Olivia + Joy New York Phone Wristlet - Stephanie Collection

Recently, I have taken to walking every break time in the office. It may be good for my health, but not so for my budget. It just so happens that I see shops, having wonderful sales, during these daily walks. How can I resist? Haha. Seriously, it is through my daily walks that I realized I needed a big wallet or a small pouch that can accommodate my phone and carry my cards and some cash as well. I always grab a medium cup of Tim Horton's coffee on my way back to work, so I definitely need to bring some form of money with me. Carrying both my phone and my wallet can be a hassle as I brisk walk through malls and bridgewalks Downtown.

I decided to walk in Winners at City Centre Edmonton and browse through the wallet section. I saw several cuties like a gorgeous pink Kate Spade and a black Ralph Lauren but they were out of my budget, even if prices have already been brought down massively. 

I settled on a cute Olivia + Joy New York phone wristlet in bright lipstick red. The color is so bright and brilliant, I know I won't have a hard time looking for it in my not-so-organized bag.

Olivia + Joy - Stephanie Collection in Lipstick Red

The accessory is described in the Olivia + Joy website as follows:

Our new multi-purpose phone wristlet is the Must Have accessory accessory this year! With a back zipper pocket, 6 card slots, one receipt pocket, and most importantly, a phone pocket; you can carry all your necessities in one fabulously chic wrislet! Chain wristlet strap is removable.

It retailed for USD $38 or around CAD $50 and I bought it at winners for the price of CAD $16.99. It is not available in their website anymore.

The card slots are enough for my basic cards. Good thing most store cards are now available as phone apps so I don't need to bring them with me all the time. It also has a plastic pocket where you can put a photo, or in my case, my ETS bus pass for easy access.  The phone pocket fits my Samsung Galaxy S4.

It also has a detailed back zipper pocket for coins. How convenient! It has a glamorous gold chain that you can wrap around your wrist, however I find it a bit heavy for my taste. Good thing it is removable.

I'm so happy with this shopping find. It really is very pretty. I ended up saving money, because simple phone cases sold in kiosks around the mall retails for $35-45. I was able for buy a brand name phone case / wallet for a fraction of that price! 

Now, back to brisk walking! 

My Dollar Store Beauty Haul

Last Monday,  after our Victoria Day outing,  I asked hubby to drop by the Dollaroma at the South Common branch.  I needed to pick some things up for the  house,  like dish brushes and spray bottles. I really didn't expect to buy any beauty supplies.  They I saw the Clairol Blow Dry Prep Mist and I remembered I needed a heat protection for my hair.  Daily shampooing and blow drying has left my hair so dry.

Clairol Blow Dry Prep Mist 

This spray comes with a light green tea scent that makes my hair smell so fresh.

Pantene Dry Shampoo

 In the same hair products aisle,  I also saw a small bottle of the Pantene Dry Shampoo.  I saw some girls use this in YouTube videos.  I also saw the powder variety.  I've always been intrigued.  Maybe if I use a dry shampoo a couple of times a week,  my hair can get some break from heat.

Pretty Polishes

I also picked up two nail polishes.  Even back in the Philippines,  I've been a fan of Sally Hansen and Wet N Wild nail polishes.  I found them easy to apply and quick to dry.  I picked up Hard Bitten by Sally Hansen,  which is this nice glittery powderblue,  and Grape Minds Think Alike by Wet N Wild,  a vivid berry shade.

Lastly,  I picked up a large bottle of liquid hand soap for only $2! We use this to refill our hand soap dispensers in the kitchen and the washroom. A small bottle of hand soap costs $1.25 already,  so buying this big bottle is definitely a better idea.

My family had so much fun in that shopping spree.  Everybody came out of the store with something to make him/her happy.  Hubby bought camping accessories like tent pegs and tarpaulins,  Bea bought sand,  similar to the Kinetic Sand she has been begging me to buy her.  (a steal at $3 compared to the $25 Kinetic Sand)

We had 2 big bags filled with various knickknacks,  all for $21! I love dollar store shopping!

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Follow my blog with Bloglovin.  I am trying to update this blog more often.  I find that I enjoy sharing my finds and experiences with different products.  I may not shop that often,  but I will share the stuff I do buy.  :)

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Our First Shopping Trip in Edmonton, Alberta

Hello!  It has been a while!  The last time I posted in this blog,  we were still selling our stuff because we were moving to Canada permanently.  It's been almost a year since.  Currently,  I am a student and shopping has been very limited (not that I loved to shop anyway)  but I just wanted to share our very first shopping trip in Edmonton.  Ok... So it wasn't really a shopping trip but actually a necessary trip to the drug store for the bare essentials.  We packed so much stuff,  that we forgot the very basics like deodorant.  Too much information,  I know,  but that's the truth.

Shopper's Drug Mart loot

So,  we went to the nearby Shopper's Drug Mart at the Millwoods Town Centre. We bought deodorants for me and hubby,  a pack of Ivory soaps (on sale),  feminine pads,  floss,  cottoballs and petroleum jelly (for my daughter's rashes).   Our digestion seemed to be adjusting so I bought fibre supplements.  Although we arrived in summer,  we immediately felt the dryness of the air.  Our lips chapped easily and our skin got really dry.  So I also bought EOS lip balm and extra strength body lotion (oops!  Actually I bought the lotion at a Rexall Drug Store on a separate trip)

It was so hard to pay for the items because in my mind,  I was converting the dollar amount to Philippine peso,  and I just found everything too expensive. And they even add 5% tax on top of everything!  Waaaah!

