Pix-Elated

Thanks Angie and Brooklyn for the great reminder that joy per wear is as important as any other metric! 

Most (but not all) of these are occasion wear items that don't come out that often, but wow do they make me happy when I do get to wear them! 

Hi, all! Well, it's no surprise -- but after my two month experiment with tonal and monochrome outfits, I have learned that I'm still a contrast dresser at heart. ;) 

Despite my low contrast personal colouring, it seems I like mixing things up. 

Or maybe I just like going to extremes?  Because here's the thing...if I do dress monochrome, I like white out. Or navy. Or red. In other words, a dark or a bright or a light. 

I can do tonal happily in greys (on the right day). I can also do it in lilacs to blue or red/s burgundies (16...though that may not seem like a truly tonal outfit, and I get that...), or variations of blue, or variations of white/ cream with a hint of grey, or berries/ reds and burgundies. 

In fact, I like all those options a lot if there is enough textural interest or shine (which, ahem, usually introduces at least an element of contrast) or if there is some tone on tone pattern. 

I strongly dislike myself in pastel lilac monochrome (1) or tonal with pink (11) . Ugh. If I'm going to go monochrome, it's dark or bright all the way. I am sure I could do a midtone blue as well, if I had the elements, but no pastels, please! 

I think my next little experiment will be with pattern mixing. I do this a lot but I missed it during my tonal experiment, because I was using more solids or faux solids. So it will be fun to switch things up.

Those of you who also tried this experiment, did you make discoveries about what works and does not work for you? Are some colours better for you than others? 

Thanks for inspiring this personal challenge, SarahDB, and thanks to all who joined in! 

I have to make a quick 3 day trip to Vancouver which will include multiple kinds of activities in --- ugh -- not only. dreadful, but mixed-up weather (winter cold plus pouring rain and then warmer with rain.) And I am on foot/ ferry, and have to bring a few gifts to friends. And also need to go for a walk with one friend in the rain and then meet another immediately afterwards for dinner, hopefully not looking like a drowned rat. 

I have no idea whether this is going to work, but here's my travel capsule. 

I'll be layering like a pro -- wool cami under mesh top, with puffer and raincoat (and possibly a sweater as well, depending)...wearing waterproof boots for everything. Holiday reds planned for tomorrow but in the blues today....plus red for the trip out -- gloves, scarf, puffer under the raincoat...would far prefer a different coat option but this is the best I can do in the mixed conditions. I have an umbrella, too. 

Continuing my experiment with monochrome and tonal outfits. Blue is my easiest neutral/colour to work with because I have the components, in multiple silhouettes and textures. Here are a few options drawing on some newer items as well as older items. 

Outfit 1 (different versions, pics  1-5) features the new pleated wide wide legs from BR along with a matching mock neck. The trousers are so comfy! Lovely to wear. Highly recommend! 

This is pretty much monochrome, except for the belt, which is called Dutch blue (a slightly lighter, warmer blue) and of course the buckle.

I then tried it with different outerwear, more tonal than monochrome, but kept the bag blue (thank you, Angie) to see how that might feel. Verdict: despite being dark, monochrome ink or navy feels very "me" and I am comfortable wearing all blue, assuming I can add a bit of shine. If I have to wrestle together a travel capsule, a base of navy is my friend. 

Notably -- the addition of the slight bit of contrast with the bag strap, and/ or the flecks of white in the infinity scarf (thanks, Ms. Mary!) made me much happier with the outdoor version of this outfit. Monochrome or tonal is fine...but I still like a hint of contrast via light/ bright, or shine. 

Outfit 2, (pics 6-9) shows the same mock neck in mid-blue, with my new wide leg flocked menswear pants from Anthro. How I love these trousers! They are floor skimming with the black Eccos and a bit too long with the silver boots that I also tried. I probably should hem them, but oh, I love the drama of the length and might just leave them and wear with the footwear that works. I have at least 3 options to wear with them at this length. 

The trousers are dark navy with a faint grey/white check, and black velvet flocking. Fun texture, a mix of femme and boyish that feels completely me. They are probably meant to be dressy, but I will dress them down a bit, too -- as here, or with denim. And they're super comfortable! This was to wear for an at home date night. I didn't try to play around with outerwear for this version since I wasn't going anywhere. 

