What Makes You Happy?

(This post is inspired by this post)
Spinach omelettes. Singing both Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" at the top of my lungs...especially when my youngest brother joins in AND singing Michael Buble's "Haven't Met You Yet". The feeling I have after I finish 30-45 minutes of cardio at the gym. Right now these are 3 things that make me happy. What about you - what makes you happy?

Me? Over the Top?

Last week Jeannie of the blog Small and Chic in Cville gave me the "Over the Top" blog award (along with 4 other bloggers). To participate I must answer the questions below...and then pass them on to 5 other bloggers. I like reading these when other bloggers do them so I hope I don't bore you!

Come back later to see who I'm passing it on to. (p.s. I answered these questions last week and just didn't post it until today).

Thanks for the blog love Jeannie!

1. Where is your cell phone: On it's charger right beside my laptop.

2. Your hair: Is freshly styled :) I saw my hairstylist on Saturday. She's going to Miami until March and that makes me very very sad.

3. Your mother: Is in the process of booking a quick visit to the Caribbean. Lucky her!

4. Your father: *blank stare* I haven't spoken to him, by choice, in well over 10 years.

5. Your favourite food: Ugh I could never narrow it down to just one item. I love my mom's curry chicken (Jamaican style), oxtails, and cornmeal porridge. I love mashed potatoes. Noodles. Lobster and shrimp = delicious-ness. Perfectly cooked broccoli. If the above is all I could eat for the rest of my life I'd be a very happy girl :)

6. Your dream last night: I normally remember my dreams really well but am having a hard time remembering last nights' (go figure). I'm pretty certain it was of my sister's suprise birthday dinner her boyfriend and I threw for her.

7. Your favourite drink: Hmmm...Right now I'm really loving Lipton's Lemon Iced Tea. Which is weird cause I've always HATED iced tea until I tried this one a few weeks ago.

8. Your dream/goal: To be happy & satisfied with my life. (Which broken down equals = To inspire my family, friends and those around me. To have a career that is fulfilling that I'm passionate about. To live passionately. To travel off the beaten path and experience different cultures regularly. To not have to worry about money. To live a life I'm proud of. To leave a legacy.)

9. What room are you in: My little brothers.

10. What are your hobbies: I love to read. I enjoy photography. I love decorating my apartment. I love traveling but don't know if I can call it a hobby since I don't get to do it nearly as much as I'd like.

11. What are your fears: To not realize my dream/goals. To be old & single.

12. Where were you last night: My sisters' surprise birthday dinner party.

13. Something you are not: Arrogant, ignorant/closed-minded, high-maintenance. Those are the 3 most unlikely and untrue descriptions someone could ever call me.

14. Muffins: Are good but I'm more of a cupcake gal lately.

15. Wish list items: A job that is fulfilling that I love. Schumacher's Chiang Mai Dragon fabric. The Ikea Alvine Ruta rug.

16. Where did you grow up: Toronto.

17. Last thing you did: Helped get my younger brothers off to school. Quickly edited a few photos from my sisters party and sent them to her so she could get 'em up on fb.

18. What are you wearing: PJs...and a sweater. I was cold.

19. Your pets: Howard - an adorable two year old bichon frise/ toy poodle who is the love of my life.

20. Your friends: Are few. But I'd rather a few I can confide in and count on than lots that I can't.

21. Your life: Is like a book that's still being written. There's been a few cliche moments, some unexpected happenings, a few twists and turns...but there's lots of adventures to come.

22. Your mood: Kinda hungry.

23. Missing someone: Not really.

24. Vehicle: I've been driving my mom's SUV for a few weeks now...

25. Something you're not wearing: Makeup

26. Your favourite store: I don't have a favourite. I know I know - how ungirly of me ;)

27. Your favourite colour: I can't pick just one. I love black, various shades of pink, gray, gold, mustardy yellow.

28. When's the last time you laughed: A few minutes ago when I hid behind the door from Howard and he found me...he makes me laugh ALL the time.

29. When's the last time you cried: ALMOST cried last night when my sister almost cried at her surprise birthday dinner party. Last time I actually cried...hmm...probably during a recent episode of Cold Case. That show always gets me.

