10 x 10 Wardrobe Challenge

Some of you may have been expecting to see another winter capsule wardrobe of 40 pieces, but you know me, always keeping you on your toes!  I wanted to do something a little different, to challenge myself, and the 10 x 10 Wardrobe Challenge seemed like the perfect choice!

What's the 10 x 10 Wardrobe Challenge, you ask?

10 Outfits, for 10 days, using only 10 Pieces. 

Let's jump into it!

Watch the video here or on YouTube!

What was your favourite outfit?  Would you ever do a challenge like this?  Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time,

The Ultimate Guide To Winter Dressing As A Vegan

It's cold in Toronto right now.  Really cold.  -34 degrees celsius cold.  And it got me thinking... dressing for the winter as a vegan isn't as easy as it should be.  We want to be warm without exploiting animals.

Is being compassionate AND frosbite-free too much to ask?

Luckily the answer is no.

I'm going to share my tips and tricks (and you can trust me because I'm Canadian, and we know cold) and picks to keep you toasty from head to toe!

*This post contains affiliate links, indicated with an asterisk.  This means that if you choose to click through one such link and make a purchase I will make a commission, at no extra cost to you.  I will never recommend a product that is not vegan or something I don't use or believe in.  If you enjoy my content please consider using these links for your purchases as a way to support Plant Based Bride!

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H A T S

We've all heard that a lot of heat escapes from the top of our heads.  Keep your noggin warm with the innumerable styles of vegan hats!  Here are some of my very favourite...

1. Asos Reclaimed Vintage Bobble Beanie  
2. Asos Cable Beanie 
3. Hooldamb Ruderalis Hat
4. Vaute Couture Boater Felt Hat
5. Asos Fine Rib Knitted Turban Hat  
6. Urban Outfitters Lumberjack Beanie
7. Vegan Faux Fur Bobble Hat
8. Asos Rib Headband
9. Urban Outfitters Brushed Beanie
10. Asos Cable Pom Beanie  
11. Lulus Cuddled Up Grey Knit Beanie*  
12. Vaute Couture Cole Felt Hat
13. Urban Outfitters Classic Beanie 
14. Urban Outfitters Open Boucle Slouch Beanie 
15. Asos Fluffy Headband
16. Asos Short Turn Up Beanie with Pom  

Animal materials to watch out for... alpaca, angora, calfskin, camel hair, cashmere, felt, flannel, fleece, fur, leather, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, suede, tweed, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm... acrylic, corduroy, cotton, cotton flannel, denim, faux-fur, flannelette, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polyester, polyester fleece, rayon, spandex, ultrasuede, velour, velveteen, viscose. 

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Great North Tip: Always, and I mean ALWAYS keep your head covered.  Your brain is essential to the well-being of this planet.  And also your ears.  Those are less essential, but really hurt when they get too cold.  So just wear a hat, ok?  Ok.

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S C A R V E S

I don't know about you, but I like to prevent cold wind from blowing down my neck and into my coat on bitterly cold days.  Scarves are the perfect solution, not to mention cozy and stylish (and they don't need to be made of wool).  Check out some of my vegan picks below...

1. Asos Oversized Scarf in Colourblock with Tassels  
2. Urban Outfitters Boucle Cable Hooded Eternity Scarf 
3. Urban Outfitters Avant Garde Brushed Woven Scarf  
4. Asos Pieces Ribbed Oversized Blanket Scarf 
5. Lulu's Que Sera Serape Reversible Black and Ivory Print Blanket Scarf*  
6. Urban Outfitters Femme Super Soft Square Scarf
7. Asos Blanket Scarf In Black And White Design  
8. Asos Woven Oversized Scarf In Geo Shapes
9. Asos Long Scarf In Colourblock With Tassels
10. Urban Outfitters Brushed Plush Lined Eternity Scarf  
11. Urban Outfitters Multi Stripe Blanket Scarf
12. Asos Long Scarf With Mixed Stripe And Chevron  
13. Lulu's Weaving Path Beige Striped Scarf* 
14. Urban Outfitters Faux-Sherpa Eternity Scarf  

Animal materials to watch out for... alpaca, angora, camel hair, cashmere, fleece, fur, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm... acrylic, cotton, cotton flannel, faux-fur, flannelette, linen, modal, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polyester, polyester fleece, rayon, spandex, tencel, ultrasuede, velour, velveteen, viscose. 

