The Toronto Clothing Show and My New and Fabulous Skirt from Sofistafunk!

Hey Everyone!

So last weekend was the annual Toronto Clothing Show. I had heard some great things about the shopping there, so I decided to go and check it out for myself. I invited Sarah from Garters and Stockings to come too, and we had a great time!

There were loads of great vendors and I had a great time browsing and meeting lots of new people. There was tons of jewellery, accessories, and hats/fascinators everywhere, which is great, because they fit everyone!

Browsing through some lovely jewellery

Outside a vintage booth

Chatting with Lisa from Rent Frock Repeat - a dress rental company - about plus size designers I'd love to see her carry. I think it's a good sign that she was taking notes! LOL.

Trying on all sorts of hats! There was one in particular that I fell in love with, but it was so impractical, and it was $70... I couldn't justify it!

Meeting with Melanie Dubuc, a new up-and-coming Canadian plus size fashion designer

Waiting for the runway show to start!

Here are some videos I was able to take of Melanie Dubuc's and Ashaki Charles' new lines:

Very nice stuff!

Now the skirt I have on just came in from Sofistafunk, a company who specializes in very cool skirts. I met the designer, Arlinda, and Full Figured Fashion Week a while back. She was wearing this amazing black and moss green floor length full skirt to the finale runway show, and I just had to go over and say hello. I asked her where she got her incredible skirt because I was dying to know, and then she told me she designed it! I was pretty much in awe and told her she was very talented (which I am only more convinced of after seeing all the other amazing skirts on the site). We got in touch after Full Figured Fashion Week and she sent this skirt, along with an awesomely flouncy petticoat, as a gift. I absolutely adore it!!! When I got it in the mail I was doing a happy dance all around my apartment for like a good half-hour. Then when I put it on, I was practicing ballet and doing twirls for another half-hour! There is just something so pretty about a really full skirt, you know? It reminds you of the princesses you adored as a child and the opulence of their glamour, and it just makes you feel so youthful and pretty! I think this skirt is fantastic, and I totally recommend you go check out their website if you're looking for a new skirt or if you just like to look at really pretty things. The skirt she sent me is the "Sofistafunk RX," and it's a multi-functional skirt designed as a prescription for those "I-would-love-to-go-but-don't-have-time-to-go-home-to-change" situations. I know you all know what I'm talking about! It comes with a handy little tote so that you can stow it away in a big purse, your desk drawer, or your car in case you score a last-minute invitation to an event you want to look stunning for. 

Anyway, I totally ADORE my new Sofistafunk skirt (thanks Arlinda!) and as you can see, I am wearing it to not-so-last-minute occasions. I actually want to wear it to school with a tiara on, but I think people might look at me funny! But seriously, I can't wait to wear this again!

Addition Elle Customer Appreciation Day

Hey everyone!

So a little while back I posted about a customer appreciation day that was being held by Addion Elle. Sarah from Garters and Stockings invited Sasha from Flaws of Couture and I to come out to this event at Square One in Mississauga to meet some of the customers and help with some styling advice. I wanted to look my best so I put this outfit together and it was a major hit! I was getting all sorts of compliments on it and I even got hit on in the mall a couple of times, LOL! Eat your heart out, boys! xoxo

 

Cropped Jacket and Purse- Thrifted/Dress, Bracelets, Earrings, and Necklace - Forever 21+/Shoes - Torrid

Yea, I painted my nails florescent orange. This is China Glaze colour "Japanese Koi" - Love it!

I absolutely adore this shot because Peter inadvertantly took his own picture in the reflection of my mirror necklace. The man behind the scenes... Love you so much!!!

Outside the Addition Elle in Square One

The best part of this event is that I got to see my blogger friends from the Addition Elle Blogger Styling Challenge. This is Sasha from Flaws of Couture!

Me hanging out in front of the display rack of the new MICHEL Studio Collection. There are some pretty awesome leatherette pieces. You should definitely check it out!

SWAG bags! Yay!

Sasha from Flaws of Couture and Sarah from Garters and Stockings

Some lovely women I met at the event! The three girls (one of whom is missing here - she had to go to work) were helping their mum pick out some new clothes, and it totally reminded me of me and my sisters and mom, so I had to go and say hello! If you're reading this, drop me a comment and say hi! It was great to meet you!

