Candy Cane

I'm almost done my Christmas shopping but time is ticking and I still have one more person on my list! I've been trying to have a more relaxed Christmas season, I wanted to take the time to enjoy all of the little things that make Christmas special. I loved looking around and taking in all of the decorations. Wearing all of my red clothes and eating festive treats. Not to mention all of the Christmas movies I've been watching! Earlier this month I spent the weekend in Niagara on the lake. The Prince of Whales hotel was all decked out in Christmas decor (inside and the outside) it was a beautiful start to the Christmas season. 

This is what I wore one of the days, A vintage style coat (Thrifted), layered over a 1950s skirt and a red sweater. But I think what gives this look a more festive touch is the red accessories. I had this ear cover made from a seller on Etsy and I paired it with some red gloves to match. Let me know what you think of this look in the comments below! 

Bundled up in fur - Keeping Warm in the Winter

last week I spend a day in Stratford. I usually go to Stratford twice a year, once in the summer to look at all the flowers, and once at Christmas time! Every year is different sometimes it's freezing, sometimes there is snow on the ground and other times I get a beautiful day. (LOL I just realized how often I start my blog posts with a weather update, but in reality the weather is indicative of what you can wear). The day I went to Stratford was a beautiful day, a but chilly but not bad!... or was it because I wore a perfectly layered outfit to keep me warm?. It started out foggy in the morning but stayed overcast the rest of the day. For me the key to dressing warn is thin layers. I don't like looking/feeling bulky and a lot of the time those thick chunky knit sweaters don't keep you warm anyway, if anything they make wearing a coat over them annoying because of the thick sleeves.... But they do look cute when sipping hot chocolate in a ski chalet. 

For this look I am wearing a vintage wool suit. Wool is amazing for keeping you warm  (I'm also wearing tights and a slip under the skirt, as always). Then I am wearing a blouse, and a black cashmere sweater, again cashmere is perfect for the winter weather, it keeps you warm without adding bulk. If it was colder I would add a fitted thermal layer underneath but I was warm enough without it. But the real feature of the outfit is this vintage fur shawl! Wow did this keep me warm! When I took it off to have lunch I felt the inside and it was hot. Over the past year I started buying vintage fur and it makes total sense why everyone wore fur coats back in the day. I mean yes I know fur keeps you warm, we all know this but to actually experience it is different. And to keep my head warm I am wearing this vintage fur hat that has a bit of velvet on the trim and as a detail at the back (It reminds me of a hot cross bun lol). Funny enough they are not matching pieces! I got them a year apart and from two different stores but don't they pair like a dream!?

I've talked about this on my youtube channel extensively because fur can be controversial. so for anyone that is new here: I do not support the new fur industry. However, I see no issue in wearing vintage fur. The item has already been made and if we don't wear it's just going to end up in a landfill, or hanging in a basement closet until it disintegrates and the animal died for nothing. It makes me more sad not to wear it. It also keeps you SO warm. A vintage fur coat doesn't compare to a modern faux fur coat. It's night and day! Actually the same can be said about any vintage coat VS modern ones. For example: my Mom doesn't buy second hand and I've been trying to help her find a warm coat, not a jacket but a wool coat. And none of them keep you warm ! They are so thin, even if they claim to keep you warm up to -20 they barely keep you warm... its a lie (There should be more regulations on this sort of thing). And I'm just trying to understand why modern society doesn't create coats for winter.  All I see is bulky parkas or puffer coats. And I am probably alone in this, but I really don't like those coats. Not sure if its a matter of personal style or because I was forced to wear them as a child, but I really don't like them. As soon as I could choose my own coat I started buying wool coats. So there I was going to school in my peacoat holding my little purse (and no backpack lol). 

Would you guys be interested in seeing more posts (Or videos) on how I keep warm in the winter?? 

Welcome To My Christmas Wonderland

I transformed my room into a Christmas wonderland!  There is nothing cozier than having a Christmas tree in your room. I always turn the lights on while I'm getting ready for bed, and it really sets the mood for magical Christmas dreams (Cue the nutcracker soundtrack). I got this tree at Walmart on sale for $20 and it was the best decision I've ever made. Now, its not the most full/luscious tree in the world... I mean it was $20, but I LOVE it and fill it up with garland and ornaments. I started adding old fashioned toys under the tree because at the turn of the century they didn't wrap Christmas presents. Kids would see their toys  unwrapped under the tree, so I took inspiration from that. As you can see I  like to add some greenery around the paintings, something I often see when I visit historical home museums (at Christmas time). It's a small detail but it makes a huge difference. I think it really elevates the look of the room and it makes it look more like a castle (hey... a girl can dream!) A new addition this year is the Christmas pillow, I got it in Paris and its from Villroy and Boch, I think it looks perfect in the centre of my bed and I love the old fashioned illustration. Another new addition is my Santa Claus! Isn't he magical! I got him in Barcelona and I fell in love with him as soon as I saw him... mainly because of the puppet he's holding haha. Some of my other favourite pieces are the couple skating among the trees on top of my hat cabinet. Can you believe those trees fit inside each other like a Russian nesting doll? I lucked out at the Vintage store! And finally another one of my favourites is the red egg that opens up to reveal a small Christmas tree that spins while playing music. Its something that makes me think of a Christmas gift from years gone by. There is something magical about it.

If you want to hear more details about the decorations I posted a video on my Youtube channel where I vlogged the decorating process! You can find it below! 

The Ultimate Christmas To-Do List!

The Christmas season is officially here! The best time of the year! I wanted to announce that I will be doing Vlogmas again over on my Youtube channel, So I will be daily vlogging and posting them as a weekly vlogs on Sunday Mornings! I really wanted to have that cozy Christmas feeling in my vlogs (and for myself) you know the one you feel when you are a little kid on Christmas morning. So I asked you guys over the past week to tell me your favourite things to do/eat/watch at Christmas time. I gathered them all up and added some of my own to create THE ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS TO DO LIST! I will hopefully be checking them all off over the course of the season and I welcome you to do the same! 

The Calmness of November

    November is the waiting month. After Halloween has passed the first half of November is pretty calm as the stores decorate for Christmas. Out of respect I normally don't like to participate in Christmas activities until after Remembrance day (November 11th). Come mid November Christmas is everywhere ! Christmas events start popping up around the week of the 20th (Tree lightings, markets etc). Then the rest of November you feel excitement in the air ! I'm getting really excited for Christmas this year and have started planning a lot of Christmas activities for the end of November and all of December!  I have a feeling this going to be a wonderful Christmas season. 

For me, this week is just planning and waiting. You will start to see some Christmas related posts on my Instagram this weekend, and on this blog / youtube next week because I'm kicking off the Christmas season with THREE Christmas activities this weekend !  I'm also decorating for Christmas this week ! 

I also wanted to announce that I am doing VLOGMAS over on my youtube channel this year!  I will be doing my usual format which is daily vlogging but uploaded as a weekly vlog every Sunday! So make sure to subscribe to my channel if you haven't already! You can do that Here. I'm also putting together the ultimate Christmas bucket list which includes activities, things to eat, movies to watch! and I'll be trying to complete it during vlogmas! So if you have any suggestions let me know! 

But enough of that! here are the outfit details: The outfit I'm wearing is a simple November look! I am wearing a vintage skirt (Probably from the 70s) and the thrifted velvet little jacket I got back in the summer (Originally from Le Chateau). For accessories I went all black with this vintage 1950s hat and a 1940s handbag. And my shoes are my go to T-strap heels from DSW. I really need to get another pair of heels haha I wear these with like every outfit.