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You might also like...  Finding My Wedding Dress: No Silk, Please. 

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S W E A T E R S

It's called sweater weather for a reason.  Get your layers on!

1. Asos Jack & Jones Shawl Collar Cardigan in Mixed Yarns 
2. ModCloth Recipe Club Sweater in Salt* 
3. Asos Jumper in Twist with Aztec Design 
4. Lulu's Log Cabin Cream Cable Knit Sweater*  
5. Urban Outfitters Native Youth Sweater  
6. Lulu's Cup of Cozy Light Grey Cardigan Sweater* 
7. Asos Shawl Neck Jumper in Grey Cotton  
8. Urban Outfitters BDG Elbow Patch Sweater
9. Lulu's Icy London Icy France Black and Ivory Sweater* 
10. Asos Cotton Crew Jumper with Blocking
11. Urban Outfitters BDG Parker Cardigan  
12. Urban Outfitters O'Hanlon Mills Calhoun Sweater  
13. Lulu's Parker Bridge Black Sweater* 
14. J Crew Rugged Cotton Sweater

Animal materials to watch out for... alpaca, angora, calfskin, camel hair, cashmere, flannel, fleece, fur, leather, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, suede, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm...  acrylic, batiste, chambray, chino, cord, corduroy, cotton, cotton flannel, denim, faux-fur, flannelette, gingham, khaki, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polyester, polyester fleece, rayon, spandex, tencel, ultrasuede, velcro, velour, velveteen, viscose. 

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Great North Tip: The chunkier the sweater, the more Canadian you look.  And we all know that Canadians are irresistible.  So throw on that heavy knit sweater with abandon, you sexy thing, you.

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C O A T S

I could argue that a good coat is the most important aspect of keeping warm in the winter.  We can get away with less than perfect boots, a lack of layers, and no gloves or hat if we have a warm coat with a hood and pockets!  But it is difficult to survive the winter in any sort of comfort without a warm coat.  Here are some of my picks for men and women, made without animal products:

1. Vaute Couture Lincoln 
2. North Face Men's Thermoball Snow Hoodie
3. Vaute Couture Whitman in Primaloft Insulated Moleskin  
4. Hoodlamb Ladies Parka in Black, this is my winter coat - check out my unboxing video here!
5. Nau Luminary Trench
6. Vaute Couture Mark Mountain Coat in Primaloft Insulated Moleskin
7. Marmot Downtown Component Jacket
8. Hoodlamb Men's Tech 4-20
9. Vaute Couture Emily in Insulated Moleskin 
10. Nau Temp Jacket 
11. Vaute Couture Mark Snow Coat 
12. North Face Women's Thermoball Hooded Parka 
13. Nau Men Synfill Hoody Pullover
14. Vaute Couture Amanda Maxi Coat   
15. Fair Trade Vegan Cocoon Coat
16. Marmot Uptown Jacket

Animal materials to watch out for... alpaca, angora, calfskin, camel hair, cashmere, down, feathers, fleece, fur, leather, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, suede, tweed, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm... acrylic, cotton, cotton flannel, denim, faux-fur, flannelette, gore-tex, khaki, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polartec wind pro, polyester, polyester fleece, primaloft, rayon, spandex, synthetic down, tencel, thermolite, thinsulate, ultrasuede, velcro, velour, velveteen, viscose, waxed canvas.

