Casual Glam - Girls night Out!!

Hey Friends!

Hope everyone had a great long weekend :) It was Family Day on Monday here in Ontario - although, now that I'm on mat-leave, everyday is Family Day!! 

So last Friday, I went out to dinner with my sister and cousins SANS bebe!!! I was super excited as I pretty much am never anywhere without Emma (not including quick trips to Walmart/Shoppers Drugmart/Foodbasics - i.e. anyplace I can get to and from before the next feeding...). We went to Joey's at Yorkdale (one of my fav chain restaurants) and as it was Friday night, and I was without baby, it was all the excuse I needed to glam up my "mommystyle".

I decided to really play up my makeup and hair. On my face I did a bright red lip and a charcoal and navy smokey eye:

For my smokey eye look, I used "blackout" from the Urban Decay Naked2 palette all over my lid and then used "Sea" from the MAC Sea and Sky Mineralized Eyshadow Duo in the crease. I then used "suspect" from the Naked2 pallet to blend the colour from my crease up above my lid towards the bottom of my brow bone. I finished the shadow look by using "bootycall" from the Naked2 palette in the inner corners of my eyes.

Here is a shot of my lids:

I used my drugstore faithfuls, L'Oreal Lineur Intense liquid liner in "Carbon Black" on my top lids (I think I probably could've gone a bit thicker) and smuged Rimmel London Soft Khol Kajal pencil eyeliner in "jet black" to my bottom lid. Finally, I finished the eye look with two coats of  Maybelline's Volume Express "The Falsies" mascara in "black drama". 

On my cheeks I always use "gleeful" by MAC. It's a mineral blush that I think looks really soft and natural on my skintone:

I don't think that MAC makes this shade anymore but they have a similar product here.

When I want to really "glam" up my make-up look, I love to use E.L.F's High Definition loose powder in "sheer": 

It is ridiculously cheap at under $10 and I love, love, LOVE the overall finish and effect!! You need such a small amount that I am sure this container will last me a lifetime!

I used Revlon's Colorstay Lipcolor in Raspberry Mousse to create a bold red lip, and volia!

                                                    

                

I went for a comfy, "casual/cool" outfit choice:

I threw on a pair of sunnies and my Kensington Parka (it was -32 degrees on Friday!!!) and had a great girls night out!! 

I hope you had a great weekend - I'd love to see photos of how you do "casual glam"!!

Shoppin' for Baby!

Happy Friday Friends!!!

I was super excited when I checked my e-mail this morning and discovered that Old Navy was having a 50% off baby sale! It just so happens that while Emma's closet is indeed busting at the seams, for some reason, she is in need of pants. She's got tons of onesies and sleepers and sweaters and tops (still too cold for dresses up here...), but she has managed to outgrow virtually all of her pants or has not yet fit into the bigger sizes.

Now, this is my second time around the baby block and I know just how quickly they outgrow everything in this first year. As a result I am adamantly opposed to paying full price for baby clothing if it can be at all avoided.

I am also a mother who tends to be naturally drawn to colors, styles and fabrics for my daughter that I would also purchase for myself. I like crisp, clean denims and a base color palate of soft pink, white, navy and grey. Fortunately there are a lot of great options for kids and baby clothes that cater to momma's like me who preferred neutrals over brighter colours for baby. My favourite stores for baby shopping include Baby Gap, Zara (Baby), H&M, Joe Fresh and Old Navy. Price points at baby Gap can be a bit higher but fortunately sales are regular, and I can usually find whatever it is I need at reasonable (and even bargain basement) prices by shopping the sales (I have gotten every winter coat that Grace has ever owned - great quality, stylish, down-filled coats - at 50-70% off the regular Zara or Gap kids price by purchasing next winter's coat at the end season sale of the previous winter!)

Here's what I picked up at Old Navy for Emma today:

Everything was on sale for between 30 and 50% off, and the 5 pocket denim jeans and the stretch jeggings were both on red tag clearance for $4.99 (sweet!!!). The cotton pants are really soft and wash really well (I have them in grey and grey stripe for her as well).

