*PHOTO CREDIT: HighSnobette

From industrial design, to learning how to manipulate a tiny little space into a cozy nook . . .  Scandinavians they have perfected sleek, modern, minimal structure. I know this, because I have actually been to Oslo, Norway . . .  enjoyed long-drives in Sweden (“How do you pronounce the name of the city again???”) and taken a cruise into Hirtshals, Denmark. There were things I had never seen or heard of that I am only seeing in Toronto, NOW.
These two lovely Norwegians have clearly made a statement with their latest dark palette. I am a huge fan. HUGE.

*PHOTO CREDIT: Pixie Market

This is super cute. I have a brown leather one, very similar to this . . .  which I had purchased at an estate sale in Queens in ’06 for $1. The owner offered to give it to me for free if I wore it around my neck and danced in a circle seductively.
Needless to say, he wasn’t very pleased with his dollar. Too bad, suckaaa.

*PHOTO CREDIT: Chickadee Communications

Last week, I received an invite to try a tour on Tuesday July 7th, 2009 at 3:00pm at Tealish (Queen West in Toronto). I am very excited! Local and boutique shopping have become not only a huge trend, but a favourite to many Women and Men out there. There’s a sense of isolation from fashions mainstream mall mayhem and predictable yet awkward “Oh, I know where you got THAT outfit” situations.

A bit more about Wendy and THE REFINERY -
 
She started the boutique shopping tours as a way to combine her passions for image consulting, small Canadian business, and helping women succeed.  Wendy lives by the philosophy that “fashion is a business; personal style is what you choose to wear to compliment your unique body, personality, colouring and lifestyle.”
 
“Avoid the Mall, Shop Local”
Wendy is a big supporter of local designers and can even take you on a designer studio tour. Wendy tries to steer her clients towards shopping at local boutiques.  There are so many designer shops to be explored. Weny’s mantra is avoid the mall, shop local.
 
Her tours run year round! For information about tours, go to http://www.therefinery.ca/boutique_shopping_tours/. You can check her complete tour schedule by clicking here. 
 
 
Don’t forget to check www.therefinery.ca for more of Wendy’s styling tips – below are my two favourite ones.
 
Pack like a pro – http://www.therefinery.ca/refined/pack_like_a_pro.html
 
Tie the perfect bow – http://www.therefinery.ca/refined/tie_the_knot_well_bow_reall.html

Booty Butter is all-natural tanning lotion that turns your skin a luxurious bronze faster than it ever has thanks to a special Hawaiian ingredient – Kona coffee extract –  Booty Butter Tanning Lotion by BikiniKitchen.com.
Thanks to Booty Butter, this spring and summer your readers can be treated to summer’s best fashion accessory – the glow of paradise.  Plus, they can enjoy their sun-kissed, enviable tan the natural way.   Booty Butter contains all-natural ingredients from the islands of Hawaii.  Its special Kona coffee extract ingredient speeds up the tanning process and its recipe also includes Hawaiian Kukui Nut Oil, Macadamia nut oil, light mineral oil and Aloe Vera which mix to keep your skin moisturized long after leaving the sun.
As additional fodder, this amazing dark tanning lotion was recently selected as the tanning lotion of choice for Disney star Brittany Curran’s 19th Birthday party.

(photo credit: Ralph McDonald)

With spring in full gear and summer fast approaching, I think this is right up your readers’ alley! I have attached the post event press release from Brittany Curran’s birthday party, as well as Booty Butter’s fact sheet and a product shot!
Don’t forget to visit www.bikinikitchen.com

Huge apologies to Shelly at www.shopgogirl.com for the late review!

A couple of weeks ago, I had requested a sample product from ShopGoGirl.com – Shelly was kind enough to send me both the LINT-ON-THE-GO-SHEETS!® and Oily Doily™ blogging sheets. I wish I had a camera on my blackberry (I have the worldphone, which has wifi, but no camera . . . ) because I’ve lost the charger for my camera. I wanted to document and share an interactive experience from testing the products – but because I have neither, I will do my best to go through the likes, dislikes and what-to-knows about the products.

LINT-ON-THE-GO-SHEETS!®

How cute! It comes in a case that is about the size of any cd holder. Aside from the adorable design, I found that carrying it around was very easy for me. It fit in all of my bags, even my little clutch. Now this product was soooo important to me – I have a cat named Kahlua . . . and little Kahlua loves to shed. Anyway, by the time 7:15am hits, I’m on my way out the door to get to work (and already at such a time, I’m covered in little grey, white and black cat hairs).  As much as I love the little munchkin, I just hate wearing her hair.
The package comes with 20 individual sheets (which actually meant 40 to me) because I realized that if I cut them in half, they were sticky enough for me to use on an entire sweater and my slacks! Would I recommend this product? Hell yes. It beats carrying a roller in your bag everytime you wear a black outfit.

Oily Doily™ (blogging sheets)

I have relatively oily skin, so I knew that I was going to go through these in a heartbeat. I have been using Philosophy’s The Supernatural blotting sheets, so I was happy to try something new (to see if either of the products could really make a difference). The one thing that I loved immediately about the packaging is that it was NOT thin cardboard or paper – most blotting sheets are sold like this, and it’s frustrating because they don’t shut properly and I end up loosing tons of sheets. A total waste of money, but I would end up putting them back into their cases (which truly isn’t very hygenic either, but I try to give myself the 5 second, if that’s how they were out of the case, type of rule). I also love that there was no talc or powder pre-applied onto the sheets! A huge plus!!! The only thing I had a problem with was trying to get them out of the case – blotting paper is fairly thin, and each sheet tend to stick to one another, so I had to be very careful with removing each sheet for use.

Overall, I was very impressed with the products. Would I switch from my current to any of these? I am definitely going to buy the lint sheets, that’s for sure. I’ve already referred some friends to the site.
Again, many thanks to Shelly from www.ShopGoGirl.com for the samples!

*PHOTO CREDIT: ShopGoGirl.com

Nike Women’s Sports Wear Safari Air Max pack! (Comes in mens as well)

Superflat First Love by Takashi Murakami for Louis Vuitton!
Have you seen this yet?!

If you can pull it off, then what’s stopping you?

Hayden-Harnett “Green is Good” Tote – because being considerate of the environment NEVER goes out of style.

How could you NOT say, “MMMmmmmMmMm!”?!