Festive and Cozy for the Holidays With Mustang Sally

Happy Monday my loyal blog family, how is everyone doing? Who’s ready for the holidays? Who’s still doing things last minute like me? Every year I tell myself I am going to get my act together and start doing things earlier so I don’t have to rush around at the last minute and once again I haven’t learned my lesson lol. Maybe I need to set a more realistic goal for next year!

We are now almost half way through the 30 Days of Holiday Cheer and I can’t believe it! I have been having so much fun with it and I am glad to see from all the love that you guys are too. I have to make sure I do IG story to ask you what your favourite outfit is so far. Don’t have Instagram? Leave me a comment and tell me which one is your favourite so far on this post. In my head I always have my suspected faves and then you guys go and surprise me with something I wasn’t expecting.

As you can imagine a project like this is no small undertaking and while I absolutely love creating content for you, a project like this just wouldn’t be possible without the support of the awesome brands I work with and so I have to give another huge shout out to my friends at Catherines for sponsoring this post. This is the final post in a 3 part series with them and while I love all the looks this post is extra special because it features my Mom. That’s right Mom is back and looking better than ever. Thank you so much Catherines for letting me include her at our favourite time of the year. So while this post is sponsored, please remember that all opinions are my own, as always, xoxo.

Christmas has always been my Mom and I’s favourite holiday but I think we have been in a little bit of a slump the last couple of years while we both dealt with some personal challenges and life changes. But now that she is living with me we thought it was time we got back some of our festive spirit. And we are also super excited because my sister has moved to Southern Ontario and now she is only a half hour drive from us. The three of us have not lived this close together in 25 years. So I feel like there is a lot to be grateful for this year.

While my Mom likes to rock a killer look just like me there are many days where we are just looking for something that is comfortable. Yep, you heard me right, that dreaded word. BUT we have always believed that comfortable doesn’t have to be messy or unpolished. We both believe that you can have comfort and style. This is especially important to us around the holiday season when we are out and about running errands and doing our Christmas shopping.

So for this post we decided to feature looks that are comfortable but also equal parts cute and of course festive. I mean when you see these options you will want to be festive too, I promise. And since we are Canadian we made sure they are great for the cold weather and snow, aka winter approved. Catherines has so many great pieces to choose from if you love a festive look that they put them all in one easy location on their website. You can click here to find their Very Merry Everything page that is a curated selection of outfits that are sure to make you smile.

With this post my Mom and I also wanted to share some of our favourite things we like to do when we are out and about together. If you can tell from the laughter it is never a dull moment with the two of us. And for the record my Mom wasn’t too happy that I vetoed her on the t-shirt selection. She really wanted mine but snowmen and penguins are my absolute faves so I couldn’t do it. Sorry not sorry Mom!

First off let’s talk about our jackets. We both like layers, especially this time of year because the temperature can change quite drastically from one day to the next where we live. And if you wondered where I inherited the “I am always hot” gene from it is most certainly my Mother. With that it mind, she and I were talking and we both mentioned that we wanted to try a puffer jacket. We don’t often wear really heavy coats and we wanted an option that was lightweight and casual.

This puffer jacket from Catherines was exactly what we were looking for. It is super lightweight but still keeps you warm and is also water resistant. It is also perfect for traveling because it easily packs up into a small ball and comes with a pouch for storing it. There is also a detachable hood and elasticized cuffs to keep the cold air out and you toasty warm. We both love purple and teal so we absolutely loved that is was available in these fun colours. But it also comes in black if you want a neutral.

Mom is wearing a 2x and we sized up just to be safe and so she could wear a sweater underneath and she was glad we did. She really likes the length and the fit didn’t overall her petite frame. I got the 4x and I think I probably should have went with the 5x if I wanted to wear multiple layers underneath. This probably won’t be an issue for you if you don’t have hips like mine. With a longer length jacket this can often be a problem for me. We also liked that it has elastic insets at the waist to minimize bulk.

Our next layer was our sweaters. I am literally obsessed with cardigans and layering pieces these days. In the past few months I think I have bought one in every colour and pattern I can find. Since I am working in a more casual work environment, I love them as that third piece to pull my outfit together. Or I mean I don’t know about you but we always end up getting hot when we are out shopping, especially if we brave the mall so often we will just throw on something like these and hop in the car and go.

Since Mom was wearing mostly black underneath I chose this plum chenille cascade sweater to go with her jacket and also to bring out the colours in her sequin Christmas trees. This sweater is so soft to the touch and it has a metallic sparkle thread woven throughout it that gives it that festive look. She is wearing a 1x, which is her typical Catherines size and she was happy with the fit. And the colour is absolutely perfect with the puffer. I chose this super soft white cascade sweater that is sadly sold out online (I don’t know how this always happens to me lol) but hopefully they have it in store. I wanted to play off the snowman on my t-shirt with it looking like fluffy snow. I am wearing a size 4x which is my standard size and it was a very generous fit.

Now let’s talk about these t-shirts. I have to say that I am not one that gravitates to pieces like this normally but your girl can’t deny herself a sequin moment and especially one that changes when you swipe them. When I saw this t-shirt I thought it was so darn cute and I had to have it. I think as I have gotten older I have learned to take myself less seriously and if I like it I wear it. Because I mean when your snowman changes to a penguin with one swipe, how is that not an instant smile? I only wish Catherines had made more shirts like this, next year please! Mom’s top may not change to something different but the colour of the sequins does change from multi coloured to silver. Mom is wearing a 1x petite and I think the length could have been a little longer, especially if you want to wear it with leggings. I am wearing a 4x in the regular fit and I also wish it had a little more length.

For bottoms my Mom is wearing a classic black legging in a petite length. That is probably one of her favourite things about Catherines is that they offer so many of their styles in petites. It makes getting a proper fit so much easier. These leggings are made of ponte so they are thicker weight and they do suck you in as Mom says. We sized up to a 2x and she was glad we did, she felt she needed the extra room in the tummy area. I chose these classic velour pants in black. Since the t-shirt wasn’t longer I knew that I wasn’t going to want a legging. I am wearing the 4x which is normally okay for me but I found the back rise on these to be a little short. Otherwise they were perfect.

Mom has definitely developed a little obsession for boots this year and she loves being able to wear a tall one with her apple shape. So when I saw these black riding style boots I knew they would be perfect for her. They don’t have a heel and they have a rubber sole that is perfect for the cold weather. The braided buckle around the ankle is a really nice added detail. She is wearing an 8W. And as you can see she actually has a lot of room in the calf. Catherines, Mom wants these in other colours so hopefully you can make that happen! And while I am still on my never ending quest to find a tall boot that works with my lipedema calves, I opted to try these super cute duckie boots that keep you safe from the wet weather. They have a really generous fit at the ankles which I very much appreciate and the quilted detailing gives them a more sophisticated look. I am wearing the 9W.

Of course our outfits would not be complete without some of Catherines amazing accessories. I mean how adorable are these penguin earrings I am wearing? And we found some really pretty jewel toned earrings and a bracelet for my Mom that really picked up on the sequins in her t-shirt. I do come by my love of bling honestly. Even our socks are from Catherines! I mean come on, aren’t they the custest? And with Starbucks in our hands, a snowman cookie which is our current favourite and a big shopping bag we were ready to tackle our to do list and make sure to stop for some fun along the way. Life is too short and time with our loved ones is important whether they are family you were given or family you chose so I am trying to make more of an effort to enjoy the little things. We lived so far apart for so long, I feel like we are making up for lost time.

Special thanks to Rebecca of Rebecca Northcott Photography for capturing these images.

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Lisa Schoenberger