Stripes, Hat's & Nature

Hey Guys!!

It's been a little bit but I went out this past weekend with Aaron, to this beautiful natural area and had to snap some pics!! So if you're from GTA or KW (Ontario, Canada) area you NEED to check out Huron Natural Area in Kitchener, Ontario. It is the perfect outdoor space that has a picnic area, playground, field, nature walks and washroom amenities! Great for a solo trip, with your significant other or bring your whole family!

The area has several trails that lead to this big beautiful pond that you get to see lots of beautiful wild life! You see nature all the time but when I'm out on a beautiful sunny day I can't help but stand back in awe at how amazing and breath taking our planet is!

Now for the outfit!! Okay so felt hats are my fav I have more than I want to admit. They always just make an outfit extra chic. I also love the floppy styles because retro styles are my jam!  My top is new from Dynamite (Will link below). I am LOVING the off the shoulder trend especially for summer! It also has vertical stripes (thank the lord) because everyone knows what horizontal stripes can do for a person (but still guilty of having horizontal stripes, if ya like it, you like! lol!) I'm also obsessed with the tunic length because you know how much I love leggings! My boots are from Old Navy (From Christmas time but will link similar and I got on sale for $20 which is a steal!) My hat is from Garage from last year! But you can find these everywhere! (will link similar below)

Okay that's it guys! If you have some free time go outdoors and enjoy some beautiful nature!

Cheers!

Top: Tunic Off the shoulder

Hat: Felt Hat

Boots: Option 1

Option 2

Casual & Leather

Who's excited for the weekend? Me! Me! Me! Does anyone have any fun plans? or the opposite, anyone hanging around the house relaxing? Which we all know can be much needed too! I feel like this week has been one of those longs weeks that would never end! But now I feel like I blinked and it's Friday again! Isn't it funny how time can be like that! 

So today I'm sharing one of my go to looks. On my days off work or "running errand" days you can find me in something of this variation! There's a few pieces here I need to talk about!

The Leather Jacket

Have you ever had a leather jacket or over-piece that was your go to? You know the one you throw on with everything? Well this is mine. And I bet you if you go try it on, it'll be yours too! So this one is from Dynamite... obviously.. 3/4 of my wardrobe is from there because this is where I work! so slightly biased but seriously let me tell you why it's my favourite! Okay so first of all its technically styled like a blazer, so it's multi purpose. And you all know how much I LOVE multi-purpose clothing! So you can wear it like your normal outdoor leather jacket but because it's styled like a blazer you can wear it with a dress, with a tee, literally with anything. It has a perfect cropped and angled cut that it even goes with A-line styled dresses (which are the hardest dresses to find over-pieces for, in my opinion). It also has this fabric piece that runs along your inside arm and torso, so this piece allows your body to breath (thank goodness, because everyone knows what pleather can feel like on your body on a hot day). So because your body can breath you can wear this jacket indoors and not get too hot! Win, WIN!

The Perfect Tee

I love a good relaxed tee. Dynamite has really nice basic ones and I prefer them because of their length. They're perfect for leggings (my shiny go-to's.. told you, you guys would be seeing these leggings a lot). I occasional get a size up if I want it to be extra baggy, everyone loves a good boyfriend styled tee! I've also found basic tees I really like from H&M and Urban Planet has a good boyfriend fit one so just find one that feels good on your body!

The Fav Sneakers

Okay so these are my favourite "casual" shoe! The Nike Roshe. They're a trendy street wear running shoe that I think have enough style. I've always been the dress up type so when I thought about a casual shoe I wanted, I didn't want to have just any running shoe. I love these because they're cute AND functional. They have a very cushioned sole so they are very comfortable to walk in and have a mesh-like fabric top which feels comfortable on the foot. It kind of feels like it molds to your foot!

If I'm on the go I don't like to carry any sort of big bag, I find it much more comfortable to have a smaller cross body style that is just big enough for my wallet, a chap-stick and hand cream. This one is Dynamite but from last summer so I'll try and link one similar! 

To finish a look I like to add some sort of accessory. Here I have a denim button down top tied around my waste but I often will also use a plaid flannel tied around the waist. You could also pair this outfit with a denim jacket if you're not into the leather look or if it's not casual or comfortable enough! 

SO get your comfy clothes on, feel cute and have a fun time or a much needed relaxing time this weekend!