There is literally something for everyone!  Vegan coats are more abundant than I ever realized until I put research into it, and they can be VERY warm (like my Hoodlamb!) 

Check out this post from Green Planet for even more vegan coat options, and a bit more information on synthetic insulation types!

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You might also like... Say No To Fur (Hoodlamb Vegan Coat Unboxing)

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G L O V E S

Weather it's using your phone or holding your coffee, often you can't just keep your hands in your pockets while you're out in the cold.  Keep your digits protected no matter what you get up to with vegan gloves!

1. Burton Gore-Tex Gloves
2. Asos Echo Touch 'Cashmere Feel' Drawstring Glove
3. The North Face Montana E-Tip Gloves  
4. Manzella Adventure 100 Gloves
5. Asos Touch Screen Gloves in Burgundy Fair Isle Palm Print
6. REI Tahoma Gloves
7. Vegetarian Shoes Vegan Gloves
8. Adidas Originals Trefoil Gloves  
9. Seirus Prism Gore-Tex Gloves  
10. Asos Plain Touch Screen Gloves  
11. Dakine Bronco Glove  
12. Asos Fingerless Gloves In Black  

Animal materials to watch out for... alpaca, angora, calfskin, camel hair, cashmere, fleece, fur, leather, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, suede, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm... acrylic, corduroy, cotton, cotton flannel, faux-fur, flannelette, gore-tex, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polartec wind pro, polyester, polyester fleece, primaloft, rayon, spandex, synthetic down, tencel, thermolite, thinsulate, ultrasuede, velcro, velour, velveteen, viscose, waxed canvas. 

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Great North Tip:  Instagram is important, I get it.  But losing a finger makes it hard to like all of my photos.  So maybe wear gloves with touch-screen technology.  It's really the best of both worlds.  Pictures of my cats, and all ten digits.  #blessed

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B O O T S

As anyone who has ever been outside in a snowstorm in inadequate footwear will know, warm toes is a must for winter comfort.  Here's a wide variety of vegan men and women's boots to keep your feet warm and dry. 

1. Kamik Seattle - I own these!
2. Vegetarian Shoes Brooklyn Boot
3. Vegetarian Shoes Vintage Boot  
4. BC Footwear Collective Boot
5. Brave Gentleman Worker Boot
6. Kamik Sugarloaf
7. Vegetarian Shoes Veggie Trekker
8. Native Shoes Jimmy Winter
9. Jambu Artic Vegan
10. Dr Martens Vegan 1460
11. Vegetarian Shoes Snug Boot
12. Vegetarian Shoes Engineer Boot
13. Cougar Serge

Animal materials to watch out for... alligator skin, calfskin, fleece, fur, kangaroo skin, leather, shearling, sheepskin, snakeskin, suede, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm...  acrylic, cork, cotton, cotton flannel, faux-fur, flannelette, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, microfibre, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polyester, polyester fleece, polyurethane, rayon, spandex, tencel, ultrasuede, velcro, velour, velveteen, viscose, waxed canvas. 

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You might also like... Should You Get Rid Of All Your Leather Now That You're Vegan?

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O T H E R   L A Y E R S

Layers are your friend!  Here are some other layers like socks, long johns, and lightweight tops you may want to consider piling on to keep warm.

1. ASOS Esprit Henley T-Shirt
2. Urban Outfitters Project Social T Finley Tank Top
3. Braintree Clothing Blair Rock Thick Bamboo Socks
4. Urban Outfitters Truly Madly Deeply Helena Raw Edge Thermal Top
5. Urban Outfitters Polyester Fleece Lined Full Tight  
6. PETA Vegan Knee High Socks
7. Urban Outfitters Project Social T Christy Tunic Tee
8. ASOS 2 Pack Crew Neck Jumper in Cotton  
9. Urban Outfitters Out From Under Leggings
10. Urban Outfitters Nassau Galaxy Tank Top  
11. Uniqlo Women's Heattech Socks
12. ASOS Jack & Jones Long Johns
13. Bergies Cat Lady Crews

Animal materials to watch out for... alligator skin, alpaca, angora, calfskin, camel hair, cashmere, down, feathers, felt, flannel, fleece, fur, kangaroo skin, leather, mohair, pashmina, shearling, sheepskin, silk, snakeskin, suede, tweed, wool.

