Silver Lining

I've been a little MIA in blog world the last few days and I wish I could blame it on a turkey eating induced coma... But no, we're in Canada and the only turkey I've had recently has been courtesy of Subway. Unfortunately, my week was thrown for a loop when I popped by home and found the indoor sprinklers on in our hallway... Except, we don't have ceiling sprinklers, we just had plumbing problems. When you only have one bathroom and the toilet is compromised, it makes for a difficult week. Long story short, we have a new toilet and we need a new ceiling... Boooo... but it could have been a lot worse.

To make myself feel better I wore something sparkly.

Skirt? Lux, UO (so old)
Sweater? Michael Kors, Filene's Basement
Boots? Nine West
Clutch? vintage
Belt? Taken from another dress

I got this snakeskin clutch from an older lady at a garage sale for a dime. It's from Eaton's (remember them?) and the lady recalled using this clutch as a young lady. I would never give away a lady's age but if I had to guess, I would say the clutch is at least 60 years old. I love the clutch but I feel a little bad for having it too; this is the kind of thing you give your grand daughter or something. Oh well, the lady was thrilled that I appreciated the clutch, and though I only use it sporadically because it's delicate, I'm sure she would enjoy the fact that I do actually use it.

Incompleat

Pants? Liz Claiborne, thrifted
Button-up? Ralph Lauren, thrifted
Belt and Bag? Roots, thrifted
Bangle? thrifted
Necklace? h&m
Earrings? won from Briannelee
Shoes? V. Camuto, Winners

A pair of pleat front pants have been on my must-have list for a while now. I've just refused to pay a lot of money for them new because, as any good thrifter knows, today's 'on trend, men's wear inspired, pleat front pants' are just the rebirth of early 90's mom pants. It still took me a while to thrift these though. While there were lots of potentials, it was hard to find a pair that actually fit me because apparently I'm long crotched (don't be jealous). If I had known it would take me this long to find a good pair, I might have cracked and gone to dependable h&m... Oh well, they were worth the wait. Brand new, good quality linen for under $10... I want to take the bottoms in to make the silhouette of the pants more streamlined but I think I'll probably just talk about it instead and never do it. Less work, really...

And how much are we loving bare toes in late November? Last year we had a couple of snowfalls already by this time. Even though I have to put a bit more effort in to shave the three inches of leg exposed, it's totally worth it for this mild weather.

'Tis the Season

Jeans? 7 for all Mankind, Winners
Blouse? ?, Winners
Velvet clutch? thrifted
Boots? Modern Vintage, Winners
Lion Belt? antique market

And so begins the holiday season.
We had our first holiday get together this weekend. It was a bit early because organizing a get together in December is a nightmare. Nothing about my look said 'Holiday Festivities' (well, if I had to choose, I would say the lion belt because it's garish and has green eyes) but I did think that November was a little early to bust out my Christmas Tree sweater.
I bought this blouse back in the summer and I pretty much forgot about it. Which is really stupid because it's all drapey and fantastic and it can be shaped into all kinds of different silhouettes. This is why I need to go through my closet.... soon.

But as fantastic as my forgotten blouse was (though the belt was good too), the highlight of this post was supposed to be the pretty ice cream sandwiches I made. I have this dumb complex where I'm convinced that people think I'm frivolous (which I am, so why am I fighting it?... do I need therapy?), so I put in extra effort to show the complexity of my character. However, at 26 years old, I should by now be aware that one of the layers of the onion of my personality is NOT my baking skills. I tend to be very helter-skelter... a pinch of this, a pinch of that... yup, that looks like a cup of flour... Not a good way to bake and the end results are often indicative of this. You have no idea how much I had to focus to follow the recipe exactly this time. And I did... the cookies actually worked out ok but I think I broke my friend's mixer (sorry... I owe you one) and I ruined a whole bunch of cookies when I caught the tray that was falling off the stove. So, I put all this effort in and while the ice cream sandwiches tasted fine, they just didn't look as pretty as I imagined in my mind. And for me, pretty matters... How does cupcakesandcashmere always have her baking look so good? Grrrrrr...

