Category Archives: Fashion

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Fashion Fun Friday: Social Bliss

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Do you belong to any online fashion sites? One site that I personally enjoy is Socialbliss.com. I “opened a store” on this online community of fashionistas almost a year ago initially to promote the galaxy leggings that I started selling through my business SugarLandClothing.com. By “opening a store” I mean that I joined the site and shared a bunch of items that I personally loved and linked where people could buy them.

What I love about this site is that it’s an online shopping site that basically had a baby with Pinterest. You can tag items to appear in your “store” to share with those who follow you…

Recently I learned about their new StyleBox, which for a monthly charge, you get a slew of items that is a combination of hot items featured on fellow member’s store and stuff that PR firms are looking to push – resulting in a combination of what they call “catwalk and street fashion to keep you on-trend, every single month”. The January and February boxes looked outstanding!!! So I decided that I needed to get on this. I was so freaking excited for this! I started the sign up process only to be denied as they do not ship outside of the US.

BUT I have come up with a work-around for my friends who live near a US border! I am getting mine shipped to MyUSaddress.ca in Ogdensburg and will drive there every month until they ship to Canada. Here’s how you can get yours too! http://www.socialbliss.com/campaigns/inbound/NHwzNTU2Ng==

Fashion Fun Friday: Miracurl

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In last week’s Fashion Friday post, I briefly discussed the Babyliss Miracurl and Batiste brand of dry shampoo. Today I wanted to do a bit of a follow up on the Miracurl as my order arrived and today I gave it a test run. I feel the need to once again declare that this is NOT a paid endorsement. But feel free to pay me…

As I mentioned last week, I had my hair curled at the salon with the Miracurl, and, as the marketing materials promised, the curls lasted for four days. My stylist had made it look so freakin’ easy to use that I immediately ordered one off Amazon. But as I’m sure each of you can attest to, what sometimes looks effortless at the salon is difficult to achieve at home. This is why not all of us are stylists I suppose…

Anyhoo, I decided this morning was ‘the morning’ to give it a go on my own and if I sucked at it, the hair bun donut would be my Plan B. Here’s what happened:

Step One: I turned on the Miracurl. It has three setting options for heat, time and curl options. I set it to full heat, 12 seconds on the timer and to alternating curls. It heated up in under a minute.

Step Two: I clipped my hair into two sections to make sure I didn’t miss any strands in the back.

Step Three: I grabbed a small section (roughly about the size of a quarter at my scalp) and clamped the Miracurl on about half way down. It’s important to note here that one side of the Miracurl always needs to be facing your head as it sucks your hair into the chamber. If it’s facing the wrong way, the machine will pull itself into your head which I can’t image would be very pleasant. Twelve seconds and four beeps later, I had a perfect curl.

Step Four: Repeat for rest of head.

This entire process of curling all of my hair took about 6 minutes!! Seriously, only 6 minutes.
Then I waited for the curls to cool and added a bit of texture gum. Here’s my result: (Thank You Photoshop Soft Filter!)

photo

So I say two thumbs up baby! This contraption is a keeper. There are a couple other brands out there but since the machine is designed to pull your hair into the curling compartment, my vote is to invest in the brand that is for professional use. (For one section I had too much hair so it wasn’t able to pull it into the chamber properly. It beeped at me to release right away and my hair was undamaged. I cringe to imagine what the result would have been on a lesser model.)

Now if someone can please make crimping your hair that easy (and back in style) I’d be in pure heaven!

Fashion Fun Fridays: Hair Product Review

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Okay so this is really isn’t about “fashion” today, but more about beauty products which are like our fashion accessories.

Last Saturday I finally got my butt to the salon for a long overdue cut and highlight. One of the colourist’s hair had these amazing waves and explained to me that she had curled her hair with the Babyliss Miracurl… 3 days earlier! Whaaaaaat?!  I was intrigued. I’ve seen versions of this curling machine in stores and in ads and I categorize it as a gimmick and somewhat intimidating. I mean the thing sucks your hair into a crazy hot contraption. Nothing about it could possibly be good. I was wrong.

