Thursday, March 31, 2011

tiaraiconHidden Treasures

Don't you just love it when you unearth hidden treasures from within your own closet? This past weekend I was cleaning my wardrobe and came across this orangey red embroidered floral skirt I picked up at a vintage shop in Venice Beach, California and this delicate black blouse from H&M that I haven't worn in years.  The boy and I were walking to dinner and stumbled across this quaint brick church and decided it would be the perfect backdrop for my outfit photos.

On a different note, one of my newest blog loves, Spinning Threads tagged me with the stylish blogger award! She is a very stylin' mom who makes knee socks and floral print look adorable and fun- you should check her out! The rules are that I have to share eight facts about myself that you don't already know (and since I've shared here and here I had to think long and hard about my choices)

Skirt- Vintage; Blouse- H&M; Boots- Spring; Bracelets-Aldo; Nail polish- Coral Pink by Sally Hansen

1. When I'm brushing my teeth I get bored and chew on the toothbrush, resulting in a need for a replacement brush almost every week. 

2.  When I was 15, I had a secret desire to be Christina Aguilera and would slink around my room in boy shorts singing "Dirrty".

3. I set personal deadlines such as wanting to be engaged in the next year (c'mon boy!), married by 25 and have my first child by 30. 

4. My younger sister and I used to hold puppet shows for our parents and we called our troupe Stem Productions (from our names Stephanie and Emily).  My Mum thought we were going to be global stars...

5.   My favourite sweet snack are Skittles & Smarties mixed together in a bowl, from when a friend and I used to eat them everyday at summer camp.

6.  Speaking of summer camp, I went to Bible Camp every summer from age 5-15.  After that I wasn't allowed to return because I spent the whole time flirting with boys instead of learning about God. 

7.  I am OCD with numbers- for example when I am shampooing and conditioning my hair I need to count to a certain number and if I mess up I have to start again.  I also set my alarm clock in multiples of nine.
 8.  Due to my unhealthy obsession with nail polish (at last count I had over 60 bottles), I would love to be a nail polish name creator ( making money to conjure up cheesy phrases like daffodil yellow and ballet slipper pink)

Thanks so much for choosing me Spinning Threads- although after reading my strange answers you are probably wishing you hadn't! ;)


My stylish blogger award picks go to:


Tuesday, March 29, 2011

tiaraiconbeacon of bright

It's hard to believe that Friday is the first day of April as the weather in Ottawa is still freezing, today it felt like -11 celcius with the wind chill! But I'm no meteorologist, bright colours are more my forte.  So today I put on my brightest pair of coral pink pants and painted my nails a matching colour to brave the chill!



It was interesting to read all the comments about my hair colours- everyone liked something different! I will be staying red for now (I am loving the roots free look) but come summer I will start highlighting until I'm blonder than Marilyn Monroe!


Pants- H&M; Tee- Gap; Jacket- Thrifted; Necklace & Ring- Smart Set; Nail polish-Coral Pink by Sally Hansen

Sunday, March 27, 2011

tiaraiconhair colour chameleon

After reading Melissa's blog post on her different hair styles I decided to write my own.  I am a chameleon when it comes to my hair, I bore easily and I'm always up for a change.  Over the past 5 years I've been blonde, brunette, redhead and everything in between.  Despite many naysayers, I love myself with light hair- the blonder the better! I do not like my hair short or brunette, I like my hair with long layers and bangs.  I've always wanted to experiment with hot pink and purple highlights but for now I'll leave this to the pros!

What's your fave/least fave? Do you like to experiment with hair colours?

Friday, March 25, 2011

tiaraiconplease ignore the cat hair

As a proud owner of two cats (Marley & Mama Sita) it is a rare day that my clothes are not covered from head to toe in their fur.  Lint rollers are my best friend but they can only get you so far when your cat insists on sleeping in your wardrobe, particularly on your new black dress.  Ah well it's the price we pay for feline companionship.  I would take furry black clothes over a catless existence any day. (And if you havene't figured it out by now I am the younger more stylish version of the crazy cat lady!)

Ring- Zellers; Nail Polish- Fig by Joe Fresh&Speed Dating by Rimmel (please ignore the random cat hair)





Jacket- Smart Set; Shirt- H&M; Scarf-street stall in London; Skirt- Thrifted; Boots- Spring; Glasses- Gucci

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

tiaraiconAnother year older

Yesterday was my 23rd birthday and I am now another year older and another year wiser.  A lot has happened in the last year.  For one, I fell in love with the man of my dreams and he asked me (and the kitties) to move in with him.  I graduated university with my Bachelor of Social Work and got a job in the field.  I started my blog and made new friends.  Most importantly, I matured.  I won't be wearing a tiara or a sequined bra for my birthday this year and I won't be waking up in the morning with cryptic messages written on my arm, wondering where they came from.

Dress & Sweater- Smart Set; Heels- Primark, UK; Belt & Pleather Jacket- Thrifted; Necklace- Frash Femme (borrowed from Marilou)


No folks, to celebrate my 23rd birthday my main man and I dined at our favourite place Zen Kitchen (courtesy of my Dad and Step-Mom) and spent the evening catching up and relaxing.  In a few weeks time, my best friends and I are taking a road trip to Montreal for wining, dining, partying and shopping.

The beautiful bouquet my boy presented to me

My birthday card with gift choices.  For my birthday I asked for a Michael Kors bag but he wanted to do something more exciting so he offered me a trip to Hawaii or a mystery prize.  I felt like I was on The Price is Right, picking a showcase!  The choice was easy, HAWAII please!!! We are going in July after his work trip to San Diego and I can't wait to start planning fun activities to do together.  Now I just have to buy some new bathing suits and work on my beach bod! (He still won't tell me what the mystery prize was!)

