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Changing seasons

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Logo by SamThe seasonal closet switch that I mentioned last week actually happened this week. Almost. I did leave a few pairs of summer pants in the closet in case we get some more warm days, but the shorts have all been put away. Most of my summer tops are now in storage too, although I do leave a few sleeveless tops in my closet year round as I’ll wear them under jackets and sweaters during the colder months.

These twice a year seasonal switchovers are an excellent time to evaluate and decide what to keep and what to get rid of. As I put the new season’s clothes into the closet, I turn all the hangers around. Then, when I wear an item, I turn its hanger back the right way. At the end of the season, if an item is still hanging backwards, it’s a clear signal that I need to consider whether or not to keep it. This year there were several spring/summer items that I hadn’t worn, but I didn’t feel ready to let go of some of them yet, so I separated them from the others in storage. I’ll reevaluate in the spring and decide then whether to keep them for another season or not. I did get rid of a few things though. Two pairs of capris that were too worn out to keep or to pass on to anyone else went out with yesterday’s garbage and a few other pieces are destined for the second-hand store. Bringing the new season’s clothes back into circulation almost feels like having something new to wear. There were even a few pieces in my fall/winter wardrobe that I’d forgotten all about over the summer!

But how do we dress for this “wear a sweater in the morning and regret it in the afternoon” shoulder season without constantly changing clothes? After all, the temperature can be barely above freezing in the morning, above 20ºC (68ºF) in the afternoon, and chilly again as soon as the sun starts to go down.

As always, layering is the key.

In this example, my base layer consists of a sleeveless top and a pair of mid weight chinos. In the morning, I added warm socks, sneakers, and a cardigan. In the afternoon, I shed the socks and sweater, rolled up the cuffs of my pants, and switched out the sneakers for a comfortable pair of flats.

Everything I’m wearing in these photos has been in my wardrobe for at least three years and has appeared on the blog before except the sleeveless top which is new to me. It was part of the cabi Fall 2018 collection. I have no idea where it’s been hiding for the past five years, but when I found it in our local thrift store recently, it looked like it had never been worn. It originally sold for $99 CAD and I bought it for $2.50! Is it any wonder that I love thrift store shopping?

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And, totally off the topic of today’s post, you may remember that on May 1st, I challenged myself to walk and/or hike 350 kilometres by the end of October. I’m excited to report that I crossed the imaginary finish line yesterday afternoon, a full month early!

The 3rd piece rule

/ edebock / 2 Comments

Logo by SamIt’s been an unusually hot summer this year and I’ve spent most of it in shorts and sleeveless tops. Lately, however, there’s been a hint of fall in the air, especially first thing in the morning. I sometimes find myself putting on longer pants and reaching for a third piece.

Though you know that I’m not a follower of fashion rules, there is a “3rd piece rule” that actually makes sense a lot of the time. The idea is that for an outfit to go from good to great, it needs three key elements. Usually, your top and bottom (skirt, pants, or shorts) are the two main elements and the third piece is something extra that finishes the look. It could be a blazer, sweater, vest, scarf, or hat, but for me, it’s often an unbuttoned shirt.

Here’s just one example from my closet. All three pieces have appeared on the blog before. 

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During the hotter part of the day, I’ll break the 3rd piece rule and abandon the overshirt. For me, the third piece is more about warmth, than style. 

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You might be wondering about shoes and how they fit into the 3 piece formula. Apparently, they don’t. Shoes, boots, or sandals definitely add interest to an outfit, but they aren’t counted as a third piece. In today’s photos, I’m wearing the ECCO walking sandals that I bought back in May. Although they still look new, I’ve put a lot of miles on them over the past 3 months. As I mentioned then, I challenged myself to walk 350 km between May 1 and October 31. At the halfway point, the end of July, I’d walked just over 200 km! 

Dressing for a heat wave

/ edebock / 8 Comments

Logo by SamAs a Canadian, I know all about dressing for extreme cold, but dressing for a heat wave like we experienced here in Alberta recently is much more challenging for me. If I lived where these temperatures were the norm, I’m sure I’d have a wardrobe full of cotton and linen, but alas, I do not.

Day after day, I wore shorts and sleeveless tops on repeat. Thankfully, I have plenty of both and was able to mix and match to create numerous different looks from casual to dressy.

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Of course, there are those who say that women my age shouldn’t wear shorts, but you probably know by now that I don’t follow fashion rules, particularly those related to age. When I was younger, I was self-conscious about my skinny legs and knobby knees, but not any more. I actually don’t think they look too bad for 70!

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Most summers, I wear shorts mainly for golfing which is why I have several pairs. I prefer them to hit just above the knee and to be loose enough to move comfortably. For a dressier look, I wear those, like this black pair, that  are slightly more tailored looking.