*See outfit details below

The Leather Jacket: http://www.dynamiteclothing.com/ca/collarless-faux-leather-overpiece-jacket/p/71-4447

The Relaxed Tee: http://www.dynamiteclothing.com/ca/vneck-tunic-tee/p/100009257

Denim Button Down Top: http://www.dynamiteclothing.com/ca/denim-button-down-shirt/p/100023347

Shiny Leggings: http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/high-waist-shiny-legging/p/72-6244H

Nike Roshe: http://www.footlocker.ca/en-CA/product/model:229575/sku:5242471/nike-roshe-one-womens/black/white/

Cross Body Bag:

Option one

Option two

Option three

Sweater Coat

Happy Friday!! Nothing like the sweet anticipation for the weekend! I also have to talk about WHAT IS THIS WEATHER?! I don't know where you are but here we had one day of beautiful 14 degree (Celsius) and then mother nature had a mood swing and gave us back winter overnight! 

Anyways today I want to show off my sweater coat from Dynamite! This is totally the perfect piece for your weekend! I am so obsessed with it!! It is a little pricier than what I usually accept into buying but here's how you can justify it! 1. its a cardigan. 2. It's also heavy enough to be a coat 3. And best of all its SUPER soft! Love love love! It also has cozy pockets (who doesn't love pockets). The tailored lapels also give it a classy look that you can wear casually like I am or throw it on with a cute dress! Pretty sure you'll see this coat in future post to come (just to warn you).

Has anyone else noticed all the new, well I'd say more "recycled" or repeat trends that are coming back?! Bell Sleeves (as seen in my last post) chokers, retro fit pants, pleats and so much more! Some of it makes me cringe but some of it I've just been accepting/secretly obsessing over. I've also been seeing a lot of this cross front detail tops! I love them! this is just a super casual relaxed tee from Garage but I like that it had this detail because you really don't need any accessories so it's simple! I also paired it with my GO-TO shiny leggings, also from Garage. If you don't have a pair GO NOW, thank me later! They literally don't feel like you're wearing pants and they look cute!! They're just leggings (so comfortable, obviously) but the sheen to them makes them look more dressy so put your cute top on girl and go out! (BTW, my boots are on sale right now at Spring!) Link to outfit will be posted below.

Anyways if anyone is still reading to this point, THANK YOU. I don't even know if anyone will read this, and I apologize for any poor grammar (I am not a professional writer) my sister, the teacher is probably cringing, laughing and rolling her eyes at me. Love you Bethany haha! But I appreciate you're support on this fun journey I'm exploring! I'd love to hear what you think! Shoot me a comment on here or on Instagram!

Now get out there and have yourself an AWESOME weekend!

xoxo

Clarissa

As seen on Instagram: @clarissavanblog

Outfit Details:

The Sweater Coat: http://www.dynamiteclothing.com/ca/search/search.jsp?N=0&Dy=1&Nty=1&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchall&Ntt=sweater+coay&search.x=0&search.y=0

Cross Front Detail Tee: http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/girlfriend-vneck-tee/p/100026658http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/girlfriend-vneck-tee/p/100026658

Shiny Leggings: http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/high-waist-shiny-legging/p/72-6244H

Boots: http://www.callitspring.com/ca/en/sale/women/sale-boots/c/513/MOILLAN/p/48119561-38

Check out my updated About ME section of the blog!

New post about the messy bun hat in my OOTD Section!

Beauty on a Budget

Hey guys!

I hope everyone is having a great week! Happy Hump day.. I guess that's what we say.. or how about Happy almost weekend! haha
Alright let's talk beauty on a budget. How many of you are like me and spend endless hours on Pinterest pinning "my style" or "my dream closet" and so on... and leaving it just that... a dream closet?

Well I believe if you budget and purchase carefully You can make that "dream closet" become "my closet". And I'm going to show you how!

I'm not going to lie to you sometimes when I can't think creatively and put an outfit together I'll browse Pinterest in the morning for some inspiration. I even do it when I'm shopping! I've noticed this is something quite popular among other people too! I work in retail at Dynamite/Garage and often have women showing me outfits on Pinterest saying I want this but I have no idea how to do it! One of the reason's why I love my job is helping people achieve a look they feel beautiful in and comfortable in! But sometime's it isn't always cheap finding an outfit.

