As much as I feel obligated (because of the blog, hah) to constantly switch things up, sometimes I just want the style equivalent of comfort food: something quick, and easy, and guaranteed to make me happy. My ancient BCBG skirt + a favourite floral top + a trusty cardigan = instant happy outfit.

I’m about to date myself, but here goes anyway: this outfit reminded me of Steel Magnolias. Why? This cardigan is actually a very pale pink (though it looks peachy here), and there are other shades of pink in the floral print. So, you could say the outfit scheme here was … blush and bashful. Hah!

OK, maybe not entirely without cause. I decided to rebel against the “Be Seen in Jeans” theme for Canadian Finals Rodeo week, and wear this floral schmatta instead, because, well, I’m just not that big a fan of jeans. One day a week, fine. Five days a week … I have my limits.

Speaking of this dress: thrifted, because that’s how I roll.  I wasn’t sure at first how I felt about the print (shocker, I know), but it’s growing on me. I bought the dress primarily because it’s incredibly comfortable and surprisingly flattering. This style of sheath dress is not always a good choice for me because it can make me feel self-conscious about my stomach; this dress, however, is very forgiving in this area – no constant sucking-in, thankyouverymuch. A good friend of mine swears by these poly-blend dresses from Ralph Lauren (machine washable and pretty indestructible, apparently), so I figured it was a good $12 investment.

P.S. Please note that I’m not wearing any black in this outfit. Yes, really. The dress and blazer are navy, and the shoes are dark green – scout’s honour. I’m always very proud of myself whenever I managed to avoid the lure of black. I guess I’m expecting you guys to be as well, hah!

The not-so-dark secret of my office style is – drum roll, please- outfit planning. Yep, I plan my outfits in advance. Weeks in advance, at times. It simplifies my morning routine, and generally helps me to avoid “I have nothing to wear”, or worse, “I hate my hastily-assembled outfit” syndrome. Sometimes, however, things go awry.

Nine times out of ten, it’s the weather. Occasionally, it’s a last minute work function or client meeting. Whatever the reason, I sometimes have to re-arrange my planned outfits. When I’m working with a capsule, that can be tricky. I’m usually able to avoid wearing a clothing item twice in the same week … but sometimes not.

That was the case with this aqua cardigan. I was supposed to wear it with different outfits weeks apart, and then stuff happened, outfits got shuffled, and …

… I ended up wearing twice. Tuesday and Friday.

No biggie because, frankly, no one noticed. It just bugged me, and my irrational need to wear different things, even when I’m in remix mode (aka doing a monthly capsule). Oh well.

The Friday happened to be Halloween. Clearly, I didn’t costume it up. But I did commit to my aqua theme.

Scary, eh?