We are mere days away from Christmas, which means tons of time off with friends and family. I know that this time of the year can be quite chaotic for everyone (heck I always feel like a chicken running around with its head cut-off), so what better way to destress than to plan a little staycation in the city? Team #MDVP (Mel, Dave, Vic, and Peter) decided to go on a little staycation of our own this past weekend and wanted to share our experience with you. Literally within a weekend, here is how we enjoyed our city at its finest and played “vacay” without ever having to drive outside of the city limits.
Kicking off the #MDVPHoliday Staycation, we checked into The Shangrila Toronto for the afternoon and took in its phenomenal amenities and relaxed. Located in the heart of the city, The Shangrila Toronto is always one of my go-to and recommended hotel to visitors since the entire downtown core is easily accessible from that point. Personally, I wouldn’t want to leave because look at this floor-to ceiling marble shower stall (below), where else would you need to go?
We had a busy weekend ahead of us with dinner at Bosk coupled with a night out at the ballet watching The Nutcracker, so I thought that it would be fitting to indulge in a little bit of pampering before getting ready to head out.
If you guys aren’t already aware, I am such a suck for anything rose scented. Being that it’s also winter (and that I’m allergic to the cold), one of the mandatory steps to every pamper sesh is for me to moistuize, moisturize, moisturize. Lathering on the buttery rich KORRES Wild Rose Body Butter from their Head to Toe Set, I made sure that I smelled like a flower bomb for the night. Side note that this set is only available at Shopper Drug Mart, so if you’re trying to pick it up for yourself make sure to head there.
And for everyone that complains about scents, this isn’t one of the ones that lingers within a 1km radius of your body. Trust me, it smells nice if you sniff yourself, but doesn’t trail after you for hours and hours on end. Only the ones that you want to get close enough will be able to smell it ;).
The next step of a good pamper sesh (that involves you going out, not staying in) would be to put on our face. I was recently introduced to Smashbox by Mel and I honestly don’t know how I was living before this.
If there is one product that I could rave about for days, it would have to be their Always On Liquid Lipstick. For those of you that follow me on Instagram and watch my Instagram stories, you’ll have witnessed my obsession for the lippies. I probably went on a solid 15 minute rant discussing how much I loved them (Babe Alert being my current favourite shade) and basically professed my love for the product. But truth be told, I’ve never encountered a liquid lipstick that doesn’t dry out my lips and actually stays on for long as it claims – until now.
I’ve literally stumbled on the Kylie Lip Kit equivalent that doesn’t market itself as a dupe. Seriously, not only does the application go on smoothly, dries to a light coat that doesn’t chip, crack or dry out my lips, stays on for 5+ hours (even through eating and drinking), but it also makes my lips look bigger than they actually are. Hello Botox – without having to Botox. Let me know if you guys are interested in knowing all the products/shades that I used to create my look, I can definitely do a run-through of them!
And you guys know me, I can’t go anywhere without styling my hair. Especially now that some of the colour has grown out, I need to find ways to hide the line of gradiation. Ever since I’ve been introduced to clipless irons, I’ve been hooked. Again, another situation where I don’t know what I’ve been doing with my life before clipless hair curlers.
I’ve had a good experience with T3’s staighteners in the past but never their curling irons, so I decided to switch things up and give it a try to see if it would work well with my hair. To my not so surprise, it did! In all honesty, I was originally drawn to T3 for aesthetic purposes only (it’s white and rose gold – who wouldn’t want it?!), but it played out well and created the curly waves that I was looking for. I used the Undone Waves 1″ Straight Barrel to achieve the look at you see here. Sneaking in some pictures of P fixing his hair here, well, because he does stuff to his hair too. Just not with a curling iron haha.
P: Shirt, Pants, Tie Clip, Tie, Belt, Shoes, Jacket, Coat, Gloves – Le Chateau
Me: Dress, Trench Coat, Jacket, Boots, Bag, Choker – Le Chateau
After getting dressed to the nines, we were off! To everyone asking if I was cold, no I wasn’t. I layered my jacket over top of a trench coat, since I wore a silky black tank-dress underneath. Honsetly in the winter, layers are key to warmth. PS. I still can’t get over these boots from Le Chateau. Not only did they look really chic, they were warm, and had a tread on the bottom that was conducive to walking over ice without slipping!
Luckily dinner wasn’t too far of a walk. We had made reservations at Bosk, which is immediately downstairs next to the lounge inside of the hotel, and fortunately didn’t have to venture outside into the snow. After a couple of rounds of dishes and plenty of desserts shared around the table, we were ready to head back upstairs for a little bit of fun before jetting off to the ballet.
By fun, I mean that the boys indulged in a little bit of Craigellachie 13 (scotch) while Mel and I changed into outfit #2 and got ready. Yes, you heard me right, we wore 2 different outfits that night because why not? The scotch seemd to keep the boys at bay while we took our time changing. Note to self, the next time I’m running late and am only halfway finished with my primping, to give P a glass of scotch and he’ll be fine and dandy.
Stepping up our game a little (because we fancy ‘huh), Mel and I decided that what better time to dress up than for the ballet? I can’t even remember the last time that I went to one, probably not since I was much younger and in elementary school, and I wanted to make it a memorable one. To which we mandated everyone to dress up a little bit in order to have some fun.
I’ve been on the hunt for a furry jacket lately and haven’t been able to locate one that checks off all of the requirements on my list (beige, not fur, over-sized, cozy, warm, lots of pockets) until my eyes landed on this one. Needless to say, I’ll be putting it to use way after the ballet and deep into the winter.
I wish I could have taken some photos of the ballet to hare with you guys how beautiful it was, but unfortunately they didn’t allow for any photography, so you’ll just have to trust my word on it.
Mel: Top, Bottoms, Jacket, Gloves, Clutch, Necklace, Earrings – Melanie Lyne
Me: Dress, Jacket, Clutch, Earrings – Melanie Lyne
Two hours later, we emerged feeling thoroughly impressed, yet a little tired. Being it was already quite late and that we were wrapping up a long day, it only felt right to retire back to our respective rooms for a night of rest.
I almost couldn’t get out of bed the next morning due to how comfortable The Shangrila’s mattresses are. If anyone can help me sneak one out of the hotel, please share your secret with me!
I don’t think that I mentioned this yet, but the hotel is actually quite pet friendly. We brought Kobe along with usfor the weekend so that he wouldn’t feel lonely at home, and he was so loved and cared for that I was absolutely shocked. The hotel supplied him with a bed, food bowls and a bottle of water – which wass probably the best pet service that I have ever experienced anywhere. Pet lovers rejoice because The Shangrila is actually quite a safe haven for them when traveling!
We spent the rest of the morning lounging around in bed munching on room-service and cuddling Kobe before checking out. I don’t think that we even bothered to change out of our Bench. clothes before heading home. Feeling so relaxed from our little weekend staycation, P and I decided to stay in our comfy clothes for the rest of the day and curl up on our sofa to watch some holiday movies. Cheesy I know, but it’s what we love doing – watching movies together. Mel and Dave? Not quite sure what they did after we all left, but I guess you’ll just have to head over to her blog to find out 😉
I hope that you guys enjoyed our little staycation and that it gave you some ideas for the next time you want to go out for the weekend yet still stay in town. There is seriously so much that you can do in your own city that you never really think of. Sometimes it’s fun to just let the city take over your weekend instead of driving out of town for hours just to relax.
P: Top, Bottoms
Me: Sweater, Leggings, Hat
Mel: Top, Leggings, Scarf
Dave: T-shirt, Bottoms, Sweater
