phone photos: life lately

Quick hello! Been busy this week, so haven't really had time for outfit posts, but every once in awhile I like to share some of the photos from my phone. I got so excited when I heard that Instagram was expanding, but then realized that I have a Blackberry, and won't be able to do fun photo effects with my phone. Anyway, here are some snaps of little things that have been happening in my life lately.

Delicious berries!

Evidence of my shoe addiction.

 Raptor's game with coworkers.

 Hair experiments.

 Mom and sister enjoying family diner breakfast.

 My brother-in-law and I enjoying family diner breakfast (maybe a little too much?)

 More hair experiments.

 A puzzle tablecloth?

 Bright blue Joe Fresh nails.

New dress!

sun and wind

This long Easter weekend I went on a bit of a "blog vacation" and just spent time with family. Part of this blog vacation was also involuntary because I was out of the city visiting my mom and had left behind my bag with my camera in it, but it turned out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise because all I did was eat, do puzzles, read, and hang out with my family. Monday I was back in the city and had a date day with Rob. We have barely seen each other the last few weeks because things have been so busy for both of us, so it was nice to have a good chunk of time to ourselves. So of course, I got Rob to take photos!

Romper from Dear Creatures.

Modcloth bag. 

Vintage wedge sandals.

Thrifted blouse.

Small details of the blouse.

Did you have a good Easter weekend? Do anything exciting?

over exposure

I present to you the skirt that I hemmed in my previous post! I am in love with this skirt now, and am tempted to wear it almost every day, which I think would get people asking questions (and probably not in a good way).  Also, I was debating whether I would post these pictures, because Rob and I were in a hurry to get these photos done and they ended up overexposed. This was my third attempt taking photos of this skirt, and wasn't happy with the other photos. Anyway, I really liked how these look, but was nervous about them being overexposed, since all my photos are always very clear and fairly "normal" on here. But then I thought, whatever, this is my blog and there are no rules and I can experiment with photos and be "artsy" if I want too. :)

The skirt!

Blouse from Modcloth.

Fun polka dot tights and new (eee!) platform J&T sandals

Lovely bag from Modcloth.

Vintage belt.

you don't need a sewing machine to hem a skirt

You may be one of the unfortunate people like me who don't have the pleasure of owning a beautiful, handy, wonderful sewing machine (can you tell that I'm jealous?). I was craving an adorable, short, flirty, poofy skirt but wasn't able to find one anywhere that fit the idea that I had in my mind. And then I went to Fabricland when I was on the hunt for cross stitching fabric, and found the wonder-of-all-wonders: hemming tape. I suddenly realized that I could make my own adorable, short, flirty, poofy skirt using an item already in my closet, and only spend....ready for it?...$5.00!!

Here's how I hemmed a skirt without sewing a stitch!

This is the skirt that I used. I've had this in my closet for over a year and have only worn it maybe 3 or 4 times. It's an amazing vintage piece that was clearly handmade and the pattern is so lovely, but I never loved the shape for some reason.

I measured 20 inches all the way around the skirt (since it's a circle skirt it should be the same length). Anything below the 20 inches, I cut off. I knew I wanted the skirt to be 18 inches, so I left 2 extra inches for the hem line.

After cutting the skirt, the hemming process actually began. Only three materials needed to complete this!

The first, and very important step, is to fold up your hem and pin it in place, always making sure that the hem line remains the same length all the way around. I used the iron on the hem, just to solidify my line.

Next, start in one section by opening up the hem line you just made and laying your hemming tape on the inside of your hem, as close to the seam as possible. The rough side should face down, but your hemming tape should come with instructions on how to use the brand. 

Last step, fold the hem back up and begin the ironing process! I held the iron on the folded hem for about 3 to 5 seconds, but some sections needed a bit longer. I found it easiest to do the skirt in sections by slowly removing pins, placing a new section of the hemming tape in the seam of the hem, and then ironing that section. It took a bit of patience, but was well worth it!