Whatever... if you cross your eyes and shake your head back and forth quickly, they don't look so bad...right? I'm going to go cry now...

Depth

This blog is the edited version of my life. The part of my life that includes sequins, heels, cats and Matt. It's the part of my life that I am happy to share and I am especially happy when my meaningless chatter about frivolous things brings any joy and laughter to any one's life. But there are events in life that bring you to your knees, events that can't be made better by some funny comments or even by all the size 10 shoes in the world. And sometimes those events make my blog seem really silly. Mostly because it is silly. But it's also been a lot of fun and I'm really glad to be writing regularly and to be dressing up... often for nothing special. Wearing too high heels, kissing my cats until they want to escape and jumping into piles of leaves on company time are little things that I am thankful for in my life. I know there is a lot more to life, I'm just glad I can share the fluffy stuff with you, my readers...

Fall Fashion

Shirt? Ralph Lauren, thrifted
Vest? thrifted
Jeans? Seven 4 all Mankind, Winners
Boots? thrifted
Belt? Michael Kors, Winners
Bag? Claudia Firenze, Winners
Sunglasses? Joe (from Linda)

After much personal scientific research, I have concluded that the fall is the most fashionable season of the year. Summer is fun for dresses and open-toes but it's also sweaty and your hair drops. Boo to that. Winter is fun because we can drink lots of mulled wine and call it being festive (oops, that has nothing to do with fashion) but it's cold. Bigger boo to that. Spring.... is fine but autumn still kicks its a$$ too. In the autumn, everyone has this look like, 'oh ya, I'm so chic, check my layering...'. Cosy scarves, long leather gloves and fuzzy vests elude to the cold weather but let's be honest, it's not really cold yet. When it's really cold and wintery, you'll forget what your toes feel like and your kids (or some one's kids at least) will be writing 'Wash Me!' on the back of your jacket in the layer of salt that has settled over all your outerwear.

Someone commented a while back that she's interested to see how will I style it up in the cold months. Well, I'm curious too. It's no secret my favourite winter outfit is my fuzzy blanket, but having this blog will force me to put some effort in. What am I gonna do when winter really hits? No clue. But until then, I plan to enjoy this beautiful autumn we're having in my favourite fall pieces.

Some notes...
Yes, my most avid followers, I wear this plaid and faux fur combo a lot. I love this vest a lot but it's cut small, so it's actually harder to layer than it looks.
Yes, my shirt could have used an iron. But my schedule clearly said 'brunch', not
'iron' and the schedule trumps all.
Yes, these glasses are cool. Too bad I left them on the table and now they are broken... Matt is blaming the cats. Sorry Lin.
Yes, I got these sweet, leather and comfy booties at a church sale in Holland for 1 euro. High fives all around!

Mad for Plaid

Jacket? thrifted
Black jeans? h&m
Peep-toe shoes? Next, DSW
Eel-skin clutch? thrifted
Gloves? ?, Winners
Earrings? gifted and made by Linda

Yeah, I know, cheesy title. But very fitting because I am, quite frankly, mad for this plaid jacket. I thrifted it a while ago and after finally drycleaned it and re-attached all the buttons, I've been dying to wear it. I can tell this is a handmade jacket, it actually looks like a school project.... I remember being in school and going crazy on design details too. This trench style jacket has a double collar, shoulder pouffed, 3/4 sleeves, faux flap pockets and of course, a giant bubble hem. And yet, despite the detail overload, it looks really good. I would love to know who made this beauty (which apart from slightly weak buttonholes and loosely sewn on buttons, is actually well constructed) and why did this person ever donate it... I'm obviously glad they did, though. But on the off chance the creator of the jacket is reading this blog then... 'What's up? Thanks for the jacket. You've got skills!'
Aaaaand, once again, I'm putting a little bit of leopard print into this outfit. I firmly believe that as long as it's not combined with copious amounts of cleavage, leopard print goes with almost everything.

ps #1. Thanks to Becky and Alexandra, who both featured my last blazer look on their blogs. Cool beans. I'm very appreciative.

ps#2. Ugh, this hurts... So, local peeps, Value Village and as far as I know, Talize too, are both having their 50% off sales on this Monday. I'm trying to avoid them as part of the shopping ban but you kids go have fun. I'll be at home eating ice cream, don't worry about me...:(

I Am Not!

