spring travel style 2011

Fashion Friday :: Tribal Inspiration

{Editor's Note: Next week, May 2-6, Trip Styler will be conducting "research" in Australia while living like a castaway and hanging with turtles on the Great Barrier Reef. We're back at it the following week with our regularly scheduled content, and each Friday in May we'll feature a different destination on Australia's East Coast. Find out more about my Australia trip here.}

"If the mountain won't come to Mohammed, then Mohammed must go to the mountain."

Or, in spirit of this month's Fashion Friday, Mohammed must go shopping. {Bear with me!} One of my favourite things about travel is shopping. Not shopping as a pastime, but shopping for special items native to the country or region I'm visiting. Often nothing is more treasured in one's closet or home than items purchased around the world. But if you love a style, and can't get to the source (say...Africa), a substitute is acceptable. This month's post is dedicated to travel-inspired tribal fashion, which is the perfect easy-breezy look for spring and summer, both at home or abroad.

Trip Styler Tip: If an all-over tribal print is too "Hello world!" for you, go for bright fabric bangles or a bold printed handbag instead. A great thing about tribal prints is that they tend to be medium-sized graphics; tiny prints can make you look bigger, while large prints can end up wearing you and not the other way around. Fellas, tribal prints aren't just for the beach - go tribal under a blazer or denim shirt this spring.

Now what to buy? Women (clockwise from top left) Forever 21 tribal drawings linen jacket, We Are Owls tribal cashmere and silk blend scarf, Lauren Manoogian hoop necklaces, Pepe Jeans silk printed dress, Felicity Brown tribal print tank, Forever 21 tribal cuffed short, Marc by Marc Jacobs frida flag dress, Theodora & Callum biarritz wedge sandal, Mat & Nat santogold handbag, House of Harlow 1960 tribal drop earring, Loeffler Randall x Suno erin lace-up wedge, Karen Millen tribal print clutch

Men (from bottom left) Burkman Bros oxford ikat short, Vilebrequin tribal art swim short, ASOS front panel printed tank, American Apparel afrika fine jersey t-shirt, Burkman Bros india ikat pullover

{Fashion Friday posts are published on the last Friday of every month and written by fashion blogger Heather.}