Opening Party at Aritzia Halifax

Some stores have a "quiet" opening. Aritzia is NOT one of them! Amongst nibbles, white cosmos, great music, and of course a ton of amazing clothes, they showed Halifax how a store should announce their arrival.

Aritzia is a gorgeous retail space with the prettiest hardwood floors (I notice these things since we built our house), a big marble sales desk, and a fun but relaxing atmosphere. The dressing room area is enormous, and it has a full size comfy couch that I may try to hang out on some day with a iced chai latte.

The hosts for the evening were fellow Halifax bloggers (yay Aritzia for choosing local talent to represent), and they have way better photos of the event than I do, so I encourage you to check out Kayla and Ellen's posts on the opening party.

I tried on a bunch of things, but told myself I was only allowed to leave with one item (boring, eh?). I ended up picking a super versatile striped long shirtdress and I can't wait to debut it.

It followed me home... honest.

Ellen and Kayla

Super blurry- Kayla and me

I know I'll be visiting Aritzia on the regular. Hope to see you there!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

It's Opening Day at Aritzia!

I've had a lot of people asking me if I know anything about Aritzia, opening today at Halifax Shopping Centre. When I lived in Vancouver (the birthplace of the chain) it seemed like there were Aritzia's everywhere. Unfortunately, I did a lot of window shopping at Aritzia as my rent and entertainment budget ate way waaaaay into my shopping budget. 

I don't know if there is a store in Halifax right now that Aritzia can be compared to. I'd describe their vibe as classy casual. They have a lot of drapey, super-soft pieces and some high end denim mixed in.  

On Thursday, June 4th from 7-9 PM there will be an opening party hosted by some talented local bloggers - Short Presents and lovebyelle. You'll be sure to find me and a lot of other fashion- conscious ladies checking out the new store! It's at Halifax Shopping Centre on the lower level. 

I've decided to share a few things I'll have my eye on in Aritzia. Seriously, the entire store will be filled with stunning pieces. It'll be very hard to be a good girl. 

Miller dress

I need some more tunic length things in my closet. I like the idea of being able to wear this with leggings, jeans, or on it's own. The sleeve length is awesome too!

Montana Blouse

Is this the perfect chambray I've been searching for? Perhaps!

Reve tee

What a simple but pretty shirt! I love all the detailing, and I'm missing a dressier blue tee in my wardrobe. My tried and true one from H&M has been worn to death (and suffered a hole). 

Let me know what you think of Halifax's newest store! 

XOXO

Glitterary Girl

Back to Not-So-Normal

It feels good to be typing again! Excuse my several week absence. I was away taking care of some pretty important stuff - going on vacation, getting married, and moving into a new home!

My life is in a merry state of turmoil at the moment, but I thought I'd hammer out a quick post to show you a tiny bit of the Las Vegas trip. I'm going to wait until all of the professional photos are in before doing a dedicated wedding post - so hang on tight for about two more weeks. In the meantime, I have lots of Vegas style to share!

This was what I wore for the first day in Vegas, which was spent getting our marriage license and meeting with the reception venue. Friendly hint: If anyone ever gets married in Vegas, go to the courthouse when it first opens. We had no wait at all to get our license.

Details

Tee: Short Presents

Skirt: H&M

Sandals: TopShop

Sunnies: Coach

Bag: Danier

Watch: Guess

 This is a photo taken from our hotel room at Caesar's Palace. The Bellagio fountains were beside us, and the view at night was simply stunning (I'll share night photos later). Also, I quite loved waking up to see the Chanel sign every morning.

Please be patient with me this week, as house organization is topping my list of priorities at the moment. My hopes are to share with you my October buys (including lots of Vegas finds) and another   outfit post from before our trip.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: August 2014

August is notorious for being one of my higher spending months. I blame it on the enormous September magazine issues - not even that I necessarily buy "fall" clothing, but the media focus on fashion in general makes me crave new things.

Instead of a monthly budget, I do a seasonal budget, which is $500 per quarter. Money I don't spend in one season, I roll forward to the next. I try as much as possible to wait for things to go on sale, as my closet really has no "holes" and my buys are almost always wants versus needs.

My first two purchases were entirely due to waking up one morning and being worried that I didn't have enough dresses I wanted to wear to get me through the wedding months (bridal showers, girls days/nights out, Vegas nights, and of course the Britney concert). Gotta love Forever 21 for fixing my panic and only spending $38! Pictures to be revealed as blog posts at a later date!

Dress: Forever 21
Regular price: 16.80
Dress Forever 21
Regular price: 21.80

Kimono: H&M (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $30 to 10.50
Python print is my fave! Couldn't put this back on the rack for $10. This will be featured later this week in a blog post.

Necklace: H&M (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $12.95 to $3.50
A pretty gold chain with gold "pipes" hanging from it. I kind of forgot I bought this until I prepared this post. Mind you, most of my jewellery is living in a travel case right now while we are between houses. I'll wear it soon and post a pic.

Tees: Gap
Discounted from $34 for both to $16 for both
I hate it when white tees start looking dingy. At $8 each I bought one in v-neck and one in scoop.

