Totally Sweet On The American Apparel Pocket Frock
American Apparel was gracious enough to send me a package of goodies recently, and it included a two pocket frocks; and one in solid red and one striped.
This is one design that can be styled in so many different ways, and is incredibly versatile and flattering. The dress features the transitional 3/4 length sleeve and boat neck; worn with the ruched tube bra, you have an instant and incredibly sexy layering piece.
I would recommend you buy this dress one size up from your usual – the bunching fabric on the arms and hips is a lovely effect on the body. For $41, this is one piece that should be in your regular SS10 rotation.
http://www.americanapparel.com/rsasp304.html?cid=29
As Promised, I’m Proving The Dolce Vita Cut Out Booties Are Awesome
Monday November 30th 2009, 4:42 pm
Filed under:
2009,
review
All the way back at the end of October, I made a comment promise that I would acquire the La Dolce Vita cutout boots and prove that they look awesome and not orthopedic brace-like.
I located them at the Granville Street Urban Outfitters on Sunday, under a sign that said 50% off the lowest price (which just happened to be $40), so I walked away with these for $20.
Though these little boots may be synthetic, they’re quite the pair of shoes. You have no idea how comfortable these are! I felt like I was walking on a pair of flats, and haven’t had an odd rubbed spot or potential blister attack as one may with new shoes.
I maintain that these are unrelentingly awesome, and look incredibly cyberpunk cool. I intend on wearing the very life out of these shoes, and enjoying every minute of it.
Cazz Flats, The Incredible Folding Shoe
Monday November 16th 2009, 2:53 pm
Filed under:
2009,
review
Foldable flats have gone viral over the last few months, and while they aren’t yet being sold in vending machines at your local discotheque, they have appeared locally.
Cazz is a Canadian foldable flat company, which offers a compact and comfortable shoe for times when you just can’t walk in your foot busting heels any longer.
Each pair comes in a wee sack for clean, secure transport inside a purse and costs under $18 per pair. Since these are not disposable flats you can feel good about being kind to the environment and even better for not exposing yourself to disease on the ground from walking barefoot (nasty, I know – but I’ve seen females do this!)
With shipping over $45 shipping is free before Christmas, so this is potentially an excellent stocking stuffer or a lovely, affordable gift for a friend (or two).
Reviewing A Handful Of Joe Fresh Beauty Products
I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised with the results after being tasked with reviewing the newly released Joe Fresh beauty line! I probably should have spaced out my testing over more than two days, but hey, it’s not every day I can wear a ridiculous amount of camera worthy cosmetics [off camera] and get away with it.
The first item I tried was the cream foundation (pictured, left). I used to buy the M.A.C. version of this when I thought that $30 pots of foundation were the thing to buy (that was before the world’s financial smackdown). Joe Fresh’s cream foundation is a highly reasonable $8 (yes, eight Canadian dollars) and comes with a smartly tinted sponge applicator.
I would suggest using this pot foundation with one of their brushes (they range from $8-14), likely a smaller one for travel touch ups and larger for home use. Using a brush to apply foundation is awesome for a number of reasons; it prevents hand coloration, reduces amount of product usage, provides even coverage and won’t transfer oils and dirt [which may cause imperfections] from your hands to your face.
The liquid foundation’s lightest tint was a bit dark for my colorless vampire skin, but it covered and blended well and dried to a light powdery finish. The liquid foundation (pictured, middle) runs at $6 for an average size squeeze tube.
The cheek tint is in an easy to use tube applicator, which comes out in the same twist manner as a deodorant. It’s an easy product to apply, and blends well with foundations over cheeks. The tint comes in a range of rose shades from light to dark; all are priced at $4 each.
Next on the docket was the lipstick. I really love the clear design of their cosmetic cases; especially the one for the lipwear. The lipstick itself was creamy and didn’t dry oddly (you know they type; it’s kind of like slight crackling plaster!). There is a moisturizing agent in the mix that keeps you away from the chap, and all for $6.
I made sure to test the clear mascara since I this is an important beauty tool that has potential to be overlooked. Clear mascara is great for a number of reasons; you can freeze eyebrows in place, it can thicken and extend lashes before a second coat of colored mascara and offer a subtle glean to eyelashes if you’re going to a conservative event. Black, brown and clear mascaras are all $6.
Lastly (!) we have the eyeshadow trio. I have the smoke trio (light pink, gray and black) myself, and found that this shadow functioned just as I would expect from a pricier mid level brand (not M.A.C. or Sephora). There are 7 different trio color combination pots available, all for $6 a piece.
I would love to see an organic line of Joe Fresh cosmetics. I know Superstore has a history of supporting local farm talent, so this would be an excellent way to get our economy stimulated in another way, be eco-responsible and promote the usage of healthy non chemically derived body products.
