Joe (Keeps Me Looking) Fresh

As you have probably guessed, I am very bad with quips/being witty/good titles but hey, I tried. This is basically a haul post to show you all the shit I have bought from Joe Fresh in the past week - for what I consider pretty awesome prices. As a Canadian I am proud to represent anything that comes out of this country so I hope you won't tire of me constantly hyping my friend Joe.

 

Neon is to fashion bloggers as shiny objects are to magpies, this I will admit. Even though I love neon epic amounts, I held back on buying any neon items of clothing because I'm trying to invest in classic wardrobe pieces right now with the little money I have - and I don't want anything to look dated. That being said, this was one of those pieces that you try on in the dressing room and suddenly nothing else matters - you've got to have it. And so here I am, a blogger cliche once again (but loving it.) This 100% silk shirt was $39 - if you're looking for an affordable Equipment blouse alternative, Joe's got your back.

 

I have been looking for a cheap black maxi skirt forever. I love the concept of a maxi skirt but knew I probably wouldn't get much wear out of it so I knew I didn't want to spend too much on one. Found this one on sale at my local Joe Fresh for $10.

I kept looking at this blouse but I was usually in a rush or busy doing something else when I spotted it. It took me forever to get around to buying it - but when I finally did, it was on sale for $15! (Don't you love when that happens?) I am a sucker for anything with a snakeskin print.


Now it's time for a shopping ban. We'll see how long that lasts....

hiyamoon

After I accidentally dropped and shattered my last crystal bullet necklace, I immediately set out on a mad hunt for a new one. Just got this baby in the mail, and I'm in love. Got it off hiyamoon on Etsy -- be sure to check him out!

P.S. I promise this post was not an excuse to take pictures of my rack.

Life Can Be Cruel, If You're a Dreamer.

People are always telling me that I must not shop in stores, because every time they ask me where I got something, I say "online". After the haul I've received these past two weeks, I've got to acknowledge that they might have a point.

1. Black Milk Hooded Bodysuit. It's a little hard to see laid out on the bed here, but trust me - it'll pay for itself in spades if I ever have to play Beyonce, Lady Gaga or a Sith Lord in some type of musical. Valid reason for buying, right? I thought so too.
2. Studded Loafers, bought off EBay to fulfill my Louboutin Rollerball dreams. Will be a useful covert weapon against creepers in darkened alleyways.
3. Equipment Signature Blouse in Chinese Red. The colour of this thing is stunning in real life. Tip for all my bargain hunters - Revolve offers 30% discount for first-time buyers that is valid for Equipment shirts. I paid 145USD for this instead of 274CAD+tax at Holt Renfrew. Winning.
4. Sunglasses off EBay, inspired by the infamous Prada Baroque collection of sunnies. Lets be real, I'm too poor for real Prada glasses unless they're being partially covered by my insurance.
5. Ring off EBay, inspired by the YSL Arty. Again, in my current financial state I really can't be bothered to splurge on what is basically glorified costume jewelry.
6. Vintage Coach Abbie Purse, bought off Etsy (seriously the best place online to find vintage Coach.) It's seriously the most beautiful shade of lavender, and since I've been wearing mostly black/grey/white lately it adds a really delicate touch of colour to all my outfits which I'm loving. 
7. Black Milk White Wallpaper Dress, bought to fulfill my lifelong dream of blending into a wall a la Garden State. Damask prints for the win!

"Those Are Some Cool Galaxy Pants."

American Apparel Circle Scarf and Fisherman Knit Sweater, H&M Sheer Button-up, Guess Coat, Black Milk Leggings, Cambridge Satchel Co. Satchel, Frye Engineer 12R Boots

Yesterday, I finally received my galaxy leggings in the mail from Black Milk. I love them, but they make me feel like a fifteen year old who hopped out of the Skins cast or something... I haven't decided if it's a good thing or not. In addition, I've always been a steadfast advocate of the belief that leggings are not pants but these have me **questioning everything** - mostly because they're so loud that they're impossible to style as tights. The excessive amount of stares and side-eye I got today while wearing these wasn't helping matters either.

tl;dr version: I'm in a very conflicting love affair with my "galaxy pants" (as one girl referred to them today.)

In other news, a fashion publication at my school called Muse Magazine printed a short piece on my little corner of the web. (Read here, page 35.) To the geniuses at Muse, thank you for actually taking the time to write about my abandoned dumpster baby of a fashion blog. It's much appreciated.


