BIG NEWS BIG FUN

Okay y’all, hold on to your hats because we’re shaking things up. When January 1, 2011 rolled around I made a list of projects and goals and aspirations for the upcoming year. Let's not call them resolutions because no one ever keeps their resolutions. I didn't achieve my goals or follow through on most of my projects either. I mean, like, yeah, I did promise you more than nine blog posts in 2011 and it didn’t happen but that’s not important. But still, they weren't resolutions so just drop it, okay?

Well it’s now December 2011 and I’ve gathered the gumption to start one of the bigger projects on my list. I’ve been planning it all year so it’s not like I just abandoned it, but now is the time to DO rather than SAY. And I’m a big proponent for the old adage ‘actions speak louder than words’. I know the saying doesn’t really have anything to do with what I’m trying to get at but it has ‘actions’ and ‘words’ in it so whatever.

Well here it is then; I’m launching a website.

If I were fifteen, I might liken it to Rookie Mag, but I’m about a decade older (yikes!) so I’ll try not to divulge my desire to relive my teenage years too much. Really, it’s just a portfolio of what I can do. That is, a showcase of all the hobbies I’m not really that good at. The blog will live on and since I really do want to make something of this little chunk of the internet, I will update it at least weekly, pinky swear.

Also, who cares about the blog! What I’m most excited about is the monthly interviews I will be conducting. I’ll be drinking mimosas and drunkenly questioning fashion-, music-, and art-minded people that I think are totally rad. December’s interview is with one Miss Tammy Leung, personal assistant to Jeanne Beker, Editorial & Production Assistant at Fashion Television Magazine, and all around babe.

We will be launching BEFORE Christmas if I can get my act together and if my slave labourer of a web designer can find the time between studying for his exams and being nagged by yours truly.

In the meantime, here is my recipe for the best soft ginger cookies in the world (because baking is another one of those hobbies I'm just sort of okay at and also I don't think I've ever shared a recipe on my blog before and also because it IS Christmas time so why wouldn't you want ginger cookies?):

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The Best Big Soft Ginger Cookies (adapted from here)

• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsps ground ginger
• 2 tsps fresh grated ginger
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsps ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp orange juice
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 tsps white sugar to dust

1) Keep in mind that the spice blend can totally be adjusted. I like more spice. You can use less but I probably wouldn’t use less than half of the amounts listed above.

2) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F

3) Sift together the flour, ground ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Do this in a small bowl because you will just be dumping it into the large bowl you are using in the next step. But don’t dump it yet! Wait until I tell you to.

4) cream together the butter, which you have softened and cut up into little cubes, with the cup of sugar. I use a fork for this part because I don't have those fancy contraptions that cream things together for you. Anyway, try to get it super creamy and fluffy and a really pretty pale yellow.

5) Then add the egg, orange juice, fresh ginger, and molasses. I switch from fork to wire whisk at this point. This part is also kind of weird and off-putting because it smells real bad when the orange juice and molasses mix. Power through it because the results are delectable.

6) NOW you gradually stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. I usually add it in three parts.

7) Grab a hunk of dough and roll it into a walnut-sized ball but don't make it too smooth! You want those nice cracks that form when they bake, like in the picture.

8) Lightly roll this ball in the additional sugar and plop it on your baking sheet. The last time I made these cookies, I pressed them down ever so slightly but next time I think I will just let them sit in ball form because maybe that will make them extra fluffy, who knows.

9) Bake them for 8 minutes. EXACTLY 8. Well, maybe for less than 8 if you like but NEVER more. You're cookies will be hard and that’s gross.

10) When you take your cookies out of the oven, let them chill on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer them to a cooling rack.