I think smart women [and metrosexual men] will be loving the accessibility and affordability of this brand – it’s not like you can’t afford to give it a test go!
Follow Joe Fresh and demiCouture on Twitter
Reviewing The Gap’s New & Improved 1969 Jeans
I was invited to check out The Gap’s new 1969 jeans recently. The three photos of myself wearing jeans are of my choice three pairs out of the lot. I’m not a super fan of anything wider than a straight leg, so naturally that affected my selections.
The new ‘1969′ denim was quite an improvement over past jeans. The denim is still not as thick as I prefer (I’m used to raw denim), but for the price point ($69.50 CA) it was an incredibly reasonable quality. My favorites included a skinny indigo, gray motorcycle skinny and a men’s distressed cut.
The men’s rise was actually quite perfect – it was a few inches above the average current woman’s rise and sat incredibly nicely (higher rises also combats against plumber’s butt, don’t forget). The only thing that kept me from selecting this pair was that fall was on the cusp – no more holey jeans!
The skinny indigo pair was a lovely dark wash with no distressing or extras; perfect for dressing up or down. I could see these jeans being worn with a court shoe, tucked in over the knee boots or even cuffed with a brogue shoe.
The last pair were the motorcycle style gray pair. I liked the stitch and cut detailing on the leg; they had this version in black as well, though I felt the detailing was lost on such an incredibly dark wash. These were the pair that I eventually chose, and I love ‘em.
The only overall complaints I had was the inseam was 4 inches too short, and the signature distressed pair that The Gap has been flogging in all their ads weren’t available in the Pacific Center location.
Check out The Gap 1969 jeans out for yourself.
American Apparel Floral Bodysuit Review
I never thought I would be reviewing a floral hot fuchsia onsie, but thanks to a lovely bloke from American Apparel and his surprise mail package I had the opportunity to check out something I never would have purchased.
So, I’m not going to lie – I put this thing on and was a little terrified at first. After a few minutes of staring at my rolling rack of clothes, trying to think of what I could pair this thing with; I suddenly had my ah-ha moment.
I already had loads of plunging necklines, so welcome to layer town. This onsie can go under tanks, dresses and even function as a top if you layer a triangle top or ruched tube top underneath.
The lace is elastic enough that it’s not restricting or uncomfortable, so all in all I’d give this a 4.5/5 (only because transparency is not for all).
Presenting The Fumi, A Pursehook That Doubles As A Bracelet
Don’t like having your bag slum it on the floor by your feet? Check out these Fumi Pursehooks; they not only keep your bag safe from grime and thievery but double as a bracelet as well.
There is a rubber pad under one of the hook sides for gripping any surface, and it opens wide enough for most wrist sizes. Not only that, but the Fumi is created from 100% recycled materials for all you eco lovers.
A Tale Of Unfortunate Service At Vancouver’s Black To Blonde Salon
A friend of mine was recently attempting to get her brown hair turned a bright red, and had heard great things about the Black to Blonde salon in Vancouver. What she ended up with was frustration, bad customer service and no hair treatment.
Her account follows:
“I was referred to the salon by a friend of mine who has always been pleased with the service, so I called and made an appointment with one of the stylists. I gave specific instructions about what I wanted done; a very bright red (which meant that my hair would have to be bleached, then toned).
From past experiences, I knew this was at least a double, if not a triple process. I let the receptionist know that since I’ve had this done before at another Aveda salon (with Aveda colour) that I was already aware this would be a lengthly process and therefore requested get an appointment scheduled for a minimum
of 2.5 hours.
The receptionist said agreed, and booked me for Thursday afternoon for the time allotment I requested. I called on Wednesday to confirm the booking, and the receptionist stated that 2.5 hours wouldn’t be enough time. My appointment was then moved to the next day (Saturday).
I arrived at the salon with time to spare before my appointment, changed into the smock, sat down in the chair and the stylist came over to discuss the color. I had brought a swatch of the precise color I wanted my hair to be, and she said she couldn’t do it.
I then asked why and she said that, “she only had two hours booked and she would also have to order the colour in”. I was quite surprised since I had already asked the receptionist(s) on various occasions if they had the color in stock, to which they had confirmed that they did.
The stylist asked me if I wanted to split up the process into two visits, which I declined; there was no way I was going to walk around blond until they could schedule me in for another appointment.
The stylist went over to talk to the receptionist for about five minutes, and returned to tell me she was booked up for the rest of the day so she couldn’t do the entire process today. She then asked me if I wanted to go with a slightly darker/oranger red which left me feeling insulted; if I wanted that color I would have asked for it in the first place!
After all of this, I changed back into my regular clothes and the stylist walked me over to the receptionist and told her to schedule another appointment. I told the receptionist not to bother since I was going to find another salon.”
