I think I was about 13 or 14 when I first saw Roman Holiday, and boy, did it leave a major impression. I know many are bigger fans of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. But for me, Roman Holiday, My Fair Lady and Sabrina are my top three. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Holly Golightly. As a young teen Roman Holiday made me vow to: 1. Own a Vespa someday. and 2. Have my own Roman Holiday!
My bucket list has changed a bit since my teenage years. I no longer want to own a Vespa…..but maybe I’ll ride on one some day. 😉 However, visiting Italy has remained near the top of my list. Years ago I ordered that red umbrella canvas print of Amalfi (pictured below) to hang in my home as a visual bucket list reminder. Seeing it every day has been such great motivation toward making this dream happen. And the countdown is now officially on for our family trip to Italy! We’ll start in Rome then travel down the Amalfi Coast, and I’m so giddy with excitement I can hardly believe after all these years this is really happening!
(cold shoulder dot blouse, red shoes (similar) )
We’ve got most of our trip planned, but I would absolutely love for those of you who have been before to share your tips on places to see, shop and eat! We’re bringing our almost 13 and almost 11 year old kids with us. I’m so excited to share this adventure with them, and I hope they remember this trip for a lifetime! Because I kind of feel like bringing them along means that Brad and I have both won parents of the year. 😉
All About The Wardrobe Collection
I’ve been keeping my eye on the weather, and it looks like while we’re visiting we’ll have temperatures in the high 60’s. We might see some low 70’s, but the evenings will be a bit cooler. Layers and easy changes from day to night will be key. As I’ve been starting to plan my travel attire I’ve realized how convenient and easy my wardrobe collection method makes packing. With travel season officially kicking off during spring break I thought now would be as good a time as any to re-share my “collection” method as it really does streamline my packing efforts on top of keeping my closet organized.
When there’s so much on your checklist before you leave for a trip, packing need not be stressful! Collections help you to create a lot of different looks with just a few pieces. So you can pack quickly and relatively lightly.
I’m planning to take 2 pairs of pants (1 of which I’m wearing on the plane over), 2 dresses, 2 skirts, 1 sweater, 1 cardi, 2 jackets, 6 tops……….for 8 days. We’re staying in three different places while we’re there, and I don’t want to have to lug big, heavy bags around.
What Exactly is a “Wardrobe Collection”?
It’s basically like Garanimals for adults. 😉 In contrast to a capsule wardrobe, a collection isn’t about sticking within a certain number of pieces. I’ve seen capsule wardrobes where the basic guideline is to only have between 30 to 40 pieces. A collection is different in that it’s about creating a group of clothing that all coordinates together but it’s not necessarily limiting. So as an example, I have three collections – One is all neutrals, black and white – the second is a mix of red and navy – and the third is blush and olive-green. So, will I buy a yellow blouse? Possibly. Yellow looks great with both neutral shades as well as red and navy, so if it’s a yellow blouse I really love I may add it to my closet.
In short, the collection method just helps me to be much more intentional about what I buy. It forces me to curate my wardrobe rather than adding in pieces all willy-nilly. It really keeps my closet streamlined, makes it easier for me to get dressed and as an added benefit makes packing for a trip easy-breeze-y. I probably wouldn’t add a lavender floral dress to my collection…….because it just doesn’t fit with my style or the palette of colors I’m most drawn to…….. Is this making sense?
What I’m Packing
What makes this method great for packing is that you can basically put a weeks worth of outfits together really simply just by pulling pieces from the same collection. I pulled a few neutrals pieces and some pieces from my blush and olive collection. And boom done. No hemming and hawing…..no trying to put outfits together……just pull out a few bottoms and a few tops and you can mix and match it all as you want. When the weather is going to be both warm and cool this method is just so much easier!
I’ve just added this lightweight cargo-style jacket to my collection. I think it’s going to be the perfect light-weight layer to go with everything! The feminine peplum style and ruffle collar is so fun.
(blush crossbody, bell sleeve stripe, polka dot similar, hat similar, cold shoulder, clay sweater)
Hubs said he wasn’t sure if my favorite patent-leather bow sandals would be good idea for walking around all day……..
I told him I couldn’t handle that level of negativity in my life right now. 😉 I mean let’s get serious I’m trying to channel Audrey Hepburn here…….comfort isn’t exactly on the top of my priority list……..Hubs has apparently never seen Roman Holiday. I mean can you even believe this blasphemy?! We will correct this very soon!
Just to be safe though I ordered these. You know, in case he’s right about my bow sandals not being a good choice for walking around. 😉 I really, really don’t want to hear him say, “I told you so.”
So do you “wardrobe collect”? I swear to you it has literally changed my life! I know I’m dramatic about little things pretty regularly, but seriously you all…..creating wardrobe collections is a real game changer. If you haven’t done it yet there’s no better time to start than when you do your closet spring cleaning! Say yes to less and goodbye to the never-ending battle of not being able to figure out what to wear!
for the record, roman holiday is my absolute favorite AH movie! i saw it in college and fell in love. it was such a great love story for someone like me.