shopbop giveaway winner

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Shopbop giveaway! Out of 520 entries, the winner was...

Congrats to Julia on winning the $100 gift card to Shopbop. And it didn't take long for her to decide exactly what she wanted- Julia tweeted me after receiving the gift card to let me know she had ordered a stylish pair of Boutique 9 pumps!

Perfumes Plus Holiday Party

A few weeks ago, you may have caught the announcement about Perfumes Plus' upcoming holiday party via the Brunswick Square Blog. The event date has since changed and Perfumes Plus will now be hosting their annual Holiday party tonight, in-store, at 6pm.  Perfumes Plus can be found on the ground level of Brunswick Square.

As promised, there will sales to take advantage of throughout the day, which include 30% off select products. Perfumes Plus will also be launching the Chanel's Holiday 2011 Collection. Chanel is bringing a lot of beautiful, limited edition products to the table with this holiday line made up of rich golds, festive reds, and beautiful neutrals.

The event will also feature make-up and nail demons, as well as prize draws. Every purchase today enters you in to a draw to win a holiday gift from Chanel!

There will be Chanel limited edition gift sets available for purchase, which include the brush set or lip gloss duo featured above.

Personally, my favourite Chanel cosmetic product (aside from their eye concealer I use daily) would be their nail polishes. They may cost a pretty penny, but they are honestly worth it- it's definitely one of those products that you get what you pay for. Above is my current collection of Chanel polishes. Last night I painted my finger nails with the Coromandel (second from the left above) and it only required one coat! 

If you love Chanel as much as I do, you should pop on over to Barb's blog and enter her giveaway to win for the chance to win a free Chanel manicure from Perfumes Plus! (Contest is open until this Friday, Dec 2, at noon.)

Need to pick up something pretty for your friend or sister, stocking stuffers, or a hostest gift? Be sure to drop by later today for some refreshments, shop the sales, and trial the new Chanel products at Perfumes Plus- I'll see you there!

Will you be dropping by for some time with Chanel today?

big changes...

I'll start with the most obvious of changes: not only did I update the blog header (designed by my friend Doug at dlb designs) over the weekend, but I've also decided to split my current blog into 2 separate blogs. 

I've been covering 2 main areas or niches (local happenings in Saint John and my personal style) that seemed to fit together initially but as my blog grew and changed, so did my audience.

A recent poll I conducted confirmed a statistic I was already familiar with: the majority of my readers reside in Saint John (67%) and a larger precentage (80%) live within in New Brunswick. 

For a while now, Saint John readers have been requesting to see more about local events and things happening in our city. As much as I wanted to do that, I didn't want to push away my other readers outside of the port city. 


So, I decided to transition Maritime Shopaholic into a source to promote shopping local and keeping people up to date about fashion-related events happening in Saint John. I have plans to shape it in a shopping and style guide for the port city. For all locally and fashion related content, I hope you'll continue to read Maritime Shopaholic.

Atlantic Style Diaries is the title of my new personal style blog on which I will share outfit photos, favourite trends and brands, wish-lists, etc. I wanted to be able to participate in the fashion blog community without boundaries to who I could share, network or collaborate with. For further content such as outfit posts, favourite brands and trends, as well as style projects, I hope you'll pop over and check out Atlantic Style Diaries! 

I've also made changes to my Twitter account in that you will now recognize me as @chelsdonaldson (instead of @mshopaholic).

I'm excited about these changes and new creative opportunities and I'll hope there will be a little more for everyone now! 


Please leave a comment- I'd love to hear your thoughts on these changes.

holiday wish-list...

My mom and sister right now are braving the Black Friday crowds across the US border. I almost went with them, if it wasn't for an expired passport (which I forgot about until there wasn't sufficient time to reapply). Of course a trip such as this means serious shopping, so making my holiday wish-list was prompted when my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas.

Plus, with all audio in stores being hijacked by Christmas music already, the crazy snow storm we had 2 days ago, and the fact that Santa comes in exactly a month from today it's starting to feel a lot like Christmas. So I thought I'd share with you what I have on my list!