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In addition to shorts and sleeveless tops, I’ve been living in sandals. Again, I have several pairs. My new Ecco walking sandals have been getting plenty of use as have my golfing sandals. In addition to those, I have dressier as well as casual pairs to choose from.

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Perhaps the most important thing that I wear during a heat wave though is sunscreen. Before I leave the house to play golf, go for a walk, or work in the yard, I slather on a good layer of a broad spectrum SPF 50+ lotion to protect my delicate skin from the sun’s damaging rays.

It doesn’t look like I’ll need to do that as often for the next few days though. As soon as I started working on this post, the weather changed! It’s much cooler now and we finally got some of the rain that we’ve been needing so very badly!

Time to purge!

/ edebock / 2 Comments

Logo by SamSpring has finally come to the prairie! All of a sudden, the days are gloriously warm and sunny. Earlier this week, the time finally came to do my seasonal closet switch; to put away my winter wardrobe and bring out my spring/summer clothes.

Over 40 years ago, when we first moved into our present house, I thought the closet in the master bedroom was big. That’s because the one in the master bedroom of our first house, one of the original CPR homes built in the very early 1900s to house new settlers, wasn’t just small. It was tiny; smaller than my present broom closet!

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In comparison, the closet in the new house seemed spacious. Only it really wasn’t, especially for two people. When he built a large storage room in the unfinished basement, I had hubby include a rod across one end where we could hang our off-season clothes. Though there are some pieces that remain in the closet year round, much of my wardrobe spends approximately half the year in the basement. Even so, the bedroom closet is full. Too full!

When I do the seasonal switch, I also try to edit my wardrobe. The only problem is, I’m not very good at that. Oh, I have the best of intentions and I know what I need to do. I just don’t do it well! When I hang the new season’s clothes in the closet, I turn all the hangers around. Once I wear an item, its hanger is turned back the right way. At the end of the season, it’s easy to see what has been worn and what hasn’t. Realistically, I could/should get rid of most of the items that weren’t worn that season, but do I? No, not often enough. This time, I’m trying to be a bit more ruthless.

One pair of well-worn pants is in the garbage. They’d reached the stage where I wouldn’t wear them outside the house for fear of a major wardrobe malfunction. As much as I loved them, it was time to let them go. Five pairs are in a bag that’s going to the second-hand store. Those were mostly low rise skinnies that I’m quite sure I won’t wear again. Several tops have been set aside for this weekend’s garage sale. If they don’t sell, they’ll go to the thrift store too.

Still, the closet is too full and it’s not hubby’s section that’s overflowing! As I wear my spring/summer clothes for the first time this season, I’m determined to analyze each item carefully. Is it in good condition? Does it still fit well? Does the colour suit me? Do I feel good wearing it? Does it fit my style adjectives… classy, confident, comfortable, casual, and authentic? If I answer no to any of these questions, I’m determined to let it go. It’s time to purge!

Speaking of purging, our garage sale starts at noon today. If you’re in the area, come on over! Perhaps you’ll find a treasure and if not, at least we can have a visit!

Dressing for the hot Mexican sun

/ edebock / 2 Comments

Logo by SamI wasn’t sure if there would be a Fashion Friday post this week as I’ve been focusing on enjoying our time in Mexico and sharing some of the sights with you, but here’s a quick “what I wore” post. We’ve had a couple of cooler, wetter days, but for the most part the daytime temperatures have been in the high 20ºs Celsius (high 70ºs and low 80ºs F). At at least one point earlier this week, the temperature discrepancy between here and home was more than 50ºC! Needless to say, I’ve been enjoying wearing my summer clothes.

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For Tuesday’s outing to Xico, I wore a thrifted Calvin Klein top and a comfortable pair of light cotton capris that I’ve had for several years.

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The following afternoon, Richard and I went for a long walk around Coatepec. Here I’m enjoying a relaxing rest in Miguel Hidalgo Park in the centre of town. Named for a Catholic priest and revolutionary during the Mexican War of Independence who is generally recognized as the Father of the Nation, the park is a popular gathering place any time of day or evening. In the photo, I’m wearing a cabi top from several seasons ago and the one pair of shorts that I’m very glad I tucked into my little carry-on suitcase. The sandals in both photos are the Clarks that I bought almost brand new at one of our local thrift stores last summer.

Perhaps the most important thing that I’ve been wearing though is a good sunscreen to protect my fair skin from the bright Mexican sun!

Hello snow! It’s time for boots!

/ edebock / 6 Comments

Logo by Sam

Here on the Canadian prairie, boots are more than just a fashion item. Winter arrived all of a sudden early last week. With it came snow and temperatures as low as -30ºC (-22ºF).

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The snow is pretty, especially when the sun is shining on it, but boots are absolutely essential! So, is six pairs of winter boots enough, or should I add another pair? That is the question!

Let’s take a look at my present collection.

