Green Monster.

These pants were the other colour that I picked up on my Winners shopping trip a couple weekends back. This is how I styled 'em. Please ignore the paleness in my skin, I really need a vacation somewhere sunny and warm:

Dynamite shirt; F21 shirt, blazer, accessories; Winners jeans; Payless boots

Today I'm linking up with Kayla's 10-day winter challenge. She has us all wearing bright colours! I love brights during the winter time. I have a hard time wearing very muted and dull colours - they make me feel less inspired. How do you feel about winter colour?

Follow me here to check out the rest of the participants! Feel free to link up with Kayla too if you're also wearing brights!

Turtlenecks.

AE jeans; Suzy Shier turtleneck (old); F21 belt; Bag & scarf from eBay.ca; Aldo boots

Turtlenecks. I have never been particularly fond of them, but this one is a winner in my books. Whatever material it's made of is so warm. I don't even need a sweater! That never happens to me, so when it does, I need to tell everybody.

I don't know why turtlenecks aren't my favourite... I guess I just don't really know how to style them? It shouldn't be too hard but I guess the long neck stumps me a little.

Do you guys like turtlenecks? How do you wear them?


Happy Monday World!

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Subtle Pattern Mixing.

How to mix patterns and keep it subtle: 

Smart Set jacket & necklace; Joe Fresh top; Old Navy button-down; AE jeans; Spring boots

When I thought of this idea, I felt like a genius. I wasn't sure how to tackle Kayla's pattern mixing challenge because I didn't really feel like wearing any "in-your-face" patterns or mixes.  I feel like this subtle mix of gingham and stripes is simple, but still enough.

Can I just take a moment to brag about this jacket? It was $11. That is all.

Time to go check out all of the other pattern-mixers! Maybe you should too?!

Bows.

Oh how I love neck-tie bows. They're the reason why I couldn't part with this shirt once I got it off the Forever 21 rack. It's a size too big, but I don't care. It has a bow.

F21 shirt, bracelet & pants; Gap cardigan; Le Chateau boots

Also, I need to admit an addiction. At the risk of sounding like a total nerd (which I am, or at least can be) I played The Sims 3 this weekend for the first time in months. If you're not familiar with the game, you pretty much create a family or a single Sim and grow it. It's like second-life or something... But it's addictive. So addictive. But I've decided, through my Sim, that if money was no object I would love to be a stylist. As one of the careers in the game, it's so much fun decided what everyone wears! Seriously, I've single-handedly made the whole town fashionable. Who knew a video game would be so informative!

Happy Thursday everyone!

The Real Red Pants.

I was going to start this post off writing about my 'red pants debut', but then I realized, I've already posted a red-pants-outfit before. However, those ones had to go back to where they came from, and I was left red-pant-less again. Until very recently...

Winners jeans; Dynamite button-down; Costco blazer; F21 accessories; Aldo sunglasses

Thank you Winners! You are wonderful. I often search your racks for hours trying to find a hidden gem, but today I didn't have to. Today you had these red pants out on display for all to see. You saved me a great deal of time, and a great deal of money. I got these babies for $19.99!

...I also got another colour, but you guys will find out which one in time. ;)

Again, I linked up this post with Kayla's (from Freckles in April) winter challenge. Today it's trends, so I thought my coloured denim would fit in quite nicely with the prompt. C'mon and check the rest of the trendy folk out!

Surviving Canadian Winters: Jackets.

So I've been thinking... and I've decided that all my readers get to see is what I wear below my jackets, mitts and scarves.  Why not show you guys how I dress for winter? Brilliant idea! This means I, for once, get to take pictures AND stay warm at the same time.

So I am starting a mini-series called "Surviving Canadian Winters".  At times it can be glamorous, and at other times, not so glamorous... Either way, it'll be a fun way to look at my outer-wear wardrobe during the coldest months of the year. I'll have three posts around the most important parts of a winter wardrobe: jackets, boots and accessories (i.e. mitts, scarves).

Today we'll start off with jackets.  This is an essential because without a jacket I would probably die.... And I probably don't need 4 jackets, but here's how I justify them to myself.

1. The 'I need to look nice' jacket.

Jacket from Costa Blanca (& doggy butt)

I wear this baby when I need to look good. Interviews, meetings, nice places, etc. The colour & cut is always sophisticated and the wool means that it's at least a little warm.

2. The 'oh, it's nice and mild' jacket. 

Jacket from Joe Fresh

He comes out when it's warmish outside.  When the temperature sits around 0°C or a little below, I throw him on.  He's one of my favourites because he's a great camo-green and has some faux-fur around the hood. He is beautiful.

3. The 'it's cold' jacket. 

Jacket from Guess

I wear this lady when it hits below -10°C.  She's great for the cold temperatures until a certain point of ridiculous coldness (i.e. -30°C).  At that point it get too frigid and I can still feel the cold through her, even though she's down-filled. But she's also great because she also has a faux-fur trimmed hood. I love this faux-fur thing, can ya tell? And the hood it huge so it can shield my face pretty well from the wind. Sometimes too well and I can't see anymore...this can get dangerous!

