Updated work-wear

Well, the weekend has sadly come to an end and it is back to school, or work for some people.  If you are feeling the Monday morning blues and a bit dreary, try to spice up your office attire by mixing textures and prints.  If your office allows for a little more outfit creativity, take advantage. Stay warm with a pair of opaque tights and add interest with a bright print.  Bundle up stylishly by adding a sweater coat to a girlie dress; just cinch at the waist and add a pair of seasonal boots to complete your cozy-chic office apparel.  

Mix things up and have fun doing it!

1.  Diane Von Furstenberg print dress, $445

2.  Joseph open cardigan, $350

3.  Black sheer tights, $5

4.  Zara lace up booties, $30

5. Asos satchel bag, $24

6. Rope earrings $4

7. HM leather belt, $8

Here comes the sun

For some reason, I have been feeling that the rainy weather has been putting a slight damper on my mood lately. Which is the complete opposite for me! However, today I was very excited to wake up to clear skies and as I was driving up to school the sun was shining! Sunshine can really brighten any mood. When the sun isn't shining however, I will brighten up my wardrobe, which will help brighten my mood! Here are some cute outfit ideas that will hopefully help brighten your day.

 Oasis tee shirt dress $95

Miu Miu asymmetrical skirt $1,195

 J Brand skinny's $275

Giuseppe Zanotti ankle wrap sandals $695

 Micheal Kors Lime Green Tote bag $268

Cambridge leather satchel $155

 Juicy Couture yellow studded bracelet $48

 Link of London summer watch $335

 AZ Collection floral jewelry $108

 Karen Walker Sunglasses $220

Spotted!!

Ahh I am super excited, a few weeks ago I attended the Style Spy and Gap Christmas event downtown and I was asked to be their featured girl of the week! It was really cool and the article looks great! Here is the article and the link to the incredible site: thestylespy.com

Girl of the Week: Ainsley Smith

Ainsley Smith was spotted at the Gap x Style Spy event a few weeks ago. Her fur collar and crimson lips caught both my eye and contributor Melissa’s eye as well and that’s when we knew we had to ask her to be Girl of the Week. Ainsley grew up in Maple Ridge and is currently a Business Administration student, majoring in marketing with certificates in Communications and Journalism. She loves fashion, traveling, good music and good friends. Meet Ainsley.

Wearing… I look like a walking H&M ad. My blouse, necklace, skirt, ankle boots and faux fur wrap are all from H&M (love this store though). My tights are Wilfred and from Aritzia. I am wearing an oversized Micheal Kors watch, and my purse is from Aldo.

My personal style is…Classic, mixed with a modern edge.  I like to look classy, presentable and trendy–but not overly trendy.  I like to mix old pieces with new additions to create a unique look.

Most recent purchase… They were actually from the Gap x Style Spy event! I bought the cutest oversized dusty rose knit sweater that had gold studs on the shoulders.  I also got a pair of cozy off white knit knee socks– perfect to wear under boots! Oh and I caved and bought the Justin Bieber Christmas CD this weekend.

3 items in my makeup bag… DiorShow mascara, Smashbox Photo Finish Primer, and NARS Orgasm blush/bronzer duo.

A person living or dead you most admire… Audrey Hepburn.  She is exceedingly talented, beautiful, stylish and so incredibly sweet.  I would love to have tea with her.  I can recite every line from Breakfast at Tiffany’s!

If you could be anywhere in the world right now…Definitely New York City – I visited NYC last fall and I left my heart there! I would personally go there any second of the year, but during the holidays it would be incredible.

Most versatile item in your closet… A perfect fitting pair of dark skinny jeans.  They can be dressed up or down but the slim cut and dark texture looks a little bit more stylish.

Drink of choice… A nice glass of white wine or a Cosmopolitan.  However, any beverage from Starbucks is completely okay in my books!

Favorite accessory…My gold Michael Kors watch.  I bought it this past spring in Las Vegas and I can’t take it off.  I literally wear it casually and when I am dressed up and ready to go out.  It is very versatile and the gold looks amazing when stacked with other bracelets. Arm party anyone?

I can’t live without… My family, friends, my new iPhone and Philosophy hand creams.

Winter essentials…Cozy infinity scarves! These look amazing when worn casually or when paired with a coat. Also, a tall pair of riding boots.

Words to live by…Where there’s love, there’s life.

Photograph by Melissa Chai

Two fabulous give-aways!

Some of my favorite Vancouver bloggers were feeling very generous this past week and have decided to offer their loyal readers two fabulous giveaways.  The first is from Randa Salloum from The-Unprecedented offering readers the chance to win a gorgeous Club Monaco bracelet.  

Here's what you gotta do to win:

You must become a fan of THE-UNPRECEDENTED 4 ways to win!

1. Facebook - HERE
2. Twitter - HERE or @RandaSalloum
3. Bloglovin' - HERE
4. Blogger - Go to the right sidebar of the page and click "Join this site"

And yes,  she will be cross checking to make sure you did all 4 - we gotta be fair here!!!

Lastly, on the Facebook page you must leave a post saying "The Club Monaco bracelet is mine!!!" and post how you would style it!!
Randa will be announcing the winner on Tuesday October 25th, good luck everyone!

And while you're on Twitter become a fan of Club Monaco - @ClubMonaco   

Next, Britt and Tess from Belle Époque are offering readers the chance to win a BFREND bracelet from Monica, creator of The Doctors Closet. 

