Canada Day Long Weekend: Pride, Channing Tatum, and Cottaging

We all have lovely dreams of owning a lakeside cottage where we could escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Of course, not all of us end up with that dream cottage …but we do sometimes end up with friends who have cottages! And even better, generous friends who invite us up to stay at their cottage on the weekend for drinks, swimming (if the water isn't freezing cold!), boating, and BBQing. 

But, although the etiquette rules for being a good guest might seem like common sense, you wouldn't believe how many times I have seen someone shatter them all. You don't want to be that guest horror story your friend relays every time they explain why they don't invite people to their cottage anymore.

1. Bring a gift. 

Simple, yes? If you're staying for 3 nights, don't bring a $10 bottle of wine. Don't give something that is an obvious re-gift. Take a little time, and put some thought into it, and include a nice thank you card.  Something like these chic (and environmentally friendly!) tea towels would be a great thoughtful hostess gift. Being a host can be stressful sometimes and involves a lot of time and energy - so they deserve a big, grateful thank you!

2. Help Out

The host isn't there to be your cook or cleaner. So offer a helping hand to cook dinner or clean up after. Don't worry, you can return to suntanning after!

3. Don't Bring Surprise Guests

Self explanatory - don't bring that new boyfriend unless you've asked the host first (even if he is really cute!)

4. Keep it Low Maintenance

Everyone has their own unique needs, and it is important for you to feel comfortable. Sometimes a host can accommodate those needs, but when the visiting group gets bigger, it becomes harder to accommodate everyone. If you need a special pillow to sleep, perhaps bring your own from home. If you're a vegetarian, on a special diet, or are gluten free, ask the host if anyone else visiting has similar dietary restrictions and maybe bring your favourite brand of veggie burgers for them and yourself to share. 

It's Canada Day weekend! So have fun, and celebrate this wonderful country! 

Here's a little good ol' Canadian humour just for fun: 

As usual, thank you Pinterest for the laughs

Story of my life. That red line haunts me in my sleep.

If you're in Toronto this weekend, you probably know that not only is it Canada Day Weekend but also   Pride! This  HUGE event will have people from all around the world parading through the streets wearing bright colours to celebrate freedom of expression for all sexualities. It's a great event, and brings amazing energy to the city. I'm thinking that this might be a good occasion to test out my new sparkly eyeshadow -  i'll be festive and make it colourful!

If we're discussing important events this weekend, we can't forget about one of my favourite events of this summer...Friday night, mark it on your calendars!

    

 Have a great weekend! How are you spending your long weekend?

MMVA Weekend: Fab parties, people, and swag

The Orangefish ladies had an extra busy weekend last week full of fabulous people, parties, swag, cocktails, and tunes.

If you live in Toronto and noticed large crowds of tweens running around screaming with J Biebes and Marianas Trench concert t-shirts on, and worse-than-usual traffic congestion on Queen street, then you may have figured out quickly that it was MMVA weekend, one of the most exciting weekends of the year. What I find so interesting and exciting about the weekend isn’t necessarily the awards themselves, but the vibe in the city, especially around the stages in the day or two leading up to the awards.

I got to get a little more involved in the MMVA celebrations this year because Orangefish took part in the VOCAB gifting lounge Saturday night. When I heard I was getting the opportunity to participate in the lounge, the first thing I thought was “ah! What am I going to wear? New dress?” then once that initial girly reaction had subsided, I had to start thinking about all the finer details of the event like who would be there, what products we should give out as swag, how would we organize the shift schedule for the day, etc. (but don’t worry, my outfit choice was still at the top of my mind).

So, I picked out a fabulous new dress, accessorized with some statement jewellery (from orangefish of course!) and my go-to lotus ring, and spent the days leading up to the event super busy organizing all the details.

We got to the event, and even though we were a bit early, the place was already buzzing with energy, with lots of well-dressed people running around with swag from David’s tea, Mellycakes, Chocola Chocola, Gafas Optical shop, Lip Labz, and Wendy Ding. We set up our little station and soon people started arriving. We gave out lots of great swag including one of our faves, the personal alarm, to ward off any stalker-y/dangerous creepers our female celebs might encounter. Celebs like Aleesia, Samantha Munroe, Cory Lee and Melinda Shankar all loved their new swag!

A huge hit at the event was the USB sticks. Everyone adored the star wars themed and Hello Kitty themed designs. If I could give an MVP award to one, I'd give it to the C3PO design, because his shiny coat just seemed to attract everyone. Oooh shiny things!

Some highlights of the night included chatting with Nikki Johnson from The Dancers of Toronto about Toronto's dance scene, talking to the very personable blogger Casie Stewart, Musician Ricky J's claim that the lotus ring marbles can be used as weapons by angry girlfriends, discussing epic searches for the perfect dress with Samantha Munroe, and catching up with people we met at the Stylus awards just a few weeks back like Rachel David, Aleesia, and DJ Mastermind. Of course, in between chatting with party-goers, and maybe snacking on a few of chocola chocola's chocolate covered goodies, I was busy on Twitter and Instagram, social networking it up!

