My Favourite Clothing to Pack

Here it is the spring and I am packing winter clothing in my one check-in bag for Europe. What's wrong with this picture? Absolutely nothing since my summer closet is adequate in Ste. Foy but I will need more cold weather clothes since I am staying until February. However, I like my husband's attitude. He reminds me every time he sees me pondering over my suitcase,"All you really need to pack is your credit card". 

In fact, it's more a matter of packing some of my favourite things that I keep toting back and forth between Canada and France. 

NICE

My LBD. Photo by JoyD.

1. My LBD: Perhaps it's time to buy one in France and leave this one in Canada but it has been a staple in my closet for years. It fits perfectly. The length is proportional for my height. The lines are classic and adaptable to any season. There's nothing more I can ask of it. It owes me nothing.

2. My skinny jeans: Again it's a matter of fit. My blue and black jeans have served me well over the past year and I want them with me in France. 

3. My black, white and navy v-neck short-sleeve t-shirts. Of course I can buy t-shirts in France but again it's the fit, the length and the quality of cotton that makes me buy and pack these over and over again. Believe it or not, they are the $8.00 Joe Fresh t-shirts that I have written about before.

My Jimmy Choo heels. Photo by JoyD.

4. My dark taupe ballet flats and my beige Jimmy Choo heels. I keep carting these back and forth only because they are the only ballet flats I own. As for the Jimmy Choos, they serve me better than my black heels.

5. My black blazer and my black and white patterned blazer. I usually wear the black blazer on the plane. Like the LBD, the black blazer is a staple that probably needs to soon be replaced but until then I shall take it back and forth.

NEW: Last week, Louise K. gifted me with a woollen snood that she knit. I'll be taking that to France and leaving it there to help take away the January chill.

NEED: In addition, for the purposes of this trip, I have included several wool and cashmere sweaters since I'll be there during the rainy winter. I'm re-thinking the underwear - again I'll take only a few of my favourite pieces since there's no better country in the world to buy lingerie than France. And that's it. Whatever I need can be accommodated with my credit card!

"Another Blog" Thoughts

We have been blessed with the privilege of living in two locations: France and Canada. Several readers as well as other friends have suggested that I write more about my French life. Since this blog's focus is clothing, I am in the decision making process to begin yet another blog and so I visited Dear Blogger and read the post on The Best Places to Start a Blog. Perhaps I am not quite ready since I only half read through the long list of possibilities? 

Blogger has served me well enough for my needs and even though Dear Blogger tells me that this venue is rather simplistic, I know that money can fix that problem. So now the question is do I want to spend the money to produce a fabulous backdrop for my writing? It's all in the packaging I am informed. Perhaps I am not quite ready for that either since my eyes glaze over when I read about slick modern eye candy for my blog?

At the same time I write those sentiments, I realize that I advise putting your best foot forward in the clothing that you choose to wear. Perhaps I should practise what I preach?

I also need to assess exactly what I want from yet another blog being added to the hundreds of thousands out there already. This blog has fulfilled several of my personal goals and I am grateful for each of the visitors and particularly for those part of Closet Fashion Content Analysis loyal readership. Perhaps I don't need to begin yet another blog, just re-construct and add more lifestyle topics to CFCA?

Now that brings yet another thought . . . what could I call it? CFCA was a misplaced descriptor that became it's name when I was creating this blog. I never bothered changing it and so here I sit with a title that is a tad cumbersome (and that's being kind). I'm not quite a luddite - on the continuum, I'm at the lower end of technological experience although I am aware. A name change would definitely be required with a re-construction of this location. Perhaps it would be easier to start fresh with a new topic and a new backdrop and a new name? 

As you can see, my decision making process is presently in a bit of a jumbled state. Perhaps when I arrive in France on April 29th, my thoughts will be clearer?

But I digress . . . I promise my next post will return to more clothing and closet-related content.

Bolder Scarves for Spring & Summer

NICE: Wear two scarves together or tie two scarves together. 

Photo Source: Anne Touraine

Try this when you tie two scarves together. Wrap it in a cowl effect, but have the two ends hanging longer in the front. Choose the scarf colours to match the separate blocks of colour you might be wearing. 

Photo Source: City Girl on Etsy

If you are wearing basic blues, navies and white with a pair of jeans, add a patterned or tie-dyed scarf encompassing all the shades of blue that you are wearing. Check out Etsy for some handmade the-dyed creations and if you are a handy kind of girl or guy, try making your own creation.

NICER: I'm thinking that the shades of blue tie-dyed scarf would be perfect for Edisa Shahini.

Photo Source: Bianca on disicouture

Embolden Accessories for Spring 2015

Colour Advice for Spring 2015: Pantone tells us . . . This season there is an emphasis on the cooler and softer side of the colour spectrum, with bold colour taking a more supportive role as an accent.

1) The Bold Blazer. If you are wearing head to toe beige, grey or white, choose a deeper tone or bright coloured blazer.

Photo Source: Cover Magazine, UK

Photo Source: Tahari at Macy's

2) The Bolder Bag. Resurrect your beige, black and whites. If you are wearing a beige pant, white top, and black and white jacket, upstage the look with a different textured purse in black and white. For example, wear a black and white striped bag with a black and white floral jacket. The purse you see here comes from a previous season by Michael Kors (photo source: Lyst).

Photo by JoyD.

3) The Boldest Bag - a handbag of the same intensity in colour. Choose a bag that has the same colour tones as the dress or top you are wearing. Use your sense of balance. 

In following that trend it's probably best to tone down the bold pattern of the top with the bag, instead of accentuating it.

Photo Source: JoyD

Choose a bag that has the same colour tones and but an even bolder print. The floral pattern does not have to be exactly the same, just the tones of the colours.

Photo Source: Aliexpress

Dolce & Gabbana Floral Print Round Cross Body Bag
Photo Source: Neiman Marcus

Personalizing the Bag

Call it purse ornamentation, bag baubles, handbag jewellery, bag ornaments or whatever but it's essentially a personalization of your handbag, sports duffle, backpack, briefcase or any other such container you carry. Spring of 2015 requires that we personalize our carry-alls with some sort of unique ornamentation. 

For awhile I was making oversize "keychains" as bag ornaments but for the most part the pieces I made were not hardy enough to withstand the abuse. I must start making them again with sturdier materials. This spring, it appears that we will be seeing more ornamentation to personalize carry-all containers. Tassels abound and those made of leather, horse hair (do not worry, no horses were harmed in any way) or other such hardy materials seem to be the rage.

I remember high school where leather fringed First Nations beadwork decorated backpacks and purses. About the same time, Hello Kitty made her mark; although it was primarily marketed for pre-adolescent females. I never really understood how teenagers, never mind adults could see fit to decorate their duffle bags or briefcases with a white cat sporting a red bow on its head. However back in about '02 high school students, both male and female, from Asian countries were sporting Hello Kitty paraphernalia on school tuck sacks and athletic bags while doing their mandatory stints in North American high schools. I wasn't in that demographic at the time but I could imagine the interaction between the 14 year old male who put a Hello Kitty DooDad on his backpack and the class bully. 

Photo Source: Fashionisto

Thank goodness the look for 2015 is a tad more sophisticated than the Hello Kitty trend.

This is definitely a duo-gender trend and I can see either wearing beaded baubles and scarves decorating whatever either gender happens to be carrying.

It's 2015, leave the stuffed animals and Hello Kitty stuff to the pre-adolescents.