Wow.

Fashion photography has to be one of my favourite things in life.  Shoes.  Impressionist painting.  Yoga.  Ballet.  Fashion photography.  That may just be my short list of true loves.

A gorgeous shot I stumbled upon reading back posts on Cupcakes and Cashmere, a personal favourite site:

It's just...breathtaking.  The gorgeous wallpaper, the blunt bangs, the pale, romantic pieces mixed with sophisticated charcoal and black.  It has a whimsical feeling that for me, is reminiscent of being a little girl playing in mom's closet.

-S.

Image courtesy of Cupcakes and Cashmere

Beauty Arsenal

A few of products I can't seem to live without:


(1) Kinerase Intensive Eye Cream

I pretty much always have a tube of this little potion within arm's reach.  I consider it a rescue after a long night slinging drinks behind the bar.  It's gentle, light, yet moisture-rich and totally brightens my eyes making me look rested and fresh.


(2) Nars Blush in Orgasm

Another "I really need to look rested" favourite.  It's the perfect pale shade of pink, complimentary to every skin tone.  On days where I really want to skip the makeup routine but want to look slightly polished, I'll just dust this stuff on the apples of my cheeks, blending out towards the temples.  During the winter, I'll often go a little heavy with the stuff on a Sunday afternoon of brunch and shopping.  I love the slightly frost-kissed look it gives my face.


(3) Big Fat Hair.  Zero Calories.

 I struggled with hairspray for years before a girlfriend introduced me to this stuff.  And I'll never use another hairspray again.  In fact, should it ever be discontinued, I will probably be in a frenzy that will put the sponge-crazy Elaine to shame.  It's just.  Perfection.  Light and comfortable (provided that you don't use a heavy hand), but with a hold that is just incomparable.  Curls actually hold for a couple of days!

(4) Bonnebell LipLites in Vanilla Swirl

  I realize that this might be the most juvenile beauty addiction of all time, but I don't care!  I can't live without these.  They're deliciously flavoured, delightfully, scented, never goopy, super-moisturizing, and under $7 to boot!  I always seem to have a few floating around in my purse, makeup bag, and my apartment.

What beauty loot can you not live without?


-S.

Autumn inspiration- butternut squash and chorizo soup

When the weather takes a drastic chilly turn, I always crave comfort food to make me feel warm. Inevitably, I turn to soup. Last year I attempted soup from scratch for the first time, and luckily the results of my cauliflower and walnut soup were so easy and fantastic, it's kept me searching and attempting new recipes ever since.

One of my key secrets for soup is home-made vegetable stock. I take all my not-quite-so-fresh veggies, ends and peels and put them in a plastic container in the freezer. Peppers, onions, tomatoes, carrots....peels, seeds and all. Just throw them all in and freeze them together. When the container gets full, I put everything in a big soup pot with a gallon or two of water, one or two bay leaves, garlic, salt and pepper and let it boil then simmer for a few hours until it has a nice rich veggie flavour. Add some thyme or basil if you like, play with different herbs until you find the perfect flavour for you. I take some of it and freeze it in ice cubes so I can add small doses of flavour to things like rice or sauces, and freeze it in larger tupperware to add to my soups. One of those oh-so-easy ways to add some from-scratch flavour and a great way to use those bits of veggies you'd just end up throwing out.

I'm pretty experimental when it comes to trying new things in my kitchen. I'll look up a few recipes online, maybe ask the chef at work how he does things, get a good feel for the basics of how this new thing will be made...and then I just kinda wing it. Which is what I'm currently doing with my butternut
squash and chorizo soup. A friend brought some into work not to long ago and it smelled so delicious, I knew it would be my next foray into the world of soups.

Pretty simple too....just roast the squash, cook the chorizo with some onion and garlic, throw it in a pot with my veggie stock and blend it with my hand blender. I threw in a bit of cream and some curry powder, salt and pepper and it turned out like a dream. I'm not much for exact measuring...so i can't really be exact with a recipe but there's tons online that would help you through if you were thinking of attempting the same.

