Mostly handmade capsule travel wardrobe: Toronto

I got so much encouragement after my last capsule wardrobe post, that I decided to do another one. I took a trip earlier this month to visit my elderly great-aunt, who lives in Toronto. My trip was timed just a week too late, as the temperature dropped to the 40s a few days before I arrived.

Here's what I took along:

From left to right: my Blank Slate Peppermint PJ pants and a black cotton/lycra Plantain that I wear as a pajama top. Next to the pjs are an ancient navy cashmere cardigan that belonged to my grandfather and my burgundy wool Blackwood cardigan. Style-wise, I could have just brought the Blackwood. But the cashmere sweater is much warmer, and I thought I might need it, so I threw it in as well.

Continuing to the right, from top to bottom, my DIBY Club Anna Skirt, my blue denim Liana Jeans and a pair of Lands End leggings. In the last column are an LL Bean flannel button-down shirt and a black Plantain tee with white birds printed on it.

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Everything fit everything into one rollerboard - including two huge, empty duffel bags (affiliate link - these are great; they hold a ton but weigh nothing, and scrunch up to take up very little space when not needed) that were rolled and crammed into the corners. I brought the duffels because my great aunt is in that stage of life where she realizes she can't take it with her, and wants to give all her possessions away to people she loves. Incidentally, I am at the stage of my life where I am trying to get rid of as much as possible, because I feel positively weighed down by my possessions ... but family obligations and all.

I also brought my Lands End fleece jacket, a RTW snap scarf that doubles as an airplane blanket, a fleece-lined knit headband for my ears, and my LL Bean riding boots. I didn't bring any other footwear.

The trip was three days long, starting with a six-hour red-eye flight from Bogota to Toronto. I wore my Lianas and my bird Plantain shirt for the flight. I had planned to change into PJs after takeoff, but I lucked out with a row to myself, so I lay down and passed out as soon as the plane began rolling down the runway.

After I arrived and got a little nap in, I changed into my LL Bean shirt. Even though the Plantain wasn't dirty, I felt like it needed to be aired out before I wore it again the following day. We spent most of the rest of the day inside and I did not need a cardigan.

The next morning we went to church. I wore the bird Plantain with my denim skirt, leggings and Blackwood cardigan. I was still cold, so I wore my coat for the entire service!

Monday morning, I wore the flannel shirt, jeans and cashmere cardigan. I ended up putting the cardigan back into my carryon before boarding my flight home as I didn't need it anymore. I could have gotten away without it, and just packed the Blackwood. In the picture below you can see one of the duffel bags I brought, stuffed with my great-aunt's treasured possessions.

People can be funny about their things. My great-aunt moved into a retirement home several years ago, and has been asking family members to drive up with trucks to take her things ever since. No one wants much; we all feel burdened by our own things as it is.

She mentioned many times during my visit how young people only want modern things, and that's why no one was taking the decorative plates, boxes, doilies, clothes and Christmas ornaments that she was storing in her small apartment. She has been so stressed out at the idea that everything would go to strangers when she died. Ultimately I decided that it would be doing her a favor to take some of stuff of her hands even though I was secretly not planning to keep them. I wanted to relieve her of some of her stress without adding a suitcase full of crap to my own home. So I ended up donating a lot of what I took, and throwing some of the non-donateable stuff away.

So, there's my thrilling long-weekend capsule wardrobe. Everything I packed got good use, but I could have gotten by without the second cardigan. Of course, if I hadn't packed it, it would have been freezing and I would have regretted it.

I had a great weekend reconnecting with my great aunt, looking at old photos and listening to family stories. Planning a cohesive capsule wardrobe in advance meant that I didn't have to spend much time fussing about what to wear, which was also nice.

I took another international trip this month, so stay tuned for a post about that suitcase capsule wardrobe in a week or so.