A Few of My Favourite Things

Hi Everyone,

I'm sorry it has been so long since I have written! Time just goes too fast for me, and I can never seem to keep up... 

There are always so many things that I like and would love to tell people about, so I too thought I would write a little list of my favourite things. Since it is so close to Christmas and Christmas is my most favourite time of the year, there may be a little bit of a Christmas theme to my list - just a little warning. ; )

1.  The Adelphie Dress from Club Monaco

I tried to find a picture of this dress that would do it justice with no avail. This silk georgette dress first caught my attention because it was navy - a difficult colour to find in cocktail dresses sometimes - and one that is currently absent from my collection. I have been looking for a navy dress. It is similar, but a nice alternative, to a little black dress.  : ) Another feature of this dress I really liked (which unfortunately isn't shown in this picture) is that it has a piece of the fabric coming up the one shoulder, narrow at the base where it attaches to the dress and gradually widening until it reaches its widest point at the top of your shoulder. It is distinctive without being obvious.  Lastly, it has a little grosgrain ribbon of the same colour at the waist, which I think is a sweet touch. 

Adelphie Dress, Club Monaco

2. Christmas Wreaths

Although I would love to have a beautiful real Christmas tree, living in an apartment, it isn't so easy... : ) Instead, I rely on pretty wreaths. I have a large window in my living room, and every year, I hang three wreaths on the windows, a large one in the centre and two smaller ones on either side. I also always put one on the front door. 

3. Ivory Poinsettias

Along with wreaths, poinsettias are another one of my favourite Christmas decorations. I like poinsettias in red too, but white is my favourite colour and the large majority of my decorations are white or ivory, so that's why I chose ivory ones. I place one outside my front door on each side, and  then multiple ones all throughout the inside of the apartment. I think they look warm and inviting at Christmastime. : )

4. Christmas Ornaments

Although as mentioned above, I don't have a Christmas tree, I do still collect Christmas ornaments whenever I see one I like, whether it be from a nice store or from Wal-Mart. : ) My intention is that when I have a Christmas tree, I wanted it to have a collection of ornaments from different times. Plus, usually they are just too pretty to resist. : ) Sometime I will show you some of my favourites, but that is for another day. 

I probably should be going to sleep now, for a day of baking to Christmas music tomorrow. : )

I hope you have the most wonderful holiday and receive all of your favourite things and more.

Merry, Merry Christmas,

xoxo

P.s. I forgot one of my favourite things! Silver Bells. As pretty as real silver bells are, what I mean is the Christmas song, it is my favourite one. : )

Christmas To Do List

So every year around the holidays I like the make a little list to breakdown everything that I want/need to do. This is really just so I don't get overwhelmed - which would lead to me eating cookie dough out of the tube while holding myself and crying....haha, no. but really.

Here's the ol' list and the progress I've made so far. Everything in red is still a TO DO item that has yet to be crossed off. With less than a week away from Christmas, I think I'm doing pretty well though, right? right?

1. Decorate house for Christmas. Put up Christmas tree, hang stockings, put up garland on stair railing, hang wreath on door - DONE-ZO, woo to the hoo

2. Make Christmas Cookies - This was done, but the boy ate them all, haha. I guess I'll need to make another batch. I think I'll just do the peanut butter kiss blossoms because I bought an extra pack of Hershey's Kisses last time. Also, they're the easiest and yummiest :)

Sorry for the crappy cellphone pic. Promise I'll get a real camera soon :)

3. Christmas shopping.....still not done, just need to get three more gifts and then it's on like donkey kong. That will happen tonight, so I will soon be able to cross this off the list - HOUZA!

4. Present Wrapping - half way done this one. I think I might need to pull a 5 hour session outta my hat tonight to get this finished. At least all the homemade gift tags are done...sort of ;)

5. Make a pseudo holiday dinner for the boy and I on Wednesday. Why Wednesday? It's the only free day we have this week...eek! I've got all the groceries for this and plan on making chicken breast stuffed with stuffing (possibly wrapped in bacon?), mashed potatoes, carrots,  and broccoli. Sounds pretty good to me :) This will happen on Wednesday so I can't cross it off the list just yet :)

6. Plan breakfast for Christmas morning - One more thing I'm done. YAY. I'm making this lovely looking thing from Bacon Time with The Hungry Hungry Hypo. She suggests to top it with some salsa which I love, but I think I might make some hollandaise to go over the top.

Yummmmy...how awesome does this look?

And that's it....I think. Looking at this list makes me think that I'm missing something. Any ideas as to what I'm forgetting?

Tata for now. xoxo.

