Packing light for France?

We're starting our holiday tomorrow morning.  We will be spending one night in Alicante before boarding a train to Barcelona, where we will have time for a leisurely lunch before catching the train from Barcelona to Toulouse. The good news is that we are travelling by train so we don't have to worry about the weight of our cases or put all our liquids into a small clear airline-approved bag. There isn't any bad news, except for the fact that the apartment we are renting in Toulouse is on the second floor and there isn't a lift!  Still, weight training is supposed to be good for women of a certain age.

This is my capsule wardrobe for our holiday in France.

As we aren't having to travel with hand luggage only, I decided to indulge myself and so I've included a top for every day of our holiday.  You may have spotted my new patterned trousers, pink short-sleeved shirt and blue camisole, which I will wear for going out in Alicante on our first night. At the top on the right I have shown a striped dress, with a red belt, which I wore in Paris for my 65th birthday. I always feel chic when I wear this dress, so I'm taking it to wear for dinner on my 67th birthday in Toulouse.  I am packing the white pair of trousers and will be wearing the black pair for travelling, with one of the tops and possibly the cascade cardigan.

I am hoping that I won't need to wear the Mango jacket, however it will be colder in the evenings in France, so it's being packed "just in case". Next to the jacket is my navy cascade cardigan, which is lightweight and ideal for slightly cooler days. The white wedge-heeled sandals are comfortable for walking but smart enough for evenings, whereas the grey pair of Decathlon shoes are ideal for walking around town in the day-time when we're doing a lot of sight-seeing. I'm also taking a pair of navy ballet flats and the navy shoulder bag.

As well as the above items I will be packing underwear, nightwear, toiletries, jewellery and other essentials like my tablet and camera.  Plus - don't tell my husband John! - there is still room for any purchases that I may make in France. I have noticed that there is a Monoprix in Toulouse as well as a branch of Longchamp!

Visible Monday - warm-weather layers

I've just spotted an interesting post on Not Dead Yet Style (don't you love the name of her blog?) regarding warm weather layers. I must admit that, during the summer months here in Spain, the idea of wearing layers isn't very tempting, especially during the day-time with temperatures at over 30 degrees centigrade.

However the other evening we were going to be sitting outside one of our favourite restaurants watching the Cabalgata Tradicional (traditional wine procession) in Jumilla, so I decided to wear layers in case it became cooler at midnight! This was my outfit - the photo was taken after we returned home at 00.38.

The top layer was a short-sleeved pink shirt from the Ines de la Fressange collection in Uniqlo, which I spotted on my trip to London in July. Underneath it I am wearing a blue camisole top and the patterned trousers that I bought recently from Kettlewell Colours, ready for my holiday to France next week. You may spot the dark grey wrap tied to my bag, which would have been an additional layer apart from the fact that it wasn't needed. I loved wearing this shirt as it skims over any wobbly bits and, though the angle of the photo doesn't do it justice, I think this is a flattering look for women of a certain age.  This outfit is definitely going to be packed for our trip!

Why not click on the link and have a look at Not Dead Yet Style?  I love Patti's outfit and I also love "Une Femme's", which is where I discovered the link for Visible Monday.

Creating your wardrobe: time to expand

The summer sales are in full swing here in Spain, and I know from the countless emails in my inbox that there are sales in most on-line shops, so no doubt there are sales in your area too.  Before giving into temptation and buying everything that catches your fancy, look at your wardrobe and identify pieces that will go with your neutral and accent colours and add to its versatility.

I've already ordered a couple of pieces from Kettlewell Colours to take on holiday. Kettlewell sell colours for all seasons (I'm a Jewel Winter), so I am confident that any new purchases will go with my existing wardrobe. I've decided to embrace the printed trouser trend (I know, I'm a bit late!) as I'm sure it will put me into the holiday mood.

Assuming that you have a basic wardrobe in your most flattering neutrals with some accent colours, this is a good opportunity to expand it.  Please note that I am not telling you that you have to go on a spending spree, just advising you that,when you buy any new clothes, you should make sure that they help to fill in any gaps.

You can see the individual items shown above in more detail on Polyvore: just click on this link. As you may have noticed, I've added some more accent pieces, including a blue dress and a top that combines the accent colours. Bearing in mind that this wardrobe is intended to cover the whole year, I have included some linen tops, linen trousers and a pair of sandals for the summer months, plus a pair of shorts and trainers/sneakers that are ideal for holidays and weekends. To start with our neutrals were navy and white, but another neutral makes the expanded wardrobe more interesting as well as more versatile, so I have added some grey pieces including a navy and silver striped knit.

Depending on your climate and your individual taste, you might want to add in a winter coat, get rid of the dresses and skirt or replace most of the jackets and cardigans with cotton blouses. What I'm hoping to do is inspire you to look at your own wardrobe more objectively and design one to suit both your personality and your lifestyle. Bearing this in mind, here is my version of an expanded wardrobe for those of you who look better in warmer colours.