Check out a few fab photos form the event:

          

Lucy, our favourite pink mannequin! 

Not only were we busy with the MMVA weekend celebrations, but also with the Divas in the City Event that took place last thursday night. It was a great event where lots of young, female entrepreneurs got together for cocktails, shopping, and insightful advice from experts in beauty, health, fashion, relationships, networking, and even money. I had a great time - and that's not just because I ended up buying a fabulous dress while there (though I did...). 

While at the Divas in the City event the one thing that kept coming to mind was, "Wow! These girls are fit and fab" Diva Girls is also a fitness company that specializes in programs like BollyFit, Jazz, Sexy Bootcamp, and belly dancing. All the classes, even the abs or butt classes are all about making you feel sexy and empowered while working out. I love that message! I totally snagged myself one of their DVDs, and i'm cyber-creeping their workout clothing line. I may just have to get myself one of those braid tanks for my next trip to the gym, because you said you can't sweat and look fashionable at the same time! And that white dress really makes me want to start playing tennis, just so I can rock it on the court...maybe i've found a new hobby??

Just hooked: Check out the workout clothes and DVDs on Orangefish.ca!

Finding the Happy Medium: Comfort and Style

Things have been crazy busy these last few months (which is awesome!) I do a lot of work from home, so lately I’ve found myself spending lots of time in front of my computer. Working from home has it’s own pros and cons, but I have to say the best things about it are:

a)     I can blast my music (and maybe even dance around a bit) without bothering coworkers. For example, I might just be playing Maroon 5’s “Payphone” right now…It’s a good thing I don’t have coworkers in my house, because they probably would not enjoy my singing. I'm definitely no Adam Lavine.

b)    I can conveniently run downstairs and fix myself a yummy snack whenever (though, when I have leftover party food in the house, this pro can quickly turn into a con)
      Sometimes I like to take a break from work for a bit and whip up something yummy and healthy like Hungry Girl's "Hey Chickie!" orange chicken recipe or the "Ring my Bella" Mushroom Sandwich

c)     I can wear whatever I want.

And so we come to the last pro, and the topic of today’s blog. Clothing (surprise, surprise). The question is: how do you dress comfy without feeling like a total slob? Sure, I may be working at home, but that doesn’t mean I want to lounge around in my PJs until 5pm. But I also don’t want to be wearing a suit all day. I think it’s all about finding a happy medium. Pajamas remind me of relaxation so I find it difficult to focus on work while wearing them. Suits are uncomfortable and  I spend more time squirming than working. If you have ever worked from home you might know where I’m going with this. So what is my trusty at home work uniform? Yoga pants/leggings.

Okay, so maybe I’ve worn them to actual yoga a time or two. But generally I find them to have so many more uses outside the yoga studio. I might go so far as to say they are one of my favorite pieces in my wardrobe.

Now, I’m thinking that What Not to Wear’s Stacy and Clinton might be cringing at this point. Styling leggings is always tricky. They are inherently a bit 80s, so you always have to be a bit careful when choosing what to pair with them or you’ll end up looking like you just exited a time machine, with Cyndi Lauper close behind. So, save the neon for your next tight and bright 80s themed party.

Also, just because leggings are a step up from PJs doesn’t mean they can’t look slobby. Take Ashley Tisdale’s outfit below. I’ll file that in my “Fashion don’ts” mental folder.

It's outfits like this that give leggings such a bad rap.

Leggings obviously aren't appropriate for every work environment (definitely not business or business casual). But for me they're great because I can sit in my chair all day, typing away, and will be comfy cozy. And I'll still be wearing something decently stylish in case I have to run out to the store, the post office, or some other last minute errand (or if the cute delivery man shows up!).

A little legging-spiration from Reese and Rachel:

And a few legging-based outfits designed by yours truly on the oh-so addictive Polyvore:

I'd wear something like this if I felt like looking slightly more put together. I'd just wear the t-shirt inside and then throw on a bright, fun, but pulled together blazer if I had to step out of the house for a bit. 

Out and About by galaxygirl featuring slip on shoes

An outfit like this would be great if I thought I would just be in the house all day. A comfy, sheer blouse, light jewelry, and the cute little hearts are sure to put me in a good mood!

Working From Home by galaxygirl featuring a modal shirt

My leggings get a lot of use, and no matter how many different outfits I try to create with them, I can sometimes get a bit bored of the same old combos. So I love little clever products like these that add a twist to your trusty old leggings. They're small pieces of patterned fabric that are made to slip over the bottom of your leggings, adding a pop of colour and design and totally changing up your look! I love how they look under a pair of funky boots like this:

Or, I could even see myself wearing these to yoga class or the gym like this:

The colour really brightens my usual gym uniform! 

What do you wear when you're spending the day at home? Are you a leggings fan, or have you seen too many bad outfits and lost hope?