Kimono Chic

Open-front cardigans and blazers are my closet staples, so it shouldn't be surprising that I'm drawn to kimonos as well. I think they're the perfect "third piece" to add more interest to an outfit. I nabbed the last one in this color at the Aritzia clientele sale (which is one of my favourite sales to shop).

Details: 

Kimono: Talula at Aritzia

Top: Diesel

Jeans: Zara

Sandals: Aldo

Necklace: Joe Fresh

Sunnies: Coach

I wore this ensemble to my soon-to-be sister-in-law's wedding shower last weekend. I love wedding showers.  I remember how nice it was to have so many loved ones gather to celebrate the countdown to the wedding.

The sales happening right now are pretty spectacular. If you're the type who doesn't shop much, you should really consider taking a peek at the stores/on-line right now. I've picked up/ordered lots this month from Aritzia, Aldo, Zara, Dynamite, and even some of my non-clothing favorites like DAVIDsTEA  and Bath & Body Works.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Best Buys 2015

Taking a look back on 2015, I was able to add some great basics into my wardrobe that will be around for a few years to come. I thought I'd share my five best buys of 2015 - those items that I constantly reach for and were great additions to my closet.

Hunter Boots

I can't believe I haven't styled these for the blog yet. I've worn them a ton, but I guess mainly to work, and I often don't have time for photos on work days. I'll be sure to include them in a style post very soon. I need to get some boot socks for them so I can wear them comfortably as a winter boot too.

Gap Jacket and Diesel Jeans

These have been on constant repeat for me all year. The jeans just keep getting better with more wear, as premium denim tends to do! This field jacket is perfect to throw on with just about any casual attire and is roomy enough to fit a sweater underneath.

Town Shoes Boots

Black tall boots are a wardrobe staple in Canada. These have been worn so much since I bought them!

Madewell Jeans

I spent several hours in the Madewell store in Scottsdale, and one of the items I came away with was these jeans. They are the perfect rise! I chose to leave them long and roll them instead of hemming them. It would be fine by me if Madewell came to Canada!

All of these items can be considered pretty basic, which is why I reach for them so often. I'm ever so slowly edging more towards a minimalist look.

All the best to my blog readers for a very happy and healthy 2016. See you in the New Year!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Pumpkin Spice Sweater

When I spotted this sweater at Joe Fresh, I scooped it up immediately as it screamed autumn. As much as I hate to see the summer end, most style girls love the fall for the sweaters, boots, and layers!

Details

Top and Necklace: Joe Fresh

Jeans: Diesel

Boots: Old Navy

Sunnies: Coach

This was worn to Thanksgiving dinner, which was on a really warm day. Thanksgiving in Canada can be a roulette wheel of weather situations, so we lucked out this year.

Have you made any amazing sweater purchases this season? It was so hot in Arizona that I brought home only one sweater - they are hard to shop for when it's 35 degrees out!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Sparkle Chucks

Finally! After a yucky, snowy, wet winter, I was so eager to wear these shoes again. These were my post-reception Bourbon Room secondary wedding shoes! Being as glaringly white as they are, I need to be careful where I step. Unlike regular Chucks, which look great a little bit beat up, I think these ones need to stay pretty clean to look right.

Details

Jacket and Scarf: Gap

Jeans: Diesel

Shirt: Old Navy

Sneakers: Converse

Watch: Guess

Bracelet: J Crew

Glasses: Burberry

This was the first time wearing my new Gap utility jacket and I love it! It's the perfect weight for this time of year and has lots of pockets. It drives me nuts when jackets have no pockets!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Petite Black Tee

So, I'm in a bit of a funk lately -low energy, headaches, and lack of motivation to be active. I want comfort food, blankets, and cozy socks. I'm quite sure it's 99% due to the weather, so I'm not exactly concerned. I know I'll snap out of it soon. In the meantime, I will absorb joy from things like chai lattes, good books, and fun tees.

Details

Blazer: A/X Armani Exchange

Tee and necklace: Forever 21

Jeans: Diesel

Glasses: D&G

Booties: c/o Nine West Mic Mac Mall

Bracelet: Stella & Dot

Earrings: Beck & Boosh

Enjoy your week, and send some snow melting vibes in my direction, SVP!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Sombre

Everyone knows by now what ombre hair is, but a close cousin of ombre is sombre - a more subtle form. 

