Merry Christmas!

I will be taking some vacation starting this afternoon after a work Sushi lunch (YAY) and will need to BEGIN my Christmas Shopping soon after. I wanted to say a quick Merry Christmas to anyone passing by my blog during the Holiday Season. I hope you all get to spend some time with your loved ones and are able to enjoy this time of year.

Be safe and all the best for the New Year!

Love, MelMac oxoxox

Taken at the Ottawa Convention Center

Dress: Le Chateau

Tights: Target

Boots: Target (seen here)

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Work Christmas Party 2013

Some of you love them, some of you hate them, but like it or not Christmas Party time has arrived and is in full swing! I had my work "Holiday" party this past weekend and I wanted to share my getting ready process and show you the dress that I hinted at in my last post.

A co-worker recommended that I try Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs to give my legs a pantyhose look without actually wearing them (hate the pantyhose). I tried this easy to use spray in Light Glow and here is a picture of one leg with and one with out. The right is the one with the spray and it does look smoother. The spray stayed on all night too, through dancing and everything. I would definitely use this again to give my pale Winter legs a smoother look.

Oh boy this is scary! No make up and half hair straight, half in a really creepy side ponytail. Just keeping it real y'all! This is what we all really look like before we are camera ready, so there you have it!

My other "trick" of the night, Dr. Scholl's For Her High Heel insoles. They don't take away the sore feet but they definitely help.

Hair and makeup done. If you would like a video of what I used to get this look let me know in the comments.

Voila! Christmas Party ready!

Dress: Dynamite (new), this dress was ALL sequins. I really liked the long sleeves too.

Shoes: Nine West (old)

I bailed on the work party around 11:30PM and met up with Amanda at a Birthday Party. 

Photo credit: A.Co Est 1984

I hope everyone is enjoying their Holiday Season, parties and all. Please make sure to be safe and don't DRINK and DRIVE.

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Quick Post about Chili

Yes, that's right, chili. I made a HUGE batch of chili this weekend - sorry no pics or recipe as I didn't really follow one - that I planned on eating all week for lunch or dinner. But like most things, I got tired of eating it on Day 2. Something about cooking the dish and smelling it for hours kind of takes the wind of out its sails once you sit down to eat it. I still really enjoyed this warm, spicy and slightly sweet meal (I added brown sugar) on a cold Winter's night/day; but last night I needed to change it up a bit!

So I boiled up some Rigatoni pasta (you can use whatever you have on hand) then poured a bunch of the leftover chili in a pan to heat up. The chili turned out rather thick so I poured some red wine to thin it out a bit and make it more of a sauce; really, red wine makes anything better, right? I also added a bunch of baby spinach to the "sauce" for some extra nutrition, though the chili itself is super good for you with tons of beans and veggies. After the pasta had boiled to an al dente texture (slightly under cooked) I added that to the chili sauce, grated some cheese and combined everything together in the pan for about a minute.

This was the finished product and it was SO DELISH!

This chili take on pasta really turned up the flavor and changed it into a completely different meal without wasting any of the chili goodness!

Some other random snaps...

My beautiful Fur-Babies keeping me company, they follow me around the house wherever I go. They make really good sous-chefs too!

Here's a sneak peek at my dress for an upcoming work Holiday Party; cannot wait to wear this!

Next time you have some left over chili or even a thick soup that you are tired of eating; try adding pasta to it to change it into an entirely different meal. You could also change up chili by:

• Making Sloppy Joe's - just heat up in a pan, top on a nice bun with some cheese and you're in Lunch Lady Land!
• Making Chili Dogs - fire up some doggies on the BBQ, top with chili and cheese or any other toppings and you have yourself a ball park favorite at home.

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Black Friday @ Place D'Orleans!

For my Ottawa and surrounding area readers, I have a treat for you. Our local mall Place D'Orleans, who I partnered with back in October for #MYVIP Night, is having a HUGE Black Friday Sale! 

This is a great way to put a dent in your Christmas Shopping and you don't have to travel all the way to the US to take advantage of some INCREDIBLE deals.

To add to the excitement, Place D'Orleans is opening their doors early and they will have promotions going on ALL DAY! Read more below:

I suggest we all take the day off work tomorrow and go shopping to take advantage of this event! See you there!







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TBT: Florida 2010

Since everyone seems to be taking a trip somewhere warm lately (yes, I'm jealous) I thought I would post a Throw Back Thursday from my trip to Florida from 2010. It was around this time 3 years ago that I was in sunny Orlando, going Black Friday shopping (deals like no other), going to Blizzard Beach and Seaworld (AHHH-MAZING), buying my first pair of Cowboy boots (out of my comfort zone), trying indoor Skydiving (how many people can say you have tried that?) and my first visit to Clearwater Beach (so beautiful).