So all in all, it was a pretty fun day. I took a video of Sasha and Sarah talking about the new MICHEL studio line, but you might have to turn the volume up because a) my iPhone is not the best camcorder, and b) because there is a lot of background noise! But enjoy!

All day, I was wearing a new shapewear sent to me by Squeem, and let me tell you, it was fantastic! I will be doing a complete product review that I will post either later on tonight or tomorrow morning, but in my opinion, it is the best shapewear product I have seen on the market. I will also be hosting a fantabulous giveaway of a Squeem Miracle Vest, so be on the lookout for that soon! I am going to use rafflecopter for this giveaway, so that the process is a bit more streamlined than the last giveaway we had.

So what do you guys think of my outfit and/or Addition Elle's new MICHEL Studio line? I'd love to hear your opinions!

Addition Elle Blogger Styling Event

Hey Everyone!

So back in August, I was invited by the lovely people at Addition Elle to participate in a blogger styling challenge. I, along with 8 other top Canadian fashion bloggers, were challenged to create two unique looks from Addition Elle's AW2011 collection for a Facebook contest. It was an amazing event with professional models, hair, makeup, catering, and photography. AE even hired a stylist to come in so we could make use of all his shoes and accessories to help put our final looks together! They even shut down their flagship store early for the photo shoot!

The delicious spread at the shoot! I borrowed this picture from Alison of 'Round Raglan Road - I hope she doesn't mind!

Me at the "Step and Repeat" AE backdrop at the beginning of the event

Me and all the other lovely bloggers with the VP of Marketing for AE

Sasha and Garcia from Flaws of Couture

Alison from 'Round Raglan Road and Sarah from Garters and Stockings having a chat!

Alison from Round Raglan Road being interview by AE

Once we all got acquainted and had a few munchies, it was time to start pulling pieces off the rack to use in our looks. This event took place at the Addition Elle flagship store, at the corner of Yonge and Temperance in downtown Toronto, so any of the pieces you see in the looks can be picked up there! There were nine bloggers there, and we each put together two outfits, so the photo shoot was pretty briskly paced! There were 3 models there who got to work with three different bloggers each, and I got the beautiful Zara Hemmings, who totally turned it out! 

I decided to do one casual look and one more formal outfit. When I saw the red leopard waist length jacket with the draping in the front, it was love at first sight, and I built my first look around that piece, adding simple, casual pieces that would allow the jacket to make its own statement. I chose Apple Bottom Jeans, a simple black tee with lace detail at the neck (to add some texture), a faux snake skin belt (which I thought would go nicely with the leopard because it's kind of animal inspired as well), the model's own shoes, which are purple with red piping (and which sort of bring a lot of the different elements of the outfit together), and I topped it off with some stunning jewellery from the stylist's collection, which was gold with deep green hues. There was a whole dressing room filled with the stylist's goodies that we were allowed to play with!

Here are a couple of pictures of my first (red leopard) look. This is the look Addition Elle has chosen, out of the two I put together, for the competition.

They even made me get in front of the camera! LOL... Here's me with Zara in the look I picked out for her. The cheetah and the leopard, friends at last! MEOW!

My second look came together after I came across the most stunning Joseph Ribkoff jacket on the second floor. It has a very deep hood, kind of like a hood that you would expect to see on a cape, but the actual jacket itself is very structured. It is fitted through the bodice and has a flared, bubble hem, pouffy skirt, which you all know I am in love with. Honestly, I would say it was my favourite piece to work with. I really want it! I thought it might be nice to style a formal wear look with the jacket, since Winter is coming (sorry, but it is!) and people will have Christmas parties to go to. I absolutely love the deep aubergine colour of the strapless satin dress, and I decided to style it with a lot of silver jewellery because I wanted extra shine. I love seeing looks where the stylist has piled on loads of bracelets, so I decided to try it for myself, and I must say, I really like how it turned out. We took some shots with and without the jacket, so you can see all elements of the outfit clearly. Here they are!

