Head(er) In the Clouds

So much excitement tonight. My talented and wonderful friend Danka, who is an up and coming photographer here in Ottawa (/Gatineau), suggested that she take some actual (read: non-iPhone) photos of me for the blog a few weeks ago. It was such a wonderful offer and turned into a really fun day of picture taking with her and her twin sister! I'll be posting those photos in the near future.

Tonight I met up with her to get the photos AND not only did she do a great job with them, she also made me a header for the blog. Yay! You rule Danka!

I feel so fancy now. I feel like this is another imprtant milestone in my blogging career - the first was getting THE blogger necklace (you know the one that everyone has, from J Crew) and now the header. It's like I'm growing up into a real blogger right in front of my very own eyes. What's next? A boyfriend who happens to be a professional photographer and pieces that are C/O a high end brand? Probably.

Oh and here is my outfit. This skirt was another random find in my summer clothing pile that I recently discovered. I've had it for years. I initially wanted to pair it with something funky and "blog worthy", like horizontal stripes, or another pattern, but then I decided to go simple, because while I do have THE necklace and now a blog header, I'm still just me - a beaurocrat who likes clothing and dressing up. I promise to step up my game when I start dating the professional photographer.

Shirt: H&M, Necklace, Shoes (and Skirt, probably): Winner's

High on Summertime

It's really hot again today, which made it even harder to be at work and NOT at the cottage. *sigh*
Found these shorts in my summer clothing pile that I hadn't looked at.....all summer. Ooops. That's when you know you have too much clothing - you don't even need to LOOK at your "summer clothing" pile basically all summer.

So excited for the upcoming super long weekend. Can't wait to spend three whole days with my best friend. Thursday evening can't come fast enough!

Shirt: Banana Republic, Shorts: no idea, Sandals: Winner's, Bracelets: H&M

Cutest mani ever? I think so.

Double Denim

A sure sign that you had a fabulous time at a friend's cottage and are trying desperately to prolong the cottage vibe: finding yourself searching for the local country station to listen to in your car.
That happened. To me. Half an hour ago. (Sarah's going to love it)

This weekend was fantastic. From Friday's pool party with my colleagues to a sunny weekend at the cottage - I really couldn't have asked for more. Every weekend should be like it, and I am certainly NOT looking forward to being in the office for 8 hours tomorrow. *sigh*

Here's my outfit from Friday. Nothing says "casual Friday" like two denim pieces. Bless!

These photos were taken near my colleague's house, right before the pool party festivities started. As we were taking them, her girlfriend came home and caught us red handed. She was like  "why are you guys taking photos of each other?" and it was one of those moments that made blogging seem really silly.

But, I love it.  For example, the highlight of my Monday morning is going to be sitting down with a coffee and catching up with my fave bloggers - checking out what they were up to this weekend and how they were dressed. Looking forward to it!

Jacket: Guess, Shirt and Necklace: Joe Fresh, Jeans: Forever 21, Sandals: Zara

Under My Umbrella

Here is today's outfit, courtesy of a very quick and very hilarious, rainy parking lot photoshoot. 

I'm super busy tonight, preparing for tomorrow's pool party with colleagues and this weekend's cottage trip with Sarah, so I have to go continue choppng veggies and pack. SO happy it's Friday tomorrow, finally!

 Skirt: Walmart, Shirt: Smart Set, Jacket: Guess, Loafers: Nine West

Highs and Lows

If I look angry in these photos it's probably because I was. (Or sleepy. Whatever.)
I'm angry over this whole Robsten fiasco - more on that a little later.

First, the outfit. Not much to say except that these wedges which were such an exciting purchase earlier this summer (only $24.99!), should basically come with a health warning : if you plan on doing anything more than sitting down while wearing these shoes, you may regret it and end up limping and hating life. 

These killers gave me THE worst blisters I have ever had in my entire life, on the pads of my feet. Yes, pads aka impossible NOT to re-injure yourself while doing such neccessary things as walking. This incident happened weeks ago and my feet have still not recovered. Why did I wear them again? Because I'm a daredevil, of course. (Also, I think they're so cute and look good with the mullet skirt)

Today's manicure! Purple polkadots!