In the end I didn't need to sew anything, only spent about $5.00 on hemming tape, and spent about an hour on the whole project! This was my first time EVER hemming a skirt, and it was so easy, so I feel fairly confident that any one of you can do this too!

And what was the end result? Well, my friends, you will have to stay tuned for a lovely outfit post tomorrow featuring my little "no sew" skirt!

a girl's purse is *not* so private

I always love when other bloggers do a "what's in my bag" post, mostly because I'm a bit of a snoopy person. I'm the kind who needs to look in people's medicine cabinets. The worst case of snoopiness comes about when I visit someone's house for the first time and they don't give me a tour, so I make an excuse to go to the washroom so I can see what the rest of the house looks like. So basically if I come to your house, you might want to give me the full tour ;).

Anyway, for all you similar snoopy types, here is my first ever "what's in my bag" post! And I thought now was a good time to do one since I got my new lovely Weekend Brunch Bag from Modcloth (it will be featured in an outfit post soon)!

What I carry with me every day (minus the millions of receipts that I tend to accumulate).

 Obviously I have a bit of a lipstick addiction (and this isn't even the whole collection). I like to carry a few colours with me so I can choose what to wear depending on my mood.

 My vintage sunglasses and vintage wallet. And I am more than proud to advertise this brand Pur! This gum is from Switzerland and is vegan and gluten and aspartame free!

My BB and ipod and my moleskin "ideas" notebook where I write blog, writing, or craft ideas. I have only recently started keeping this little book with me, and have found it really helpful to write down inspiring ideas as soon as I have them.

So there you have it! Now you know what I take around with me on a day-to-day basis!

three things: why i do what i do

For my second addition of three things, I wanted to share with you a bit about why I have chosen to work in the non-profit field (it's certainly not for the money!). Currently, I work at a charity called the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research as the Development Officer (which is a fancier way of saying that I'm a fundraiser). My day-to-day tasks range from entering donations into our database, to writing letters and proposals, to donor relations. I'm really lucky because I get to do a variety of different tasks and I learn as I go.  How did I end up working in a non-profit? I think it's something that was always in me to do, and helping others, as cheesy or cliché as it may seem, has always been a passion of mine. Anyway, here are three reasons (among many) why I work as a fundraiser and why I work at my current charity.

 1. Volunteering and working for/with others is something that I have been doing since I was a young girl. Growing up in my church I learned a lot about what it means to live selflessly and how to give to others. These values were instilled in me at a young age, and for me, I simply allowed them to grow and flourish into a way that I personally wanted to live.

2. HIV and AIDS have impacted me on a personal level, both from spending 6 months in South Africa and from having friends here in Canada diagnosed as HIV positive, and so the issue is something that is close to my heart. I am so blessed that my first job in the non-profit sector is at a charity that does so much in order to find a cure. I feel like I am, in some small way, having a hand in making this one aspect of our massive world better.

3. I am blessed that I live in the country that I do, and that I have a job and a house and the ability to buy food. I don't make a huge amount of money in my job in comparison to other professions, but I make enough that I am able to live comfortably. There are times when I struggle with loving fashion so much (and even with having a blog that focuses on fashion) when I know what little others have. But I try my best to keep things in perspective, and to give of my time and money (even if it's only a little) as often as I can - which is fairly easy when that is exactly what you are doing 35 hours a week :)

via

I hope that you've learned a bit about me and what motivates me, and I hope that I've inspired you to volunteer or to give back in a way that expresses who you are!

old spaghetti factory

There's a restaurant in downtown Toronto called the Old Spaghetti Factory that I remember going to maybe once or twice when I was quite young, but didn't go back again until I met Rob. Every time Rob's mom comes to visit, we go to the Old Spaghetti Factory (and they have GF pasta!), so it's become a bit of a tradition over the past few years.

                       

 Vintage jacket and Cartier bag.

 Dress from H&M. Vintage wedge sandals.

 Vintage cameo earrings.

 Vintage belt

Ring from Aldo.