At least its made well

Madewell-- an all-american, easy living line. Everything in this brand brings a "yet" to me, you think its one thing but it is also entirely another... simple yet unique, relaxed yet beautiful. Intricate designs on tank tops and t's, cozy knit cardigans and shawls, sparkles and color on beautifully draped scarves to add chic to an outfit of their relaxed denim and workers boots and practical yet jazzy leather bags. Shopbop  has a wonderful collection for online shoppers. Be sure to also check out their lovely website ... the christmas theme is so cute and already has me excited! This brand is a great new discovery and will not even break the piggybank...and you know its worth it, is IS made well.

On your marks get set...GO

My newest lust-after accessory? Driving gloves. Despite the fact that I would never need them for the actual sport of driving (I usually like go to several km's under the speed limit), leather gloves are soooo needed for my fall wardrobe. The ones above are from Coach, and are lined with cashmere to add warmth. I particularly love this maroon color as it goes with everything and clearly I am one for versatility. But leather gloves seriously look amazing in every color -red, tan, black, blue, green, even prints like leopard and bolds like orange and pink. An extra bold color or pattern looks especially great to spice up a modest outfit. Another very note-worthy pair especially for the Winterpeggers is UGG Australia's new leather gloves in tan, black and brown lined with shearling! Once I find the perfect pair, I just may get a little need for speed.....

Right Down to Your Nails

Everyone remembers a time when your admiring a girls shirt, her boots, the cute headband in her hair -- she just looks so put together. But then you are misled by the chipped hot pink polish that looks like it hasn't been reapplied for....well, never. And then you can also remember the time when that girl was you. Who has time to perfectly do your nails every few days, and who has the money to getting a manicure once a week? However,  I think many people would agree that women have just an extra bit of flair when they are styled right down to their nails. Now, despite my above comment on the girl with the hot-pink polish, I don't have anything against hot-pink nail polish, nor do I blue or green - if you can pull it off, great. But I do have 3 color choices that I believe will pull you through this fall and winter season resembling that stylish, put-together woman.

Just like you need the perfect little black dress you also need the perfect red polish (and hey why not where them together?) The above red, is a deep rouge that will compliment any outfit especially while wearing neutral/boring tones (black, brown, cream). A color to wear while going out, special occasions and when you just want to feel hot -yes, wearing red nail polish does have this effect!

The middle light grey OPI colour represents all of the nudes and mattes that are popping up on nails all over the runways and hands of celebrities this year. While your skirts, tights, necklaces and head bands can have glitz and glamour, there is no longer a place for it on your nails. This color along with the other mattes (light purple, light pink and even light green/turquoise) are great for Monday- Friday.

Last, but not least as it is my personal favorite,  the go-to purple. Every fall, it pops up in several shades at salons all over the world- purple, purple, purple. Can be worn with anything, for anything, on anyone, can look sleek, rocker, pretty, whatever you want it to be. Dark purple is the answer when your brain is taken over by hundreds of colors staring at you in the middle of shoppers.

While not all of us have time to get a manicure or redo the whole set every few days, remember that a little effort does go along way, the 5 minutes of application and 15 minute drying time is worth it to exude overall style.

Mmmmm Mackage

What to wear on a perfect fall day....

Mackage is ALWAYS the answer. At a hefty price you can look sleek, strong, stylish, unique and stay warm. Montreal line Mackage makes the perfect coats coming in wools, leathers, furs, and now even goose-down. These are not your average jackets- outfitted with the finest details, the designer thought of every last thing from the outside in. Making both the mens and womens jackets very lust worthy. My favorite wool pieces for women and men....

mmmmmmmmm

Fall Success

Fur Vest- Check

Statement Necklace- Check

Lookin' Good- Check

As previously written, I have been on the hunt for a necklace like this...I found it tonight at Aldo (don't tell anyone!) and the vest was a small fee of $30 (!!!) at Winners... I love life.