It was a big decision to let go of my bright blond, but I needed a change. I still get to keep the lightness at the ends, but the roots are a warmer color. It should be quite a bit easier to upkeep than blond highlights. 

Apologies for the grainy iPad photos. The "golden hour" hasn't been working for me lately. Maybe it's all the snow. 

Details

Sweater: Banana Republic

Jeans: Diesel via Winners

Scarf: H&M

Jewelry: Gifts

Nails: Blue Rhapsody by Essie

Boots: Gap

These Diesel jeans are the most comfortable, softest denim I have ever worn. They waist hits in exactly the right spot, which is so hard to find with a long torso like mine. I will be stalking Winners for more from this brand!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: January 2015

Ahhh January. New year, new yearly budget.

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. I used to have a strict (sort of...) monthly budget, but partway through 2014, I switched to a quarterly budget of $500. This can be rolled into the next quarter if not all spent. My goal is to keep my expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget.

I'm starting 2015 off with a quarterly budget of $525 (a small roll-over happened last year).

I'm happy to say was a satisfying shopping month. After Christmas sales are in full swing, and it's a great time of year to replace basic winter sweaters.

I was able to check off some "needs" (boots, black sweater, and grey sweater) and there were some impulse buys thrown in there too.

What I Bought

Leather Boots: Town Shoes (own brand, no longer available on-line)
Price: $75, originally $265
Sometime in December I realized I was wearing my flat black ankle boots to work almost every day. I needed another option that would keep me warmer as the temperatures dropped. I bought a pair of boots from Aldo that I ended up returning, and then I found these lovelies. The chain strap is detachable, which is a nice option. They are really tight to zip (and I have small calves) which may be why they were so marked down.

Grey Sweater: Banana Republic
Price: $20, originally $95
I donated my trusty grey H&M v-neck sweater a few months ago (it's prime had passed) and have been missing it. I'm glad a stopped in BR at lunch the other day as this gorgeous thing was heavily marked down and will fill my grey v-neck void so well. I find the BR in-store sales are often better than the on-line ones, as is the case here.

Pink Sweater: Banana Republic (no longer available on-line)
Price: $17, originally $110
Cashmere blend for $17? Yes please - one of those things that you just don't leave in the store. I already have a pink sweater, but at this price it made sense to have two.

Black Sweater: Old Navy (no longer available on-line)
Price: $21, originally $40
I needed a long black sweater to wear with leggings (which are NOT pants BTW). Also, they are helpful with jeans or pants that are fitted in the seat, morphing them into work-appropriate bottoms.

Jeans: Diesel via Winners
Price (crazy!): $37, originally $350
If I had infinite amounts of money, I would likely be clothed heavily in Diesel. Winners loves to bring in Diesel attire (yay!) and I scored this gorgeous pair of boyfriend jeans for next to nothing. They are super-long on me, but are meant to be worn cuffed. I will try them out as-is before deciding to hem or not (I hate hemming). I also had a pair of AG jeans in my hand that I was close to buying. Lots of premium jeans at the Mumford location in Halifax if anyone needs new ones!

Snood: Amercan Eagle Outfitters  (worn here)
Price: $5, originally $40
I wear my black faux fur snood a ton and for $5 (which I think was a mistake as when I went back later that week they were marked back up to $40) this was a great alternate color to have in my closet.

Blazer: Merona at Target (not available on-line)
Price: $11.50, originally $40
This was purchased on the day Target announced their closure. I went to mope and show my support. I think it will look good with jeans and my brown riding boots. Very J Crew-esque.

Original value of items: $590
Price I paid: $150
I saved 75%(and darn proud of it)

I have $350 left to spend this quarter. I  would like to find a casual long sleeved dress that would be work and weekend appropriate.

I'm linked up with Franish today - stop over and see how the others spent their January budgets.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Little Penguins

Sometimes when I need a pick-me-up, I'll watch a live penguin webcam. It's impossible not to smile! Imagine my disappointment when at the Vancouver Aquarium, the penguins were standing together in a little clump... doing absolutely nothing. Maybe they were protesting the weather. The little guys in my photo aren't real.

