Gunna Ride My Bike Until I Get Home

I think a bike is a gal's best accessory, boys and girls.

I mean, yeah, I do love me a good necklace.  Scarves? Scarves are possibly my favourite type of clothing, let alone article of.

But bikes!  They can be cute, tough, unique, or trendy.  They're an accessory than can themselves be accessorised with baskets, panniers, flowers, ribbons on the handlebars, or clackers on the wheels (well, those last two? Maybe not after the age of ten).

And they get you places!  Like your neighbourhood friends' houses, your downtown high-school, or your workplace at six in the morning (too specific?).  No necklace of mine has ever delivered so magnanimously!

So this, boys and girls, is my Blue Bomber.  I will admit that oftentimes the gears will skip, the seat will be uncomfortable, and the basket is very very tenuously connected to the frame.  But I feel like I rescued it from an untimely demise when I inherited it from a friend a few years back.  Since then I've installed an entirely new set of gears, applied three or four cans of WD-40, and undergone many a late-night gear adjustment.  And in return, this little drivers-licenseless girl gets to go from point A to B!  That's all pretty alright with me!

Scarf - Gift from my brother from Greece
Jacket - Old Navy
Lace Shirt - Primark (UK)
Skirt - American Apparel
Tights - Joe Fresh
Socks - My Dad's 
Boots - H&M
Purse - H&M

Ok, bikes aside, let's talk about these clothes (that's why we're here, right?).  As a whole, yeah, I like this outfit I guess, but all its separate parts make my heart sing.  My brother brought me back this scarf from Europe and it has been my absolute favourite ever since.  I've had many another paisley scarf, but none can unseat this one for pattern, weight, tie-ability, or colour.  The purse is THE PERFECT BAG for me.  It has rips and tears and sometimes isn't big enough for all the nonsense I cart around, but the school-boy style is to die for and it goes with everything I own.  The lace shirt is from MY year abroad, and was, I think, the first piece of truly racy clothing that I owned.  I changed a lot that year, grew into my skin, became the most confident I've ever been, and also it only cost like five pounds.  The jean jacket is pretty new, but I really like it!  And the boots: well obviously I love these boots.

Well folksies, I have nothing more to say to you than put on some clothes you like and get from point A to B today!

(Which, I guess, is just life in a nutshell, eh?)

Love,

Your friend Lina

Canada's Four Seasons

Hello from inside on this rainy day, boys and girls!

A few weeks back I bought a really great pair of shorts, thinking I should stock up for the season.  Yesterday it snowed.  And although the flowers are back from under their white blanket (and even though I loved the snow, cause, it's me), it doesn't look like it's going to nice around here for a little while.

Reminds me of the old saying, "Canada has four seasons: Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Construction."

Well here are the clothes I decided to wear today in this rainy month of Still Winter.  One of my very dearest friends is recently back from a year away in Australia, so I wanted to look snazzy for hanging out with her today.  She's only visiting for a little while, so I tried to pull out all the stops!

Shirt - H&M
Scarf - Stand Up Apparel (from Salt Spring Island, BC)
Dress - Forever 21
Tights - Joe Fresh
Boots - H&M

I really like the brightness of this outfit: who'd've ever thunk I'd wear such a thing!  But you need something like this to remind you it is indeed Spring, and not Still Winter on a day like today.  A day when you spend the majority of your day drinking tea, eating soup, and napping with one of your best ladies.

Dress positively and in flagrant contravention of the weather, boys and girls!

Love,

Your friend Lina

Go West!

Yes! Finally! Boys and girls, I'm about to embark on a little trip and I just can't wait!

Y'all know I'm at my absolute finest when I'm travelling.  And I'm at my equal, yet different, finest when I'm hanging out with my family.  And this coming week I'm combining the two!

The whole family is heading out West to be with my sister and her husband for Easter.  First, though, my brother and I are sight-seeing in Vancouver and spending some time with my sister in Victoria before my parents arrive.  When my parents get there (from their own little trip in Arizona), we'll be heading to a cabin on Salt Spring Island tout en famille (plus an extra aunt and some of my sister's oldest friends).

Despite throwing my knee out at work yesterday, I'm super excited.  I've twisted my knee pretty bad a few times before, so I know the protocol of constant icing, wearing a brace, and hobbling about.  I'm pretty bummed that I won't be able to take hikes with the family, but I should be ok to take walks around the city.  My brother even said that we could rent a tandem bike in Stanley Park and that I could just come along for the ride.  I can already tell it's going to be a memorable trip!

Just a few of the (too many) things I'm packing

Jean Shirt - H&M
Lace Shirt - Forever 21
Striped Circle Scarf - American Apparel
Green Sweater - Thrifted
Silk Scarf - Thrifted

Apparently the weather out there is only going to be a smidge warmer than here, but that's ok with me!  The knee brace I've got is a bit of a monstrosity, so better for me to be able to cover it up with pants and leggings than have it's black and red glaring against my alabaster legs.

Seriously thought dudes.  I've only ever seen mountains from the Alberta side, and I was six so it doesn't count.  I've NEVER seen the Pacific Ocean.  I. AM. SO. EXCITED.

I'll send postcards!

Love,

Your friend Lina 

Stepping Outside

This outfit marks the first day of truly pleasant outdoor photo weather, boys and girls!

However, it's also a little bit of a step outside of the box for my fine self.  Not only am I a little hesitant towards high-waisted pants (on myself, I love it generally), but super bright colours also are a challenge for this little raincloud.  But I have made it my spring time mission to wear more colours, starting with corals and pinks.  I've never tended towards them, but I've decided that they will look nice with my eyes.   And will match my sunny disposition!  Something that my constant blacks and navy blues never do ;)

Don't worry though.  I kept it very me by sporting my trusty boots, leopard-print cardigan, and green coat.  So really, two things outlandish, three things comforting.  Baby steps, boys and girls, baby steps.

Coat - Forever 21
Cardigan - H&M
Tank - Primark
Pants - American Apparel
Boots - H&M
Necklace - Forever 21

It has now returned to misty March meteorology, hovering around zero and raining.  Seems more appropriate for the time of year, but the sky sure ain't blue anymore boys and girls.  That's ok though, time for accessorizing around umbrellas!

Enjoy your weekend!

Love,

Your friend Lina

First Signs of Spring

Three blades of grass poking out of ice constitutes hope, right boys and girls?

I think, really, that they're just left over from our plus-ten degrees we had the other day, but now that the temperature is back down in the more seasonally-appropriate minuses spring still might take a little while to exert itself

Which is fine.  I'm still very much a winter gal.  But that doesn't mean I won't dress seasonally-inappropriately!  So shorts and not enough in the way of a coat it is.  But, you know, a scarf to keep me warm.  Sorted.

Blazer - Forever 21
Scarf - American Apparel
Shirt - American Apparel
Shorts - Old
Tights - American Apparel
Boots - H&M
Purse - Thrifted
Sunglasses - H&M

The day I took these photos, the temperature had plummeted by the evening, and it was snowing.  And they tell me tomorrow will be fifteen degrees.  So getting all snazzy is definitely going to be a trick and a half in the coming season!

Shivering and/or sweating, 

Love,

Your friend Lina