Embracing the return of fall's gorgeous colour palette at Vaseux Lake

Outfit details

C. 1930s/40s burgundy felt hat with netting: Garb-Oh Vintage
Creamy white plastic rose stud earrings: Claire's
C. 1940s black plastic hat pin: From another hat that I've had for years
Mid-century vintage amber hued plastic beaded necklace: Thrifted (Salvation Army)
White Stag brand vintage appropriate green floral blouse: Thrifted (Value Village)
Amber yellow plastic bangle bracelet: Unknown, had for years (probably thrifted)
1940s/1950s dark green corduroy skirt: eBay
C. 1980s - 90s brown woven belt: Thrifted (Value Village, if memory serves me right)
Oxblood/burgundy hued faux leather cross body bag: eBay
Nude seamed nude stockings: eBay
Brown 1940s style faux leather pumps: Walmart
Lip colour: MAC Party Line


Photography by Tony Cangiano

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My passion for autumn's resplendent hues is scarcely the kind of secret that one keeps under lock and key. I wait with baited breath for my favourite season to return each year and then jump headfirst in spotting itss palette with gusto!

Summer cooled its heels early this year and we had the nippiest - relatively speaking - Labour Day weekend that I can remember in many years. Whereas most first weeks of September still see countless tourists and residents alike flocking to catch some rays and frolic in the waves at the local beaches, this time around, nary a soul was in the water - it was just too chilly to comfortably swim any longer.

Thankfully though, the weather did perk back up a bit as September progressed and bestowed upon us some deeply gorgeous Goldilocks days, as I like to call them. Those gloriously sunny, soft light filled, subtly warm and all too fleeting days as autumn not-so-subtly waltzes into town and usurps summer.

It was on just such a day that Tony and I captured this gently lit series of photos recently at Vaseux Lake, a modest sized body of water some 25 - 30 minutes south of our town. Though not as prized as a swimming hole as some of the other larger lakes around this part (such as Okanagan and Shaka), it is a breeding ground for local anglers - my husband very much included - who flock to its shores for some terrific local fishing.

We were neither there to swim nor cast our lines, but rather simply paused to enjoy the immense serenity and sweeping beauty of the pristine natural landscape and the near still-as-glass surface of the lake that afternoon.


I woke up in a mood to pair three of my all-time favourite colours, which just happen to be from fall's palette, together and did just that in this burgundy, pine green, and amber yellow hued 1940s inspired ensemble.

Though I wear this fabulous 1940s/50s dark green corduroy skirt often, I hadn't sported it here on my blog for close to 3.5 years, so I felt it was high time to give it a spin on camera again.


It as the starting point for my causal ensemble, which saw the edition of a breathtaking c. 1930s/40s burgundy felt hat hat I purchased earlier this year from the awesome Etsy shop that is Garb-Oh Vintage, along with a timelessly lovely floral print cotton shirt that I thrifted several months ago, a classic brown woven belt (also thrifted), a vintage appropriate oxblood/burgundy hued faux leather cross body bag, mid-century plastic jewelry in amber yellow, my go-to creamy white plastic rose stud earrings, and a pair of 1940s looking brown faux leather pumps that I've had for years, but which are still - knock wood - holding up fabulously well.


Now that Tony is home (not that I couldn't do such on my own, of course, but it is certainly easier with him there), I thought it would be fun to film a new YouTube video outside again, and did just that later in the day (up a hill near where my folks live here in town, not at Vaseux Lake), in this (relatively) quick breakdown of what went into styling my 1940s inspired early fall look.





Though I wasn't aiming for the much adored vintage lady explorer look her per se, I can't help but love that this ensemble has a faint hint of that vibe. I've been wearing this general silhouette - long vintage skirt, button front blouse, modest to wide brimmed vintage hat, and complimentary accessories - big time this summer and fall and really feel like it sums up my tastes in vintage casual fashion massively well at the moment.

As we head further into autumn, I'm sure that I'll keep sporting this silhouette and imagine that it will see me through winter, with tights and further layers added, too. It's comfortable, warm, classic and endlessly versatile - not mention pretty. What's not to adore?

With fall being my favourite time of the year and its palette my most beloved of all the seasons, you can bet this there will be many more autumnal hued ensembles coming down the pipeline in the very near future. I can hardly wait to share many of them with you and am equally excited to see all of the stellar fall looks that you'll be sharing on your blogs and social media.

Autumn may be fleeting, but its hues are eternal and well worth celebrating with our fashion choices while they're in their seasonal element!

Of Orca Whales, Parliament, and Casual Attire

I need to preface these photos by stating for the record that I was wearing layers. Lots of layers. Beneath my sweater, I had a fitted long sleeve shirt, a fitted t-shirt, a camisole, and a long line bra. Hidden below my Freddies of Pinewood jeans, I has on long johns. So if things seem a bit bulky - or like the jeans are clinging to my legs in weird ways - that's why. Now, on with the show...err, photos!




Outfit details

1950s/60s abstract print scarf (worn on my head): Moon Walk Vintage (won as a lovely giveaway prize a while back on Va-Voom Vintage)
White plastic rose earrings: Claire's
Dark plastic tortoise shell sunglasses: DKNY (worn on the boat)
1950s beige rain coat (worn on the boot): Tootsie Vintage
Olive green-brown cable knit sweater: Forever 21
Hand painted vintage orca whale brooch: Vendor at the 2014 Victoria Vintage Expo
Black plastic rose stretch bracelet: Thrifted years ago from Value Village
1940s style side button jeans: Freddies of Pinewood
Sky blue vintage style cross body purse: eBay
White and black vintage style saddle shoes: eBay
Lip colour: Clinique Raspberry Glace
Nail colour: Essie Hide & Go Chic


DSLR and iPhone photography by Tony Cangiano 

(Me out on the water during our whale watching tour.)