Be back soon

Cookie Monster Jam

Seasons greetings everyone!

I just get so excited around the holidays. Although it does get to be a little stressful, what with the crazy crowds in the malls shopping for presents, the ridiculous amounts of money spent, and packed schedules of friend and family gatherings - but the Christmas season just makes me simply giddy!

This weekend, the boy and I are heading to a Christmas dinner party with some friends. Our friend is quite the chef extraordinaire. This is his current menu, NOT even kidding!

{butter basted roast turkey}
{slow cooker honey glazed ham}
{pork sage and onion stuffing}
{garlic mashed potatoes}
{red white and purple roasted potatoes}
{sweet potato pie with a bread crumb and bacon topping}
{onion and bacon topped brussel sprouts}
{roasted carrots with brown sugar and parsley}
{sauteed green beans}
{yorkshire puddings}
{country style bread rolls}
{and an entire vat of gravy}

Four types of meat (including bacon and pork) and three types of potatoes !! WOW, how delicious and massive does that meal sound (kind of like the 12 days of Christmas song. haha)? Needless to say, I am pretty excited to have my first Holiday meal with great friends!

So that's on the agenda this weekend. I am also hoping to get all my holiday baking done as well. That is if I'm not in a massive food coma that lasts the entire day on Sunday :) Every year I usually try and make at least 4 types of cookies, last year, unfortunately, I didn't have the time OR the kitchen space to bake them. I've got two that I almost always make and two new ones that I'm going to try this year.

Here's my list of cookies that I'll be making this year.

1. Candy Cane Cookies

These are my absolute favourite. We always made these every year when I was a little kid, so they make me a little nostalgic. You can get the recipe here.

2. Peanut Butter Kiss Blossoms

I discovered these AMAZING cookies a few years back and have been making them ever since. The peanut butter and chocolate is an option that everyone loves and the cookies are so moist and flaky. It's like a little morsel of Heaven on your tongue! You can get on over to that recipe here.

3. Gingerbread Snowflakes


Photo via Cupcakes and Cashmere

How awesome do these look? I cannot wait to decorate this sweet little morsels. Although I'm not the biggest fan of gingerbread, this recipe is supposed to be the "best", so hopefully they will turn out well and I will finally find a gingerbread that I enjoy. These are originally from a Martha Stewart recipe found here

4. Sugar Cookies

Last but not least will be some fabulous sugar cookies. I always have trouble with the easiest cookie known to the baking world, but I try them every year (usually a different recipe every year). I really just enjoy making sweet Christmasy shapes and decorating them.  Here's to hoping this recipe will become a yearly tradition.

Now all I need to do is find a cheap DIY option for wrapping these up for gifts. Anyone have any good ideas for me? Does anyone else bake their cookies all at the same time, or do I sound like a crazy woman?

Tata for now. xoxo.

PS. Just don't tell Cookie Monster what's going on at my house this weekend. Otherwise, he might end up like this. Haha, that gets me every time.

Countdown Begins

So every year around Christmas time, my girlfriends and I get together and do some sort of Seasonal get together/party/etc.

This year will definitely be something to write home about. We are calling it "365 days in 24 hours" or put simply "A Year in a Night". Since we've all started getting older growing up into adults (yikes!)and moving up and out with our lives, I thought it would be a sweet idea to have a party where we could celebrate all the holidays that we will otherwise miss together.

It seems like quite a bit of work, but my girlies are worth it! Here's what the rough schedule looks like so far.

6 PM - Valentine's Day / Birthdays

7 PM - St. Patrick's Day

8 PM - Easter

9 PM - Thanksgiving

10 PM - Halloween

11 PM - Christmas

12 AM - New Years Eve

And the rest of the night will be spent mingling and catching up. There might also be some drinking involved ;)

At least I have a rough idea of what I'll be doing. Although I'm not 100% on what every holiday will consist of, I know for sure that we will be doing this:

Cupcake Buffet via

Wish me luck.

Tata for now. xoxo.

Me Likey

Hello All,

Thought I'd write a little list of my favourite things right now. It's getting colder outside and closer to Christmas (already Dec 1st, where did the time go? eek!) and we had the first snowfall yesterday. Thankfully there's no white covering on the ground yet and it's a beautiful sunny day today. But still - SNOW! Anyways, let's get this started.

1. Blistex Lip Medex

Such an awesome remedy for dry, cracked lips as the weather gets colder. I always keep one of these in my purse throughout the Winter months.

2. Hot Chocolate

Nothing beats a warm, chocolatey, whipped cream topped treat when it's cold outside. I have been going to this little coffee shop near work almost every day to get a large steaming cup. Best hot chocolate I've ever had!

