For an introduction to the 6 Scarves 2021 project, see this post.
For a description of my method, see this post.
I'm finally ready to finish up our July wardrobe additions, thankfully before I'm two full months behind! Things got delayed because I needed to finish making and photograph a necklace for this capsule and not getting around to it.
It's better late than never when revisiting this color palette and rabbit mascot that exude softness.
Six months into the year, these are the capsule's garments. For warm weather, we have:
-5 skirts: 3 solid, 2 print
-4 pants: 1 full-length, 1 ankle, 2 crop
-4 short-sleeved tops: 3 print, 1 aloe vera
-1 short-sleeved pullover: soft indigo
-1 3/4 sleeve top: print
-1 sleeveless top: print
-1 3/4 sleeve cardigan: green
-1 lightweight jacket: striped
-2 lightweight vests: 1 soft indigo, 1 white
As is common to wardrobes built on an outfit-by-outfit model, our ratio of tops to bottoms for warm weather is rather low. Let's fix that now with this set of five new tops! Referring back to the color palette, we are bringing in the sandstone coral that has been under-represented, beefing up our navy and blue contingent, and supplementing the woefully lacking grey set. I like that even though two of these tops are prints, they are very simple stripes and polka dots that are quite versatile and easy to print mix with.
Sandstone coral striped T - CJ Banks - 3X - $8.32 - 7/2020
Soft blue T - CJ Banks - 3X - $8.10 - 7/2020
Grey heather exercise tank - Kohls - ?
Navy/white polka dot T - Croft & Barrows/Kohls - 3X - $5.00 - 5/2020
Soft indigo 3/4 sleeve T - CJ Banks - 3X - $8.10 - 7/2020
We needn't stop at the tops, however. We have four more items that will work beautifully in this wardrobe. The sandstone crops and cardigan complete a warm weather "set" with the striped T above. The soft blue cardigan creates a twin set with the soft blue T above. And the chambray dress with yellow and sandstone flowers coordinates very well with this grouping.
Sandstone coral crops - CJ Banks - 24W - $10.00 - 9/2020
Soft blue 3/4 sleeve cardigan - CJ Banks - 2X - $14.83 - 5/2020
Sandstone coral 3/4 sleeve cardigan - CJ Banks - 2X - $14.83 - 5/2020
Chambray floral dress - CJ Banks - 3X - $12.00 - 9/2020
Yes, of these 9 garments, 7 of them are from CJ Banks, purchased last summer. I took huge advantage of the incredible sales during the height of mega-casual pandemic fashion to purchase actual normal clothes that I was able to wear then and now! Clearly a lot of people were in a different headspace and seeking a different kind of comfort last summer, which I can totally understand, but I was happy to buy unpopular garments like these "hard pants" and twin sets in coordinating colors at a great price.
I always love reviewing our collection of accessories because so often that's where the styling magic happens.
The additions for July are well balanced across the various categories of accessories with an emphasis on sandstone coral/orange and blue/navy colors. Of these, I made the tassel necklace, two sets of seed bead bracelets, and bead loop earrings. I think those nude flats are going to be a hugely useful player in the capsule.
Grey/coral tree print scarf - Target - $12.00 - 12/2013
Salmon-pink ombré scarf - thrifted, ThredUp - $3.59 - 5/2020
Sandstone coral/orange seed bead/tassel necklace - made by me - summer 2021
Sandstone coral/silver pendant - CJ Banks - $5.18 - 7/2020
Soft indigo/blue/silver bead necklace - CJ Banks - $11.23 - 1/2021
Orange seed bead bracelets - made by me - summer 2020
Dark blue seed bead bracelets - made by me - summer 2021
Navy/silver bead bracelet - CJ Banks - ?
Orange tiger-eye bead/gold hoops - made by me - summer 2021
Nude Rockstud flats - Wild Diva/Amazon - $19.99 - 7/2016
One of the many pleasures of making my own jewelry is being able to select the colors and color combinations for my creations. I am particularly excited about how the tassel necklace turned out! I used the last of my 3mm sandstone seed beads to make the necklace, then pulled two skeins of embroidery thread from my ancient stash to make the tassels. I knew immediately that I wanted to use the variegated orange thread for one of the tassels, but had to search through my collection to see how close I could get to the seed bead color for the second one. Ridiculously, I am reminded of the scene in Pulp Fiction where the boxer is selecting a weapon from the pawnshop, upgrading from hammer to baseball bat to chain saw before finally seeing the ultimate choice: a samurai sword (katana) hanging on the wall. I kept improving my embroidery thread selection until I found the one that was a perfect match to the seed bead color.
