Your Must-Have Spring Outerwear: The Floral Kimono

When it comes to layering during the spring season, I've never been one for cardigans. I'm more of a blazer person. But, one layering piece I hadn't tried til now was kimonos...and surprise, surprise, I now love this style!

Kimonos are such a great way to layer over top of your spring tops. They flow so nicely, and add a nice dimension to your outfits. In particular for spring, a kimono with floral prints is a great choice - like the one I'm wearing here from SheIn! Even sweeter is this kimono's scalloped hemline. Too cute.

Just layer over top of a plain t-shirt or tank top, pair with some jeans and flats, and you're all set to go. It's a sweet but casual outfit that would be perfect for brunch or a coffee date. For something a little dressier, you can style with a crop top and heels, like I've done here. By the way, the heels I'm wearing are the best! I found them for $38 at Target, and I love the simple strappy style with a low-ish, thick heel. They're so great, I got a pair in blush and in black.

And finally, one last reason why I love this kimono so much: it doubles as a kimono/robe around the house! I've been using a thin belt to cinch the waist and keep the front closed, so I can leisurely wear it while I chill at home. It sure beats yoga pants when you want to feel a bit more put together!

Kimono - c/o SheIn | Crop Top - Ever New (similar) | Jeans - Rachel Roy via Winners | Purse - Gap (thrifted via Value Village) | Heels - Target

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta

Jump into Spring with a Floral Jumpsuit!

Jumpsuits have basically become my favourite fashion item. You've also seen me wear there here and here recently. Why? Because they're seriously comfy and so easy to style. I'd rather wear a jumpsuit over a dress any day. I just feel so much more agile in them. Especially like jumpsuits with long pant legs, like this SheIn floral jumpsuit with palazzo pants. The long palazzo pants mean I can wear a lower heel without it being noticed, because really, all you see is the toe peeping out.

Now this particularly jumpsuit, in my opinion, would look fantastic on someone with a smaller chest...and without the bralette. But I felt more comfortable with the bralette underneath, as the plunging neckline is just that: one hell of a plunging neckline. It's always good to have a couple of cute bralettes in your wardrobe to style with items like this.

Of course, the key to this being a spring outfit is the all-over floral print! Revolutionary for spring, I know, but hey if it ain't broke... Just keep it light with the accessories, since the floral print is pretty busy. I chose this simple kn I've linked to a few more floral jumpsuits below as well. I seriously want all of them!! And the one I'm wearing? For $37, it's a no-brainer! I've also shared a similar coat to the one I'm wearing, because it's such a pretty statement piece to add to any of your spring outfits.

Coat - Zara (via Ebay, similar) | Jumpsuit - c/o SheIn | Bralette - American Eagle (similar) | Bracelet - c/o Nobis & Grey | Shoes - thrifted via Value Village

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta

High Waisted Pants & Crop Tops

In case you've just started following Vancouver Vogue, there's one thing you should know: I am utterly obsessed with maracons. That little parisian sweet, a sandwich of meringue with a light delicious filling, is not only the most Instagrammable treat, but is also my favourite dessert. In fact, I not only have a book of Laduree macaron recipes and a Laduree macaron keychain, but I now have two shirts with adorable macaron prints, including the crop top I'm wearing here, and this adorable blouse!

I spotted this cropped macaron print tee while at Value Village a few weeks back. I have hawk eyes when it comes to anything macaron, obviously. I was even more gleeful when I saw the tag - Jennyfer is a French brand I remember from when I visited France back in high school! Perfectly fitting for a shirt covered in macarons, non? Jennyfer is sort of like a Forever 21 type store there. We don't have any of their store locations in North America, so this was definitely a special find for me - just goes to show you never know what you'll find at Value Village.

I've started developing quite the collection of crop tops over the past year, but I didn't have any high waisted jeans to pair with them, so I went on the hunt at Winners recently, and ended up finding these Rachel Roy ones. They're super comfy: very stretchy and just the right height in the waist. I wasn't comfortable wearing my crop tops with my regular low waist jeans, so these are going to get a lot of use now!

Since it looks like sunny spring days are more plentiful now, I've been pulling out sunglasses a whole lot more too. One more accessory to style, yay! If you're on the hunt for a new pair, check out these super chic Flat Front Metal Aviator Sunglasses in Gold Pink from Ilymix. I love the pink mirrored lenses - they go great with lots of my spring outfits. If you want a pair too, you can use the code vogue20 for 20% off your Ilymix sunnies!

