My new favourite Room

The Room at the Bay is the Canadian department store's newest addition to its up-scale re-branding initiative. At the moment, the Room is only at the store's Toronto and Vancouver locations; yet, it is quickly becoming the toughest competition the closely located up-scale department store, Holt Renfrew, has faced in years in these two cities.

A couple of weeks ago I visited the Room at it's Vancouver location and experienced the innovative approach the Bay is taking to further the evolution of the brand first hand. Similar to an art exhibition, the Bay has curated the Room beautifully to display designer collections from around the world in a way that showcases the details and themes of each specific collection. I was especially inspired by the Akris Punto Spring collection, which featured exquisitely tailored dresses and a very fabulous structured leather jacket. A kaleidoscope of mauve, tangerine, yellow and pink dots adorned my favourite dress and the perfect addition to my spring wardrobe (pictured below). Although the majority of the pieces at the Room are "slightly" outside of my price range, I left feeling inspired and satisfied. So next time you're in Vancouver or Toronto, visit the Room yourself, and let fashion do what it does best, inspire.

wouldn't you rather be on the beach?

Deborah Lippmann's nail-polishes are coveted by it-girls, celebrities and fashionistas alike. Not only does the brand boast a unique variety of shades to choose from, Lippmann polishes also lack the harmful chemicals present in the majority of mainstream formulas (toluene, DNP and formaldehyde). I recently discovered the shade "On the Beach," and have since deemed it my go to summer nail color. This oceanic shade rouses images of crystal clear water off the coast of maui and I like to think of it as my own little slice of paradise in the form of a manicure. I may not be relaxing on a beach in maui with a tropical drink in hand, but a girl can dream right?

Image courtesy of http://lippmanncollection.com/2011dl/index_new.php

inspired by honest by

Launched this January, Honest by is a new e-commerce fashion platform with a fabulous concept: sustainably made fashion for the conscious and stylish consumer.  In collaboration with new & talented designers, Honesty by offers eco-friendly winter and summer collections year round to accommodate every fashionista's climate. Each garment is made as sustainably as possible, and "with consideration for all beings." I love their new collection by Calla. Here 's a snippet of the collection, modeled by one of my favorite fashion bloggers, Natalie Joos.

Images courtesy of Honest by

The Honest by Philosophy:

"We want to give our customer the opportunity to shop with complete awareness of what they are buying. We respect the environment, we take the world's climate challenges seriously. We believe in the health of our clients skin. We want the impact of our products and activities on the environment and human health to be as small as possible. We believe in animal welfare."

Chocolate Chip Cookies

There are countless recipes for chocolate chip cookies out there to choose from, but I was particularly impressed by this one from Tate's bakeshop. The cookies had the perfect balance of chewiness and crunch. I even froze half the recipe for instant cookie fixes (ie. easy desert for entertaining, to combat studying woes). It's super simple, just spoon the batter out on a cookie sheet, freeze until hard, then throw them in to a tupperware and back in to the freezer until needed.

Tate's Chocolate Chip Cookies

(slightly adapted from http://goop.com/newsletter/38/en/) 

2 cups flour (whole wheat pastry worked great for me)

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. vanilla 

1 tsp. water

2 eggs (slightly beaten)

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together flour, baking soda & salt. In a separate bowl cream together the butter and sugars. Add vanilla, water & eggs. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spoon about a tablespoon of batter on to prepared baking sheets (should make about 40 cookies) and bake for 8-12 minutes, depending upon how chewy or crunchy you like your cookies. 12 minutes worked perfectly for me. Let cookies cool on wire racks.

Ps. these cookies are fabulous with a glass of milk or my personal choice-- a beautiful latte from my new favourite espresso bar Pikolo, on Parc and Sherbrooke. 

Have a great Halloween weekend! I'll be spending mine dressing up as a pirate and making home-made peanut butter cups. 

Feminine's in for Spring

I'm loving the femininity and movement embodied  in this Spring's RTW collections. Louis Vuitton showcased 60's inspired eyelet looks on a dreamworld of a runway, while Valentino's collection featured delicate plaited hair, sheer long layers and bold shoulders. My favorite looks were found on Alexander McQueen's runway. The dramatic ruffles and silhouettes of the structured gowns and floral dresses in the collection were utterly fabulous.

Eyelet and Feathers at Louis Vuitton

Lemon drop 60's inspirations at Louis Vuitton

Scarlet drama at Valentino

Beautiful colour combinations at Valentino

Floral ruffles at McQueen

Cascades of shimmering gold ruffles at McQueen

All images courtesy of www.style.com

The Perfect Shade for Fall

I can't get enough of Chanel's new Peridot nail polish (it also doesn't hurt that it's my birthstone). The shade is an iridescent combination of gold and green, and i must say, it is just fabulous. The perfect way to jazz up your mood and your outfit on a cloudy fall day. Enjoy!

Image courtesy of http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/chanel-le-vernis-nail-colour/2826973?origin=category&resultback=101

Fall Recipes To Try

Fall is my favorite time of year. The fashion is fabulous, the colors outside are inspiring and the seasonal produce is fantastic. Who doesn't love pumpkins, apples and pears? Here are some comforting recipes I plan to make use of the local fall food fare with...

French Onion Soup

Butternut Squash, Ricotta & Sage Crostini

Butternut Squash Tortellini

Images courtesy of http://www.bonappetit.com/ & http://www.foodnetwork.com/