To blow a paycheck

Welcome to the first edition of "To blow a paycheck"! Here, I'll be listing some items that I'd buy right now if I was to completely spend my paycheck. I'm going to take some 'The Price is Right' inspiration here and try to get as close as I can get to the actual number without going over.  Gotta admit, some of these items were fillers to try to get close to the whole paycheck, but ended up being a great shopping want anyway.

1.  Nude Lace Corsage Headband
2.  Chinti and Parker cropped Organic Cotton Jacket
3.  Paul & Joe prasline asymmetric wool-crepe dress
4.  Alexander Wang double-breasted linen-blend jacket
5.  Kenneth Jay Lane painted Enamel Necklace
6.  Jeffrey Campbell Lita lace up boots suede taupe
7.  BE & D Woodstock woven-panel patent-leather bag
8.  Adam high-waisted paperbag shorts
9.  Topshop Stripe full skirt

...Too bad I'm a saver.  And realistically, I'd never spend the money on most of the items on this list.  It's nice to dream though!

And how close did I get to blowing my whole paycheck?  I'd have $1.50 left.

Tune-y Tuesday

Not gonna lie, I'm kinda cheesy like that and just laughed at my own wordplay in the title.
To my international readers, "Toonie Tuesdays" was a promotion at KFC (Canada) where you could get a chicken combo for $2.

Anyway, now that you know what a bad sense of humour I have, let's get down to the music. I've got a few posts titled things like 'Even on a cloud day' and 'I keep my eyes fixed on the sun'.  Yup, they're lyrics from the song below that has been stuck in my head for the past three days or so.

On another note, according to Reality Chic Blog, lipgloss has a lifespan of 2 years.  I can proudly say that I've finished two entire tubes of lip gloss, but they took me like 3 years each to do so. What exactly happens when makeup expires anyway?  I suppose with things like eyeshadow, they don't work as well.  But lip gloss...?

I'm still a sucker for fruity lip gloss. I'm quite a fan of Bath and Body Works's batch- it's a good balance of a nice sheen without being too sticky. And they come in a variety of "flavours".  I have a hard time calling it a flavour because it's not like we're eating it...

I keep my eyes fixed on the sun

Now who doesn't love old clothes that make for good new outfits? The dress? It's actually a long skirt. The vest? It's actually an old jean jacket.  A jean jacket that I owned back in grade 7 or 8 when I used to wear a jean jacket with jeans. Oh, the days.  I've been lusting for a white dress for a while now, so I'm very glad my white skirt that I dug up made for a fairly nice ruffled dress when hiked up.  And it seemed like a waste to throw a jean jacket (that I loved so much) out, so cut out the sleeves, and it actually made for a great vest!

So wearing wedges may not have been the best idea to do a walk around the city that ended with a hike up about ten flights of outdoor stairs.  Figures that the one day I feel adventurous, I'm not dressed appropriately. I definitely felt like a tourist in my own city, but in a good way. 

What I'm wearing:
-White skirt from Le Chateau
-Jean jacket (vest) from Jacob Junior
-Tan wedges from Joe Fresh

Interview with Adrian Wu

Adrian Wu launched his 2011 resort collection last Wednesday.  The collection was based on ideas around molecular compounds, Mayan conspiracy theories, and extraterrestrialism.  With conspiracy comes controversy.  Along with conversation on his resort collection came talks of philosophy, politics, and social norms.

"Nothing in this world is unnatural".
As an advocate for anti-institutions and anti-politics, Wu talked of how everything in society is a construction.  Often asking who came up with social norms and why they are in place, he challenged ideas of what "fashion" is.  He argued that fashion is a product of cultural institutions and that society creates what is deemed as beautiful.  He went as far to say that clothing itself is a societal idea where in hotter seasons/climates, it is actually not necessary.  Wu says that he is less concerned with fashion and more interested in personal style. 

He says that when it comes down to dresses, realistically, they look better modeled by someone tall and a size 2.  With this controversial statement, he reminds us that every body type is beautiful and that we should be dressing to flatter our body type- not based on what is "in fashion".  This isn't limited to women though.  If a man had the right silhouette, he would look great in a dress.  What stops a man from wearing a dress is the concept of masculinity.  Wu says that what differentiates men and women aren't necessarily biological differences, but ideas of masculinity/femininity.  This relates to critiques he gets as a male designer of dresses.  Critics question how Wu would know what women want to wear because of his gender.  He responds by saying that he is a dress designer, not a womenswear designer.  "Who says that women and men have to dress a certain way?"

