ONE HUNDRED & SEVEN/ little black dress

I'll admit it - these pictures were taken at the same time and place as my last outfit post but who cares? I froze my butt off posing for these pictures and I really just wanted to show you all this dress! I had ordered it awhile back from Forever 21 and this was the first time I actually had a chance to wear it.

Aurelia had come to pick me up Saturday afternoon for a coffee/shopping/whatever date and by the time she arrived, I still wasn't sure what to wear. I already had this dress on but I was in a panic that it might be a bit too short. She convinced me otherwise (what are friends for? am I right!?) but I threw on my trusty leggings just for good measure.

I do really like this dress and when I look back on these pictures, I'm not really sure what I was afraid of. The length seems great and I love how it is a modern take on the classic ~little black dress~. I'm hoping to get a lot of wear out of this piece when it finally starts to warm up! I'm thankful that I have friends who aren't afraid to give me a kick in the right direction when I need one. If it wasn't for Aurelia confirming that I have nothing to worry about when it comes to this dress, who knows how much longer it would have sat in my closet collecting dust. I'm not saying that I can't make up my own mind when it comes to my own style choices but a little bit of reassurance can go along way when you're feeling self-conscious or uneasy.

DRESS/ Forever 21 LEGGINGS/ American Apparel SHOES/ Dr. Martens
HANDBAG/ Balenciaga WATCH/ Michael Kors

Photos by Aurelia Cerquozzi

ONE HUNRED & SIX/ faux

When this coat first came into my possession I vowed never to take it off. I wore it day after day, and then the seasons changed. The temperatures plummeted and it became too cold to wear my favourite coat. It was eventually tossed into the back of a closet and pushed to the back of my mind. I would have forgot that I owned it completely if I hadn't stumbled across an old picture of me wearing it.

It is still a bit too cold for me to justify bringing this coat back into heavy rotation but it was pretty nice out today so I thought "the hell with it!" and I just went for it. Yes, I was shivering but I looked fabulous while doing so.

I paired the faux fur trim jacket with all black everything else and my Balenciaga Part-Time handbag for a preppy, timeless, Blair Waldorf-esque vibe.

COAT/ Jones New York LEGGINGS/ American Apparel

SHOES/ Dr. Martens HANDBAG/ Balenciaga

Photos by Aurelia Cerquozzi

Older post ft this coat

EIGHTY-FOUR/ autumn '14 lust list

I can't believe it has been over a month since I've blogged. A lot is going on in my life right now so I haven't had the chance to actually document my outfits of the day and I haven't had a second to sit down and write a post. Truth be told, this summer is flying by right before my eyes. It seems as though I always have an excuse up my sleeve as to why I haven't updated, but believe me when I say that this summer has been hectic for me. Even my Instagram has been lacking in content. My life should be back on track by the end of August or for the arrival of autumn; I always look at a new season as a new start. Like always, I apologize for my absence and I will make an effort to keep updating this blog. I haven't given up yet, and I refuse to in the future.

As for right now - I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of autumn. It is by far my favourite season (for fashion and otherwise) and pictured below are items I'm currently lusting over for when the leaves change colour and start to fall. There's just something about leather goods and perfumes/colognes that seem to mesh so well with the colder months and shorter days, don't you think?

RED Valentino / Jeffrey Campbell 'Oriley' Booties / Balenciaga Paris / Chanel Chance / YSL L'Homme

* I understand that L'Homme by YSL's target audience is men (its called L'Homme for godsake), but that doesn't really mean anything - it smells intoxicating on all genders. I highly suggest you go and smell it if you haven't already, I'm positive you'll fall in love.

EIGHTY-THREE/ summer style

I always try to ensure that my online presence is fairly positive (aside from the odd twitter rant... I'm only human!) but this is one issue that I feel I have to touch on. I hate summer. I hate the heat, I hate the humidity, I hate that I can't layer on clothes and I hate that I sweat to death just from waiting for the bus. Although I live in Canada and many people view it as pretty much an all over arctic tundra, it does get hellishly hot. My personal style and my overall mental well-being plummets between the months of May to mid September and I find myself complaining more and more as the temperature rises. If you're familiar with my blog you know that my sense of style is mostly centred around dark colours, heavy accessories and boots - all things that are definitely not appropriate for the warmer months. The problem is that I still wear those pieces. It will be an extremely hot and sunny day and I'll leave my house in head to toe black with a pair of clunky leather boots and I won't realize until midday just how stupid I've dressed. I really wish I could love the beach and run around the city in cute sundresses, but that's just really not who I am.