It was quite an experience.  It was confusing actually.  Although, I saw familiar brands,  I was not familiar with the others. So I just grabbed whatever was on sale and bought that. :)

We're Moving. Perfect Time For Garage Sales and Shopping Sprees

I have been on a blogging break for month now, just when I promised myself I'd update this blog more, I just stopped.  Why? Because around March of this year, we got wonderful news from the Canadian Embassy. Read about it here. And after that, everything was just a flurry of activities. We held garage sales, an actual on right on our garage, and a virtual one where I set up a facebook page and sold our pre-loved items.  We also posted in OLX.ph. We had to get rid of everything we can't bring with us.

I sold most of my books, planners and planner supplies, along with other stationery goodies like stickers, washi tapes and punches. It was heartbreaking. 

While we sold stuff, we also bought things in preparation for our trip. We took advantage of mallwide sales. We particularly jumped on the chance to shop while SM Megamall held its sale last May 2014.  We bought underwear, socks, rubber shoes and bags! We bought our urban bags luggages at 50% off! what a steal! We bought some bags with TSA locks and some with regular ones. We planned on just putting clothes in the ones with regular locks so nothing suspicious would appear on the xrays, at least nothing airport authorities would want to inspect. Then we intended to place all our excess photography equipment plus other miscellaneous knick-knacks in the bags with TSA lock should they want to peek inside.

It was really hard to decide which of our things we'd take with us and which we'd leave behind. I brought basic make up essentials and nail care supplies. That way, I didn't have to buy supplies there for a while, at least while we're looking for a job.

I Finally Got A Fossil Leather Wallet

I have always been a fan of the Fossil brand. The hubby and I particularly like their watches, we own a couple of Fossil watches each. I've been wanting to get a leather item from them, maybe a bag or a wallet, but they're a bit on the expensive side. Their wallets and bags are made of pure leather and so supple to the touch.

One weekend, Berto and I met with a potential client somewhere in the south area. We dropped by Festival Mall. We had no idea they were having a big sale. We didn't really plan on shopping. We weren't looking for something particular to buy, we just had time to spare. We passed by the Fossil store and went in. They were clearing out their old stocks and some items were on sale for as much as 50% off! A leather wallet instantly caught my eye. It was a long wallet, actually they called it a clutch, in chestnut. I wanted it! It was originally priced at 5,000++ pesos but the sale price was for only 2,300 pesos. I got Berto's approval and got it! 

I love it's authentic leather smell! I finally have something from Fossil other than watches, will a bag come next? Hahaha, we'll see. As of now, I am so happy with my Fossil chestnut clutch. =)

Independence and a Hedgren Shoulder Bag For My Birthday

I knew this year would be different from all the other years. I am at the precipice of something new and exciting. I am about to get what I have been craving for these years. Independence from corporate life. As I shared in this post, I will be a free woman starting January of next year, and to celebrate the “new me” I decided to give myself a gift. Of course I was turning 36 and birthdays are always a big deal but I wanted a symbol of my joy and happiness and of course independence. I decided I wanted to go shopping for a bag. None of the stuffy, corporate black leather bags for me, nope, I’ve had 15 years of my share of that. I wanted a bag I can wear with my jeans and sandals.           

          

I looked in several shops including lacoste, esprit and guess but I couldn’t find anything I wanted. I wanted a bag that is both casual and presentable for when I meet with clients. Of course it has to be roomy enough so I can haul my stuff around. I strolled in a Travel Club store, not really expecting anything since they are more known for luggage, but imagine my surprise when I saw colorful shoulder and laptop bags from Hedgren. 

I’ve heard of Hedgren from my brother-in-law years back. He bought a knapsack with the same brand name. So I knew it’s imported. I looked around and found the pink one so adorable. I wanted it immediately. Sadly they didn’t have it in the size that I wanted. The pink one was just too small. It won’t even be able to take in my bulky make up kit. So I opted for a nice medium sized one in mocha (it's actually iron according to their website).  I know, still a safe color, but I had no choice… at least it wasn’t black. 

I got the new Clapham Medium  from the Subway Collection. Here’s a description from their site:

Be wowed by this fresh, casual collection for girls and women who feel young at heart. These lightweight bags are perfect for a fun day out and an evening about town. 

Casual beauty

so roomy! perfect for me!

Someone's Got A New Bag

Although I love Berto to bits, I have to admit he’s a not a guy who often gives gifts. So I was quite surprised when I he offered to buy me one.

When I was younger, I went through the typical girly phase of wanting to have lots of bags and wallets. I was never into clothes but bags and wallets were another matter. As I matured, these are some of the things I disciplined myself into giving up. I kept a few essential pieces then I disposed of the rest. I bought only when I really need to like when the old one is already broken. Lately, I have been wanting to get a new bag. I have my trusty office bag that’s large enough to keep all my stuff; my  camera bag which I use on photography gigs; my red Lacoste bag, a valentine’s gift from Berto. This is the bag I use on weekends, when I get together with my friends or when I’m out malling with Berto and Bea. I just got tired of lugging around a red bag all the time. It just begs for attention! Haha. So I decided I needed a quiet (boring) bag. An ordinary black one, one that I can carry around without hogging all the attention.  I simply mentioned it in passing to Berto as we passed by a store display of black bags. Imagine my surprise when he offered to buy one for me! Who was I to resist? That’s right, Kwala’s got a new black bag. (shown here with my latest read, Jessica Zafra’s Twisted Travels.)