11) Enjoy these cookies on their own, with milk, as an ice cream sandwich, topped with Fluff marshmallow and drizzled in chocolate, deep fried, crumbled into a crust for pumpkin pie, cut up into chunks and added to vanilla pudding, filled with icing and rolled in chocolate chips, and any other which way you like!

when i grow up i want to be: eloise at the plaza

who says you have to grow up?

acne relaxed blouse, jllu (etsy) grow up wool felt bow headband, the joyce hotel paris, see by chloe pleated crepe mini skirt, new kid horse bit loafer,

obsessed: exposed closets

with the beginning of the new year often comes a list full of generic resolutions that fall by the wayside by the time valentine's day rolls around. among these? be more organized! A little trick to help us stick by it (when it comes to our closets at least): air it like your dirty laundry! not only a great way to keep tidy and organized, it also makes any room look chic (given you've got taste... well maybe this isn't the best idea for everyone), and is great solution for a sans closet apartment (um...maybe the only solution).

(skona hem)

(me melodia)

(unknown)

(apartment therapy)

i particularly love the use of simple white walls with this look - it makes the clothes pop and become a focal piece in the landscape of the rooms. swoon.

how do you say these words?

roll, comfortable, orange, both, tour, toilet, sure, Nevada, roof, chocolate, route, drawer, coupon, Ramen Noodles, pecan, caramel, milk, again, Caribbean, wash, New Orleans, crayon, envelope, coffee, Reese's Pieces, data

literary forebears: william shakespeare

9 posts in 2010? here's shooting for 10 in 2011.

literary forebears: nabokov

unemployment pros: more free time
unemployment cons: less free cash flow

this creates the ultimate dilemma: more time to create but less money to do so. the lack of fancy software or other supplies doesn't mean you can't at least make the effort. even MS paint goes a long way. (ask my friend guy- he's a pro)

for the above, i just grabbed a photo, found a fitting literary quote and a decent font on MS paint (it is difficult, i won't lie) then laid it over the image. consider a longer quote to fill the entire image or simply one word that strikes your fancy.

words of wisdom: ernest hemingway

(an excerpt from an interview with the paris review, spring of 1958)

Q: Who would you say are your literary forebears—those you have learned the most from?

A: Mark Twain, Flaubert, Stendhal, Bach, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Chekhov, Andrew Marvell, John Donne, Maupassant, the good Kipling, Thoreau, Captain Marryat, Shakespeare, Mozart, Quevedo, Dante, Virgil, Tintoretto, Hieronymus Bosch, Brueghel, Patinir, Goya, Giotto, Cézanne, Van Gogh, Gauguin, San Juan de la Cruz, Góngora—it would take a day to remember everyone. Then it would sound as though I were claiming an erudition I did not possess instead of trying to remember all the people who have been an influence on my life and work. This isn’t an old dull question. It is a very good but a solemn question and requires an examination of conscience. I put in painters, or started to, because I learn as much from painters about how to write as from writers. You ask how this is done? It would take another day of explaining. I should think what one learns from composers and from the study of harmony and counterpoint would be obvious.

my dream bike

i was a really odd child. instead of playing outside with friends on hot summer days, i'd go to the library with my dad and sister and bring home a pile of books almost as tall as i was. but i was no baby genius, oh no, i wasn't reading tolstoy! the majority of my books were of the mystical persuasion; tarot cards, mind reading, astrology, and the most relevant to the story below, the interpretation of dreams.

much of what i gathered from these dream interpretation frameworks was, well, that much of it was bullshit. but some of the more serious books (the boring ones!) did point out the link between waking life and dreams. see, the story goes like this:

my friend guy had his bike sitting in my place for the past month; he was waiting patiently for the most opportune moment to come pick it up. the weather was delightful yesterday so why wait any longer? he mentioned to me that he had hoped he could get it tuned up in the near future. of course this sparked some kind of subconscious processes and i ended up having the most fantastic dream about the most fantastic bike, pictured here:

so check it, there i am at the bus terminal in kitchener waiting for the next 7 to roll around. i take a look around me and there he is! this guy! this guy with a great little handlebar moustache, surrounded by a glorious array of interior decor items and knick-knacks, and standing behind the sparkling bike. it was such a lovely scene, i had to approach him, and you know what i say? i kid you not, i said, word for word, "oh my god, how are you so awesome that you have that bike?" (damn my fan-girl ways! so embarrassing). he just looks at me for a bit, not saying anything and when he finally does, GET THIS! HE'S GERMAN! he can't understand a single thing i said! but dreams are magical, you know, and so this super nice girl comes out of the wood works and says she'll translate! cool! she tells him i think his bike is fantastic as i look around at his other belongings: a large wooden display frame filled with vintage beer bottles (inspiration for future apartment), a rustic industrial lamp, and a beaten up trunk.


after a brief, translated conversation, he went on his merry way and my dream progressed to stranger, more embarrassing territory. i do not wish to divulge anything more than it involved the jonas brothers and chat roulette. make of that what you will.

