Staying warm with some help from Ricki's

Although the first official day of winter isn't until December 21, us Canadians have come to understand that around here, winter pretty much starts on November 1. Mother Nature held true to this tradition, delivering us a dump of snow and freezing temperatures.

I'm not complaining, because we had the most beautiful fall here in Alberta that I can personally remember, but that still doesn't make winter any easier to welcome!

Lucky for me, I was recently given the opportunity to work with Ricki's, one of my favourite Canadian retailers, to pick out a few things to style from their current collection!

Seeing as I went shopping on a day when the windchill was -29C, I decided to go with something that would keep me warm but still be fashionable...and I chose this gorgeous coat!

I just love the pattern and the high, cozy collar. It's appropriately named the Belted Pillow Collar Coat! 

Did I mention it's currently 40% off?

I couldn't help but pair the coat with some fun jewels. 

I love statement earrings for winter...they give my outfits some sparkle while my necklaces are hidden by scarves or high collared coats, like this one!

I also picked up a pair of these amazing leggings...I love the quilted, faux leather panel down the side!

They're super soft and comfortable, and the best part, they come in size XS all the way up to XXL and they fit true to size!

Jacket (c/o Ricki's) 40% off until November 12 / Leggings (c/o Ricki's) also love these / Earrings (c/o Ricki's) / Bracelets (c/o Ricki's) / Clutch / Boots (old) (similar)

I'm will also be giving away a $50 Gift Card to Ricki's!

Watch my Instagram, @ashtonwearsthings, for details!

Thanks for stopping by,

Spring scarf love + a giveaway!

Anyone who knows me knows that I love scarves. I have two of these IKEA racks in my closet full of scarves in every colour, fabric and pattern for every season. And unlike my shoes, I don't neglect them, I wear them all the time!

So when Subtle Luxury contacted me and said I could pick one of their SPUN scarves to style, you bet I was excited. 

Better yet is that I get to give one away to one of my fabulous readers too! Enter to win this great scarf using the Rafflecopter widget at the bottom of this post! 

I went with the Neon Dip Dye scarf in pink because I don't have enough pink in my spring/summer wardrobe, and because I seriously love neon. I think it's the 80's child in me. 

This scarf is so soft and lightweight, and pairs well with casual or dressy tops which I love! I recently got a new job in an office where people actually dress up, so I'm constantly on the lookout for items that I can wear to work, and casually after work if I need to. 

Scarf: c/o Subtle Luxury // Top: Jones New York (Option) // Denim: Calvin Klein //
Sunglasses: Joe Fresh (Option) // Watch: Michael Kors // Bracelet: Stella & Dot //
Bag: Target - Sold out online, check stores (Option) // Heels: Spring

Enter to win this scarf below using the Rafflecopter widget! You can also repost the image below on Instagram for an extra five entries. 

Giveaway ends at midnight on Friday, May 2!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck and have a great rest of your week!

Cozy in Mint + a Spring Style Giveaway

The solution to a cold start to spring?

Spring colours...in sweater form!

Would I prefer to be stocking up on pastel blouses and t-shirts instead? Yes.

But will sweaters like this keep me happy? Absolutely.

Happy Spring from Canada. 

I picked up this sweater in a few great colours from Gap Factory. They were on mega sale, plus I had an e-mail coupon for an extra percentage off so they worked out to be around $15 each!

They're nice quality, warm enough for a cool spring day but not too heavy. Worth checking out if you have a Gap Factory within your reach. 

How cute is this sparkly little number from Bold & Stylish Accessories? The Instagram shop is closed until May because Mona is getting married (yay!) but make sure to give her a follow to stay up to date on her cute and affordable pieces. 

You can enter to win this necklace as part of the giveaway at the bottom of this post!

Sweater: Gap Factory (option) // Denim: American Eagle // Necklace: c/o Bold & Stylish Accessories //
Scarf: Target // Watch: Fossil // Bracelets: Stella and Dot (here and here) //
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff (similar colour) // Shoes: BCBG (option)

To ring in spring, I have teamed up with two of my fabulous blogging friends, Bethany of Perfectly Coutured and Sara of Sabby Style, to bring you a great giveaway! We are giving away the items pictured below, which includes an Aldo striped tote, a crystal necklace from Bold & Stylish Accessories, and Essie's Fashion Playground from the new spring line! These items are sure to be perfect additions to any spring wardrobe! To enter the giveaway, simply use the Rafflecopter below. Giveaway ends on Friday, April 4!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Sign of Spring and a Happy Wrist Giveaway

When the snow starts to melt around here, I don't tend to get excited because there's always a good chance we will get a pile of snow and be buried for another few weeks before the official melt happens. However, a couple of people on my Facebook said they saw robins in their yard already...that bird is typically a sure sign of spring around here, so I'm letting myself get excited! 

Speaking of excitement, I am thrilled to be teaming up with Happy Wrist to give away a fabulous bracelet! Details are below. 

I'm glad I made a couple of trips to Kohl's while I was in Arizona last week, because I came home with some great things...including this top, which is a great dupe of this sold out J.Crew one. The best part? It was only $20!

How gorgeous are these bracelets? 

I love the Royal Bracelet because it is such a fab statement piece, and I also love the Sparkle Bracelet because it's so cute and would make the perfect addition to any arm party.

