My Favourite Things on Etsy

 

My Favourite Things on Etsy #etsy #wishlist

  1. Light Up Marquee Letter – VintageMarqueeLights  – I have wanted this and have wanted one for a long time. I also want the large arrow one. I would love to get an initial for every person in the house but let’s be realistic. A 650 sq ft apartment doesn’t really have room for that many so I would settle for one.
  2.  iPad Case Crossbody – LUSCIOUSLEATHERNYC – This bag can be either be a cross body or and iPad case. It comes in a variety of sizes and thread colour customization.
  3. Leather camera strap – TOMBERgoods – Beautiful hand crafted piece to carry your camera in style.
  4. Large Felt Storage Bin – loopdesignstudio – The perfect bin for storage and you can pick the handle colours from several different choices. Also available in other sizes.
  5. Giant Knitted Merino Wool Throw – woolWow – I am obsessed with these giant knit blankets. I would like them in several colours for all the rooms in the condo.
  6. Extra Long Yoga Leggings –  AlinamalinaShop – I have wanted these yoga leggings for a while. I like how they cover your foot with a heel cut out. seeing all my yoga pants have holes, it may be time for some new ones.
  7. Reclaimed wood tray – infinite abyss – This would be the perfect accent piece on my coffee table, if I had a coffee table.
  8. Childs Luxe Lion Coat b- littlegoodall – Merle has this coat. We bought it for her 3 years ago and it is the most awesome thing she has ever got. I am sad because it has just reached almost too small point but I really want to buy her another one. I swear this coat was made for her. It is one of the heirloom items that I plan on keeping forever.
  9. Cat Nap Pillowcases set of 2 hand printed – Xenotees – Merle is also obsessed with cats and these pillowcases might help to actually keep her in her own bed 😉 She would probably drag it down the hall to mine anyway though.
  10. Stepped Record Bowl – Vinylux – This would be a good piece to show the personality of Tom. I think it is important to include things in your home that reflect everyones’ tastes and personalities.
  11. Hanging Wire Sphere Basket – CharestStudios – A cute way to store fruit in the kitchen. It would also save on counter space in small spaces.
  12. Handmade leather Ballet flats – TheDrifterLeather – These handmade shoes are so beautiful. They come in several different styles and colours to choose from. I am partial to the yellow suede ones.
  13. Custom Set of 3 MINI rolling pins with print – by RollingWoods – A cute way to decorate your cookies with these laser cut rolling pins. There are a lot of different prints to choose from and you can buy them individually.
  14. World Map Blanket – WIKIPILLOW – This throw would make a great gift for a travel enthusiast or just for the back of my couch. I have a thing for map print items.
  15. Cat String Light 20 mixed Cat Faces – mete made – Another cute cat thing for Merle to put up in the girls room. I think these would be cute to border her bed and use instead of a nightlight.
  16. Handmade Leather Lace Up Sandals -TheMerakiCompany – I bought a pair of handmade sandals from Etsy last summer and this store has a lot of really cute styles to choose from.  This style is currently 35% off.

Etsy is to me today what Ebay was to me a million years ago before it got flooded with cheap knock offs and mass produced items. It was a place were I could find those one of a kind pieces that I had been searching for and stay up in until all hours trying to bid on it. It was exciting. Now that those treasures on Ebay are few and far between I turn to Etsy when I am looking for something unique and special. I am constantly searching on there and adding things to my favourites list, so I thought I would go through it and pick out some of my favourite items that have been on my want list for a while now.

Is anyone else and Esty addict too?

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My Brief Style Evolution Story

New Wardrobe Wish List and Ideas #wardrobe

1. Leather Biker Jacket* – Madewell | 2. Cuyana Cape* – Cuyana
3. Skinny Jeans* – Citizens of Humanity | 4. Vintage Looking Band Tee – Urban Outfitters
5. Purse** – Elliot Lucca | 6. Bralettes – Hanky Panky | 7. Loafers – Yosi Samra (sale)
8. Boyfriend Jeans – Banana Republic | 9. Faux Fur Collar Coat – Modcloth
10. Oversized Alpaca Sweater* – Cuyana | 11. Sneakers – New Balance | 11. Wool Hat – Nordstrom
*Denotes items that I consider luxury since they are out of my price comfort zone (and reality zone).
**Not necessarily looking for this purse. It’s just a general idea of what I want, black, leather, satchel style.

This is the brief story of my style evolution. For as long as I can remember clothing/fashion/style has been an important part of my life. I always put a lot of thought in to what I was wearing. Even back in the Grunge days when clothing consisted of  worn in Levi’s, vintage t-shirts, plaid shirts, and thrift store cardigans, putting in a lot of thought was to make it look like you didn’t put in a lot of thought. One thing I did regularly was to slit the side of my jeans up to my knee and then sew in a triangle of fabric making them in to flares. That way I never had to get them hemmed, and they were original. The only problem was that the back dragged and got stepped on and they ended up wearing really bad.

