EXCITING NEWS!

So, I was going to wait to debut this tomorrow but I will give you a sneak peak of an exciting new link that will appear on my blog. I have been in talk with Beyond The Rack for a little while now and we we're trying to come up with a way to reward the wonderful people who follow my blog and who have a love for fab deals and shopping. So....what better way than to have a link to there site on here! Now you may ask how is that rewarding to readers? Well, by using the link on my site to go to Beyond the Rack, and signing up for the site (which is free!) you will receive a $10 credit for there site that you can use instantly! I am so excited about this I love having some way of thanking my followers! If it was not for you then there would be no point to my site! So thank you and I hope you enjoy the little discount!

                                     www.beyondtherack.com/member/invite/leatherorchid

Happy Hallows Eve!

I absolutely love Halloween. What other day of the year do you have an excuse to dress up and actually go out in public without the stares and odd looks from people passing by. I however did not get too creative this year as I have been so busy I hadn't any time to really put a whole lot of effort into a unique and fun costume. So I went for a classic and dressed up as a pirate. I love this costume, I would have to say my fav part of it is the paisley skirt! I love the colours and intricate pattern of the overlay which opens in the front to reveal a frilly, lacy underskirt. The top to the outfit is a shiny black corset with a classic white pirate shirt underneath. I wore the eye patch for maybe 5 minutes that evening and it was off for the rest. No one ever told me how uncomfortable that is! However even without the eye patch I love this costume. I will not however be wearing it this evening when the hubby and I hand out candy to the little 'Trick or Treaters' as the temperature is literally 1 degree outside!

Goodbye Pink....Hello Grey! Cold weather polish!

I know, I know it has been too long since my last post but I have been beyond busy the past couple of weeks. But I am back and promise to keep up with my posts!
Last night I was looking through my polish and thinking to myself "what is going to be my colour of Fall 2011?". Each season I find that I have my go to colour for nail polish. I switch it up every now and then but I tend to wear one colour more than the others. I recently purchased a new polish and looking at it knew right away that 'this was the one'. The colour is called 'Steel Grey' and I absolutely adore it. The grey has a slight undertone of purple to it which makes it much more interesting than plain grey. Needless to say I am going to be sporting this colour through fall, winter and spring quite often!

As for a few colours that I will be switching it  up with every so often here are some of my other favs in my collection that is ever growing!

I love the almost dusty rose colour above! As you can see for the cooler weather I love more muted colours and neutrals.

Everyone must have a great nude polish!

Gold.....nothing else needs to be said its fabulous and I adore my Sephora by OPI gold, 2 coats and my fingers dazzle!

HAPPY WEEKEND! xxxx

He sang of a beautiful place, of a hat box for two.

Hats, love 'em or leave 'em. I for one love 'em. I think a cute little hat can add a lot of interest to an outfit. I am not talking British Royalty kind of hats here I am talking a cute little fedora, a trendy pageboy cap, a warm but adorable knit toque, or any other brimmed topper you can think of. There are endless styles of hats for all seasons of the year. Hats are one accessory among others that you can incorporate into your wardrobe for more than one season out of the year. I have a couple of darker toned fedoras that look great and do there deed in both fall and winter as well as some thinner toques that can follow you throughout the colder seasons. Hats can do what they are intended to do, keep you warm, whilst still looking fashionable! So I say why not? Here are some trends to look for this year when the colder winds start blowing. As you can see from these photos I am an avid lover of fedora styled hats among others. I love the structure of them as well as the brim is too cute. 

                                                       Malene Birger Houette Hat (shopbop.com)

                                                   Eugenia Kim, Max Sequin Fedora (shopbop.com)

                                                 Juicy Couture perforated fedora (shopbop.com)

                                                                   Rag & Bone Wide Brim Fedora (shopbop.com)

Enjoy! 

Title: Song lyrics by Andrew Sisters - Johnny Fedora and Alice Blue Bonnet

Its Turkey time!

This post may not apply to all my readers but since I live in Canada it is Thanksgiving tomorrow and I am rather looking forward to it. Today was a celebratory at my in-laws house for the husbands birthday which was today as well as there Thanksgiving. Tomorrow we have my side of the family coming over to our house which will only make it 5 of us as others are away. I am so looking forward to it, I love getting together with family and even more when it is over a giant feast of yummy food.

So for everyone who is celebrating Thanksgiving this weekend "Happy Thanksgiving". For those of you who aren't "Happy Weekend!".  This ending makes me feel as though I should finish off with "Stay fit and have fun! Courtesy of Body Break.

Enjoy!

Photos Via: crabbygolightly.com, cotureallure.com

But the hills that we climbed were just seasons out of time

So as many of you, my lovely readers know I am all about super cute costume Jewelry. I am one of those who feel an outfit is not complete without the perfect accessories to go along with it. So I have an ever growing supply of accessories so that I will always have the perfect piece for any outfit. I always have my eyes open for new stores both at home and online for adorable jewelry that wont break my budget. I came across a website the other day StyleLivesOn. When I came across this site I was beyond excited. The jewelry is SO cute and SO atm friendly what is not to love? Here are just a select few pieces that I would LOVE for my collection.

