By Kaitlyn, Miss Teenage Waterloo Region 2017

On the Thursday before the August civic holiday weekend in Cambridge, Ontario, when all of our local-fashionistas are out preparing for upcoming endeavours, I took an opportunity to visit the Cambridge Center Mall on Hespeler road and get some inspiration. Along the way I happened to run into a beautiful girl named Chloe.

Chloe is 21 years old and loves to travel, in fact she moved to Canada 3 years ago from Wales.  She described herself as creative and shared with me her passion for drawing. So… what is she wearing!? Being a full time Pandora employee, her uniform requires her to wear black on black on black. Chloe is wearing a high fashion black twisted V-neck T-shirt from Urban Planet made from polyester and nylon which she purchased for $15. For pants she chose trendy black leggings from Reitmans made out of viscose and nylon for $45. Black Adidas flats, and 2 gorgeous Pandora bracelets and 3 rings all made from sterling silver, cubic zirconia, and pearl accents.

Next up in the Cambridge Center on Hespeler Road I stumbled upon a true beauty, Brianna. Brianna is the youngest out of 9 biological siblings, and also has 4 foster siblings! She just switched school’s at the age of 17, and currently works 4 jobs! Brianna is an equestrian, she loves to ride horses at Irish Creek Stables, and loves art and fitness. She was wearing a blue dress from Winners made out of cotton for $14, a cover up black jacket made from nylon and polyester also from Winners for $25. To tie the outfit together she wore a thick black belt made out of leather and elastic from Ardenes for $10. And on her feet, heels from Aldo for $80. I noticed this gorgeous ring on her finger as well, and it came out of a candle! Charmed aroma candles and bath bombs are gifts she receives often, and they definitely pay off. (And might I add, her makeup skills are incredible.)

Lastly, on my way home I bumped into Kimberly. Kimberly is 43 years old and in the pharmaceutical industry, she loves fitness, gardening and water sports at her cottage. When Kimberly has down time, she listens to audiobooks. In fact she just finished listening to 44 hours of Stephen King’s ‘It’ novel. Kimberly is wearing a Frank Lyman designer beaded white dress made out of lycra, nylon, and cotton which she purchased for $165. On her feet gorgeous sparkly heels from Aldo for $99 and on her wrist a FitBit Charge 2 for $169. This was taken on McFarlane Drive, in Cambridge Ontario.

My favourite part about seeking out the greatest fashions in my region was getting to meet new people. All of the girls were so lovely and helpful to me, I definitely made new friends today! This experience has taught me that you don’t have to be wearing Gucci or Kate Spade to be considered chic. If Brianna hadn’t told me her belt was from Ardenes, I would never have known. The moral of the story here is that you can be extremely fashionable and not break the bank. It’s all about knowing where to look. I hope this article changes your perspective about brands. Thank you so much to everyone who participated in the creation of this article, you’re all beautiful, and are definitely worthy of the title “Street Chic”.