The scarf is by far one of my favourite go-to accessories. It adds a punch of colour, an unexpected pattern and instantly creates depth and interest in an outfit. It is an inexpensive way to update your wardrobe and is easily the best way to integrate your personality into your wardrobe. Paired with grey capris, a white tee and denim jacket any of the scarves below transform the look into something causally chic. Or added to a pair of trousers and blazer makes you look more polished and put together. The possibilities are endless and the hunt for the perfect one can be super fun!

Tips For Selecting the Perfect Scarf:

1. Buy the best quality that you can afford.

2. Avoid the chain stores and venture into stores/boutiques that offer a smaller selection of styles to ensure you will not be the hundredth person sporting the same item.  (For example Winners, Vintage Shops or online)

3. Pick a pattern that is in harmony with your facial features and does not over power you.

4. Select a colour you adore and brings a smile to your face.

5. Choose a texture that feels great against your skin.

Spun by Subtle Luxury |Ikat Diamond Print Scarf $35 USD

Lucky Brand | Feather Weight Bamboo Wrap $ 55 USD

Lucky Brand | Paisley Dream Square Scarf $39.50 USD

Spun by Subtle Luxury | Monet Garden Scarf $40 USD

Faithful Style Tip: If you’re in the Toronto area, visit the Exhibition Place during the annual CNE festivities. The cultural vendors from around the world carry a great selection of goods (including unique scarves) in a variety of colours and fabrics and at a great deal. You’ll be sure to find a few great pieces to add to your wardrobe.  All these beautiful scarves are available on www.piperlime.com

As written for Pretty Savvy

Imagine you had only one dress in your closet that worked for everything – work, date night, parties, or the occasional wedding. Well I’m here to share with you my secret style weapon. The Two Birds Bridesmaid dress, one dress that can be worn over 15 ways for every occasion and transforms to match your every mood.

This incredible dress was designed by Ariane Goldman from New York City and was created to marry a bride’s vision with her bridesmaids’ happiness. It is one dress, two sizes (size A 0-14, size B 16-24), comes in 18 colours, requires no alterations and can be worn more than a dozen ways.  You’ll never have to go looking for an occasional dress again. The beauty of this dress is that contours the body, draping beautifully and flattering all. This dress is approximately $300 CAD (for the shorter length) and when you do the math that is $20 a dress (since you can wear it a million ways)!!! Where in the world are you going to score a deal like that?

Dress it down for the summer with flip flops and a patterned scarf or dress it up with a killer pair of heels and jewels. Add a blazer to make it work appropriate or incorporate your own stylization with a cluster of vintage rhinestone brooches. The possibilities are endless and I guarantee you the dress will stand the test of time, lowering the cost per wear over decades.

I had my eye on this dress two years before I got married, my bridesmaids purchased it and so did I and none of us have been disappointed. Here are just a few ways to play with it. The best part is you can be the designer and be the creative soul behind your look. 

Visit www.twobirdsbridesmaid.com to view the different dresses; classic (which is the one I have and love!), go through the colour options like Kelly Green, Peacock and Coral and to watch the video tutorials to help you style it perfectly.

As written for Pretty Savvy

One of the coolest phrases I’ve heard a stylist utter is what Safina tells her clients who don’t like the number on their clothing tag. What she means is, instead of thinking of your dress size in terms of a number, ie., “I’m a 10”, just buy what fits and if the number bothers you, cut the tag out of the garment so you don’t see it. Chances are, that number has little basis in reality anyway. Depending on the store or the brand, one woman can wear any number of sizes on the same day. Higher-end brands typically cut more “generously”, so a size 4 at a lower-end store like Zara or H&M becomes a 2 or even a 0 at BCBG.

Some blame vanity sizing for such discrepancies (the idea that women will feel better about themselves if they fit into a smaller size, so manufacturers lower the size on the label to keep customers happy). Others insist sizes vary according to the designer’s target market. Whatever the cause, it only takes a trip to the vintage store to see how sizing has changed over the decades. I have tried on size 7 clothes made in the 70s that were too small, and yet today’s size 0 often fits me.

Working in the retail clothing industry, I have witnessed firsthand how happy women become when they fit into a smaller-sized dress than what they’re used to wearing. The size of a dress has the power to lift or lower a customer’s opinion of herself, a disturbing fact considering the utter randomness of the number. I learned to err on the side of bigger when beginning to dress a customer—you can always downsize which will make her feel good; however starting off with something too tight could send her straight out of the dressing room and through the door in a cloud of darkness.

Many women admit to feeling better about themselves when they wear a smaller-sized garment. Even the language we use–“I’m an 8”, rather than “I wear a size 8 dress”—lets our size define us. We may be better served by clothing sized according to hip, waist and bust measurements; however, many women underestimate these, too, and the truth might have the same effect as wearing a larger size. The question becomes: why is smaller better? And why does wearing a size 0 invoke near-hatred or at least disdain in other women? The flipside of vanity sizing is that slighter women are being sized out of existence. I lost customers every day because the size 0 was too big for them. And, no they weren’t anorexic; just thin, as some of us are. And I can assure you they weren’t happy because the smallest size was too big for them. They just wanted a dress!

In a confusing climate of varying dress sizes where the number on the tag gives no useful information, a girl’s only recourse is to try on a range of sizes and leave her expectations at the dressing room door. If she doesn’t like the size she ends up with, she can do what Safina says and: “just cut it out.”

The stark contrast between size-zero and size-two models and the majority of female consumers who buy the clothes can no longer be ignored. Thankfully, a shift is occurring in the fashion industry; more and more, designers are responding to consumer demand by increasing their use of larger-sized models. Is it a desire to do good, or a business decision? After all, it’s not good for sales to alienate your clients.