Making outfits from these highly-coordinated items should be a breeze. Let's start with the chambray dress. In Outfit #1, the sandstone/peach color from the floral print is picked up by the cardigan and ombré scarf while the bracelet adds a bit of blue.
In Outfit #2, a soft indigo 3/4 sleeve top is layered underneath the dress and a coordinating necklace is soft shades of blue continues the theme. The stack of orange seed bead bracelet provides a pop of contrasting color.
Outfit #3 is our print mix option with the sandstone striped T layered underneath the floral dress. Once again, the necklace matches the top while the bracelets are a coordinating but different color. I didn't intentionally follow that formula, but apparently it's one that I like!
Moving to the sandstone coral crops, I created Outfit #4 with a variety of coordinating sandstone/orange colors in the earrings and necklace against the neutral backdrop of the navy polka dot T.
In Outfit #5, the sandstone coral crops are the stand-out accent-colored piece with the soft blue twin set and accessories in a variety of neutral-like blue tones. While this "1 accent color piece + supporting neutral" formula is more often seen in brighter, bolder, darker colors (e.g., navy top and shoes with orange pants), it can very easily be achieved in a lighter, softer color palette as well. And I find that the color combination here works whether you think of the blue as a neutral (similar to a chambray or faded denim) or as an accent color.
Finally, the grey + sandstone coral color combination makes its appearance in Outfit #6. This could work just fine as a colorblocking look, but of course I love to bridge the colors together with a scarf. I think this one is the perfect choice here!
For today's "how I wore it" series, I am featuring two items from our July additions: the sandstone coral crops and the chambray dress. In this WFH outfit from last September, several items from this capsule were worn together, along with the navy floral/bird print blouse (also a CJ Banks purchase from last summer) and ivory captoe flats thrifted from ThredUp.
Now for the floral dress...in May I wore it with a sandstone coral knit jacket and the inspiration scarf for the Sophia wardrobe. With the jacket zipped up so it functions like a sweater/sweatshirt, you can't even tell that the dress isn't a skirt.
WFH last fall meant that I was able to keep the bare legs going longer than I do when I commute to the office, so I could wear this dress into October. (Although wearing it with tights into colder weather is a possibility, it has such a strong warm weather vibe that so far I have only worn it without tights.) This outfit is a variant on the theme of Outfit #1 with the same cardigan but a different ombré scarf and different nude shoes.
Today's rabbit is Fiona the Flemish Giant! The Flemish Giant originated in Flanders and is considered the largest rabbit breed in the world (around 15-22 pounds). They are nicknamed the "Gentle Giant" because they have unusually docile personalities. Fiona is bringing a lovely grey color into the rabbit menagerie.
Do you ever purchase coordinating items from a store at the same time or do you tend to add to your wardrobe piece by piece?
I link up with:
Shelbee at Shelbee on the Edge (Mondays; 3rd Thursday)
Mica at Away from the Blue (Mondays)
Debbie at My Random Musings (Mondays)
Leelo at Beauty by Miss L (Mondays)
Roxanne at Glass of Glam (Mondays)
Claire at Claire Justine (Mondays, Weds, Fridays)
Laura at I Do deClaire (Tuesdays)
Emma at Style Splash (Tuesdays)
Jess at Elegantly Dressed & Stylish (Tuesdays)
Gail at Is This Mutton? (Wednesdays)
Shelly at The Queen in Between (Wednesdays)
Carrie at Curly Crafty Mom (Thursdays)
Ada at Elegance and Mommyhood (Thursdays)
Jacqui at Mummabstylish (Thursdays)
Suzy at The Grey Brunette (Fridays)
Nancy at Nancy's Fashion Style (Fridays)
Michelle at My Bijou Life (Fridays)
Erika at A Little Bit of Everything (Fridays)
Rena at Fine Whatever (Saturdays)