So all in all, I had a really great time styling Zara for this shoot and working with some of the amazing stuff from Addition Elle. I think the looks turned out really nicely and I'm quite happy with them! 

So remember how I said this was for a Facebook competition? Well it launched just two days ago, and I NEED YOU ALL to VOTE for me!!!! LOL. It's just a few clicks of your mouse away, and I'll love you forever! As an added incentive, if you're based in Canada, each time you vote you will be entered to win a $150 Addition Elle gift card that you can put towards some of the items you've seen here, or something entirely different! You can vote once per day, and I would love it if you did!!! Click here to be redirected to the Facebook contest.

Another great thing about this event was getting to meet all the other fabulous bloggers hosted by Addition Elle. You should check out their blogs too, if you get a chance. Here are the links to them. Meet Robyn of Fashionista514, Sarah of Garters & Stockings, Alison of 'Round Raglan Road, Sashagai and Garcia of Flaws of Couture, Kristania of Monochroma.Chic, Sunny D of thatshardcore, Kendall, and Isabelle of La Vie C'est YeYe.

So my dears, what do you think of the outfits I styled? Did you see anything that has you running to Addition Elle? Remember to VOTE!

Penningtons Styled to Surprise Event

Hey Guys,

Recently, I (and 7 of my other Toronto plus size fashion blogger friends) were invited by the lovely people at Penningtons to the debut of their Fall/Winter 2011 collection at the Heartland Town Centre location in Mississauga, Ontario.

First, I had to decide what to wear! Whenever there's an event where I am meeting other very fashionable women, I want to look my absolute best and dress a bit more creatively than I normally would. I knew all the other wonderful bloggers in attendance would look awesome (and I was right), so I wanted to make sure I picked something that would look good even with the fashion bar raised so high! I love events like this because they provide the context for me to wear things that people might normally think is a bit "out there." When I was putting my outfit together I was inspired by 1970s Halston - blending really rich colours (aubergine, red, cream, bronze, gold, russett) and textures (lace, silk, leather, wool, feathers) to create a lot of visual interest.

Blazer - Tahari (sent to me by my friend and fellow blogger, the lovely Jessica from Chic in Every City)/Top - Costa Blanca/Earrings - Forever 21/Hat, Bag, Belt, and Scarf - Thrifted/Skirt - The Gap/Ring - Ardene/Necklace - Laura/Shoes - Beverly Feldman

Penningtons sent a stretch limo for us! I was so excited!

The lovely ladies from Flaws of Couture - Garcia, Sasha, and Valentine

Sarah from Garters and Stockings, and Sadia from Rawrmanifesto

Once we got to the store, there was so much to see and do...

They even had a make-up artist on site for touch ups!

There were lots of great hors d'oeuvres and beverages to keep us refreshed during the event. Penningtons kindly gave each of the bloggers a $150 gift card with which to purchase some of their beautiful items, so the bloggers were happily shopping all evening long. You'll just have to wait for Outfit of the Day posts to see what I got! I've already worn a couple of the items I got. 

One of the best parts of the night (if not the best) was meeting the members of Penningtons' retail marketing and buying team. They were full of questions for me about what I and my readers are looking for in a store. They were very receptive to all of my comments and suggestions, and I can tell that this is a company that is truly committed to participating meaningfully in the online community. They are also going through a major re-branding. My perception of the store has certainly changed from before I attended the event. While before I was invited to the event, I thought the store carried only fashions for an older demographic, I can see now that much of what they've added would appeal to a younger customer. They still carry many items that are geared towards their current customer base, but it seems that they are extending their line so that it suits a greater age range. So if you haven't been in awhile, it's definitely worth a second look. 

Some of the Penningtons execs I was chatting with

And at the end of the night - the bloggers got together for a final photo op. Alison from Round Raglan Road and Franceta from Frantic Dreams are here (they came in a different car so they weren't in the first couple of shots), and Adrienne from Big Girls, Bigger Dreams is missing from this shot. I bet she was still shopping!

All in all, I had a great night. It was great to spend time shopping with my bloggin' buddies, whom I can't wait to get together with again, and it was also wonderful to meet the faces behind the brand and have them be so receptive to what I had to say. Thanks so much Penningtons!