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 :-)

Outfit Post: Target

Outfit

Sweater: Target

Camo skinny jeans: Target, these are reversible! Other option is a faded back.

Purse: Nine West, purchased in NYC a few years ago

Heels: picked these up in Costa Rica while on a work trip. I don't wear these nearly enough, they are super comfortable!

Last Friday I had to get some work done on my car that required several hours at the dealership in Orleans (suburb of Ottawa). So while that was being done I had a shuttle take me to Place D'Orleans (local Mall) where I finally visited my first Canadian Target store. I had some luck in the clothing department but here are my overall impressions of the Canadian Target:

The good

• Clean, bright store with friendly staff
• New clothing lines to browse
• I bought my first Up and Up product (Target's own line of beauty and household items). It was a lotion equivalent to Aveeno and so far I really like it.
• They have an in-store Starbucks (Yay)
• Loved the shoe selection and the prices were reasonable

The bad

• Prices are not comparable to the US stores. Though I am somewhat pleased with what I paid I expected better pricing on most items.
• Out of stock on almost everything! Like the shelves were almost bare in some sections of the store. The clothing department was also rather bare with limited sizes.

Overall I liked shopping at Target but I expected to LOVE it for some reason. I am loving the above outfit that I got there. The sweater was $20 and the reversible jeans were $34.99; I know I will get a lot of wear out of both of these items so I am happy!

Because the Ottawa Target was out of so many sizes, while I was in Kingston over Thanksgiving weekend I made a trip to their Target to see if I would have better luck. I was shocked at how much better the store was stocked! In Kingston of all places -Kingston is a much smaller town than Ottawa for my non local readers. So I was able to get a really pretty green blouse for work that I had my eye on in Ottawa and I bought black ankle booties that I will feature in an upcoming post. I also bought two soft v-neck T-shirts (can't have too many of those) and a white tank.

Have you been to the Target Stores in Ottawa yet? What did you think of them?

Hope everyone has a safe and relaxing weekend!

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Thanksgiving Weekend Recap

This weekend was Thanksgiving here in Canada where we get together to have a big Turkey dinner and give thanks for all that we are grateful for in our lives. I traveled to Kingston to spend the Holiday with my Mom and I was very grateful for the beautiful weather we had.

Here is a quick recap of my long weekend:

 On Saturday morning my Mom and I met a friend of her's and her dog for a long walk along the water. There's a hidden gem in Kingston behind the DuPont plant -of all places - to enjoy the lovely view across Lake Ontario and is a great place to let your dog frolic to it's heart's content.

 Panoramic shot of the beach.

 We ran into various dog walkers and the dogs all played together and had tons of fun while we chatted. That first almost wolf-like looking dog in the above pic was a rescue from 13 years ago and she was happy, healthy and lovely. Makes me want to have a rescue pup as well!

You know you are in Canada when you see random Inukshuks. I love seeing these!

My Mom's friend's dog, Danny. He's the same breed as Toto from the Wizard of Oz, a Cairn Terrier. What a happy little fella!

This is a distant picture taken of a lady who has swam in the lake from May to October every day for 13 years! She might have been in her 60's and looked incredible by the way....

Old stone BBQ

And now on to the food!

 I had back-to-back Turkey dinners to attend this year so I was making an effort to eat really clean and healthy before the feasts. This is roasted red pepper hummus my Mom made and some veggies for lunch.

Sunday morning breakfast was multigrain french toast. Indulging can still be nutritious! These were homemade and AH-MAZING!

Turkey Dinner at my Mom's: green beans sauteed with butter and almonds, roasted sweet potatoes with brown sugar, cranberry stuffing, turkey breast, some onions that were roasted with the turkey thrown on top and mashed potatoes with gravy. This was as good as it looked.

I didn't get any pictures of dinner #2, mostly because I was busy sort of co-hosting with my Roommate for about 14 people. But it was just as delicious! I zipped to the washroom during the evening and all I could hear were people laughing, talking loudly and just having a fabulous time. Sure sign that your company enjoyed themselves ;-)

I hope everyone had a safe and happy Thanksgiving! 

Love,

MelMac oxoxoxo


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OOTD Collage

Outfit

Tights: Lysee

Top: Le Chateau

Boots: Nine West

Purse: Nine West

Jacket: Agent 99 (Kingston, seen here and here)

Necklace: Unknown, I've had it forever!

iPhone case: Otter Box Camo AP Defender Series

How's everyone's week going? This upcoming Monday is the Canadian Thanksgiving and I will be headed to Kingston to spend the weekend with my Mom and enjoy her fabulous cooking. I've always really loved Thanksgiving because it is a Holiday that is just about spending time with Friends & Family while enjoying a belt busting meal then taking a nap. No presents, no pressure - my kind of Holiday.

Speaking of belt busting, these Lysee leggings that I have on today are the perfect option to wear for Thanksgiving. They have a high-waisted tummy control and are super comfy so you can eat until you burst and not have to undo your pants. Wearing skinny jeans during a big meal is not how I roll :-) 

Lysee tights aren't cheap - mine were $80 CDN, bought online last year - but they have worn really well, are thick and haven't lost their shape. You can dress them up with a nice top or sweater, add some boots and you are good to go. 