I'm going to curl up with a big bowl of soup and a movie now...until next time, bon appetit!

k.

Winter Whites

Nothing says chic in winter quite like a pale colour scheme on a grey, snowy day.  Pale hues contrasted with shiny hair and rose-stained cheeks immediately bring to mind thoughts of sleigh-rides in the park, bundled-up strolls through artsy shopping districts, and sipping warm, spicy red wine in a comfy sofa perched next to the buttercream-coloured French doors of Hank's, watching chilled pedestrians scurry by.  All-in-all, this sartorial colour scheme is about as magical as thickly layered winter essentials can possibly be.


I think that the key to pulling this look off seamlessly is to avoid stark while, utilize a variety of textures within the fabrics, and blend blend blend several neutral shades.  I love love love the image above for it's pale grey boots, off-white skirt, and pale camel jacket.  It's the perfect combination of hues, creating a warm, sensual effect that actually contrasts the weather, rather than blending into it.  Parfait!


-S.

3.1 Phillip Lim A/W 2010

 Rochas A/W 2010

 Maison Martin Margiela A/W 2010

Images courtesy of Nast; Style.com

Rainy Monday

Maya's image from Turned Out is all kinds of inspirational for me this morning (okay, it's 12:23pm.  Pssh.  Whatever).  It's a lazy rainy Monday here in Toronto and my plans for the day include lunch with my roomie and our friend, K at a Vietnamese place nearby, followed by roomie and I painting our living/dining room in preparation for the holiday season (we're thinking slate gray with some off-white accents.  Later on, it will be a ballet class for me and then a casual Monday dinner on the couch (I have promised the roomie a vegan cream-of-mushroom soup, she has promised a whole-grain crusty, buttery loaf of bread).  All I want for all of the events of today is everything that is this picture!  Not just the delicously comfy-cozers looking knit, but the umbrella, the monochromatic aesthetic, and that generally romanticized feeling that one can only really have on a lazy rainy Monday.  Yum.

-S.

Image courtesty of turnedout.tv

Behind the Brand: Lanvin’s Alber Elbaz

In honour of Lanvin’s collaboration with fast-fashion megabrand H&M (which was released and quickly sold out yesterday morning), I thought Lanvin would be a fun choice for this week’s Behind the Brand.  I showed up way late at H&M yesterday, after lazily sleeping away the morning, only to be informed that the collection had sold out in Toronto within thirty minutes of the store opening.  I got lucky, though, and spotted a young man returning a beautiful dress from the collection (nude and black silk layered with silk chiffon—size two), which I quickly snapped up and ran home with.

Elbaz has been at the head of Lanvin (the oldest fashion house in Paris) since 2001, with experience at labels Geoffrey Beene, Guy Laroche, and Yves Saint Laurent under his belt.  Born in Morocco, raised and trained in Israel, and having lived in New York and Paris, Elbaz’s experience is broad, to say the least.  He’s known for treating rigid fabrics (faille, satin) to slightly deteriorate them making them loose and wearable.  Elbaz loves asymmetry in fashion as well, often creating pieces that balance on one shoulder, or possess an uneven hemline.  Elbaz has modernized Lanvin (both the clothing, and the boutiques and packaging), but has also maintained much of the tradition—both of the fashion house and of established dressmaking techniques.  He recently told Style.com that: “The whole idea is to find this kind of harmony between newness and tradition, between yesterday and today. It’s not just about being modern and high-tech and going forward. In order to go forward you have to have some base, you have to come from somewhere.”

Never afraid to play with colour, Elbaz’s collections range from monochromatic, to flowing layers of orange, fuschia, and aquamarine.  His cuts range from conservative and modest to bombshell body-baring, with a body-conscious aesthetic visible in every piece.  For a designer who claims not to be cool, Elbaz’s cool-quotient is through the roof.

