Where to Shop - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy August 20, 2014

Finding Something Treasured From Sweet Violet

I’m a sucker for charming boutique stores nestled into the downtown of whatever city I am visiting. When I travel make sure I make time to shop around the stores in the town or city I am in because I want to find some sort of treasure to take home. Shopping at the mall is convenient and quick, but when I want to give someone a thoughtful and unique gift, I am not going to find it at the mall.

As well I like to have things in my home that are special and meaningful, and hopefully cannot be found in everyone else’s living space. I like things to be curated and carefully put together, and it’s especially appreciated if they don’t include a set of instructions from Ikea! Don’t get me wrong, Ikea completely serves it’s purpose and I’ve been known to spend a Sunday putting together bookshelf or two from there, but when it comes to the actual décor and finishing pieces in my home, I want them to be special and meaningful.

Yesterday I ventured into Sweet Violet, located in Downtown Whitby, and not far from Michael Penney’s two other stores Penney & Co (which I have previously blogged about here) and Pineapple Street.

Sweet Violet carries all things bath, body, and baby. They have soft bamboo towel sets and unique bathmats and shower curtains, along with everything to pamper yourself from creams, lotions, and fresh soaps. The soaps and lotions not only have beautiful scents, but they are just plain pretty and make for perfect gifts.

For décor, Sweet Violet has everything from rugs, throws, pillows and complete bedding sets. You know when you are looking on Pinterest and find that perfect duvet cover with the matching pillow shams and a fabulous matching throw that looks too perfect to ever find? Sweet Violet seems to have everything you need already put together on display for the look you couldn’t figure out how to put together yourself.

Queen Comforter, $120

I loved some of the great items for children at this store. They have a selection of stuffed animals and books, and some really fun prints for a child’s nursery. There are knit blankets, mobiles, and décor pieces that would put the finishing touches on a bedroom for the most important little person in your life. I loved the hot air balloons you could hang from the ceiling – they even come in a mobile!

Small Balloons $25, Medium $39

Who’s Hiding? $8.99, What? $6.99

Large Prints $50, Small Prints $30

I have been looking for a piece of coral for my living room for quite some time, and there was a great selection of beachy décor at Sweet Violet. I could not decide between the red and the white coral, so I had to go home for a pow-wow with the husband to hear his thoughts. He said to get both, which was not very helpful.

Red Coral $17, White Coral $16 – $20

Sweet Violet is a great space to find that perfect something for your own home, or to find that fabulous gift that will make the person receiving it feel special to receive something treasured. Who doesn’t deserve to have soap direct from France? I feel like I totally do.

Paris Soap Dish $10

French Liquid Soap in Green Tea, Marine, or Verbena $25

Gift Wrap $11-$12

Sweet Violet is located at 124 Brock Street South in Whitby. Open Tuesday – Saturday 11am – 5pm, Sunday and Monday Closed. For more information on Sweet Violet click here.

Roxymandy August 19, 2014

What To Do With The Rest Of Your Summer!

It feels like summer is ending fast! It’s been so cold this week and September is fast approaching, so I’ve been thinking about what I need to fit in before the end of the summer. I’m going to be having as many BBQ’s as possible, and trying to do everything outdoors, and I absolutely want to take advantage of all the fun events in and around Toronto at this time of year. There are a few on my list I want to make sure I fit in during these last couple weeks, and I have added them below for you to see as well!

Twilight Tuesday Mini Night Market – Tuesday’s in August from 5pm – 9pm

Held at the York Street parkette (Richmond Street and Adelaide Street), the event features summertime snacks and live entertainment.

Tickets are $5 and can be traded for one food item or one drink item from restaurants such as Momofuku, Drake One Fifty, Richmond Station and Gabaradine.

The Drake One Fifty

These restaurants will serving up snacks and street food with live music. More information on the event can be found here.

Scotiabank® presents Summer Cinema at Fort York – Tuesday’s in August & September

Starting at Dusk on Tuesday’s, Ford York is hosting a family friendly free outdoor movie for the month of August. This event is free, and all you need to bring is a blanket or lawnchair for seating. The first 300 people will receive free popcorn and the first 50 SCENE debit and VISA cardholders to show their cards will receive a VIP seat. Check out www.scotiabank.com/outdoormovies for more details.

August Movies: •August 19th – Ghostbusters (8:15pm)
•August 26th – The Amazing Spiderman 2 (8:05pm)

Chill Ice House – open year round!

The best time to visit a frozen bar and lounge is in the summer, right?