Details

Jacket: Tommy Hilfiger

Tank: Diesel via Winners

Pants: Uniqlo

Sneakers: Keds

Bag: Coach

Necklace: Stella & Dot

Terrifying!!

Excuse my lack of writing in this week's blog posts. Our house is turned inside out at the moment, and I have no time for my usual effort!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: March 2014

I had some gift card spending to do this month. I'm not really sure how to handle gift cards/gift money in relation to my clothing budget. When I'm gifted an article of actual clothing, I don't count it towards my budget obviously, so I'm inclined to think that gift card purchases shouldn't count. Ladies who budget, what do you do with gift cards?

Gift Card Purchases

Pants: Ralph Lauren via Winners
Discounted from $100 to $30 (free using gift card)
Black work pants were on my wish list. I'm not sure how I managed to get through the winter with only one pair in my closet, but I often wished for a second pair. They're in the wash, so no photo.

Tank: Diesel via Winners
Discounted from approx. $150 to $25
Winners has been getting some decent stuff in stock lately in their new "Contemporary" section. I have a "love from afar" relationship with Diesel as I refuse to pay full price for it but really love the brand.  Winners has an annoying habit of peeling off the brand's actual price tag (but they often miss it). Their "comparable to" tag is often way lower than the original price. For example, the "comparable to" tag on this tank is $40. Now, I know that you can't get a Diesel shoelace for $40, but they peeled off the original tag. So I went online and found something comparable listed for $150 at the Bay, which sounds more like Diesel's (over) pricing. Wouldn't it make sense for Winners to want to show the actual retail price? I don't get it. You'll all be proud of me for not giving in to the pink leather vest I wore for a solid ten minutes in the fitting room. It was still $130 (marked down from $700 - they forgot to get rid of the original tag ), but I actually do want a new brown leather jacket which would see far more wear than a pink leather vest, no matter how pretty it was.

Skirt: Banana Republic (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $110 to $49 (free using gift card c/o Halifax Shopping Centre for doing an Opposites Attract feature for them)
I love love love this skirt and was eyeing it from the second I saw it on-line. I was hoarding my HSC gift card, waiting for the perfect item to spend it on. This was it! I haven't worn it yet, but I do want to get at least one wear out of it with black tights before the weather changes.

Earrings: Silpada
Regular price $34 (free with birthday money)
I am supposed to be on a jewelry buying ban for awhile but I don't actually own anything in turquoise and I thought these were really cute. I love the look of white clothes and turquoise accessories in the summer.



T-shirt: Smart Set
Discounted from $16 to $10 (free with birthday money)
This was an impulse buy a few days before St Patrick's Day, but a good bright piece that looks great with black, white, or navy. I wore it with black pants and a black cardigan for St Patrick's Day at the office, but failed to get a photo.

Mine is kelly green

Amount spent in gift cards/gift money: $148
Value $402

My Own Money Purchases

Sweater: Jacob (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $50 to $7.50
I love the look of this slouchy v-neck. I can wear it over button-ups or over a dress. I promise I'll steam it before I wear it!

Dress: Old Navy
Discounted from $33 to $25
This dress is a blank canvas for styling, and I think I will get a lot of wear out of it in the spring and next fall too. A good piece for transitioning seasons.



Shirt: Club Monaco
Regular price $64.50
It is SO HARD to find a great white oxford shirt. Thank you Club Monaco salesgirl for leading me to the men's section! I bought this in men's XS and it is wonderful! Not too thin, long enough to cover my bottom should I want to wear it with structured leggings, and no gaping buttons at chest level!

Dress: Sarah Stevenson for Target
Regular Price $35
I did a blog post on this dress already. I can't wait to wear it with my denim jacket!


Skirt: Peter Pilotto for Target
Discounted from $35 to $17.50
This was one of the pieces I said I'd go back for if it went on clearance, which it did.

Total spent: $149.50
Total value:  $217.50
I saved 31%

It's time to look at my seasonal spending which I've budgeted at $500 every three months.
January = $154
February = $193
March = $150

Grand total for first quarter of 2014: $497

Next month includes a trip to Vancouver and undoubtedly some new clothes will be bought. Good thing I have gift cards and birthday money to spend!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl