Romping in the Rain

I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny, but we can have lots of good fun that is funny.
    Dr. Seuss, The Cat in the Hat 

Outfit: Boots (Target), Dress (H&M), Blue Shirt (GAP), Hat (Aldo), Pocket-watch 

Necklace (Thrifted),  Silver Filigree Ring (Magnolia),  Rose Ring (Thrifted)

My dog, Kobe, enjoying the mild rainy day. Couldn't resist putting this up! 

I thought this neglected chess table in the park such a melancholy image. 

    I don't know what I would do on rainy days without my wellies! I know the whales are a bit silly, but there'll come a time when wearing whales on my boots will have people thinking there's a loose screw in my head. So while I'm young, I shall embrace it!
    This dress is one of my favourites, I love the straps with the button detail. It makes me feel a tad like a little girl, especially so compared with the whale wellies. However, looking like a little girl wouldn't be the worse thing in the world, they have awfully cute style!
    As you can probably tell from my last few posts I've been attempting new things with my bangs.  I get bored with my hair always being the same, as I'm sure others out there do as well, but since I don't dye my hair I'm restricted to trying different styles. So side bangs maybe? The transition can be a little frustrating that's for sure!

 Until next time!
xo, The Rag Trade

Flurries and Faux Fur

Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society. 
    Mark Twain 

Beavertails! This pastry desert is the epitome of winter.

A view of the largest skating rink the world, just part of it anyways! 

Outfit: Sweater (Jacob), Scarf (At a garage sale in New Brunswick for

 ten cents!), Dress (Thrifted), Boots (Sorel), Leg Warmers (Thrifted), 

Hat (Gift), String necklace with gold S pendent (Gift)

   The extreme cold is gone and the snow is back! Very picturesque and therefore a great idea for a walk to the canal for Beavertails and hot chocolate. I must mention how a friend of mine from overseas innocently believed that Canadians ate the tails of beavers when she first arrived here! This is not true.... 

    Again you find me in wool, I can't stress enough what an ideal fabric this is for winter. I don't know how I would survive the season sans it, I suppose I would be very cold!  And again you find me in black and brown. I wish I could say I'm a much more colourful person during the spring and summer, but alas, I am not.  I find my hair colour enough, I mean it's pretty much yellow! 

Until we meet again!
xo, The Rag Trade 

DIY Red Belt

Sewing: A creative mess is better than idle tidiness.

Materials Needed: Ribbon (measured to fit me), buttons for detail, matching thread, 

needle, and fasteners. 

The top part of these fasteners are located under the buttons on the other side of the ribbon.

  As I'm sure I've mentioned this before, I don't like to throw things out. Again, I'm no hoarder, I just like to reinvent things and that way I don't contribute to landfills in an extreme way. 
   So when I saw this ribbon in my craft/fabric basket (definitely need to iron it before wearing it- it's all rumpled) and remembered I've been desiring a red belt, I immediately scanned Pinterest for possible ideas. Nothing came up that peaked my interest, so I thought of this button idea!  The bf says it reminds him of Pop from the Rice Krispies, for it has a bit of a military feel to it. 
   Hope you enjoyed my first DIY belt!

Cheers!
xo, The Rag Trade 

Achromatic Avoidance

What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.
      John Steinbeck 

Outfit: Dress (Thrifted), Cardigan (The Bay), Belt (Thrifted), Necklace Pendent (DIY)

Aren't Saturdays perfect for catching up with friends over hot beverages? 

My favourite coffee place is full of flowers, probably one of the only places in January!

  The black and white combination is not one I tend to wear, I find it can feel a bit fancy.  To combat this I added non-fancy accessories, like my tumbleweed necklace pendent, brown floral belt, and stone rings.  I just adore the ruffle on this dress too, and they say, detail around the bust works wonders for smaller breasted women.  So that's a plus I suppose... 

   And today since the weather dropped to a beautiful -10 I feel as if it's warm outside! So all that's needed today is a light cardi. 

Until next time!

xo, The Rag Trade

El Norte

I don't trust any country that looks around a continent and says, 'Hey, I'll take the frozen part.'
    Jon Stewart 

Outfit: Dress (Thrifted), Sweater (Thrifted), Scarf (Thrifted), Leggings (American Apparel)

   -25 today! Mother nature continues to torture us here with her insanely cold weather all the while simultaneously cramping my style. Thanks Mama N., really appreciate this...I am ever so envious of the bloggers I see wearing less clothing than my bedtime attire! If you haven't noticed already, I have a serious love-hate relationship with Canadian weather.
   That being said, it find it a tad difficult to be fashionable- not that I'm overly. Rather, clothes are used for their original intention, to stay warm. So layers, layers, layers (I have on more clothes than visible)! I had to forgo the pantyhose as well and replace them with leggings.
   Being so cold today, I thought my inukshuk pendent was appropriate. If anyone is unfamiliar with inukshuks they're stone landmarks found in the Arctic, probably more popularly known via the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. It's a very popular symbol here, which is just a little odd I think considering a vast majority of Canadians most likely have never actually seen one...I mean, we live as close south as possible! 