10.0 for 3.1

3.1 Philip Lim F/W 2009

Despite the fact that all of the designers are rolling out their Spring/Summer '10 lines... I don't even want to think about spring yet! I am still sooooo in love with fall clothes and will peruse the Fall/Winter collections for this season forever....well it least until the snow starts getting on my nerves. 3.1 Philip Lim is one that I seem to always be drawn to. His runway looks could be literally walked right off the runway and onto the street- and I would like to do just that! Lim taps into some great fall looks - the sequin full skirt, the glitter, the fringe, floral patterns, and clearly he loves to layer! The outfit on the left is especially to die for, the things I would do for that patterned, chiffon dress. It is the perfect daytime outfit mixed with the fur vest and slouchy bag.

And not to mention the matching tights the designer had all of his models wear...if there is one thing you can learn from this blog post and from this collection- this color of tights looks great with any fall outfit this season!

10 points across the board from the judging team!

Lovely Lara

Doesn't this picture make you want to hit the books?

 Lara Vincent- a former Winnipeger, designs headpieces and now leather sling pouches too. I can't take credit for discovering her- a very stylish friend gave me the tip;) But aren't you glad she did?

Lara's fairy-esque designs are romantically wonderful. Check her out! www.laravincent.com

It seems like great things come out of Winnipeg...

Ghost With Great Style

For "security" reasons, this lovely woman has turned into a ghost. I had to use her pic to show off her killer outfit- the sequin skirt, floral headband and leather jacket are the stars that stand out in this ensemble. She perfectly pulls off the sequin mini without looking like a Las Vegas go-go girl by pairing it with a relaxed grey t, and covering up with a leather jacket. The leather jacket with shoulder detail (H&M) adds the perfect bit of rocker to ease up from the girlie headband and skirt- making it to be the perfect combo for a certain someone's birthday!

Dreaming of Velvet

Velvet is one of this seasons must-haves. But it took me awhile to catch on... I mean, I had countless red, blue and green velvet dresses with big puffy sleeves for every occasion when I was a little girl- christmas, birthdays, new years, it was all the rage for a 6 year old in the 90's. And now my velour days have  come crawling back to me and I just can't get enough. Diane Von Furstenburg, created the luxuriously soft navy blue dress in the foreground, it is the perfect mix of sparkle and sheen for a special occasion! The tights are a great way to mix the trend into your everyday wear, and can definitley be dressed up with a flowy top. I invested in a pair yesterday and I am already cozying up to them, have you ever felt the latest trend? It's so soft, Im thinking of re-upholstering...everything! The grey Thayer skirt from shopbop is another lovely item to easily mix velvet into your fall/winter wardrobe. Add one of the banana republic necklaces and you are ready for a glitzy night on the town!

Discovered!

After scouring the internet for days, maybe even weeks, I have found a haven of bold, sparkly, shiny, short, statement necklaces. I have facebook creeped strangers, pressed pause during certain moments in gossip girl and the City, gone to every one of my go-to websites and blogs, but I have not been able to find THE necklace. Now, I have found FIVE (it least!). Who knew Banana Republic appealed to more than just middle age, stylish business women? These necklaces are not cheap, but oh-so- worth it. I can not even pick out my favorite. Imagine how each would look under a blazer with a baggy white scoop neck... over top of a simple silky dress...with a sheath dress for "work"... with a tank top, black jeans and heels...the possibilities are endless, but my bank account is not. So, which will I choose for my christmas list?

www.bananarepublic.com

My new furry friends...

 I got a new pet today, he has many purposes: nice to look at, keeps me very warm, soft to pet and so much fun to play with in the snow. The breeder? Julie Pedersen.

If you have not heard about Julie Pedersen Designs, you will. A local Winnipeg designer who has reinvented the traditional Inuit Muck Lucks. Julie's "muckies" are the epitome of high fashion, superior craftsmanship and are just plain beautiful. And yes, they will keep your toes warm in the Winnipeg winter.
Today, for my birthday, my father and I visited Julie Pedersen in her studio in the exchange and we were overwhelmed by the amount of fur, fabric and creativity that was literally bursting through the doors. Julie greeted us as the perfect model of her product - relaxed in jeans and a T, but sporting luxurious rabbit fur with eccentric hot pink feathers sewn around the dark black suede. I can not imagine the selection this young up-and-coming has to choose from. But I did get a sneak peek- hundreds of boots line her studio as she is preparing for shows in both Toronto and New York in just a months time.