Shirt and skirt: Foreever 21, Necklace: Joe Fresh, Bangle: blogger sale, Shoes: Winner's (do NOT buy them)

And now: my Robsten Rant. 

As we all know Rpatz (Robert Pattinson) and his soon to be ex girlfriend, KStew (Kristen Stewart) have hit a "little" bump in the relationship road.

By now I am sure that most of you know the story, but here are the cliffs notes: RPats and KStew have been dating for 3+ years (aka ever since they met on the set of the first Twilight movie). KStew recently played Snow White in the Snow White and the Huntsman, and yesterday we got to see pictures of her seductively hugging and sucking the face of the 41 year old director of that movie, Rupert Sanders, who happens to be a married father of two. Today the two of them issued seperate statements confirming the rumor expressing their regrets and sincere apologizies to their partners. 

KStew was all like "Woe is me, I hurt Rob, how terrible, I love him, I love him, I really really love him".  The whole unfortunate scenario caused a Twittersphere and Interwebs metldown, especially among the completely insane Twihards who don't seem to understand that KStew and RPats aren't actually Bella and Edward in real life. Everyone was all up in a tizzy like "OMG POOR RPATZ boo hoo, what a horrible day for him"

Now, I don't want to seem cruel. Getting cheated on is THE WORST and I can't even imagine what it must be like when the whole world finds out at the same time and is watching you. *Barf*

But, people need to get a hold of themselves. The fact that RPatz's 22 year old girlfriend (who he hooked up with while they were on set and during which time she was dating someone else *sound familiar?*) cheated on him isn't great, but the real scandal here is the fact that this fiasco threatens to break up a long standing marriage and a family. This scumbag director is a father of two. His wife was also in the movie. She has been nothing but supportive of him and this project. Their kids are old enough to understand the kind of pain this is surely going to cause the whole family. 

The fact that "Bella" and "Edward" may not spend a sparkly eternity together as a result of all this IS a shame, but nothing to make cray YouTube videos about. This loser man put his whole family on the line for a make-out session with an angsty, mostly greasy looking, ungreatful, whiny little "starlet". That is the real tragedy here.

Neon Pink

I really love this neon pink shirt from Joe Fresh and basically wish I could have bought one in every colour. Please excuse my empty belt loops (and ear holes). I don't have cable at my place, so on Sunday night I had a slumber party with my mom at my parents' house so I could watch the most important event of the television season: the three hour finale of The Bachelorette.
Naturally, in my haste to pack for both the slumber party and work, I forgot my earrings and the belt I was going to wear with this outfit. Empty belt loops are kind of a pet peeve of mine, but here we are.

A quick note on the Bachelorette: Can I please have a Jef of my own? Complete with rolled up pants revealing his ankles, skinny ties and fitted suits? *swoon*

 Shirt: Joe Fresh, Skirt: Forever21, Necklace: H&M, Shoes: Nine West

In other news, I am doing this DVD- based French course and it's so painful. I'm expected to do work on my own and then once a week an instructor calls me and we do an hour of convo together. Already this course has been a large shit show because everything about it is complicated. Today (after angrily calling the helpdesk) I was finally able to install and access the DVD, and WOW, I couldn't really believe my eyes.
This program is a) the least user friendly thing I have ever used, and b) older than I am.

Check out the screen shot below. That thing pops up on your desktop, above whatever else you may have been doing, and it's not much bigger than pictured. There is no option to maximize it, or minimize it. The module consists of 10 conversations that you have to listen to and asnwer questions about. There is no option to pause, fast forwad or rewind. You have to listen from the start, if for example, you didn't understand something in convo # 7 the first time around.

Also, the convos have been pre-recorded, meanwhile on the bottom of the screen there is a small (you can't make it bigger) window where the scene is acted out (really badly) by actors who are just mouthing fake words and making ridiculously dramatic hand gestures. The sound is completely seperate from the acting.  WTF?

Also....if you are wondering if that is someone dressed up as Santa Claus, the answer is yes, yes it is. The conversations are SO random. That particular one is a work meeting during which there is a surprise guest aka Santa. Whaaat? Another one is about a new secretary who comes in and talks about her love life and her many failed marriages. 