(postscript: the bike is from aurumania.com, its production was limited to 50, and the frame and forks are plated with 24-carat gold. oh yeah, and it costs 21,000 euros.)

stretsis daisy sunglasses

need. want. for those who love me, stretsis is sold at jac flash on queen west *wink wink*.

hm sustainable garden

everyone seems to be going goo-goo ga-ga over the new sonia rykiel collection for h&m but their excitement is causing them to overlook something just as fantastic in the horizon. at the end of march, expect to see a colourful, flowing, ethereal collection that serves as a gentle reminder that spring has indeed sprung. the garden collection, aptly named, strikes up images of prim english gardens with rosy textured numbers such as this:
as well as laid back country side pieces perfect for a leisurely stroll on your bike:
splashes of colour, like water paints, are perfectly incorporated into the collection and manage to create a style resistant to the pastels which litter the spring forecasts:Inspired not only by gardens, but also the aesthetic of the seventies flower child, the collection is a romantic as well as a...wait for it... SUSTAINABLE one. Despite their polished looks, each item in the collection is made with organic cottons and linens, recycled polyester (made from PET bottles!) and tencel (per h&m press release, 'a renewable material produced with minimal environmental impact').

check out the rest of the sunny collection at the collection's website: http://www.hmthegardencollection.com/

obsessed: joanna newsom

joanna newsom is the kind of girl i hate - talented, whimsical, and so naturally beautiful with her long flowing hair and skinny legs i can't help but be jealous. but as if all that wasn't enough, shes so fucking likable i want to scream because i'll never be that soft spoken or have that sweet, coquettish little laugh that draws people to me and makes them wonder what's going on in that pretty little head. that is to say, i wish i were joanna newsom. the little pixie is coming out with a new album on february 23, which i am most excited to hear, but i'm revelling in the cover art for now. my dream apartment interior decor scheme - cluttered fairytale.

as if the cover art didn't get me going enough, album details have me sitting on the edge of my seat: Have One on Me is a triple album (triple album!!!), it runs about 2 hours, and a most delicate song, kingfisher, can be streamed currently at drag city. i'm sure after listening you will see what all the fuss is about.

miss joanna also performed some songs live in australia about a month ago, below is 'easy' but you can find others on cloudedsunny's youtube page. perhaps you may be the next to see her live. she's gracing toronto with her presence on march 13 and plays back to back dates in montreal on the 14th and 15th.

contest part 1: winners

i finally got around to choosing winners for the contest, and although my methods may have been unorthodox i can't help to be compelled to think that the winners were meant to be.

you see, i said i would use random.org to choose winners and hey, i went there! the only thing is, i don't have a subscription so i couldn't use the third-party draw service but the random number generator was in the sidebar so i decided i'd run it twice instead. each entrant was given a number equivalent to the sequence in which they entered. the first number thrown back was 1 which was cool, yea. and then the second one was 2 at which point i started to get annoyed. i know, i know random is random and any sequence is only coincidental, but gosh darn statistics get me everytime! i just had to cheat and run a function in excel because 1 and 2 simply didn't feel random enough (i know! quit hastling me over it!). you know what i got thrown back by excel?! 1 and 2! things were getting eerie now, was i doing it wrong?! i just had to use another program to get random numbers again and considering there were 6 entrants i thought, hey! virtual dice! duh! and the goshdarn thing rolled 1 and 2 again. i quit there, it must have been meant to be and so it is!

after all, congratulations to Lola and Reece! i will be in touch to deliver the cards.