Crossbody bag/clutch: Danier (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $99 to $19
When I got the email alert for this flash sale, I stopped at Danier on the way home from work. What a super-cute bag for a steal. There isn't much room in it for anything beyond the basics, but that's okay. For a night out, less is more. I chose this colour as I already have this size in white, purple, and black. I'll feature it this week in a blog post.

Tee: Short Presents
Regular price: $20
My friend Kayla (fellow blogger at Short Presents) has been selling these sweet tees for a few months now. I can't get enough of black and white and I can't wait to style this with either of my black and white printed skirts. Thanks, love. xo

Tee: Old Navy (kids section) (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $17 to $5
Gold foiled palm trees? Yes please.

Shirt: Old Navy
Discounted from $23 to $11
More black and white. Someone stop me...

Shorts: Banana Republic
Discounted from $50 to $11
These were an extra 40% off the sale price and then I got an extra 20% because one of the two fasteners is missing (cannot even tell). I ruined my other white shorts with sunless tanner (boo) so these can replace them. I love anything safari...

Skirt: Banana Republic
Discounted from $70 to $15
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. I love this colour. I will wear this a lot. So glad I went to the Factory Store for the 40% off sale. The regular store has stunning stuff for this season as well. Marissa Webb is the new creative director, and she really killed it with the fall line. I want everything!

Skirt: Smart Set
Discounted from $39.00 to $12
So cute. Pleats and polka dots. Twelve bucks. Good length for work.

Pants: Joe Fresh
Regular price $34 (used a $10 GC so I paid $24 with no tax added)
I can't decide yet if I will keep these or not. I do love them (army green again...), but they are very close to the faux-leather pants I got at H&M last year. They are crazy-comfy though and flattering enough that I can wear them with a shorter shirt (the H&M ones... not so much... saggy bum). I love the black piping too! Did I just type myself into keeping them?

Value of items: $468
Price I paid: $186 
I saved 60%

This leaves me with $241 left to spend this quarter, which ends Sept 30.

I'm going to try hard to spend as little as possible in September. My Vegas shopping list has very few items on it, but they may be pricey. I plan on looking for a new black handbag, a gold watch, and black closed-toe heels. If I find heels here, I may buy them. I know I have a lot more choice in Vegas, but my feet are so narrow and hard to fit that I like the option of returning the shoes if I wear them around the house and they end up not working for me.

I'm linked with Franish today - check out how the other bloggers did with their August budgets!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Wonderful Web Wednesday 12.18.13

It's such a busy time of year for everyone, style bloggers included. I'd like to give props to a few of my favorite fashionable Canadian ladies for finding the time to fill my sartorial spirit with inspiration during this chaotic season. I know how hard it is to find time to blog in December. You ladies are amazing, and I wish you the happiest of holidays!

Meet Kate from O My Heart! (New Brunswick)

Thanks to Kate, I won a lovely gift from Stella & Dot earlier this year. Snowballing from that, I hosted a Stella & Dot trunk show which was a great way to have a fun girl night and get some Christmas shopping done. She always looks so happy in her posts and has terrific arm parties!



Meet Kayla from Short Presents (Nova Scotia)

Kayla and I met at Starbucks in Halifax one day last winter when she was giving me a lovely Vince Camuto gift from a blog giveaway she hosted. Since then, we've met up at several fashion and lifestyle events in Halifax and she is seriously as sweet as she looks in her beautiful posts. She also loves to blog recipes, so keep an eye on her for healthy food inspiration.

Meet Krystin from Suburban Faux Pas (Ontario)



Krystin has the perfect amount of girly + edgy. From the suburban Toronto-area, she always puts together amazing ensembles, is so good at styling statement necklaces (evidence above...), and should teach classes on the art of pattern mixing.

Happy blog surfing!
XOXO
Glitterary Girl

Night Out: Legally Blonde

Lucky me! I scored an invite to the Opening Night and "sorority after party" for Neptune Theatre's production of Legally Blonde: The Musical on April 5.

The show was hilarious! It started off with so much energy and was able to maintain the excitement throughout the whole night. The acting was phenomenal, the costumes were fun, and the specialty martini I had at intermission was one of the best drinks I've ever had the pleasure of sipping (a french martini in case you're wondering).

Details

Blazer: Ann Taylor (Wrentham)

Top: Joe Fresh (Halifax)

Shorts: H&M (Dartmouth)

Boots: Le Chateau (Halifax)

Bracelet: Club Monaco

Necklace: Forever 21 (San Francisco)

Earrings: Gap (Las Vegas)

I struggled with the pink or no pink dilemma. Of course I wanted to rock the color of the night, but the one bright pink sweater I own didn't seem dressy enough for the venue. I saved the pink for my nails and hoped they stood out enough!

This was my first time wearing these shorts, and I love how multi-seasonal they are - great with tights now and bare legs in the summer.

The after party was a blast. There was a ton of food, more yummy drinks, a wacky photo opportunity, and a chance to mingle with the cast.

I spent a good part of the night chatting with one of my favorite bloggers Kayla from Short Presents. Check out her post to see a crazy shot of us!

A big thanks to my friends at Line Magazine for hooking me up with the tickets. If you haven't seen a copy of Line yet, you can pick one up for free in Halifax. Watch for it!

XOXO

Glitterary Girl