Springtime Happiness

Happy Tuesday everyone! It must be the warm Spring weather which is finally here, but I am having another wonderful happy day. A large part of this however is the super sweet comments I've been getting from you lovely people! I really do appreciate them so, so much, I really do.

_{(Since I have no photos of my own right this minute, all those in this post are from a great Canadian photographer I watch on Deviant Art. His name is Thomas Koidhis, but goes by OctoberLife. And get this, he's only 22! I highly recommend checking out his work if you enjoy dreamy nature scenes and gorgeous skies.)}

Plus I have to admit I feel a little giddy whenever people who's blogs I've been reading for over a year - and are in a way responsible for this whole bloggy adventure of mine :) - read and comment on my own humble little spot in the internet. (Hello Milla and Heather!) And the recent new followers! I'm so happy you like what you see, and I'm going to do my best to write enjoyable, interesting posts for you all. :) (See, smiles overflowing, I can't help it!)

I wish I had more outfit photos for you - and there's so much I want to share! - but it's going to have to wait until I'm done moving. (The fact most of my wardrobe is going to be in boxes for a while is a major factor here) I'm so excited for the warmer weather though, and living in this new place. It has a lovely terrace where I'll be able to take sunny outfit photos and drink my morning coffee and... well, I'm excited!

I've been going through a lot of stressful stuff in my life lately, and this weekend I wound up having a long and intense conversation with a friend of mine that really put things into perspective. I seem to have renewed my desire to be a more productive person though, and now a lot of the things that were keeping me from that are finally out of the way. I just need to be settled into my new home to get things going again. (I'm picking up the new place's keys tonight... again excited!)

This is going to involve: Less Time At The Computer! I waste way too much time randomly surfing the internet when I could actually be doing something productive. I want to do more things with my hands. I have all these crazy fun ideas for projects, from learning to knit to doing DIY acid washing (I still plan on doing that!) to building my geckos a new terrarium to growing some tomatoes and more. Hopefully I can get myself in gear and start up on some of this!

I feel about fit to explode with enthusiasm and happiness, which is definitely a pleasant change for me. I just wish I had more people with which to share this feeling. So you folks are going to get the brunt of my overly cheery ways! (and extreme use of exclamation points!)

Are you excited and full of energy for spring, or some particular project? I'd love to hear about whatever it is that's got you excited right now! Cheers!

Embroidered Love

I'm super happy to be sharing this outfit with you all! This lovely embroidered blouse was an excited purchase I made on Etsy a while ago. I saw it minutes after it was listed and I just knew it had to be mine. And since the asking price was $12, I wasn't going to argue, and promptly purchased it. I am so happy I did!

Tunic Dress - Purchased from Mr. Idaho's Vintage on Etsy
Leggings - Some store in a mall
Sandals - Dr. Scholl's, thrifted from Value Village

Belt - From Heather at Moonshine Junkyard
Purse - Thrifted from Value Village

I wore this out just to do groceries and run a few errands. I never expected it to be such a hit! Three separate cashiers complimented me on the blouse, it really made my day. It's little things like that that make a difference.

I picked up this amazing leather purse for $8! The purse, these sandals, and the purse and sandals from this post were all purchased at the same time actually. I got super lucky! I wasn't even going to go thrifting, but after contemplating spending $30 on some sandals at Walmart, I figured I'd get more bang for my buck at the thrift store... and I was right! I left with 3 pairs of shoes, two purses and a nightie and still spent less than what the one pair of sandals at Walmart would have cost me! And everything was like new, to boot.

I loved this outfit so much it was all I could do not to wander around smiling like a ninny, especially after all the nice compliments. The leggings work great with this, but I look forward to trying to style it some other way. This feels a lot like wearing pants to me and in the summer it'll be too warm for the leggings anyway.

I spent my weekend pretty much just packing and playing too much Sims 3 (I admit, I'm addicted) but it was enjoyable nonetheless. When you're packing everything away to move someplace else, you wind up finding things you don't see much of most of the time. I spent a good half hour reading old diary entries from when I was 14 years old. Seems like a lifetime ago when it was less than a decade!

Oh, and before I forget... I've joined Chictopia! I kept hearing about it and being linked to it, and finally actually took the time to look. Seems like a fun community. I'm loving seeing so many outfits, and it's a whole new source for fashion blogs since so many of the people already blog about style.

I hope you all had a great weekend! Cheers!