It was a vacation to remember because we did SO MUCH and had SUCH FUN going on all of these adventures. This trip was bitter-sweet because upon returning - and spending a TON of $$ - I found out that I was laid off from my job of 10 years, two weeks before Christmas no less. Ugh, was a punch to the stomach that was. It all worked out for the best and took my life in a new direction. Things have a way of working out when they seem hopeless at first. That is a lesson I learned well and this trip reminds me of that :-)

Here are some snaps from that trip, I wish I was there right now since we have 20cm of snow here in Ottawa.

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What's in my Purse????

I love when Bloggers post a "what's in my purse" because it's a great way to get ideas on everyday essentials that you may be missing from your purse repertoire. I am posting what is in my purse today but I must warn you, after looking at the pictures, it's kinda boring. Boring to me anyways, maybe not to you! I have recently done a purse purge to keep clutter out of my life -which I hate - so that is why the pickin's a slim when it comes to my purse essentials.

With that said, let's dive in!

 From Left to Right:

My ESPRIT eye glasses: Need those from driving at night (yep, I'm old)

Guess Wallet: It's black leather and I have had it for years. The coin purse is broken though so I need to carry...

Coin purse - Catseye London: I received this as a gift and didn't think I would use it! I actually am kinda digging the coin purse separate from my regular wallet thing. It may seem like a pain but it makes things easier for carrying cash and heavy coins around.

My Emergency bottle: Ha ha, I am not a pill popper per se but I like to have Advil, Gravol and some prescription back pills on me at all times in case of a bad headache, tummy ache/sleep inducer or my back goes out on me (for those who don't know I had a disc removed from my spine a few years ago)

My beauty bag from Bath and Body Works: More on this in a jiff

A memory stick: Comes in handy!

Tide pen: A necessity for a clumsy person

C.O. Bigelow - My Favorite Night Balm x2: This IS my fav lip balm that I use all the time, not just at night. It is super moisturizing, leaves a little sheen and goopy enough to stick to your pucker with out being too goopy.

My iPhone (not shown as it was taking the picture) and a charger: Who doesn't have their smartphone with them at all times? I also need my charger with me as a safety net of sorts, what if the battery dies at a crucial moment?

Above is my current purse of choice.

So what is in the mysterious beauty bag?

 From Left to Right:

Black hair elastics: needed for those unruly hair days

Dental floss: for when you have spinach at lunch, LOL

Pink Sugar Roll On perfume: I am not a huge perfume person. I hate walking into a room and being punched in the face by someone wearing Angel or Hugo Boss. But I do really like to have a roll on perfume on hand as a subtle touch up fragrance. These are also much more inexpensive to buy than a full sized bottle  and they last a long time.

Clinique moisture surge extended thirst relief: This is a great moisturizer to carry with you as a touch up during the day. It is light and non-greasy but really moisturizes and doesn't disturb your make up. I use it under my eyes in the afternoon to keep them looking fresh.

Clinique  Different Lipstick and mascara combo: Great for touch ups!

CG TRUBlend Pressed Powder Compact: for my sometimes shiny T-Zone

Nail file, clippers and tweezers: I can't handle snagged nails, hang nails or fly away eyebrow hairs!

Eye Drops: when you work a desk job, your eyes take a beating. I keep this with me when my eyes are feeling dry at the office.

Aveda Hand Relief: Ahhh just the smell of this stuff puts me in a better mood. Great for our Canadian Winters

Jelly Lips: I have a lip balm/gloss obsession!

L'Oreal Magic Lumi Concealer: Not my fav concealer but I keep it with me for touch ups as I have really dark circles. This product does brighten, but conceal? Not so much.

Revlon Lip Butter: In Sugar Frosting #005 and Fig Jam #030 for when I want some color.

Maybelline Baby Lips: I had heard amazing things about Baby Lips, but the moisture doesn't really last for me. I still keep it because the Pink Shock color is cute.

So there you have it! I hope you found something useful in my bag of tricks!

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Holiday Give Away

Hi Everyone! 

I hope you all have a handle on your Christmas shopping, I know I don't but there's still time! If you are procrastinating like me, one of my fav bloggers, Spiffy Kerms, is here to help you. Spiffy aka, Nancy, is holding an awesome giveaway for Philosophy products -- everyone loves Philosophy, am I right? 

Check out the products here:

Go to the spiffykerms.com blog to see how to enter and she's giving you several different ways to enter to increase your chances of winning!

This giveaway is open to Canadians residents only (excluding Quebec).

I think this prize would make a great gift for the girly girly on your Christmas list or you can keep it for yourself.....which I might do!

Best of luck to all who enter!

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Product Review: Balea Pore Strips

I am sure many of you have used pore strips before. I used to use the Biore brand religiously a few years ago. But I let that part of my "beauty regime" fall away for many years. No reason why, just didn't keep up with it. While browsing through Shopper's Drug Mart I came across their store brand of pore strips, Balea Charcoal Nose Strips and decided that I needed to give them a try. For those that haven't used pore strips before I recommend them. They adhere to your skin to take out built up gunk and blackheads; don't worry they don't rip the skin off. They are cheap, these were $5.99 and really easy to use.

So here's what you'll do:

Here's what the box looks like, surprisingly they don't 'appear on the Shopper's website -- weird?