4. The 'it's too cold to feel anything' jacket.

Jacket from West 49

I wear this bad boy when I'm outside for an extended period of time.  It's a ski jacket, and not so stylish, but does the trick of keeping me warm. For those few days during the winter when it gets REALLLLLLY cold, or when I'm planning to be out for a while, I'll pull him out of the closet. I will also wear him when I'm attempting to snow-board.  I also wear this skating. I skate better than I snowboard. Usually I only fall once!


So there you have it! Not sure how the other Canadian girls do it, but this is my way of dealing with the temperature changes - alternating jackets! The key to choosing the right one is really considering the weather of the day and how long I'll be outside.  Either way, I don't know what I would do without these four lovelies in my life.

Do you alternate jackets? Am I crazy to have 4?

Sweater on sweater.

So... when these outfit pics were taken it was -27 C with the windchill.   I should be given an award for withstanding these temperatures just for you guys... ;) Just kidding, I do this because it's fun (somehow even in the cold...).  

But these subzero temps explain the choice in dress: sweater over sweater over flannel. Yup, that's about the only way to keep warm these days! With this outfit, I'm linking up with Freckles in April's 10 Day Challenge. Today it's Layers. 

Zellers knit sweater; F21 flannel and shirt; AE jeans; Payless boots

I wanted to participate in this challenge last time - it was 21 days of different challenges and prompts, but I forgot partway through and then decided to forget it altogether. But this time I'm hoping to link up with at least half! The prompts aren't to difficult, so if you're interested you should link up too!

Thanks for stopping by today! I'm off to visit the other layer-ers now!

I got a lot goin' on.

I'm only realizing now that I have lots of different things going on in this outfit. Still, I like to think it "goes".

Old Navy scarf & belt; Joe fresh top; American Eagle jacket; F21 cords; Walmart boots

So guys, what's been up with Twitter lately?? For some reason it hasn't been working for me on my computer. I can't seem to figure out if it's the internet or my browser (I tried a second browser and it doesn't work, so I assume it's not my browser). It just seems to take me forever to load the page, and then once it's loaded, it doesn't let me tweet anything. I'll click the "compose new tweet" button, but nothing will pop-up. It seems to be working for everyone else though, since while I'm click-click-clicking that button, 1 new tweet pops up on my feed. How annoying is that?! UGH Twitter, fix yo shiz, please.

Anyone else having Twitter probs? Or is it just me? Maybe I'm just crazy? Maybe it just hates me?

p.s. It's Friday!!!!!!! In case you didn't know ;)

Indoor Scarf.

Sometimes I put a scarf on to go outside, and forget to take it off when I come back in. A couple hours later I realize why I'm nice and toasty warm - it's my "indoor scarf"! And it's wonderful! Do you guys do this?

Joe Fresh sweater; Old Navy shirt & cowl; AE jeans; Payless boots; H&M socks

Fun fact: Yesterday I accompanied my mom to puppy training for little Charlie. Turns out that two other puppies in the same class are from the exact same litter! They're little brothers and sisters! What a coincidence!

Fun fact: When I pet my cat, she turns her ears down and looks like Yoda. It's awesome. I shall take a picture one day.

Fun fact: Today I'm going to buy a number of materials to make some DIY's that I've pinned recently. Finally, Pinterest making itself useful! ;) Just kidding, I love Pinterest!

Have a good day everyone!

Blogger Spotlight: Emma from Verbal Mélange

Hey guys! I've decided to start a new series on the blog where each month I'll be featuring one of my favourite bloggers! To kick things off I've asked Emma from Verbal Mélange to write a feature.  Emma is awesome. Period. She's a thrifty gal who blogs about fashion, shopping on a financial diet, and how to look great for less. Like I said, she's awesome. Thanks again, Emma!

- - - - - -

First, I just want to say how excited and flattered I am that Kelly asked me to kick off her guest blogger series! She’s such a sweetheart, and she actually braves the cold Canadian outdoors for her outfit photos. That’s dedication right there. Mad respect for that :)

So anyway, today I’m here to talk about remixing daytime outfits into nighttime ones. If you’ve ever read Verbal Mélange, you’d know that my general take on style is that it shouldn’t cost a lot to look good. I’m on a pretty tight budget, so I thrift most of my clothes or make do with the ones I already have. Maintaining a style blog when you don’t buy new clothes very often is a great challenge, and it’s definitely taught me how to remix my closet more than ever.

Any time I buy a shirt, I try to think of at least one day and one night option for wearing it. In fact, a lot of the clothes that I wear to the office every day eventually get worn to the bars or to parties as well, and vice versa. Take for example this outfit. I re-styled the same sweater and boots to be worn to work on casual Friday, then later to a sketch comedy show with some friends.




 
 Day version. Sweater is from H&M, long sleeve shirt from Target, skinnies and bracelet from Forever 21, boots from Old Navy. 
   
 Night version. Shorts are from The Limited, tights are from Target, hoop earrings were a gift.