FBFF Spring Trends

This week's FBFF is about favourite spring trends! Okay, so I am going to go ahead and admit I have no idea what the "spring trends" really are. I don't really pay that much attention to trends or the latest fashions - although I'm starting to. I'm just going to wing this and go with what I've been seeing a lot of lately!

Feminine Florals

Bold Blocky Colours 

Delicate Neutrals and Lace

Flared Jeans

I am definitely happy that floral patterns are in this spring. Fun, feminine, I can't get enough of it. And as a fan of bright fun colours, the bold colour blocking going on is another thing I'm digging this season. I also have to admit I've fallen in love with lace and delicate pieces. They're a bit impractical but just so cute! As for the flared leg jeans... while I don't wear pants myself (very rarely anyway) I really think this is a fun take on the bell bottoms from days gone past.

Are you digging this spring's trends or are they not your thing? I think this is the first time I've ever actually really liked a lot of what's considered "trendy", so I'm rather surprised I like so much of it myself.

And it's Friday! Glorious Friday! I hope you all have a great weekend. Cheers!

I wish I could wear it!

My outfit posts will probably be sparse the next little while since I'm going to be occupied doing a lot of packing, but I'm still going to make an effort to post regularly-ish. I was reading Audi's dress review post about a dress from the Red Dress Shoppe, over at Fashion For Nerds, and one of the dresses for sale... ! So gorgeous! It's called the Nightingale Dress, what a perfect name for such a sweet dress!

And since I'm daydreaming... here's what I'd pair it with! Some groovy sandals from Blowfish, this white and yellow handbag from Lulu's and these cute jasper earrings from Peace Frog Designs on Etsy. And bare legs of course!

There's just enough yellow and white detailing in the dress that the handbag jives perfectly (so far as I'm concerned) and the sandals just look fun and comfy. I'd actually probably purchase the dress at some point but I'm not super keen about those two buttons right in the middle of the bodice. Which is too bad because the print on it is just so divine... What items are you lusting after these days?

Cheers!

Some Stylish Montrealers

I think I mentioned that I was going dancing in Montreal this past weekend. I wound up taking a few photos of some folks in wicked outfits, but only two of them turned out. (not to mention I was not in a state for proper photo taking a large part of the night) I just can't believe how fashionable Montrealers are! I have to start with this awesome guy.

He was dressed to the nines! And boy could he dance! It sort of felt like I was dancing with Roger Sterling from Mad Men. You can't see here because his arms are bent, but he was even wearing spiffy metal upper armbands (what are those called???).

And then I met this lovely lady while I was outside getting some air. Fashionable stripes, a super cute little vest and comfy jeans! She admitted to not having been to a similar event in over ten years, but came out with all her friends on a whim. I'm glad she did!

I only wish I'd not been too shy to ask folk for more photos. I really need to get over this shyness if I want to do any sort of street fashion photography in the city this summer!

It seems the more attention I pay to how I dress, the more I notice the styles and fashion choices of other people. I'm appreciating others' outfits way more now than I ever used to. It's fun! Do you pay much attention to other people's clothes and how they dress? Does it impact how you see them as a person?

Gratuitous kitty photo! My boy Caramel :)

This is a terribly shaky first attempt at documenting others' fashion and style sense. In the future, I'd like to feature a person, and then also feature fashion bloggers who've donned similar outfits, or different items that could be purchased to recreate the outfit. Sound interesting?

I haven't got too much else to say today. I signed a lease for another apartment last evening, and I'll be moving in 2 weeks. Exciting, but also stressful and a bit frightening. I'm also FINALLY caught up reading all the blog posts from the past several weeks, except for a few that host photos on sites that are blocked at my work, heh. Those I'll have to catch up on at home. ;)

Hope you're all having a great week, cheers!

Bare Legs and Sunshine

Ladies and gentlemen! I give you my 2011 official first "bare leg outfit"! It was absolutely gorgeous yesterday. Sunny, warm and lovely. Sadly it's miserable, cold and raining sideways outside right now. But it was still lovely yesterday! I started the day off wearing my leather jacket out to run errands, but it wasn't even necessary. Goodness knows I've been jealous of all the warm-weather ladies sporting bare legs for weeks now... it's finally my turn!