P.S. This music video is making my life.

Drunk On Love, Nothing Can Sober Me Up

Another recent buy, the Penpal boots by Rachel Comey. These suckers are notoriously hard to get a hold of, so when my size showed up on EBay for 150$ less than the usual selling price, I knew I had to take advantage of the opportunity immediately. Definitely competing with my vintage Coach for best buy of the year. Also, outfit posts are kind of a bitch to do without a photographer or a tripod. I guess I'll try again tomorrow...

Black Milk

One of my newer buys, the Black Ribs Swimsuit from Black Milk shot under a black light. Currently nursing a serious obsession with this brand - three more pieces are currently in the mail to me. Deeming it the coolest piece of clothing I currently own. Will post it in an outfit soon.

Til' Death Do Us Part

Three recently purchased items I have an unnatural attachment to:

Photography Credit: Philippe Dorman (flickr/blog/twitter)

1) Rebecca Minkoff MAC (Morning After Clutch) -- I've always wanted the MAC and after seeing it significantly discounted at the RM Endless summer sale, I decided to take the plunge and go for it. Glad to say it was not an impulse I regretted (I've had far too many of those) - the bag is extremely wearable, roomy on the inside, organized, and has just the perfect amount of badass.

2) Aldo "Qualheim" boots, aka the poor woman's Isabel Marant Dicker Boots.  -- There's a reason the Dicker boots are so popular - they're practical but fashionable, and they somehow go with pretty much every outfit imaginable (who knew tan boots were so versatile?) Unfortunately my "inspired" Aldo pair is a bit tight in the toe so I'm taking them to a cobbler to get them stretched - here's to hoping they'll be wearable after this. My love affair with these boots has gone to far for me to give up on them now.

3) Nixon "The Time Teller" -- This watch is seriously my favourite purchase since my Frye boots (which I could go on about for days.) Even the simplicity of the name only accentuates what I love about this watch - its minimalistic principles - the way something can be stripped down to it's bare bones, and end up being even more luxurious. I got this watch for 100 USD, and most people have been surprised at how little I paid, especially considering the average "fashionable" watch (ex. Micheal Kors) runs around 300 bucks.


Anddddd now I'm banned from buying luxury goods anything very long time. (Or at least until the next expensive item catches my fancy...)

Love At First Sight

So it's official: I'm now the owner of a beautiful, handmade, 15" yellow Cambridge Satchel - and I couldn't be prouder. As soon as I got home, I ran outside with my bag and my camera to get a decent shot of this beauty before the sun went down. As I was laying in the grass this little kid walked by, laughing "Mom, she's taking pictures of her purse!" Now this might be a wild guess, but I suspect he may have been talking about me. Oh, the things I do for blogging.

For any fellow Torontonians interested in acquiring one of these, I bought mine at A2Zane, a wonderful little handbag shop on Queen West. Be sure to stop by - not only do they have some great, unique stuff, but the owner is also super nice.

Anyways, I'm off to go on my friend's boat for the weekend! I have quite a few recently purchased goodies to share, but I guess that will just have to wait until nest time. Have a great weekend, loves.

procrastination is the mother of invention

The title of this post (at least in my case) should probably be changed to "procrastion is fantastic motivation to start working on one of those entirely impractical DIYs you've had bookmarked for the last ten years" - but alas, that was too long. And the title I chose sounded better.

I've been dying to try my hand at making this bag ever since I bought my leather AA clutch over a month ago. Credit to Fashion 411 for the incredibly easy DIY.

The fruits of my labour:



We can consider this post a what's in her bag clutch and DIY all in one. (And yes, that is an Epi-Pen and an asthma inhaler. I was THAT kid.)

Also, joke of the day: I make said clutch, and run downstairs to show my dad my handiwork. He is rather unimpressed, but fakes some enthusiasm anyways (god bless his soul). I set down the clutch to go make dinner... and immediately lose it. There should probably be some rule banning people who are nearly legally blind without glasses (me) from making transparent things.