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Two pairs of tall boots by Taxi, identical except for colour. The first time I wore my previous pair of tall winter boots out into the snow in November of 2019, I discovered that they leaked. Wet feet at subzero temperatures is more than uncomfortable; it’s dangerous. I knew that I needed to replace them, but since I live 85 km (53 miles) from the closest shoe store, I decided to check one of our local second-hand stores on the off chance that they might have something in my size. That’s when I found the brown pair. They were like new and now, going into their fourth winter, they’re still in very good condition. They’re comfortable, stylish, and reasonably warm and perhaps best of all, the elastic panel at the back means that they fit my slim calves. Last winter, I decided to keep my eye out for something similar in black and eventually I lucked out again when I found the exact same pair in black, also second-hand! Score!

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These three pairs of ankle boots, two also bought second-hand, are really just for show. They have smooth outer soles that don’t provide traction on ice and snow, the insoles aren’t cushioned for comfortable walking, and they don’t have warm linings. I love them, but they aren’t practical for spending much time outdoors in the depth of our winters.

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Then there’s this rugged old pair. And I do mean old! I distinctly remember buying them while on a high school basketball trip with my youngest son when he was in grade 11 or 12. That was over 20 years ago! In fact, he now has a daughter in grade 8! Although I used to wear them a lot, I pretty much only use them for snowshoeing now.

So, with six pairs of winter boots, why would I be thinking about buying more? That’s easy! I don’t have a pair of warm ankle boots that are safe and comfortable to do much walking in. The old rugged ones used to serve that purpose and perhaps they’d still do if I added a pair of comfortable insoles, but I’m thinking that I might want something a little more attractive and in style. Vanity, I know! I’ve been thinking about something like these

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these

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or maybe these.

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Stuck between the seasons

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Logo by SamWhen we arrived home from our recent trip to the coast, I thought that I would be doing my seasonal closet switch right away. I expected spring to have arrived while we were gone. I looked forward to putting away my winter wardrobe and bringing out my spring/summer clothes. I anticipated trying things on and making a shopping list as I know that there are some gaps that need to be filled and pieces that need to be replaced. None of that has happened! Instead, we seem to be stuck between the seasons! One minute it looks and feels like spring; but the next thing we know, the wind is howling and it’s snowing again! I know I’m not the only one who’s had enough of this!

I think the transition is going to have to be a gradual one this year. So far, I’ve put my winter coat, my boots, and my heaviest sweaters into storage and I brought out two pairs of chinos that are warmer than shorts or capris, but cooler than jeans. Today, I think I’ll go through the rest of my winter wardrobe and weed out those things that need to go. This requires discipline as I tend to hang onto things longer than I should!

The first thing I’ll do is check the hangers. Every time I put a new season’s clothes into the closet, I turn all the hangers around. Then, when I wear an item, I turn it’s hanger back the right way. At the end of the season, if an item is still hanging backwards, it’s a clear signal that I need to consider whether or not to keep it.

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Unlike those who advise getting rid of anything that hasn’t been worn during the current season or in the past year, I sometimes keep items that are excellent quality or that I love even if I haven’t worn them for quite awhile. Eventually, I enjoy resurrecting some of those pieces and wearing them again. There are some, however, that simply need to go. If they no longer fit well or I don’t actually enjoy wearing them, they’re destined for the second-hand store or an online buy and sell group.

It was snowing when I started writing this, but sunny and bright when I finished! The weather forecast is promising even better things for the next week or so. Maybe we’re finally becoming unstuck and I’ll be able to do the remainder of my seasonal wardrobe switch before next Friday. Maybe. I sure hope so!

Packing for the in-between season

/ edebock / 5 Comments

LogoLast year at exactly this time, I wrote a post about deciding what to wear for a day away from home during this in-between season when the weather is so unpredictable. This year, my challenge was much greater as it involved packing a suitcase!

At home on the prairie, the geese are returning and the gophers have come out of hibernation, but there are still patches of snow on the ground. We’re travelling through high mountain passes where winter conditions are still a distinct possibility, but our destination is the coast where flowers will be blooming and rain showers are likely. Daytime high temperatures there are likely to be around 10ºC (50ºF). How do you pack for all of that?

There’s a “just in case” bag in the back of the vehicle with heavy coats, toques, scarves, and gloves, and we each brought along a pair of winter boots. I’m seriously hoping that we don’t need any of those things, but as they say, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Layering is always the key to coping with varying temperatures and weather conditions, so I packed accordingly. I want to be able to add or subtract layers as the days warm up or cool off. For the most part, the clothes in the suitcase came from my fall/winter wardrobe, but I did go into storage and pull out a couple of the warmer items from my spring/summer collection. The majority of what I packed was neutral in colour allowing me to mix and match, creating a variety of different looks with a limited number of pieces.