1. Bowler Hat

2. Marc by Marc Jacobs bag

3. Collar necklace 

4. Marc by Marc Jacobs watch

5. Marc by Marc Jacobs sunglasses

6. Sequin skirt or leather shorts/skirt

7. Rebecca Minkoff bracelet

8. House of Harlow necklace

9. J.Crew sweater

10. Urban Decay eyeshadow palette

11. Marc by Marc Jacobs earrings

I also asked for a handful of clothing items from Joe Fresh (this blouse, this top, and this dress for starters)- I browsed the last collection at the Superstore after a workout earlier this week and had to exercise restraint from walking out with half of the store! The great thing about items from Joe Fresh are how affordable they are- which makes for great gifts without breaking the bank!

I still like a surprise, so I put way more items on my list than I actually expect to receive. I was never that child digging in the closets or under beds looking for the presents before Christmas...that's how my sister discovered there was no Santa! (Haha.)

What's on your holiday wish-list? 

sunday comfort...

With a snow storm like yesterday, there's nothing I'd prefer to do than curl up in a comfy outfit and hold up indoors with a cup of coffee and a movie, book, or my laptop. When it comes down to putting together a comfortable outfit, nothing beats a long sweater and a pair of leggings. On this particular day, B and I headed out for Starbucks and to run a few errands.

The Outfit  Faux leather jacket: Winners | Sweater: Abercrombie & Fitch | Top: American Eagle

Leggings: TNA | Purse: Coach | Boots: Town Shoes | Hat: H&M | Necklace: H&M

Find online: similar leggings, similar jacket, similar hat

Happy Thanksgiving to my American pals! 

work it wednesday....

Sometimes it all comes down to the accessories. You can entirely change the tone or style of an outfit, depending on what you pair the main components with. Trade a necklace for a scarf or pull on boats instead of heels. For this week's Work It Wednesday, I was thought I'd take one simple piece and play with the accessories.  Inspired by one of Who What Wear's trend reports last week, followed by a tempting Diane von Furstenberg email- I decided to remix a classic but neutral Taya shirt dress. 

What I like about this dress is that it speaks comfort like your boyfriend's collared button-up but it has the potential to be paired with more than just flats. Here's a couple of examples I cooked up, for a look that's ready for a variety of occasions. With a modest frock, it allows for some serious bling or wild pattern.

How would you style this shirt dress?

Now if I could only fit this DVF dress into my budget!

urban glam party...

This past Saturday local Je Suis Prest Boutique (JSP) and The Urban Shoe Myth (USM) debuted their holiday wear at their Urban Glam Party!

Upon entering the Saint John Theatre Company's space on Princess Street, the first thing my eyes were drawn to was the amazing decor that had been planned and put together by Design 4 Space. 

There were platform heels and Christmas ornaments hanging from the ceiling, 

graffiti art dominating the walls, and a hot pink outline for a runway.

There were two tables of delicious desserts prepared by the Bourbon Quarter.

Many lovely items were donated from suppliers' of both stores and be put up for silent auction. Proceeds from the evening are going to the Coverdale Centre for Women.

Nick was making a special candy cane cocktail while DJ La Reine spun hits all night long. 

The beautiful dresses and fancy wear were showcased in two separate runway shows during the evening. All clothing was Je Suis Prest Boutique and the shoes were from Urban Shoe Myth.

Lots of glamourous black with pops of colour, sequins, feminine silhouettes, and eye-catching backs were seen with the dresses. We saw a variance in height for holiday heels, but lots of glitter and even some feathers too!

The crowd watches on with great interest.

(Above): Shoes hanging from the ceiling, pretty cocktails, and Kate using Instagram to document some of the evening!

(Left): Katie & I  |  (Right): Kate & Candice

(Below) Me, Sarah, & Wendy  |  (Left): The Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

(Left): Shelly (USM) & Kiera (JSP) pose together while having their photograph taken by Kelly Lawson. (Right): Right after Josh sprayed Adam (Hairacy's), Shelley, and Kiera with the silly string!

Overall it was a great night with a great cause supported. We followed up the party up with dancing the night away at The Canterbury Lounge!

