The Spread Love Party!

Love is certainly in the air at espy.

Last weekend, espy kicked off Spread Love Month with a little Saturday evening soiree to celebrate….well….LOVE. We threw a SURPRISE engagement party for two very inspirational couples – thanks to the help of their family, friends and our co-conspirators, Gerri and Mellisha. Here at espy, we have been lucky enough to see these two couples grow in love and as a result, be inspired by them as a couple and as individuals in what they have so kindly shared with us.

Jeff and Dianne – newly engaged! Congratulations one more time you two! xoxo
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

Michaelle and Matt – also engaged! Love you guys <3
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

And celebrate we did! It was a fancy affair thanks to Notable, who created a menu specifically for this event. DJ Jon Spade brought his classic touch of cool to the atmosphere with his signature beats. And the Notable girls made sure everyone’s glasses were full!

The beautiful and talented Notable staff, helping espy Spread Love.
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

espy’s FAV DJ <3 DJ Jon Spade
Photo courtesy of Shannon Irvine

We also officially unveiled the quotes of love that have been shared with espy as part of our project to Spread Love throughout the month of February. Big thanks to all of our Calgary contributors! It’s an honor to get to share your personal articulations of what love is to you with all of our followers, fans, clients, friends, and the community. And an even greater honor to have those words posted all over the store as constant reminders of love.

Our gorgeous window display from our Spread Love quote contributors!
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

Spread Love Month is truly about reflection. The time we can spend reflecting on love is what gives us the opportunity to show, share, and spread it. Whether its taking an evening to reflect on your upcoming nuptials with your family and friends, taking the time to reflect on what love is to you and translating that into a quote, sharing something you find inspirational on Facebook, writing a love note on a heart shaped post-it, tweeting out a little love to your followers, or a simple reminder that a random act of kindness might be just the thing the recipient needs – spreading love is the thing that we are all inspired by. With Valentine’s Day upon us, February seems like the perfect month to reflect on love and turn that reflection into something tangible. You just never know who you may inspire! And for that matter, you just never know who may be planning to surprise you to celebrate that inspiration!

The fashion kids…looking fabulous as ever!
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

Did I say FABULOUS earlier?! Mr. Fabulous himself shows Ms. Megan a thing or two about posing!
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

Happy Spread Love Everyone! Please continue to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook to check out more words of love, little doses of inspiration, and of course – the latest fashions we LOVE! Click here for more photos of the Spread Love event.

The espy staff – #spreadloveyyc <3
xoxox
Photo courtesy Shannon Irvine

xoxox

the espy stylists

The Ellen Project

Are you wondering why there is a life size cut out of Ellen DeGeneres at the espy till???

What exactly are we up to now you might be thinking….

As we hope you all know, espy is planning a FLASH MOB for Saturday, August 4th, 2012 at 4pm during the Inglewood Sunfest Festival. And we’ve already taught 4000 people, thanks to the amazing dancers of ILLFX Entertainment. For more information about the espy flash mob, our community class dates, choreography videos, blogs, and lots of dancing, visit www.espyflashmob.com.

Now you’re wondering, what does Ellen have to do with the espy flash mob? EVERYTHING!

Welcome to espy’s ELLEN PROJECT!

Over the next few weeks – the espy stylists will be playing all of Ellen’s games…with our Ellen cut-out AND our Ellen masks! So if you see us out and about…stop and say hi to Ellen. Take part in a video. Tweet a picture. Share your Ellen moment on Facebook.

You can even download your own mask from her website, click here!

Here’s a look at our first ELLEN DANCE DARES at Fort Calgary and the Calgary Zoo…dance moves courtesy of the “mystery” espy stylists:

Look what happened when we taught the kids at Ramsay School:

Make sure you are following us on Twitter (@espyexperience), friending “Megan Espy” on Facebook, and liking our business page, “espy,” on Facebook. Help us get noticed by Ellen by tweeting, retweeting, and sharing!

xoxoxox

the espy stylists

Making Changes Fashion Show

Last week, espy stylist Amelia and I were lucky enough to attend and participate in the Making Changes Association Volunteer Appreciation Night. We worked with the wonderful volunteer coordinator, Amanda, and supplied a couple outfits for their fashion show – for the entertainment of the very hard working and dedicated volunteers who do amazing work at Making Changes each and every day.