He acknowledges that people come in all sorts of body types and that everyone is beautiful.  Models should not be seen as being irrelevant to "real people"- they're just like any other person, but with a specific body type.  Like any other job, modeling requires a certain said of criteria and qualifications (based on aesthetics).  Wu says that people shouldn't feel the pressure to look a certain way if they're not models since there's no need to fit that set of criteria.  This is why he looks for personal style rather than fitting the fashion mould- everyone should just do whatever makes them beautiful in their own way.

Finally, I asked Wu what he would be if he were an item of clothing.  In relation to his discussion on masculinity and femininity and societal norms, he said that he would be a simple white shirt.  After all, "a dress is just a really long shirt".

For more, visit ottawafashionweek.com/blog

Adrian Wu resort collection launch event

Lesson number 1: Fashionistas are always fashionably late.

If there's one thing I should have learned from attending fashion events before, it's that attendees are always late and events never start on time.  Though guests slowly drizzled in, it didn't stop the film screening and launch of Adrian Wu's resort collection from being a hit.  With collection dresses on display at the venue, guests curiously poked at the pieces, wondering how Adrian's signature ruffled complexities were created.

The dresses were patterned with an abstract maze-like design, most fashioned with Adrian's unique ruffled stitching.  One dress seemed rather normal in comparison where it was fashioned in a straight cut- that is, until a waist-high side slit was discovered upon a closer look.

Accompanying the collection was a fashion film produced by Cloud in the Sky Studios.  The film features an alluring mystique isolation and sublime setting on top of a mountain.  In this great mix of fashion as art, it made for the perfect launch of a collection.

Me and PR Intern, Laura Kidd, trying to pull off Adrian's signature pout.

It's not at very many fashion events that you can do a kissy face. Um, it seems to work a lot better when I'm with friends and not in front of a media wall. Sticking to smiling, it is! Did I mention that my dress was $10 from Costa Blanca? I'll tell you why. I had the most awkward wires poking into me all night. It was probably worth it for one night's wear though.

Me and blogger Julie Lan (Pop Champagne)

And a couple of photos and the video of the resort collection:

Adrian Wu Resort 2011 from Cloud in the Sky Studios on Vimeo.

More photos from the Adrian's resort collection to come.  Plus, an interview feature with him where we talk controversy.  Now who doesn't like that? 

Thanks to Ming Wu for photos from the event!
For more, visit ottawafashionweek.ca/blog

Calendars don't tell me the season

Happy first day of summer, boys and girls! Well, my calendar says it's the first day anyway.  In my opinion, the summer weather has been here for a while now.  Anyway, with summer finally officially here, I bring you my 5 picks for summer essentials.

1.  A wide-brimmed woven hat.  Caution- peripheral will be limited!
2.  Nude platform heels.  Substituting for wedges is permitted.
3.  A lovely printed summer dress.  Bold stripes or florals preferred.
4.  Retro or vintage-inspired sunnies.  Coloured rims are encouraged.
5.  Adorable satchel or messenger bag.  What, you were expecting a witty followup comment?

So lovelies, whether "summer" for you is the beach, the cottage, the patio, or the mall, enjoy it in style.

Melted bubblegum sherbert

I don't really own a ton of colourful clothes.  I've been slowly working on that collection though.  My closet has typically been limited to colourful cardigans and a few shirts to liven up the mundane routine of jeans or black slacks.  Which is why I was ecstatic to have found a pair of bright pink shorts.  Colour-blocking with actual colours?  Unheard of!

I went full-out on the colour, if I do say so myself.  I considered pink lipstick, but that might be pushing it a bit. I say this look reminds me of melted bubblegum sherbert (with a ripple of lemon), but that's just for folks who don't know what Superkid from Laura Secord is.  Y'know...that colourful ice cream from our childhood?