I asked my god of cut and colour, aka Bruce at Silver Scissors, to give me curls. And he obliged. (Before I go any further, I should say that I have fine, stick straight hair. I’m convinced that my hair rebels against hair spray as revenge for the 80s, so I don’t bother to use it.) A little Aveda Smooth Infusion style-prep smoother while my hair was wet and a little OSIS+ Thrill texture fibre gum after it was curled and I was feeling like a rock star!photo 1

It was a crappy rainy humid day and the curls lasted all day. And then the next day! With the rainy weather my hair would normally be flat and pasted to my head, but thanks to the Aveda stuff, I was still rocking bouncy curls.  At this point I was committed to see if the curls would really last four days. And they did.

During these four days I was obviously not washing my hair, so I was using my cult classic Batiste dry shampoo that I picked up from Shoppers Drug Mart. The week started out as a ‘let’s see if these curls will really last four days’, turned into an experiment to push the limits of my dry shampoo to see how many days I could use it before I needed to wash my hair. (Before you all go eeeewwwww, I did shower. Just didn’t wash my hair. And BTW it’s not good to wash your hair every day… so there.)

It’s been six days since I washed my hair and I will shout the praises of my Batiste dry shampoo! (No, they are not paying me to say that… but if they want to, I wouldn’t say no…) I used the XXL Volume and wish it had been around in the 80s to give Final Net hair spray a run for it’s money in volume. I also wish I had taken pics of my hair each day, but sadly I lacked the forethought. Here’s my hair on Day 5, which I think is even better than the first day as it looks fuller:photo 2

Today, Day 6, I think would have been my limit, but thanks to my hair donut I am instead sporting a bun – which works even better with ‘dirty’ hair.

photo 2(1)

Tomorrow it will be one week since I’ve washed my hair. What I’ve learned from this little experiment is that A) I don’t need to wash my hair everyday; and B) it’s time to shake up my day-to-day styling so I’ll be buying that Miracurl thank you very much.  But if you call tomorrow and I can’t come to the phone, it really will be because I am washing my hair.

photo 1(1)

Fashion Fun Friday: Are you a Hipster?

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A year ago if you asked me what a Hipster was, I’d have probably replied that is was a style of jeans rather than a subculture people. While they’ve been around for a long time, Hipsters have come into the forefront a style revolution with their distinct fashion – often stereotyped by vintage thrift shop shirts, rolled up jeans and dark rimmed glasses. Love them or hate them, Hipsters have become the pioneers and leaders of our latest cultural and fashion trends. We can thank them for the surge of distressed jeans, leggings, plaid flannel shirts and old concert tees found at H&M, Forever 21 and American Eagle.

tees

For me, not knowing what a Hipster was, had more to do with being unaware of the current label placed on this group. Before the term Hipster was coined, waaay back in the early 90s, the style was simply called “Alternative”.  As in alternative to the mainstream – which at the time was the uniform of Polo shirts and penny loafers. In those days, the smell of teen-spirit had saturated the air thanks to Nirvana and somewhere in between Polo preppy and Seattle-grunge, “Alternative” was born. Which looking back, makes me one of the original Hipsters, what with my fake black-rimmed glasses, unisex plaid shirt and tapered jeans. (Back then they were called tapered. And we ‘tapered’ them ourselves, sometimes just using a shit-ton of safety pins.)

Here’s some Hipster inspired fashions that I currently love at Forever 21. Mix them up with some vintage finds for create a look that is unique to you.feminine-cardigan

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Fashion Fun Friday: Fun Fashion Sites

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Today for Fashion Fun Friday I wanted share some of my favourite sites for fashion for anyone still looking for ideas for New Year’s Eve.

