animalistic

(top:hm,jacket:f21,belt+pants:americanapparel,boots:icon)

Went to see Owl City in concert with one of my bestest, and we were NOT expecting to be freezing our arses off! (outside the venue of course) What happened to our April showers? I would prefer a thunderstorm to this cold we had a few nights. The jacket, as warm as it was, I hafto say wasn't enough to withstand the brute force Canadian weather can have. I should be used to this by now, but I wouldn't be the first Canuck to admit they prefer a hot summer over the cold. Onto the concert, Owl City = What a nut!, Lights = Beautiful and effing talented!, and Paper Route = So effin talented, too! In fact, I think they were the hit for me. If you wanna know what good music is, check out their song, "Dance on our Graves". We should petition to have real music in the limelight, but hey... money talks. Well.... enjoy!

Denim Designz

DSquared

L.A.M.B. + DSquared

L.A.M.B. + JeanPaulGaultier

Hot damn! Hot denim! Just lurve it :)

Romper Delight

(romper:F21,Shoes:Aldo,Socks:hm,heart necklace:Swarovski,glasses:RayBan)

It's as if spring took a couple steps ahead, then took 10 steps back. Why is it so friggin cold out these days! If it weren't, I could actually wear my spring duds. I was actually contemplating taking out my winter coat... but I held back. Anyhoo, this outfit is cute to go for lunch downtown, or even some pub grub. Just throw on a cardigan and go! The socks make it springy and stylish, and not to mention keep your toesies warm :) The heart necklace was simple, as the pattern is already kinda busy. Less is more when it comes to accessories, I believe. The glasses are actually my prescription Ray Bans that were once sunglasses. I had them take out the shades and put in my lenses, and voila! Yes, I am nuts and they thought so, too LOL .. But I love em!!

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Acoustic+Romance+Whatcha Say

I've been teaching myself guitar for a little while now, and I'll be the first to say I'm not anywhere near as good as I want or ought to be at this stage. Ah well! If you're feeling brave, take a listen to my Bad Romance and/or Whatcha Say cover. I'm no Gaga or De Rulo, but I tried and more importantly... I like it lol! Here goes...

What's up with you?

Let's take a moment and remember a musical legend, who 10 months ago we had no idea would rock the world in a way nobody expected. Solely put, sans glamour, he died... but his music lives on. Does everyone remember all his classics? Of course we're thinking Billie Jean, Thriller, Smooth Criminal, Bad... we'll always remember the same old hits that will never die out, but shouldn't we pay some homage to some of his other songs? They might be lacking what his other hits didn't, but they sure pack a punch, and this one in particular, a collaboration with none other than Eddie Murphy. The song is called "What's Up With You?", and after watching this video you may be asking yourself the same thing I did... Why hasn't Eddie Murphy come out yet?

overkill

How hard is it to resist temptation? In my case damn hard when it comes to a need pair of shades. Anyone could go broke buying a nice pair of Von Zippers or Gucci or Dolce's .... but I couldn't ever! Not with my luck, anyhow. This here is my collection of shades, cheapies, semi-cheapies, and some really neat vintage ones... Of course, I have a couple pairs in the car, and some lying in empty purses... But it's about time I acknowledge my problem. My name is Valerie, and I'm a Sunglasses-holic.

Raglan Decade

(necklace+top:vintageG.I.Joe,vest:HM,sunglasses:aldo?,wedges:JeffreyCampbell,hat:Volcom)

Is it silly to wish you were in another decade for something as simple as a raglan t-shirt? Obviously, everything comes back into style year after year... so technically we don't actually miss a decade of fashion. It's a circle and like everything from film to music, even designs are recycled. But seriously, it's the epitome of casual and cool; free-spirited and fashionable. I think if I had a flask of whisky and a Hendrix vinyl, I'd be set to go back in time!

week + end + week + begin

Here we all are, the end of one and the start of another. Hope everyone had a great weekend as this weather can get quite confusing! I think spring is having some kind of identity crisis; heard things like snow in some places. Odd. At least Sunday was much more appropriate I got to enjoy some sunshine with my little girl :) As usual, and somewhat a tradition, spent Sunday with family and feasted with pasta, lamb, sausage, meatballs, refreshing salad and of course some good ol' vino and creme brulee for dessert. Needless to say, my Sunday Dinners almost always transition to my Monday Diets... and the cycle goes round and round.

I guess I've been having too much fun as I've pretty much destroyed my white leather brogues. Yes, white. Not hard to do at all, especially when you start getting clumsy and after that first little scuff at the tip, it's all downhill! They are the most comfiest shoes and I can't help but wear the heck out of them and so now I'm seriously thinking of getting a new pair, but keeping these and getting the tips re-leathered (if that's a word) at the shoemaker (seen this done before) in another colour. Possibly a taupe or black tip sounds appealing to me, but we shall see! Whatever it is, I'll post the finished product for sure. Perhaps a suggesting would be nice ;)

While I'm weeping over my tattered shoes, here's some cute little oxford-maryjane-hybrid-like-wedges I came across that made me feel much better, hah!

