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.