Next came college where I wore animal print pants, camisoles as shirts, platform shoes, and bleached and cut my hair to look like Drew Barrymore in the movie Mad Love. A year or two into college I got a job at a Skateboard shop in the mall. This was a forced evolution since I had to wear clothes from there/that style and they gave me a great discount. I switched to really low riding pants, studded belts, fitted t-shirts, tanks, and hoodies and sneakers of varying brands and styles. My favourites were a pair of old school Vans that were bright blue with red laces.

During each of these stages they all had one thing in common. That was that I didn’t give a f*ck what people thought about what I wore. In fact, the more people didn’t like what I wore the more I enjoyed it. My favourite coat during this time was a vintage camel coloured knee-length belted trench, with a large faux fur shawl collar very much like this one but a bit shorter. It was amazing and I wore that thing until the fur was completed matted and unsalvageable. I miss it.

Fast forward to 2004 and I became pregnant with Roo. It was a weird time with a lot of life adjustments taking place. Not only was I pregnant, I was also getting married and living with boyfriend/fiancé for the first time in my life. Big adjustments. A lot of this time period is a blur, some of it I just want to forget. What should have been a wonderful experience was overwhelming, with all kinds of emotions (a lot of negative) that forced another evolution. This time I thought that I needed to start dressing as a mother should. In other words I completely lost myself. I bought things and wore things because I thought that I should not because I wanted to. There was an image I thought I had to project and sadly this carried on for years. It wasn’t until recently that I decided I needed to find that carefree college student again. The one who wore what she wanted, enjoyed every minute of it, and knew who she was without a doubt.

That brings me to today. Trying to find that satisfaction and joy when you find something that is distinctly you. While you won’t find me wearing shirts that are actually handkerchiefs anymore 😉 I would really like to find a vintage or vintage looking band t-shirt in a soft, worn in cotton. A black, leather, large satchel purse is on my list but I haven’t found one I love yet. In the more luxury items I want a Cuyana Cape and Cuyana pullover (I have been saying this for a while now but I think I am finally ready to do it). I am having serious issues deciding what colour though. I want the pullover in black and I think I narrowed the cape down to camel or grey. Your opinions would be greatly appreciated to help me decide when the time comes. I am always on the hunt for a leather jacket that will be my lifelong friend, and I kind of want to find one of those 70’s style vintage trenches with the big fur collars like I had an eternity ago (I love this one but sadly it is sold out). For shoes I think I need some sort of flat in a colour or leopard print, and some new casual sneakers like New Balance in a colour. Red maybe. I want a pair of boyfriend jeans which I am having trouble finding, and a more expensive pair of skinnies that fit like a dream. I also need a new bra (that needs to be ordered online due to my obscure sizing that they don’t sell in stores here) and a bralette or two to wear under my more sheer tees. A new hat is on my list because the black wool one I have is slightly too big. I also wouldn’t mind a pair of Spanx because? You can figure out why 😉

This journey of evolving my wardrobe to match myself will probably be a slow process but I am looking forward to it. I just wish that I could go shopping and into a change room without having an audience of one.

How do you decide what pieces are a must for you? Do you look around for inspiration before shopping or do you go with your gut and know when you see it?

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Some Bohemian Love with Free People

Free People Wish List for Spring/Summer #freepeople

1. Julia Blouse | 2.  Counting Stripes Swing Tunic | 3. Snow Kisses Blouse
4.  Something About Sam Shirtdress |5. Mad Cool Skirt | 6. Pockets Pockets Tunic
7. Up All Night Wedge Boot | 8. Dancing on Clouds Tunic | 9. Jane Floppy Hat
10. Always Dreamin Dress | 11. Freefall Flat |12. Extreme Cowl
13. Carlyn Mid Gladiator Sandal | 14. Thames Messenger Bag | 15. El Topo Dress
16. We The Free Tea Time Tee | 17. Hunt The Plains Boot
18. Bright Lights Dress | 19. Lace Up Extreme Sleeve Top | 20. Brooks Ankle Boot

I’ve never considered my style to be bohemian but every time I go on to the Free People Website I go crazy (not buying, just wishing). I saw a funny meme saying,

Let’s have a moment of silence for all of the clothes we added to our cart and never bought.”

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Travel Inspired Gift Ideas

Do you ever find that you tend to buy themed gifts for people? Like, for every holiday that you buy them a gift it always is in the same theme as everything else you buy them?

With my oldest, her gifts for the last couple of years seem to have a focus on Harry Potter, and Doctor Who.

For many, many years I bought Tom KISS inspired gifts because he was a collector.

For me, I tend to say travel-inspired items when asked what I have on my list, like books, maps, pictures etc.

In this post, I am going to show you a list of items that would be loved by any (well, almost any) traveller in various price points.

Travel Inspired Gift Ideas for the traveller in your life. #travel Continue Reading