His collaboration with H&M has been somewhat unexpected, seeing as how the designer had previously vowed that he would never do a lower-end collection.  His capsule collection for H&M, he claims, has been different.  Rather than Lanvin going cheap, H&M has gone luxury, according to the designer.  As I slip into my new dress designed by the legend—with its exposed zipper running down the back, delicate beading, and layer upon layer of deliciously detailed fabric, I could not agree more.

-S.

 Lanvin Autumn-Winter 2010

 Lanvin Spring-Summer 2011

 Lanvin for H&M

Images courtesy of Style.com

Wednesday's Want: Voluminous Neck Pieces

Dries Van Noten, A/W 2010

Met my friend, K, for lunch today at Nirvana, a cozy, inexpensive Hipster haunt in downtown Toronto.  We had the most amazing conversation over green tea, Greek omelettes, and croissants.  We discussed blogs, the evolution of the blogger, and our general attempts at creative output, and specifically, turning such creative output into a financially rewarding career.

After lunch, K jumped on the streetcar heading to work and I decided to take a late-autumn stroll home.  The weather in Toronto has dipped in the last few days.  Or, at least, the sun has disappeared for the last few days.  Rather than being bright, crisp, and airy out, it has been windy, overcast, and gloomy.  To many, this change in the climate is a harbinger of the winter deep-freeze to come.  To yours truly, it is the exciting reminder of those precious couple of weeks in late-November when it is still acceptable to venture out without a winter coat, but essential to bundle up with an extra layer or two.  Yeah, it's stylish scarf season.  For the next two weeks, before the heavy wool-and-cashmere coats come out of hibernation, this blogger will be galloping about town in Frye boots, autumn-coloured tights (think hunter green, burnt orange, and plum), simple, flowy monochromatic mini-dresses topped with chunky, charcoal-coloured cable-knit boyfriend sweaters cinched at the waist with a feminine belt.  To complete the look and add that necessary extra warmth, scarves, wraps, (faux) furs, and knits become the neck-protecting focal point of the ensemble.

A few favourites, on this particularly breezy Wednesday:

Cheap Monday Plaid Scarf

Adrienne Landau Raccoon Fur Loop

Missoni Loose-Knit Scarf

 

Bring on the chill.


-S.

Images courtesy of Style.com, Shopbop.com, and Bergdorfs.com.

foodie: a definition.

food·ie noun \ˈfü-dē\

Definition of FOODIE

: a person having an avid interest in the latest food fads

Examples of FOODIE

1. The restaurant is very popular among foodies.

“I wish I could eat every meal with you.” is not a romantic proclamation in my world, it’s simply a comment I hear at least once or twice a month. The compliments I get paid most often all have to do with food. Not necessarily about my skills as a cook either, although I do love serving up a tasty meal, but most of them have to do with the passion I have for food. I LOVE it. I eat more than probably anyone I know, sample the wares at different restaurants almost every day of the week, and still try to make time to cook. It’s the passion for food that my friends end up appreciating and that customers of mine, or people that haven’t eaten with me before really take note of. Which is why when Sarah and I initially started talking about starting a blog, I told her the only thing I was really qualified to talk about was...food. 

From Wikipedia:

Distinguished from gourmet

Although the two terms are sometimes used interchangeably, foodies differ from gourmets in that gourmets are epicures of refined taste who may or may not be professionals in the food industry, whereas foodies are amateurs who simply love food for consumption, study, preparation, and news. Gourmets simply want to eat the best food, whereas foodies want to learn everything about food, both the best and the ordinary, and about the science, industry, and personalities surrounding food.