3. Furry Blankets

Luxurious and uber comfy at the same time. I just ADORE these faux fur throws that are popping up everywhere (first from West Elm for $129.17, second from ZGallerie for $149.95), but they are a little out of this cheap lasses price range. I am dreaming of creating a DIY version - I'll let you know if and when how I did it. Ugh, don't you just want to curl up on the couch with one of these sexy throws. RAWR

4. Storage Wars and American Pickers

Yuuuup! I am excited to see how the Storage Wars Texas  will fare. And I just love those goofy dorks from American Pickers.

And that's all she wrote. Hope you all like the run-down of my go-tos at the moment (and soon to be united friends lovers - and by that, I think you know I mean a faux fur throw).

Tata for now. xoxo. 

Happy Dance

Sorry for the hiatus from posting. I have been very busy moving, unpacking, shopping, AND starting a new job. Lots of exciting changes for me.

Last week was spent organizing and buying all those little items you need for a new house that you just seem to forget about, but things are pretty much unpacked. Now just comes the organizing and decorating - my favourite part!! All I have to say about the new place is that I am absolutely smitten (as is the boy). It is the perfect size, and my little kitty seems to love the extra running room from my previous digs :)


Buy this super cute print here


I am off to do my happy dance and dream up some mood boards for all these extra rooms I have now. Be back later this week with some updates on that.

Tata for now. xoxo

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all : )

Oh dear… I have just realized that it’s been an awfully long time since we have posted on our little blog!

Owl has been busy busy moving and starting out at a new job (I hope you are keeping your fingers crossed for her, I know she will tell you about it all soon. : ) But for now, I just wanted to wish you a very happy American Thanksgiving tomorrow! : ) Although Thanksgiving is such a lovely holiday that there is no harm in sending nice wishes twice, to tell you the honest truth, I have always kind of liked the idea of celebrating Thanksgiving in November… I think it is the best of both worlds. The perfect combination of Fall and Christmas time. A marriage of pumpkins and holly. : )

Whatever your preference, I hope you have a wonderful day regardless!

xoxo

Lest We Forget

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. ~ Cynthia Ozick

Do you see what I see?

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas :) I love decorating for the holidays. A fully decked out tree, wreaths, DIY'd ornaments and all that jazz.

I have been amassing quite a collection of DIY ornaments and decorations I would love to make. I thought I'd compile a list for you...maybe you'll see something you like :)

1. Christmas Bunting

Taking some sweet vintage fabric or burlap to make some bunting to go above the fireplace, on a shelf, on the tree - basically anywhere you can think of, and this beauty will be sure to look goo-od. Add a sweet Chrismas saying and you're ready for the holidays.

All images via Etsy. You can buy these sweet little guys here, here, here and here

2. Ornaments Galore

Just a few ornaments I've picked out that I would love to recreate. These would look great hanging on a doorknob, from a garland on the window and of course on the tree. Number 1 is a sweet scrabble tile decoration. I can easily make this with those leftover scrabble tiles. Number two would be super easy. Get some cheapy glass bulbs, a sharpie and let your creativity soar. Stashing through the snow did make me quite giddy though :) And number three is just a beautiful delicate ornament that would look great in anyone's house. I would probable put these on doorknobs throughout the house.

 

Numero Uno - Can be purchased here



Number 2 via

Number 3 via



3. Wreaths

There are so many types of wreaths that you can make. Below are just a few of my favourite DIY ideas. Don't you just love the sparkle on that first one. mmhh..momma loves herself some sparkle.

Via

Via



Via

What are you all excited about for the Christmas season? Decorating? Shopping? Presents? Do tell.

Tata for now. xoxo.

I Object! : )

Another season of Project Runway has come and gone. Although I do enjoy all of the fashions, and am sad that it is over for a little while, the saddest part of all is that bitter taste that remains when you feel someone different should have won.

As much as I am ashamed to admit it, this is not an uncommon phenomenon for me when I watch TV shows about fashion. I can get a little… Engrossed? : ) This in combination with my narrow-mindedness in my inability to appreciate clothing that is neither simple nor minimal often leaves me disagreeing with the judges and disappointed in the end result. For example, Christian Siriano and I never quite saw eye to eye, hehe (though to my surprise, I think his Spring 2012 collection is kind of cute…)

So, if it wasn’t Anya Ayoung Chee (the winner of this season) who won me over, I’ll give you one guess as to who it was. If you guessed Olivier Green, you’re right! How did you know? : ) Could it be his neutral colour palette? Probably. His minimalism? Definitely. The structure in his designs? That too. His exceptional tailoring (shown below in the lovely blazer) is like the icing on top of an already elegant cake.