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Last month we took a peak a what I wore during an awesome day of seal feeding while in Victoria at the start of autumn. This time around I'm shining the spotlight on what I sported on the day that we went out on a three-hour long whale watching excursion.

These photos (save for the one of me on the boat and the the ones taken of/on the high seas) were shot after we'd been out getting hit with surprisingly chilly, extremely strong winds for hours, so my make-up was half gone and my cheeks were more than a little flushed from the weather, the excitement, and certainly the happiness of that day.

Taking part in a whale watching adventure was something that I'd wanted to do since I was a small child, so I knew that even though it would be a bit of an investment, we had to do so while on our fabulous two week long Vancouver Island trip. We did a lot of research into the various companies that offered excursions of this nature and ultimately went with one from the Prince of Whales (love that pun-tastic name), as their boats were said to over smooth rides and have onboard washrooms - two absolute musts for me if I'm setting sail anywhere.

Both proved to be true and we had a marvelous time setting out into the vast blue Pacific Ocean, where we spotted orca whales, minke whales, seals, plenty of birds, and for all of about two seconds, I'm certain that I saw an adorable little otter diving around in the waves. The company offers a whale sighting guarantee, which means that if we hadn't seen any that day, we could have come back for free again a second time. Thankfully, though it did take about an hour and a half to see the majestic black and white orcas, we spotted plenty of wildlife that day, so one outing was all it took.

The staff on board were friendly and very knowledgeable and I had a great time talking with one female staff member in particular, who shared with me tons of great facts about orca whales, including that some of the oldest in the pod that live in those Pacific waters are thought to be at least a hundred years old.

Sadly, truly heartbreakingly actually, she also informed me that about half of the orca whales that are born today die at a young age due primarily to environmental factors (re: polluted waters). This number rattled me to my core and made me feel even more fortunate to get an opportunity to see the handful of these resplendently beautiful wild creatures that we did on that sun-kissed early fall afternoon.

The Price of Whales website had advised tour participants to dress warmly and in layers, so that is precisely what I did. Though my outfit wasn't as in-your-face vintage-y as some of mine certainly are, it was still old school enough to have most eyes on me as we boarded the boat and several people paid me lovely compliments, which is always touching to have happen in any setting.

While I was (barely) warm enough thanks to those four layers on top (five counting my jacket) and two on the bottom (plus thick cotton wool socks and my trusty orca coloured saddle shoes, which are surprisingly warm themselves), the wind was so strong that even with a scarf wrapped 1940s style around my locks, I still had to put a hand on my head many times when the boat picked up speed to avoid the risk of having my wig go flying off into the surf!

I really want to go whale watching again in the future so when we do, I'll either wear something that literally ties my wig to my head or sport a fitted hood that prevents it from going anywhere. Thankfully due to my diligence, it stayed put and I didn't have to deal with the embarrassment that would have come had the wind snatched it up!

We really had an amazing time out on the water and when we returned to dry land, we headed over to the provincial Parliament Building (aka, the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia building), which is located on the waterfront, for a quick photo shoot before heading home to fill our famished tummies (being out on a boat in cold, windy weather really works up an appetite!).

This stately and truly gorgeous example of late Victorian architecture (it was completed in 1897) is one of the most breathtaking buildings to be had in this very new province of ours and is a location I'd been wanting to shot in for many years now. Despite the sunshine, there wasn't a lot of folks around, so we were able to take plenty of shots on the stairs and other spots on the backside of the building without other sightseers or locals crossing in front of our lens, as can often happen in popular public spots like this.

Without a doubt, this is one of the more casual outfits I've sported on my blog over the years. Were we not out whale watching, it's the kind of thing I might wear for a trip to the dog park with Annie or perhaps a fall time pumpkin picking excursion in a farmer's field. Delightfully, two pieces of this look were purchased mere days before while in Victoria: the classic cable knit sweater came from Forever 21 (I'd made a point to budget for a trip there as I hadn't stepped foot in one since we left Toronto at the start of 2012 and I'd really been missing it), and the adorable vintage (c. 1980s) orca whale brooch came from the Victoria Vintage Expo that I'd attended the very day before our whale watching adventure.

The rest of the items that made up my layered ensemble were from my closest back home and I couldn't help but love how well that happened to scarf matched my new sweater. I'm always on the lookout for comfy, classic knits like this that are wool-free (I'm allergic to wool) and don't break the bank, and this one delivered big time there (if memory serves me right, it was about $28.00). I'd definitely wear it again for outings like.

I've been rationing my sets of outfit photos from our time on the Island and this, I believe, is the second to last one that I have to share. The final photos, taken on the very rainy ferry boat ride back home to the mainland, will be appearing here in the near future.

Much like our afternoon of feeding the seals, this was an amazing experience and one that I feel very blessed to have been able to enjoy on our holiday. Should you ever get the chance to go out on a similar excursion yourself, I really can't recommend it highly enough! Tony and I both agreed that it was money extremely well spent and that we'd love to go again and again and... :)