Vegan materials perfect to keep you warm... acrylic, batiste, chambray, chino, cord, corduroy, cork, cotton, cotton flannel, denim, elastic, faux-fur, flannelette, gingham, khaki, leatherette/imitation leather, linen, microfibre, moleskin, muslin, nylon, polyester, polyester fleece, polyurethane, rayon, spandex, tencel, ultrasuede, velcro, velour, velveteen, viscose, waxed canvas. 

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Great North Tip: The more layers you wear the more you will sweat when you finally get inside and can't just start stripping willy nilly.  It's just a fact of life.  You'll just have to get used to it, or move to the equator.  Which actually doesn't sound like a bad idea right about now.

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You made it!  If I accomplished nothing else, I hope I've shown you how very possible it is to be warm and stylish (no matter what your style may be) as a vegan in colder climates (and maybe made you smile).

To help you out while shopping (and just to simplify everything as much as possible, because I know it can be hard to remember all of the different materials and their origins.  Listen, I got you.) I have created a printable list of animal materials and vegan materials.  

Best of all?  It's free!  Sign up below to get your download link right away.

Want inspiration for vegan winter fashion?  Follow me on instagram to see my outfits and check out my winter capsule wardrobe to see my foundational pieces!

Until next time, stay warm, stay compassionate!

What are your favourite vegan winter pieces?  Any tips to share with new vegans to stay warm?  Let us know in the comments below!

Linked Up.

Sources & Further Reading

http://plantbasedbride.com/blog/nonveganingredientlist?rq=avoid

http://features.peta.org/how-to-wear-vegan/

http://bikesexual.blogsport.eu/2012/03/24/list-of-fabrics-vegan-or-not/

Winter Capsule Wardrobe

Winter is here and that means it's finally time to reveal my second capsule wardrobe!  I had a lot of fun with my Fall Capsule and loved putting together this wardrobe, armed with months of capsule experience.  (Learn how to build a capsule wardrobe here!)  Some of my choices last time just didn't get worn, so I'm hoping to make wiser picks in my Winter Capsule that can handle the range of weather conditions and temperatures that Toronto winters throw at us Torontonians!

First things first, I promised I would review my first ever capsule wardrobe experience!

F A L L   C A P S U L E   W A R D R O B E   R E C A P

T H E   G O O D.

• I LOVED the capsule wardrobe experience and never want to go back to the standard closet explosion of earlier years!
• The neutrals meant that almost every item went with everything else, which made getting ready so much faster!
• I loved the minimal and neutral style I curated for myself.
• I really enjoyed the challenge to create different combinations from the same pieces for the 3 months.  Go check out my instagram to see what I put together!
• This experience made me realize that I can downsize my wardrobe even more than I did during my KonMari minimizing spree, which is super exciting for a clothing hoarder like me!
• The majority of my clothes were super comfortable which was AWESOME.

T H E   B A D.

• My tall black boots broke the first time I tried to wear them.  Yeah.
• I barely wore the dressier items I included - the two white button downs and the deep v neck long sleeve tops in black and white.  My day to day and work environments are very casual and I had barely any opportunities to dress up, other than auditions.  Since audition wear isn't included in my capsule I just didn't need these items!
• The dress pants, track pants, and green jeans I included are cropped and it was often too cold to wear them, despite wanting to.

T H E   U G L Y.

• I definitely didn't include enough clothing for cold weather - it got VERY cold in December and I had to go outside of my capsule to keep warm enough with more layers and heavier sweaters.  This is a tough problem in Toronto where fall weather goes from summer heat to winter chill on a day to day basis.  I hope next year I can find a better balance!