30. Your best friend: Lives in New Jersey.

31. One place you go over and over: The pet store to buy Howard's food.

32. One person who emails me regularly: My god-daughter is constantly forwarding me stuff...

33. Favourite place to eat: My mom's house.

Whew! Fun :)

Thanksgiving Day Recap...In a Small Space

With Thanksgiving day having gone well over a month ago here in Canada and quickly approaching in the U.S. I figured now is a better time than ever to post some pics from my Thanksgiving Day festivities. Actually, it's really pics of the table :)

It was my first time hosting dinner and because my space is small (and I didn't yet have a dining table) I decided the best thing to do was to set up a buffet table (I bought a 6-ft fold out table on sale from a big box store). I didn't have a lot of "accessories" to dress up the table (and still don't) so to keep the table as simple and fresh as possible I used all glass and white dishes & serving platters and tried to create different levels and various heights to keep things interesting. I picked up some inexpensive gourds and pumpkins at the groccery store, and a bouquet of inexpensive flowers (I believe $7.99) to give a bit of a Fall feel to the table and borrowed a white cloth tablecloth from my mom to further dress up the table.

I was ecstatic to finally use some of my bigger china pieces that I began collecting last year. 

see below for a numbered list of what's on the table :)

I also separated a few stems from the main bouquet and put it in clear vases around the apartment. It was simple but I couldn't have been happier with the way it turned out.

For seating, there was my sofa, my club chair and I added some big floor cushions around the coffee table for the kiddies and I. Sorry, no pics! If I had to give some tips on hosting a big dinner or something like Thanksgiving dinner, it would be to: keep it simple (decor/table setting wise), opt for buffet style, play up the fact that it's a small space with things like fun floor pillows.

I also really want to share THE BEST ROAST CHICKEN RECIPE I've tasted/created with all of you. My family aren't really big turkey eaters (well, my mom isn't) so usually a roast chicken with one or two other meat choices usually does the trick. The recipe is for Jamie Oliver's Roast Chicken with Lemon & Rosemary Roast Potatoes. It was the most delicious, moist, flavourful roast chicken I've ever ate and will definitely be my go-to recipe from now on. I basically followed the directions step-by-step EXCEPT for one thing. If you can, season your chicken AT LEAST 24-48 hours in advance and keep it covered in plastic wrap in your fridge. I truly believe this is what makes the chicken extra moist. I also kept it in the oven for about an extra 30-45 minutes until it was a nice brown colour and crisp. Sorry, I just can't eat pale chicken lol. (Oh yeah, I also used thyme...I didn't have rosemary). Trust me - this recipe is THE BEST and even my brother was picking bits of chicken and potato out of the empty pan. It was the only thing that didn't leave leftovers!

Curious as to what was on my table?
1. Lemon Poppy Seed Brussel Sprouts
2. Potato Salad (Mom's recipe)
3. Green Beans
4. Oxtails
5. Dinner Rolls
6. Macaroni Pie
7. Roast Chicken with Lemon & Rosemary Roast Potatoes
8. Gravy
9. Stuffed Turkey Breast
10. Strawberry Cheesecake
11. Cake Pops
12. Sliced Smoked Turkey

Hope you all get some table setting ideas or at the very least a good chicken recipe out of this post! If you end up making the roast chicken PLEASE leave a comment letting me know how it is for you!

My New (to me) Dining Table

A few weeks ago I went into my local thrift store and, as usual, headed to the home section. I immediately spotted a dining table that I thought would fit in with my decor and was small enough to fit into my space. I sent out a quick tweet with a photo asking 'yay or nay' and the response was yay. So, for $35 I grabbed it up. If once I got it home I decided that it didn't work for me I knew it wouldn't be a problem getting rid of it on craigslist.

But, luckily, it worked and I loved it.

I guess Howard wasn't used to something being in this area. 

Putting it together...LOVE the detail on the legs

Ta-da! Fits perfectly into the area between the two windows!

Solid wood for $35. Couldn't get better than that! My intital thought when I first saw the table in store was to paint it but I actually really like the way it looks so I'll be leaving it alone. I plan on pairing it with white eames shell chairs, like these:

from apartment therapy

from design sponge

The juxtaposition between modern/traditional (although the table isn't quite traditional) will be great. Not bad for $35, eh?

Global Casual

I'm probably a bit late to the game but thought I'd share this quiz for any of you who, like me, may have somehow missed it. Deborah Needleman, former editor of everyones favourite shelter mag Domino, recently teamed up with HomeGoods to create StyleScope - a quiz that helps you define your interior design style.

According to the quiz I'm "Global Casual" which, after reading the description, is pretty bang on for me and really summed up what I like and what I'm hoping to achieve in my space.

What are you? (Click here to take the quiz)

*just for fun I took the quiz a second time and selected all the answers I was torn on the first time around. The second time I got "Bohemian Eclectic" - and while I never would have used the term bohemian to describe me, the description actually fit me to a tee. Both results are very similar so I guess it's safe to say I'm Global Casual Bohemian Eclectic!

The Lost Symbol: Dan Brown

(Woot - my first review! Note: I actually finished this a few weeks ago and am just getting around to writing/giving my review.)