If you haven’t heard of the Making Changes Association, let me tell you a little bit about them! The goal of this organization is to “Create futures for women.” They do this through their Walk-in Closet program – which provides new and gently used clothing for women with financial difficulties. Making Changes also provides the Employment and Life Skills Programs for immigrant women, which helps give these women the information they need for educational programs, foreign qualifications, and entering into the work force.

Their program is very focused and effective and the volunteers are truly committed to their organization’s goal. Their new offices are beautiful (pink!) and well deserved by this amazing team. As part of their appreciation night, volunteers were awarded for their years of service. When we heard 12 years – we thought … ya, she definitely deserves a night off!

espy was invited to be a part of the fashion show, which featured other retailers from Calgary and the surrounding area. Amelia styled the lovely volunteer models Sarah and Michelle. Amelia’s theme for the show was “Must Have Looks,” which incorporated the must have items we’ve probably put you in when you’ve come in to the store – or that you’ve read about in our blog! Amelia mixed colored denim, a pastel colored floral spring scarf, and the ol’ espy staple – a fitted denim jacket – on Michelle. Michelle wore a pair of Amelia’s super cute cork wedges to complete the look. Sarah wore a royal blue pleated hi-low skirt with a cropped crocheted top and white straw fedora. This look also incorporated texture mixing – with the pleats on the skirt and the crocheted top.

Amelia and I definitely left feeling inspired – and we know how important volunteers are to organizations such as Making Changes. To learn more about how you can become involved with the Making Changes Association, click here.

Huge thanks to Amanda, our models Michelle and Sarah, and everyone at Making Changes for letting us be a part of their special night!

xoxoxoxox

Tianna

Adrian Huysman at espy

Adrian Huysman is a born and raised Calgarian artist! He is a loyal espy customer and is thrilled to be teaming up with the espy staff and Pepe and Eva of Studio Marmalade for the in-store mural as well as to teach and share art with you during #spreadloveyyc Art Week at espy!

Adrian has been a teacher for the Calgary Board of Education for 4 years and has been teaching adult and childrens art classes at the North Mount Pleasant Art Center for 6 years. He will be offering Drop in Adult Art Classes from 10:30am to 5pm on Friday, February 3 at espy. He graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design in 2002 and he has a Bachelors of Education and Bachelors of Fine Arts. He is currently working on his Masters.

Adrian grew up in an artistic family, which allowed him to grow creatively and pursue his love of art from a young age. Adrian describes his work as fast-paced, thoughtful, and full of color. He has a wonderful knack for communicating and showing the accessibility of art. He finds his inspiration from artists such as David Hockney and Picasso.

He is so excited to be a part of an espy event because he feels the positive vibe and incredible energy of the espy team.

“Calgary is getting more and more excited about both art and fashion, it’s completely natural to hold an event where they are side-by-side.”

Adrian has a wonderful art project to teach this week using water color and compliments! Check out this video where he shows espy assistant buyer Charlotte and espy beauty manager Meagan how to paint and create something beautiful through the power of words:

Check out Adrian’s blog and some of his work by clicking here.

Click here for the full schedule of #spreadloveyyc events!

#spreadloveyyc schedule is up!

#spreadloveyyc schedule is up! Click here to see what the espy stylists will be up to with Pepe and Eva from NYC and Adrian from Calgary!

Meet Pepe and Eva:

They are SO excited to meet all of you and share their love with you!

Meet Adrian, a local Calgary artist who will be sharing in #spreadloveyyc and teaching drop in art classes:

xoxoxox

the espy stylists