Finally, I picked up a couple packages of socks for her as she's outgrown most of her 0-3mos ones:

                           

I think that Old Navy and Baby Gap make the best socks for baby. They are super thick, stretchy cotton that is so soft and comfy. I especially love the ones that are designed to look like little mary-jane shoes - too, too cute!

After un-bagging everything and removing the tags and packaging, I couldn't resist the urge to do a little "baby styling" and put together a couple of "outfits" for Em :)

Bunny Rabbit Puffer Vest - H&M

Pants - Old Navy (similar)

Moccasins - Baby Gap (old, similar)

Blouse - Baby Gap (old)

Jeans - Old Navy

Sandals - Baby Gap (old)

Any baby items tagged as "old" are actually hand-me-downs from Grace and so they are like 5 years old! I will try to find similar items where possible and provide you with the links.

Have a great weekend!!!

Super Sunday - Styling the Statement Necklace

Happy Superbowl Sunday Everyone!

I'm not exactly sure that this is a holiday in the true sense of the word holiday...but why not?

As I was preparing to get ready to head over to our friends house for their annual Superbowl party, I took a look through my closet and decided to go with a cute but casual pair of high-waisted skinny jeans, white tee and my new beige flannel boyfriend shirt that a snagged for just $10 bucks at the Old Navy winter clearance sale. As I was finalizing my OOTD, I decided to add my chunky jeweled necklace for a bit more interest, and a bit more edge.

Really pleased with the overall look, I got the idea to do a post about switching up the way one traditionally thinks of styling (ie, adding accessories to help style the look of an outfit), and share how you can make a statement necklace the inspiration for styling a couple of outfits around. Additionally, I wanted to share my ideas for how a really pretty piece of dressier jewelry can work with a whole spectrum of looks, from formal to casual to downtown hipster cool.

Here is the necklace that I started with:

I picked this up for next to nothing last fall while I was visiting a friend in London at the popular discount high-street store, Primark. Its chunky and weighty and was the center-point for the looks you will find below.

Typically, you would expect to pair such a pretty piece with some sort of formal wear or a dressier outfit such as this pretty gold and bronze brocade dress:

Dress - Zara (old)

I like the idea of pairing the pewter based necklace with the gold and black dress. It's a less obvious choice and I think it looks pretty cool!

Just because the necklace is pretty however, doesn't mean it's wear has to be limited to dresses. I think that the piece looks great styled with the casual outfit below:

T-shirt - Joe Fresh (similar)

Jeans - Winners

Flannel Boyfriend Shirt - Old Navy

Booties - Calvin Klein

I also love it with a pair of cropped wool dress pants, sleeveless tee and gladiator sandals - a perfect outfit for an afternoon of shopping or meeting the girls for brunch. And for those of you in more creative industries, this could be a great look for the office with or without a blazer thrown on top:

Tank - Old Navy

Pants - Old Navy

Shoes - Sam Edelman

My favorite look by far, plays homage to my inner "downtown hipster" and involves the unexpected combination of textures and fabrics shown below - pairing the ultra dressy with the super casual in a fun, flirty, feminine way. Add a pair of Ray-Ban Wayfarers and away you go!

                                                        Denim Jacket - Zara TRF (similar)

Booties - Nine West

Sunglasses - Ray Ban

Typically we look to our accessories to "accent" our outfits. But I think you could come up with some really unique looks and get more distance from your existing wardrobe by starting with a great statement piece of jewelry and then styling your outfit around your accessory!

I'd love to hear your ideas for "styling your statement pieces"!

Editor's note: Due to the forecasted snowstorm presently hitting Toronto and Southern Ontario, the original outfit that inspired this post never actually saw the light of day. I did however, enjoy a great superbowl party-of-four at home with my husband and daughters (what....a...GAME!) and now have 3 great new outfit ideas that should cut my "get-ready" time by an entire 5 minutes the next time we go out :) - You're welcome honey!!!