Dresses, flats? Think of this as your personal style rules and then eliminate anything in your closet that does not fit. My personal style rules are trousers (preferably ankle length and slim), round  neck tops, blazers and flat loafer style shoes. This is a switch for me from pencil skirts, cardigans and heels. The switch was mainly driven by 2 things. First off I have a bone spur and arthritis in my foot which makes walking in heels, even low ones unendingly painful. Second, I am the compliance director at a hedge fund in the Bay Area and the only woman in upper management as well as the youngest person. Somehow the cardigan and skirt look, just didn't work. This feels more authoritative.

2. Work on your coordination: A variety of colors, tops and bottoms that are impossible to coordinate, shapes and materials without a common ground: these are the enemies of the ideal wardrobe. At the base of the “capsule wardrobe” is a simple idea (and yet we apply it rarely!): everything should go with everything else, so that you can get dressed with your eyes closed. Think of this as a sort of grown up "granimals". I'm probably dating myself with that reference but that's how I think of it. My core colors are navy and gray. I accent with white, hunter green and camel.

3. Choose your signature piece: This is the part that makes it you. Do you love bangles? Scarves? Hats? Pick what pleases you and what you feel the most "you" in and go with it. For me there are 2 main one. First is pearls. I almost always wear the pearl and gold knot earrings my grandparents gave me for my high school graduation, the pearl necklace my parents gave me for my college graduation and the gold and pearl ring that was my mother-in-laws that my husband gave me at our wedding. I sometimes alternate with the gold and pearl necklace my father gave me on my wedding day. Second, I love brooches and have a collection of vintage ones that belonged to my grandmother and great grandmother. They look great on the various blazers I wear.

What do you think? Do you embrace the capsule look? Or are you more free ranging? Which suits you best and why?

Favorite Work Pants

I confess, I love these pants for work. They are the Banana Republic Sloan Slim Ankle Pant. I usually wear them with a shell or tee and blazer during the summer and either a Tippi sweater or a wool turtleneck under a blazer in the winter. I wear them with structured flats, like pointed toed loafers or sometime smoking slippers. They are trim and yet not tight. I used to love the J Crew Minnie pants but thought they were just a smidge to tight for my office and a bit casual as well. These pants are really perfect and they are super comfortable to sit in all day and yet still look crisp when you stand up. I find they do stretch during the day but I don't get the dreaded "saggy but" look with them. They come in a bunch of colors but I like the navy best. I just got a pair of gray windowpane ones for fall! Have you tried these? You should!

An Interesting Read

I'm reading "the life changing magic of tidying up" and really liking it. I love the idea that everything in your house and closet should bring you joy. It's kind of a freeing feeling, which I think is the point. It doesn't matter that a jacket I got on sale was a great buy, if it doesn't bring me joy when I put it on, out it goes. One of the things she stresses is that you should devote a major block of time to doing a major "life changing" de-clutter which is focused on getting rid of the things that don't fill you with joy. I admit to having trouble finding a big block of time so I am trying to do one category at a time. I'm almost done with clothes. My next focus is going to be books, then toys and finally the garage. Have you read this book? What do you think?

Harvest Garden

My daughter and I recently joined an organization called National Charity League. It's mission is to foster mothers and daughter volunteering together. Think Junior League only for mothers and daughters. The girls join at the end of their 6th grade year and remain members until the graduate high school. We've done some really fun things this summer but our favorite is working with the town of Hillsbourgh's Harvest Garden. It's quite cool, tucked away on a little side street between two homes is this little garden. It is a non-profit, organic, community garden that provides fresh vegetables to shelters for the working poor who can't afford food. It is planted, maintained and harvested solely by volunteers. The garden  beautified an unsightly vacant lot, provided involvement for area residents including school children, all while achieving its primary goal of providing for those in need. You can learn more on their web page which is here. In the past weeks we have weeded, planted and harvested everything from lettuce to beans to tomatoes and corn. Last weekend we planted a root vegetable garden they hope to get one crop out of before November. We've really enjoyed it and it's a great way to spend time with my daughter.

Letting go of "When"

I just chose this picture because it is pretty and peaceful, doesn't have anything to do with this post. I subscribed to get email updates from a great blogger called Maxie McCoy. She's very inspirational but today's email really spoke to me. The title is "Your Blacking out so Ditch the When". You can read the whole thing here and it is completely worth your time. The basic idea is that so often we are holding ourselves back for when things are perfect. The perfect job and everything will be all right, loose 10 pounds and I'll be perfect, find the right partner and all will be well. This attitude keeps us from enjoying our here and now because we are obsessing and worrying about an imaginary future. I know I fall prey to this often but I'm really trying to focus on the now and not worry about the when!

In the Navy

I've noticed something about all my recent posts with outfits I've been loving. Everything is navy! I recently packed to go to Yosemite for the weekend and all my tops were navy and white. Even my bridesmaid dresses were navy! I have to say it's my favorite color. I wear all navy the way some people wear all black. Somehow I just like it better, it's not as harsh and I think it's better with my skin tone. I also really like the nautical vibe, especially in summer.

Does that picture just make you glad it's Friday! It makes me even more glad I am heading over to my parent's place on the coast tomorrow morning!

I found the above image on Pinterest and love it. I'm wearing almost the exact same outfit today, except that my jeans are a darker wash.

 

Really I just love the color. It's crisp and fresh in a way black isn't. It's also a bit more unexpected. I have a beautiful navy blue wool dress that I often wear in place of a LBD, although since both blue and black start with "B", I guess it is!

 

Are you "in the navy"? or do you stick with black?

 

 

Back to School!

It seems like every year the first day of school gets earlier and earlier. When I was a kid, we didn't start until after Labor Day. That's especially true this year because our district switched to a schedule that is considered a "hybrid" between a traditional and year round calendar. The first day of school is NEXT WEEK! I can hardly believe it. My oldest will be a high school freshman and I'll also have a 7th grader and a 6th grader. No more elementary school for me! I went with the big guy to freshman orientation yesterday and tomorrow is what they call "jump start" day in middle school. You go and turn in all the forms, buy PE uniforms, get schedules etc. Seems very early to me but back to school we go!