Title: The Lost Symbol (click here to visit site...which is pretty cool)
Author: Dan Brown
# of Pages: 509
Published: September 2009

Short Synopsis: As the story opens, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned unexpectedly to deliver an evening lecture in the U.S. Capitol Building. Within minutes of his arrival, however, the night takes a bizarre turn. A disturbing object--artfully encoded with five symbols--is discovered in the Capitol Building. Langdon recognizes the object as an ancient invitation... one meant to usher its recipient into a long-lost world of esoteric wisdom.

When Langdon's beloved mentor, Peter Solomon--a prominent Mason and philanthropist--is brutally kidnapped, Langdon realizes his only hope of saving Peter is to accept this mystical invitation and follow wherever it leads him. Langdon is instantly plunged into a clandestine world of Masonic secrets, hidden history, and never-before-seen locations--all of which seem to be dragging him toward a single, inconceivable truth.

My Review:
I'll preface this by saying that the following review is, obviously, MY opinion. Now that that's out of the way. Dan Brown's novels are, for the most part I believe, ones that you either love or you hate. People seem to have such strong opinions on his books and they seem to create such controversy (The DaVinci Code anyone?) which I guess is a good thing (because it can create some interesting discussion) but I think they forget that at the end of the day - though based on research - they are books of fiction. Anyways, I won't get off topic because these reviews I'd like to keep relatively short. So here goes:

This is the 5th Dan Brown novel I've read (the others being: The DaVinci Code, Angels & Demons, Deception Point, and Digital Fortress) so needless to say I enjoy his work. However, this was the one that took the longest for me to get into. I don't know - it just seemed to have a slow start. Really slow. The end (maybe the last 30 pages or so) was slow too. But the rest was a fast-paced, interesting, adventurous read - true to Dan Brown form - with the story happening in a span of 12 short hours. I was really interested in all of the Masonic symbols and history in the book as well as all learning about some of the symbols that are said to be hidden in Washington. I think it's cool to know that - if you're an American - you don't necessarily have to travel across the world to find ancient monuments with hidden meanings. There is also a form of science featured heavily throughout the story line, Noetic Science, that I found particularly interesting. I don't know if the experiments done in the book have been attempted in real life but there was one in particular (dealing with the human spirit/soul) that I thought was really fascinating (regardless of whether it's real or fake). Mal'akh, the villain in this story, is one of the creepiest Dan Brown villains to date. He seems to fear nothing and have nothing to lose - a man possessed. And usually, people like that are the ones with the potential to be the most dangerous...as he well proves. I will also say that this is the first Brown novel I've read that I've guessed what the "twist" was. If you've read any of his other novels you'll know that there is always some unexpected, "oh my gosh I can't believe it" twist. I don't know if it's because this is my 5th Brown novel and I knew to expect one - but I guessed what that twist was fairly early on. However, when it was revealed I was still shocked and read the page twice.

Despite it's slow start and some slow parts, I'll say if you're a Dan Brown fan then it's a good read that you'll enjoy. However, if this will be your first Brown book I'd start with something different. Perhaps one of his earlier books like Digital Fortress or Deception Point or my favourite Angels & Demons (which is MUCH MUCH better than the movie).

Keeping in mind how much I enjoyed his other books, which I enjoyed more, I give The Lost Symbol: 2.5 outta 5 stars.

Have you read the book? What did you think?

Making Dreams Come True

Two of the most poetic bloggers I've ever come across are Maryam of My Marrakesh and Karey M. of Mackin Ink. Do you read these blogs? If not, and you're a fan of beautiful imagery and words, you're truly missing out. They have such a way with words that I can't imagine how day-to-day conversations with them would sound; almost as if it came from a magical fairy tale I imagine. They are both so inspiring and have done/are doing things that I dream to do in the future that reading their blogs is like daily inspiration for me...and a glimpse into a life that sounds so exotic.

For the weekend I'll leave you with a bit of these words from Maryam's blog that I find truly inspiring. I plan on printing off the entire post and putting it on my refrigerator AND inspiration board...so I can see it every day. The image I 'borrowed' from Karey's site.

"Dear Friends,

No one told me that this Marrakech dream of mine would take so long and would cost so much.

No, no one told me that I would spend my days hoping but my nights worrying....

No. No one told me.

But I've figured something out.

Making dreams come true isn't about brilliance.

After all, the world is filled with brilliant people who sit in cubicles year after year..."

(to read the rest of Maryam's words please click here)

Have a dreamy weekend! Tons of (I think) great posts coming up next week including my tips for decorating a small space on a budget and I'll show you all my latest thrift find. An incredible dining table. For a total steal!