I. Just. Can't.

Much Too Clever to Fall Out of Prams

The bad news:
I forgot my make-up at my parents' house and can't get it until after work tomorrow. *sigh*
I am too tired to paint my nails tonight. 

The good news:
The work week is almost over.
My hair was less frizzy today than yesterday.
I just ate a bag of popcorn and washed it down with a really cold Coke.
My little (cousin) nephew takes pretty good outfit photos.
There are people out there who read my blog and leave really nice comments and that brings me joy. (Thank you!)

"Girls, you know, are much too clever to fall out of prams"
A Peter Pan quote for a Petar Pan collar.

Shirt: Jacob, Skirt: Dynamite, Shoes: Target

Quiet in the Library, Please

This outfit makes me look like a librarian, no?

It was +500 outside and cloudy, with lighting, thunder, strong winds and a tornado warning (no joke), so we had to stay inside obviously (and I was tempted to hide under my desk as I did when we had a minor earthquake one time...I am THAT brave). That could also explain why my hair looks like I stuck my finger in an electrical socket. Good times.

Cardigan: Smart Set, Tank Top: H&M, Skirt: Thrifted, Shoes: Nine West

So we officially launched Serbian TV Ottawa. You might remember that I wrote about filming our pilot episode here.
Well we now have a YouTube accout and more importantly, a Facebook page.... so it's official - Serbian TV Ottawa is real. What could make something more official than Facebook, after all?

So far the feedback seems to be overwhelmingly positive which is so encouraging and means a lot to us as we  prepare to start our first season. Obviously there have also been people who are criticizing and pointing our random things that aren't very constructive or creative, but that's to be expected. Like I told my co-host and friend Uros, if he was Matt Lauer and I was Kelly Ripa and we had a million dollar budget, people would still criticize the show and wonder why we couldn't have Serbian superstar Ceca (she's the Serbian version of Madonna, just younger and less into thrusting) appear on the show as a hologram.
So, we just have to stay positive and keep working! Can't win 'em all.

In celebration of Serbian TV Ottawa, here is our official preview clip (it's in Serbian but includes bloopers in English.)

 So, a cyber toast to STVO - here's to a fun and successful first season! Samo naprijed!

Yes, You Can Sail the Seven Seas

Today I finally put an end to my summer hiatus from the gym, and it felt great. Yay me! It's funny how hard it is to motivate myself to go, despite how great I feel after a workout.

Another "yay me" moment from today: my no shopping streak continues! I vowed not to buy anything in July, and despite an impromptu stop at Joe Fresh at lunch, I am still holding on. No shopping this month has two huge benefits: it is helping my financial situation AND it's making July seem like the longest month EVER. Anything that makes the summer seem longer = a bonus in my books.
I have to make sure to remain in control when August arrives. I tend to act completely crazy after prolonged shopping breaks and usually end up racking up a hefty Visa bill. This time around will be extra challenging since I'm heading to Toronto at the beginning of August aka. I'll be in the same area code as an H&M (or 5). *Gulp*

The heat in Ottawa is not letting up. In fact tomorrow they are forecasting an even hotter day than today, which I seriously didn't think was possible.
Now I have to go and try to sleep in the oven I call my condo. Wish me luck!

Shirt: Dynamite, Skirt: Club Monaco, Belt: Costa Blanca, Necklace: H&M, Shoes: Winner's

Hot Child in the City

It is currently 30 degrees in my condo and way too hot to have a laptop on my lap. It's also too hot to have the lights on, too hot to pick out an outfit for tomorrow and def too hot to sleep.
It's going to be a fun night.

I leave you with an outfit I wore last Friday featuring a skirt that is actually a dress.

Blazer: Simon's, Shirt: H&M, Skirt aka dress: unknown, gift from Sarajevo, Necklace: Joe Fresh, Sandals: Zara

Is Turning Purpleish Blue

I hate this cardigan.

I bought it at the Gap during our last shopping trip to the US. "Colourful cardigans" were on my list of things I needed, and I just wasn't finding any (I had also tried on 30 jean jackets none of which fit me properly)....so when I saw this hot pink cardi at the Gap, I bought it in frustration without even trying it on. When I did try it on I realized it's really droopy - it's shapeless and just hangs there. This is only my second time ever wearing it, and although I do like it better tucked in, I'm still not very impressed with it.