What are your plans for the weekend, Thanksgiving or otherwise?

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Outfit: Mix & Match Prints

For those of you that are Pinterest'ers, I am sure you have come across Pins that show an outfit where contrasting prints are put together beautifully. I love Pinning those outfits because it looks so effortless and not too "matchy-matchy". However to actually put a mix and match pattern together can be a little tricky. You want to choose prints that would work without looking like you were dressed by a 2 year old. This being said, mixing prints can add fresh new options to your existing wardrobe and though it may seem out of your comfort zone at first, this can be a fun way to be creative with your clothes.

Here are a few guidelines to help you try out a mix & match print ensemble:

1) Make sure there is a anchor color - what I mean by this is having a color that ties the prints together. Like black does here:

Blazer: Le Chateau

Shirt: Urban Behavior

Pants: Dynamite

Necklace: Ardene (seen here)

2) You can mix similar prints (e.g. large dots with small dots) - this is a good option to ease into the mix and match thing. I love this look here (notice the anchor colors, yellow and black):

Photo source: bellanaija.com

3) Don't go too crazy - You still want to look put together, not sloppy. Don't go from one extreme to the other (see Jesse J below). It helps if your outfit is structured and not a flowy top with a flowy skirt for example. 

Sorry SJP, flowy paired with flowy is a NO:

Photo source: glamour.com

Sorry Jesse J, no anchor color to tie these two patterns together. Come to think of it, I don't think even a "like color" could save a flannel and leopard combo!

Photo source: dailymail.co.uk

4) Stripes are a good neutral for matching prints, you can pair strips with animal print, geometric or floral.

Photo source: ttovogueorbust.com

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My VIP Night at Place D'Orleans

I am so excited to share with my readers a fantastic opportunity I had to participate in the Place D'Orleans VIP Night that raised money and donations for a wonderful cause, Dress for Success this past Saturday. Place D'Orleans is a local mall in Ottawa that held this incredibly well executed event  where you could buy tickets to enter into a draw to win:

• A Custom closet from Decorleans 
• A $2500 Place d’Orléans shopping spree
• Personal shopping service

I don't know a girl that wouldn't love a chance to win that Grand Prize! Attendees also received SWAG bags that were packed with all kinds of goodies. You could also bid in a silent auction on tons of great clothing donated from several stores in PDO. There were yummy appetizers being passed around and the Cosmopolitans were flowing throughout the night. All proceeds went to Dress for Success, a charity that clothes women in need with appropriate interview attire to help them gain employment. 

My friend and blogger for Place D'Orleans, A.Co Est. 1984, needed local bloggers to participate in a Shoe Fashion show for this event and asked me to take part. Me, a model? Ummmmm.... ok I thought. Let's do this! I couldn't say no to this kind of opportunity and to help out a good cause. 

Here' s a look at #MYVIPNIGHT at Place D'Orleans....

 I was pleasantly surprised to receive this amazing swag bag filled with coupons and goodies. There are perks to being a shoe model! ;-)

Grace from 613style.com and Sarah from Be Healthy Be Beautiful fueling up with some yummy appetizers before the show. Those are my kind of models, they EAT!

 View of the TV set up that showed the Twitter pictures of those using #MYVIPNIGHT throughout the even. Great idea!

Things are getting underway.... There was a great turn out which added to some nerves. Yikes!

Amanda, who did such an amazing job hosting this event, doing a run-through with her best friend and fellow shoe model, Sarah. Amanda also styled all of the mannequins and chose all of our shoes for the show. 

 My first pair of boots, Cognac booties from Pegabo. I LOVED these! Like, I wanted to run-off-the-stage-not-stop-until-I got-home loved them. Don't worry, I gave them back (reluctantly) ;-)

 My second pair, Guess high tops with a leopard print and gold zipper detail. I loved these as well. They were so cute and really comfortable.

A shot of a model with these cute leopard flats from the Bay. Do you see a trend appearing here? Leopard was a popping up all over the show including Amanda's dress (see below) from Alfred Sung.

 Cosmos anyone? These tasted as good as they looked.

 Amanda and I before the show. 

Sweater: Kohl's

Skirt: Dynamite (new)

Booties: Pegabo

Necklace: Ardene

 Mouth watering sweets table.

Amanda's gracious camera man for the evening.

Photo credit: 613style.com

All of our lovely models from the show, including our host, posing with some fun photo booth accessories. The VIP Night was a great success and as you can tell, we all had a great time!

And here's what my Fashion Show debut looked like....Yikes!

Aaaaaannddd I didn't fall on my face! Seriously, that was my worst fear and I was so nervous before going on. Not sure if you can see my heavy breathing before I walked on stage. Terrified! But after my first walk, my nerves settled and I really enjoyed being part of this event. I feel truly honored to have been asked to take part.

The drive is still on for the month of October at Place D'Orleans so if you have clothing that meets the criteria for donating to Dress for Success, please drop off your donations at Guest Services and receive a $5 Gift Card.

I will have more from this event in up coming posts so stayed tuned. Thank you A.Co, Place D'Orleans and Dress for Success for a great night!

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