I am however, in true fashion, trying to focus on the positives. The number one thing that has made me smile consistently this summer (other than Rockfest - which was a blast!) is my new Balenciaga handbag.  I have posted about my love for Balenciaga bags in the past and I have lusted over this bag for so long. A part of me always thought that it was something I would never possess. I know that it's a bit ridiculous to talk about a handbag in this kind of way but as you can most likely tell, my love for bags runs deep. I could talk forever about how much I love this bag so I think I'll just end my rant here.

For this look I kept it pretty simple by wearing my favourite black American Apparel leggings with just a basic cotton dress and black chiffon kimono style jacket. I added a bit of interest to the look with my Jeffrey Campbell Lita's and brought it all together with my new Balenciaga Part-Time handbag. This is definitely an outfit you can find me wearing about 95% of the time... if you swapped the out the Lita's for something a bit more sensible, like a pair of Converse, that is!

DRESS/ Forever 21+ LEGGINGS/ American Apparel 

HANDBAG/ Balenciaga Part-Time SHOES/ Jeffrey Campbell

Photos by Laura Kidd

SEVENTY-FOUR/ spring '14 designer lust list

Although winter doesn't seem to be letting up any time soon - spring will be on its way before we know it. Here's a of a list of items that I'm totally lusting over for the upcoming season. I can't afford a single one of these items pictured, except maybe the beauty products, but it doesn't hurt to dream right? If I've said it once I've said it a million times - I have a fascination with designer items and it really doesn't look like that will be going away any time soon. So excuse me while I cry over the beauty in this post... I sincerely hope it inspires you as much as it did me.

I will be doing a clothing lust list soon. As you can probably tell every single one of the items on this post is an accessory. High end designers that make clothing for plus size women are few and far between (unless you have the money to dish out for custom pieces) but luckily a lot of plus size brands realize that we want quality on trend pieces as well. Lookout for that post sometime in the near future.

VERSACE white medusa duffle bag | BALENCIAGA buckle strap ankle boot | ANNA SUI lipstick in 'plum purple' | BALENCIAGA 'paris' perfume | MARC BY MARC JACOBS henry dinky 21mm watch | KATE SPADE large gold bracelet gramercy watch | MCQ ALEXANDER MCQUEEN safety-pin key fob | ALEXANDER WANG black 'dumbo rocco' bag w matte black hardware | LAVIN 'love' two finger ring | SAINT LAURENT small tassel crossbody bag in gold | VERSACE gold and orange pendant necklace | CHANEL illusion d'ombre long wear luminous eye shadow in 'fantasme'

* This is in no way a sponsored post. All thoughts are my own / click through to be linked to the product information. (flower image)

FIFTY-EIGHT/ if i had a million dollars

It's no secret that I obsess over designer items, it's honestly like an addiction to me. I scroll through countless online shops and browse through tons of brick and mortar stores looking at amazing pieces that I'll never be able to afford - I don't know why I torture myself. Some people like to go to museums and look at the unbelievable art there, I prefer high end stores. I'm weird like that.

So far I've acquired some of my dream pieces, but the problem with fashion is that styles change every season. I've just been sticking with secondhand classic pieces that won't ever go out of style; it's more practical and wallet friendly. But of course every few months something new comes out that totally sweeps me off my feet and makes me look at my bank account and cringe. I keep telling myself that someday it'll happen, and I hope that someday comes soon. Sometimes I feel as though I'm far too materialistic for my own good...

ANYWAY, here are some pieces that I'm currently dying over from current collections, classic collections and past collections. They are mostly footwear, scarves or handbags seeing as the vast majority of designers do not make clothing in my size, not to mention the fact that I crave accessories.

Some of these items are obtainable, like the Michael Kors watch and the Kate Spade bangle, and some of them will probably torment me for the rest of my life, like the Chanel bag.

1. Louis Vuitton 'Neverfull' GM 2. Giuseppe Zanotti for Balmain buckle boots 3. Michael Kors silver 'Chronograph' watch 4. Kate Spade "Lights, Camera, Action / Steal The Show" bangle 5. Chanel 'Large Classic Flap Bag' 6. Charlotte Olympia red suede 'Bisoux' slippers 7. Tiffany & Co. Ziegfeld Collection black "Spinel" ring 8. Alexander McQueen tan leopard/skull print cashmere pashmina  9. Balenciaga 'Giant 12 Silver Town Bag' in black 10. Burberry stud detail belted rain boots 11. Christian Louboutin 'Gine' black and grey velvet flats

* I could have easily made this into a post about the designer handbags I want, but I decided to hold off on that. Another post for another day, possibly. I only added the three handbags I've been lusting after for what seems like forever. | All thoughts are my own, this post is no way sponsored by any of the mentioned retailers. | All images are referenced back to their original sources.