Sparkling Hill Resort & a new Swarovski accessory

Last month I had the pleasure of spending a weekend away with some wonderful ladies, to celebrate the upcoming wedding of my Maid-of-Honor. We went for a quick retreat to Sparking Hill Resort, located in Vernon, British Columbia.

Located 5 hours away from Vancouver, the drive up was beautiful and I couldn't have asked for better weather. I arrived on a beautiful sunny, Saturday, and the Swarovski themed resort was lit up!!! There were crystals EVERY WHERE!!!! Even on the back of the chairs in the restaurant. The rooms all had crystal fireplaces, the hallways were lined in crystals, and the steam rooms were heavenly.

Here's a link for more info: http://www.sparklinghill.com/

Here are some pictures during my stay -

And my favourite one of all!

(Do click to enlarge, it's worth it!)

I recommend this place to everyone, it is absolutely beautiful and calming. The steam rooms are amazing and they even have a cold room. I am looking forward to spending a future romantic weekend here with my husband.

There's also a small gift store that we checked out before leaving and this beauty caught my eye! From the Stardust collection -

 

They didn't have it in my size so I purchased it just yesterday in the boutique near my home. They come in 8 colors and also have matching necklaces that can be used as a double-wrap bracelets. I highly recommend this item - super comfortable, reasonably priced, and just adds a little sparkle to an outfit =)

You can see the other colors here -

http://www.swarovski.com/Web_CA/en/5102552/product/Stardust_Black_Bracelet.html

April color capsule summary and showcase!

Well, April is over now and N and I have stayed true to our pact and goal. We have been sticking to a color capsule of black, white, navy, and gray for our work outfits. Here's a look at our outfits!

Mine

I highlighted some of my favourites - It was a lot of fun and the only hard part was sometimes I found myself reaching for things that weren't in my color capsule. It wasn't because I couldn't find anything to wear, it was because they happened to be there; instead of giving in, I saved those items for the weekend. I found that I used my Michael Kors skinny belt a lot and it made a big difference - prior to this month, I rarely used the belt but it's now quite a staple of mine. I also tried out a scarf that was sitting in my closet and fell in love with it. My white GAP tunic got lots of wear (still so pleased about this purchase!) and take note, of the variety in shoes - yup, I'm getting quite good at changing up my shoes! Next month, since we are entering warmer weather, I will be adding pink to my color capsule.

N's

Loved all of N's outfits, especially her scarves and this awesome white top that she has, shown in the first outfit, and her fantastic blazer. Seeing hers makes me want a longer blazer as mine are quite short and seem to make me look a bit heavier than I am. She also has fantastic accessories!! For next month, she will be injecting peach/beige to her color capsule. (PS - N went on vacation and we also had a 4 day long weekend. We're not slackers lol). 

April comings and goings

I would say that April proved to be a successful month - these are some of its highlights: 

• let go of a number of pieces of clothing, including a pair of shoes and a jacket
• purchased some boot trees to take care of and prolong the life of my knee-high boots, of which I may only ever own one pair because of my weirdly large calves (yes, I'm bitter)
• found a fantastic Spring/Summer dress in my current color capsule colors for an awesome price
• added a new favourite - a 'grown-up' sweatshirt that I absolutely LOVE
• turned a scarf from my existing wardrobe into a favourite
• discovered a new outfit by putting together existing items from my closet

Comings:

• Black and white color-block, racer-back dress from Banana Republic
• Gray sweatshirt from Banana Republic
• not directly wardrobe related, but still applicable - boot trees, and socks (something I HATE buying)

Goings:

• 3 hoodies
• 1 blouse
• 2 pairs of jeans
• 2 pair of runners
• 1 casual jacket/blazer
• 1 jacket
• 1 canvas tote bag
• 1 zip-up sweatshirt
• 1 pair of sweatpants
• 1 sleeveless top

That's 14 items! It's the largest number of wardrobe items I've let go of since the Great Purge.

Excitement! - new favourite outfit and accessory!

I thought Mimmy made a really good point in her post comment about the 'odd man out' - "I think I was actually trying to pair it with things that worked against it." This really spoke to me and she had mentioned she decided to pair her piece with neutrals and let the piece speak for itself. 

Here is that same sweater again - 

(Rosie Neira)

And taking into account Mimmy's words, yesterday, I decided to wear it as the showcase piece and made this outfit with it - 

(Banana Republic, GAP, Rosie Neira, Cole Haan, Coach, Pearson & Brown)

I wish I had taken a photo with the outfit on because the colors look way better together, but this is a new favourite outfit I discovered; it uses my color capsule and a 'odd man out' piece to form a decent outfit, but then is taken to a non-boring level by my shoes and scarf. 

(The more I look at it, this cardigan seems to be a shade of gray with some green undertone ... ya, I still have no idea about its color, sigh...)

Now, let me talk about this scarf - I received it from my mom's latest trip to Asia and it's actually landscape. I don't know if you can tell from the photo but it's mountains and a body of water. I don't know too much about it other than it's silk and by Pearson & Brown - if any one has more info on this brand, I'd love to hear about it! It's beautiful and oh sooooooo soft. It's fast becoming one of my favourite items. 

(Pearson & Brown silk scarf; sorry for the poor photo quality, I used my phone camera to do the pano)

The yellow played off of my shoes and the green picked up the undertones of my cardigan. And since I left everything else neutral, both the scarf and cardigan got to stand out. So, thanks Mimmy, for giving me the idea to let the 'odd man out' shine, and also to the girls on TpF for all the talk about scarves lately that gave me the idea to pull this out. 

Grouping that odd man out

Do you own an item that looks great but somehow seems difficult to wear? I have a cardigan that looks great but the color isn't something that I personally find easy to match. I think it's taupe? or perhaps olive? I'm not even entirely sure ... (note to self: learn colors). 

None the less, the other day I was heading out the door when I decided to grab a cardigan for the sudden drop in temperature. Without thinking, I grabbed the closest thing to me - this: 

(Rosie Neira)

Looks great right? I love the detailing, it's non-scratchy comfort, its length - just love it, and since I adopted a neutral color palette, figured it would be fine. Then I finally got a look in the mirror and I don' t know if it was the color, the great detailing, it's length, but for whatever the reason, it did not look fine with my dress, which was this:

(Rosie Neira, Banana Republic)

Even though I have a much better idea of my style, and have recently chosen a color capsule, minimizing the daily struggle of getting dressed, there are still items in my closet that don't really have a place to go. I love them and do wear them but they usually look like an after-thought. I started envisioning my closet and realized that this color would actually look pretty great against purple; especially, against a certain purple dress I own - this:

 (Rosie Neira, Banana Republic)

Note: I know I said I'm poor at colors, but I swear, this dress is a rich purple and I have no idea why it's photographing blue (I even double checked with my husband, who agrees with me). 

Currently, my closet is organized by like-colors, but to make better outfits, I have decided to hang my 'odd man', hard-to-coordinate pieces with the item it would go best with. That way, if it comes down to the wire and I still can't figure out a nice outfit, I will always have a go-to option.