I'm learning a lot about my preferences from this experiment and also trying combinations I might not otherwise have tried. 

Yesterday dawned foggy and cold and ended up sunny and cold. I needed to bundle up to ferry Mr. Suz and the adult child to various appointments. 

After one day of greyscale, I was ready again for colour! Here, I'm trying tonal lilacs, with colour wheel adjacent reds/ and pink hues and incidentally also showing a few Top Picks (from various years!) 

1. For outside, I have my J. Crew stadium coat, plus burgundy hat, scarf, gloves, and red bag, with a strap that combines the tones. Shoes are cream. The pants are actually a very different lilac -- closer to mauve -- and on first glance I did not think they would work at all with the bluer lilac of the coat. But once I had the whole thing on, it seemed to blend ok, at least to my eye. That was a good discovery, because I really would not have tried them together if not for this experiement. 

2. Taking off a few items. 

3. The inside outfit -- sweater is a different again lilac background (closer to pink) with red and burgundy pattern. 

4. This is another lilac tonal outfits worn since buying the pants. The sweater is magenta; the scarf has various tones of lilac, red, burgundy, magenta in it. 

5. Here's the near monochrome version with the BR sweater. I did not wear this in real life because I sent the sweater back. I decided that a whole outfit this pale just didn't feel "me." I need a lilac that is more mid-tone, that has a bit more "oomph". Plus, as an outfit, this felt "off" for me. A bit too sweet for my personal taste. I do like lilacs and pinks but prefer to mix them up with rougher textures or other colours because otherwise I don't feel like myself in them. 

Taking inspiration from DonnaF's  thread about sweater vests, and one of Carla's comments on my thread of yesterday: "When I did a lot of quilting, we talked about patterns that read as solids, and how much interest low contrast or tonal prints added to a composition. Of course it would be the same with garments! Maybe even a good thing, where texture is lacking?"    

Well, let's see. Here, I'm trying it in greys. This is something a bit tricky for me. Grey is a key neutral and looks good on me (I think) but I can easily depress myself if I wear too much of it, especially this time of year! But the sun is supposed to come out this afternoon, and I have to ride my bike downtown. I wanted something practical. 

The pants are charcoal, not black, and they have a faint check in a lighter grey. The shirt is black and white gingham that can read as a false plain (but gives me that pop of light that I crave). So it's a very subtle pattern mix. The vest is medium grey, as are the boots.

Strangely enough, I do not own a grey coat (I donated my two older grey coats in the last few years. They still fit and were in good condition after a decade's solid use, but I was so tired of wearing them.) This oyster jacket has a slight grey cast and is the best I could do for greyish outerwear. If I were not trying this experiment, I would certainly have reached for the red jacket instead! 

If I weren't on my bike, I could have worn different boots for perhaps a bit more pizzazz. But I do feel very much myself in this outfit -- it does fit the Laid-back Luminous Garçonne persona due to the boyish nature of the vest and shirt, I think. 

Here's a collection of other items I can play with in greyscale. If i veer toward pure white, I would have more. 

I welcome comments and co-experimenters! 

Following up on SarahDB's recent thread, and less directly, on Sal's, about influence (because even if I don't follow any influencers, I can't help but have noticed all the neutral tonal outfits out there on the internet....) I've decided to try to experiment a bit with tonal dressing to see whether or how it might work for me. So I'll be making some posts like this periodically. 

I think I'm a natural contrast dresser. I mean that's my fall back. Maybe because "a pop of colour" was in the air (or on my mother's lips) when I was a kid. Who knows? 

Anyway, I was interested in Brooklyn's comment: "To me tonal dressing is more soft and moody. While contrast dressing is more fresh and punchy." That makes a lot of sense and explains why tonal outfits can read as effortlessly elegant or sophisticated, especially in soft or dark neutrals. 

On the other hand, fresh and a bit crisp or punchy are pretty good descriptors for my style (and gamine style, more generally) so maybe it's understandable that I would reach for some contrast as a rule, even though my own personal colouring is fair and quite low contrast. 