One place that I LOVE buying stuff from is a site called FashionJunkee.com. I happened upon this site after seeing their small ad in a gossip rag I was reading while getting my hair coloured. (Spoiler alert! I’m not a natural blonde…) The ad featured this winged kimono dress that caught my eye and is now happily living in my closet:

Wing Kimono Dress

Top Shop is another favourite of mine… I learned about this store while on vacation last year in Chicago and fell in love with their cheeky, trendy and low-cost fashions. For this New Year’s Eve, I’m on the hunt for some fringe, so this cute Velvet Fringe Tunic has made the shopping list:

Velvet Fringe Dress

Another great online shopping site is still Zappos. Offering a wide variety of designers for a variety of budgets. How fun this this Parker Allegra Dress!!

Parker Allegra Dress

If all else fails, you can rent a dress from Toronto’s Rent Frock Repeat. You can wear the latest dresses from the hottest designers for around $100! Like this Ivory Beaded Fringe Cocktail Dress:

Ivory Beaded Fringe Cocktail Dress

Fashion Fun Friday: Christmas Jammies

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Growing up we always got a new pair of jammies for Christmas. It was the one gift my sister and I were allowed to open on Christmas eve – and we’d immediately put them on. Not sure if the tradition was born because my mother wanted us to look good in photos as we opened up our gifts, but having matching Christmas pajamas added a feeling of festivity. We’ve had matching night gowns, flannels and footies over the years, but none ever matched the hilarity of Ralphie’s Pink Bunny PJs from the movie A Christmas Story:

A Christmas Story

Fun Pajama Fact: The word “pyjama” traces its etymological origin to the Persian word “payjama,” meaning “leg garment.”

I’ve often wondered if other families had this tradition and was pleasantly surprised that many do! As an adult, I sometimes still get a set of flannel jam-jams from my mom, but all-in-all that family tradition faded away after we left the nest some 20 years ago… However, I think that there is a surge in old holiday traditions (see my post on the rise of the Ugly Christmas Sweater); and a quick Google search will bring you a plethora places to buy matching Christmas jammies.

I’ll leave you with this fun holiday message (and great PR stunt!) from the Holderness family that’s been making headlines and making Christmas jammies cool again….

Fashion Fun Friday: Winter Boots

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Winter is here. Which means parkas, toques, scarves, mittens and, of course, winter boots. Dressing for winter can be a challenge as it seems that this is the one season where functionality and fashion are not mutually exclusive. Like any gal, I like to look fashionable, but as the years have passed, I will admit that if I have to make a choice, I’d rather be warm than fashionable when it’s -20c outside.

There are many articles right now on how to stay warm and look fashionable when the temperature plummets. These articles talk about wearing layers, cute sweaters and scarves. That’s great and all, but I live in CANADA where winter weather can be unforgiving, with high wind-chills, heavy snowfalls, blizzards, freezing rain and extremely cold temperatures. And it can last for almost six months depending on where you live!

So let’s talk about what you are going to wear on your feet with that cute outfit when there is 15+ cm of snow on the ground and the windchill puts the temperature at about about -35c. As every Canadian knows, a thick pair of socks can only take you so far… Then you need to invest in a good pair of winter boots.

photo 2As someone with a healthy shoe obsession, you might be surprised to hear that I only have five pairs of winter boots. (I don’t count those is my 65+ pairs of footwear.) Some are for pure function, like my Merrell hiking-style winter boots that I use for walking my dogs. Others are for warmth for long stretches of outside activity where I want to look a little more ‘stylish’, like my glorious Joan of Arctic Sorrels (which I tend to pair with an Under Armour thermal base, skinny jeans, a winter leather jacket and a crocheted hat).

But when traveling to work, or meeting up with friends for indoor stuff, these babies are not going to cut it. Sorrels are very warm and perfect for being outside, but not that functional in a restaurant! That’s when I break out my high-heeled rubber soled faux-fur lined boots that are a bit more stylish.photo(1) I picked these babies up at a shoe sample expo. No idea who makes them. If you know, let me know.

