Nouveau Paradis

I think I’m in love… 

skirt - Banana Republic 

The season had officially changed, it’s chilly and rainy in Vancouver and it’s just not practical to go outside in my summer staples. Time to add a shot of life into my wardrobe for fall - nothing could possibly be done to avoid that! The lust list…

BCBG Max Azria - Darien Leopard Print Peep-Toe Heel 

Aritzia - T. Barbaton Sabrina Blouse

H&M - High Waisted Trousers 

Zara - Sheath Skirt 

Town Shoes - Steve Madden Pumps 

Aritzia - T. Barbaton Caroline Blouse 

BCBG Max Azria - Iva Color-Blocked Belted Dress 

Town Shoes - Hunter Rainboots 

Aritzia - J Brand 811 Mid-Rise Skinny 

Sweat It Out

I chatted about my fitness kick start on this week’s UsedBlog, and any new workout deserves a new workout playlist! A word of warning though, some of these songs are not family-friendly so tender ears beware!

Run…

Take Over Control - Afrojack ft. Eva Simons 

Till The World Ends - Britney Spears

Levels - Avicii

Duck Sauce - Barbra Streisand (Just Banks “How Low” Ludacris Remix)

Rain Over Me - Pitbull ft. Marc Anthony

Brand New Chick - Anjulie

Lights Out - Milkman 

Weights… 

Sexy and I Know It - LMFAO

Heads Will Roll - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Teenage Dream (Remix) - Katy Perry and Kaskade 

Money Ain’t A Thang (Vodka and Milk Remix) - Jermain Dupri ft. Jay-Z

Till I Collapse - Eminem 

Stretch…

Lights - Ellie Goulding

Sun of A Gun - Oh Land

creative commons image courtesy of juanpol

Maxi-mum Style

Easily the best purchases I’ve made all summer are my collection of maxi dresses. I get complements every time I wear them, but in reality they’re so easy to throw on and head out the door without a second thought. The safest bet is sticking to empire silhouettes, I find the straight up and down tank versions unflattering. 

I’m going to have to update my collection for fall, replacing light cardigans and wraps with blazers and jackets, and espadrilles for wedge booties with tights. I’ll be keeping the statement necklaces and belts though…

Modcloth - Demeter 

Jully Kang Strapless Jersey Maxi

Ravon Navy Jersey Convertible Maxi Dress

Ella Moss - Daphne

Dorothy Perkins Burgundy Bandeau Maxi Dress 

Juicy Couture Jersey Maxi Dress 

Exhale

As my distinct lack of blogging has probably made obvious, it’s been a wild summer. Sadly, September is now here and the dust is settling. My Bachelor of Commerce degree is in the bag as is my other major project of the summer: Grad Gala.

This was not my first rodeo in terms of project management within the Commerce Students Society at Gustavson. My previous project however was a world of differences away, primarily because it wasn’t an event that all your friends were looking forward to as one of the last parties of the summer. 

I’m happy to report that the actual event went off without a hitch! That doesn’t mean that there weren’t some serious lessons to be learned from the whole experience…

1. It’s all about your team. As the Director of Clothing, I was left with a solo project after my Co-Director resigned. As Grad Gala Co-Director, I don’t know how I would have handled everything without the lovely and talented Leta Young. Over the eight or so months that we worked on this project, we didn’t fight once. We had a freakish ability to address problems and annoyances effectively and always kept in mind that we were on the same side. We complemented each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and when disaster struck we bonded together to fix it as best we could. Working together so closely made us incredibly sensitive to each others’ lives, and the honesty between us helped us stay on top of our project despite whatever personal setbacks we were experiencing. We also had an incredible support team of a few volunteers and our VP Finance, Serena, and our Director of Social/MC, Rohit. 
2. Stick to the plan. The biggest screw-up was a miscommunication between us and the faculty. The faculty were planning a morning networking event on the day of the gala and Leta and I were under the impression that we were promoting both events together. Then an email went out from the Dean that invited everyone to the free morning event… And my jaw hit the ground. We were not warned that this email would be going out. We had been promoting the event as being bundled, as in the price included the morning event. This was incredibly embarrassing for Leta and I, and it caused a lot of confusion and criticism. We managed to back-track and explain what had happened and clarify the situation, but it was an incredibly stressful week or so. 
3. People talk. When things go wrong, which they inevitably do, there will be people who are more than happy to twist the daggers in your back. Leta and I stuck together through the criticisms, and we eventually realized that most people were too excited to attend the event to care about the administrative screw-ups. There was a small amount of people making a lot of (negative) noise and no one else really cared. At the end of the day, if they still didn’t want to attend after the confusion was addressed because they didn’t like the evening we had planned or they felt that we were attempting gauge them, then we didn’t want them there anyway (our unofficial mantra after things got ugly: Haters gonna hate). 
4. Use your budget wisely. Although we were accused of attempting to rip people off (apparently business students hold on to their money pretty tightly, who knew?!), we only broke even on the event - and that was the plan from Day 1. At the end of the day this was a volunteer job and we would receive no personal monetary incentives, in addition to the CSS not considering this project as a revenue stream. All the extra money we made from ticket sales (which was not a lot) supplemented a very small budget, and the entire sum of these things were put back into the event. We were strict about our decor spending and used the majority of our budget on the experience. Drink tickets at the after-party, prizes for fun awards, and we even managed to find a credit from our sportswear supplier that we used to get everyone small gifts.  

In the end everyone had a great time, which was ultimately all we could have hoped for. Congratulations to my fellow Grad of 2011!

Hiatus

Holy Mother of Hiatuses, Batman!

As per usual, the UsedBlog has been keeping me busy; most recently, I relived the realization of one of my very worst fears (aptly titled The Worst).

The Sasquatch Festival also had me out of commission for several days, but fear not I’m back on my A-game now. Just to relive the memories…

Photo credits to Paddy Massot and Andrew Hall!