What I'm wearing:
-Yellow cardigan from mom's closet
-Turqoise tank top from Charlotte Russe
-Pink shorts from Forever 21
-Tan wedges from Joe Fresh
-Yellow sunnies from Le Chateau
-Necklace from frAsh

Oh hey, I think I'll start using my lookbook hype button now too. Click it. You know you want to. And while you're at it, might as well hype my past looks!

It takes a runway

AMH Style hosted the "It Takes A Runway" event in partnership with Miss Universe Canada hopeful, Betsy Leimbigler.  The event aimed to raise money and awareness for the SOS Children's Village charity.  I gotta admit, I (and my family) am a sucker for beauty pageants, especially Miss Universe.  So it was quite interesting to get to know a contestant striving to represent Canada and to get an insight of the processes before the actual show.  The event featured runway shows and buying booths, and some bubbly and sweets.
 

Mafia Jewellery remains my favourite jewelers for their outstandingly unique designs.  My new favourite necklace: a pendant where you can actually load the gun!  I'm going to have to blog on that later.  Pish Posh also had some really adorable pieces that looked timeless, yet trendy.  Pica jewelry was all about the feathers.  Feathers are quite in now, yes?  Leah Christina offered some simple and cute pieces.  I especially liked the beaded bracelets.  Clothing was designed by Emilia Torabi and Jana Hanzel with their individual collections that were stunning as usual.  My new thing is hats, so I definitely enjoyed the oversized headpieces.

Emilia Torabi

Jana Hanzel

This was kind of an awkward event for me at times.  I'm kind of an awkward person.  I'm a bit surprised that I was unphased that I barely knew anyone walking in actually.  Where it got weird was photos.  Sometimes, I feel like a photographer's trying to take a candid photo of me, but I notice and it's like...do I just keep going about as normal without acknowledging that you might be taking a photo?  But even when a photographer was trying to pose me, it was fairly awkward. We resorted to me closing my eyes and opening them on the count of 3 so I appear more natural.

I left a bit early to catch the hockey game though.  Don't think I missed too much of the game, huh.

Hockey fashion

Canada's got hockey fever. Most people are abuzz with talk of what's going to happen in the final Game 7 between Vancouver and Boston for the win. And that's just in Ottawa- I can't even imagine what it's like in Vancouver! Tomorrow's going to be kind of a weird day for me. There's a charity runway show that I'm excited about, but at the same time, it overlaps with the game. Now, I never thought I'd be choosing between sports and fashion. I'm usually not the sports type, but I kinda jumped on the bandwagon for this one. 

So through my planning of how to run around and not miss too much of either event, I wondered, "if only I could combine hockey and fashion".  And here we have a makeshift fashionable colourful support for the team.  Using items from Topshop, I've created a little ensemble that would work to attend a fashion show and a pub to cheer on the team.  Note the majority blue with white and green accents- like the Canucks' jerseys.  I'm a little proud of this thought.  If only I had the right mix in my closet. But I don't have a blue dress. Or a white bag. Or green shoes.

I'd totally wear this on a regular day even if it wasn't hockey season. I'll definitely be blogging about the fashion show later, and maybe my little adventure from fashion to sport.  I'll be live tweeting like I usually do on my twitter though. 

A bit of music and a bit of philosophy

It's been a while since I've done a Music Monday post! So a few posts back, I uploaded a few photos that were titled under "She's got houseplants to keep her company".  I like to borrow my titles from lyrics when I can't think of anything else.  In this case, it came from the song Juliette by Hollerado.  See, this is why I don't watch music videos.  Now I'm not going to be able to listen to the song without thinking about a strange hippie house party.

I also have a thought for you.

Do you define your style or does your style define you?

I'd love to hear your thoughts!

How shall I spend thee?

I started Chictopia back last summer.  I gotta admit, I was very attracted to the site because of their rewards.  I've been looking at various ones, but I always have a fear of redeeming an item that doesn't fit properly.  So when the $50 Visa gift card from Transitions Lenses came out, I was excited to snag it up.

Valid only in the US? Well, it kinda got me there. I wasn't expecting that. Oh well, I guess that means I have until the next time I go to the States to figure out how I want to use this.  I'm thinking along the lines of awesome bold heels that really make a statement.  Or perhaps I should try to stretch my dollar as far as I can and buy a few pieces. Any suggestions on what I should set my eyes on?