A typical weekend night sees Matt on the couch watching hockey or 20/20 while I labour over getting ready to go out. When I have the time, I enjoy the process. It's fun to choose an outfit for a night out and spend some extra time on the make-up and hair with a glass of wine in hand. Last night I was finally ready and I came downstairs to tell Matt. But he was immersed in a tv show that he said was all about me. It was commercial break and he made me wait until after the break and watch a documentary type show on... crazy cat ladies. It was actually sad. Some had over 100 cats and sleep on plastic furniture and literally spend their day scooping litter and feeding the herd. I know I love cats and if I were single there would be a good chance I would get more (yes, Matt, I know the deal... three cats is our absolute limit...) but one of the researchers on the program said that what sets a crazy cat lady apart from a lady who just loves cats, is the fact that the crazy cat lady stops taking care of herself. With my high heels on and my freshly made up face, it's clear I haven't stopped taking care of myself. So yeah for me! I'm not a crazy cat lady!

Leather bomber? Zara
Jeans? Diesel, Winners
Hat? h&m
Tee? Fcuk
Fur collar? vintage
Shoes? Steve Madden, Winners

Studded belt? thrifted

I'm sure I could have gone all out for a Friday night but for some reason a soft tee, nice jeans, a leather bomber and some quirky accessories felt just right. I got the fur collar from a friend's grandmother... so that's kinda neat. The hat was $2 at one of h&m's final sales and I can understand why it was left behind so often. It's asymmetrical and sometimes looks a little odd but it's also darn cute.
It was a fun Friday night. And you know you've had a good night when you end up at McDonald's in the early morning hours eating chicken nuggets and fries...

Whatever You Call It.

Skirt? Emanuel Ungaro, thrifted

Blazer? Braemar, thrifted

Button-up? Gap

Heels? Derek Lam, Holt's LC

Beaded purse? thrifted by my mom (thanks!)

In Grade 8, I had a wicked, awesome Reebok sweater that I wore a lot. Ok, maybe I wore it too much but hell yeah, it was name brand sweater...better recognize. Anyways, some snot in highschool noticed my overuse of the Reebok sweater and started calling me 'Reebok Girl'. It's bad news bears when the most popular girl in Grade 9 makes fun of you to all her friends and that sweater rarely came out again.

The blog world is much kinder... when we repeat clothing, we never call it overuse, we call it Remixing. Clare at Between Laundry Days is currently remixing some of her summer work wear to be autumn appropriate at her new job. S. from academichic is remixing like a pro because she's abroad for a year with weight restrictions on her luggage...eeeek! Rebecca from The Clotheshorse is remixing because...well, because she's pretty much the Queen of Remixing...
The point of my story is... don't make fun of me because I've worn this blazer in 3 of my last 4 outfit posts. I finally found the perfect blazer in a fine wool for $6 (!) and I'm discovering that it goes with...everything. And as a dutiful fashion blogger, I'm just reporting my findings.

The Trials and Temptations of...

Are you proud of me?

I'm halfway into my shopping challenge and I'm still going strong. Two and a half weeks ago I vowed not to shop until December 1st because... well, quite frankly, I needed to stop buying clothes. I'm sure I've gone for 2.5 weeks before but this time it was harder because I made a conscientious decision not to shop. I feel a bit weirded out by myself and how hard it's been. Am I normal? These have been my three biggest trials (I am dramatic...)...

Trial #1. I woke up the first Saturday of the no-shopping period and decided I needed new underwear. I'm sure in the official laws of shopping bans, underwear are an exempted but I immediately recognized the signs of temptation... I did not need new underwear. I just wanted to go to Winners, pick up some undies, accidentally walk through the shoe section and end up with some great boots on my feet. Then I would convince myself that shoes are exempted from shopping bans as well because, like underwear, they are worn everyday and hence, are essential. Thankfully, I caught myself and didn't even enter Winners. Besides, I was too busy anyways...

