Your Friends Will Tell You Who You Are

I have a group of friends from University who have remained in touch for the past decade and a half. Every year, we have a weekend away together, with a prize, "The Cumquat Cup", being awarded for the most entertaining or outrageous behaviour. Last year we did not manage to get together; the combination of young families and new babies, stressful new jobs and health issues conspired against us. However this year we are making up for lost time with a weekend in Canberra for the Floriade festival, so I thought I would show you my weekend-away.

One of the themes often discussed on the forum at YouLookFab is the problem of buying clothes for your fantasy life - the life you wish you led but actually don't. The good news for me is that this whole weekend is the fantasy life I have in mind when I choose clothes -sitting around talking and drinking wine, frequenting cafes and restaurants and maybe even catching some live music.

Floriade. I wanted something comfortable with plenty of eating room. Leggings and jumper are optional, depending on the weather. Comfy shoes are a must.

So my final tally: 1 pair of jeans, 1 skirt, 1 dress, 2 tops, 2 jumpers, 2 pair of shoes and a coat.

One of the wonderful things about this weekend will be the freedom to present myself without reference to anyone's expectations. My friends love and accept me whatever I wear, and in a strange city I am unlikely to meet acquaintances unexpectedly and so have no need to dress for that possibility. I plan to enjoy every minute of my fantasy life.  Do you have a fantasy life you wish you could dress for?

Your Friends Will Tell You Who You Are by Kate Miller-Heidke

China Girl

I have arrived home from a wonderful, interesting holiday, and am enjoying the warmth of a balmy Brisbane Autumn. After a week of cool and rainy weather as Hong Kong emerged from winter, I must confess to being glad to see the sun! One of the aspects of the trip I enjoyed most was to see the street fashion. Our guide informed us that Hong Kong has 50 million visitors a year, and the streets were full of people from all over Asia. However, there was a definite uniform and most people sported some variation of it, namely leggings, a short skirt or shorts, a top and then a short, puffer-style jacket and scarf over the top. Footwear was mostly flat, chunky-soled boots or Converse. It is both warm and practical for sight-seeing and commuting, and everyone had little variations that made the look their own. I fell in love with the style and decided to try to duplicate it when I got home.

Shirt:Veronika Maine

Shorts:Country Road

Jacket:Cue

Boots:Wittner

I'm not sure what the hand signals mean, but it seem to be the thing all the tourists did when having photos taken!

 

These are all items of clothing I already have in my closet, and whilst the jacket makes the look a little dressier than the outfits I saw on the street, and my boots are far less cool that the popular footwear, overall I was pretty happy with how it turned out.
The scarf overwhelms me a bit in these photos, and I would not wear it here without an overcoat when braving the elements, but I have left it on to provide a bit more outfit authenticity.

I love the practical, tom-boy feel of this style of dressing, and plan to incoporate it into my winter wardrobe more frequently. Isn't it amazing how seeing things in a different context can give a whole new perspective to the familiar? Have you ever had a wardrobe epiphany after being exposed to a new style?