Weekend Wardrobe: Colorfully Eclectic Basic 4x4 Wardrobe for Summer

From Daily Herald

A while ago I found this image of Naperville, Illinois, resident Carolyn Finzer, a civic-minded citizen with a passion for art who, among other projects, created a lovely wildflower garden for her local post office.  I was charmed by this woman's colorful and eclectic style, and decided to use her vibrantly summery gardening outfit of plaid shirt and lavender overalls as an inspiration for a wardrobe post.  I chose my color palette from that vibrantly checked shirt she is wearing:

Old Navy Plaid Gauze Shirt in Large Check Plaid (no longer available)

The lavender Dickies overalls are also no longer available, but I did find similar overalls available overseas for an absolutely outrageous price:

From Dickies Taiwan

Even though both of these items are no longer readily available, I am including them anyway because they are the starting point for this wardrobe!  Also, from the hats sported in the image above as well as the one below, it appears that our inspiration model loves butterflies in addition to flowers, so butterflies and flowers will also be featured:

From Patch

And now, without further ado, let's get started creating this colorfully eclectic summer wardrobe, starting with the first set of four, which includes the overalls and plaid shirt:

Clockwise from top left: J. Crew Women's Linen V-Neck Pocket T-Shirt in Canary Yellow; Derek Rose Women's Leisure T-Shirt in Lilac; Old Navy Plaid Gauze Shirt in Large Check Plaid; Dickies Women's Bib Overalls in Lavender.

The second set of four is built around a pair of chambray crop pants I described in a recent post:

Clockwise from top left: Title Nine Women's Iota Training Short Sleeve Tee in Peach Serbet; Title Nine Women's Double Time Short Sleeve V-Neck Tee in Citron; Madewell Whisper Cotton V-Neck Pocket Tee in Blue Seascape; Chico's Secret Stretch Straight Leg Crops in Chambray.

Butterflies are featured on the skirt and one of the tops for the third set of four:

Clockwise from top left: Madewell Butterfly Embroidered Eyelet Setlist T-Shirt in Tungsten Glow; Title Nine Women's Double Time Shirt Sleeve V-Neck Tee in Electric Orchid; Title Nine Women's Vibe Tank Top in Wellington Blue; Ultrachic Butterfly Maxi Skirt in Multicolour.

A blouse in a bold floral print plus a pair of sunny yellow shorts help round out the last set of four:

Clockwise from top left: Boden The Silk Shirt in Heritage Blue Painted Daisy; Title Nine Women's Henerala Short Sleeve Tee in Aegean Sea; Title Nine Women's Vibe Tank Top in Dark Periwinkle; Des Petits Hauts Women's High-Waisted Linen Shorts in Yellow.

Here is the colorfully eclectic basic summer 4x4 wardrobe in its entirety, with lots of summery bright colors but not a single somber neutral hue to be seen:

Clearly you would have to be a particularly bold and unconventional sort of woman to carry off a wardrobe as unique and eye-catching as this one, but I do think my inspiration model exemplifies this sort of personality to perfection!

From Daily Herald

Could you wear a wardrobe that includes no neutral colors at all?  Summer is probably the easiest month to carry off this sort of color palette, but much as I love bright colors I am not sure even I would be able to completely eliminate neutral hues.  Hopefully, if I have the time before leaving for New Mexico, I will post the accessories for this wardrobe next weekend - otherwise the accessories post will turn up some time in the near future!