Trial #2. I dreamt (this is where I questioned my sanity) that my mom and I were in an antique store and I found these amazing leather boots. They were brown with cutouts (sounds crazy but they looked good in my dream), they were my size and only $13. I had to decide whether or not these boots were worth breaking the shopping ban for. I woke up before I made my crucial decision...

Trial #3. This trial was the worst. I went with my dad to Talize as our tradition requires. I was full of self control and stayed far away from any ladies' sections. We perused housewares* and checked the men section for a jacket for my dad. There an amazing plaid and fleece vest practically falls off the rack into my hands. Seriously, I'm good at thrifting but thrifting is naturally good to me too...I'm not even looking and I find stuff.... Because the vest is my hands, I try it on and it fits great. Crap. It would have been a fantastic layering piece, warm and chic... but no, even though it's only $6, I made a promise to my blog readers and as much as it hurt, I put Perfect, Cheap and Chic Vest back. Yes, I have since told my dad that Talize visits are off the agenda until further notice. No use looking at the menu when you can't order...

*where I found the adorable elephants in the above picture(the shopping ban is for clothing and accessories). I think they are name or menu card holders. I can't wait to use them at my next National Geographic dinner party (that was a joke but I'm actually starting to think that could be a cool idea). For now though, the elephants hold personal and positive affirmations :)

The Dating Game

Jacket? Braemar, thrifted
Skirt? h&m
Tights? ?
Tee? Joe Fresh
Flowers? h&m
Booties? maxstudio, Winners
Purse? Claudia Firenze, Winners

Bracelets? gifted and bought from the crazy lady at The EX.

Matt and I went on a date yesterday. Which isn't really a big deal, I suppose. We're a young, childless couple with time to kill (we could debate that...). It's just that we are social people and any time we plan anything, we always end up inviting friends. Hence, more often than not, our intimate dinner plans turn into a group dinner with an after-party at our house. I love those last-minute evenings with friends but at the end of the night, I've hardly seen or talked to Matt because I was too busy discussing responsible pet ownership, sparkly clothing and birth with the ladies (obviously, I don't contribute to the birth conversation so much, it's just that A LOT of my friends have recently had babies and so it comes up occasionally (and by occasionally I mean often... I'm pretty much an expert on birthing right now, so if you have any questions, ask away...)). Wow, that was a long sentence...ramble much?

Anyways, last night we decided to go out... just the two of us. A quick little outfit shoot, a few vodka, water, bar-limes (for me), Foster's (for him), nachos, an apple blossom (for me) and brownies (for him) = a good night. I think I could handle going on dates with Matt for the rest of my life...:)

Tea With the Queen (not quite...)

(Sorry, I couldn't choose pictures today... the night shots show that amazing sky and good detail but the day shots display the actual colours... nothing like some night time flash to mess with colours...)

Jacket? Patrizia Pepe, Winners (my fave EVER!)
Sweater? Zara
Pants? Zara
Boots? ?, Winners
Muff? vintage
Earrings? gifted

With my riding-inspired boots, my tweedy jacket and my ladylike fur muff, I felt like I was ready to meet some royalty... so I did...

Ok, I didn't actually meet them, I zoomed in for that shot but I didn't zoom for this picture...

...pretty close, right?

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla are currently on a Canadian tour and they stopped in our area this week. So, I took a day off work (yeah for work flexibility!) and my pops and I went to check out the excitement. I grew up reading Majesty magazines so it was neat to see Crown Prince in person. Apparently, it was a big deal that the royal couple broke from 'The Schedule' and took a few minutes out to meet and shake hands with the locals. Prince Charles went down the line away from us, while Camilla came towards us. Camilla was sweet and funny... but I really wanted to talk to Prince Charles. He visited Hamilton once before, MANY years ago and I was part of the huge children's choir that sang at his welcome celebration. Truth is, I should never sing in public and I have felt like I've owed him an apology ever since. Maybe next time, Charlie...

