Spy Girl

When searching for the first place of my own, I didn't care about square footage, or building amenities, I wanted a balcony.

My current view doesn't sweep across the geometric Toronto skyline, and it doesn't stare at a body of water, or a wild forest. Instead, it faces a narrow alleyway where I can see a sign for a dental office, and a dry cleaner. Adjacent to me are two apartment buildings.

I can see inside other people's lives, while they watch The Toronto Maple Leafs lose win play another hockey game, or as they step outside to smoke a cigarette. I can see people shaking their sheets to make their bed. My view has an Alfred Hitchcock Rear Window kind of feel, minus murder, binoculars and Grace Kelly. I'm not trying to pry, it's just right there.

When I was a kid my hero was Harriet the Spy.

She was always writing things down with her scratchy pencil in her black and white notebook. She observed the world in her own way. She was brave. While Harriet got busted by her friends when they found her notebook, I know better than to have my personal thoughts lying on my kitchen table. Instead, I have password protected word documents. While I do have this blog, I am a very private person. Even after five years of writing, I still struggle with sharing my thoughts and photos publicly.

While I'm not a professional spy, I sometimes dress like one. I also write to figure out my small place in the world. As my favourite writer Joan Didion once said, “I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear.”

I don't know if I'll ever stop.

Photo credits: Stefania Sgambelluri

The Sip

Earlier this week, Stef and I wanted to go for post-work drinks, but instead of knocking ourselves over with cocktails, we decided to fuel our bods with smoothies and fresh juice. We checked out Bolt Fresh Bar on Queen West in Toronto. Bolt has plenty of healthy options to choose from, including juices, smoothies, grain bowls and salads. We chose a Greena Colada and Spicy Citrus juice and started the week off on a healthier note. I wore my favourite sweater and scarf from my favourite store, Madewell, and my new cherished J.Crew necklace that I received as a gift over the weekend. Can you believe we still have to wear a scarf at the end of April?

If you're looking for a healthy weeknight option, Bolt is located at 1170 Queen St. West. I mean, who wants to head into the office hungover? Below are the photos that Stef took on our walk back. Enjoy!

Blue Days

I seem to put a lot of pressure on myself these days. I beat myself up the way an adamant chef pounds a raw chicken breast until the piece is translucent, weak and ready.

Ready to be dredged in breadcrumbs. Ready for the touch of a sizzling pan. The hot spit crackle. There is always the preparation.

Perhaps being tough on yourself is a sign that a change must occur. It could be a reason to think about thought patterns and growth. Maybe it's a way to push through to honesty, or a reminder that things aren't right.

Or maybe it's a sign to lighten up a bit. To enjoy the present. To embrace the stage of life, even if it feels off. And so if I couldn't lighten up, I decided to brighten up.

When the sun drenched the city, I wore my brightest coat to meet my best friend for coffee. As we walked, she commented that I strangely matched the construction beams on the street.

Yes, I thought, we're both a work in progress.

photo credit: stefania sgams

Confetti & Coffee Shops

I first met Dallas when I was a nervous, witless freshman during my first week of university.

She was a soph (translation: leader of witless freshman for the largest Frosh Week in Canada) and while she wasn't assigned to me, she was kind enough to chat me up when she saw me confused, or sitting in a large group probably nervously fussing with my hair.

I remember her telling me that she was heading to Africa on an internship that the media program I was about to embark upon, supported. I was away from home for the first time, and this cool girl with the coolest name was leaping off to Africa, while I felt that moving two hours away from home was a huge deal.

I stumbled upon her original blog (before blogging was even a thing) and was excited to read about someone I admired who seemed to have it all together, four years ahead of me (note: best friend husband, creative career, a life in different cities).

We kept in touch via reading about each other's blog adventures and the occasional email. I was delighted when she asked me to be in one of her portrait sessions when she was visiting over the holiday break. We went for coffee before the shoot and she once again gave me just the right dose of life advice to shake me back to something better.

We threw around colourful paper confetti like we were making a Pinterest board despite the rainy, frigid weather and my nerves dissipated. Did I mention she is also a self-taught make-up artist?

Below are photos from the shoot, but head over to her site for the rest of the photos and a fun .GIF she created. Also, stop by her full blog for lovely photography and daily inspiration. You won't regret it!

x

 

Skirt & Top - J.Crew | Jacket Mango | Boots H&M
Credit: Dallas Curow 

Dress Like An Alpaca

Sometimes you have to take style cues from complicated sources...like an alpaca.

Lately, I feel like my body has been enveloped by knits on knits on knits, and a plain old sweater can feel as stale as an old band-aid. So I snatched up an alpaca-esque mini jacket (read: from H&M and not real Alpaca fur) and layered with a silky striped shirt from Moon to change up my usual winter textures. Lastly, I added my favourite mint-green necklace from the jewel babes at BaubleBar.

Though today is Blue Monday, adding something furry or fun to your wardrobe, as simplistic as that sounds can have some positive mood-lifting effects. Happy Week! x

Photo credit: Stefania Sgambelluri 

A & the (Technicolour) Dreamcoat

During this time of year, a coat becomes like second skin.

It is now the armour for the deep chill that greets the day and the night with a swift, calculated, hello. It's the first thing that everyone notices. No longer can the summer dress hop and skip and breeze its flimsy song.

I purchased this coat while having brunch in Greenpoint on my last trip to New York. While I had enough items to fill my suitcase, I couldn't pass it up. The structured pattern, the rich, dark colours and the asymmetrical back was just what I needed for the mood of a season that darkens and sheds and gets ready for the bright white.

Stef and I did this shoot a few weeks back and I really trusted her creative spirit by letting her take full control. (Hence the kind of creepy, Vanilla Sky venetian mask she made me put on). While I initially and obviously protested, I realized that a mask conceals yet shows strong details before anyone can see what's underneath. It is just like a coat in that way.

And who am I to get in the way of more coverage?

Photos credit: Stefania Sgambelluri 

x

coat: BB Dakota, hat: Uniqlo, bag: my Dad's old luggage