The Hunt Is Over

My search for the perfect cross-body bag has spanned months upon months.  I've looked high and low for the right style, shape and colour.  I've purchased other bags in absence of finding a great cross-body.  I've lusted after many options only to shy away from a purchase because it just wasn't the "one".  

Finally, ladies and gentlemen, the search is over.  Free shipping and a sale at Neiman Marcus gave me the push I needed to end the search for the perfect cross-body bag to call my own:

MARC BY Marc Jacobs Crossbody - Preppy Leather Sia in Cherry

Isn't she cute?  I love the simple shape but that it's a bold colour.  Looking forward to getting my hot little hands on this bag in a few days ($10 priority shipping!  gotta love it...).

RHOV Recap: Bitches, Bullies and Botox

The Real Housewives of Vancouver premiered a few hours ago and the ladies did not disappoint.  There was high fashion, excessive drinking and a healthy dose of drama...three things we have grown to love about this reality show franchise.  I promised I'd recap, so here goes the longggg recap of Episodes 1 and 2.

We started off with the standard for any RH series premiere:  getting to know the ladies and seeing the excessive wealth in which they live.  Generally speaking, the Housewives are known for being "fake" wealthy, but I think these ladies are mostly true to the actual balances in their bank accounts.  Or at least 2 of them are.  Ronnie has 5 houses in one of the wealthiest postal codes in Canada, West Vancouver.  Five!  Reiko has an amazing car collection and lives in an uppity neighbourhood in Vancouver with her husband and 2 daughters (Ashanti like the singer and Alizee like the liquor).  I thought it was hilarious that she refused to divulge the "rough" suburb of Vancouver that she grew up in.  C'mon Reiko, it's Vancouver, how bad are the suburbs here for goodness sake?  It's not freaking Compton, I can tell you that!  

As for the others...well Jody owns a boutique with over priced and over the top clothing in West Vancouver.  And a muffin catering company that makes $40,000 a day (?).  Mary probably doesn't collect a lot of royalties from being a former Canadian pop star (seriously Mary, don't put that at the top of your resume) and Christina...well she claims she makes lots of money off her 2 divorces but I beg to differ.  I could have sworn that orange dress is from BCBG, and not the real BCBG...the outlet.  A true gold digger would be sporting at least some Eurotrash brand like Roberto Cavalli!

Oh Mary.  Sometimes your enemies are disguised as your friends!

After we all stopped wagging our tongues at the embarrassement of "riches" in which the ladies live, a girls trip was quickly arranged (Whistler, Nita Lake Lodge) by self proclaimed "Queen" Jody, who seriously needs to stop wearing tacky furs and tiaras.  What was that purple thing? Really Jody, less is more my dear.  Anyway when everyone got together, the claws came out so quickly I wasn't even prepared for it.  What was stranger is that these ladies really are very loosely connected, put together as a group only because they are cast on the show together.  But that actually seemed to fuel the drama even more.

It all started over lovely dinner in the private cellar at Araxi (great restaurant by the way).  Somehow we got onto the topic of Mary's recent breakup and the unfortunate fact that she's still sleeping with her ex while he's sleeping with the woman he cheated on her with that he is now in a relationship with.  Um?!?  I actually think Mary seems really sweet, so when Jody's claws came out, it was hard to watch.  Even harder to stomach was that her so called best friend Ronnie didn't even stand up for her and seemed to relish that someone else other than her was dishing out the tough love.  Mary was understandably pretty pissed about this.

Ronnie:  best friend or secret foe?

The next day, the conversation continued over lunch and Ronnie continued to sit back while Jody skewered Mary about her relationships.  Again, painful to watch and not a single person stood up for Mary.  Not cool.  I can't say for sure, but this seems like one of the few times in housewives history where everyone sat back as someone got ganged up on.  Most of the time people jump in on the bullying action or on a rare occassion start defending the "victim", but absolutely nothing from these ladies.  Not a single peep.   Jody, in her defense, didn't save all her snarkiness for Mary.  She let a few comments fly Christina's way, namely about Christina spending so much time in the bedroom that she can't breathe fresh air without choking.  Some would say this is fair game, given how Christina claims that she's not a fan of monogamy.   But Christina took offense, and felt bullied.  Maybe Jody was mortally offended that Christina ordered a round of drinks called "Trophy Wife" without asking her if she wanted to be called a "Trophy Wife"?

Episode two started with the aftermath of the Whistler trip and a bonding of the single ladies, Christina and Mary, over mean mean "Queen Jody", and planning of Christina's 30th birthday party.  The two of them went shopping for dog accessories, and later over a drink decided that they would each have to confront Jody for her actions.  And when better to do it then at Christina's birthday? 

The middle chunk of the episode was basically more lunch dates re-hashing the Whistler trip, as well as Reiko and Ronnie both being separately stood up by Christina, who it seems was insecure about turning 30.  But that quickly faded when her gay bff Kevin surprised her with a round of Botox.   Because that's what friends are for, right?  Cheering us up with injectables when we are feeling old and depressed.  

Christina, post birthday Botox.

As we continued on to Christina's birthday, Mary got up the nerve to confront Jody at the party.  When she did, it really got her nowhere, except that Jody again recommended that she go to therapy instead of purchasing more handbags to fill the emotional void one has when they are single.  I have to say, that was the best line of the night.  When Christina (finally) showed up for her party and confronted Jody, she was also told to go to therapy.  When a person does nothing but recommend you go to therapy when you confront them about their hurtful actions, something tells me that person is the one that needs to go to therapy.  Or in Jody's case, shock therapy to stop her from wearing all those effing crazy princess/queen get-ups.  