Leather Jacket - Danier Leather

Embroidered blouse - Purchased from Cookies and Creme on Etsy

Skirt - Thrifted from Value Village

Wedge sandals - Thrifted from Value Village

Glasses - Versace

Purse - Thrifted from Value Village

Belt - From Heather at Moonshine Junkyard

I'm also happy to say that these sandals are PERFECT! I paid a whole $6 for them at Value Village, hoping they wouldn't just be another pair of sandals I can't wear for fear of sliced skin and pain. But no! Extremely comfortable, and not slicey at all. Thank goodness. And they're super cute and have little shell details to boot.

Pardon my unsightly toes!

And this blouse, I can't even begin to tell you how much I love it! I first mentioned purchasing it here, and I've worn it a few times already, but this is the first time I've had the chance to photograph an outfit with it. If there were an outfit I had to wear every day of my life, I think this just might be it. It just feels so... me!

I know this style of blouse is meant to be baggy and loose, but lets be honest here, most of us just aren't emaciated thin enough to wear it without looking like you're wearing a potato sack. So I belt it, and I still think it's wonderful.

And yes, I do indeed own a pair of designer Versace glasses. I'm not even certain if I've mentioned that I wear contacts, but that explains why you've never seen these before. I bought them when I dressed very differently and they don't always fit my style but they went really well with this outfit. Which was great since I neither felt like putting on makeup or putting in my contacts again after a looong night out in Montreal. (glasses do wonders hiding dark under eye circles!)

I hope you all had a great weekend, and that the sun shines on you all this week. Cheers!

Blogger Rules of Engagement FBFF

Happy Friday everyone! I had a very odd morning. I thrifted a pair of shoes last evening that I hoped I'd be able to wear to walk to the bus and from the bus stop to work. I made it about a block and turned around. My feet already hurt. I'd probably have suffered through it anyway, but I'm going dancing Saturday night and I need my feet to be in tip top shape. So I turned around and went back to change shoes.

I set off again, but just as I shut the front door, I remembered my bus pass had expired. I had to run back into the apartment to find change so I could take the bus to work.  This on top with rushing around doing last minute tidying because my landlady was showing the apartment at 8am this morning. Somehow with all of this, I managed to still get in on time.

This week's FBFF is about blog exposure, and how to get others to notice and follow your blog without being rude or over the top about it. Let's begin!

1. Guest posts are a good way to gain new exposure. What do you think
is the appropriate way to go about securing a guest spot?
I have no idea how people wind up doing guest posts. I just assumed the person who's blog they posted on asked them to do it, not the other way around. It seems like it would be rude to go ask someone else if you could do a guest post for them, at least to me, unless you knew they wanted someone.

 2. Leaving comments is essential to growing your blog. But how can you leave a comment without coming across as ‘Follow Me. Follow Me!’?
I never leave comments simply to get someone to follow me. I comment because I have something to say in relation to the post. I do tend to comment a LOT though, nearly on every post of the folks I follow regularly, especially on the blogs of those with less followers. I adore getting comments, and if my name keeps popping up in association to positive, topic-related comments on other folks blogs, I think that's much more incentive to take a look at my own than it would be if I just said "Cute! Here's a link to my blog, follow me!"

3. We’ve all gotten a mass email at one time or another asking for
blog exposure, a link exchange, etc… But the mass emails don’t work.
How do you make your email stand out from the crowd?
I've actually never received such an e-mail. And I've never sent one with such intentions either. Do I live in a strange e-mail free bubble?

4. In interacting with other bloggers where do you draw the line
between seeking support and begging for exposure?
The closest I'll come to openly asking someone to check out my blog, is casually mentioning it, in context to what I'm already commenting. I'll say that I made a similar post in my own blog, or agree I have some difficulty taking outfit photos for my blog. It puts it out there that I do have a blog, but not in your face and demanding attention.

5. What’s one rule of engagement error you made and how have you
remedied that?
I'd like to think I've never broken any rules. It's not like I'm trying particularly hard to get more followers. I enjoy writing my blog, and I enjoy the comments, but I don't NEED more followers. People will make their own way here naturally, I don't need to sell myself for followers.

Have you got plans for the weekend? I might be attending a bachelorette party tonight, depends on my mood. But the idea of getting dolled up and drinking with some ladies is quite appealing. And then of course tomorrow I'm heading to Montreal for a great dance party. It's Vibrasphere's last live performance in Montreal, since the duo are officially breaking up. Too bad, such beautiful music! I was at another live show last year and it was wonderful, so I definitely am not passing this up.

I hope you all have a great weekend. Cheers!