Here's to the weekend!
xo, The Rag Trade 

Earthy Essence

Throughout the afternoon I watched them there, 
Snow fairies falling, falling from the sky,
Whirling fantastic in the misty air,
Contending fierce for space supremacy
    Claude McKay, The Snow Fairy

Outfit: Wool Skirt (DIY), Sweater (Thrifted), 

Scarf (Thrifted) Hat (Aldo), Peacock necklace (DIY), Leg Warmers (Gift)

My skirt, originally.  Another too small clothing article of the bf. I was a little

 perplexed with what to do with it, I didn't like the zipper aspect of it, but since

 it was merino wool I couldn't just throw it away! The bottom half is used for the

 skirt while the arms are used for the waistband.  I apologize for all the dog and

 cat hair, darn animals!  

I added little pleats, for the shirt was naturally wider than my shape. The hardest 

part of this project was making sure the pleats were even all the way around. I thought

 that working with wool would be difficult, but not so, just make sure you fold the

 raw ends under as to prevent fraying. 

My vintage radio

  From the look of these photos it would seem as if I wear an obscene amount of blush! The cold is just nature's way of making my life easier, no need to apply blush today... I shall continue to dream of summer as I sit bundled up inside, sipping hot beverages with the temperature at -28, just nuts! 

  I wanted to show my admiration for old things today as well, so I present my vintage radio (circa. 1940's/'50's)! I must clarify- my admiration for old things does not expand into my preference of men, just thing. It is a bit beat up, such as the missing knobs, but that's mostly due to the moving I've done rather than time- I've moved an absurd amount of times (I stopped counting at 25). Beat up or not, I find it charming and it fits perfectly with my house decor (atop the radio sits a vintage jewelry box). 

   And my obsession with doors continues! This one is my favourite- such an interesting handle. 

Thank you so very much for taking the time to view my blog!

xo, The Rag Trade 

Essential Ecru

Late lies the wintry sun a-bed,
A frosty, fiery sleepy-head,
Blinks but an hour or two; and then,
A blood-red orange, sets again.
    Robert Louis Stevenson

Outfit: Boots (Thrifted), Bag (Thrifted), Infinity Scarf (Gift), 

Dress (Thrifted), Sweater (Took this from my Mom's closet)

  People were definitely giving me looks today, they probably were thinking I'm positively bonkers! I don't blame them either, taking my coat off in -23 degrees Celsius weather (this morning it was -31).  I must say, I feel pretty darn dedicated! 

   I dressed for the weather though, with my over-sized sweater and giant infinity scarf! One of my favourite colour combinations is brown and black/beige/tan, as this outfit can testify to. Can you believe I thrifted this camel leather bag for only five dollars? I love the roses, the twist clasp closure, and the vintage feel it has. I don't get to use it much during the winter and I suppose the spring as well since gets water marks, it's definitely more of a summer bag. This week I'll definitely be donning similar looks with the temperatures so low- cozy knit sweaters and warm scarves. 

Cheers!
xo, The Rag Trade 

Le Chandail Rouge

Every age can be enchanting, provided you live within it.

   Brigitte Bardot 

Outfit: Sweater (My lil' sister's closet), Dress (Thrifted), 

Boots (Le Chateau), Hat (Aldo), Stone Ring (Thrifted)

   Today was a fiercely windy day! I added the last photo as proof; my hair was blowing in all directions! I find  winter windy days are easier to deal with since a coat will stop a loose dress or skirt from blowing upwards, whereas during the summer you have nothing to protect you from flashing innocent bystanders! Shamefully, this has happened to me, but thankfully I ALWAYS wear shorts underneath! They also add a bit of warmth in the winter, a must when I'm silly enough to wear dresses and skirts in temperatures -15 and colder. I know, I know, not another complaint about the weather! It's just... I want the warm weather back!

  This sweater has made its way into yet another blog post, it's so cozy and warm, not to mention, red is a perfect colour to wear in winter (I also like to wear red in fall- with browns, and summer-with blues, but I find I shy away from it during spring).  And the red sweater is just what I need to winterize this otherwise rather summery white lace dress! 

Until next time!

xo, The Rag Trade 

Blithe in Blue

Move along these shades 
In gentleness of heart; with gentle hand
Touch- for there is a spirit in the woods.
   William Wordsworth

View outside my apartment, morning after snowfall, how serene! 

The bf and I stopped by the cafe we frequent for

 some much needed coffee, it's such a quaint little place.

Then we went to the Museum of Nature, isn't the building exquisite? I always thought so. 

I find doors to be very interesting, well, when they're artistic, like this one! 

Outfit: Dress (Thrifted), Sweater (Gap), Boots (Le Chateau),

Leg Warmers (Thrifted), Blue Top (Thrifted)

  For some reason I rarely wear this dress, which is odd because when I put it on I fall in love with it's whimsicality. I tend to not wear floral prints, I find them too busy for me, but once in a while we stray from our normalcy don't we? I saw someone wearing a blue and black floral dress with brown accessories, so I wanted to try the same thing, I find the brown really pops against the blue and black.

    I love wearing comfortable clothes, if something fits improperly or is just made wonky, I feel off all day. Are you for style or comfort, or both? This dress is one of those items that fits me like a glove though, therefore the perfect dress for weekend activities. Besides hitting up this museum I went and saw a production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons with a friend.  It was a wonderful alternative to watching a movie, and the set and actors were amazing.

    I thought I'd start snapping shots of places and things around me, that way you can see a bit of what I see, and if you happen to not live in Canada, then tidbits of my country! Hope you're enjoying the weekend as well! 

Cheers!

xo, The Rag Trade