Ring In

This weekend we rang in my best friend Kate's 30th birthday, and in order to commemorate the milestone, we invited over all our pals for some colorful fun. We wanted to make sure we incorporated all kinds of things that Kate loves, and in the essence of being to the point, here's the list! Candy, neon, guacamole, early-mid 2000's dance hits, ice cream cake, mojitos, and photo nostalgia (not pictured: I may have made an enormous "30" on the wall out of picks from all of our collective Facebook albums). Also not pictured: me or my outfit. I will pull the ol' blogger re-dress quite soon for you all, since I pulled out this blouse for the occasion (sneak peak on my Instagram!), and if you'd like to see what the birthday girl herself wore, head right over here.

Candy bar.

Neon, white, and gold bunting.

Mojito punch.

Cake!

The birthday girl's arm detail.

Colourful.

A friend who matched the party decor.

My punch glass.

In action during our dance party. A little of this, anyone?

Guest Post - Love Chronicles version O My Heart!

Hey guys! I'm so excited for this guest post. Kate of O My Heart! decided to do a take on my "Love Chronicles" feature which happens on Fridays, and she did the most wonderful job. I'm in love with all these little snapshots, and even more in love with her. She is one of the main reasons I started my own blog, seeing that she is a local beauty who inspires me on a day to day basis. If you don't already follow her, head on over now!


Hello, lovely readers of Doll Parade! My name is Kate, and I run a personal style blog called O My Heart! Kristin and I are real life besties, and I was thrilled when she asked me to guest post for her while she is off sailing the seas under the hot Caribbean sun, hopefully having the time of her life!

One of my favorite features of Kristin's darling blog is her "Love Chronicles" which she brings us every Friday! When she asked me to guest post, I immediately knew I wanted to try out my own version of "Love Chronicles", and show you little snippets of my life! 

A glimpse of my dining table.

My favorite door.

A little friend who sits atop the fella's dashboard.

Mixed prints.

Lunch date! Veggie burger, sweet potato fries & grape soda!

My new favorite earrings.

A warm day & arm adornment.

Splashin'.

Thanks so much to all of you for reading! I hope you enjoyed your little peek into my life! If you' d like to see more, feel free to head on over to my blog! & a big thank you to Kristin for having me! I hope you all have the loveliest of weekends! xo.

Guest Post- Candice of Brilliant Sugar

Blog world, meet my best friend Candice. Candice and I have been soul mates for close to two decades, and she's pretty well the most beautiful woman I've ever met (gushy, I know!). I'm seriously thrilled that she has decided to start her own style blog. You must, must visit her adorable space right here!. Happy reading!


Hello Doll Parade readers! I'm so happy to have been asked to take part in Kristin's guest blogger week. As a new blogger (it seems strange to even call myself that, to be truthful!) I am embracing this opportunity to say hello and hopefully share my little blog with more readers.

It makes me especially giddy to share my first guest post on Doll Parade - truly one of my favourite blogs! I'm lucky enough to not only know K. in real life, but to share a sister-like friendship with her that has spanned - whoa - almost 15 years! We go way, way back. It's fitting though, to be posting on her personal style blog, as we've watched each other's style evolve tremendously over the years. I've always been and continue to be inspired by her knack for taking risks and having an intangible ability to make basics look stylish. If anyone knows how to embellish, it's my best friend.

This outfit combines two of my favourite colours - black & red. I'm a sucker for red lips and have been wearing them with the most casual or dressed-up outfits for the last year or so. So fun! The skirt is a favourite of mine - it's full yet light and it adds a certain edge, I think. 

I hope you'll come visit me at www.brilliantsugar.com for more treats in the coming weeks. You can also follow me on Twitter at @_brilliantsugar. 

I've admired other blogs for years and I'm so excited to put mine out there - I must admit, I'm feeling pretty smitten with the whole process!

To my best friend - thank you for being eternally stylish, supportive and super inspirational. Love!

(Blouse: Forever 21 Pin: Gifted (Unknown) Skirt: H&M Tights: Hue Shoes: Aldo)

Daytime Sequins

Hello friends. Happy Wednesday. I'm happy to blog to you with an outfit from this weekend  past, and if you follow me on twitter, you may have noticed me vying for your votes on whether this post should feature sequin, ribbon, or polka dots. Sequin took the cake, and I'm not surprised - I have always been enamored with sequin, especially this past season. I wanted to try a daytime look, and this particular top is both vintage and cropped - what more could I ask for?

This day was just so much fun. My friend Katie and I hopped down to a nearby city to visit our dearest Kate who has recently re-located. We started our journey with large caffeinated beverages and a Sam Cooke playlist, and once we arrived we proceeded to eat, gab, wander, photo, and shop. So many of my favorite things rolled into one - I was pretty darn pleased. Thank you as well to Barb for putting up with my sass and holding onto my belongings while I convulsed with laughter. Have a very happy mid-week day, everyone. 