stay tuned for part two of the contest coming friday/saturday (don't hold me to it)

contest part 1: the ampersand card

growing up, my parents were always making promises they could never follow through on. i always thought they made these promises with the intention of breaking them and i swore i'd never become one of those people. lo and behold, i've become just like my parents, as everyone eventually does, and i've started to make promises i find increasingly difficult to fulfill. i've come to realize that they did intend to keep their promises but unexpected obligations would arise and, poof! there goes the disney land savings fund. similarly, i did have every intention of posting the contest on this blog days ago but things came up! a broken backlight on my laptop for example, or a missing usb cord to transfer photos from my camera to my backup computer. and listen, i hate being that person to make excuses but damn it, i think i deserve to this time! i spent over $50 to make this blog entry today! (kinkos = assholes). in conclusion, please forgive the delay and enter the contest so i know it was all worth it!

now for the contest details

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with valentines day approaching i thought it was only appropriate to make the prize valentines themed and i also wanted to put my printmaking skills (or lack there of) back to use. up for grabs are 2 valentines cards (approx. 15 cm x 15 cm) with this sexy little pin up on a background of ampersands.


relation between the two, you ask? well take a look inside! perfect for that special someone you just can't get enough of!


to enter, simply send me a message, or leave a comment below that says 'enter me' along with some valentines day musings. you must have a blogger account so i can message you if you have won and we can arrange delivery. for those in waterloo, we can exchange in person, and who knows - maybe i'll have some baked treats for you as well. to select the winners, i will enter all the entrants into 'random.com' and select 2 winners from there.

the last day to enter is monday february 8 but stay tuned for part two of the giveaway within the next couple of days - there will be 3 more cards available following the same theme but with a different design.

exes and ohs!

fancy hands/the woodlands

remember that month where i updated on a semi-regular basis? and then there was that time where it was new year's eve and i though 'hey! my resolution is to update my blog at least twice a week!' and then, as is to be expected, i didn't follow through. it happens. i'm sorry! really, i am!

wanna know what i'm gonna do to make it up to you? first, i'm going to give you a fancy little post right below!

and the bestest part....

i'm going to bedeck you with gifts! real, tangible gifts! real, tangible, handmade with love GIFTS!

in the coming week, i will post exact details of the giveaway prizes and how to enter the contest but in the meantime i want you to be prepared. all you need to do is make sure you're a follower of 'share your love' so get your blogger account set up, click the little follow button, and wait in anticipation for free shit! yesss! and now, without further ado....

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two summers ago, when i was a religious sartorialist follower, i came upon this snap of hipster crowd-favourite, cc sheffield. yes, her hair is the best (that fringe!) and her romper is the perfect mix of sexy and cute, but that's all secondary. HER HAND! look how she uses an intricate henna (mehndi) design on her hand to jazz up an otherwise plain and simple outfit!

ever since seeing that picture i've been determined to make my way down to gerrard street and get my own little 'tattoo' in the heart of toronto's india bazaar. as with all my other exploits, i've delayed the event (right now i'm waiting for the warm weather to return, you see)! to bide myself over until then, i've been scouring the net for other fancy hands ideas. look what i found!

it's a handchain by the woodland and it rules! forget that its paired with that bad ass ring or killer fur (har har), that chain manages to be so rocker yet so dainty, all on its own. the woodland also makes full body chains - please and thank you!

but now as i patiently wait for the summer when the henna artists set up their booths along gerrard street, i'll be loading my fingers with rings instead.

what's the point in trying when a 13 year old is always there to put you to shame

oh, tavi! you tiny little thing, so excited by obscure garments, not yet disillusioned. i envy you. with a body 10 years younger than my own yet style and courage beyond your years, you put me to shame.

pop quiz time! above is a photo of Tavi...

a) taken by Autumn DeWilde
b) taken at the Rodarte studio in New York
c) taken the night of the Pop party during Fashion Week

trick question. all of the above. yea. i know.

check out tavi's blog here

advent calendar: caroling

everyone has a classic christmas song they deem their favourite but i tend to prefer new originals or reworked versions of the classics. below are five festive favourites:

my morning jacket - come closer
although this was not originally a christmas song, the band reworked some of the lyrics for a radio session in which 'soldier' is replaced with 'santa' and 'who told you that you left me amazed' with 'you told me that you'd bring me a gift'. a melancholy song, certainly, but with the right amount of bells jingling in the background its been transformed into a winter time favourite of mine.


