For an introduction to the 6 Scarves 2021 project, see this post.
For a description of my method, see this post.
Today our wardrobe based on this highly summery color palette gets a pair of jeans and some light yet saturated accent color pieces added to the mix.
Actually, this wardrobe is getting two kinds of jeans: a pair of denim capris to finish out the summer and a pair of dark wash trouser jeans for the fall. The sky blue cardigan is a beautiful mid-weight sweater that works well across a range of temperatures.
Dark wash trouser jeans - thrifted, Lane Bryant/Goodwill - 22 - $7.49 - 10/2018
Sky blue cardigan - Lands End - 2X - $27.98 - 2/2020
Denim capris - Gloria Vanderbilt/Kohls - 20W - $29.99 - 5/2018
We have three styles of top to add this month. The sky blue tank with the Mad Hatter's hat image has been a summer favorite of mine for 5 years now. I almost allocated the navy floral/bird print blouse (yes, yet another navy-based print for this wardrobe!) to our soft-colored #6 Grey & Navy, Sophia capsule instead, but I wanted to investigate the possibilities of pairing it with the sky blue cardigan. The floral print button up shirt was a great deal from Lands End: a no-iron shirt in an interesting background-check-with-large-florals print mix for under $12.50. I thought it would be fun for layering both under and over other things.
Light blue/coral floral button up shirt - Lands End - 20W - $12.48 - 2/2020
Navy floral/bird 3/4 sleeve blouse - CJ Banks - 2X - $20.55 - 6/2020
Sky blue Hatter tank - Disney Alice/Kohls - XL - $24.00 - 5/2016
A colorful month for accessories in the Darcy wardrobe! Both coral and sky blue are well-represented with the striped scarf encompassing both colors. As usual, we see a mix of silver and gold tone metallic items because I am simply incapable of committing to only one. The multi-strand seed bead necklace and the two stacks of seed bead bracelets are DIY projects.
Coral lace infinity scarf - Walmart - $4.13 - 6/2016
Light blue/coral/black/aqua striped scarf - thrifted, ThredUp - $1.50 - 12/2019
Sky blue seed bead/silver multi-strand necklace - made by me - summer 2021
Gold stud earrings - gift
Lion charm necklace - thrifted, Goodwill - $10.00 - 12/2013
Gold bar and chain necklace set - Elizabeth & James/Kohls - $11.22 - 11/2020
Seed pearl necklace - made by RB
Navy/silver bead bracelet - CJ Banks - ?
Orange ballet flats - Payless - $10.00 - 6/2015
Coral swag necklace - Croft & Barrow/Kohls - $9.02 - 6/2014
Navy seed bead bracelets - made by me - summer 2021
Baby blue seed bead bracelets - made by me - summer 2020
We have a tight color palette in this month's additions, so it should be easy to mix and match our items in multiple outfits. Let's start with the denim capris as we wrap up the summer season. In Outfit #1, the Hatter tank and cardigan create a modern "twin set" that surprised the heck out of me when I realized how well the colors worked together (well enough that when I entered the new cardigan to my inventory spreadsheet, I gave it the "sky blue" color name I had used with the tank). I'm envisioning the sleeves of the cardigan pushed or rolled up to the elbow. The lightweight scarf blends well with the sky blue, and the black stripe picks up the hat image from the tank. The orange flats echo another stripe in the scarf (not an exact match, but it will look fine when it's worn and the two pieces are separated in space more). With the medium blue stripe in the scarf and the blue denim capris, I gave the navy seed bead bracelets a try here for a coordinating but not matching look.
Outfit #2 uses the same two base pieces and shoes but adds the button up shirt (sleeves rolled up) as a lightweight jacket. I definitely noticed and liked the way both pieces have black in them, which makes the look more integrated. The coral lace infinity scarf gives us a third dose of orange/coral in the outfit. The yellow flowers on the shirt put me in the mode for gold metallic jewelry, so I picked the gold stud earrings (my one pair of real gold earrings, which I've had for over 25 years!).