So as you can see they have some adorable stuff and I couldn't downsize my favourites any smaller than this. Believe me when I say StyleLivesOn is not paying me to write this. I just felt it my duty to share with you fun, fabulous and budget friendly websites!

Enjoy!

Photos from: StyleLivesOn

ATM friendly buys that are still oh sooo cute!

Here are some adorable, totally budget friendly clothes that will be on my next shopping list. These cute little sweatshirts are perfect for chilly days. I love dressing up and dont get me wrong its fun and makes you feel fab! But I do love a relaxed day as well, and in these sweaters you will still look totally cute doing it. I found these at a store called ONLY.

The Biker Boot

Today I was scrolling through one of my favourite shopping sites and came across some fab boots that would be perfect for fall. I am drawn to the Biker/Combat boot styles but am having a hard time deciding which boot is my favourite. Zappos has got to be one of the best sites when shopping online. They have every brand and style under the sun and the prices are totally reasonable as well. It is hard not to go to that website and rack up a visa bill or two! Here are some styles I came across today.

                                              Born - Milari                     Steve Madden - Cablee

                                    
                                         Timberland - Lucille                 EMU - Toowoombah

                                         Kelsi Dagger - Jutta                   Seychelles - Jungle

                                    
                                         Madden Girl - Rickki                    UGG - Broome

Photos - Zappos

Enjoy!

And the Master Cleanse now commences....

So a quick update, after a weekend of dinner parties at a few friends places I am now ready to start the Master Cleanse. A lot of people try to tell me that it is impossible to drink only this MC mix and nothing else for a minimum of 10 days. Its SO do-able and SO worth it. Now don't get me wrong I love food just as much as the next person and yes the first couple days are hard. But once you have gone a few days you start to build a confidence about it and push through! And really what do you have to lose? A little extra weight? Some horrible nasty build up that we all get in our bodies?

The benefits to the Master Cleanse far out way the single con of not eating. So where are you getting your nutrients? Every ingredient in the 'Lemonade' mix is there for a reason, so you are still providing your body with essential nutrients. Ok and what about protein? "Often the question is asked about the need for amino acids, and animal protein foods. The need is highly exaggerated, as only 16% of our body is protein. The answer to the question is very simple. We first need to understand that pure protein is primarily nitrogen, with oxygen, hydrogen and some carbon. We all know we get a large share of our oxygen and hydrogen needs from the air along with some carbon. There is four times the amount of nitrogen in the same air as there is oxygen, hydrogen and carbon combined. Since we are able to utilize and assimilate a large amount of our needs of these elements into our bodies we are able to assimilate and build the nitrogen also into our bodies as protein. This is done by natural bacteria action, which is capable of converting it to our use."


So all you need to do is make sure that you are mentally ready to start the cleanse and then its just one day at a time from there. Easier said than done sometimes yes but all I think about are the benefits and the good it is doing for my health both physically and mentally. 


So I have one last dinner at my dads tonight and then it starts! 


Enjoy! 


Portion inserted from the Master Cleanse Book. 

Help raise awareness for Alcoholism

                                         Sandra Jane Brideau - My best friend - My Mother

In todays society it is too often that we do not tell people what sometimes really needs to be said. Why is this? Are we afraid of the outcome, are we afraid of confrontation, or hurting the other person or is it just too easy to not say anything to someone and push it under the lumpy carpet along with all of our other thoughts and worries.

About a year and a half ago I lost my mom to alcoholism. I do not remember anyone saying anything to her about it and confronting her with her illness. I am one of those people. Do I regret not saying anything? Do I regret not sharing my concerns with her? Absolutely. But this falls under the category of not wanting to cause hurt or confrontation. It was a situation of not wanting to make someone hurt more than they already were, even know they were slowly killing themselves.

Alcoholism is sometimes not taken as seriously as this disease is. When you think of someone who is alcohol dependant you think of some vagrant walking the streets drinking out of a brown plastic bag, hell sometimes no plastic bag at all. But in reality it is much more than that. It is the father who works and provides for his family while not being able to go a day without drinking. It is a mother who drinks first thing in the morning when she wakes up because she could not make it through work without. Its aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, friends and loved ones. We need to stop being so closed minded about addiction and look at it for what it really is.

Raising awareness about Alcoholism and truly knowing and understanding what this disease is, is only one step in becoming more aware. Learning to not be so judgemental when someone is struggling with an addiction, and accepting the fact that it is a disease. If we know someone who is alcohol dependant we need to express our thoughts and concerns for that person. Maybe by having just one more hand to hold though the process someone will find the strength within themselves to fight.

Losing my mother at the age of 47 was the hardest thing I have ever had to go through. It breaks my heart to know that she was fighting something so strong and terrifying sometimes all by herself. So I have decided to write this blog, in hopes that maybe someday we can all learn more and help someone who is battling this horrible disease.

If you or someone that you know is battling with an addiction, please know that you really are not alone. It may be the hardest thing for you to do but there is help. Know that you can fight this and it is possible. With hard work and determination nothing is impossible.

For information on Alcoholism and Addiction:

Alcoholics Anonymous - http://www.aacanada.com/
Canadian Liver Foundation - http://www.liver.ca/