Even though we say winter is here – you know, because of the all the snow and freezing temperatures – the first official day of winter isn’t actually until December 21 the date of this year’s Winter Solstice. If you didn’t already know, the solstice is an astronomical event that occurs twice a year as the sun reaches its highest or lowest point relative to the celestial equator. The Winter Solstice is when the sun reaches its most southerly declination of -23.5 degrees. In other words, it is when the North Pole is tilted 23.5 degrees away from the sun. Huh, what?

Let’s try something easier…

Remember last year when everyone thought the world was gonna end? What really happened was that the 2012 Winter Solstice coincided with the end of the Mayan calendar.

Now you are probably wondering how is this related to winter boots? Isn’t it obvious? Life is short but it can feel like the end of the world with cold feet.

Fashion Fun Friday: Ugly Holiday Sweaters

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Have you noticed the increasing trend in Ugly Sweater themed parties? How did all this craziness start? I blame Bill Cosby with his crazy patterned sweaters for making these sweaters mainstream in the 80s. The revival among younger people throwing ugly Christmas sweater parties, according to Time Magazine, started as a way for young adults to mock their parents’ love of festive looks and thought the sweaters were (gasp) cute.

However the history of the first ugly sweater party can be traced back to 2002 in Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada) where two friends, Jordan Birch and Chris Boyd, decided to host one at their house. Now celebrating their 12th event, this once small house party is now the official The Ugly Christmas Sweater Party(TM) – an annual fundraiser for the Children’s Wish Foundation.  Their motto: Be Ugly. Do Good. Connect. Give. Reconnect & Be Kind.

Despite the popularity of these parties, it’s surprisingly hard to find a good ugly sweater these days. While it can be argued that one person’s perception of ugly is another person’s beautiful, when it comes to finding an ugly holiday sweater it seems that we all are seeking the same thing. That tacky sweater that you perhaps once owned in the 80s because you got it as a gift and your mom wouldn’t let you throw it out. In fact she may have even been the one who bought it for you. Although it is pretty safe to assume that these ugly sweaters were designed with the original intention of being attractive. So begs the question: Which came first, the sweater or the ugly?

Determined to be successful this year, I set out once again in search of the perfect ugly sweater at the usual places: thrift shops such as Value Village, the Salivation Army and the like. Nada. Zip. Zero. The problem with searching “the usual places” is that this is where everyone else is looking too. So either everyone has already cleaned them out long ago or there are just no ugly holiday sweaters to be found. Have we actually run out of tacky leftovers from the 80s??? Where does one find an ugly holiday sweater these days??

Turns out there are now entire stores dedicated to the ugly sweater. In fact when I went online to see where I could find one of these tacky gems, I only had to type the word ‘ugly’ for Google to immediately return the suggestion of “ugly Christmas sweater”! Here’s what I found:

TheSweaterStore.com has a slew of ugly sweaters ripe for the picking. They promote themselves as having “The World’s Largest Selection of Ugly Christmas Sweaters.” Like this one:

ugly-christmas-sweater-31873-574x861

Not to be outdone, MyUglyChristmasSweater.com boasts having a large selection of tacky 80s sweaters. They do. Check out this beauty:

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And then there is Canadian retailer HolidayRejects.ca who not only offers a selection of ugly Christmas sweaters, but LED light kits to add some extra ‘pizzazz’ to one you may already have.

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And then there is TipsyElves.com. This site has some cheeky tacky sweaters with reindeer in compromising positions and gingerbread men fearing for their lives…

tipsy_elves_christmas_jumper_-_gingerbread_nightmare_red_-_women

Now when you find yourself with an invitation to an ugly sweater party, you’ll be set! Be Ugly. Do Good. Connect. Give. Reconnect & Be Kind. Happy Holidays.

Fashion Fun Friday: Whoooo?