How ridiculous! I heard this story and couldn’t believe how incompetent the administration of this salon appears to have been. For two receptionists (or at least one receptionist on two occasions) to have confirmed that they have color and that a longer, more time appropriate appointment had been booked suggests complete business incompetence.
After hearing this, I referred her to Alina Sulaiman at Caramel Salon (South Granville). She just so happened to be the salon’s red color expert, never flakes out on her clients and does excellent work.
If anyone has had similar (or opposite) experiences at Black to Blonde, I would like to hear it in the comments below.
My Account Of An Unfortunate Zara Retail Experince
Everyone knows that the clothing retail industry is one of the most difficult jobs to have during the holiday season, and when I get dodgy service around this time of year I really try to look the other way.
Last evening I was in the Robson Street Zara store attempting to find my mother something for Christmas. Of course I saw a million things for myself, an asymmetrical zipper buffalo check jacket being one of these items. I saw a large sign above the rack screaming “30% off” at me, and that was the straw that broke the weakened sale camel’s back. I had to have it.
When I approach the woman to pay, I confirmed that the piece was indeed on sale as the rack identified, and I was told [in a very rude tone] that the jacket had been mis-stocked. Even when I counter questioned about why there were multiples of the same jacket placed on the same rack, she told me I was mistaken. After hearing this, she states that the jacket has already been marked down. I told her that this was false advertising, and did not shine the store in a positive light. She made it very clear that she couldn’t give less of a [expletive], and asked me if I wanted it or not.
Having bought four people’s entire gift range (at the cost of $250) at this store the previous week, I was thoroughly annoyed at the lack of customer service and the shopgirl’s problem solving skills. I hear that this is a difficult time of year, but if it’s your job then f’ing deal with it or find another place of work.
Any prospective shoppers of this location, prepare yourself for this kind of treatment.
An Honest Phillips Bodygroom Review
I was sent a Bodygroom razor by Phillips, and requested an acquaintance of mine to use it and write a review. Thus follows the account of an individual tasked with containing his beastly “hair down there”:
“Let’s first preface this with the fact that I’m not an electric razor fan. My dad uses an electric razor and I’ll never understand it. I used a Mach 3 for a number of years and recently switched to a Merkur safety razor which takes forever to shave with, but is gets the closest shave I’ve ever had. That being said, I was fairly intrigued with the Phillips BodyGroom; as it is marketed as an electric razor specifically for body hair and can be used in the shower.
I’ve always considered myself a relatively well-groomed individual, and although I’m not one of the waxed-chest set, I do like to keep things under control. I’m not sure if you have seen advertisements for the BodyGroom, but it largely sold itself as dealing with *ahem* ‘bathing suit area’ hair. For most men this is an extremely private matter and it was quite a shocking ad campaign for a lot of us. However (for the sake of science) I was willing to put the BodyGroom to the test in three key areas: face, chest, and “area”.
Face
First impression: This is like any other electric razor. It works, just not very well. It’s loud and obnoxious which is exactly what I don’t want in the shower. Admittedly the Bodygroom is not meant for facial shaving, but this wasn’t a great start.
Chest
The shaver clogged immediately with chest hair in the shower and became totally useless. I’m hardly bearish but the razor seemed completely unable to deal with actual hair. Nonplussed, I tried it again when dry and although it performed better (and dutifully dispatched a decent patch of hair), it was hardly a close shave, and barely better than what a standard beard trimmer could accomplish. A second pass on the same spot revealed no better results.
“Area”
As an item aimed expressly at taming the ‘hair down there’, I was anticipating some serious results. If the BodyGroom was to perform, it was certainly here. It did indeed perform best in this “area”, with it’s design particulars certainly playing their parts well. It became instantly clear that the BodyGroom was really only designed for shaving one part of the male body. That being said, the BodyGroom performed no better than your standard beard trimmer, and certainly wasn’t able to get a very close shave by anyone’s standard.
In conclusion I would have to give the BodyGroom a pass. Although it performed decently in it’s expressed purpose, any well-appointed man’s bathroom will contain a beard-trimmer which performs just as well; especially once you realize that the “in the shower” application of the BodyGroom is completely without merit.”
-Charles
(Name has been changed to protect the hairy)
American Apparel Zipper Pant Review
I received my American Apparel zipper pants in the mail yesterday, so figured I may as well get a review underway since these pants are still fairly new to the AA collection.
I have the exact pair shown to the right on the model (medium gray). The tapered leg fit is fantastic; I’m starting to love that cut more than the drainpipe! The zipper at the ankle was a nice touch, too (and almost necessary for putting these on!)
The stretch in the twill was almost too elastic; whether this was intentional or not I am unsure, but I personally prefer fabrics with a little less give that will keep shape. If you’re got bigger legs you may want to avoid these, since they’re going to show every bump and curve. Overall I was pleased with them, and the high waist was a nice change to the ultra low pant slut cut we’ve been used to having for sure.