1) Take the strip package out of the box and open it. You will find your strip, these are charcoal so they are black in color.

2) Wet your nose with some warm water. If you want a better result, hold your face over a bowl of HOT water with a towel over your  head for a couple of minutes. This will open up the pores nice and wide and make more goop come out. Peel the strip away from the plastic cover.

3) Apply the strip with the side that was on the plastic to your nose (the shiny side) and smooth it over so that the strip covers your skin completely.

My helper, he takes up most of the floor space in my bathroom. But he's cute so he gets away with it :-)

4) Wait for 10 - 15 mins for the strip to dry. It should be hard, like plaster of paris.

5) After the strip is dried, grab the edges and peel it off. Not too fast, that might hurt if you are sensitive on the schnauze. 

6) And there you have it, a strip full of gunk. It was hard to focus in on the strip but trust me, this pulled up tons of goop. Yucky but we all have it!

The Result -- My pores are clean and smooth and they just feel better than before. I liked these strips, they are definitely on par with a brand name like Biore. The charcoal makes them stick well to your skin so they are super effective. If you see them in Shopper's; try them out and let me know what you think!

Which Necklace to Wear with Which Top?

I came across this handy little guide on Facebook and wanted to share it with you. I have never really had any strategy to choosing my necklace; I think I kind of just go with the colors of the outfit or what I feel like wearing that day. Maybe subconsciously I take the neck shape of my shirt into consideration but I doubt it!. Sometimes I think no necklace looks best -- to keep it simple. 

This guide for choosing necklaces takes the guess work out of which one would compliment your top the best. I broke the collar shirt rule today by wearing a longer necklace rather than a short pendant as this guide suggests and I still think it looks okay. But if you have no idea where to start with choosing an accessory, these pictures should help :-)

Source: Polyvore Blog

Rule breaker!

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Throw Back Thursday & Halloween!

With Halloween falling on a Thursday this year I thought I would post some pictures of past costumes that I've worn. I didn't dress up this year, our office didn't really participate in any Halloween costume'ing - but maybe next year!

Gotta have a Sexy "whatever" costume right, Ladies? One night of the year you can't be judged!

I love this costume and I still have it (somewhere)! This was actually bought for a 1920's themed Christmas party but I got double the use out of it for Halloween 2008

Did anyone dress up for Halloween this year? If so did you win any contests for your costume? I love seeing all of the kid's costumes on Facebook, some parents are super creative!

I hope everyone has a safe and Happy Halloween! Make sure to give to Unicef too :-)

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Nominated for Made in Blog

Made in Blog are holding awards for the best blogs in several different categories such as Cooking, Travel, Photography, Lifestyle and Fashion so please vote for me and my friend Amanda's blogg A.Co Est. 1984 is also in the running. I have been nominated for Fashion, Cooking and Lifestyle!

A.Co and I at My VIP Night

Please visit the MIB website to vote for your favorite bloggers. Good luck to all of the Bloggers!

To Vote for Welcome to Planet MelMac:



For the Fashion category:




For the Cooking category:




For the Lifestyle category:


Click HERE to Vote for my friend and fellow blogger, A.Co!




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Gorilla Post: New boots from Target

In a recent post, I mentioned that I visited Target in Canada for the first time at Plae D'Orleans; read my impressions from that visit here. I purchased some new black booties from the Target in Kingston and have started to wear them this week. I was looking for a short or ankle boot with a decent tread and sturdy heel for Winter and I found it! 

Here are some Gorilla shoots of today's outfit with the new booties, they also some in leopard print which I may need to go back and get!

Outfit

Jacket: Agent 99 in Kingston, seen here, here and here (I have been wearing this a lot lately and it is really cold in our office today so I might not take it off!)

Blouse: Dynamite, seen here

Jeans: Jessica Simpson Kiss Me Jeggings, seen here

Boots: Target

Necklace: Dynamite, seen here

Earrings: Le Chateau

Thank you for reading and check back next week for reviews on pore strips (I forgot how much I love using these!) and a comparison on two concealers I have recently tried.

Happy Weekend!

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Third World Bazaar

This Sunday I stopped by the Third World Bazaar located on Mitch Owens Drive in Ottawa (outskirts) which operates out of an old barn. The Third World Bazaar is a family business that purchases products from around the developing world and sells them to the Ottawa general public over a six week period. They have everything you could want from chairs, cabinets, mirrors, scarves, jewelry  vases and any knick-knack you can think of. I have been going to the TWB for 3 years now and I love it every time. Here are a few pictures of my visit -- no I didn't buy anything but I sure wanted to!

If you live in the Ottawa area, I highly suggest you check it out. If you aren't into furniture you can just relax outside and visit the local food stands. I had some wonderful Samosas from the Indian food stand -- shopping makes me hungry! They also offer hot apple cider which is a must have during the Fall season and you only have to make a small donation to partake in some hot cidery goodness!

Hope you all had a great weekend! Feel free to share what you did in the comments :-)