Color Combinations

I have been trying to put together some more sophisticated color combinations. Since this is not something that comes to me naturally, I have turned to some outside resources.

Trinny and Suzannah have some interesting combos in their rules.

For my spring coloring here are some interesting suggestions:
With a dark gray wear bright emerald, dark sky, and dirty green apple.
With navy wear black, dark purple and charcoal.
With french navy wear royal blue, deep burgundy, and pale beige.
With slate blue wear sage, chocolate, and deep fuchsia.
With periwinkle wear dark lavender, gray beige, french navy.
With red wear tobacco, brick and dusty pink.
With racing green wear sea green, dark purple and dirty mustard.
With dark olive wear forest green, steel blue and light orange.
With emerald wear dark lime, dark aqua, and deep purple.
With khaki wear olive, jungle green, and burgundy.

Color Me Confident also has some unusual color combinations grouped by season and activity.
Warm Weather Combinations

• Business Wear

Sage and salmon
Camel and natural beige
Cocoa and peach
Verbena and light moss
Golden brown and coral
Moss and salmon
Oatmeal and tomato red
Grayed green and mustard

• Casual Wear

Rust and shell
Jade and light moss
Taupe and golden brown
Yellow-green and grayed green
Lime and salmon pink
Orange-red and rust
Stone and pumpkin
Light periwinkle and camel

• Special Occasion Wear

Peach and salmon
Salmon pink and rust
Light moss and olive
Light gold and buttermilk
Tangerine and pumpkin
Moss and Olive
Tomato red and rust
Apricot and salmon pink
Cool Weather Combinations

• Business Wear

Chocolate and golden brown
Teal and camel
Olive and light moss
Charcoal and salmon pink
Olive and sage
Chocolate and rust
Charcoal and pumpkin
Teal and salmon

• Casual Wear

Turquoise and yellow-green
Spruce and rust
Pewter and camel
Cocoa and light gold
Turquoise and pumpkin
Rust and amber
Evergreen and lime
Terracotta and coffee

• Special Occasion Wear

Claret and salmon pink
Jade and teal
Eggplant and olive
Rose beige and peach
Coffee brown and mahogany
Bittersweet and tomato red
Pumpkin and tangerine
Purple and mahogany

The Truth About Caregiving

Carol O’Dell had a great post today on her blog, Mothering Mother and More. I urge you to read it here, http://caroldodell.wordpress.com/2009/08/14/the-truth-about-caregiving/.

Ezekiel Emanuel on the End of Life

Ezekiel Emanuel, the top healthcare adviser at Obama’s Budget Office and brother of his chief of staff has stated repeatedly that he feels that those who have dementia should not receive medical care. I have done a search, but have found that most of the documents are not available to the public, but I did find several references that might give you a place to start if you would like to research this.
Lancet Article
Medscape Today
Project Muse
He has also written a book, A Time to Die: The Place for Physician Assistance.

I have heard repeatedly in recent weeks that the changes in our health care system will allow all to keep the insurance that they currently have, and that the congress and administration want all to be insured, but does it include the elderly? It appears that senior Obama advisors do not think so.

Mr. Emanuel also is an advocate of living wills, as am I, but he wants it written into these documents that one should be denied care if they become incompetent.

Our culture used to abandon babies who were disabled, institutionalized those who were determined to be incompetent, and sterilized those whom others determined should not reproduce. The Kennedy administration worked hard to free those who had been oppressed by this system, and one of my first jobs was in an early group home for individuals with disabilities. I was proud that as a society we had recognized that all people had worth. Never did I expect that I would see an administration in my lifetime that not only would not treat the disabled with respect, but advocate euthanasia. My heart is breaking. How could this have happened? What has happened to our country that an individual with a disability no longer has the right to live?

Both my parents had dementia. They would sit, not talking, just holding hands most of the day. They could not tell you where they were, the date, or the name of the president, but they still loved each other, and they brought joy to all those around them. They had worth, joy in living, and deserved medical care.

Nothing to Wear

I just finished reading Nothing to Wear? A 5-Step Cure For The Common Closet by Jesse Garza and Joe Lupo. This is not a book that will tell you what styles look good on your body shape, but is rather a book about finding your style, then reorganizing your closet. It contains much valuable information and is a good read.

The authors have 5 main style categories, classic, chic, whimsical, bohemian and avant-garde. In their system, I fall into the whimsical style, combining colors and patterns with too few neutrals in my wardrobe. As a woman who has a whimsical style ages, the authors suggest more neutrals and incorporating classic and chic pieces into every outfit. I want to achieve what they describe as the look for a 50 year old woman… tastefully sexy, subtle, elegant, assured, and self-possessed.

One of the interesting things I learned by reading this book is which designers fall into which style categories. I think this information will be useful for others, so I want to share it with you.

Classic
Brooks Brothers, Agnona, Akris, Anne Klein, Ann Taylor, Burberry, Gap, Tommy Hilfiger, J. Crew, Kiton, Luciano Barbera, Liz Claiborne, Toro Piana, Ralph Lauren and Talbots.
Chic
Gucci, Armani, Banana Republic, Hugo Boss, Chanel, Club Monaco, Kenneth Cole, Express, H&M, INC, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Laundry, Max Mara, Narciso Rodriguez, Ele Tahari, Valentino and Zara.
Whimsical
Etro, Benetton, French Connection, Mac Jacobs, Betsey Johnson, Nanette Lepore, Moscihino, Zac Posen, Prada, Lilly Pulitzer, and Louis Vuitton.
Bohemian
Chloe, Abercrombie & Fitch, Anna Sui, Anthropologie, Roberto Cavalli, Dolce & Gabbana, Eskandar, Matthew Williamson, Miu Miu, and Urban Outfitters.
Avant-garde
Yohji Yamamoto, Balenciaga, Comme des Garcons, Costume National, John Galliano, Jean Paul Gaultier, Lavin, Alexander McQueen, Roenza, Schouler, Top Shop, Victor & Rolf and Issey Miyake.

The authors give these tips for shopping, but I think they can be easily adapted for home sewing as well.
1. Create a shopping list of the things you need and fill in the gaps in your essential wardrobe before you buy the fun stuff.
2. Buy essentials at the beginning of the season and get the extras later when they go on sale.
3. Know your shape and what looks best on you.
4. Bring things you need to match with you to the store.
5. Spend the most money on things you will wear frequently.
6. Buy things that fit into multiple categories of your wardrobe needs, for example a jacket that can be worn to work or with jeans.
7 Shop realistically, don’t be a fashion victim.

Women’s Wardrobe

My latest read is Women’s Wardrobe by Kim Johnson Gross and Jeff Stone. This is a very useful book. I think it would be very beneficial to someone who is just learning about style. It is a very difficult book to review, but I do highly recommend it. This would make a great gift to a friend that is interested in fashion, or a young woman just building her wardrobe. My only problem with the book is that the typeset is very annoying; they got out of hand trying to be creative, and it is difficult to follow.

The book is divided into the following sections: style, elements, clothes first aid, and where to find clothes.

My favorite thing about the book is that they show entire outfits, head to toe, including appropriate jewelry and shoes. They also take each fabric and place it in a category from sexy to quick-dry. The authors also teach the reader how to spot a quality garment. Each type of garment is described individually, with tips for wearing each style of that garment. They also have a great glossary of fashion language.

The first aid section is great. It lists different fabrics and how to care for them, how to get rid of stains, even the best way to store everything.