All posts under ‘Style Panel’


How to wear a crop top: 11 Style Panel tips that make skin-baring a lot less scary

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How to wear a crop top

Ever have one of those intimidating statement pieces that makes you feel so self-conscious about your body that it makes you want to sprint to the gym immediately? This may as well be the tale of the crop top.

Showing your midriff once seemed like a scandalous look, only to be tested by celebrities —think Britney Spears circa “Baby One More Time”—this season, the crop top has emerged as feminine, even covering our current issue on Lana Del Rey!

Lead by designers like Peter Som with his Spring 2013 bralet and high-waisted flowing skirt, we’re beginning to see how ladylike this look can be. With different styles and fits including the bustier, the cropped T-shirt and the waist-tied blouse, the crop top can be altered to your preferred degree of mid-section baring.

Still questioning how to wear a crop top? Fear not, because 11 of our Style Panel members share tips on how to easily pull off this spring trend sans butterflies in your stomach.

Opting to show a little less skin, many of our girls decided to pair their flirty crop tops with cute midi skirts like BornLippy’s Melanie Morais and Dainty Girl’s Nicole Wilson who chose to wear tie-knot crop tops that tastefully bares a sliver of their midriff. Showing off a bit more skin, Leah SaysLeah Gust was all smiles as she takes on two spring trends, the crop top and the graphic floral print, in today’s outfit. But what’s the best way to wear your crop top this season? Taking Style Worthwhile’s Jacquelyn Son’s advice, rock your crop top with confidence.

Question 50: Can you share tips on how to wear a crop top this season? Read the answers now! »

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Monochrome for spring: 19 Style Panel tips for wearing the same shade from head to toe

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monochrome style panel

With spring in the air (fingers crossed), we can finally take out those pastel colours and floral prints that have been itching to come out of our closets to bask in the sun.

Trending since last fall, monochromatic tones were seen both on the runway like the cozy furry collection of Alexander Wang’s Fall 2013 Ready-to-Wear collection or on street style favourite, Miroslava Duma in her all white ensemble. Transitioning to spring, could we bring this monochrome trend into warmer season or are we already nostalgic for the colder days? Not just yet!

With some designers already showing off their take on the monochromatic look with primary colours in their Spring 2013 collections, we decided to turn to our Style Panel for a second opinion on what they have to say about the spring monochromatic look and how they plan to work this look this season.

Avoiding the black-on-black ensemble, many Style Panel members played with cooler colours for the spring season as their choice for their monochromatic look. While Mo Handahu from Lion Hunter and Melissa Knight from Miss Melissa chose cobalt blue for a brighter and bolder look, Gabrielle Lacasse from Dentelle + Fleurs experimented with different shades of mint for a fresh spring appearance. Utilizing different patterns, prints, and textures, these girls definitely know how to put together a chic monochromatic outfit for this spring season!

Question 48: What are the best ways to pull off the monochrome look? Read the answers now! »

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Get ready for spring! 18 Style Panel tips for transitioning your winter wardrobe for warmer weather

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Get Ready for Spring

So far, 2013 has been a mighty test of our patience. While spring may have officially begun a month ago, Mother Nature has kept us waiting with bated breath for any real show of it.

And when checking your weather app before leaving the house no longer ensures you’re prepared for what awaits outside, it’s time to get creative with layering by mixing winter essentials with summertime accessories. Because we, much like everyone else, struggle with perfecting the subtle nuances to transitional dressing, we asked our Style Panel for a little help.

Our two newest members of the panel, both showed us how to make an airy maxi skirt an essential for the transition from winter to spring. Lyndsey Forest of Over My Styled Body paired her skirt with a heavy army-inspired jacket and camo scarf. Her combination of an ultra-girly skirt with a menswear jacket offers some end of winter inspiration for all of us. Meanwhile, Jennifer Pistor of Prairie Girl in the City matched her black maxi skirt with a bright pop of neon and floral shoes, inspiring us to get ready for spring.

Panellist Deanne McRae went a little nineties with her transitional look, wearing thigh-high socks, a full-skirt and leather jacket to add some warmth. And where McRae showed a little thigh, panel members like Cee Fardoe and Cara McLeay went barelegged and braved the last few moments of winter exposed in style.

Read on for more tips on making your wardrobe work as we transition out of winter (fingers crossed!) and into spring!

Question 47: What are your tips for transitioning your wardrobe from winter to spring? Read the answers now! »

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Fashion Icon: Our Style Panel members share their sartorial inspirations

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Fashion Icon Style Panel

There may be no shortage of style inspiration on the internet thanks to street style blogs, Tumblr, Pinterest and more, but when it comes to IRL style icons, who influences how you get dressed? From silver screen starlets to contemporary fashion darlings to fictional characters, most of us likely have a multitude of style icons that inspire the way we shop and our daily outfits.

But could you pick just one person as your ultimate style icon? Leave it to the Style Panel to be able to answer the unanswerable. From unexpected DJs to favourite TV shows, this week’s challenge shows that it’s actually a good thing to be all over the map when it comes to inspiration.
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Finding the best colours for your skin tone: Our Style Panel weighs in with 14 ways to dress for your shade

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Best colours for skin tone Style Panel

For those who gravitate towards neutrals time and time again, embracing colours can be quite the challenge. Greys, blacks and whites are safe choices but for Spring 2013, clothing is coming up colourful and we’re ready to get risky with bright pieces.

Selecting the best colour for your skin tone can be a challenge and a variety shades must be tried and tested before finding the right palette that not only flatters your skin but is also on trend for the season. For Spring 2013, colours were bright and many designers opted to show primary tones like at Michael Kors and Stella McCartney.

Because we’re all about embracing the trends as they come, we asked our Style Panel contributors to help us out with how they found the best colour for their skin tones and their favourite ways to toss some bright pops into their outfits. Boy, can they do wearing colours justice.
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The new metallic: 8 Style Panel tips for wearing the trend this spring

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Metallic Trend Style Panel

If the Spring 2013 runways were any indication, we’ve got plenty reason to experiment with the metallic trend. Taking a cue from collections such as Dior, Burberry, Jonathan Saunders and Diane Furtesnberg, the now classic trend was given new life with colour strokes, stripes, floral prints appearing in rainbow shades on everything from full skirted gowns to bomber jackets.

And while the coloured metallic trend was at its hottest this season, it seems as if our Style Panel is more comfortable with keeping it old school. With the exception of panelist Zoe Smythe’s sky blue sequin shorts, the rest of the group showed off how to work tried and tested metals such as gold, silver and rosegold into otherwise matte outfits. So without further ado, let the metal games begin!

Question 42: What are your tips for updating the metallic trend this season Read the answers now! »

Or jump to: AMBER DESILETS, LONDON | BARBARA ANN SOLOMON, TORONTO | DEANNE MCRAE, MISSISSAUGA | KAYLA SHORT, HALIFAX | MELANIE MORAIS, EDSON | NICOLE WILSON, TORONTO | STEPHANIE KOCH, KELOWNA | ZOE SMYTHE, NEW YORK CITY
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How to wear stripes now: 13 Style Panel tips for bringing this everlasting trend up to speed

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How to wear stripes

For as long as we can remember, stripes have been in. Whether associated with a jailbird’s uniform or Coco Chanel, those good ole lines have proved themselves versatile. And while stripes are many things, we wouldn’t have thought modern—until Spring 2013.

Breathing yet another life into the everlasting trend, designers including Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs and Dolce & Gabbana sent stripes down the runways in their own varied brands of sporty, sixties-inspired and painterly. On the dressed-up end of the spectrum, Oscar de la Renta and Raf Simons at Christian Dior splashed stripes across floor-length gowns and metallic party dresses.

For today’s Style Panel feature, we asked our gals how to wear stripes now. Is it possible to think out of the box where fashion’s oldest trend is concerned? As ever, the answer was a resounding yes. A Fashion Love Affair’s Cara McLeay went the Dior route, dressing up stripes in with a dress and tweed blazer combo. Miss Melissa’s Melissa Knight paired her bold and graphic skirt with her feminine floral blouse. Even though her skirt is bold and striped it is black and white so she smartly used the skirt as a neutral to allow the pairing to work. Curvy Geekery’s Mo Handahu went all out wearing three pieces with stripes in one outfit. Her pale tone-on-tone pants ground the look allowing her striped blouse and sweater to play off each other.

Question 39: What are your favourite tips for how to wear stripes now? Read the answers now! »

Or jump to: ALYSSA LAU, EDMONTON | BARBARA ANN SOLOMON, TORONTO| CARA MCLEAY, VANCOUVER | CHRISTINA CRAVERO, TORONTO | IVA GRBESIC, TORONTO | KASSANDRA CAMPONI, EDMONTON | KAYLA SHORT, HALIFAX | KRYSTIN LEE, TORONTO |MELANIE MORAIS, EDSON |MELISSA KNIGHT, VANCOUVER | MO HANDAHU, HALIFAX | STEPHANIE KOCH, KELOWNA | WHITNEY COSGRAVE, LOS ANGELES
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Valentine’s Day: 10 Style Panel tips for what to wear, date or no date

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Valentines Day Style Panel

Valentine’s Day is not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s a holiday to celebrate love, but some may ask: why do we need a holiday to tell us? Let’s be realistic, sometimes we just need an organized day to remind us to show and share our love and thanks with those closest to us. Valentine’s Day is a carefree one, so why not dive in and have fun.

So, what to wear on Valentine’s Day? We usually think of a few options: feminine, flirty and plenty of red and pink. Paging Rihanna at the Grammys? Maybe. But for tips on how to break that down for a date or a night out with the girls, we asked our experts in residence, the Style Panel.

Miss Melissa’s Melissa Knight loves dressing girly, but hardened her short red dress with studded overcoat for an added unexpected touch. Stephanie Sterjovski went for the tricky pink and red look, which we daresay she pulled off with flying colours (no pun intended). Kassandra Camponi of Kastles went fairly literal, and chose to wear hearts from head-to-toe. So, without further ado, let’s help you find out what to wear on Valentine’s Day.

Question 38: What is your favourite way to dress for Valentine’s Day? Read the answers now! »

Or jump to: BARBARA ANN SOLOMON, TORONTO | CARA MCLEAY, VANCOUVER | CHRISTINA CRAVERO, TORONTO | KASSANDRA CAMPONI, EDMONTON | KAYLA SHORT, HALIFAX | MELANIE MORAIS, EDSON | MELISSA KNIGHT, VANCOUVER | STEPHANIE KOCH, KELOWNA | STEPHANIE STERJOVSKI, TORONTO | VICKIE LALIOTIS, EDMONTON
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