My boots, could not be more perfect for me. Black suede feet with black rabbit fur -- which is so soft I am tempted to sleep with them. And my favorite part- a gold embroidered floral arrangement on the outside right leg to add a perfect splash of "wow".

Since I've discovered "muckies" I don't think I could ever look at another UGG again. I thanked Julie for rescuing me from almost asking for a new pair for my birthday.

Now, I just need a name for my furry friends...

If I....

If I were to go to a Marc Jacobs party....I would wear this!!! The beautiful girls you see in the pic are models who spent the summer together in Tokyo. They started a blog to inspire people like me and my sister to dream to be as cool as them. This is what they wore to a party they went to for no big deal... Marc Jacobs. It has inspired me to get my hands on, well basically everything they are wearing but in particular I am loving the long sleeve black, body hugging dress and the sequin blazer on the other.

Laura and Heather.
www.horaconfessions.com

Fall into Fur

All summer long I eyed by great grandmothers mink coat that hung in the wardrobe -- pondering how it would look with just a few..alterations. Unfortunately, that would definitely never be allowed. So, in the wardrobe it would hang, taunting me all through out the fall and winter while other mink coats happily kept girls all over the magazines, runways and club scenes around the world hot and looking very good too.

But then, just as I began to get over my fur obsession, another one, one that I would never dare to put scissors near stumbled across my path. And here I am, crying inside as I try to think of a job where I can accumulate the funds to purchase it asap. For now, I will look at faux versions on Ebay, but I know nothing will compare. This little number from Elizabeth and James, also known as Mary Kate and Ashley's line, can be worn in 3 different ways.

 1) Exhibit A.
 2) The black blazer by itself
 3) Just the fur as an ever so trendy vest.

If you have $795 to drop on it, check out net-a-porter.com

A Love Affair

My newest love is the Australian line, MinkPink (www.minkpink.com). Unique, trendy, quality, affordable. What more can you ask? I saw one dress in a magazine, typed the name in on google and proceeded to look at every website that sells their clothing. I have compiled a list of the best ones. They recently opened their sales to North America -- which is great because us Canadians can now buy it, but that comes along with seeing your new unique Australian dress you ordered at Aritizia and Urban Outfitters. But I think it's worth it. Here are the best websites that sell MinkPink:

www.aboutagirl.com.au

www.urbanoutfitters.com

www.freez.com.au

www.chickdowntown.com 

www.tobi.com 

www.buydefinition.com

I call dibs on the black studded mini dress!

Change of Heart

Boots. So I am moving to Ontario in 2 weeks for the school year. I traveled there last year in November and January and the climate is quite different from my wonderful Winterpeg. Rather than wretched, bitter, cold with hard, crisp snow-- it is wet, slushy, under your skin and all over your brand new suede thigh high boots cold. Yes- the damn Ontario salty slush ruined my beauties. So, now that I am moving out there I had to reevaluate my winter shoe wardrobe. I had many late night fantasies about tall, hunter rain boots. How could you go wrong with the brand the Queen wears? I had seen cute girls wearing long t's, thick tights and then these gorgeous rubbers to their knees. It looked to effortlessly chic. Like hey- I don't want my feet to get wet so I bought a pair of $150 wellies. I had checked out ebay to browse the selection and had picked a nice "new" pair for about $70 with buy it now- quite a bargain. A few days later I saw a girl crossing the street wearing them, confirming my desire. Just before I hit purchase on my ebay account, I decided I should try them on at a real retailer to make sure of my size. But when I put them on and looked in the mirror - they just looked like big rain boots. Not cute, tall riding boots that happened to be rubber. The sales was also wearing a pair but they looked amazing on her. I looked down at her and realized she was 5'4 while I am 5'9. The extra length on my legs made them only go half way up my calf and looked sloppy. My hunter fantasies disappeared and I made my way to JOE at Superstore. Picked up a beautiful, more unique, detailed pair of plaid rubbers for only $34. And that night I had wonderful dreams about my new black and white plaid boots with cable knit tights and a pea-coat in Ottawa in January slushing around-- feet protected.