Here is the link if you want to see these items in more detail on Polyvore: link. You can even buy some of these clothes on-line, but don't tell anyone that I told you!

Creating your wardrobe: introduce your accent pieces

Remember that this is supposed to be your wardrobe that you're creating, so it may bear no resemblance to mine. Although I have gradually introduced more neutrals into my own wardrobe, I still love bright colours so my accent pieces, not surprisingly, are bright blue and purple. If you're more of a neutral sort of girl, you may prefer adding lighter neutrals to contrast with the dark neutrals and maybe wear a colourful necklace or pair of ear-rings for a slight touch of colour.

You can see the first few pieces with the white top and shirt in the middle of the picture. I have added in a pair of dark wash denims, two tops in my accent colours, a couple of scarves, a navy cross-body bag and some jewellery. The jeans make this capsule a bit more casual, however you might prefer a skirt, especially if your style personality is romantic or your Feng Shui type is the Pleasure Seeker or Perfectionist.

With two bottoms and four tops, plus a jacket or cardigan, the capsule would make a good starting point for a weekend away or even a week's holiday, maybe adding a pair of heeled shoes or boots and a dressy top for going out to dinner.

The above capsule wardrobe is looking good for me, however I haven't forgotten those of you who look better in warmer colours.

This time I have added a skirt and bag in the same dark neutral, with yellow and orange accents to brighten it up. If you're not really a scarf person, you might want to try tying a scarf to the handle of your bag to add a touch of colour.

Creating your wardrobe: the first few pieces

If you have been following this series of posts on creating a wardrobe from scratch, hopefully you will have discovered your most flattering colours and best styles. You should also know what your style personality is and all you have to do now is start building a personalised wardrobe using these guidelines.

Wait though before you hit the shops with your credit card or start browsing on the internet, as you may already possess some key pieces in your existing wardrobe. Be ruthless as you go through your clothes, rejecting anything that doesn't fit you properly, doesn't flatter you, is past its best or that you don't really love. Hopefully you will still be left with some great items to form the basis of your wardrobe.

Based on Janice's inspiring series "Starting from Scratch" on The Vivienne Files blog, these are the first few essential pieces. If you don't already own them, you have my permission to add them to your shopping list!

1. A pair of trousers that fits you properly and flatters your shape.

Although this would be top of my list as my personal style is slanted towards casual chic, I would suggest that if you aren't keen on trousers you should make your first item a skirt that fits you properly especially if that works better for your lifestyle and style personality. Your trousers (or skirt) should be in your main neutral colour and the best quality that you can afford. Please note that it doesn't have to be black, grey or navy if warm colours look better on you. Many lists of "must haves" specify a pair of black tailored trousers, a white button-down shirt and little black dress. If you look great in chocolate brown and cream rather than black and white, those should be the colours you buy rather than the prescribed colours.

2.  A good pair of comfortable shoes.

I deliberately added in the word "comfortable" to dissuade you from buying that gorgeous pair of high heels that you've had your eye on for a while, which will cripple you as soon as you try to walk down the road. Again, the idea is to buy the best shoes that you can afford in a style that won't date, in the same neutral as your trousers or skirt.

3. A cardigan or jacket and a shirt.

Gone are the days where you would automatically buy a matching jacket and skirt or trousers for work - otherwise known as a suit! I still own a skirt suit and a trouser suit, but I never wear them now that I have retired. (Maybe it's time that I retired them too!) These are also going to be in your neutral colours, which may be perfect for many of you, though if you're like me you are probably impatiently waiting for some accent colours. Choose either a cardigan or jacket in the same neutral as your trousers or skirt, plus a contrasting shirt or top. You now have  one complete outfit.

The first outfit, using neutrals of navy and white, is based on similar items in my own wardrobe and the navy striped jacket in the photo is the same as the one that I own.  The jacket makes the outfit slightly dressier, and when I used to work in a casual office this would have been perfect for work as well as suiting my personal style.

When I decided to use Polyvore to create a different outfit for those of you with warmer colouring, I discovered something interesting. Most of the brown jackets shown on the website were made from leather and most of the brown pairs of trousers were very casual, so the second outfit might not be suitable for all working environments. If you wore the jacket with a skirt and pair of low heels it would probably look more professional than the basics I have shown. Unless you have a strict dress code at work or have to wear a uniform, I still think that it is advisable to stick to the colours and styles that look best on you. What do you think? Of course those of us over 60s who have retired don't have the same problems when choosing what to wear on a daily basis, though we may still have the occasional dressy events to attend.

My next post will introduce some accent colours  - just for me! - and we will be building on these basic items. to create a more versatile wardrobe.