Top: Kohls // Denim: Ricki's // Bag: Marc Jacobs // Bracelets: c/o Happy Wrist (Here and Here) //
Watch: Michael Kors // Necklace: Mindy Mae's Market // Wedges: Target 

You can enter to win your choice of the Royal Bracelet or the Sparkle Bracelet from Happy Wrist by using the widget below! You can also shop with 15% off this month with code Ashton15!

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Gingham Problems

Happy Friday!

Today I'm going to talk about good ol' gingham.

Besides layering it underneath sweaters and just wearing it alone with a pair of jeans, I have always had a terrible time trying to style said pattern. I have three button downs with the same pattern in three colours...black, green and pink...and the one I'm wearing today in a larger pattern in navy blue. 

I think the black and pink gingham shirts have made it out of the closet once or twice each...zero times for the green (sorry buddy)...and I've worn this one a bunch of times.

I always just felt like I couldn't style the others. It was frustrating.

And then all of a sudden I realized...I didn't really like them.

They're not my style.

No wonder I couldn't make them work.

I feel like this should have been more obvious to me sooner, but hey, I'm here now.

Sometimes you just have to cut your losses and move on, so I am embracing the gingham I like and tossing the ones I don't. 

Here's one I like:

I find this shirt easy to style because I think it's a comfortable yet versatile pattern. It looks good layered with a sweater for a professional look, but it also looks good casual with a pair of jeans.

Can we talk about this bag? It is one of my favourites. It was my graduation gift from my parents - my mom picked it up at the Michael Kors outlet store in my city - and because I knew there was no way in hell I was going to be returning it, I let the receipt get lost in my house. 

After having countless people ask me the name of the bag and me failing to be able to tell them because I had no idea, I finally found it on eBay a few weeks ago.

It is the Fulton Large Top Zip Leather Satchel in brown. 

Me and Fulton are best friends.

Jacket: Bluenotes (Option) (Option) // Shirt: Old Navy (Option) // Denim: Ricki's //
Necklace: Mindy Mae's Market // Bag: Michael Kors // Boots: Spring

Hope everyone has a great weekend, and overall more success with gingham than me.

Plaid & Elbow Patches

The season of layering and rich, dark colours (admittedly my favourites) will soon be over, so I'm taking advantage of it while there's still time! 

I found this blazer at the thrift store for $5.99...it was one of my Closet Remix Challenge cheats that I had to have. Herringbone and elbow patches were everywhere this winter and I was obsessed, so to find the two together, in a blazer, in my size, at the thrift store...was something I considered a gift from the fashion gods...so I had to buy it.
 I decided to pair it with some plaid and one of my favourite bags for today's look.

I got this Rebecca Minkoff Mini Mac on mega sale on Black Friday. It was sent to a wrong address somewhere in Ontario before it finally made it's way to me almost five weeks after I bought it...longest wait ever! 

I had been pining over these bags for a long time and was going to go with a black one, but when I saw this colour (Port), I changed my mind! I love it.

Blazer: Joe Fresh, thrifted (Option) // Plaid: J.Crew Factory (Option) // 

Denim: Calvin Klein // Bag: Rebecca Minkoff // Earring: J.Crew Factory // 

Bracelets: c/o Ellie's Sparkles, J.Crew, Stella & Dot // Boots: Vince Camuto (Option)

I'm going to miss blazers, plaid buttons downs, and oxblood when spring finally arrives.
What are you going to miss?

Closet Remix Recap

After 43 days and 30 outfits, I have successfully completed the Closet Remix Challenge!

Here is my last one:

Sweater: J.Crew Factory (old) // Leggings: Nine West
Bracelets: Stella and Dot and Adorned Boutique // Watch: Kate Spade // Flats: Tory Burch 

It was actually not as tough as I was expecting it to be, to be completely honest. I think it was because I have tons of winter clothes to choose from already and for most of the challenge it was cold outside! Even though I did go shopping a few times, most of the time I didn't really feel like I was missing out on anything. I felt like I got lucky though, as most of the stores seemed to be in transition from winter to spring and that there was not much in stock that I felt like I really needed to buy.

 In the end, I created 30 new outfits and only repeated a few items (mostly handbags and bracelets), I found some new friends to follow on Instagram via the challenge, and I majorly curbed my spending habits for six weeks.

I will admit that I did cheat a couple of times, as I bought a pair of boots (but they were to die for), I some blazers while thrifting, the infamous sequin collared plaid shirt from Target (for $5 though!), a red clutch to carry on Valentines Day ($20 at Indigo), and I wore a few c/o items along the way which is a bit of cop out.

So to sum up: more successes than failures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Truth is, I'm going to keep going with the challenge for a while. I have a trip to Phoenix planned at the beginning of March, and because the shopping down there is about 300 times better than here (zero exaggeration) I will be doing some shopping while I'm there to update my spring wardrobe, but besides that, I'm going to keep wearing what I have because my closet is full of perfectly good things. 

If you have never attempted the Closet Remix Challenge, you should give it a try! It's a good personal no-spend challenge, it's a good way to see what's hidden in your closet that you forgot about, and it's a good way to weed out the things you don't wear anymore...whether you choose to document it on the Internet or Instagram or not!

I did it last year right around this time too, and it's actually what got me started on sharing my #ootd's on Instagram in the first place...and now a year later I am doing something I always wanted to do...blogging! It might just be the jump start you need if you've been contemplating sharing your style with the world.