My girly cake we were too stuffed to eat after our dinner.

It was finally warm enough to break out these new shoes I got over my holiday trip to the UK.

Flax bread and tomato paste.

Tortilla soup with avocado, cilantro and sour cream.

Corn patty with caramalized onions, roasted peppers, mushrooms and nut cheese.

Panko crusted pepper with mole sauce with a side of mango coleslaw.

Coconut sponge cake with poached pears in caramel sauce.

Purple clad couple.

Happy Birthday to all my fellow Aries!

Monday, March 21, 2011

tiaraiconA Day in the Life of...


I'm back in the blogosphere and although my absence was short I've missed it! As I mentioned before I'm a Social Media intern for Ottawa Fashion Week and interning has been the name of the game for the past few days.  I thought I would share with you what I have been up to over the weekend to get a sense of the fashion scene in Ottawa, Canada.

A Day in the Life of a Social Media intern with Ottawa Fashion Week:

10am-1 pm: Spend this time writing blog posts for ottawafashionweek.ca/blog , tweeting for OFW_LIVE and answering e-mails from my ebrown@ottawafashionweek.ca account.

1-2 pm: Grab something to eat, get some fresh air and check the schedule for today's designers.

2-3 pm: Get dressed for Ottawa Fashion Week following the intern dress code of black clothing and black clothing.  Try to accessorize and think of how to make my black outfit more interesting.  Take the bus to The National Gallery where the fashion shows are being held. 

3:30-5:30 pm: Help out at the Media and VIP registration desk.  Handle all diva complaints of male models wanting to sit front row and VIP's who don't want to carry their goody bags around the Gallery.  Keep everyone happy.

5:30-6 pm: Start hyping up the shows via twitter, help out doing random jobs (stuffing goodie bags, making VIP passes, arranging chairs, telling models where they should be etc.)

6-7:30 pm: Head upstairs to the Great Hall for the first set of runway shows.  Grab a front row seat if available, if not, stand by the photographers at the end of the runway.  During the shows, tweet like a mad woman (at least 1 tweet per 2-3 minutes), take notes on the collections and take pictures.

7:30-8 pm: Promote our sponsors by getting people to take photos in front of their signs.  Mingle with VIPs, make sure people are enjoying themselves.  Grab a granola bar and fix my makeup.  Start hyping up the next shows via twitter and help out with more random jobs (carrying signage, handing out goodie bags, getting photographers' contact information etc.)

8-9:30 pm: Head upstairs to the Great Hall for the second set of runway shows.  (Same tasks as the first set of fashion shows).

9:30-11 pm: Clean up, assist at the registration table, promote sponsors.

11-11:30 pm: Volunteer debriefing meeting.  (and repeat the following day)

Ottawa Fashion Week was hectic, stressful, incredible, fantastic and fun and I am so happy to have experienced a day (more like a few months) in the life of a Social Media intern!  If any of you have the chance to intern at your local fashion week, jump on the opportunity and don't look back!

Yola Couture


Veronica MacIsaac Apparel


The stunning ceiling above the runway

Day 2- uniform black outfit funked up with leopard print tights, a sequin vest and red lipstick

Day 3- At the Registration Table wearing a beautiful necklace by Frash Femme (lent to me by Marilou)

Myself, Laura & Gina (PR interns) with our Frash Femme front row goody bags!

Day 1- Tweeting away in the front row

Friday, March 18, 2011

tiaraiconOttawa Fashion Week Launch Party

Ottawa Fashion Week Communications Team (Fajir, Gina, me, Amoi and Kristy)


As some of you know, I am a Social Media and PR intern for Ottawa Fashion Week.  This basically means that I am responsible for tweeting @OFW_LIVE and blogging (I'm ^EB).  It has been an amazing but labour intensive process so far, putting in on average 10 hours/week leading up the event.  Last night was our launch party at the Lobby lounge and it was very successful with a couple hundred invited guests in attendance including fashion designers Adrian Wu, Yola Couture and Emilia Torabi & Jana Hanzel.  It was a fun night filled with fashion, laughter, and mingling and I can't wait for the shows to start tonight.  I will be working hard over the weekend so don't think that I have forgotten about y'all. As soon as the fashion madness is over I will be stopping by to say hello!

And because I can't leave you without some fashion shots, here are some great photos from The Fashion Keeper's blog:

Myself, Julie (Pop Champagne) and fashion photographer Lawrence Callender

Designer Adrian Wu and Julia (The Fashion Keeper)

Fellow Social Media intern Sabrina (Sincerely Sabrina), myself, Nikki and Marilou (Twenty York Street)

The Lobby


You can check out more photos from last night on Ming Wu's website 
 
If you're not in the city but still want to be in the loop, follow along as we live tweet and blog about the shows! You can follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/OFW_LIVE or on our blog at ottawafashionweek.ca/blog

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

tiaraiconColourful News

Out with the bad news and in with the good- I found out yesterday that I got accepted into the Masters of Social Work (MSW) program at Carleton University with a nice scholarship! I am unsure if this is something I want to pursue right now, but it is nice to know that the option is there.  I have 3 weeks to make a decision but for now I am off to bed as my new job is kicking my butt!

Night night!
Panda Bear Ring- Logan Antiques; Nail Polish- Ballet Slipper by Joe Fresh
Dress- Forever 21; Jacket- H&M; Boots- Aldo; Headband- Smart Set