Is there a print you're totally obsessed with right now? I'd love to hear what it is!

Top - Jennyfer (via Value Village) | Jeans - Rachel Roy (via Winners) | Purse - Kate Spade | Sunglasses - Ilymix | Bracelet - Birchbox | Shoes - H&M (via Value Village)

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta

How to Layer in Spring: The Longline Vest

I have to start by saying that I am truly shocked that I have found a button-down blouse that I actually enjoy wearing outside of the office. I feel like this is a once in a life time experience for me, finding this perfect shirt. It was thrifted from Value Village, and while the label claimed it was a "boyfriend" fit, for me, it just felt like it fit nicely but not snug. I seriously can't believe I don't want to peel it off like any other work blouse the second I get home!! That little extra bit of room really makes it that much more confortable. I love that it's a little longer than normal button-downs too, which I think is what lends to its more laid-back style when worn un-tucked. 

But what to wear it with? I've had this longline vest from Forever 21 in my closet every since Vancouver Fashion Week a couple seasons ago, and I've gotta say, it's become one of my favourite pieces for layering in the spring/summer months. It's certainly not the kind of layering for if you're cold and want to cover up, but rather to help add a bit more intrigue to your outfit. After all, wearing a button-down not tucked in isn't exactly ground breaking when it comes to styling, but slip on this mid-length vest and now we've got a variety of lengths and cuts going on here. Want to see how else you can style it? Check out my posts here, here, and here for more options.

Why not give spring layering a try?

Shirt - Talula (thrifted via Value Village) | Vest - Forever 21 (similar) | Sunglasses - Target | Necklace - Stella & Dot | Bracelet - c/o Nobis & Grey | Jeans - Urban Planet | Shoes - Converse

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta

Printed Blouses are the New Statement Piece

You can thank Leeanne & Bree for this fabulous outfit, because it was during a Simons x LOULOU Magazine event in Vancouver that they spotted this fabulous macaron blouse. They rushed over "Look what we found! You have to try this!". Let's be honest, I didn't even need to try it on to know it belonged in my closet, but I gleefully threw it on to admire it in its entirety. Basically anything with macarons is a must-have in my book.

But it also got me thinking about printed blouses in general, because there are a huge amount of prints out there right now for Spring, and I think they're the perfect way to jazz up your office outfit! Of course, some workplaces are more rigid than others in terms of dress code, but if you can get a bit creative with your work outfits, then I think this would be a great way to liven them up a bit. I found this cute Mario Brothers printed blouse, this tulip blouse, this adorable flamingo blouse, and this quirky pineapple blouse all at Simons as well. So fun, right??

The easiest way to style these fun printed shirts is with solid-coloured bottoms (unless you're feeling extra adventurous!), so I pulled out this nice green pencil skirt I thrifted from Salvation Army a while back. Some solid coloured cropped work pants would look great too.

For some off-duty fun, I added this super bold pink lip - I picked up NYX's new Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick in Pink Lust at London Drugs and just LOVE it! Not really waterproof, but the colour is so beautiful, and it must have a slight blue tinge to it, because I find it really brightens my smile. 

Blouse - Twik (via Simons) | Necklace - c/o Nobis & Grey | Skirt - Zara (thrifted via Salvation Army) | Heels - Spring (via Value Village)

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta

Why Everyone Should Own Polka Dot Pants

It's always great to have a few items in your wardrobe that easily elevate your outfit. Like adding a statement necklace over a shirt, these polka dot skinny jeans have become a favourite in my closet because they're such an easy way to make my outfit a bit more interesting. Take a look at the photos below: wouldn't this outfit just be way more boring with plain skinny jeans? I certainly think so.

Especially when you're in a rush to throw an outfit together, it's a good to know you have a few items like this in your arsenal. If you're feeling like your regular jeans are not making the cut, switch them out for a pair of cute printed ones like these polka dot jeans! I found these at Winners quite a while back, but I've found a few others online that I've shared below.

I'm curious: do you have any items in your closet that you use to up your outfit game?

Sweater - Forever 21 (thrifted via Value Village) | Earrings - c/o Nobis & Grey | Purse - Forever 21 | Jeans - Winners | Heels - thrifted via Value Village

Happy Styling! xo

~ Britta