I’ve worked in restaurants since I was 15 and despite how pretentious it sounds for a ‘bartender’ to say this, I consider myself a professional in my field. I’ve been doing this for more than half my life, serving, bartending and managing restaurants and bars, but despite my extensive experience I would guess that to many, I’m not really ‘qualified’ to talk about food. I’m not a chef, I’ve never taken a cooking class past grade 8 home ec, and I honestly couldn’t whip up more than the most basic meals until a few years ago. But even before I could cook, I  would get incredibly excited about new food trends and old food trends alike. Attempting home-made jam for the first time was a big deal for me, as was the first time i steeped my own bitters; the first time i guessed a wine in a blind tasting was incredibly exciting and new dishes I try while dining out will have me gushing for weeks. ‘Gourmet’ doesn’t matter to me, ‘fine dining’ is simply a style of service, and I don’t care how expensive a glass of wine is, I care about how it tastes, where it comes from and the experience I have drinking it. 

So there. I’ve said it. I’m a foodie. I admit it and adore it. My friends and family will always have to sit through my new experimentations with food, my poor boyfriend has to endure grocery shopping with me (such an event! not to be taken lightly....) and my guests will benefit from my random knowledge of charcuterie and cheese. 


K.

Behind the Brand: Balenciaga’s Nicolas Ghesquière

          In 1997, designer Nicolas Ghesquière was handed the reins of luxury fashion house Balenciaga.  The house, having been established in Paris by Spaniard Cristóbal Balenciaga in 1937, had been in purgatory since the death of its namesake in 1972.  Balenciaga had been hailed as “the master of us all” by Christian Dior—a hard act to follow.  It was, as such, a surprise to the fashion world when Ghesquière—just shy of twenty-six years old—was promoted from licensing designer to head designer for the brand.
          Within a few short seasons, Ghesquière was being touted as “the most intriguing and original designer of his generation.” (Herald Tribune, 1998), “one of the bona fide stars of Paris: his influence is everywhere.” (New York Times, 2000), and “the most powerful man in fashion today.” (Vogue, 2001).  From his first collection for the house (Spring/Summer 1998), Ghesquière’s aesthetic was a conservative alignment to the tradition of Balenciaga’s feminine silhouettes and easy-to-wear cuts, juxtaposed with sharply architectural pieces and masculine, motorcycle-inspired embellishments.  Ghesquière pays constant homage to his predecessor, recreating Balenciaga’s minimally-seamed and darted construction, staying true to his love of bell skirts and clearly-defined waists, and modernizing the namesake’s artful approach to carefully manipulated, voluminous ruffles and frills (originally inspired by the bull-fighters of Spain).  His collections of motorcycle bags (especially the coveted Lariat), just celebrated their tenth birthday, and have become the It-bag, slung in a potpourri of colours over the arms of everyone from Nicole Richie to Carrie Bradshaw to Carla Bruni.
          Ghesquière was born in 1971 in the small town of Comines, Nord-Pas de Calais, France.  By the age of twelve, he was filling notebooks with drawings of fashion designs.  At fifteen, Ghesquière spent a summer interning at Agnès B., and at eighteen was hired as an assistant at Jean-Paul Gaultier.  Having no formal training in fashion design or textiles, Ghesquière’s approach to line, silhouette, texture, and trend seems to be intrinsic, constantly reinventing classic shapes and styles and interweaving them with modern nuances.   
          Now 38, Ghesquière, like Balenciaga before him (and unlike many of his contemporaries), shies away from the spotlight.  He seeks neither fame nor infamy, and currently has no plans to launch an eponymous label.  He recently confessed to designer Tom Ford in a conversation for Interview magazine that: “I have no idea what I would do for my own collection.  I give so much of myself for Balenciaga that today if you put me in a room and said ‘okay, let’s try to do a Nicolas Ghesquière project,’ I wouldn’t be able to do it.”  For the multitude of women who covet Ghesquière’s designs for Balenciaga season after season, his desire to stay put is sublime. 

-Sarah

Balenciaga Resort 2010

 Balenciaga Autumn-Winter 2010

 Nicole Richie carries "The First Classique"