Black and white make blue?

Posted by Chris at 3:00 pm

I'd like to tell you that I put a lot of thought into this look.. you know.. like how the checkered pants would be ace with the striped top, a black silk scarf a great finishing touch and the blue shoe a delicious pop...

The truth is, I was running mega late so I grabbed what intuitively made sense at the time, fumbled at putting it all on and flew out the door with not so much even a glance at the mirror.  I didn't notice how interesting the outfit turned out until I came home from after an 8-hour day of work and took a closer look into the mirror to examine my increasingly prominent dark circles.  I need to adopt this grab-and-go method of dressing more often!

I'm wearing..

Top: Zara (I got this 4 years ago.  Can't believe the stripes trend is still going strong!)
Pants: H&M
Belt: Hugo Boss
Silk Scarf: Diesel
Shoes: Oxbridge Town from Hong Kong

Adding Winter to my Summer

Posted by Chris at 11:00 am

I love the lush colours of Fall / Winter fashion.  Rich shades like burgundy, maroon, navy, chocolate brown seem to permeate even the most hidden corners of my soul.  Like the refreshing appearance of Justine's winter tights, I decided to let my little winter buddies come out to play in the heat.  The closet can be so imprisoning!  I was starting to get sick of the nudes and pales anyway... (Wow, I just blasphemed?)  Time for some serious colour saturation for the eyes!

I am wearing..

Shirt dress:  H&M
Lambskin Leather Bow Belt:  Hugo Boss
Purse:  Danier
Pendant:  A random booth of a cultural festival at Dundas Square
Lipstick:  Sephora (I think the shade is discontinued?  I got it for $5 on clearance)

In More Ways than One: Houndstooth Tuxedo Vest

Posted by Chris at 3:00 pm

• I am starting a series called "In More Ways than One", IMWO for short, because everything in life needs to be acronymed.
• IMWO is pronounced "I M Wo" because trust me, I AM WHOAAAAAA.
• Inspired by the Uniform Project, I will designate an item in my closet as a constant and attempt to create as many different outfits with it as I possibly (or impossibly) can.
• My goal is to explore the potential of my wardrobe and free my mind from constantly wanting to own more and more things.  We have too many things.
• I also hope that you, as a witness to my pilgrimage, will learn to look into your own closet with appreciation and intent.  Overconsumption is a poison to the mind.  We have to be thankful for what we have.
• There are no rules, because rules don’t rule when it comes to fashion.

First up to bat is a houndstooth tuxedo vest from Club Monaco.  It came into my possession in the Winter of 2008 when it was on sale.  I picked it up because of its rather masculine cut and feel.

So let’s do this.  Here we go with outfit #1.  It's nothing earth-shatteringly amazing, but it's a good work outfit is a good start.  The houndstooth and the pattern of the silk scarf make an interesting combination.

Silk Scarf: Hong Kong
Pants: Hong Kong
Shoes: Hugo Boss - my newly acquired work shoes!

Think before you buy…

Posted by Justine at 10:34 pm

We're smack in the middle of summer time, so you know it's that time of the year: SUMMER SALES!

I'm bombarded by e-mails from every major store and there's 30% off here, buy 1 get 1 50% off there...it's very tempting and things are cheaply priced!

I've been on a diet from shopping, and only purchasing things I plan for, or things I don't already have that I need to carry out daily activities. Today, I was tempted to buy a skirt from Urban Outfitters (originally $78, marked down to $19.99 which would be $10 with 50% summer sale discount).

Just as I was lining up to pay for it, a voice inside me told me to get out of the line.

When you let one purchase slide, you start to let every other purchase slide. This is how people who diet (from food) always fail dieting. You eat one slice of cake after working so hard for your new body, you eat another and another and before you know it, you've gained back everything you worked so hard for.

It was something I didn't need, and I was giving myself reasons to buy it... I was doing things that were all too familiar: rationalizing. I put back the skirt on the rack, and walked out defiantly. And I didn't think twice about going back.

You might think it's not a big deal, but so many people have this problem of buying things they don't need...and they are not conscious of it. It's hard to stop yourself when you're in the moment, especially when a sales associate is following you around. I studied this in my consumer behaviour class, the concept of involvement: when a sales associate follows you around, the longer you are involved with him/her during your time in the store, you are more likely to buy something you don't need because you don't want to hurt the salesperson's feelings. Sounds nuts, but it's likely to happen if you're a pushover.

Be aware when you're shopping -- even if you're "just browsing". It's dangerous to be in a shopping mall and you're "just browsing".

You should only be in a shopping mall if you have a clear purpose; otherwise, get out of there ASAP.

Interesting Links

Refer to Chris' Guide to Clothes Shopping for some excellent tips to keep you grounded
Shoppers on a 'Diet' Tame the Urge to Buy
Six Items Or Less
The Great American Apparel Diet

Fat or Skinny? Discuss.

Posted by Justine at 8:00 am

I was having trouble choosing a belt for this outfit. I chose a skinny brown belt because the colour brown seemed to tie in the light khaki skirt and the pastel striped shirt.... but the thick black belt seemed to proportionately fit the thickness of the existing waistband of the skirt. But the black seemed too... dividing... and not blending in...

Shirt: Vintage
Skirt: Dynamite
Shoes: Vintage (the soles say, "EATON'S", back when it was still a department store)

Thoughts? Suggestions?

Beautiful, as is.

Posted by Justine at 7:52 pm

I began working on this post with a "vintage renewal" theme, where I intended to take an old piece of clothing and re-construct it into something new. I was going to take "before", "during", and "after" shots.

But something happened while I was doing "before" shots:

I started to feel really comfortable in this long, flowy A-line skirt. It felt really nice.

I was going to shorten it to knee-length so that it wasn't so much busy pattern going on, but then I asked myself, "Why fix something that isn't broken?" Well, I guess I was trying to take something good and make it better...nothing wrong with that.

But some things really are beautiful as they are. Perhaps it's a feeling due to personal reflections about self-image that I've been trying to internalize -- appreciate beautiful things as they are, on its own, without alterations and purposeful change.

So I dropped the scissors, the pins, the needles, and I put away the thread. I'm going to wear this skirt as it is and love it as it is

Buttoning up my button-downs

Posted by Chris at 12:00 pm

Hello my sweet little buttons,

I am most positive that you are already fully aware of my love for button-down shirts.  (Case in point: here and here.)  My closet is a home for at least 10 of these guys.  Somebody needs to talk me out of acquiring more!

Well, bust my buttons!  I've recently recruited yet one more into my team:  Chambray Dolman Sleeve Top from ADAM by Adam Lippes.

Source:  Style.com

This top first caught my eye when I was browsing the ADAM Spring 2010 collection on Style one fateful day a few months ago.  I saved this very picture on my iPhone as inspiration and thought nothing of it thereafter.  Needless to say, when I unexpectedly bumped into this wonderful creation in person, I was floored because I recognized it immediately.  Yup, pretty darn sure the universe wanted me to have it.  While it is a button-down shirt, the sleeves and cut are unlike anything else of the sort in my wardrobe.  I love how it is relaxed but structured at the same time.

I tried to style it the same way as it was worn on the runway.  I don't own slouchy white pants, so I did a skinny white jean.  I can't wait to wear it in different ways.

Pardon the red light from the camera remote control..

Jeans: H&M
Chain: Aldo