things to try

1. chalkboard wall
i'm loving this chalkboard recipe wall. how awesome does that look in a kitchen?

2. scarf as a skirt

how genius is this? all you need is a square scarf + a belt, and voila! here are pics of sandra from 5 inch and up.

3. the new bow tie

for the fellas: i'm really liking this leather tie as a replacement for the bow tie. it looks more casual in a way.

4. the new pillow

replace your pillows with fur throws. can you say, siberian chic?

5. lockers in the house
i remember being so excited when i entered grade 7 and i finally got a locker. you can relive the memory of grade school with lockers as home decor. they keep things organized while adding an eclectic vibe. the only question is...where do you find them??
listening to: for lovers- pete doherty feat. wolfman

images from the style files, 5 inch and up, froufrouu, the selby 

catching up

i haven't been that experimental in the kitchen recently, but here's what i've been making:
listening to: november was white, december was grey- say hi

my first poached eggs! poached eggs and garlic spinach on thin bagels

spicy salmon with a soy sauce base and caramelized shallots and garlic

recipe:
- slice 2 shallots and mince 4 cloves of garlic

- put them in the fry pan with some vegetable oil on medium heat, add hot chili pepper flakes to your taste

- add the salmon to the fry pan

- make the soy sauce mix: a lot of soy sauce, less sesame oil and a quick splash of vinegar. make enough sauce to cover the salmon and pour the mix into the fry pan

- wait until the salmon is cooked and serve!

i went to ben wilkins' EP launch last night, where my sister's quartet, portrait of a lady, was a supporting act. it was a great show, so proud of them! here is one pic from the show, and a promotional pic taken by alex tran. check out their myspace here!

lastly, i've decided to start documenting my shopping purchases. i think it will help me stay mindful and prevent me from going crazy in the $9.99 section at urban outfitters.... i went shopping for the first time this weekend since being back, which, if you know me, is a big deal since i am known to be a compulsive shopper. i went to eva b, a great vintage store in montréal and found two items.

a silky blouse in a funky print. reminded me of joanna hillman!

could not manage to get a good picture of this, but i got a calf-length pleated skirt in a ruby grapefruit colour. great in the winter with knee high black boots, and great in the summer with leather sandals!

let's talk about love

cute new photoshoot in february's vogue featuring 6 models and their beaus, all dressed in the always classic, always stylish trench coat. i'm a sucker for a good love story, so i read all of the little blurbs on each couple below each photograph. have to admit i burst out laughing when anja rubik said that her and sasha met up at their first date only to find that they were wearing the same "rag & bone shirts and helmut lang jeans".
....i don't even know what to say.
my favourite couple by far is coco rocha and james conran. maybe it's because i've seen their wedding video, like, 38 times but it's mainly because they're so adorable. for those of you who haven't seen this cinematographic masterpiece yet, i've added the video at the end of the post. you're welcome.

pics from fashiongonerogue

coco + james // short film from americana cinema on Vimeo.

it's about time

i was going through a music slump recently. i hadn't added anything new to my itunes library for a couple weeks, save britney spears' new song, 'hold it against me', which probably should never have been added in the first place. i decided enough was enough, so i went to some of my favourite music blogs and downloaded away, whole albums at a time. am feeling much better now.
some faves that i found:
maximalist- baths
ambling alp- yeasayer
if you return (feat. little dragon)- maximum balloon
love more- sharon van etten
heartbeat- blackbird blackbird
sunspray- blackbird blackbird
bloodbuzz ohio- the national
never never (sbtrkt remix)- little dragon
don't know why i seem to be in an electro/chillwave music mood. it's nice to listen to while walking around..

also, went to see little dragon last night!! was incredible. yukimi nagano (the lead singer) is adorable live and i would say she is now in serious competition with emily haines for best stage presence. she was like a little musical nymph dancing across the stage with her sequined leopard print shoes. they of course played one of my all-time favourite songs, 'blinking pigs' which was a transcendent experience in itself! jessica and i got there early enough that we were directly in front of the stage. here are some pics:

back to basics

while prints and bright colours are a huge staple in fashion, sometimes i forget how good 'plain' looks. simple shapes, basic colours and a great fit can do wonders for your body. the video i added was the first promotional video for mary kate and ashley's high end line 'the row', which i'm currently re-obsessing over. it's hard to believe that the vid is from 2007, i would still wear all of that stuff now! (maybe minus the yeti turtleneck) also, love the model's simple hair and makeup.

images from justjared, style, hanneli, vanillascented, tfs, citizencouture, hannaojohn, couldihavethat

inspiration monday

what's inspiring me at the moment:

1. what's better than one fashionista? a group of fashionistas

2. good eats

i've been drooling over this hot dog and this cupcake site all day..

i've also been craving a baked potato for a while. recipe here.

3. location, location

the qasr al sarab hotel (in the liwa desert in abu dhabi) was listed among the top 45 best new hotels of 2010 in travel & leisure. apparently it's located in the "largest uninterrupted sand desert in the world". found this on honestly...WTF. looks so beautiful and peaceful..

4. mark leibowitz

he took pictures backstage at john galliano, all in a single shot using long exposures. the outcome? a photographic acid trip.

images from trendland

5. sex and the ivy

this now infamous blog written by 23-year-old harvard graduate lena chen had me reading all night. she's been touted the "ivy league carrie bradshaw"; her posts depict detailed accounts of her sexual trysts at harvard. her writing is honest, raw and at times, beautiful. she was also featured in this month's marie claire article, "what's your number?" where she revealed that her number of sexual partners is 30. check it out here. 

image from o2maxfitness

kudos, LC

who knew that when lauren conrad from laguna beach and the hills started wearing a braid along her crown that it would spark a beauty frenzy around the world?
listening to: cataracts- andrew bird

we were recently hit with an onslaught of blow dry bars opening around the world (where you pay the stylists to basically...blow dry your hair) and now nine zero one bar in los angeles is opening the first ever braid bar. for a steep $25, you can recreate whatever braided look you desire (they have four options: hollywood glam, ny chic, venice hippie and around the world) without cramping your fingers. you can add a pre-braid shampoo for $15 and for the totally exorbitant reasonable price of $100, you can get a shampoo, blow dry and braid.

i'm sorry, are you serious?? i do love a great braided hairdo (a great way to mask greasy bangs or hair), but do yourselves a favour: do some finger flexing exercises, buy some hairspray, go on youtube and learn how to braid. the $25/$40/$100 is better spent on some cute clothes to go with your new hairstyle. 

here are some braided looks i love: