Fashion Friday :: Make A Statement

[trip style = any]

This post is written by Trip Styler fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

The best-kept secret in packing isn’t the scarf---because everyone knows to pack a scarf by now {FYI - scarf tying 101}---it’s the statement accessory. OK fine, your statement accessory can be a scarf, but you have lots of other options to make your basic travel staples POP.

A simple long weekend packing list of jeans, a couple tops and a sweater can be complemented by a hat, a statement necklace, a pair of bold socks or stockings, great eyewear and a bandana that doubles as a pocket square. Just like that, two outfits turn into four.

This approach to packing has significantly reduced my suitcase real estate. I can actually pack for a weekend in a weekender bag now! {Except for shoes, but that's why God invented oversized handbags...right?}

Now What To Pack?
Target limited edition wool rancher hat, Norse Projects wool 6 panel cap, Y's by Yohji Yamamoto triple layer stole, Kenneth Jay Lane turquoise stick necklace, Strathcona Stockings turquoise roses trouser stockings, Apolis washed linen bandana, D.L. Eyewear frames, Ladies & Gentlemen bloc necklace

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[graphic assembled by @heatherlovesit]

Fashion Friday :: Western Spirit

western spirit

[trip style = any]

This post is written by Trip Styler fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

Rodeo season is in full swing {check out our recent Calgary Stampede coverage} and whether or not you plan on catching a chuckwagon race this summer, or just embracing the {wild, wild} western spirit, we thought it was high {noon} time to wrangle our favorite country-inspired looks, plus a few rodeo style tips to boot.

Styling Tips -- Rodeo season is hot. To beat the heat and show a little leg, go with a western-inspired bootie instead of a traditional cowboy boot. -- The Canadian tuxedo is encouraged, but mix it up with light and dark washes. -- You're not going to a costume party, so instead of head-to-toe cowboy, add a couple western touches to your everyday style. -- "Top it, belt it, stomp it." Fashion advice from Brenna Hardy, Stampede Stylist at Calgary's CORE Shopping Centre. -- Always store your hat upright; otherwise, the brim will relax. Time to invest in a hat box! -- Add a little fun to your bum and place a bandana in your back jean pocket. -- Accessorize with turquoise, a southwestern staple, or weave a piece of leather into a fishtail braid.

If all of this western style has inspired you to take a rodeo getaway, check out the upcoming Cheyenne Frontier Days (WY), Pendleton Round-Up (OR) and Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (NV), or gallop to next summer's Calgary Stampede.

Now What To Wear? Women (clockwise from top left)Madewell perfect chambray ex-boyfriend shirt, Free People serra do mar tunic, Frye carson tab mid boot, Velvet farley dress, Vanessa Mooney open road ring, Madewell barnwood boot, Ralph Lauren hand-tooled leather belt, Imogene + Willie elizabeth stretch jean

Men (clockwise from top right) RRL buffalo twill western shirt, To Boot New York hawthorne boot, Imogene + Willie natural plus bandana, Imogene + Willie barton rigid jean

More Fashion FridayThe Summer StapleWhite ChucksCycle Chic

[graphic assembled by @heatherlovesit]

Fashion Friday :: The Summer Staple

Fashion Friday posts are published regularly by fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

Jean shorts cross the borders of fashion. They can be worn boho with a tank and kimono, classic with a white tee and leather jacket, grunge with a half-tucked flannel shirt, or preppy with a blazer. Styling is everything when it comes to cutoffs, and with so many looks, they're the perfect staple for summer travel.

Styling Tips
This season, look for a pair that's ripped and slightly high waisted, either cuffed or frayed. Gentlemen: keep them long and slim. {Short cutoffs on men are not cool! I can never erase the vision of a dad in short jean shorts strolling around town on the Croatian coast last month. Keep that look on your sailboat only, sir!}

In the same way that you wouldn't wear a loud necklace with big earrings, you should avoid wearing tiny cutoffs with a tiny top. Balance out your leggy look with a more conservative top half. And don't forget to match your footwear to your look -- flat strappy sandals, mid-rise wedges, moccasins and sneakers work well with jean shorts. And if, like me, you wore wedge sneakers and booties all year long, there's no reason to stop now.

Buy or DIY?
Denim cutoffs are the perfect style for both the budget conscious and the big spender. If you decide to DIY, select jeans with little to no Spandex, as they won't distress well and will cling to your thighs. For a flattering fit, instead of cutting the legs straight across, angle your cut so the inside seam is slightly lower. Reduce, reuse, recycle, right?

Trip Styler Tip: Call me the modesty cop, but when your pocket linings are hanging out the bottom of your cutoffs, they're too short. Often less is more ... just not where jean shorts are concerned.

Now What To Buy?
(left to right)
J Brand high rise shorts, Zara high waist shorts, Madewell high rise denim shorts, Cheap Monday short skin blue rinse, 6397 slouch short

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Fashion Friday :: White Chucks

Fashion Friday posts are published regularly by fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

You know that moment when you're traveling and a tourist asks you for directions? Or that moment when you're able to carry on a basic conversation in a country's native tongue? Those moments make you feel like you belong in the place you're visiting. Fitting in with the locals is always at the top of my travel goals. If I'm mistaken for a local, I've succeeded as a foreigner under the radar.

If you want to look like a local in Europe, there's one element that crosses more borders than the European Union: White Converse Chuck Taylor sneakers {"Chucks"}.

I know that's a bold statement, but you can trust me as I've just returned from three weeks in Europe, where, moments after stepping off the plane, I observed an entire group of teenaged girls wearing them on the train. I saw them on the feet of high-end shop girls in Amsterdam, tapas servers in Barcelona, Zara-chic twentysomethings in Croatia and supermodel moms inside Charles de Gaulle.

In Europe, Chucks aren't a trend, they're a staple.

Here's my favorite look, as seen on the Riva in Split, Croatia's second-largest city.

(clockwise from left) Equipment signature shirt, ASOS pleated maxi skirt, Retrosuperfuture lucia francis puma sunglasses, Converse chuck taylor all stars

Trip Styler Tip: Shoes are arguably the most important and agonizing item when packing for Europe. White Chucks are versatile and they'll save your feet during the inevitable miles and miles of pounding the {very old} pavement.

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[top images via pinterest]

Fashion Friday :: Cycle Chic

[trip style = urban]

{Editor's Note: We will not be publishing on Easter Monday.}

Fashion Friday posts are published regularly by fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

I'm heading to Amsterdam next month and recently a friend jokingly asked if I'd go to the red light district. I confess I hadn't even thought about it. When I think of Amsterdam, I imagine stylish cyclists on Dutch upright bikes with tulips in their baskets riding alongside picturesque canals. I suspect the same thing of Copenhagen, and I refuse to think any differently until I'm proved wrong. Part of this confidence comes from my faithful addiction to street style blogs and their sub genre, cycle chic blogs, birthed in Copenhagen in 2007.

There's something magical about cycling in a bike-friendly city, smiling at passersby, having moments of fleeting flirtation at stoplights with fellow cyclists, all while getting in some light cardio. Of course bike commuting is only magical until that moment when it begins to downpour, you're splashed by passing cars, yelled at by impatient cyclists and you knock down a whole row of bikes while locking up your own. That's when you go inside for a Heineken. Speaking of Dutch beer, I'll have to drink some and I'll have to go to the red light district. It would be disrespectful not to...right?!

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[street style photos via thesartorialist.com, garancedoré.fr, amsterdamcyclechic.com, thelocals.dk and jakandjil.com]