de facto redhead

Here lies my shopping bounty, all of which was purchased between May 26 and July 19. Already, two things have been sullied, and that’s the sunglasses and the owl necklace. Firstly, poor Mr. Owl has a broken link and he hangs lopsided from my neck, but Darcy said he could solder it back together, so one of my next adventures could involve finding such a tool for him to do this with. Can’t wait for that, especially since I only found out in the last five years that “solder” is not pronounced at all like it’s spelled. Secondly, ink leaked from a pen in my purse and, among other things, found its way onto my white sunglasses that I hadn’t even had for a week. Wrath was nigh.

But, let’s take stock of the loot as a whole, shall we? If we travel from the bottom right and work clockwise, we have:

A lovely yellow V-neck T-shirt from Wal-Mart ($7); a vintage white seagull brooch ($4) and Mr. Owl ($22) that I bought at the Lacombe Secondhand store while in Alberta; a 1987 Edmonton Klondike Days pin from the Rocky Mountain Antique Mall in Edmonton ($3); a black tuxedo vest from H&M ($10); coloured sandals from Reitmans ($16); black sandals from Forever 21 ($19.80); a black and white retro-style bikini from Joe Fresh ($12 each for top and bottom); (once-pristine) white sunglasses from Joe Fresh ($7); a nautical three-quarter-length-sleeve shirt-dress from H&M ($7); a pink-with-black-and-jewelled-ruffle-collar T-shirt from Forever 21 ($9.99); and a funky, screaming-loud wallet from Winners ($24.99). Missing from this picture is an item I forgot to include but later recalled: a red souvenir T-shirt with an outline of a moose on it ($19.99). (Darcy and I both bought T-shirts when we got back into Ontario; his is black with a big wolf’s head on the front and back – and the wolf has green, glowing eyes. Take from that description what you will.)

So, total spent here, with tax, is $188.21, and that brings my official Tally it Up 2010 total to $464.73. The year is half over, and I haven’t even hit $500 yet, so I’m going to give myself a box of doughnuts and a bag of candy for that little feat, and call it a day.

Susie, Jen, Kristy, and me!

Here I am, at the Parkdale Drink in Toronto, loving every minute of Jen’s bridal shower not just because it’s Jen, but because this was my first official Ontario outing! Yay! It felt weird, like I was just there visiting, but after spending the weekend with Darcy’s family in the Sarnia area, meeting up with my friends last night for our Summerlicious dinner at our choice of Bella Vista, and another upcoming Summerlicious dinner with Darcy at La Fenice and then a house party with friends afterward, I am definitely warming up to this whole moving home thing. Like I really needed to warm up to it… Ha!

In other news, I have bought more clothing and accessories, so I really have to get my tally on track and add up what I have spent since the last time I updated my experiment. This is when it actually might seem a little scary – the total amount of shopping I’ve participated in for a month and a half. Eeep!

Also, Darcy and I have found a new place to live – in Burlington! Right now, we’re house-sitting in Hamilton for Dear Edna and her boyfriend, Mikey J., who are away on their fabulous European adventure, but as of August 1, I will be De Facto Redhead from Burlington, my official new location, same time, same station.

I can tell you, though, I will be happy to have access to all of my wardrobe again. I have been living on a calorie-reduced diet of a suitcase’s worth of clothing until we move into our new place, and just let me say, I’m starving! I do, however, like to gorge on accessories, and they really help when I’m feeling desperate and need to binge. “Give me multiple brooches or else the cat gets it!” Here’s my “closet”:

Care to try my diet?

For me, the last month has been late to bed, early to rise, with a hearty dash of work, life, social engagements and sheer tiredness all thrown in for good measure. I’ll be sure to give more updates about my new life in Ontario (I just arrived yesterday – give me a break! Haha!), but for now, while I’m still getting settled in and organized, here are some pictures to keep you happy!

I made this box out of several other boxes. There’s a big DVD shelf in there! I am quite proud of this box, and I should be – it took me two hours to complete!

I used two big cans and two small cans of primer to completely cover my blue, purple, pink, and taupe walls in the apartment. My hands were so sore from holding the paint roller and pressing it against the walls. Claw hands! Claw hands! But, got the deposit back, so my gnarled fingers were worth it.

The much-required winch-strap set for the rooftop luggage.

The start of deciding how to fit the last of our stuff in the back of the car.

We were one of those loaded-down vehicles on the road that people with nothing in their cars make fun of.

So long, Alberta!

An idyllic picture on the Prairies.

I actually kind of blend in here.

I’m here! I’m here!

My mom was happy to see us!