Shoes and the City

Since the launch date of Sarah Jessica Parker's shoe line at Nordstrom was last month (February 28), I thought I would do a Sex and the City tribute post. This show has influenced me so much over the years, since I first started watching it in grade 11, and rewatching all the seasons over and over again.

I get so much inspiration from Carrie, from relationships to fashion, that I can't believe I haven't already made a post about it. Carrie has always been spot-on, or ahead of the trends, so even though the last season of Sex and the City aired in 2004 (10 years ago?!?) and the latest movie came out in 2010, I will forever continue to look to the foursome for inspiration and advice.

Luckily, we haven't had to go without any new Carrie Bradshaw shenanigans, since the prequel The Carrie Diaries made it's way onto our televisions just a year ago (early 2013). As a fan of the books, I was so excited to hear that it was being made into a TV show, and even though it's not good old SJP, it still represents something that I've gone through my adolescent career loving (and still am into my 20s).

So here are just some pics I've found very inspiring over the years, from Sex and the City, and more recently from The Carrie Diaries.

(My Sex and the City poster in my room; apologies about the bad photography because you can see me in the bottom corner!)

Check out Sarah Jessica's Nordstrom collection here!

The Oscars: Best Looks

As I'm sure you all know, the Oscars were last weekend and I hope you all got to watch them, as they were amazing. Congrats to everyone on their huge wins!

Now, as a lover and student of fashion, one of the most anticipated parts of any awards show for me is what the stars are wearing. So below are my favourite looks from this year's Oscars.

Whether strapless, short-sleeve or long-sleeve, it seems like this year's theme for women was slim fitted gowns, though some of them had a fuller skirt or train. The gowns had a bit of sparkle to them, in very soft colours, such as silver, nude, off-white, or pale pink, and they looked gorgeous on all who wore them (even Lady Gaga decided to follow the trend, though she still added her own twist).

Cate Blanchett Armani Privé

Jennifer Garner Oscar de la Renta

Sally Hawkins Valentino

Sarah Paulson Elie Saab

Naomi Watts Calvin Klein Collection

Angelina Jolie Elie Saab Haute Couture

Maria Menounos

Jessica Biel Chanel Haute Couture

Lady Gaga Atelier Versace

But it also seems there were some who did not follow this trend, and thank god they didn't, because they could not have looked more beautiful if they tried.

Lupita Nyong'o Prada
Lupita has worn some amazing colours on the red carpet this year so far, but I just absolutely loved this pale blue and the way it looked with her skin tone. Also the shape just complemented her body so perfectly. I think we have a new style setter on our hands!

Kerry Washington Jason Wu
With or without a baby bump, this dress would have been dazzling on her. I especially love the colour!

Olivia Wilde Valentino

Though this look was very simple, it looked absolutely stunning on Olivia. It was paired with the right (and right amount of) accessories.

And of course, the men. All looking so dapper, and kudos to Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey for standing out amongst all the dark colours!

Bradley Cooper Tom Ford

Brad Pitt Tom Ford

Leonardo DiCaprio Armani

Jared Leto Saint Laurent by Hedi Slimane

Matthew McConaughey Chopard

(His wife, Camilla Alves, also wearing the soft hue trend from Gabriela Cadena)

What were your favourite Oscar looks? Let me know in the comments below!

Weekend Highlights

I hope everyone had a great first March weekend, and that the rest of them will be less cold and snowy! This weekend was busier than the last few for me, now that I'm in the second half of my school semester and things are starting to pile up.

Friday I started shopping for my photo shoot I have to do for a school project. This project has been very stressful for me lately, as I need to use a professional photographer, hair and makeup artist, and model, and cold calling is definitely not my strong suit. But I knew once I got my theme and story figured out and started shopping for it I would start to get into it. And I was so right. Not only was I so excited to actually start buying clothes and accessories that would bring my idea to life, but it lifted some of the stress, since some of the work is now done. That's not to say I'm anywhere near done even the planning stages of my shoot, but it's definitely a start!

