I went to New Orleans (NOLA) in June for exactly 36 hours with a good friend.
We spent 3 whirl-winding days of walking, shopping, boozing on the street, eating and sweating of the excess pounds from the heat and humidity. I was pooped, let me tell you. I barely had any energy left over for Jazz club hopping on Frenchmen street. It’s hard to travel fast. You want to see everything, go everywhere and do it all!
But can I say something, NOLA is Street Style heaven! The streets are beautiful and the architecture has so much history, it’s almost palpable. That was my favourite part, well that and eating of course.
Here are some pics of the trip.
Posing for the good old fashion selfie stick in the Porter lounge.My Porter essentialsMy first cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee… very good!Famous Cafe du Monde Beignets- what a powdered sugar mess!
Carousel Bar at the Monteleon HotelAlligator Hot Dog from Dat Dog with white trash fries.Product testing my DDM Cosmetics- LED LipstickHotel lobby of the Maison St. Charles on St. Charles Street in the Garden DistrictLocal StarbucksGorgeous night market on Frenchmen StreetFound this amazing abandoned derelict building.. STREET STYLE!!!
As far as street style was concerned, it was quite disappointing. The retailers in the boutiques had a cute boho look to them, because they must dress for the heat! But overall, it was not an exceptionally fashion driven community. If only they realized the opportunities! Here are some fun shots we took.
Travelabulous helped me build a map of all the sites I visited. If you are thinking of a quick trip to New Orleans, do check it out.
With the RBC Bluesfest creeping up, I thought I would put together three outfits that would best describe my Festival Fashion style.
I think we all have had our share of “trendy” accessory overload. In each styled outfit below, I proposed a light balance of classics paired with only a few focal points. You don’t want to look loud and overdone.
I don’t want to make this post too wordy, so please just enjoy the pics!
1- Light chambray dress, Love Bird floppy hat and Aldo platform mules.
1- Light Chambray Dress- Forever 21 2- Black floppy hat- Love Bird 3- Sandals- Aldo 4- Leather belt- Old Navy
2. White House of Harlow Sweater, bright floral pompom shorts, yellow MK thong sandals and sunnies.
1- Light white sweater- House of Harlow 2- Shorts purchased at the French Market in New Orleans 3- Sunnies from vintage shop in New Orleans 4- Yellow thong sandals- Michael Kors
3. Boho Kimono, white lace shorts, black racer back tank and Pendleton wool blanket with leather carrier
1- Boho Kimono purchased in vintage shop in New Orleans 2- White lace shorts- H&M 3- Black racer back tank top with gold zipper- Banana Republic Outlet 4- White sneakers- Fred Perry 5- Pendleton wool blanket with leather carrier
Swooning over those tassels, that lace and tie die tops!I am happy to announce that I will be representing on the #StyleSquad at RBC Ottawa Bluesfest this year! We will be covering festival fashion for 6 days. If you see one of us, pose for the iphone and let them capture the moment. We will be sharing the best of the best on social media and Ottawa Newspapers.
Here is what you have to worry about:
Get your RBC Bluesfest tickets early!
Look up some Festival Fashion favourites and find your look! I discovered an awesome booth in the Byward market in front of the Keg with an excellent selection (see pic above)! Remember #supportlocal when you can.
Remember back in March, when I exposed myself with my Transformation: A Weight loss journey post? Well, it’s been 3 months since my last confession. I bet you are excited to see the dramatic new me? My tight flat abs, my bulging biceps and new rock hard glutes…
Nope, this is the current me. An ordinary 185 lbs woman, trying to stay active and being aware of what goes into my body. Do I wish I was thinner? Yes. Do I wish I was TIGHTER? Of course. Am-I happy with the results? Abso-freeken-lutely!
Here I am, on June 26, 2015 weighing in at a leaner 185 lbs!
I have a new mindset this far into the game. I want to keep the weight off. If I lose more, that would be wonderful. But I can’t go backwards, I just can’t. I spent too much time, effort and money (on my new clothes) that I am not willing to give it all up. As you will see, I only lost an additional 3 lbs since March, but you can tell that my body looks different (right?). I didn’t lose that many more inches, but my muscles have gotten more toned and defined. I did plateau, get lazy and gave myself a bit of a break the last few months, but I am really trying to step up my game now. I was on weight loss vacation and now I have to get back to work.
Let me tell you something about body image, it’s funny how your brain gets used to the new normal. I look in the mirror and although I know I have kept off the weight, I still look at my belly in the mirror and think “God, I wish that pooch was flatter, have I even lost anything?”. I look at my inner thighs and want to gag. I look at my flabby arms and feel like a failure. Yup, we are our own worse critic, and I just lost 17 lbs for god sakes!! Can’t I cut myself a bit of slack? I try on my old clothes and feel relieved that they are falling off. I am fine.This insanity is all in my head.
These toxic thoughts are what will motivate me to keep going until I have reached a new level of transformation. Turn the ugly, into something beautiful! Like when you can see some nice lines on my back, and when my back chubs are gone, that’s when I will feel more confident. In the meantime, here is the 6 months progression of my weight loss. (Notice how in the background the pictures go from winter, spring and summer! That’s sort of cool right?).
Please feel free to share this post with your friends if you think it will help them keep going. The 6 month mark is hard and you can easily get bored with your routine. Sometimes all you need is a little motivational story to help you keep going. Humans are funny, they love a good transformation but are so impatient with time. This post didn’t take me long to write, but the work that has gone into getting these pictures did.
So, what are your thoughts? Are you going through the same journey as me? I would love to know!
But can I say something, NOLA is Street Style heaven! The streets are beautiful and the architecture has so much history, it’s almost palpable. That was my favourite part, well that and eating of course.
