Spring Forward

Sezane cardigan
Sezane jeans
Mango flats
Celine necklace
Mejuri ring (similar)
Mejuri earrings (similar)
Location: Osborne Village – Winnipeg, Manitoba

This past Sunday, most of us experienced a time change. My opinion on daylight savings time is generally neutral. The loss of an hour in the spring doesn’t affect my sleep schedule much, but this year, I can’t get over feeling like I was cheated out of a valuable part of my weekend. Still, the time change does herald the arrival of a new season, which is one of my favourites: spring.

The combination of lockdown and winter weather having made any activity away from home impossible for months means I looked forward to spring more than ever this year. And that’s a bold statement, coming from me. I’ve always had something big to look forward to in the spring that’s made the season worthy of anticipation. Almost every year, from 2011 onward, we left for Paris in the first three months of the year. Every year, that is, until 2020.

“When spring comes to Paris the humblest mortal alive must feel that he dwells in paradise.”
– Henry Miller

Paris is magic at any time of year. In spring, it’s often rainy. But the few bright days, when the cherry blossoms and magnolias are in full bloom, make up for them entirely. For most of my adult life, I’ve spent the early part of a new year planning museum visits and perfect outfits for each of them, imagining shopping days and photoshoots on Ile de la Cite. Some trips were only a week long, while others lasted months, but they all had one thing in common: they meant the arrival of spring for me, and they made it one of my favourite parts of the year.

That those trips influenced my spring style seems only natural. But it’s only this week that I’ve realised just how substantial their influence truly was, as I’ve experienced a complete sartorial mind shift in the past weeks. Just as I was getting comfortable wearing almost all black again, pastel sweaters began catching my eye. The idea of a navy blue dress suddenly seemed like a good idea. I found myself reaching for my blue Oxford shirt repeatedly, along with my striped sweaters. I’ve been through this before. In fact, I felt similar last year – and even wound up being unable to resist buying a very Parisian blue dress. At the time, I didn’t realise what was happening; it never occurred to me that I could be subconsicously selecting outfits for a Parisian adventure that wouldn’t actually transpire.

…but I was, of course, because that’s what I’ve done every spring for most of the past decade and, as a creature of habit, I just couldn’t help myself.

I won’t be in Paris this spring. Or maybe at all this year, depending on how the events of the next several months unfold. I’m not holding my breath for holidays in 2021 – based on the way things have been going so far, I’d likely be dead by self-induced asphyxiation before I got to take one. But I’ll be adjusting my wardrobe a little bit anyway, as if I were going to be. It was actually sort of lovely to realise that I could have a little bit of my spring time visit to Paris back just by making some sartorial changes… it’s not as good as getting to take the outfits out to cafes and museums, but for now, it’s better than nothing.

So, as we spring forward, I’m reaching for lighter colours, pairing ballet flats with blue jeans and even considering embracing another colour… or two? We’ll see how far this goes. The best part is, my plan is to do it all almost without adding to my existing wardrobe. A recent reorganization of my closet made me realise that I’ve finally succeeded in building a truly functional wardrobe with endless outfit possibilities. So my goal is to keep shopping to a minimum, focusing on truly special additions rather than constant collection of new garments.

I could change my mind, of course. It wouldn’t be the first time I went completely off course because of a great pair of shoes. But right now, that’s my spring fashion plan. How are you planning to transition your wardrobe for the season?

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