Tailor Made

They say diamonds are a girls best friend, but ladies no one will notice the ring on your finger if you are wearing ill fitting clothes! You all know you have a closet full of "that's too big" or "this does not fit right items" so throw down the gauntlet and get to a tailor.  I personally see my seamstress more then most of my friends and really need to add her to my Christmas card list. Once you get started with one, you will find it addicting - a nip here, a tuck there, and wah-la, your clothes look custom made. The only tailor most women ever see is the one that pinned in their wedding dresses, but ladies they can work miracles, change hemlines and re-work pieces to give them a more up to date look. If you want to know why royalty and movie stars always look good in their clothes no matter their size, look no further then the tailor that gave them that custom edge. So go into your closets and I can guarantee you will find an article of clothing that you've been meaning to get taken in or out as the case may be. My miracle worker is Janine's Alterations- http://www.littlemaggies.ca/ and she is a seamstress and a dressmaker here in Calgary with over 20 years experience.

Miss Leighs must have items this week  

Monthly mini glycolic peels by Gia at Esthetix Centre $45.00 - this quick and painless peel will not only help smooth out fine lines but leave you with a dewy fresh glow, I swear by them!
4th floor, 1504 -15 Ave SW
403-802-3809  

Face Primer- wear alone or as a make up base, you'll be amazed how much longer your makeup lasts
Laura Mercier Face Primer
$30.00 Holt Renfrew or Sephora
or Cover Girl &Olay Simply Agless Serum Primer $12.00 Shoppers Drug Mart

Sugar Plum Fresh Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15 $22.50- Sephora
Look good and fight the sun at the same time, my BFF got me onto this product!

Photos courtesy of Laura Mercier and Sephora

zappos.com no longer in Canada - Sad News

I mentioned this website on my blog and how great it is.....or should I say was - to bad Canada customs moves at a glacial pace - ladies this is a real blow to those of us who crave great footwear deals - see message below from the website - so frustrating!

Hey, everyone. While we often have fun things to talk about in this space, we sometimes have less pleasant topics to share.
We have made the difficult decision to shut down the canada.zappos.com site and stop shipping to Canada. One of our core values is to "deliver WOW through service". That means the best selection of brands and products that can meet just about every individual's needs as well as fast, free shipping and free returns, all at competitive pricing. Our Canadian customers know that we have not lived up to these service levels.
Product selection on canada.zappos.com is limited due to distribution agreements with the brands we sell in the United States. In addition, we have struggled with general uncertainty and unpredictability of delivering orders to our Canadian customers given customs and other logistics constraints.
We would like to thank our loyal Canadian customers and are sorry that we will not be able to serve you in the same way. Beginning April 1, 2011, we will no longer ship orders from canada.zappos.com. Some of you may have electronic certificates with open balances. If that is the case, please be sure to redeem them prior to April 1, 2011. Of course, as always, we will still be accepting your orders placed from Canada and shipping to US addresses on http://www.zappos.com/. Customers can always reach us 24/7 by calling 1-800-927-7671 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-800-927-7671      end_of_the_skype_highlighting or emailing cs@zappos.com.
hey are no longer shipping to Canada thanks to our lovely Canada Customs who seem to want to move at a glaciel pace. It's a sad day for us ladies that craved footwear deals!

 

A Weighty Issue

I recently read an article penned by Rita Wilson, the wife of actor Tom Hanks. It chronicles her weight- loss journey after gaining some unwanted pounds and what it took to achieve her now sleek physique so she could look better in her clothes.  She had graduated to a permenant wardrope of sweats and was looking for a change - sound familiar?  If there is one thing I have noticed about being a forty something gal, the weight is far more difficult to shed now then when I was in my twenties.

Rita hires Jillian Michaels of The Biggest Loser fame and proceeds to take her on a 1,200-calorie a day diet primarily of grilled fish or chicken, steamed vegies and big salads. No sugar (yikes) very little dairy (not even lattes?) and NO ALCOHOL followed up with lots of exercise - twice a day!  Now I guess if your on T.V. or in the movies, this would be something I would think twice about, but lets face it, I am in neither so I didn't see the point in it.