belle and sebastian - 12 days of christmas
another live session, belle and sebastian play their version of the 12 days of christmas with a joyful bounce and playful sounds in the background.


sufjan stevens - come on! let's boogey to the elf dance!
his religious background only makes it fitting that his christmas songs collection ranges over 5 albums, all containing a mix of christmas classics and his own original songs. come on! let's boogey to the elf dance! is an upbeat charm of a song listing everything associated with christmas, from sleigh bells and elves to jesus and mary.

run dmc - christmas in hollis
the video says it all! pure merriment and mirth!

and my all time favourite is

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badly drawn boy - donna and blitzen
i find something so infectious about this song i can't help but listen to it on repeat. it reminds me of all the warmth and happiness one can find in love and how magical it feels to be falling in love, maybe even more so than seeing reindeer fly through the night sky. sublime and romantic, will you be the blitzen to my donna?


ALSO SEE:

• a sadder sufjan, one we are more accustomed with, yes? did i make you cry on christmas (well you deserved it!) is heartbreaking but one of the most relatable christmas songs out there.
• fairytale of new york is a classic christmas tune for the punk rock set brought by the pogues with some unexpected lyrics which surely won't conjure up warm thoughts of christmas for most.
• the raveonettes set the scene of a winter wonderland in the fairytale of a song, simply titled the christmas song
  

advent calendar: decorating with martha

etc.

advent calendar: wish list item three

the museum of modern art (MoMA), in new york, currently has a series of workshops based on the bauhaus, an art movement of the early 20th century founded by architect walter gropius. an all encompassing school of art - the ideology being that all art should be seamlessly integrated with everyday life - it heavily influenced what we now know as industrial design. the schools output can be thought of as almost didactic in nature. the artists', which included mies van der rohe, wassily kandinsky, paul klee, and piet mondrian among others, created output ranging from works of architecture, to furniture, to paintings and beyond.

while reading the list of workshops offered at the MoMA(even though im not in new york, nor plan to be in the near future), i caught sight of the 'bauhaus bags: design your own tote' lab and was immediately intrigued. the idea of painting your own tote design may seem lacklustre, but on further thought one can see the immediate connection with the bauhaus movement. the tote bag itself is a simple design, a square carryall made of simple canvas but that's the very idea behind bauhaus:

take those everyday objects in your life and create art...
make them something above and beyond a stairwell, or a telephone...
create something in which the user can find joy and ease interacting with...

so for these reasons, my wish list item #3 is none other than a personalized tote. i dont think i like anything more than personalized and carefully thought out gifts, made from the heart and id love to find a bauhaus inspired tote bag under the christmas tree this year. what other personalized gift ideas do you have?

check out the MoMA video accompanying the workshops below:

advent calendar: candy cane hot chocolates

a canadian through and through, i wait patiently every year for two very important events: tim hortons rrroll up the rim, and candy cane hot chocolates. while the former generally leaves me cross (two cups of coffee a day for weeks on end and not a single prize won!), the latter never fails to make me smile. whats better, i've recently learned how to make it at home (no need to trek through meter high snow!)

there are many recipes out there - a quick google search will prove it - i like to make mine by adding a peppermint tea bag to a cup of hot cocoa and crushing up little candy canes into that mixture. garnish as you wish but i'd suggest a mound of whipped cream and generously sprinkled with crushed candy canes.

photo credit - ginnerobot

now grab your favourite book or turn on your favourite holiday movie, get the fireplace roaring, cuddle up in that snuggie, and enjoy!

advent calendar: wish list item two

nylon's garcon-célèbre du jour and the rightful holder of all little girls' hearts (take that robert pattinson), zac efron promises to make every day in 2010 a delight. Ring in a very sexy new year with the 2010 ZE calendar. my only complaint? not nearly enough topless snaps!

available at amazon for $12.19! who says love don't come cheap?