Keeping it Retro

Dress? Vintage Shoes? Thrifted Belt? Thrifted Nails? China Glaze in Hey Sailor Lipcolour? Palladio LipLiner in Red Rose with some Plumping Gloss in Crimson Criminal for a bit of shine Make-up c/o Sally Beauty

I'm pretty slack at Halloween. For years I only really cared about the 50% off candy on November 1st. If I had a party, I might dress up but it was always a last minute thing; grab something from my closet and make it work. Julie usually throws a good Halloween party and last year I maximized my effort and went as... a cat. 

The truth is, I am never going to win any singing competitions, an athletic honour or the Best Dressed award at Julie's party and I'm ok with that. Some people are good at singing, sports and Halloween and I'm good at pruning hedges and taking pictures of myself with a timer. It all works out in the end.

I just did a little segment on TV  yesterday (my part is towards the end...) about using vintage for your Halloween costume and I wore this outfit. The vintage dress is from the shop (and it now needs the back seam sewn up because I split it right before we went on air... why does this always happen to me?) and I would usually wear a dress like this with modern shoes and my regular messy curls. I wear a lot of vintage in my day-to-day wear but I often mix it with modern clothing to keep the look current. To make the dress work as a costume instead, I took the look in a far more retro direction with 1940's inspired pumps (actually from the 80's but fashion always comes back around), pantyhose, ear clips, victory rolls in my hair and some poppy red make-up I picked up at Sally Beauty . Sally Beauty is the place that has your hair, face and nails covered with everything from really fancy professional gadgets to good quality every day make-up. 

I picked out the vampy red make-up because I love some glam red nails and a poppy pout to add to a last minute Halloween costume but I also love red nails and lips the other 364 days a year... Making my costume and make-up do double duty for regular life and Halloween. #werk

Are you dressing up? Is your effort level higher than mine?;)

*Post sponsored by Sally Beauty. 

Mad for Plaid

Plaid links; blanket scarf here and here// vintage cape, options on etsy here and here// plaid scarf/poncho thing in first pic (I wore it as shown and also as a large scarf over my bomber jacket) thrifted but it's also here and here (this one is reversible, double the fun)

It didn't feel like it when I* was hauling my suitcase up and down those tiny, steep, twisted dutch stairs but I did a fairly reasonable job of packing to go to Holland. It's like I've gotten much wiser over the years and realize I should just bring classic, easy to wear basics and a few quirky pieces for flair (Office Space reference for Matt...). 

The basics were pretty... basic. Them being basic and all. My pants were skinnies in different washes and rises and my tops were grey tanks, tees and sweatshirts and oversized denim and plaid shirts. I layered with my custom boiled wool cardigan from MYC (I like dropping the fact that it was custom because it makes me feel highfalutin), my leather bomber and a fur vest. I pretty much wore my black knee-high flat boots everyday because they hit the sweet spot between looking very pulled together and walking on a cloud. And then, of course, I added plaid flair like it was nobody's business. 

I didn't mean to wear something plaid everyday but I started to notice a trend (starting in my selfies...cough) and I went with it. Plaid is autumn in a fashion nutshell anyways...

And yes, I am superficial enough that I wish I could have some amazing outfit pictures of me in a beautiful vintage dress standing on a European cobblestone street with autumn leaves swirling about my designer shoe clad feet. But we had other priorities, like family and wine, and so I'll save the fancy vintage dress outfit pictures for abandoned places in Hamilton and rock the cosy plaid while on vacation.

Not that plaid is ever a bad thing...

*to be fair, sometimes others offered to help and I graciously allowed them.

The Homeland

1. Holland in a nutshell; flat, green spaces, animals, blue skies and of course a threatening rain storm..:) 2. Matt and I went to very many street side patios to enjoy that lingering warm autumn air and a cold beverage. Matt and I are often so very opposite but we find a lot of common ground in the killing an afternoon people watching. 3. I take this picture every time I am in Utrecht because my landscape heart loves perfectly pruned boxwoods. 4. The flower markets in Holland are so lovely! It's a little like Instagram heaven. And the flower bunches are so cheap you just want to buy them and distribute them to anyone you even remotely know because it seems like a waste not to. 5. Our swanky top floor pad that we rented off Airbnb in Utrecht. Utrecht is maybe my favourite city and it was so nice to stay so very close to the city centre and to my brother and his family. Also, having an all white apartment looks so cool but it's stressful. I leave too much of a trail of clothing and diet coke cans behind me to live so minimalistically. 6. Cheese and bitterballen on a sunny afternoon. It does not get much better. We are so high brow. 7. The way the moss sat and the oak leaves scattered on an old gravestone was so beautiful. 8. Making friends. 9. I love Dutch city centres. Just filled with cobblestones, canals and bikes. And I love biking everywhere; though I totally owe that one girl an apology because she had the right of way and I cut her off because I mis-interpreted the signs. 10. The view from the rooftop of our place as the sun sets... sigh.