Fact 10 is my favourite

Oh look, another 10 facts about me!  I'll keep this short and simple.

Thanks to Shasie from Live Life In Style for another blog award!  I must admit that I think I've cheated with all but one award.  Yet again, I've decided to cut down the amount of facts and the number of bloggers I'm passing this along to.

10 (more) facts about me:

1.  I always listen to the radio when I get ready in the morning.
2.  I prefer the aisle seat over the window seat.
3.  I tend to tell people that I've never dyed my hair. I've actually attempted to dye it twice...it's just never been a very noticeable change.
4.  I've never seen or read any Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings series.
5.  I've never watched Inception, Avatar, or The Dark Knight.
6.  I rarely use YouTube.
7.  My singing's so bad, even I don't wanna listen to it.
8.  I dislike the fact that I'm beginning to acquire my mother's sense of style.
9.  I wear my fake glasses more than I wear my prescription pair.
10.  I want to try to eat a whole large pizza in one sitting.

You should give these blogs a look because I pass the award onto them:

• Haute Couture
• StyleLove
• Trendy Leopard

Travel light

I had a lovely weekend trip to Toronto.  I left Ottawa with an empty suitcase and came back with a more than full one.  Hourray for shopping in other people's closet!  I brought back tons of clothes and shoes that haven't been worn in ages.  See my shoes? These were my first pair of heels.  Well, I didn't say that they were high heels.  Just little kitten heels worn to my grade 8 graduation.  Definitely one of the oldest pieces still remaining in my closet.  The shirt was my first online purchase- a simple American Apparel shirt from eBay.  That's probably when I started becoming obsessed with the magic of a credit card.

This outfit was the result of not enough space in my luggage.  I mean, packing a wide brimmed hat is just a waste of space!

What I'm wearing:
-Blue jersey shirt from American Apparel
-Green kitten heels from Winners
-Grey hand-me-down pants

MTV Movie Awards 2011 fashion

Another awards show, another night of dolled up stars.  Or at least, that's the goal for the MTV Movie Awards. Instead of doing my usual list of best and worst dressed, I'll do one list of "interesting" looks.

Selena Gomez had a pretty good look going for her.  MSN Canada said that she looked mismatched, but I disagree.  Sure, her top and bottom might not be perfectly the same colour, but the light neutral tones with a touch of mint are a lovely mix.  Her look is quite clean and refined.

Holy shoes! I feel like Amanda Bynes has had better looks, but this outfit isn't half bad.  I might have easily overlooked it if it wasn't for her crazy shoes that made me double-take.  High, turquoise, and fringy?  Now those are statement shoes.

Okay, she's young and relatively new to the red carpet scene. So, I'll let it slide that Elle Fanning's outfit looks like something I'd wear on a regular day. It's super cute on her though, no? I'm a little undecided about a full floral romper paired with floral shoes though. Floral overload?

Emma Stone was looking beautiful in a rusty taupe dress. I love the detailing of the subtle floral design and fringe at the bottom of the dress.  The black bow around the waste is also an elegant way to accentuate the waist.  Paired with satiny copper pointed-toe shoes, this was definitely one of the dressier looks of the night.

This looks familiar...oh right, I think I saw this on JLo at the Grammy's.  Leighton Meester's metallic silver dress comes out looking a little flat in comparison.  It's still a head-turning dress, but it doesn't absolutely WOW me. 

Photos from ca.msn.com

Clothing euphemisms

Hello, summer! I think I can safely say that the summer warmth is here to stay for a few months.  This is also sort of a summer of firsts for me.  My first summer spent in Ottawa and my first summer without central air conditioning.  The struggle to stay cool also brought on my first time braiding my hair. Yes, in my years of having long hair and being a girly girl, I've never braided my own hair. Last time I had my hair in braids, I was probably like 10 and it was done by my grandma.  The dress is another one of those finds that took me a few years to appreciate.  Yes, fashion eats up my wallet sometimes, but I also feel like I get my money's worth more with pieces like this.  Flashback to 3 years ago when I thought this dress looked "old".  Now I call it "vintage".

What I'm wearing:
-Dress from Winners
-Nude heels from Charlotte Russe