New York, I Love You.

          Oh how I love going into NYC. I usually make a day of it: Do some shopping or sightseeing and have dinner & drinks somewhere fun. Most of all- I take in the street fashion and the big city atmosphere. Plus a day/night in NYC is the perfect excuse to break out a new outfit, or a look I've been dying to try.

          The inspiration for my latest ensemble came from an Urban Outfitters catalog model, who wore a blue & white bandana as a headwrap with practically all of her outfits in the spread. She never matched, mixing prints and colors, and I loved it; I was officially inspired. I decided to go for an urban chic look myself, complete with a DIY headwrap, hoop earrings, and red lipstick. And I mixed 3 prints in total, but chose black as my tie-in color so there was a common thread.

Here's a break down of my outfit:

- DIY Headwrap... I was set on wearing a headwrap, but nothing I had worked so I had a bright idea: Make one! I simply took a swing tank from American Rag, laid it flat, folded it horizontally in about 1 1/2" sections until it was a long band of fabric, tied it around my head and double knotted it for a secure fit. I then readjusted my bun, so it wasn't too perfect and voila! A headwrap, made out of a shirt with no sewing or cutting necessary.

- Clothes... A sheer black tank with ditsy hearts embroidered all over (w/ black bra) and distressed denim boyfriend shorts, both from Forever21. And a Material Girl black & white striped cardigan/jacket.

- Jewelry... I went with a set of dark gold hoops, and black and rhinestone stud earrings. I added a long chained heart pendant necklace from Forever21 and two rings from JC Penney.

- Shoes... My black tube beaded sandals from Forever21.

Summerlicious Living

          In Toronto, during the summer they have a promotion called “Summerlicious”. A lot of high end restaurants have specials available where you can have a 3 course meal for lunch starting from $15 or a 3 course dinner starting at $25. From Italian food to Moroccan, and places from the Distillery District to Yorkville, the choices are endless. 
          
          To take advantage of this deal, my friend, Fiona, and I met early in the afternoon to explore Yorkville. And later, met her brother and my sister for dinner at Ciao Wine Bar. Unfortunately, I had a huge dilemma the night before because I had no idea what to wear; Luckily, J was only a Skype call away and she was able to help me choose an outfit. 

          For a high class area like Yorkville, I wanted to dress accordingly so I chose a patterned skirt from H&M that I bought last summer for about $12 and I paired it with a pale pink blouse that I got from Winners for $17. Sadly, I didn’t have any sandals to match this so I borrowed a pair of black flats from my sister. (NOTE TO SELF: Don’t wear flats if you plan to walk around in the hot sun all day. Bad call.) I also wore my big and shiny black purse from H&M, I bought it about 3 years ago at just under $40. Lastly, for my jewelry I went simple: my usual Return to Tiffany heart tag necklace, silver peace sign earrings, stacked silver rings, Pandora and faux tiffany bracelets.

Print & Color

Back View

          My outfit was probably a bit too dressed up for my errand, but it just felt soooo right. ha... Here's a breakdown:


-My top is a sheer printed oversized tunic with a strappy deep V back. ($15.80 @ Forever21) 

-The paprika trouser style shorts are from a brand, Land And Sea, that I found @ Marshall's ($14.99). I added a basic black belt.

- My black tube beaded sandals are also from Forever21, I bought them just about a month ago. ($7.50)

- For jewelry, I wore one of the necklaces and stretch link bracelets listed in J's New Loves, and two of my basic beaded ones. Oh and one of the ear cuffs (not pictured), from my June 30th J's New Loves post. I LOVE it.