Located at King Street West and Bathurst Street, Chill Ice House is left at a temperature of -5 C. There is a $15 cover charge which includes your use of a made-in-Toronto cape (red or blue – your choice!) and gloves. You are also provided a wristband which tracks your purchases so you don’t need to worry about the money you can’t get out of your pocket because it is too cold.

Photo Courtesy of Chill Ice House

There is a 1200 square-foot chilled space, plus a 1500 square-foot speakeasy which is warmed in the back if you need a break. Every thing is frozen including the chandelier and cups, but the bathroom is not frozen luckily.

Photo Courtesy of Chill Ice House

At night it’s a bar, but during the day families and school trips visit and tour the Ice House.

More details at http://chillicehouse.com

Oshawa Centre Fashion Never Sleeps – Friday September 5th

Photo Courtesy of the Oshawa Centre

The mall will be open for extended hours on this night from 9pm until 11pm. There will be giveaways, live music, and the latest in fall fashions.

Photo Courtesty of The EX

The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) – August 15th – September 1st

It’s one of North America’s largest annual fairs, and it signals the end of summer for Torontonians. There are 18 days of amusement park rides, parades, live entertainment, food and more.

Photo Courtesy of The Ex

The Canadian International Air Show will be on the last weekend of the summer, and there are lots of concerts and events which coincide with the fair. $16, Seniors: $12, Children (13 and under): $12, Children 4 and under: Free

www.theex.com

Photo Courtesy of Scotiabank Buskerfest

Toronto’s 2014 Scotiabank BuskerFest 2014 – August 21st – 24th

This festival takes over the Yonge Street from Queen to College and throughout the neighbourhood including Yonge-Dundas Square, Trinity Square Park and Gould St on the Ryerson Campus.

Street performers take over the city with appearances by magicians, circus acts, musicians, clowns, contortionists, acrobats aerialists, puppets, silent comedians and more.

Photo Courtesy of Scotiabank Buskerfest

There is no actual schedule for the performances – you just have to walk the streets of this festival and see what pops up. It’s the last major festival of the summer, and for more details check out http://www.torontobuskerfest.com/

Roxymandy August 18, 2014

Joseph Altuzarra for Target Lookbook Released

The Joseph Altuzarra for Target lookbook has finally been released ahead of the designer’s launch in stores and online on September 14th. Prices range from $17.99 all the way up to $89.99, and there are lots of skirts, animal print, and silky blouses.

I have to admit that some of it is not really my style. There are definitely pieces I want like the military trench coat, the peplum blazer, and the ankle strap heels (only $39.99!). I just don’t wear a lot of pencil skirts and floor length gowns, so not all of it is my style. It is definitely worth checking out since normally Joseph Altuzarra’s designs fetch up to $2775.00 on NET-A-PORTER!

Altuzarra for Target will be available Sept. 14, at most Target stores and Target.com. A curated assortment will be available via NET-A-PORTER.COM.

Here are all 14 looks below!

Roxymandy August 13, 2014

Fall Back to School Fashion Guide for Kids

Back to school is only a few weeks away, and although I love the summer, I think I love fall more. I’ve talked before about how I love to shop for fall clothes, and now I am working on my toddlers wardrobe for fall as well. Since I can’t go back to school, I must live vicariously through him, so he is going to get some cozy sweaters and some funky new shoes in the next few weeks! I only have so long before he starts dressing himself, so I have to take advantage now. I have been doing a lot of online shopping, and along the way I have found some adorable styles for toddlers and kids you have to see! I feel like I am shopping for my kid all the time, and it’s not just because I love shopping – it’s like they are constantly growing! I find an amazing pair of shoes or an awesome piece of clothing, and a month later I am trying to figure out to stretch the shoe or tear the hem out of the pants so he can wear them a bit longer. Maybe I shouldn’t be feeding him so much milk or something. Anyway, although I know some of these cute fall finds will be short lived with his growing situation, I can’t help but indulge a bit since he looks like a stud in some of this stuff. I have added some girls styles as well since there were a few things I would totally buy for myself. Cat Skirt from H&M included.

