010/ What I'm Wearing: 2023 Week 10
A closer look at my outfits of the week: clever mixing-and-matching during an (unintentionally) heavy week of après ski sweaters
It wasn’t intentional, but I gravitated towards my après ski knitwear for most of the week. These outfits are a good illustration of taking pieces you may have mentally confined to certain situations (e.g. “for the chalet”) into other areas of your life with some inspired mixing-and-matching.
Our family began skiing regularly last season, so this year I decided to invest in some new skiwear. I already had a good range of solid, neutral knitwear, but since I would be on the slopes three months out of the year for the foreseeable future, I reckoned a few festive, ski vibe knits were a reasonable investment. (My skiwear search could possibly be a whole post in itself. When I first started looking, I was aghast — AGHAST, I tell you! — at the cost of designer skiwear).
DAY 1
There’s not much to say on the styling side here, but it was the first time I wore this vintage ski suit I found on Etsy! I want to look chic on the slopes, as we all do, but as already noted, my goodness, skiwear is expensive. One way around this is to invest in vintage: it’s more affordable, possibly better quality, and your outfit will definitely be unique!
Another thing I want to mention here is that I often dip into my husband’s and sons’ wardrobes to pick out random things — such as my son’s neck warmer (worn here as a head warmer) and my husband’s beat-up cashmere sweater. If you have family members who don’t mind (or notice) you borrowing their clothes, it’s something to keep in mind!
Also a note about extending the life of your clothes: my own Uniqlo cashmere crewneck in this same colour shrank recently, so I gave it to my eldest son, and then took this sweater from my husband :). I bought the Uniqlo sweater seven years ago in XXL to wear over my baby bump, and as I was losing baby weight, I gradually shrank it in the dryer to fit my changing body. You’ve served me well, dear Uniqlo sweater, and I’m happy my son will enjoy you too!
DAY 2
I picked up this yellow men’s Rag & Bone fleece at 260 Sample Sale two weeks ago, but I admit I haven’t given much thought into how to style it beyond throwing it on with these basics. Stay tuned…
DAY 3
It was kind of warmer in Toronto on Monday (warmer = 5C; don’t laugh, California readers), so I wanted to capitalize and wear my leather jacket as my actual coat. But, at 5C, I still needed to layer-up to be warm, hence the double wool sweaters (and undershirt).
The main thing I fussed about in this outfit was the colour of my socks. My go-to sock colour is some shade of grey, but I was finding that the grey sock broke up the overall harmony of the outfit.
With a grey sock, my eye went from darker top to lighter jeans, then ****screech**** stopped at the dark sock, then to the white shoe, which stood out to me like a reverse Oreo cookie. It just didn’t feel right to me. With a white sock, however, my eye moved uninterrupted from head-to-toe, following the continuum of darker to lighter shades. I was feeling the flow. Son’s white tube socks FTW.
DAY 4
Tuesday was a work-from-home day, hence the bare legs. But I was in a dressing-up mood, and as I’ve mentioned before on Instagram, just wear your clothes!
I pulled out this Rag & Bone Fair Isle sweater, and the first thing that came to mind was, “it has a subtle pink undertone,” which led me towards my pink Cecilie Bahnsen skirt. Until that moment, I never thought to pair these pieces together, but I was digging it! Not just for the harmonious tones, but the interesting contrast of the wool sweater against the texture of the skirt. Unexpected, but I rolled with it.
For the shoe, my first instinct were these brown, shearling Nori slides from Tibi (now 70% off). I tried it with my silver Aeyde mary janes and the silver Tibi Rudolph flat, but I loved the extra layer of texture from the Noris and, most importantly, they gave the outfit the contrast and grounding it needed.
DAY 5
I had ten minutes to pick an outfit and snap a photo before my client arrived. I started out wanting to wear the navy wool vest I had also picked up at the aforementioned Rag & Bone sample sale, and was swapping different bottoms with it. When I got to these old Zara pin-stripe trousers, I wasn’t feeling the vest, but I was definitely in the mood for the pants.
At this point, I had four minutes left, so I went with a basic white tee and the grey COS sweater from Day 3 tied around my neck. Looking at myself, I thought, “it could be more interesting, but I don’t have time!” And then in an inspired moment, I reached for my Banana Republic Fair Isle sweater. I liked that the BR sweater was chunkier and sportier than the COS — it provided the necessary tension against the vibe of the trousers and loafers to give the outfit the dimension it was lacking. And the red pattern felt like the perfect accent. Done and done!
DAY 6
Thursday I was feeling bloated, which was the primary driver in choosing the day’s outfit. I pulled out these Zara jeans, and yet another cozy ski sweater — this one’s from H&M and it’s a cashmere-wool blend.
The jeans require a belt and for a minute I was outraged that my husband wore his own belt to the office (“how dare he!”) — but then I found it. His belt has been my hero belt all season; I’ve worn it with so many different outfits. After many seasons of not wearing belts at all, the mens trouser belt — as distinct from the skinny belt of the early 10s, or the more casual jean belt — feels so fresh.
DAY 7
Friday I got my period — no wonder I was bloated. (Yet another whole post in itself: dressing around monthly and/general weight fluctuations.) I woke up feeling pretty crappy, and it was snowing again. Just to torture myself, I looked up the weather in Florence (18C), Seoul (10C) and Los Angeles (18C).
I literally picked up the clothes sitting on the bench in my bedroom (including the sweater I wore the night before, and my home sweatpants) and put them on. And here is the result.
It’s March Break in Toronto for the kids, and our family is off to Guadeloupe! The next installment of WIW will be all holiday/warm-weather outfits.
Have a wonderful week!
Irene
looking forward to seeing the yellow fleece in action as another cold weather climate dresser!
You completely sold me on the Cos x Linda Farrow navy sunglasses last week. I received mine a few days ago and they are perfectly gorgeous. At this point I could probably start a sunglasses rental business, but at least I have great options!