How Bazaar

It's Friday, folks!  My morning tea never tastes so good as it does on a Friday...I even find it easier to get up, despite frigid temps and the warm body next to me.  I figure, the sooner I'm up, the sooner I am at work and the sooner the day gets started.  This week has been particularly productive too, both at work and in my personal endeavours, which feels great to look back on all I have accomplished in just one week.  My gf Marie, who is also my business partner, came up from TO Sunday and we spend hours at the Starbucks down the street drafting our business plan and drinking multiple holiday warmers.  Following that great day, we met up with my financial advisor on Wednesday who explained all the possible options we have for getting the funding we need for this business of ours.  We also made a list of manufacturers in Canada who could potentially end up making our swimsuits!  How exciting!

I find that the one thing I have learned during this process is that you can't discount anyone as a possible resource for a business venture.  The guy who sells you your sandwich at lunch has a cousin in advertising.  Your friend's hairstylist knows a guy looking for an investment opportunity.  Your girlfriend's friend of a friend is an amateur photographer looking to bulk up his portfolio in exchange for a free photoshoot.  My best friend of life happens to be a producer on Dragons' Den.  She wouldn't in a million years let me go in front of Kevin O'Leary (I cry UNBELIEVABLY easily and he would sit there telling me "there are no room for tears in business" between sobs), but what she can do is help me get an idea of what investors are looking for when you ask them for their money.  Anyway, I won't bore anyone with this business talk anymore, but believe it or not as someone who has never taken a business course in her life, I am Disneyland-excited to get even more done in our little plan!

So, tomorrow morning I'm hitting up the annual Abbotsford House Bazaar 950 Bank Street across from Landsdowne Park.  I go every year because my gf Alex works there as the activities coordinator and she and the other hard working individuals put together this fundraiser every year...quite the time consuming event, but SO fantastic!  People donate clothing, jewellery and accessories (mostly vintage), as well as books and handmade crafts and baked goods and they are sold for very affordable prices, with all funds going back into the programming.  There's no better reason to go vintage shopping:  gems at low prices with a good cause.  PERfection.  I'm meeting up with our friend John who also loves vintage shopping and we are trekking over. I know from previous years not to wear anything difficult, specifically footwear.  Considering wearing a nude bodysuit and flip flops so I can beat those bazaar ladies at their own game.  OMG, aside from the Glebe Garage sale, I had never before experienced the merciless shoving, elbowing and grabbing of the bazaar shopper.  At first glance you think she's just a sweet older lady...many bruises later and with only the slim pickings left on the jewellery tables, you realise this is no sweet little granny and I CANNOT shove back, which I'm sure they are fully aware.  That was my first year's experience...in subsequent years I've stuck to the clothing and accessories area. 

Anyway, I can't remember all the great things I've found there, but some items include:  brown leather motorcycle gloves, several purses and scarves, a navy dress with gold buttons and shoulder pads which I shortened, a periwinkle blue dress that I wore out from use, a navy wool pleated skirt, an AMAZING yellow ensemble that I call my Jackie O outfit (60s style jacket with a dress that I had to make into a pencil skirt because it was too big-worn with giant sun glasses and little gloves, obvi.), and a couple pairs of shoes.  Alex is great too because she sees items that she "can't allow people who don't appreciate" to snag and will put them aside for me...like two authentic Stetson tweed hats, Ferragamo shoes, and an amazing Pierre Cardin dress that fits me like a glove.  In honour of tomorrow's event, I'm currently wearing the navy pleated skirt:

knit top: Zara; tights, shoes and ring: Zellers; belt, necklace and brooch; thrifted

Anyhoo, wrapping it up here...I can't wait for tomorrow morning.  You should come too!  And if anyone has suggestions of other vintage sales/events like the Abbotsford bazaar, please tell me :)

Happy weekend!

xo Amber