March, 2014 - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy March 20, 2014

World MasterCard Fashion Week – Joe Fresh

The best part about Joe Fresh is you can subtly add items of clothing to your grocery bill without your husband being any wiser about it. I’m sure what was on the runway last night will be sold in the Joe Fresh standalone stores instead of my local Superstore, but the fact that the whole line is sold at affordable prices is helpful when watching looks go down the runway! There was a lot of green, camel and grey, with flashes of the brands signature orange. The theme seemed to be Canadian winter with all of the jackets featured. My favourite pieces were the coordinates that looked very comfortable and easy to wear. And there is no worry about matching your skirt to your top when they are bought as a pair – it’s so easy! Here are some shots from the show!

All images courtesy of George Pimental

Roxymandy March 19, 2014

World MasterCard Fashion Week – Mélissa Nepton

My favourite fashion shows are the ones where the clothing is so unbelievable that you dream of owning a piece, but that piece of clothing is so out-there and unbelievably amazing that you would never have an event to wear it to! I’m not sure why I enjoy seeing things that are so impractical and un-wearable to the regular events I go to, but I feel like that is what fashion shows are all about. I love to see something I could never I imagine or design myself.

The practical side of me also enjoys seeing a show full of things I could actually attain and wear in my not-as-fabulous real life! Last night I attended a few shows at World MasterCard Fashion week in Toronto, and one of those shows was Mélissa Nepton. She is a Montreal-based designer who creates ready-to-wear couture, and it was one of those shows where I kept saying “I could totally wear that outfit” as each piece was walked down the runway.

My favourite part of the show was her use of leather. It made everything a little edgy. I am not a super edgy person, but I can fake it with a little leather!

I wrote a post recently about Mélissa’s Target collaboration which I also loved (please don’t butt in front of me when I line up for those things – I’m always too polite to say something about that but inside I’m seething!), so she’s pretty much on a roll with me.

Here are some of my favourite pieces from her show!

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All photo credits to George Pimentel / Getty Images.

Roxymandy March 14, 2014

The blossom lounge x bkr Beauty Water Challenge Update!

I announced recently that I was part of the blossom x bkr Beauty Water Challenge, and I’m excited to share my results thus far!

As I mentioned before, I am NOT a water drinker. This challenge has been hard for me, because water isn’t something I reach for if I’m thirsty. It’s usually a Starbucks!

This challenge came at a great time because I actually suffered a concussion last week, and I found that I had no appetite, but water was my saviour. I’ll get back to that in a minute!

To recap, the challenge has me drinking from my cute bkr water bottle 5 times per day. I simply have 5 elastic on my bottle which I remove as I finish a bottle. This process is easy and key for me because I would NEVER remember how many bottles I’ve had unless it was counted this way!

When I took my before photo for the challenge, I wanted to note to myself how I was looking and feeling. Beside my seasonal depression with this brutal winter, I generally felt pretty healthy, but I definitely had dry winter skin and my complexion had a pretty “blah” feeling.

Drinking all of this water was hard to get used to! Tons of bathroom breaks constantly reminded me that I was hydrating like I never had before. A few days in, I suffered a concussion from a sports-related injury which I am still recovering from, and I was feeling very dizzy, had terrible head aches and had a loss of appetite. I was so happy because drinking water actually relieved my head aches a bit. It was basically the only thing I could keep down for a bit, so I pretty much doubled my water intake the challenge dictated for a few days.

Towards the end of this week I’ve found my skin seems a but less needy for moisturizer which seems like an improvement to me! The challenge continues, and I will update the blog with my progress again soon!

Fresh face (minus my mascara – I can never get that off!), one week after the challenge started

Roxymandy March 13, 2014

Fun Fashion for Kids with Wheat Canada

WHEAT is a Danish clothing company which launched in Canada this past February. They have lines for both infants and children, and their designs are tailored to be stylish but comfortable. The pants have adjustable elastic waists, they use natural fabrics, and their clothing is meant to last through regular wear and tear.

It also helps as well that their designs are super cute! They also have a promo right now that runs until March 15th where if you spend $75 or more (before tax and shipping), you will receive either a basic girls t-shirt LS or a basic boys t-shirt LS free!

All you need to do is:

Add a basic girls t-shirt LS or a basic boys t-shirt LS to your cart – any colour, any size.
Use the promo code: LOVEMYBASIC at the checkout and one tee will be free.
Enjoy!

WHEAT is available online at www.wheatcanada.com, and I’ve also included a few of my favourite picks below!

T-Shirt Elisabeth SS
$20

Jumper Gatherings SS Floral
$18

Dress Alba
$21

Leggings Minna Peach Pop
$13

Skirt Ena
$23

Girls Tights Dots
$7

Skirt Tulle
$23

Boy’s T-Shirt Anchor SS
$16

Trousers Asmus
$36

Sweat Round Neck
$18

T-Shirt Octopus SS
$9

T-Shirt Alphabet LS
$12

Roxymandy March 12, 2014

Where to Shop – babyGap Tiny Trends

According to babyGap, spring is here! Some of the biggest trends of the season have recently launched in store and online for newborns, infants and toddlers at babyGap. Here are some of the Tiny Trends they are featuring right now!

Florals and stripes are both great for spring as stand-alone pieces, and mixed and matched together for an overall look.

(Pleated Stripe Dress – $24.95, Quilted Denim Jacket – $34.95, Stripe Pocket Tee – $14.95, Floral Pull-On Skinny Jeans – $24.95)

Colour blocking can be one of the harder trends to pull off, unless the work is already done for you with these cute pieces launched by babyGap. It’s easy to match these tops and bottoms with more neutral pieces since all of the colour is already designed into the look of each item.

(Colorblock Hoodie – $24.95, Colorblock Swimtrunks – $19.95, Colorblock Sweatshirt Dress – $26.95, Colorblock Body Double Onesie – $19.95)

The nautical look never seems to fade out of style, but it’s much louder right now and is trending for all ages. It’s a look that anyone can pull off, and these cute babyGap jackets, sweats and shorts are pieces that can be worn over and over again as classics – as long as your little one doesn’t grow out of them too soon!

(Rain Parka – $49.95, Shawl Collar Cardigan – $34.95, Nylon Parka – $44.95, Striped Swim Trunks – $19.95)

For more details, and to see the full babyGap spring line, visit www.gapcanada.ca