Great news for all party attendees- all the tickets provide as a 20% discount at both Je Suis Prest Boutique and Urban Shoe Myth this week! Was there anything from the fashion show that you had to have? Which dresses and shoes were your absolutely favs? 


Be sure to check out the Facebook page later today for the rest of the pictures I captured from the Urban Glam Party!

pink lemonade margaritas...

Sometimes nothing is better than a Saturday night with your girl friends. Doing your make-up together, sipping on wine or cocktails, and laughing at each other's stories. I've had a lot of fun the last two weekends, having the opportunity to hit the town with some of my favourites.

Pink lemonade + skinny girl margarita= one tasty drink!

I need this Urban Decay palette Katie has.

Arm party!

I never really go anywhere without my camera.

We ended the night with an appetizer and socializing at Britt's pub.

The Outfit  Dress: Jack BB Dakota (Je Suis Prest Boutique) | Wedges: Aldo | Tights: Walmart

Belt: Eddie Bauer | Cuff bracelet: Esquared (Silver Daisy Designs) | Bangles: Aldo | Necklace: H&M

Sweater: Press (Je Suis Prest Boutique)

Find it online: dress, shoes, similar belt, similar necklace, similar cardigan, make-up palette

How was your weekend? My weekend was a blast- double date with friends at a local sushi spot on Friday, the Urban Glam party (featuring new holiday wear from Je Suis Prest Boutique and The Urban Shoe Myth) followed by dancing at the Canterbury, and then coffee and browsing the Christmas flea market yesterday. It's funny how the weekends are supposed to be our down time from the week- but I like to pack mine with as much time with friends as possible!

Stay tuned! Tomorrow the photos from the Urban Glam party will be up on my blog and the Facebook page. Thanks to the girls at Je Suis Prest, Urban Shoe Myth, and Design 4 Space for an amazing time! The added bonus is that proceeds from the evening went to a great cause: The Coverdale Centre, a drop-in centre for women in Saint John providing shelter and case management services to assist in addictions, mental health issues, employment and affordable housing.

have you entered yet?

It's been fun hearing what people would choose if they won the $100 gift card to Shopbop. Shopbop is actually one of my favourite online stores with a great selection of designer brand names- many within an affordable range. The great thing about this giveaway is $100 is definitely enough to buy you something pretty sweet!

I thought I'd go ahead and show you what some readers said they would purchase if they won. Many of these items fall within the $100 range. Another great thing about Shopbop is that you never pay shipping (you pay the duty, but that's about it after taxes!)

Thanks again to those who have taken a few minutes to fill out the reader survey. I've already made some decisions based on the feedback already and you will be seeing some big, exciting changes in the very near future- so stay tuned!

If you haven't entered the Shopbop Giveaway yet, be sure to go do that now!

And if you have a moment, I'd love to have your feedback (10 quick questions, mostly multiple choice). Click here to take the reader survey. 

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

3 trends: 1 outfit...

Earlier this week I wore this outfit to have my photo taken by Kâté, a photographer with the Telegraph Journal. I had fun eyeing the beautiful shoes in The Urban Shoe Myth while peering through their shelving, with Kâté on the other side with her camera. (From my understanding the photo is to included along side of an upcoming article about how retail in Saint John is changing.) 

Afterwards, I stole away to a quiet Uptown street where I could take out fit photos in a low-traffic area.

The Outfit   Black Blazer c/o Boa Apparel Inc | Brown top- Joe Fresh | Bracelets: Aldo

Sheer print top: BB Dakota (Je Suis Prest Boutique) | Jeans: 7 for all Mankind (Envy)

Shoes (similar): Steve Madden (The Urban Shoe Myth)

In this outfit I combined a few of my favourite trends for all: mixing black and browns, sporting animal prints, and mixing metals (gold and silver). What have been your favourite fall trends to experiment with?


And just before you go, I was wondering if I could ask you a quick favour?

I'm running a short survey just to get feedback on how I can improve my blog and learn a little more about the preferences of my readers. If you have a few moments, l would really appreciate it if you could answer some quick questions, even if this is your first visit! Participation and all answers are anonymous. Please click below to participate:

Maritime Shopaholic Reader Survey