Jody seemed to either get bored with the party or the fact that everyone was paying attention to Christina, and exited the party soon after, with Mary and Reiko not far behind.  After they left, things got a little wild...!  We ended the episode with Christina in her underwear and a tee-shirt from Ronnie that said "Golddigger" across the front while Ronnie gleefully took pictures and videos of her parading around nearly naked and in various compromising positions.  Jody may be the "Queen", but it is clear that Ronnie is the shit-disturber and the real ringleader.  Bring on Episode 3!

Fashion 101: Stripes

My friends and I have been joking over the last few months that all we buy are stripes.  Striped tees, striped tanks, striped sweaters, striped cardigans.  Stripes are everywhere these days it seems, so it really isn't hard to find something to add to the collection.

Stripes can be hard to wear.  Remember the "horizontal stripes make you look fat" rule?  Well it is true in some cases, but depending on how you wear them, horizontal stripes can be slimming and they look much less "Beetlejuice" or "jailbird" than vertical stripes can be:

Beetlejuice striped leggings from Asos.  Not so cute.

There is a key to wearing horiztonal stripes successfully:  the width of the stripe.  If you go too skinny, you might emphasize any extra pounds you wish weren't there.  If you go too wide, you risk looking wider than you actually are.

Debra Messing is not a wide woman, but these stripes sure make her look "hip-ier" than normal.

Amber Riley from Glee.  She's what most would consider plus size, but she looks geat in this striped dress.  If the stripes were any thinner, she would not look as svelte.

Stripes can be whimsical, sexy, classic or casual.  As long as the stripes are proportional to your body size, anyone can pull off horizontal stripes.

DIY: Low Back Bra

Low back dresses and tees seem to be everywhere right now.  Ever time I pick one up, I wonder what I could wear underneath.  Should I go Carrie Bradshaw and let my (pretty) bra show?  That's an option, but you gotta have the right look to pull it off.

Carrie B. showing her bra off in style.

Instead of going the visible bra route, there is also the low back bra.  Or, if you are feeling crafty, I found a way to transform a regular bra into a low back one through a blog called Tights and Tea:

You do need a sewing machine, but we all have a crafty friend or auntie or someone who can help out with the sewing part.  Even for a non sewer like me, this seems fairly simple.  Instead of buying a new bra, update an old one with some adjustments for a low back.  Check out the full instructions at Tights and Tees, and more fun crafts through my Pinterest board "She's Crafty!".

Spell It Out

As if it weren't obvious already, Christian Louboutin has created a pair of his famous red-soled, sky high heels that spell out exactly what he means for us to think of when we see his shoes:

Kind of tacky, no???

Yes, Christian Louboutin heels are all about S-E-X.  Eff-me shoes if you will. File that under obvious.  Also, file that under Kardashian, cause you know one of those girls are gonna rock a pair of these as soon as they can.  I put my money on the wild-child Khloe.

Lady in Charge?

I haven't been blogging much lately because there has been so much on my mind.  Plus I'm in some discomfort after a car accident (I'm ok, but have a mild case of whiplash that is resulting in some sleepless nights, hence really not feeling like myself).  I've been a bit of a homebody lately, which inevitably leads to thinking about the state of one's life.  Or for me it does anyway.  I've always been the type to analyze (and sometimes over-analyze).

I've been thinking a lot about what is truly next for me.  I've been doing a great job of letting go of stresses in my life and taking the control back, whether it is in my personal or professional life.  I'm actually pretty proud of myself for being so "go with the flow" as that is a quality that normally does not come natural to me.  It's a great feeling and I'm glad I'm in this state of mind now, but that doesn't mean that I don't wonder what life will bring me next.  I had a plan at the start of the year to quit my job and go back to school in the fall.  I'm not sure if that will happen this year because of some unforeseen life events.  To top it off, I'm not having much luck in the romance department, so right now I feel more than a little bit lost about "what is next".

When it comes down to it, when you are single, you are really in charge of your own life.  There is something very empowering about being single, when you think of it that way. Nothing is holding you back, nothing is in the way of doing what YOU want to do and every day is a possible adventure.  Pretty cool to imagine life that way.

But, I like feeling grounded most of the time so this is becoming harder and harder for me.  I'm trying to build the life that I want to live, but sometimes the harder you push to make things happen the way you think they should happen, the more events come up that make you wonder if the universe is trying to push you in a different direction.

I realize that this makes me sound like someone who can't make a decision...and maybe I am.  I'm afraid to make the "wrong" decision and screw everything up.  But, I guess if I don't make any decision at all, life will never change the way I want it to, and I'll end up living a life carved out only by the things that happen to me, not the things I make happen for myself.

So what do I really do next?  I think it's time to really map things out and decide what I want...then just go for it!  If I fail, at least I have tried.  And if I succeed?  Well, I will probably wonder why I didn't take that risk a long time ago.  Wish me luck!

Mint Condition to Aqua-Mint

Deciding that I'm going fun with my nails this spring inspired me to jump on a blue/green nail polish from L'Oreal that I found in the drugstore the other day.  It's called "Club Prive" and it's the perfect shade of aqua-mint:

I'm not actually sure if "aqua-mint" is a word, but it's the only way I can describe this blue/green shade.  Hmm I may have invented a word!  Anyway...it truly is a gorgeous shade that has a bit of warm undertone so it doesn't wash out my skin tone.  I've had some compliments on it, including from my co-worker who literally stopped mid-sentence to say "I love your nail polish!".