The main purpose of our trip is to be with my special brother who is having surgery on Monday, but since that’s taking us to the coast at such a beautiful time of year and since it feels like forever since we’ve had a real holiday, we’ve added a few days in Victoria to our plans. Casual outfits will work well for most of what we plan to do, but I’ll probably want to dress up a bit for a couple of events. Accessories take up very little space and easily add polish to an outfit when that’s what’s needed.

A change of shoes can also give an outfit a lift. That’s one area where I can indulge myself on a trip like this one. When we fly, the number of pairs of shoes I can take is limited by suitcase space, but when we travel by vehicle I can fit in many more! Comfort is key, however. We plan to do a lot of walking, especially when we’re in Victoria, so I made sure to bring more than one pair of comfortable, supportive walking shoes. That way if one pair gets wet, I’ll have another to change into. We also packed umbrellas!

I’m not sure if I’ll be posting anything for Fashion Friday the next two weeks, but it will be a treat to be able to write some travel posts instead! Do stay tuned!

Transitioning to fall

/ edebock / 3 Comments

LogoHow do you dress for this golden shoulder season known as autumn? I saw a headline this week that read, “It’s wear a sweater in the morning and regret it in the afternoon weather!” That pretty much sums up fall in my part of the world. When we get up in the morning, the temperature is generally hovering just above 0°C (32°F) and there might be frost on the ground, but by afternoon it has warmed up to anywhere between 18° and 25°C (64° and 77°F).

While running errands early one afternoon this week, I decided to take note of what other people were wearing. A man, sitting in front of the post office reading his mail, was wearing shorts, sandals, and a heavy fleece vest over his t-shirt! That kind of incongruous outfit isn’t as unusual as you might think. I also saw one woman wearing a quilted coat and a toque while another was working in her yard in shorts and a t-shirt!

In spite of this confusion, I decided that it was time to begin my seasonal wardrobe switch this week. Since I found myself reaching for the warmer items in my closet every morning and the true hot weather pieces were no longer seeing the light of day, I knew it was time to put most of those away and bring out my fall/winter pieces.

If you live where the weather is more uniform year round, you probably don’t have to go through this twice a year ritual, and I guess if I had a bigger closet I might not have to either. As it is, however, it’s much easier to have only one season’s clothes to choose from every morning and these seasonal switchovers are an excellent time to evaluate and decide what to keep and what to get rid of.

So, how do I go about doing that? Unlike some who advise getting rid of anything that hasn’t been worn during the current season or in the past year, I sometimes hang onto items that are excellent quality or that I love even if I haven’t worn them for quite awhile. Over the years, I’ve occasionally enjoyed resurrecting some of those items and have even shared a few of them here on the blog. This time, however, I knew that there were things in my summer closet that simply had to go. This required discipline because some were pieces that I really liked, but they were too worn out to keep or to pass on to anyone else. Others that don’t fit well or that I no longer enjoy wearing are destined for the second-hand store.

As I put the new season’s clothes into the closet, I turn all the hangers around. Then, when I wear an item, I turn it’s hanger back the right way. At the end of the season, if an item is still hanging backwards, it’s a clear signal that I need to consider whether or not to keep it.

There are, of course, some items that stay in my closet year round including sleeveless tops that can be worn alone in summer or under sweaters and jackets when the weather is cooler. This time, I also left a couple of pairs of favourite capri pants for those 25° afternoons. They won’t stay there all winter, but for now, we’re still transitioning!

Inspiration for a hot day

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LogoI often get outfit inspiration from other fashion bloggers. Back in April, when I saw this post from Jennifer Connolly, writer of A Well Styled Life, it sparked an idea for me.

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I bought a similar poly cotton dress at one of our local thrift stores several years ago, but until now I’d only used it as a cover up at the beach. I dug it out of the beach bag, washed it, hung it in my closet, and waited for the heat of summer to arrive here in Alberta. This week’s heat wave was the perfect time to try it out.

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As you can see, there are several differences between my dress and Jennifer’s, the most obvious being that mine is sleeveless and the stripes are much narrower. On closer inspection, you’ll see that the hemlines are also different. When we’re inspired by the way another woman dresses, the idea is not to copy her, but to take elements of what she’s wearing and make the look our own. I started by pairing the navy and white dress with a pair of black sandals, but I also tried it with my white leather sneakers. 

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If I was to step out of the shade where the photos were taken, I’d also want a hat to shield my face from the sun. 

And though it was much too hot for a jacket when the photos were taken, I really like the way the dress looks with a jean jacket. 

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One thing I did learn from all of this was how comfortable a dress like this can be on a really hot day. We rarely get a week like this one with temperatures in the high 30s C (90s F) but from now on, I think I’ll make sure that there are at least one or two casual dresses in my summer wardrobe.

PS. Happy Independence Day to all my American readers! We celebrated Canada Day on the 1st.