Did a little blog disappearance and enjoyed two weeks in Holland. Matt and I both had to bust our butts prepping to get away, so by the time we were on that plane to Amsterdam we were over everything and just wanted to get away... 

And now we are back, a bit more relaxed and full of Gouda cheese. 

We visit Holland fairly regularly because my two brothers and their families live there. It feels very much like 'home' to me with the sights and smells of my childhood. I walk into a grcoery store and I just want to buy and eat everything. Not because dry hard cookies with tasteless pink icing are that good but because I remember licking the icing off them during tea time at my Opa and Oma's. 

But honestly, even if you don't have adorable towhead nephews and an angel baby niece waiting for you in Holland and even if cookies with pink icing are not your thing, you should still go to Holland sometime. It is truly a pleasant country! Apart from the beautiful historic buildings, cobblestone streets and bike lined canals, Holland also has the nicest cat population (they all come up and say heyyyyy... seriously). And if that isn't enough, the homes are often set very close to the street so you can go for walks and admire some really great interior designs. And if you think that's just creepy, then just enjoy the fresh bread and cheese and beer and candy. Maybe not all together but I also won't judge. 

I've been to quite a few European cities and they were all great in their own way but I have to say that Holland is probably the most cost efficient. I remember eating MacDonald's in Paris and London because that was the cheapest meal option but generally speaking, the cost of living is pretty decent in Holland. And I know I keep talking about cheese, but seriously, so many good cheeses for so little money!

Clearly I am the unoffical spokesperson for cheese and Holland (if someone wants to make it official and pay me, I'm cool with that too)...

September Wears

September was a month of writing up ridiculously long to-do lists and then crossing all the things off those lists. I worked like crazy and things got done. ***pats self on back***

It should be noted that I was also a mediocre wife, friend and daughter (and blogger) in September but as long as those seasons of mediocrity are temporary, it will be OK. Friends, it is October, we can hang out again;)

What I am trying to say is that we hardly had time to do outfit pics in September because sometimes choosing the right wall takes more than 7 minutes and ain't nobody got time for that... in September. But I did get dressed up to work in the shop and I did take the time out for selfies. Because my priorities are in the right place... 

Honestly, I think it's kinda fun to have quick little snaps of what I wore to the shop. It's a pleasure to just wear what you want... until the winter time and the heat can't keep up and I wear 30 layers and keep the space heater plugged into my hand bag...

Dress? Vintage Albert Nippon Shoes? Young and Tae

I am actually paying for some ad space in a local mag (just trying it out, figuring out what reaps the greatest rewards in terms of marketing is a puzzle that needs constant work and re-evaluation) and they needed a picture of me in the shop. Well, might as well get every dollar's worth out of that ad space and go for a popping dress. This silk Albert Nippon dress (I removed the 80's sleeves) is so great to wear, especially with the help of a full crinoline. 

Dress? Vintage Necklace? Vintage Whiting and Davis Purse? Vintage

I bought this dress from Lost & Found Vintage (a sweet local lady with the cutest mobile shop, the prettiest smile and the best 70's fashion) and I was worried it would be too late in the season for such a summery dress... Happily on the day of the street sale for the shop, the weather was super fabulous... almost as fabulous as my dress;)

Dress? French Connection Boots? Joe Fresh Necklace? Vintage Whiting and Davis

This is my favoruite French Connection dress from a few years ago. The long sleeves, sharply shaped shoulders, low V and swingey hem make it super flattering. It has made the rounds and been borrowed a few times and honestly, I have no problem passing my clothes on to friends if they enjoy them, but I just can't let this dress go. It's too good.

Skirt? Thrifted Sweater? Old Navy Boots? Steve Madden Purse? Vintage

Thrifted fringe skirt... Like I've said before, I'm having a fringe moment, maybe even a fringe year. I would be OK if this is the decade of the fringe too. I'm wearing a cotton h&m skirt as a slip and it was fine until I took big steps and then it rode right up. Of course I found this out the hard way; running to my car after picking up a dress at the alterations place, trying to avoid the rain and make it to the shop in time. Time to stock up on some more classic slips at the thrift shop I guess;)

Jacket? Vintage Pants? Vince Shoes? Nine West, thrifted

This burst of sunshine jacket is another Instagram buy from Vintage Whimsy (guess what? shamelesssss plug, I sell on Insta every few weeks too...). I took a bit of a chance on it, I loved the print but I was unsure about the size and how the material would fall. After staring at it for way too long, I bought it, hoping I could just #makeitwerk. I know it's more of a spring print but I could not wait that long, so I wore it with my leather pants on the first really chilly day of the season.