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT>> DEBI NOVA

If you haven't heard of her before, you will soon 'cause this woman's star is ON THE RISE! I'm quite proud to introduce her as the newest sensation hailing from Costa Rica. Si, es tica y es una artista maravillosa! Being half tica myself, it's one of those pride things to see someone from your country make it so big. Although she may sound like a newcomer she's been in the industry for quite some time now and has 6 Grammy nominated projects, and has worked with Ricky Martin and Sergio Mendez. This singer, song-writer, pianist and multi-instrumentalist is sure to turn heads with her talent... and not to mention exquisite beauty!

Take a look at her No. 1 Dance hit below.

Rock + Roll+ DIY Style

(T-Shirt:Fat Cock Jeans,Sunglasses+Men'sPlaid Shirt:Vintage,LeatherLookLeggings+Belt:American Apparel,Boots:F21)

Who wants something really cool, stylish on a dime? I bought this men's plaid shirt at a thrift store and (before I cinched the waist with the elastic belt) I actually safety pinned the shirt to hug my waist with the strip of buttons (and the strip of button holes) loose. The shirt became this awesome shape, even without the belt, though I added it anyways for the look. Thought I'd share that interesting discovery I made!

I think rock'n'roll says it all, but this is actually more versatile than that. It's all in the accessories however blinged out you feel the need to be, for whatever the occasion. Boots give it that edge, but a pair of sexy high heel ankle boots. I'm thinking buckle or stud embellishments.... gotta keep that fierce rocker-ness vibe going!

Sam Edelman KNOWS a boot! Hello Gorgeous!

Colin Stuart studded ankle boots... the look even works with EITHER colour!

(dress+vest:hm,necklace:aldo accessories,sandle wedges:best brand (costarica)nail polish:essie-vandgo)

Nice weather is here to end off the week, but unfortunately it's not here to stay (booo!). Might as well enjoy it and of course, dress for it! It's a cute ensemble, perfect for spring. The flower petal detail on the dress is complimented by the long peace necklace a la hippy. Just getting my inner flower child out. To add to the 70's vibe, I paired it with a light blue denim vest and some wedges. These wedges I got for sooo cheap when I was in Costa Rica visiting some fam. Surprisingly, they are quite comfy... I've already tested them out for a whole day before and I wasn't in bloody pain by the time I got home. The nail polish I found when getting my mom some things from her beauty suppliers. It's part of Essie's Spring Collection, called Van D Go. It's absolutely PERFECT for spring, though I can totally see myself wearing this throughout the summertime.

Happy Weekend all!

Art: Fun + Functional (+ DIY)

Every so often I get these bursts of creativity and grab my paint brush. A friend of mine showed me some Dior sketches she found online and really liked and thus became the inspiration for this painting. Take from it what you will, as is the purpose of most art. A painting can say so much with little detail which is the appeal for this medium. She's so chic and imperfect in this picture and style is not about perfection nor dressing to the nines, but how you carry and love yourself.

Okay, so my addiction for the past while has been HGTV (yes, I know, I don't have a life). I have been doing so many little renos (which I'll be posting) at home, and I say little because I live in an apartment and well, I'm probably not even allowed to do half the things I've done! So anyhoo, I was organizing my jewelry and tossing some of the cheapies when I realized how annoying it was keeping my long necklaces in a little container. They would constantly get tangled or I wouldn't see half of them and therefore never wear them. I went online to search for some sort of jewelry organizer and absolutely nothing struck my fancy. There weren't many options for hanging long necklaces other than simply placing hooks on a wall or closet. I yearned for something funky, artsy, cool and perhaps a possible DIY project. This was the outcome, after painting over some small canvases and attaching hooks to them (the wood border).

Easy, very artistic and considering one gets to paint it themselves, quite the personal touch! If you're not very creative, you can still just paint them one solid colour and add a complimentary colour as stripes for a neat effect. If painting a design you could also continue the design to the other canvas(ses) when using 2 or more so as to unify them. Tip: Consider the room's colour scheme before choosing your paint ;)

This project cost me nothing as I had all my supplies lying around, which you can find at a dollar store. All around it's less than $5. Fashion steal!

Straight + Stunning + Sparkly

A staple for any woman's wardrobe, a fierce blazer or jacket to compliment almost any outfit. This jacket (above) from Topshop albeit is a tad too shiny for the common day wear. What I love the most is the style/cut. The Balmain emulated shoulders gives it a straight and very sophisticated and sexy look. I'd say this could flatter any girl (unless you have no neck and get lost between the shoulders! <0_o>). Since I couldn't justify buying the jacket (at the time of saving the picture to my desktop first *what a nerd!*) and Topshop wasn't delivering to Canada yet, I got this super cute Moroder Shoulder Jacket (below) from NastyGal. I'd say it's a far off substitute, but lucky for us the fashion world is full of them!

I'll take one of each please! Nevermind those prices hah!

*drool*

First of the first of the first...

Well now... here goes. Decided, considering my interests, instead of keeping them to myself I'd share them :) All things nice, a good vibe, things to rant about, and moi. It could be clothing, perhaps, or art, perhaps, or a good song or movie, perhaps. This is something, once again, I'll have to try and keep updated. A bit of a challenge looking back at most of my flops, but I'll just have to keep this simple in order keep it alive.

Love.Peace.

V