In order to be considered for some stackable arm candy, it's pretty simple you must..

(ALL FOUR)

1. Become a fan of BELLE ÉPOQUE on Facebook

2. While you're there, "share/repost" the giveaway post and tell us how you would stack your new Bfrend!!

3. Also while you're there leave us a little wall post saying hello! (this is how we will get your names in order to contact the winner!!)

4. Become a fan of THE DOCTOR'S CLOSET  on Facebook (she'd love for you to say hello as well ;) )

Want more entries?!

You can gain additional entries into the giveaway by..

1. Following Belle Époque on Google Connect (by clicking 'join this site' on the lefthand side)

2. Follow BELLE ÉPOQUE & THE DOCTOR'S CLOSET on twitter and tweet "@belleepoque21 @doctorscloset I would love to win a gorgeous Bfrend bracelet and start stacking! http://www.belleepoque21.com/2011/10/bfrend-giveaway.html?spref=tw"

3. Follow Belle Époque with BLOGLOVIN' 

The winner will receive a gold cobra Bfrend (pictured above) with YOUR colour choice! 

GOODLUCK!! The winner will be chosen next MONDAY, OCTOBER 24th!! 

Green with ENVY

Hello all, for those of you who don't know me, I am kind of a neat freak.  But, in a particular way.  My bedroom must look a certain way, or I cant function or get to sleep.  There has been many nights when it is reaching 4am and I will wake up and clean or re-organize my room.  Aside from my bedroom, I am VERY particular about my favorite feature of my bedroom-my closet.  I re-organize it regularly.  I make specific trips to IKEA and Winners to buy baskets, racks, matching hangers, just to keep this one space perfect.  I love cleaning my closet so much, I have taken up organizing my friends and family members.. maybe one day I could make a career out of it? Like all areas of my life, I find different forms of inspiration to help get a job done and in this case, it is amazing.  If any of you are anything like me, you will love what I am about to share with you..

Olivia Palermo

 J.Crew creative director Jenna Lyons  shoes space

Khloe Kardashian's shoe closet..

The other half of Khloe's closet..

Paris Hilton's closet space

Christina Aguilera

Kerri Russel's neat and organized closet space

Not sure of the owner, but it is gorgeous non the less.

Paula Abdul: It literally looks like a clothing store..

Mariah Carey... died and gone to shoe heaven..

Recent purchases

Well, the dreaded week of back to school is getting c l o s e r and clooooser.  In order to keep my nerves calm- I've been shopping more than normal! Kidding- well about dreading school starting. I am actually quite excited for school to start again.  I am entering my fourth year of my Business program, and if all goes as planned, I'll be graduating in June!!! Anyways, the long weekend is here and I am excited because I finally have a day off! Here are some pics of my newest purchases, enjoy!

What are everyone's Labour Day weekend plans?

Cute leather jacket-It has the padding in the shoulders, kind of reminds me of Gaga

                           I loved this black ring, it is hard to see in this photo, but it is like black crystals?

This is a vintage Ralph Lauren Denim top that I got at Mintage on Commercial Drive. I have been looking for one of these every where!

Another Vintage Ralph Lauren Silk blouse.  It is really nautical haha, it could be cute with leggings?

I love these boyfriend style oxford button ups. When I am at University I wear them daily!

Another oxford button up-In pale pink, one of my favorites! This is from Mintage as well.  The skirt is new as well, I ordered it online!

This was a very exciting find at Mintage- A vintage Pierre Balmain blouse.  The material is fabulous.

                   I am a head band freak and a bow freak, put them both together and I am one happy girl.

Cute bow barrettes

                                                                           Pearl Barrettes

Feather Earrings- I love these, they are pretty neutral so they can be mixed with allot of outfits.

Combat boots!! I mentioned in a previous post I was on a mission to find a comfortable pair for fall, and I did!

New Oxfords

                                                                 Jules and James lace up oxford booties

New purse from Aldo- I mentioned this ones in my Hermes purse post!

A vintage beaded clutch

MTV VMAS

The Sunday night, live VMA show was a success, with performances from Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Adele, Jay Z and Kanye West and sooo many more (those were my favorites of course!) and we cant forget the amazing tributes to Brittney Spears, Amy Winehouse and Tony Bennett. The show was hothothot and of course, the celebrities fashion choices were on the topic for discussion. Any show put on by MTV will cause celebrities to battle it out for the worst dressed title, and most of the other celebs wore just blah ensembles this year..a little disappointing! However, here are my favorite looks and some of my other favorite looks of the night, but for different reasons..

BEST:

Beyonce looked amazing as ever, showing off her newly announced Baby news!!

Is it totally wrong that I like Snookies dress in a small, weird way?

WORST:

Oh Deena.. if that dress wasn't bad enough, your bad hair extension job is even worse...

Who would have expected that Christian Dior was responsible for this little number...

The girl has talent and its awesome that she is daring with her looks, but this is just a Harajuko  Girl on steroids..

This is just gross..

THE UNDECIDED:

I honestly don't know how I feel about these two dresses.. I think I like them, I just don't know! I mean at least Miley Cyrus is wearing something covering her body for once, but this one is more age appropriate for a eighty year old woman.

Hope you enjoyed the show as much as I did!!