And now time for my winter capsule wardrobe reveal...

Once again I'm sticking to an almost entirely neutral palette.  I considered including a plaid shirt again,  but finally decided against it.  Only time will tell if I regret that decision!  

I did a lot of thinking and planning around layering options, since the temperature in Toronto ranges quite a bit.  I also work in a store that can go from freezing to boiling to freezing again within any give day, so I need to be able to take off and put on layers easily!  I'm hoping that I have enough of each layering category to keep me going until the end of March, I actually increased the number of tops in my capsule from 18 to 27(!) so hopefully I've covered all of the bases!

I'm also excited about my new vegan coat (see my unboxing video here) as it's black (surprise surprise), super warm, and very comfortable!  20 points to HoodLamb for making an awesome winter jacket.  I plan on doing a detailed review after I've had a bit longer with it!

Just like last time, I'll share where I bought everything if you're interested in picking up a couple of the pieces.   Once again, a little disclaimer.  As I am an ethical vegan, I do not endorse purchasing any items made from or by animals.  A couple of these pieces I purchased before my transition to veganism, and are therefore not in line with my current beliefs.  If you are interested in my take on wearing products made from or by animals as a vegan, and why I continue to wear some of my old pieces, check out the post HERE.  I won't be linking to items containing animal products but will instead link to a similar item made with vegan materials.  I hope you understand and respect why I am choosing to do this!  Also, some of the items were given to me or I purchased long enough ago that they are no longer available.  In those cases I will link to something similar, or the same item in a different colour!

Alright, here we go!

TOPS (27)

1. white cami - similar
2. white flowy cami - aritzia
3. white tank - similar
4. white tee - aritzia
5. white v neck tee - urban outfitters
6. beige deep scoop cami - similar
7. taupe waffle long sleeve - aritzia
8. deer baseball tee - similar
9. heavy patterned cardigan - similar
10. grey cropped tank - brandy melville
11. grey tank top - hollister
12. grey tee - aritzia
13. grey v neck long sleeve - similar
14. grey hooded cardigan - similar
15. grey & black baseball tee - aritzia
16. dark grey tee - aritzia
17. beatles tank - similar
18. black cropped cami - similar
19. black cami - similar
20. black tee - aritzia
21. black deep v neck tee - similar
22. black henley - similar
23. black long sleeve top - aritzia
24. black v neck long sleeve - aritzia
25. black cardigan - similar
26. black pullover sweater - similar
27. black chunky pullover sweater - similar

BOTTOMS (8)

1. black skinny jeans - american eagle
2. black zippered leggings - zara 
3. black leggings - urban outfitters
4. black vegan leather pants - similar
5. grey high waisted leggings - similar
6. high waisted blue jeans - urban outfitters
7. blue ripped jeans - similar
8. blue jeans - anthropologie

DRESSES (1)

1. grey sweater dress - aritzia

OUTERWEAR (1)

1. black parka - hoodlamb

SHOES (3)

1. vegan doc martens - doc martens
2. short black cowboy boots - similar
3. black winter boots - nice shoes

That's it!  I'm excited to see how this capsule holds up over the next 3 months.  I will be committing to no new purchases until mid May or so, when I will be planning my spring capsule!  Check out my Style and Capsule Pinterest boards to see what I'm loving for spring as I begin looking for inspiration!

I hope you've enjoyed reading my recap and seeing my new picks for winter 2016!  I've been considering filming videos to go along with my capsule wardrobe posts, whether sit down chat style or showing the clothes on my body as more of a look book.  Let me know if you'd watch and which you'd like better!  If you have any questions or suggestions please let me know in the comments and I hope you'll consider giving capsule wardrobes a try!

Until next time,

Are you doing a capsule wardrobe this winter?  Leave your link below so that we can check out your picks!

Linked Up!