I made a few key choices in converting this outfit to be suitable for each situation. For daytime, I kept it casual and toned down, going with the always popular loose-sweater-jeggings-and-boots combo. I also covered up some more skin with the long sleeve shirt, since my office is cold, but that had the dual effect of looking a little more modest. I pulled my hair up into a messy, casual, curly bun, and kept the makeup simple.

For the nighttime switch, I washed and straightened my hair, wearing it down to up the sexy factor a little. I also used a smokier eyeshadow and red lipstick. The hoop earrings also up the sexy factor without being too in-your-face. And finally, I ditched the pants. I was going to go with no pants at all, but this sweater doesn’t quite cover my bum, so for the sake of modesty I threw on some black shorts. These rust-colored tights are actually tights, not leggings, so something had to be done regardless. 

And there you have it! Using the same pieces for daytime and nighttime wear is a snap, thanks to a few simple switches. Go all out and try re-styling your favorite little black dress for work, or try to incorporate a blazer or pencil skirt into your typical evening wear.

Winter denim.

Good day lovelies,

American Eagle sweater; F21 button-down; Gap denim; Scarf??

These pants don't get much love from me in the winter time. I only have one pair of heeled winter boots but I don't wear them very much (heels+snow = no fun). Today I sucked it up and put them on just so I could wear these jeans out of the house. I missed my flared denim! I feel so restricted to skinny jeans at this time of year and it's interfering with my creativity! ;)

Today is one of those days... I've got nothing planed and I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Or if I'm even going to do anything. We'll have to see how it turns out... maybe I'll just sit back and take some time to myself? Start a new book, perhaps? I've got 5 on my shelf waiting to be read and I want to do the entire HP series again. Ambitious? I think yes. The last time I read a real book was at least a year ago. Since then it's only been textbooks. Wish me luck, guys!

p.s. If you guys haven't noticed I've got a new layout goin' on! I hope you like it, because it'll be here to stay for a while. It's tiring trying to re-do your blog.

Brights & Stripes.

When it's cold and dreary outside, bright colours do a great job at livening my mood! So does getting dressed in proper attire; I gotta admit, not leaving the house every day usually channels sweat pants. 

Old navy shirt & sweater; AE pants; Walmart boots; F21 accessories

I really need to get better at hiding this remote. But you know, in the cold my first priority is actually taking the photos, not thinking about where my remote is. Excuses, excuses.

I had a wonderful weekend though! I spent a lot of time with some great friends, where we shopped, ate, and went to an absolutely hilarious comedy show. I don't know why I don't go to those often, sometimes they're better than a movie! And they make you laugh! Mental note: go to more comedy shows, they're good for your health. ;)

Today is week 2 at the gym and I'm heading out now for a little workout. I've got lots to do today so I've got to start early! I hope everyone had a fab weekend!!!

The standard outfit.

Everyone's got one. It's what you wear when you a) don't have time, or b) don't have the energy to come up with a fun and creative outfit.

This is my standard outfit:

F21 button-down & necklace; GAP cardigan; AE jeans; Spring boots

I'm keeping this post short and sweet, so happy Friday everyone! Have a wonderful weekend!

What's your standard outfit?

The only flowers around.

The tiny floral print on this jacket makes me so happy! I just wish it was spring time...

F21 jacket & socks; Smart Set top; AE jeans; Old Navy belt & cowl; Payless boots

I bought this jacket and don't wear it nearly enough. I have to figure out some new ways to style it, that's for sure.

Oh! And I've been keeping up with the gym! Two days now! I'm starting off with an easy schedule - Mon, Wed, Fri for about 1 hour each day. So far I'm 2 for 2! I'm glad I got a membership because it's getting me out of the house and into the real world a few days a week. Being done school has put me in this weird lull and at least this is helping me DO something :)

Now, if only the sun would start shining and the temperature could warm up, I could spend some more time outside... Only 3 more months (I hope...)!

Coloured Denim.

It seems that coloured denim will be sticking around for a little while longer. We have all seen the rise of cobalt blue and red, but now stores are featuring so many other colours like purple, yellow, pink, green and orange! I love my blue jeans and would love to invest in another colour, but which one?

(1) Coral: Forever 21
(2) Mustard: ASOS
(3) Violet: Forever 21
(4) Pink: American Eagle
(5) Green: ASOS
(6) Red: Forever 21

What colour would you pick?

EBEW: Black & White

Today's outfit is black & white.

Sweater was mom's; Joe Fresh striped top; AE pants; Spring boots; Dynamite cowl

This outfit is in participation with today's Everybody, Everywhere Black & White "challenge". This here is my black and white outfit.  There were a number of different combinations I could think up, but this one won. Looking back, I could have gone with my white jeans and a black top to change it up, but who cares. It's done and I'm not stepping outside to take more photos. It's freaking cold!

I'm so excited to be able to participate in today EBEW though! It's been a couple months since I've participated. I didn't own sequins or sparkle for the last challenge so I sat that one out. Now the question is, what will be the next challenge?!