North Face Sample Sale

Just got this email today about a North Face sample sale which is just too great not to share!!  They will have men, women and youth styles. Sizes will be mostly medium for men and women and 10/12 for youth.  Some of the items for sale will be outerwear, sportswear, back packs, hats and gloves.

Details are as follows:

Sample Sale 4 Days Only

21 Vaughan Road, (St. Clair/Bathurst)

Toronto, Ontaio 

ALL WHOLESALE PRICES

*****Wed March 2 6pm-9pm**** By this invite only

Thursday March 3 10 am-8pm

Friday March 4  9am-6pm

Saturday March 5 10am-6pm

Sunday March 6 10am-6pm

CASH ONLY

Unfortunately I will be out of town and won't be able to go check it out :(.  Hopefully some of you can make it!

Cute find in the heart of Kensignton Market

This Sunday craft write and I decided to brave the cold and make a trip to Kensignton Market.  Always a great place to visit for the vibrant culture and great foodie finds!

Rather then hitting our usual haunts we decided to stretch our legs and explore some of the other areas in the market.  While on our expedition we stumbled upon this great little store called Good Egg.  And with the usual excitement that I get from finding a new store, we opened the door, crossed the threshold and found ourselves in foodie heaven.

This store offers everything the burgeoning foodie could ask for. From the display of Le Crueset cookware on an antique hutch to your left to the bookcases of cookbooks that line the right wall, all mixed in with great little food related gift ideas. This squirrel nut cracker is just one example of the quirky, yet funky things they sell!

And no foodie shop would be complete without offering cooking classes.  You can check out their website at www.goodegg.ca to learn more about this funky find!

Shopaholic in a Different Way........

From time to time I will have guest bloggers on to share some of their shopping secrets!  This is from my friend, Auction Queen.

Shop Addict and I go way back to safety pins in our jeans, Beaver Canoe and if you can believe it Chalky’s ! Yup we go way back.

Over the years Shop Addict and I have gone in different directions with our wants and needs. She is the queen of shoes and me, well, I am the queen of 100+ yr old oil lamps and spending my afternoons drinking bad coffee waiting for the next item “deal” to be auctioned. Yes, boys & girls I am the queen of country auctions and re sale furniture. I am about to share a couple secrets with you.

One of the best auction houses is in Creemore, Ontario. For those of you that travel up Airport Road for some winter skiing or just to enjoy Collingwood, you will find Creemore 20 min south of Collingwood off Airport Road. Check out there site for the next up and coming sale www.simpsonauctions.com . If you are into a fun afternoon this is a must. To give you an idea of what kind of deals I found; I picked up a 100+ yr old pine sideboard for $800 (value $2600-$4500), an 8ft pine harvest table that can seat 14 for $400 (value $1200+) and 10x12 wool Persian rug for a wee $300 (value $1000++).

My next secret are resale shops. One of the best places to rummage through all sorts of stuff you don’t want just to find that one thing you do want, is in Guelph. You will find the charity shops and resale shops in the downtown area are the best. I have had great luck at Value Village were I found a mint condition vintage Hudson Bay blanket for $1.99 (value….priceless)

Happy shopping…….

Express Yourself

My favorite store in the universe is called Express, but sadly I can only shop there when I visit the grand ole US of A.  They are set-up with an online boutique, but to my dismay they do not deliver to Canada.  So I have to wait for those trips to get my fix (deep sigh).

In preparation for an upcoming trip to the US, I once again found myself on my netbook doing some online window shopping. I was browsing the pages and fawning over the new styles trying to figure out when I could squeeze in my visit to the store.  In the vain hope their shipping policies had changed, I naviagted to the shipping page to see (something I tease myself with constantly when I visit the site).  And to my shock and surprise as of January 21st, 2011 Express had begun to ship to Canada!!!  Suddenly the heavens had parted and the gods were shining down on me.  I no longer had to wait for a trip to shop at my favorite store, now I could shop there anytime I wanted!!

http://www.express.com/home.jsp

Check out the link if you get a chance.  They carry everything from fashion forward work wear to the latest casual fashions.  Good quality and reasonable prices.

Are salt stains shoe abuse?!?

Agghhh, I hate days like today!!!  After a day of trudging through slushy parking lots, the inevitable happens, dried white stains all over my boots!! 

Well, I did not get a chance to stop by my local and pick up any fancy products that claim to remove the dreaded stains from my boots, so I had to resort to finding a home remedy.  I hopped on my little pink netbook and found a solution.  And the only thing you will need is white vinegar.

Mix 1 tablespoon of white vinegar with 1 cup of water.  Dip a soft cloth into the solution and massage into the shoes.  Repeat this until the stains are removed.

When my shoes are nice and dry I will be applying a coat of ALDO Defense Lotion.  This is a defense cream that helps restore salt damaged leather. And volia - like new!

OPI Deal of the Cent-Cherry

I love, love, LOVE, OPI nail polish.  The range of colors is incredible and they are produced with no formaldehyde like regular drug store brands.  A bottle will usually run you about $9.95, but is well worth the splurge. With names like Vodka & Caviar and Monsooner or Later, how could you not fall in love with this brand?!?

On a recent trip to my local, I was passing by Trade Secrets and saw this sign screaming out to me “Buy 1, Get 1 50% off OPI Nail Polish”.  I screeched to a halt.  A sale on OPI, unheard of!!!  I couldn’t resist and soon found myself in front of the giant display of polishes gushing over all of my choices. 

Where to begin…..I knew I had to replace Siberian Nights (a rich deep purple) that met with an unfortunate demise on my bathroom floor, but what else??  So many colors to choose from!!  Then I found it; a bright vibrant red called Color So Hot It Berns.  I never go for something this bright so why not give it a try.  I painted my nails with it that weekend and have fallen instantly in LOVE!

This sale is going on at all Trade Secrets locations until February 25^th.  It is definitely worth checking out.

Happy Shopping!

Craft Write Guest Blogger; Online Shopping

I had a short stint on Craft Write's new blog as guest writer before I was encouraged by her crafty genius to venture out on my own.  Well, her I am with my own little blog spot.  Below is a link to my post on Craft Write blog.  Happy reading!!

http://craftwrite.blogspot.com/2011/01/guest-blogger-shop-addict.html