But then I got thinking about Angie's experiments with bright tonal looks over the past few years -- hot pinks with reds and/ or oranges, or burgundies with brighter reds, various greens together....that kind of thing. Those definitely don't read as soft and moody to me -- they are very playful or punchy. Yet at the same time, they feel very "pulled together" and modern. 

Where does that leave the Laid-back Luminous Garçonne? 

I can make tonal outfits pretty easily with my key neutrals -- blue, grey, and white. All grey (without white) depresses me too much to wear very often. Tonal blue outfits are fine, even good...but I usually feel like something is missing -- I may lack the textural variety in my blues unless I include denim -- I'm not sure. (Experiments to come!) Up until now, my most successful neutral tonal outfits have been versions of white-out. I really like wearing whites and ivories together and it works well on me. Is that because white is bright? Hmmmm? Maybe. 

In the past, I've lacked the bottoms to make tonal outfits in a colour vs. a neutral. But now I have red, burgundy, and lilac bottoms to try. And I plan to do just that! Today's experiment is with red. 

1. Starting with the Everlane sweater, Collette crops in velvet, and my black Eccos. I'm also wearing a burgundy watch band and garnet earrings. I have some variation in colour and texture, but it does not feel like a complete "outfit" to me. 

2. Taking a cue from Brooklyn's comment that you can use prints and dress tonally if the background of the print is in the dominant family, I  added a scarf and now it feels like an outfit. I wore this to a friend's book launch the other night and got tons of compliments, especially considering she was also wearing red and her book cover was black and white with red accents. :) 

3. Another option -- a tonal strap for the bag. 

4. Scarf and bag strap -- does that make it less sophisticated? Too much going on? 

5. Ah, the pop of colour sneaks in via a bag.... this is very "me" but is it tonal? Maybe if I had mustard boots to go with...but alas, I do not....

6.Cranberry coat. 

7. Add a red cloche and gloves....

8. Casualize with puffer and red plaid boots. 

9. Add a burgundy hobo. 

Overall, I felt like "me" in a red tonal outfit and -- oddly, perhaps, but perhaps also proving Brooklyn's point -- wearing all red felt less "in your face" than wearing red with my white jeans, for example (two brights). (Photo 10) For me, the latter is just a bit much -- I mean, I wore it and liked it, but it was for a very casual day at home. And it felt more casual and less sophisticated. 

I'd love your thoughts or impressions. Have you tried tonal dressing in brights? Have you tried it at all? Do you think you will? 

The long range forecast tells you one thing -- but you get something entirely different! On a recent trip to Ontario, I experienced this twice. I spent the first few days near Toronto with my brother, where the weather was much colder and windier than predicted, and despite having packed layers, I nearly froze on our lakeside walks  Next came a dressy-ish evening work event in Toronto. I wore a "suit" of my blue knit jacket, silk blouse, blue wide legs, raincoat, and cream boots and felt appropriately and comfortably dressed for the occasion.  Then I left for Kingston for more work and visits with friends. There, the weather was a balmy 18-21 and sunny most of the time, and I was often too warm! 

Still, it was glorious to walk along the lake and check out the autumn colours. 

I took a leaf from Dee and aimed for the 3x3 capsule (3 bottoms, 3 tops, 3 toppers -- aside from activewear) but in the end I added more mid-layers (i.e. sweaters), and was glad I did. 

The new boots were excellent for comfort except for when I wished I had something other than boots.  The runners are my active-wear ones, meant for long walks or hikes or jogs, not fashion. But because my only other choice of footwear was ankle covering, I was often too warm and and had to rely on the sneakers in a few situations where they didn't look particularly good with the bottoms. I wish I'd brought my blue oxfords instead. The velvet pants were also not the best choice.

Oh well -- live and learn -- maybe? 

How do you manage packing for transitional weather? Any great (or awful) experiences to share? 

As the days get shorter (sob!) and the mornings dawn a bit cooler (at least where I live), I'm thinking about what worked and what didn't, this summer. It was a strange season for me. Some typical favourites barely saw the light of day (white shorts, I am looking at you), and some wildcards became workhorses. 

