Oh Canada! OOTD

I miss my part of Canada today, my Utopia.  Seriously - that is the name of the village I lived & yes, I do think it is rather perfect.
What I don't miss are the crowds on holidays though! Today we were actually able to park, walk, & attend several different Canada Day events, watch the parade & bump into people we knew. These things always felt slightly impossible with the insane crowds back home.  There is something truly wonderful about living in a small city that is big on personality.


Man I live in a great part of a great country....



Top; Torrid, Skirt; Winners, Watch; Urban Outfitters, Sunglasses; Ray Bans

A few things about asking your significant other to snap your photos for you... although it isn't nearly as socially awkward as throwing up a tripod in the middle of a busy street, he will apparently not tell you when you are squinting or put up with multiple poses.  You will in fact get only two pictures & they will pretty much be the same thing.
Good thing he is adorable & I love him so.


purchased at Urban Outfitters in Toronto this spring



Zoya matte nail polish in Mitzi, Paul Frank iPhone case

Three cool things in one photo.
This ring was made by a jeweler back home in Ontario (whose name I don't know & I don't think she is still designing).  It reads 'To Thine Own Self Be True'. It is probably one of my most treasured possessions.

So my husband thinks this nail polish looks like I painted my nails with whiteout & highlighter. And yes I took this picture, sitting in my car while he was pumping gas.

Earrings; Forever21, Necklace; Darling Dilemma, Sunglasses; RayBan



Aaaaahhh look at that zombie girl in the bottom left hand corner!!
I love these wooden sculptures that are all over uptown but that girl just freaks me out!



Fabulous Heat!

After spending several days outside in the beating sun, crisping up & selling my line of Darling Dilemma jewelry to locals, tourists & cruise ship passengers all that I can think about is beach time!!

With a decent base tan now, and a Moose Light Ginger (possibly my new summer bevvy of choice, although highly unlikely that I would give up a long time love of Pina Coladas!!) I find myself stuck in front of the computer browsing swimsuits...

Every woman knows this is a daunting & emotional task, one that won't improve with the above mentioned beer.

plus swimwear by fulloffabulous featuring a polka dot swimwear

Polka dot swimwear

Okay so I gave up mid blog & focused more on sleep & beer than swimwear... so apparently this is a 2 day blog...

The above swimsuit was what I was leaning towards.. polka dot, full coverage, a nice neckline with a bit of a retro feel to it!
Below is my other selection, similar but with slight differences...

Miraclesuit swimwear (clipped to polyvore.com)

Both of these polka dot swimsuits are available from Evans who is having some rather incredible sales on swimwear at the moment.  Shipping to Canada & the US costs 8pounds & takes about a week. Not too shabby!

As I sat there drinking, tweeting & pondering a new swimsuit a friend sent them the following link for Get Go Retro and then all things went to hell...

Jungle Girl One Shoulder Swimsuit $109
*also available in leopard

Filled with retro wear in a variety of sizes, for a variety of shapes, Get Go Retro is one of the funnest online shops I've stumbled upon lately!
I know at least a few of my girls will feel faint after seeing this one;

Skipper Swimsuit

And I am sure any who know me in person would assume this darling cherry piece would be my suit of choice!


Cherry Tankini $118

 But it's not... It runs a close second but once I saw this suit, all bets were off!



Rockabilly Skull Tankini $130



One friend acclaimed it 'killer' once I posted it on facebook... At $130 it currently out of my price range (and IS killing me - does that count??) but it is at the TIP-TOP of my wish list.


Well right below a Pina Colada.

Full of Love

Sorry for an absence in blogs since Wednesday but I've been finishing up my last few days of teaching as well as starting preperations for my summer venture (more to come on that in another post).
Here I am though, ready with my first wedding post of the year!

As I mentioned last weekend, I love the local derby girls. I love one the most though, Pam aka Ryder Wong.  I haven't know Pam long, only a few months but it was instant friendship, through & through. Even several of her derby friends thought we had been friends for years. She is kind, generous with a compliment, has the sweetest smile & is fierce on the track!

What's there not to love??

Pam married her sweetie Trent this weekend & I was thrilled to share in their moment & eat some wedding cake!

I wish I had taken more photos & had my Canon Rebel with me, but frankly it didn't go with my look, lol. So just a couple pics of the night.

Pam's party dress was custom made for her & looked amazing on!! I wish I had a great picture of her shoes... killer leopard print heels that matched the flowered sash. I am a sucker for "matchy match" details, as my friend Jessica calls it.

My dress is one I found last spring at Addition Elle when I went looking for shorts with my gift card, but fell head over heels for it instead.  Judging by the reaction I get from my husband each & everytime I wear it, I still think I made the right call.

I just have to add that I was totally impressed with my hair  (& hope Vanessa will be as well). I'm pretty useless when it comes to styling my hair & so I usually stick with au natural, or a serious flat iron/teased big combo. This half updo thing with a wicked handmade cherry hairclip (made by the most talented Christine Patterson of I Do Cake Toppers) fit with the classed up rockabilly look I was going for, don'tcha think?

 

                                                                                                                                                            

I hope that you will see & hear more about the adorable Pam in the coming months

(there has been talk of closet diving & booze?!).



My instagram for the night





A broad Broad, abroad

*Welcome to my first guest post! I have mentioned Vanessa in past blogs & tweets but now you get the real thing! From time to time this East Coast born, Toronto living, hairstylist & fashionista will be writing about her experiences & take on fashion. You can follow her on twitter as her alter-ego, Kenicke Street.

I like to think of myself as a bit of a globe trotter. Every year or so I hop the pond and treat myself to a European jaunt. There are three things that keep me returning to the old countries: the sights, the food and the shopping!!!