He was supposed to be designing for city women, but I really think he designed this blazer for me... : )

Like any relationship, there were some “rough waters”. : ) Times when I didn’t get his designs or thought he could have done better. But overall, I was a moth to a flame, and his is a flame I hope will only continue to burn brighter.

I’ll leave you with a few more of my favourites of his…

Mr. Green in the pet-supply store with sheepskin and wood chips. : )

Some people can think things are too simple, but I think there is no such thing. : )

xoxo

Junk in the Trunk

This week has been crazy busy for me. I am in the process of packing and moving and I've only got one week left at my current job. I am taking a new job and moving in with the boy in about two weeks! AHHH, so much to do, it's insane.

But anyways, back to what I bought and made last weekend. We went antiquing at a local flea market and I absolutely fell in love with a HUGE steamer trunk. Guess how much I got this sweet little honkin' lady for....15 buckaroonies. That's right! $15 bucks! I scored big time on this sweet arse trunk.

My beautiful steamer trunk for $15!!

I also mentioned in this post that I was going to be doing some DIY artwork. I finally decided on the striped minimalist art, but added some colour to make a more interesting statement piece. I think it turned out pretty well and will be hanging it somewhere (yet to be determined) in my new place.

Minimalist DIY Artwork.

Sorry for the crappy cell phone pics. I have packed away my camera, and cannot for the life of me remember where I put it :)

Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

Tata for now. xoxo

More of everything!

As I mentioned, the girls and I had an awesome time on the weekend. One of my favourite parts was the sushi. It was an all you can eat sushi and dimsum restaurant, which I absolutely adored. Here's a little look into our night on Saturday. Everything was so delicious, we just kept ordering more of everything.


Me and my gorgeous friend Kristina with a large platter of sushi :)

On Sunday morning, we had a lovely brunch of fresh fruit and croissants. Here's some pictures of our set up. Very girly indeed. Can you tell whose house this is?

All in all it was a great weekend, I know I've said that lots already... haha. I'll be back tomorrow to share what I bought and what I made :)

Tata for now xoxo

P.S. I finally gave Fawn her birthday gift. I got her this, this and a little faux crocodile makeup bag from H&M.

Sweetie Pie : )

I am kind of a nerd, and on my days off I really like to stay home decorating, organizing/cleaning, and most of all, watching all of those morning TV shows like Regis & Kelly. I always like to watch them because they make me laugh, and I always learn fun things like new recipes and decorating or fashion advice. : ) Today was especially one those days after having such a busy weekend with two of my very favourite people, but I know you will hear more about that later. ; )

This morning I was watching Rachael Ray, and I learned of a helpful (and probably very tasty!) recipe called Candy Pie.

I should probably mention that I love to bake pies, so I might be a little partial. Owl and some of our other friends can make the most beautiful and delicious cupcakes, but pies have always been my favourite thing to bake. : ) I have mastered classic apple pie and peach pie (I know it is awfully sweet, but I bake them for my dad - he likes peach pie : ), but there are still lots of pies I'd like to master such as cherry pie (for my mom), strawberry-rhubarb pie (for me), and butter tarts (for my dad again, hehe), because they are just like little pies, right? : ) As well as some fun pies, like this one. I am a little embarrassed that this idea never occurred to me before, because it is so simple, but I know of it now, and that is all that matters, I think. : )

Candy Pie

Any kind of candy you'd like (chocolate bars, peanut-butter cups, M&Ms, etc.)
1 pie shell (you can make one or buy a frozen one).
Milk or white chocolate, melted.

Put in any candy you'd like into the pie shell (if you are using lots of chocolate, you may want to pre-bake the pie shell for 10 minutes), and try and fill it to the top. It can help if you have stickier candies, such as ones with caramel, to make it all melt together better. Then, melt milk or white chocolate by putting chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave for 20 seconds, rotating the bowl every 10 seconds. Bake the pie for 30-40 minutes. While the pie is baking, make a "pencil", where you pour melted chocolate onto a piece of parchment paper, and roll the paper up. Then hold the rolled-up paper like a pencil and drizzle the melted chocolate over the pie when it comes out of the oven.

