Just One

I may have been a bit late to the party, but once I started the Take One and Pass It On challenge, I had a great time!  Here is my final pass from Pink Shirt Day:

Pass the pants

 Remixed with sheer stripe top, navy cardi, arm party and

 

 an amazing necklace!

My favourite Marcie surprised me with a birthday e-gift card (FYI so you know I didn't break my rules!) from Just One.  Marcie's sis Krista and her pal started Just One and now, each of us has the chance to make just one choice that will make a difference to people around the world living in poverty and worse.  Go to this site, ladies, read through their story and then order something. 

Not only is the necklace stunning, buying it also helps people.

That's pretty awesome for an accessory. 

I'm not normally so bossy, but I became an activist this week so now I'm on fire for good people and good causes.  And good fashion challenges...

Lessons learned from Take One and Pass It On:

•  Honour the organic nature of this challenge.  Planning ahead to what you think you want to wear and working backwards does not work.  Don't even try.  Backwards is always the wrong direction.  
• Consider your passing piece an outfit primer in the morning.  Though I won't be passing a piece every day from here forward, I definitely see myself using this strategy on days when I am tired or uninspired, or when I want to try remixing a piece back-to-back.  I eh-hem have a history of doing that anyway...
• The #TakeOne strategy works well to mix old pieces with new, trends with classics and VV Boutique pieces with regular retail!  If you're questioning how to style something, chances are there is an answer somewhere in your closet!
• Perhaps my favourite benefit of this strategy is how Sarah normalized wearing the same piece two days in a row.  The key is to ensure that you're remixing versus getting stuck in a rut.  You may have a style "uniform" or "formula" whether you know it or not (!), and this approach helps to encourage a little creativity and effort - variations on your own formula.  And that is awesome!

Ultimately, I enjoy anything that helps me identify and express my unique style, and challenges me at the same time.  So thank you Sarah for your fantastic idea, your fantastic blog and inspiration!  I'm going to stop now before I sound like a stalker an activist.