Who said last season's clothing has to be "So Last Season" ? Even from working in retail I've noticed often styles of clothing stay the same (excuse me let me clarify there are always exceptions... bell bottom jeans, however the wide leg is making a come back... you know what I mean) it's just the colour or prints that change. Anyways my point is purchasing sale merchandise isn't a bad thing! Who care's if its from last season? Does it make you comfortable? Do you love what you're wearing? Does the clothing you're wearing make you feel like yourself? and make you feel beautiful? If the answer is yes to all of those then go ahead and buy it!

Recently I made a purchase at Garage trying this method, purchasing only sale and had success!
For only $55 I was able to purchase 2 pairs of denim, 3 tops, and a cardigan.

 Each item of clothing was $15 or less with an additional 30% off! Is that a steal or what? It pays off to be in the loop of sales happening in stores! Often at work I hear customers mentioning how they get so many emails from so many stores and can't even be bothered to look at them anymore. So I thought why do we freely give our email to every store we shop at? Wouldn't it be a smarter choice to leave our emails to our favourite stores? By doing this we aren't bombarded with emails from everywhere and anywhere we only receive the ones we actually care about. And believe me when you're favourite store is having an additional Percentage off of sale merchandise you want in!

Alright back to my shopping experience. So when I shop I like to think of these three rules
1. How often will I wear this/ how many seasons can I get out of it?
2. Do I have other clothing items I can wear this with?
3.Is it practical?

I love these rules because they help you shop smart. Instead of just impulse buying. Of course there are always exceptions like special occasion shopping, however purchasing everyday clothing, these rules tend to always work for me.

Click Link http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/vintage-chest-pocket-tee/p/prod840098 to shop the Vintage Tee

You can never go wrong with denim. You can never have enough denim because you can wear them ALL year round! These particular pair were $10 with 30% making them $7. Did you hear that?! $7 for a brand new pair of jeans just because they were from last season! Personally I think denim is timeless and the washes of them come in and out of season all the time. I also got two simple t-shirts that you can wear with any pair of jeans, or tucked into a skirt the options are endless.

One of my other favourite purchases is this cardigan. It was $15 with the 30% making it $10.50. Again another great deal! I chose this cardigan because it is a light neutral colour that I can easily pair with almost anything. Keep it light add a white T underneath, darken it up put something black, or even brighten it up with a pop of colour. Again so many options! I love cardigans especially ones with pockets because not only are they super cozy, you can wear them in the summer with a cute pair of denim shorts, or wear them in the fall with leggings and some knee high boots or even in the winter with a nice pair of denim. Cardigans are a year round clothing item!

Anyways I had fun shopping and sharing my smart shopping method with you and I hope you guys

can put this to practice and have success!! Have a great day!!

And remember the 3 golden rules!

1. How often will I wear this/ how many seasons can I get out of it?
2. Do I have other clothing items I can wear this with?
3.Is it practical?

Shop Garage Sale online here: http://www.garageclothing.com/ca/cat/sale

DIY Floral Headband

I'm always looking for fun new things to create whether it be from Pinterest or people on the street etc. So a couple weeks ago at school my friend Celidh, (pronounced kay-leigh) was wearing this gorgeous royal blue floral head band. I had to ask her where she got it and she simply said "Oh I made it, with just hot glue a ribbon and some flowers". I thought it was such a fun idea that I had to try. I couldn't be more happy with the outcome so I had to share it with all of you! So this is how I did it.

What You'll Need:

-Hot glue gun

-Fake flowers (can find them at almost any dollar store)

-Ribbon of any colour (can be found at a dollar store, craft store such as Michaels, or Walmart

-Scissors

Step 1, Choose the ribbon you'd like to use and measure it around your head leaving extra length on each side to be able to tie it around your head once it is complete

Step 2, (optional) I chose to add a lace ribbon on top of the blue one to accent the rest of my head band. To attach the two use sporadic drops of hot glue along the ribbon until they are secured together

Step 3, cut off the stems of the flowers so you can glue the base flat onto the ribbon. Have fun placing them where ever it looks pleasing to you. I even added some extra accents such as the fake baby's breath, and the leaves! You could even add different coloured flowers instead of making your head band just one colour! Be creative and have fun!

Step 4, Fasten the head band on, and ta da! You are done! The best part was because I already had ribbon lying around my craft room this headband only cost me $2.50