the big t.

Tomorrow Riis and I are going to Toronto.  I have been waiting for this trip for five months, and let me tell you....my Visa card is about to get an ass kicking unlike anything it has ever seen before.   

I can't wait!

welcome to margaritaville.

With summer fast approaching, I dug deep into my vast pool of cocktail knowledge and pulled up a cocktail recipe sure to please any margarita lover. 

A huge fan of the classic lime margarita, I figured that this Blood Orange Margarita would be a nice change of pace from the original.

Besides, after a long hot day at work, there is no better way to  unwind, than to kick off your shoes and enjoy a cocktail, jimmy buffet style.  

 

To start, salt the rim of a set of rocks glasses using a lime wedge, and very course salt. 

To a cocktail shaker, add:

- 2 oz tequila (Silver tequila works best for margaritas, try Sauza Blanco or Sauza Hornitos)

- 1 1/2 oz fresh lime juice

- 3/4 oz orange liqueur (I like Triple Sec)

- 1/2 oz simple syrup (make this by boiling one part sugar, with one part water, until sugar dissolves and a syrupy consistency forms)

- 3/4 oz blood orange puree

Garnish with a lime wheel, and a blood orange wheel.

Put on your summer dresses and enjoy!

fashionable to a "tea".

Always one for horoscopes and believing in destiny, I daily check my Tazo tea fortune, while having my Awake tea every morning. 

Today it said: "The journey will be long, wear sensible shoes."

I laughed out loud. I don't own sensible shoes. Even the shoes I wear to work aren't that sensible and this is probably why  my back hurts and my feet are covered in calluses and blisters, but so what. My shoes are fabulous and I don't care.

I was a little excited about the message though. I know that this coming year is going to be a big one for me.   New city, new school, new opportunities, new friends.  Trying to find  a balance between embracing these changes, and holding onto the things, and people I hold closest to my heart. I have a lot of insecurities, a lot of unanswered questions, a lot of fears, but so much excitement that I can hardly bear it. 

It's not just Toronto, the most fantastic city in the world, it's the fact that I am just one small step closer to being the person I want to be.  One step closer to having that dream job, and being completely, well, complete.  

I know that it's going to be a long journey, but I am positive that it will be a fabulous, fashionable journey, chalk full of very insensible footwear.

Because fashion, well, that's my destiny.

I really like the transition hollywood it girls are making these days.   It seems that all the former hard partying socialite/movie stars are trading in their heroin for chic style and grace. 

Nicole Richie went from being a spoiled, drug using wild child, to a loving, doting mom to her fifteen month old daughter Harlow Winter.  Now pregnant with her second child, it appears that Ms. Richie has shed her party hard ways for a sober life of domesticity, although never compromising her killer style.  I remember seeing pictures of her when she was eight months pregnant with Harlow, still sporting the 4 inch Louboutin heels.  She has an unwavering ability to look completely pulled together, whether she be rockin the red carpet, promoting her House of Harlow 1960 jewellery line*, or walking in LA with Joel and Harlow, she's rarely a fashion miss.  

Drew Barrymore was another Hollywood wild child.  In the public eye since the age of two, Drew was in rehab even before she turned twenty.  After a string of failed relationships, she has finally come into her own, and into her own style as well.  She has shed her hippie look for a more mature, bohemian meets rock and roll glamour that is entirely her own.  Instead of cringing at what Drew was sporting on the red carpet, I now look forward to see what she's chosen to wear.  As the face of Covergirl, she finally seems a lot more comfortable in her own skin.

I am so glad that these ladies have trading partying for fashion, because I love seeing what they will come up with next. 

*House of Harlow 1960 is now for sale at Holt Renfrew on Bloor Street, Toronto.

true confessions.

I just got back from Confessions of a Shopaholic.  I know, long over due.  I have been wanting to see it since it came out, but we always seem to make other plans, and I don't get out to the movies as often as I'd like to.  This was definitely a must see for anyone who has any interest in high fashion. Although it still doesn't even come close to Patricia Field's costume direction in the Sex and the City movie, it still has more than enough couture to please any aspiring fashion magazine editor, or budding fashionista. 

The costume designers did a fantastic job outfitting  Isla Fisher throughout the entire movie.  The fact that she is completely stunning, definitely helps, but the costume selection was perfect. She wore a ton of Yves Saint Laurent which you don't see very often, considering what a huge name this fashion house represents.   I have such a soft spot for YSL, especially after reading his biography, and  I particularly loved the scene in Barney's where Fisher's character picks out the stunning purple Gucci dress with the ruffled neckline, and pairs it with a stark white YSL trench.  When she walked out of the fitting room, I had to hold my breath. 

 

big sister comes to town.

You have no idea how excited I was to see that Anthropolgie, the big sister store to Urban Outfitters finally established it's first ever Canadian store.  It opened this week in Toronto, in Don Mills, and lucky for me, come August I will be an official Toronto resident.  Too bad you have to go all the way out to Don Mills & Lawrence to get a taste of anthropolgie's great finds.  I first visited this store in New York last October, and at first glance it does have a very distinct resemblance to Urban Outfitters. (When I found out they were related, I wasn't at all surprised).  The same bohemian, vintage vibe is a common denominator between both stores. 

Let's hope that the rumors are true, and a second location in Yorkville really does open up mid-summer.  

For now, check out Anthropologie, at Shops at Don Mills, at 1090 Don Mills Rd, at Lawrence, or more specifically at 19 Clock Tower Rd.  

breakfast at tiffany's. well, more like cocktails at tiffany's.

the theme was old hollywood glam.             and glamorous it was.

appetizers of smoked salmon canapes, baked brie cheese glazed in brown sugar, mini cheesecakes, and champagne.  

dressed head to toe in fur, pearls, diamonds, bird feathers and hats with veils my friends and I celebrated Haleigh's 23rd birthday in high style.  we've always loved themed parties, but this one was definitely my favorite.  i wish people still dressed like they did back in the time of marilyn monroe and audrey hepburn. i think one of the things i love the most about the movie breakfast at tiffany's, is audrey hepburn's wardrobe.  Her wide brimmed hats, her french twist hairstyle, her classic approach to the LBD, and her long strands of pearls; she pulls everything together so beautifully, so gracefully.

can't wait for the next themed party, so i can get in touch with one of my many style icons.