Getting ready for Spring | Think outside the box

Hello everyone! Do you think it is still worth to talk about Spring clothing?

I'd say yes, totally. In my previous post, I promised to give you a few tips about shopping for Spring. Then I looked at the calendar. It is mid-May. Indeed, my Inbox is filling up with advice about how to best prepare for beach vacations in expensive far-away resorts. On a regular year, summer would be in full bloom in Milan right now, and I would have already packed away those cotton sweaters.

Temperatures have been quite cool around here, however, and those cotton sweaters are the main staple of my daily dressing. Paradoxically, the weather in Montreal has been uncharacteristically warm. This is thus what I anticipate: by the time we get back to Canada at the end of June it will get cooler, lengthening the time I can wear spring clothing.

If you want to shop for spring clothing (or to shop some more), you may want to start strategizing, since sales of spring merchandise are everywhere now. I find shopping for spring and summer easier than for fall and winter. It is more difficult to get a cotton t-shirt wrong than a cashmere sweater. In other terms: SS clothing materials are, with few exceptions, cheaper and easier to care for than FW ones. Hence, there are a few items you can easily save on by shopping at Zara and GAP.

You gotta be careful because lower-cost clothing is generally targeted towards customers under 25. The big chains often offer the least "conservative" trends -- think striped neon yellow cotton sweaters and underwear. So, if you want to pick up for cheap those neon yellow jeans that are so much in fashion right now, your local GAP could be a great place to start.

There are a few things you may not want to buy in the same places. The key categories here are jackets (who does not need one for a tailored cover-up in spring and summer?), as well as shoes and accessories. Nonetheless if your budget is limited it may not be worth splurging on a fuxia handbag that you will not be able to wear past Labor Day.

Most importantly, keep an eye on what's coming, since pre-fall collections are coming into most stores. Obviously, I am here to help you with this vision... Stay tuned for the next post!


Photo: Vectips.