Have you ever hung out with people that are obsessed about their weight? A girl needs her sweet treats every now and then and there is nothing more annoying then being the only one getting in line at starbucks while your starving friend waits outside for you. Plus I always like to have a latte handy while I'm in the dressing room (since I really hate trying on clothes) this gives me some comfort while I am in there staring down a pair of jeans.

I will exercise daily ( not twice a day as Rita had to do), but I refuse to forbid myself the indulgence of dessert when out for dinner, a glass of wine or that buttered popcorn that I just have to have when going to a movie.  It's just like I always say when sitting across from the woman who refuses to order dessert after dinner "And you'd hate to die tomorrow and say to yourself on your way up there - Damn, I should have eaten that cheesecake" so just go ahead and order it and go for a run tomorrow.

Rita looks amazing in her clothes now I will give her that, but the reality of how she obtained her figure is not appealing to me - I would tire of that diet in about one week and would not even want to hang out with myself.  Ladies, let me be frank with you - I wear a lot of black, it's not only slimming, but it lets you enjoy the finer or should I say tastier things in life. Who ever said nothing tastes as good as skinny feel has clearly never been to Europe.When I saw that scene in the movie "Eat,Pray,Love" where Julia Roberts tries to squirm into her jeans after eating her way through Italy, I could totally relate, having split a pair of skinnies wide open myself after a month long holiday there.   

The bottom line (no pun intended) is that while us forty somethings should not be eating everything in sight unless we want to be wearing a caftan for the rest of our lives, we should be more forgiving of ourselves and give in to our indulgences every once in a while and then hit the gym hard the next day and remember the color black never goes out of style, and that my friends is my fine fashion line.   


  

Retail Snobbery

I once did a phone survey for Holt Renfrew - I had returned a purchase and about one week later received a call asking me how my shopping experience was. Normally I do not participate in surveys but because the service was so incredibly snob like, I could not help myself, since the reason I returned the item was due to the horrific service I received while in the store.  My anger regarding the way in which the employee treated me ( I was purchasing jeans 20 minutes before the store was to close) motivated me to return them the following day. How dare I try to purchase something while she was attempting to cash out........Hello - there is still twenty minutes of shopping time left honey- needless to say, I was not letting her get the commission off of a $250.00 pair of jeans!

 I have shopped in several high end stores in my life time, Nordtroms, Barneys, Bloomingdales to name a few and all had amazing customer service, but HR is without a doubt the most pretentious retailer I have personally encountered and I am not alone in feeling this way. 

Believe it or not, shopping is not one of my favorite past times - I actually cringe at the thought of having to try things on - if I could order everything online and it come to my door and fit perfectly I would be in retail heaven.  Shoe shopping is easy, kick off one shoe and try on another, all without dropping my venti Starbucks but this having to undress and walk out to the three way mirror is almost more then I can stand - couple that with the "I'm better then you because I work retail" attitude and I'm running for the nearest exit!

How is it, the upper management feel they can get away with this kind of customer service, their answer.......Greeters! Have you seen these women -  I did a double take because I thought I'd made a wrong turn and ended up at the airport.  They look smart enough I suppose and so closely resemble a flight attendant, that I asked one for extra peanuts and a pillow. When I enquired as to why they were there, I was told "to smile and greet the customer"........................because goodness knows the staff can't do that since they are too busy looking down their noses at you.

Holt Renfrew does not have an exclusive on this - there are a few more offenders out there in Calgary that I am going public with - Crabapple Cottage - horrible visual merchandising, crammed racks of clothes coupled with equally poor customer service - (unless you are a repeat customer, then they are all over you), but to the newbie who just arrived at their store post workout  in hopes of finding something quick on the way home- forget about it, I gave up after ten attempts shopping there and yes the owner likes to look down her nose at you there as well! Mirano Shoes in Mount Royal Village Shops - I went in to enquire about a pair of Donald J Pliner boots since I saw they carry his line of fabulous Italian footwear and the woman was so rude to me as she took my information (promising to get back to me regarding if she could source the boot) that my 18 year old son who was with me at the time nearly drop kicked her..........I never did hear back either way from Mirano Shoes if they could bring in the boots. I have one word for you......... ZAPPOS.COM!  