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I like things with owls on them. I’ve liked them for years. It started when a previous co-worker asked me why I didn’t have any personal nick-knacks on my desk at work. So I hit the Dollar Store and bought some weird owl figures that I thought were hilarious. When it was time to get a new case for my iPhone, I grabbed the owl one because it was cute. And then came the owl socks… And the owl ring… It may seem like I have a problem here, but folks I was just ahead of my time! Owls are in. In a big way.

Here’s an interesting fact about owls: Their eyes are pretty much fixed in their sockets, which means they must turn their entire head to see in a different direction. Contrary to popular myth, an owl cannot turn its head completely backwards. But it can turn its head 135 degrees in either direction; it can thus look behind its own shoulders, with a total 270-degree field of view!

Here’s some head-turning owl items that are worth fixing your sights on:

Fashion Fun Friday: DIY Silk Screening

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Tramp Stamp Tees
If you haven’t figured this out yet, I have my hands in many pots. Many interesting and fun pots. One of these is a clothing company that I started in the spring called SugarLand Clothing. Right now we offer Galaxy leggings and Tramp Stamp Tees.

After working in marketing and promotions for over ten years I suddenly found myself out of job last year. So I launched SugarLand Media. (Seeing a theme here?)  But being a creative “artsy” person, I wanted to get my hands dirty and make something. After all, we are in the midst of the Maker Movement!  But since I don’t own a 3D printer, I went low-tech and taught myself to silk screen.

While a lot of fun, silk screening in your basement is a little tougher than YouTube would have you believe. That said, I suggest you give it a shot as once you get the hang of it, it’s a great way to express yourself. To get started, I bought a fabric screen printing starter kit and set up shop in my basement. It came with a screen (mesh count unknown), a hard plastic squeegee, photo emulsion, three fabric inks (black, blue and red), and a how-to booklet. Armed with that booklet and many YouTube videos under my belt, I decided to dive in.

Step 1: In the dark, evenly coat your screen with photo emulsion and let dry on a flat raised surface. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Right? Wrong.  I used too much emulsion, didn’t spread it as evenly as I thought AND got dried drip marks. Despite this, I forged ahead.

Step 2: Print your design onto a piece of transparency paper. A: Do you know how hard it is to find transparency paper these days?? B: My little ink jet does not like transparency paper. So after a few attempts with streaks and ink that just wouldn’t dry, I headed to Staples to get them printed.  “That was easy.” (Insert snickering here for my clever use of the Staples marketing slogan.)

Step 3: Make the contact print to “burn the screen”. Basically put your transparency on the screen, put a piece of glass on top to hold it there and expose it to light. I invested in a $5 UV bulb from Henry’s and an aluminum cylinder lamp thingy from Home Depot ($15) which drastically cut down the exposure time. This part went smoothly. Whew!

Step 4: After exposed, wash the unexposed emulsion away using a pressure hose and, ta-da!, there’s your image ready to screen. This step took way long than shown. Until I decided to go outside and use my garden hose sprayer. Success.

Step 5: After the screen has dried, put it on the shirt, flood the screen with the ink, then press and drag the squeegee across to transfer the ink to your shirt. Remove the screen to see your masterpiece… IN THEORY! In reality there was nothing on my shirt.  So I did it again, and again, and again…. Finally after running the ink over my screen about 20 times pressing crazy hard, I got a print! Lesson here, screens have mesh counts. Whatever the mesh count was, it was obviously too high, and therefore too fine, making it tough to push the ink through. Stupid starter kit. But I finally had a shirt and I was hooked!

Shortly thereafter, I found a local screen printing supplier who took the time to educate me on mesh counts, the value of a flexible squeegee, how investing in a “scoop-coater” makes applying emulsion a breeze. Now my process looks closer to those video tutorials; and I have some cheeky tees shirts!

The lesson here? If I can do this. You can definitely do this. Now go make something!