Also, I saw the "grown up" guy in the same exact elevator again this morning on our way to work. It was all a bit "dark ironic comedy"...silently and sleepily riding in the same elevator back to work, a short 14 hours after we rode the elevator home together yesterday. Life's little patterns.

I have a thing for timing.

Yesterday, a light was out at a major intersection on my way home and traffic was moving at a snail's pace. I had to stop for groceries. He stopped to get wine. We ended up in the same elevator.
This morning I slept in and woke up at 8:00 am (aka when I usually start working). We ended up in the same elevator.
If not for these random events, I wouldn't even know this guy existed but here I am mentioning him two days in a row. This is why I love the movie Run Lola Run.
timing. blows. my mind.

Cardigan: Gap, Skirt: cc clothing swap. Shoes: Nine West, Bracelets: various + Small Town Catwalk Etsy Shop

All Grown Up

Everyone is always shocked when they realize that I am 29, and most of the time....so am I. I don't feel much different today than I did in my early 20's. I still get really surprised (and a little panicky) when I find out that someone in my age group is pregnant. I think "Really? What are they going to do?" and then have to remind myself that I'm 29 and pregnancy is more than normal at this age.

There are some moments though, that make me feel all grown up. They sneak up on me, at the most random times, and all of a sudden I realize "It's official, I'm an adult."

One such moment took place today. I was heading home in the elevator, on my way up from the parking garage after work.
On the ground level, a guy walked in. He was obviously coming home from work as well. He had neatly trimmed facial hair and wore dress pants, a dress shirt, a tie and glasses. In one hand he carried a bottle of wine. I thought "This dude looks really grown up" then I realized that we were probably the same age, and that to him, I probably looked the same; hair tied back, groceries in one hand, car and apartment keys in the other, work pass hanging off my belt hook. And for a few minutes, there, in that small elevator, making my way up to the condo which I own while imagining how this guy must see me, I felt my age. I felt like a real grown up. It was fabulous and very scary all at the same time.

Oh and I was wearing this bright yellow Vince Camuto shirt and my white capris. The end.  

Shirt: Marshal's; Pants: J Crew; Necklace: Made by Sarah of Small Town Catwalk Etsy Shop

Blue Moon

I recently got home from volleyball and I am exhausted. We played the top placed teams in the league tonight and it was so much fun. We played the best we have all season (even though we lost 4 out of 6 games). I finally got my heart rate up, broke a sweat and even sustained an injury. My first ever sports injury in fact! *slow clap*
I took a pretty hard dive right into the sand, and scraped my knee. It was worth it, because I'm pretty sure I looked totes cool and sporty while doing it. Amaze!

In my head this dress is something Kate Middleton would wear. Not sure why, because I'm pretty sure I paid like $29.99 for it a few years ago. Maybe it's the colour. No idea. In any case...let's just pretend I look like Kate Middleton whenever I am in this dress and call it a day. Thanks.

Also, today I got my mom to take these photos. It was pretty hilarious:
1. She was worried that her tomatoes didn't look nice enough for the blog (behind me).
2. She didn't really get blogging at all. When I told her it was for a blog, she thought blogging was online dating, until I explained that most style bloggers are women who check out other women's blogs and comment on each other's posts. Then she was even more confused as to why I bother/ potentially a little concerned.

Dress: Smart Set, Blazer: Simon's, Shoes: Target, Necklace: Joe Fresh

Americana

This morning I woke up at the exact time that I am supposed to leave my house for work. Awesome. I also had no idea what to wear because I'd planned on getting up early to pick out my outfit. Great way to start the day.

So I did what I usually do when I am running late and don't know what to wear - I took out almost every piece of clothing I own, and threw it on my bed in a frantic search for something to put on.
What came out was this outfit, which Sarah immidiately pointed out was perfect for the 4th of July...red, white and stripes. Black stripes, but stripes nonetheless.
An unintentional shout-out to our neighbours to the South!

T-shirt: Garage, Skirt: Dynamite, Shoes: Target,Necklace: Forever 21