Although I love any reason to bake pies, I also like this pie because it is the perfect way to use up leftover Halloween candy. If you are anything like me, extra Halloween candy is just trouble, hehe. Have you ever seen the movie Waitress with Keri Russell where she bakes pies and gives them cute names? Well, if I were to give this pie a name, it wouldn't be "Candy Pie", it would be "All of This Candy is Goin' In, So I Don't Get a Big Butt Pie". It has a nice ring to it, don't you think? : )

With the warmest Halloween wishes!
xoxo

BOO

Did I scare you?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

This weekend was really awesome. Spent time with my girls, did some super fun crafts, ate tons of delicious sushi, bought some vintage items and had an overall much needed dose of girl time. I will be back tomorrow to let you know what I got/made, and further details on what we did.

Some delicious cupcakes the girls and I made over the weekend. Spooky goodness!

Prettiest Halloween decorations I've ever seen.

Hope you all have a spooktacular day.

Tata for now
xoxo

Artsy Fartsy

So I am having a girl's get together this weekend and I am uber excited about. We are going to be doing all the regular girlie things - watching chick flicks, eating junk food, going out for brunch and sushi. Needless to say, I am s-t-o-k-e-d! We're also going to fit in some other fun stuff like going to our favourite antique market, baking some cupcakes and doing some DIY stuff.

My lovely friend is hoping to make some Christmas decorations, I know it's early - but really, it's less that two months away (YIKES!). I, on the other hand am hoping to make a DIY art piece. I know that I want something for the living room, but I am not sure exactly what I want yet. I've got so many inspiration photos pinned on Pinterest, so I'll look there for some inspiration. Currently I am trying to decide between:

1. Minimalist Striped Art - I love the contrast in this, but I might want to look for something with a little more colour for the living room.

2. Black and white word art - Again, love the contrast of the black on white canvas, but I might need a little more colour. I do love this though.

3. Modern Art - Splash some colourful paint on a canvas and call it a day. I think that this might be my favourite one. I love the different textures and strokes of this. Hopefully I can recreate something just as rad.



Be back on Monday with a finished project. Hope it turns out :)

Tata for now. Can't wait for Friday!

xoxo

Campaign Dressers

I am in love with campaign dressers. The style, the elegance, the beauty - oh my. I have been on the look-out for one for some time now, but have never been able to find one. Damn you thrift gods, why won't you listen to me?!? Anyways, since I can't find one, I have decided to DIY my own campaign dresser. Similar to this one here:



Sigh...isn't she pretty? Found via

Ikea has a great line of untreated solid wood products that you can pretty much do ANYTHING you could ever think of with. I have already made over one of these bad boys into my nightstand which looks similar to the one below, and I just love it.

Similar to my DIY nightstand, only I used lion head drawer pulls. She's a looker :)

For this project however, I'm going to need two of the RAST bad boys, perhaps bolted together (not sure yet whether I want to do that or not).

So here's my recipe for a gorgeous campaign dresser of my very own:

1. IKEA Rast dresser @ $39.00 buckaroos - that's a steal. Of course I'll be using two of these

2. I am going for a dark blue/ light navy colour for my campaign dresser. It is just such a moody, delicious colour and I have always wanted to paint a piece of furniture this colour.

3. Various hardware pieces to spice this lady up. I've got gold and silver both pictured there, but that's just because I couldn't find a gold corner plate, please excuse :)

Be back with some photos after I've completed my project. Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

Tata for now! xox

Gliteratti

Inspired by one of my new favourite shows, Ringer, I have created a little outfit that would be prefect for these cool Fall days. Not only is this show full of intense drama, mystery and fashion, it's got one of my favs Sarah Michelle Gellar. I am so glad to see her back on TV. There has been a hollow feeling in my heart ever since Buffy the Vampire Slayer stopped playing...I am a loser, I know :) Anyways, I hope you enjoy this little ensemble I put together.
 

1. Via 2. Via 3. Via 4. Via 5. Via 6. Via 7. Via

1. Chase away those dark storm clouds with this awesome sequin skirt. Layered under a black knit sweater with some opaque tights allows this skirt to be transformed for a swanky day look.
2. This cozy, chunky knit sweater is perfect for the Fall. The textures of the skirt and sweater mix for a very interesting layering effect.
3. Keep those legs warm in these textured knit tights.
4. I chose these cute, lace-up flat booties - just because that's what I prefer,but this outfit would look just as awesome with a pair of platform booties.
5. This long, dangly gold necklace breaks up the black and adds a splash of interest up top.
6. A beautiful statement piece like this Michael Kors rose gold watch is a must-have. Perfect for everyday wear with a mix of bangles.
7. This bag is AWESOME! I really love how the fur adds another textured element to the outfit, without being too over the top. And the gray is a prefect contrast to the black and gold of this outfit.

Hope you all like this. What do you think about Sarah Michelle? Glad she's back, or is she old news?

Tata for now. xoxo