Pine Cones & Twine Cones

Earlier this week I did a quick post about some of my DIY pink & gold christmas decor. Though it's certainly not rocket science I wanted to do a follow up post on how I did it (and where I got my inspiration from) for those of you that might be interested.

Like I said before I live in a small apartment. And while some may find decorating a small apartment challenging, I find it gives me the opportunity to, on occasion, be extra creative and to think outside of the box. Because I don't want my space to feel cramped and crowded - and I just don't have that much space to begin with, I've decided for my holiday decor I'll be sticking to a few, but hopefully impactful, vignettes around the apartment. (I'm still debating a tree...)

The first projects I began working on were glittery pine cones and, what I've named, twine cones. I was at West Elm and loved the simplicity of the limited-edition holiday collection created by David Spark but was not in-love with the prices. So I decided to DIY them.

First up glittery pine cones (I swear I took pics as I was doing them but can't seem to find them). It's super easy. All you need are glitter, pine cones, glue, and newspaper. I bought a huge shaker of gold glitter  at Walmart for $2.95 and picked up a coordinating 3-pack of pink glitter from the Martha Stewart line (again at Walmart) for, I think, $7. I was tempted to go for plain white glue because it was cheaper but I'm so happy I went for spray glue (I think $6 Walmart). Using spray glue made the entire project super fast whereas I imagine brushing on white glue would be a bit more time consuming (but doable none-the-less). I used the newspaper to catch the falling glitter and pour it back into the shaker (no waste here!). Then all you do is spray - shake on glitter - gently tap the pine cone so the excess to fall off and then put it aside to dry. That's it. It's so easy and I think the way the sunlight catches it and makes it seemingly shimmer is so pretty. The pine cones I've done are large ones I bought ages ago on sale for about $5 (for about 10) but I plan on doing some small ones too and piling them into a shallow bowl on my coffee table. (TIP: You can simply collect small pine cones from outside but shake them out well to get all of the small creepy crawlies out of them. Or you can just buy pine cones. I saw some at the dollar store.)

Next up twine cones. I love the sculptural quality of them. All you need are cone forms (I used cardboard ones from the craft store but I think you could use styrofoam), twine or yarn (dollar store) and a glue gun. Start at the base and just wrap & glue, wrap & glue, wrap & glue......and that's it.

I did the first 2 with twine and then got the idea to use yarn for the last one. I must admit the twine was a bit easier to work with since the glue string blended in with the twine whereas I had to be a bit neater when using the yarn. Either way they are both TOTALLY easy to do. I'm on the hunt for some taller cone forms and will then group them on my newly purchased dining table as another vignette...and perhaps add a gold star (made of pipe cleaner) to the top for a more festive look.

I did both of these projects while watching TV so really - they couldn't be any easier.

Winner: Back-to-Blogging Giveaway

Since the number of entrants was manageable I put all of the names in a hat and had my little brother pick one name out...

Congratulations to Mandy of the blog Just A Small Town Girl. Please send me an email (no later than Sunday, Nov.15 at Midnight EST) confirming which Rainy Day Template you'd like!

Thank you to everyone who participated. I hope to do more fun giveaways like this in the future.

Bad Romance Is Baaad. In a Good Way.

True to my new found obsession with Lady Gaga I find the new video for her latest single 'Bad Romance' absolutely mesmerizing. A total feast for the eyes. And the heels? Insane. If I even attempted to try one on it would certainly result in a broken ankle.

Your thoughts?

A Bouquet of Cake Pops

Here in Canada we celebrated Thanksgiving Day almost 1 month ago. I, in my small apartment that is probably around 600 square feet (including the 'hall' and closets), hosted Thanksgiving dinner. 7 people (2 kids, 2 teens, 3 adults). 1 dog. I've NEVER hosted dinner before and the pressure (self-imposed of course) was definitely on.

I'm super proud to say that everything came together perfectly AND the food was delicious (if I do say so myself). I'm going to share pictures of the dressed table in another post but I wanted to share some pics of the cake pops I made for the occasion. I saw them on Bakerella's website (she's a GENUIS when it comes to creative, yummy, baked goods).

And while mine weren't as perfectly rounded as hers (no where close actually) I still think they were pretty cute. I had the fab idea to present them in my monkey vase (yes, finally pics of the monkey vase!) - I thought it would look fun and it did...like he was holding a bouquet of cake pops....

I'm telling ya, when he's not on lookout duty in the kitchen or busy holding fruit - I've got plans for him to dress up various spots around the house during special occasions and holidays.