Somewhere Only We Know

Some of my favourite recent buys:

1) Madewell necklace. My favourite detail has to the the lobster clasp shaped like a lifeboat preserver.
2) These MBMJ flats are the love of my life. They make every outfit that much classier.
3) If I'm not wearing my MBMJ flats, I'm wearing my TOMS. I haven't even owned them for two weeks but they are oh-so-comfy, and surprisingly versatile.
4) I have been wanting this perfume forever but I couldn't justify the 130 CAD pricetag. God bless duty-free.
5) I seriously own NO shorts. These were on sale at H&M and although I've only owned them for about 48 hours, I've worn both pairs out already. A good buy, methinks.
6) Bought this American Apparel clutch for myself as a present for finishing 3rd year; it's probably my favourite buy over the last couple months. Since I can't afford the Celine version it's inspired by, I bought the next best (and affordable) thing. The leather quality is great for the price and the clutch is simple enough that it works with pretty much any outfit. I'm kind of in love.
7) 10 CAD at Black Market. Thrifting is awesome.
8) Ditto.

I may have gone a little first (and second) paycheque crazy. Time to reel it in and start properly saving for the school year. Oh joy.

P.S. My friend is currently backpacking though Europe, and blogging about it on the way. For anyone suffering from a major case of wanderlust, click here.

Yes Mary, You Sure Can Rok.

I received my Jeffrey Campbell "Mary Roks" a little over a week ago and pretty much haven't removed them from my feet at all. I swear, they are so comfortable... it's like you're walking in flats. (Even my friend who despises any elevation in the heel area said they were comfy.)

I'm in love.


Also, stopped at Forever 21 for  mini-accessories run on my way home. The booty:

I had to show off the new ring stand I got from Urban Outfitters, so I used it to to display new rings! And the robot necklace... I die. Honestly, I grabbed before I even realized what I was looking at. Definitely my new favourite accessory.

Anyways, it's Caribana this weekend in T.O. and a lot of craziness is going down... Including me seeing Drake in concert! I am so excited, you can't even understand. There will definitely be pictures =)

Have an awesome weekend (long weekend for my fellow Canadians!)

I Know You've Been Burned, But Every Fire Is A Lesson Learned.

armour ring from ebay, gold ring from Aldo, O.P.I nail polish in "Lucky Lucky Lavender"

Received my new Vivenne Westwood knockoff inspired armour ring today - I'm in love already. Painted my nails this beautiful pink-lilac shade in celebration - it's a pretty big deal for me, considering I only paint my nails black. Ever.

I currently own like, 4 rings, I kid you not. I'm honestly just really picky about them, and I just went through an accessories overhaul in which I threw out all my old stuff that was missing a side/tarnished/not my style anymore. Aspiring to have a ring collection more like this:

IndieGoesPop

Or these chicks:

All images from tumblr via Asymmetrica.

And while I'm at it, check out Asymmetricera (where I got most of those ring photos from). A style blog run by Sinead & Mychelle; two girls who inspire me daily not just through their own ensembles but also through kick-ass photos they find throughout the net of items & looks most of us could only dream about.

Anyways, off to buy this ring stand from Urban Outfitters:

Here's to hoping it'll help inspire me in my quest to become a fabulous bag lady with way too many rings.

P.S. Updated my sidebar with blogs I've recently fallen in love with. Canadians are bolded because we're too sexy for our shirts.

Titular Song: "Guns & Horses" by Ellie Goulding

"Oh yes, I love to do shoes. I'm not a fetishist but I love to do shoes."

For those of you who aren't from Toronto, Kensignton Market is the city's go-to vintage/thrift/flea market hub - and officially my new favourite place on Earth. Some of my recent buys:

Got both the cowboy boots and the Docs - two shoes I have been coveting forever - at Cinderella Vintage (54 Kensington Ave). I am honestly the pickiest, most indecisive shopper ever, but the store owner was awesome - he handled both my never-made-up mind and gigantic feet with class and great service.

Got this aztec print backpack at an army surplus store on Baldwin. Safe to say that it pretty much hasn't left my back since I bought it.

So in love with this Boy Scouts of America shirt - the little details in the badges are what make it so cool and special to me. Whenever I wear it, I wonder about the boy scout who it belonged to. All I know is that he was from Minnesota.

Graphic tees make my life, and these were particularly satisfying - an excellent lesson in comparing and contrasting, don't you agree? Karl & Weezy couldn't be more different but I have come to love them both. Although in the end I kept the Karl tank, and gave my sister the Weezy one - she must have liked it a lot, because she stopped breathing for about five minutes when I gave it to her.

I'll def be back there soon...


P.S. The title quote is by the one and only Karl Lagerfeld, just in case you were wondering.