My point is that in this economy retailers should be doing all they can to bring the consumer into their store, and with all the high end shops going into Chinook Center now with the focus on friendly service coupled with the free heated underground parking I wonder how long it will take retailers like Holt Renfrew to realize that  customer service is paramount, for I'd much rather buy a purse at Micheal Kors at Chinook then deal with the business of paying ten dollars to park downtown and be ignored by the staff at Holts.  And that ladies, is where I draw the fine fashion line. 
 

Classic and Classy!

I love everything about this look ladies! O-O-C - out- of- control - where can I get those shoes?

Knock it off with the Knock Offs!

I'll admit it, at one time many years ago I succumbed to the lure of the knock off bag, I was walking with my sister in New York city and there it was laying on the cold cement sidewalk, the Prada Back Pack and I had to have it!  I wore it proudly for a while until I became more educated  about what exactly I had strapped on my back.

Tell me ladies, how many times a day do you see a woman dressed shabbily carring a Louis Vuitton handbag? Usually the owner is wearing flip flops with a velour track suit that has a brand name sprawled across their backside (by the way there is no appropriate age to wear this fashion don't)  with the knock off dangling from the forearm?   I'm pretty sure during the design process at LV, the team did not envision woman around the world paring their handbags with this look!  With so many moderately priced handbags out there now, why woman choose to carry a knock off is beyond me.
 
Yes, yes I know, you want the look without the price, but here are the hard facts- Counterfeit merchandise is believed to be directly responsible for the loss of 750,000 American jobs. Copyright piracy may have cost the U.S. companies $9 billion in trade losses and the fake trade has been linked to drug trafficking, child labor and even terrorism - you are now carrying what I fondly refer to as the Bin Laden bag, so NOT Vogue !

If you have to have designer, now is the time to buy, with the changing of the seasons one can find deals at your department stores and online. I like zappos.com and paperlime.com and remember to keep it classic and your investment will carry you through for years to come.  

Miss Leigh's handbag picks

BCBG bag "Maya" clutch $48.00 paperlime.com
Melie Bianco "Mariah" $88.00 paperlime.com

Facts courtesy of BAZAR magazine - What can you do if you spot fakes being sold in your area- INTERNATIONAL ANTICOUNTERFEITING COALITION (202-223-6667); iacc.org

You are what you wear

I was out for dinner last night celebrating Valentines Day and did some people watching while I was waiting for our first course to arrive and noticed just  how many women throw something on and head out the door. Not only is this an injustice to your self, but your significant other as well. I actually saw a woman with a lulu lemon head band pushed up into her hair line - what in the world possessed her to think that she could go straight from the gym to fine dining with this look? Ladies, I know the Lulu Lemon is comfy but come on - we have to  draw the line when our surroundings demand so much more then spandex.

Something happens to women when they cross the 40 threshold - yes, I know there are some of you who think you can still get away with shopping in the juniors department but I am here to tell you, turn around and walk the other way - if your daughter is wearing it - you probably shouldn't be! If you think this is giving you a youthful appearance, think twice.  Keep it simple and classic, and start looking for some investment pieces that go the distance and by distance I am not referring to first or second base at the end of the night - but rather some longevity pieces and stay away from gimmicky trends as nothing will age you faster.

Miss Leighs favorite beauty finds you can't be without:

Essie nail polish, my fav is sugar daddy (Shoppers Drug Mart)

Laura Mercier - Secret Finsh- dab some on mid day to freshen up your make up (Holt Refrew or Sephora)

Ojan Hair - rub Out Dry Cleanser - instantly cleanses, revives and refreshes hair without water. (Sephora)