Saturday night I went out for dinner with some girls from work and it was definitely the night out that I needed to get my mind off of school and projects and midterms. The only thing that would have made it better was if there hadn't been a snowstorm! And of course, Sunday night was the 86th Academy Awards. It was so much fun to sit around with my family, some bottles of wine and takeout, and watch the exciting show. Stay tuned for my post later in the week where I tell you what I think were the best Oscar celeb looks!

What did everyone else do this weekend?

Floral Kimonos

This spring trend is a combination of two great pieces for the spring season of any year: light fabrics and floral prints.

Even though it's spring and the weather's only getting warmer, you sometimes still need a light layer on top of your tank or tee, or your outfit might just not be complete without one more garment. That's why kimonos are perfect for spring and summer; they're so light but still let you add some chic to your look. And why not throw some floral prints on them so they're just perfect for the season?

They come in all different lengths, silhouettes, styles, and colours, so you have so much room to make the look your own, while still being super trendy.

(Love how this one was styled as a bathing suit cover-up!)

Check out my post Anticipation to see how you can wear this trend even before the weather gets warm!

Covet

Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in so long, I had been experiencing some really bad computer problems, but now everything is fixed and so expect some posts coming your way!

Today I want to tell you all about an app that I have recently become addicted to: Covet Fashion. It's a game for your iPhone, where you shop, create outfits, and enter "events" where you win prizes and earn points. The points let you unlock new levels, where you can enter new events and earn more points.

There are daily events that you can enter and earn $500 in the game, to expand your wardrobe, and there are also events you can enter based on how much your closet value is ($10,000, $25,000, $50,000, and $100,000), which you get $100 for. Some events have requirements for what you have to wear, and some you can just create any kind of outfit.

The prizes you win are clothes and accessories for your avatar, but every once in a while there will be an event sponsored by a "featured brand" or a "giveaway", and whichever player has the top score for their outfit in the entire game can win a real life prize. If you ask me, that's pretty awesome.

This game is great because there are always new events that you can enter, and so even if you have unlocked all the levels, you can still continue playing and you'll never be bored. Covet is an interactive game that lets you vote on outfits created by other real players for each event, and other players vote on outfits you have made.

 

It's a great way to work on your styling techniques and see what other people think. But probably the best part about this game is that it uses real pieces from real designers. You can learn about the fabric of certain pieces, style, and brand image of real designers.

It's also great if you're on a budget in real life (like me) and can't always buy everything you want. You can still have an outlet for you shopping/fashion obsession and can play around with designer merchandise. And best of all, it's free! So try it out and tell me what you think in the comments!

Weekend Highlights

Happy February everyone! I thought I'd just do a little post about what I've been up to this weekend to tide you over until my next blog post.

This week has been my first really big week at school since I've been back, since we were assigned a couple projects, so it's kind of finally hitting me that I have a whole other semester (and a spring course) to get through. So I was definitely in need of some cheering up and motivation.

Friday night I went over to my friend's for dinner, wine, and old movies. It was a great start to my weekend. We made fajitas with homemade guacamole, and for dessert, cappuccino frozen yogurt with fruit, reese's peanut butter and mint chocolate on top. Yummy.

On Saturday, my sister and I decided to go downtown, since she needed to scout some locations for an upcoming film project for school, during which I took the photos below around Commerce Court. The snow was falling and even though we got extremely wet an snowed on, the city is just so beautiful when it's snowing. At least it wasn't in the -20s like it has been lately.

And since we were downtown, who was I to say no to a little shopping while we were down there? The thing I realized about shopping after the holidays is that the really big sales actually happen around January/February. Everyone waits for Boxing Day for the really great sales and that's when most people will spend their money after shopping for holiday presents. But Boxing Day is really only the first day that merchandise gets marked down, and then whatever doesn't sell at the end of December, stays on sale until at least mid-February or until it's old out, getting marked down even further every few weeks. That's not to say that there are no good sales or promotions going on the day after Christmas (because there definitely is!), but next year give your bank account a break after holiday shopping and wait another month or so before grabbing up some great finds at amazing prices, including a Valentine's Day gift!

How was everyone's first weekend in Februrary?!