Joe Fresh loves to pay a well-known international model top dollar to walk down its runway at Toronto Fashion Week, drawing attention and anticipation. This season they chose Crystal Renn, a plus-sized model (only a 12, but still) who used to wear a size zero before becoming fed up with the exhaustion and hair loss that comes with starving yourself. At the young age of 23, she now embraces her curves and accepts her natural size, continuing to work steadily as a model for international runways and magazines. Her new book, Hungry, chronicles her battle back from an unnatural size to one that is more true to her.

The Ben Barry agency provided two models for Sunny Fong’s VAWK show at AGO during Fashion Week: one aged 55 and a size 14; the other aged 23 and a size 12. “I think there is a movement within the international fashion industry toward diversity on the runway and on magazine covers – and Toronto fashion brands are leading the way,” said Barry, a model agent who promotes diversity among his roster of talent.

The runway at Toronto Fashion Week also featured the designs of Jessica Biffi, the Project Runway Canada contestant from Season 2 who premiered her collection two seasons ago. Although the designer herself is plus-size, her designs were made for smaller women. This season, however, she decided to showcase collections she designed for Addition Elle and MXM, womenswear retailers specializing in sizes 14 and larger. The lines were launched the same day as the show and sales surpassed all expectations. Biffi obviously filled a gap; larger-sized women also want access to well-priced designer clothing with the cache of a famous brand label attached. Many sought-after brands, such as BCBG, only make clothes as large as size 12.

High-fashion need not be restricted to the under-12 set and designers are finally responding to the desires of all women. Whether the reason for the positive change is consumer demand or designer conscience, we like seeing women of all shapes and sizes. Because that’s how we are.

Read more about the positive changes on the runway at Laura’s Blog.

Dogeared’s best selling products are inspired by the hip, casual and unique California lifestyle. Everything is handcrafted with great care, from inception to design to packaging, in their Southern California studio. Create good energy with a beautiful reminder around your neck.

My next find was Rubaiyat, a store that looked more like an outdoor garden decor store than a treasure trove of quality handcrafts from the windows I’m so happy that my curiosity forced me to take a peak because I spent close to 3 hours in the store gawking at all the beautiful things. This distinctive 17 Ave gallery and retailer carries imported artifacts and crafts from Africa and Asia, as well as ornate jewelery, art glass and home accessories by local, regional and international designers. Some of my favourite lines that they carry are Aurora Lopez, Me & Ro, Jeanine Payer and Satya Jewelry. It’s like I always say step into stores that may not be all that appealing or isn’t quite your taste because you’d be surprised what you can find. If your visiting Calgary and love to discover new and beautiful things these two shops are a must-see.

By far my favourite dress at the 2010 Oscars. Beautiful, Elegant and Feminine.

In other words, all pressure is off. Practical items like shoes, coats, umbrellas, and especially scarves become fashion statements. I felt naked going scarfless amongst the swathed masses (I kept forgetting to wear one because I wasn’t used to it). Most of the woolly neckwear looked like it could have been knit by your grandmother and the look–thrown lazily around the neck–make it a style absolutely anyone can pull off and, as my friend promised, look cool.

London fashion is intrinsically forgiving. Maybe it’s the weather, or the fact that everyone is too busy to fuss much over what they wear. Loose layers and less structure make clothes flattering for all figures and even the runway shows, at least those by the female designers, featured more wearable, less body-conscious, designs that reflected and catered to the lifestyle of the modern woman: one who cares about her appearance but has more going for her than simply looking pretty.

Local London designer, Betty Jackson, beloved by women who want luxury and comfort in concert, eschewed any pretense of prettiness with her roomy, relaxed clothing that remained haute couture. Jackson has confessed to an aversion to dressing up and delivered a collection that upped the ante for casual wear. Another Englishwoman, Nicole Farhi (in business now for 27 years) featured feminine day and evening wear with silhouettes that skimmed rather than hugged the body. Her philosophy could have been the credo for London Fashion Week and for anyone seeking to attain genuine personal style:

“You should be true to yourself with the clothes you wear.”

Walk This Way Workshops is Stacey’s effort to help other girls and women bolster their self-esteem while providing the tools that will lead to a successful modelling career:

“I promised I would use all my expertise and advice to help model hopefuls make it to the next level. That’s where this workshop comes from,” Stacey said at the Spoke Club last weekend where she presented real-life examples of various genres of modelling including high fashion (the typical tall, slim model), plus size, commercial, body parts (hands and feet, for instance) and lingerie. Stacey was adamant that high fashion is only one small avenue into modelling and never to force yourself to embody those proportions if they are not naturally yours. Cory, a featured model agent, concurred:

“We don’t tell people to lose weight. If you’re naturally meant to be a (high fashion) model, great; if you’re not, don’t fight it.” Stacey added: “Find another niche; find another avenue.”

The audience consisted of both aspiring models and curious onlookers: Alannah Verneuil won her spot in the workshop after entering a contest in Verve Girl magazine on why she deserves the opportunity. At 5’1″ she fears height may be an impediment to her desired career. She no doubt benefitted from Stacey’s assuring words: “You have to find your niche. Technically, anybody could be a model.” Tonika, who runs a hip-hop feminist collective called The Medina, was fulfilling her new year’s resolution to “be more adventurous and step outside the safety zone.”

Stacey encouraged her pupils to stay true to themselves: “It’s important to have confidence. I wouldn’t have what I have if I didn’t love and accept myself. Modelling is a cut-throat business so it’s important for you to love and OWN who you are.”

That’s sound advice we can all use.

Read more on Stacey’s workshop here.