H&M Quilted Skirt $19.99

H&M Fake Fur Waistcoat $34.95

H&M Cotton Shirt $17.95

Zara Embroidered “voila” sweatshirt $19.90

Zara Letter Sweater $25.90

Zara Leopard Print Jacket $39.90

Roots Fleece Varsity Jacket $40.00

AKID Knight (Black) Shoes $70.00

Anthony Hi (Black/White) Bandana Shoes $65.00

Toms Black and Turquoise Paisley Tiny TOMS Classics $35.00

Ralph Lauren Cotton Fleece Blazer $79.50

Girls Pink Floral Fade Out Print T-shirt £8.00

Abercrombie Kids Printed Jumpsuit $54.95

OshKosh B’gosh French Terry Pullover $14.00

Carter’s Button-Front Stripe Shirt $16.00

Roxymandy August 12, 2014

My Review of LIVING PROOF Perfect Hair Day 5-in-1 Styling Treatment

When something includes the title “Perfect Hair Day”, it had better deliver. Those words will entice me to buy anything if they can really get me a perfect hair day. I try not to go to Sephora, but every once in a while my foundation, concealer, and face cream supply will suddenly be depleted (why does this always happen at once?) to the point where I have no choice but to walk into Sephora and drop a gross amount of money on refills. The good news about this trip was that I also picked up Living Proof’s Perfect Hair Day 5-in-1 Styling Treatment.

What do you know about LIVING PROOF? Whenever I see it I think of Jennifer Aniston, the brand’s ambassador who was chosen wisely as she has hair to die for.

Right now on my hair I am using Joico shampoo and conditioner, and I alternate between Moroccan Oil, or whatever other product I get a free sample of that promises to strengthen, provide frizz control, and repair damage to my hair.

I have used Moroccan Oil for a few years now, and I seem to get an oil build up every few weeks, so I need to alternate products. I have talked to other people who use it and they don’t have the same problem, so I guess it’s just me!

So there is a lot of science behind this product (reduces breakage by 78%, for the first time ever they have combined patented Healthy Hair Molecule – OFPMA – and their own Volumizing Molecule – PBAE), but really the claims are that in one step you will have added smoothness, volume, conditioning, strength and polish to your hair. It also claims to keep your style cleaner for longer, and it’s sulfate-free, silicone-free and oil free.

These all sound like the ingredients required for a perfect hair day! I gave it a try, but was confused at first because there are two ways to wear this product. You can either apply it to your clean, damp hair and then comb through, or for best results blow dry your hair. Usually I find products say you must blow-dry to heat-activate the product, so I was surprised you could just leave it in and that the perfect hair day promise would still stand.

The smell is a light citrus, and although it smelled great I didn’t smell it in my hair after I blow-dried it. As soon as I started blow-drying my hair I was surprised because my hair felt way softer. It’s probably the quickest I have ever seen a result from a product in my life. My hair was instantly becoming softer, and I wasn’t even done blow-drying yet!

I tried not to get too excited, and went to bed with my super soft hair to see what would happen in the morning.

I woke up not even remembering using the stuff until I started to use my hair straightener, and then I realized that my hair was very soft and smooth. LIVING PROOF provides some tips and tricks for the product, and they say if you use a flat brush as I did when blow-drying, your hair will have a more smooth and polished look. I can attest that they were right on that one!

So I went about my day with what you could call a “Perfect Hair Day”. No frizz, it stayed smooth all day, but I can’t attest yet to how much stronger my hair is because I don’t know if I would ever notice that, but the only thing missing was volume. That could be my fault as one of the tips and tricks LIVING PROOF offers for this product is that to enhance body you should apply the product, and blow-dry using a round brush instead of a flat brush. Sorry, I don’t even own a round brush so I couldn’t test this one out.

LIVING PROOF also mentioned that when air-drying with this product to use a little less of it, and so I did when letting my hair dry naturally. My hair was left very soft, and I could smell a bit more of the product in my hair this way as well.

This product claims to repel dirt and oil, which extends your style and allows you to wash your hair less often. It’s true I found my hair less oily on the second day then when I use Moroccan oil, but anytime I don’t use Moroccan Oil my hair is less oily the second day. I never go for a third day without washing my hair, and this product didn’t change my mind. I’m not sure it did much to repel oil, but it definitely didn’t contribute to the oil-slick issue I have on top of my head.

The bonuses to this product? It offers both heat and UV protection! Hair is protected from the heat up to 450 degrees and it contains a UV defense that absorbs harmful, damaging UV rays from the sun.

Overall I think it holds up to most of it’s claims for a “Perfect Hair Day’. I really like this product a lot, and I like that I don’t need to combine a heat protecting spray to my hair as well for straightening or blow-drying. It’s a pretty convincing little styling treatment that gave me results almost instantly, and at a cost of $32.00 CDN it’s really not a bad price to pay for a perfect hair day, plus to not need to use a heat protecting spray as well.

You can purchase it online here at Sephora, or ask them for a free sample to try it yourself!