(p.s. a big thanks to the lovely Briannelee for the blog award. She's pretty and awesome. Pretty awesome, really... and best of all... it's her birthday (it's Saturday and technically this is posted on Friday but you guys should all be in bed and won't read until tomorrow... Happy Birthday!!! xo)

Hansel and Gretel

Dress? Zara
Jacket? Braemar, thrifted
Shoes? Steve Madden, DSW
Belt? Michael Kors, Winners
Clutch? Hilary Radley, Style Sense

These pictures have a fairytale quality to them...
Once upon a time Princess Jentine was deep in the forest, and there were Princes lined up to rescue her. However, Princess Jentine was a self-sufficient Princess, who left mini chocolate bars along the trails (mostly Twix and Coffee Crisp) so she could find her own way back and have nourishment along the way. I guess the moral of the story is; who needs a man when you can have a KitKat?
The truth is, autumn around here has put on the most beautiful colour show in years and the leaves are falling gently because the temps are still decent. Everything is carpetted with a soft layer of leaves and looks so magical. I was determined to find the perfect spot to take these pictures, so we went to the Escarpment and I kept wanting to go deeper into the forest to take pictures because the perfect spot was always a little further away. Before we knew it, we were deep into the hiking trails with my floor-length skirt and my high-high heels. And yes... hikers did come by but I just pretended like it was the most natural thing for us to be hanging out on the trails in our Sunday best. All you bloggers understand... it is the most natural thing... when you see a good background, you must strike a pose.

I'm glad I wore my trusty Steve Maddens with this outfit... I was planning on flats, but they looked uninspiring. I do prefer my long hems to be touching the floor but with these heels that was not going to happen. I like it, the high shoes put a whole new spin on the outfit and once again, reminded me that Jentine's Style Rules can be broken (sometimes...). And the dress? I got it years back at the end of season sale at Zara. $20 for a lot of yards of silk... not bad. It was clear that Zara sales people are not on commission when the cashier looked at the dress as I was buying it and said 'How are you ever going to wear all this?'. I wish I could show him now... this is how I wore it.

I Don't Feel Like Myself

Raise your hand in the air if your stomach hurts from all the candy you have consumed over Halloween weekend...OK, you can out them down, it's a little hard to type with one hand.

The problem is I have no self-control. If the candy is there, I eat it and I don't stop until I'm in pain. That is why I usually have no treats in my house... But it was Halloween and we stocked up because we always have a ton of kids and it's social suicide to run out early, right? Anyways, this year, we only had about 20 kids, I think because of all the panic over the H1N1 flu. So the big, full bowl of candy sat in front of us all weekend and now my stomach hurts but all the candy is gone and with a healthy dinner of chicken and roasted vegetables, I think I'm back on track...

Did you all have a good weekend? I've been checking the blogs and it's funny to see what others have come up with for costumes. I don't think I was crazy creative... I wanted to stick to my no-shopping rule and so I used clothes I already had. For a wee bit I was tempted to go as a fashion blogger... bust out some Acme Tacoma shoes (which I don't have... I'm being theoretical) and spend the night pigeon toed, giving coy-sideways glances (true, right? we all do it... guilty as charged). But the thought of explaining my costume too often killed that idea....
Instead I dressed up as...

...Lady Gaga... I know, my creativity is slaying you. It's just that I had bangs cut a while ago and when I style my hair a little differently than usual, it's all Gaga. I wore my sequined leggings because my thighs called me that night and said they wanted to remain covered. I can respect that. Kudos to all the brave peeps who mastered the leotards, though...
I'm glad that it's done because I can grow my bangs out again. I love the way Liz wears her bangs and so inspired, I tried bangs for the 13th time but on me, they never quite look like that and I'm always brushing them out of my face.

The following night I was a mime. A bunch of us went to a local Irish pub and I was worried there would be a herd of Lady Gagas out that night. I saw that Jen went as a mime for Halloween one year and I thought, I can do that! and I punked her idea. Thanks! I had no idea that the make-up would be so tricky though, after messing up royally once, I washed it all off and went with something simpler. I liked how this worked out... I even tried to mime most of the night but there is only so many times that you should give the hand motion for 'I need a drink' so I went back to my good, old trusty words and had conversations. It was a super fun night with lovely friends (some who had pink hair)... However, I need to stop blogging and go to bed, because even with the time change in our favour (how good was that?) I'm still short a few hours...