To wit: orange Cole Haan sandals. These are comfy, versatile, and work well with my blues. I never wear orange because it looks horrid on me, but even at 5'4", my feet are pretty far from my face. :) I wore these for some portion of almost every day. A+

However, the Zara top I bought to wear with them was less successful. I was hoping to replace my much-beloved blue gingham cotton voile Loft top, which I wore on repeat for nearly a decade of summers. This top is the same fabric and also patterned (to disguise the sheerness of voile) so it should have been a summer slam dunk, right? Hmmm. Not so much. Don't get me wrong. I wore it. It is more yellow than in the photo and therefore less flattering on me, but that wasn't the main problem. The main problem is that unlike my old gingham top, it is a fitted shirt -- which means it is not as cool and airy as my old blouse. Hence, much less wearable. C-

What was a hit was my very boxy blue Everlane cotton top. LOVE this and have worn it a ton. Simple, oversized, minimalist -- I feel almost as cool and stylish as Irina, wearing this. :) It works with all my shorts and cropped pants. A+ (and if they had any other colours left, I'd be duplicating, but they don't.) 

Slightly less successful but not unsuccessful -- the striped Everlane soft cotton shirt. It's truly soft, doesn't wrinkle a lot, and  is nicely sun protective. But due to the short length and lightweight fabric, it doesn't drape quite as well. B+

My other footwear purchase was also something of a middling success. I love the look of these Mary Janes and they are super fun with various outfits. And comfy for short trips when I am mostly driving or on the bike. But they are too flat for real comfort, for me -- definitely not walking shoes. Which, given my lifestyle, means I didn't wear them a lot. I will probably get some use of them in September and again in May, next year. A for fun factor and looks, C for real comfort.  (sigh)

How about you? Did you have surprise MVPs this season (fall/ winter if you are in the opposite hemisphere)? Did you have any mistakes or flops? To what do you attribute their success or lack thereof?

We fly out tomorrow and the weather looks...unpredictable! 

Highs will be between 18-20 and lows around 11, but for the rest it looks like thunderstorms, sun, cloud, showers, and everything in between -- on all the days we will be visiting! 

We're no strangers to variable weather, but it does make packing and dressing for a day/ evening out a bit of a challenge! 

I am checking a bag. I have several dressy evenings, several urban-casual days, several slightly dressier urban days, one day-into-evening that has to be both casual and more dressy, with no opportunity to go back and change between times, and, as I mentioned, I am going to need clothes for different weather eventualities. 

Below is my tentative packing list: 

Footwear: blue flatform oxford, white oxford, silver slingback, silver eneaker. (I had wanted to take the red Mary Janes but in all honesty don't think I would choose them for a long day of walking). ALL shoes waterproofed. If it really does rain a lot, I'm likely to wear the navy oxfords and the silver sneakers the most. 

Toppers: Packable raincoat, denim jacket, Paul Smith linen/wool blazer, jersey military jacket.

Gilet: Burgundy Theory (part of co-ord set, but also works as a sleeveless top with the pants and/or coordinates with jeans and Dries pants). 

Knitwear: Cotton t-neck, silk/cotton leopard cardigan, cotton mariner tee. 

Shirts/ blouses, LS: Denim shirt, striped cotton shirt, blue silk popover, silk cat print shirt,. 

Tops for layering or warmer than expected weather: Ecru Everlane, navy BR sleeveless. 
   
Evening/ dressy tops: Vince l/s silk popover burgundy blouse (not a dress, as in Finds photo). Blue peplum top. Silver sleeveless top. 

Bottoms: Navy wide legs, Curve jeans, burgundy Theory pants (part of co-ord set, navy skirt, Dries cotton/linen pants (good for warmer weather). 

Bags: Silver Pom Pom London, Burgundy hobo. 

2 scarves
PJs 
Undies
Packable umbrella/ rainhat

Am I neglecting anything, missing anything? 

Here are a few try-ons mostly without any bags, jewellery, etc -- so partly but not wholly styled, if you get my meaning. I did not try everything with everything but it pretty much coordinates in a wide variety of combinations. 

QUESTIONS: Should I bring merino pullover as well?

Anything missing?