There's nothing I like more on a sunny, Spanish afternoon than sitting at a cafe, enjoying a cervesa and ogling the locals. Europeans know how to kill an ensemble. Everyone is so put together and how they manoeuvre the cobbles in those heels I'll never know.
If Hollywood has taught us anything it's that every European is a vision of waify perfection. What my travels have taught me is that European woman, like the women the world over, come in all sizes. The difference between us North Americans and our European brethren is that the Euros recognize that there are women bigger than a size 10 and that we too like to look savage.
My favourite shopping spot that i have found abroad in recent years is a store by the name of Penney's (or Primark outside of the UK). I compare it to another European superpower H&M, but it has sizes up to a 24! and it's cheap!! I find more often than not, European stores carry up to at least a 16 but usually higher.　

Vanessa outside House of Lords salon in Toronto

The North American retailer, boxed in with small sizes that sit in the store, eventually hit the sale rack and then are recalled back to the company should take note of European retailers. I feel like Europe has a better understanding of supply and demand when it comes to fashion. Between Primark, Asos, Evans and many others, there are so many ways to keep us Full of Fabulous

　
　
dress: Primark (13 euro)
shoes: Walmart ($19)
headband: Ardene's
necklace: etsy (darling dilemma)

What's up, Buttercup?

This past weekend finally felt like June! We got three full days of sunshine, surpassing all expectations!  As I mentioned in yesterday's post, my friend Jen was visiting from Cape Breton for an all girl's weekend.  These are some photo's we took on our sunshiney walk on the trail near my home... just before we saw a snake & high tailed it home!

skirt by three hearts (which i can't seen to find online!)

This skirt is a favorite from last summer, that will continue to be a fav as long as it holds together! I searched for a black mini that would suit me for years - I kid you  not! I found this one at Winner's last year (& found an identical one in tan this year - SCORE!) for only $20. It has built in shorts underneath, which means I don't risk overexposure... hahaha.  It still feels like the best buy of the year, a whole year later...

excuse my squinty smushed face, i was probably talking... but i wanted to show off my Forever21 earrings
& Vogue Optical sunglasses

When I came across this top from Addition Elle I knew it was going to be mine. It is one of my favorite colours, a longer cut & had this great neckline with details.  Addition Elle is never cheap though & I often leave feeling disheartened. There is rarely anything in my style & it is always over priced.  This piece was special though & I was excited to find it. Every time I wear it I tell myself.. don't spill, don't spill, don't spill. And every time I wear it, I spill. I pack a Tide to Go stick in my purse when I leave with it on.
Am I jinxing myself??

Fun blue watch from Urban Outfitters (Quartz)

I found this perfect blue watch while in Toronto at one of my favorite stops, Urban Outfitters! It is just the style I was looking for - anything similar to the Micheal Kors... in one of my favorite colours (and only $25 too!).

This tunic style, light weight sweater is from Addition Elle

My legs are so white....

Fabulous in Bruises

A lot of you viewers are friends & family so please don't be insulted by my next statement...
These are some of the coolest chicks I know.

Dressed up in the the team colours of black, silver & blue, The Razor Girls are part of the Fog City Rollers, our local flat track roller derby.  Fully accessorized with skates, pads, helmets & a healthy dose of tattoos these ladies are officially Full of Fabulous!

Opposing team The Scarlett Swarm

Since one of my best friends, Jen was visiting from Cape Breton I couldn't resist bringing her out to a bout as I knew the Rugby Girl in her would fall in love. 
I'm pretty sure that Auburn Rubber is now her personal idol & if Jen didn't have the baby bump she would have signed up on the spot.

Auburn Rubber, center

As cool as all these ladies are, & as much as I am starting to love them, my heart was still beating for Jen this weekend as we explored Saint John together, ate some great food & just caught up with each other.

Vegetarian Curry from Thandi's

It was so great to have an all girl weekend, since my son was camping & husband was out of town. With her first baby on the way I miss her even more & wish she were closer...



Jen, baby 'flicker' & I

 Just the one outfit picture of my dinner & derby outfit (my leggings are metallic pewter in solidarity Razor Girls!!), as we were so busy!
I will have a full outfit posting tomorrow, another from my weekend out!

What did YOU do this beautiful weekend?

*p.s. my friend Ryder Wong runs a Fog City Rollers blog, Fog City Blog - you should check it out! She's getting married next weekend, so expect to hear LOTS more about her when I attend the wedding!!

Summer Fabulous!

So a little bit about me... like I said in my first post - I work too many jobs.  I have 2 jobs, my own jewelry business, a child & a husband.  Several months out of the year, it all gets to be too much. 

Several other months, specifically summer, it becomes not enough.

You see my jobs revolve around the school calendar & so when school's out, I'm basically out of a job.  In the past I have spent my summer's either with my son or teaching art at various summer camps (which always meant my son got to come along for the fun - score!!).  Either way, a summer wardrobe was never a high priority. I was at home waiting out the heat in various cheap capris & tank tops, or I was making art & getting messy.

This year, it seems something new is on the horizon... something that will involve me looking much nicer, more presentable & possibly a big, floppy, wide brimmed hat!

Summer 11 by fulloffabulous featuring torrid
Turquoise Patch Print Voile Cami, $25
Pants, $49
Purple Floral Print Voile Cami, $25
Shorts, $44
Sunglasses, $9.50


If all goes as planned I will be spending several full days a week outside, selling my jewelry line to cruise ship passengers, tourists & locals. I'm going to need something comfortable, pretty & cool (I'm going under the assumption it will be hot out by then!!!).
The above seem like some perfect basics to last me throughout the summer but I'm thinking maybe a few sweet & fun items like these need to be added to the mix as well;
 


Sookie Skull Chiffon Dress from Torrid

 

Cherry Chiffon Ruffle Top from Torrid