(Skirt:Mexx, Top: Vintage, Boots: c/o Wanted Shoes, Cardigan: Urban Planet)

Silver Lining

I joined Kate for another Sunday photo session, and threw an outfit together on a whim, outlining a standard look of mine: black with a touch of bling. As you are probably aware, Canada can be cold. Today was one of those days that was so insanely beautiful through a window, with bleaching sun and glistening snow adorning the streets. Outside though: different story. I still had numb fingers inside this warehouse nook. Thank god for it, though. Canadian Winter blogging can be a challenging hobby, guys. 

I have come to realize that this skirt goes with everything. It is like the dog or cat that I never had: always there for me, hiding under my bed at times, and cozying up to me when I feel lost and confused. It seems to fall into an outfit perfectly, no matter what you pair it with, and as Kate said, "it has volume AND simplicity". Perhaps the most perfect black skirt. I realize that the J. Crew earrings are repeats as well, but I just can't stop wearing them.  This is not their last appearance, and I hope that's okay. 

I picked up this tunic for its sequin pocket and first paired it with an olive military jacket during warmer Fall days. I really enjoy the gauzy white portion that comes out at the bottom. I'm sort of in love with floaty layers, and find it beneficial to create shapes and volume on a 5'3"ish stature. Kate did a great job making me look tall in these (for me), though, and I absolutely love it! 

(Tunic: Esley, Skirt: Mexx, Earrings: J. Crew, Headband: AWear, Shoes: Aldo)

Have the very best Monday, everyone.  Thank you for reading. 

White Washed

Hey Thursday. Since I'm pretty new at this blogging thing, and I'm still adapting to being "on schedule", I'm kind of impressed that I'll be making a quota of four outfit posts a week for my first few weeks now. I'm still deciding on exactly what other content I want in this blog, and I would love some feedback from you all. How much text is too much text? Do you like blogs that are quite personal, mediocre-ly personal, or just a few lines of text in regards to the garments? I know that I really like to talk about styling, but I love lots of other things, too. I guess I'm still finding my niche, and whatever it is, I need it to be sincere. 

Here we have a small shoot I did with Kate of O My Heart! The light was tricky in here, but I was in love with the way it hit some of these photos. I'm pretty obsessed with anything white in palette, and I got to borrowed Kate's Sam Edelman "Effies" for the occasion. I wanted to run off in them! I just love their height. I felt like an amazon lady (okay, I was still under 5'8", even in these - sigh). I also wore a new vintage find - this leather skirt. I pretty much stick to buying furs or leathers in vintage only - I thought this little guy was pretty fun with both pockets and some front detailing. 

It's blizzard-ing outside here in Eastern Canada, and I'm dreaming of the fun landscape it may give me for some photos tomorrow, if I have the time. I have a fun little Rewind post for you for Friday, which features me sporting a actual child's size denim dress. There will be ruffles, so stay tuned. 

(Top: BB Dakota from Je Suis Prest, Skirt: Vintage, Wedges:  Sam Edelman, Necklaces: Aldo & Forever 21, Earrings: J, Crew, Ring: ReNeu Boutique)

You Are What You Love

If you are reading this right now, it means that I survived my Monday back to reality after my vacation. I may have required a coffee the size of my head to get things moving and shaking, but I'm back on track, back in the game, and back in the saddle, so to speak. I'm so excited for this post for a few big reasons. First of all, this was my very first photo shoot done with another blogger! Featured below is the beautiful & stylish Kate from O My Heart! - who I have been pals with for a number of years. Doing outfit shots together was so much fun - it's so much easier to be animated when you're with someone who a) understands outfit shots and b) laughs hysterically at your out take pictures. 

The second big reason this post was extra exciting to me was so I could take the opportunity to shout out a big thank you to Tieka of Selective Potential for helping me with my blog design. Tieka did my entire layout, including my header, buttons, font titles, linking, and well.. everything! I put this outfit together in direct inspiration from one of the first outfits that got me hooked on her blog last year - so gorgeous - I hope I did you justice with this interpretation!

(Dress: French Connection, Tights: Hue, Wedges: Aldo, Scarf: Mexx, Belt: Thrifted, Earrings: Aldo)

This dress was given to me by a dear friend who wore it once - beautifully - but decided that it just didn't suit her. It fit me like a glove, and I was so thankful to inherit such a high quality LBD. Thanks, S. <3 

To return the favor of these beautiful shots, I did Kate's photos for the day, and we finished with some hilariously effervescent side by side shots. Go on over to Kate's blog to see the rest of her look. So lovely!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!