In Outfit #3, we see what happens when we put the navy blouse in the soft palette together with bolder accessories. What do you think? Is the bright coral/orange too much for the subdued sandstone coral in the blouse? I think the swag necklace really helps bridge the gap here as it contains a range of colors in the peach/coral/orange/rust family covering a variety of intensities. I added the sky blue bracelets to coordinate with the top while adding a pop of a different color from the other accessories.
As the weather cools down into fall, the jeans we added this month will be a workhorse for the Darcy wardrobe. Now we can layer over the floral button up shirt with the cardigan, two pieces that don't match per se but do look lovely together. I built a gold-themed layered necklace that's a mix of gold tone chains, seed pearls with rust gemstone beads, and an extremely fun thrifted orange and black "zoological" necklace with a trio of lion charms.
Finally, Outfit #5 puts together the navy print blouse and sky blue cardigan, and I am really pleased with the combination! I chose jewelry in a color palette of silver and a variety of blues. The orange flats are not an obvious choice here, but I think they are a fun pop of color.
Let's take a look at a few outfit of the day photos featuring the button up shirt and navy floral blouse from today's additions. First, here is a way that I've worn the shirt and cardigan together (a variant on Outfit #4 above). In this March outfit, I pulled out ye olde black pants, that office-wear staple, though in a skinny silhouette that worked well with the slightly longer length of the cardigan. I accessorized with a mess o' pearls and chains statement necklace and my cheetah Oxfords, which match the black pants but also tie in with the warmth in the yellow and orange flowers. I truly loved wearing this outfit! I got several compliments on it at work, in part because people were happy to see such a spring-like color in the early March Minnesota winter gloom.
Here we go with another pair of black pants, this time a more traditional office trouser style. This outfit is kind of the reverse of Outfit #3 above, in which orange accessories were added to the blouse with the sandstone coral in the print. Here a sandstone coral knit jacket is added to a shirt with orange in the print. I think it coordinates pretty well. I like wearing this crystal bib statement necklace underneath a shirt collar, and the rounded collar-less neck of the jacket cooperated perfectly. I wore modern pointy-toed gold loafers to give the classic pants-based outfit a bit of flair (and to bookend my hair).
The navy floral/bird blouse makes a good stand-alone summer top, as seen in this July outfit. There are a lot of color options for pants to wear with this blouse, but since I enjoy a good bright pair of pants, I went with these aqua ankle pants. To keep the focus on the pants, I added light neutral accessories: white pearls and light grey shoes. Do I have a generously proportioned rear, hips, and thighs? Yep! Does that mean I shouldn't wear bright colored pants for figure flattery reasons? Uh, don't know. Will I continue to flaunt my plus-size bottom half in bright colored pants? Absolutely!
The September addition to the Darcy menagerie keeps that orange theme going: meet Sperry the gold English Spot! While she is peering intently at something with great interest, let's take a look at the golden spots on her fur. This color is the result of two copies of a recessive gene that eliminates all black pigment from the hair shaft. Thus the gorgeous orange pigment gets to shine. The reason most of Sperry's fur is white rather than orange is because the English Spot breed has the broken gene that "breaks up" the rabbit's basic color with a lot of white.
Do you look forward to pulling out your jeans in the fall?
In my next capsule post, we will look at the September additions for our third wardrobe: #3 Navy & Grey, Lily.
I link up with:
Nike at Life as a LEO Wife (Sundays)
Shelbee at Shelbee on the Edge (Mondays; 3rd Thursday)
Michelle at My Bijou Life (Mondays, Fridays)
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 (Mon, Wed, Fri)
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)
Jodie at Jodie's Touch of Style (3rd Thursday)
Carrie at Curly Crafty Mom (Thursdays)
Ada at Elegance and Mommyhood (Thursdays)
Jacqui at Mummabstylish (Thursdays)
Nicole at High Latitude Style (Thursdays)
Suzy at The Grey Brunette (Fridays)
Nancy at Nancy's Fashion Style (Fridays)
Erika at A Little Bit of Everything (Fridays)
Lucy at Lucy Bertoldi (Fridays)
Kimberly at Being a Wordsmith (Fridays)
Rena at Fine Whatever (Saturdays)