And of course those poor cake pops didn't stand a chance. They were gone within the first 20 minutes :)

A DIY Pink & Gold Christmas

Two posts in one day. Awesome.
I know we're barely into the Holiday season yet but I can't help it. As soon as Halloween ended I took it as the go-ahead to start DIYing Christmas decor. I've already began some projects that are super duper simple, INEXPENSIVE, and (I think) beautiful and festive without being...TOO Christmas-y looking. I'll blog them in greater detail soon so you can make them yourselves if you want to - but I wanted to show you all a picture of some of what I've been working on.

One of the things I was most excited about doing when I moved out into my own apartment was decorating for Christmas. Since this is my first Christmas in my own apartment I'm a bit excited. It may be a small apartment but that doesn't mean it will be bare. I think decoration wise I will stick to festive vignettes around the apartment...and I'm debating a tree. Yup, a tree for Howard and I. I've already decided the colours I'll try and stick to for decorations will be shades of pink, gold and twine (for a natural feel). I'm looking forward to how it all comes together. Hopefully, I won't slack off and I'll get it done well before December.

p.s. The surprise birthday dinner for my sister last night was a HUGE success. When we walked in the restaurant everyone was hidden behind a corner and when we got to the table area they popped out and yelled surprise! She was SO SURPRISED and thisclose to tears. She couldn't get over the fact that we managed to keep a secret (she's the WORST at keeping surprises) and had the biggest smile on her face the entire night. She's said she'll never forget that birthday and was on such a high when she got home she didn't fall asleep until almost 3 in the morning! SUCCESS.

Korban's New Site

When interior designer & creative director of Edon Manor Ryan Korban's studio apartment was featured on The Selby last summer it was quickly blogged about by several bloggers. Heck, I blogged it too. I loved the way he styled & decorated his small studio apartment (cemented my decision to paint a wall black in my own apartment) and thought he had several good ideas that others could use in their own space (for all you Domino readers his home was also featured in the Feb.09 issue). Well, it appears that Mr. Korban has recently launched his interior design site and he has some great pics in his portfolio. I love the mixture of textures and get a...romantic vibe from his interiors which I really like. Romantic without being in your face...

(i really think i need to add the above lamp back onto my 'must find/buy' list)

Lovely, no? Visit the site to see more photos.

*all photos from the site Ryan Korban

Surprise Tears & a Chic Tissue Holder

As you're reading this I'm in the midst of getting ready for my sisters SURPRISE dinner party that her boyfriend and I are throwing for her later this evening. She's completely clueless and it took sneaking around on his part to get the numbers/names of everyone I needed to invite but it was worth it...I can't wait to see her reaction when me, her & her boyfriend walk into the restaurant and she sees 16 of her closest friends and our younger brothers gathered to celebrate her big milestone birthday. She'll be even more delighted when she see's that her boyfriend and I went halfs on this (different colour and slightly different shape though) - which she didn't hint at...she more like flat out said "you guys had better be going halfs on that bowl!" (she's funny) but we've managed to (I think) convince her that it was out of our budget right now. Ha! So yup, she should be very surprised. She's a crier so I'm really crossing my fingers for some tears!

With tears and such in mind, I was browsing The Selby earlier today and came across this photo of a tissue holder in one of the homes that was featured. Who knew a tissue holder could be chic?! As soon as I find the foot pedal for my sewing machine I'll be attempting to make this...doesn't look like it should be TOO hard, eh?

Happy Sunday.

Fall Colours

Last week I took a walk with Howard around the neighbourhood and snapped some quick pictures of all the pretty colours of Fall before they disappear*...

Burnt oranges, mustardy yellows, deep reds, lime and dark greens, shades of brown. Before you know it'll all be gone. The tress will be bare. The ground will be covered with snow. It'll be pretty...but perhaps not as colourful. Enjoy your weekend and the last few days of Fall.


* they are pretty much all gone. only seen on fallen leaves on the ground...

Gaga for Gaga

Call me late to the game but I'm officially on the Lady Gaga bandwagon. Yup, I'm 100% gaga for Gaga. Prior to last week I was undecided about her. Actually, to be honest, I didn't really care one way or the other. I hadn't seen any of her music videos (I haven't really paid attention to music videos for like 3 years) or her live performances and was like "hm. whatevs. a new pop 'character' with no real talent..." But lately at the gym I'd been playing the 'Poker Face' remix a lot - loving it more and more each time. Then I remembered I DID see her perform 'Paparazzi' on TV and it was an...interesting performance and I quite liked the song. So I did what I normally did when an artist intrigues me. I youtube-d her.

And that is when I realized she CAN ACTUALLY SING! AND she play's the piano. She's entertaining and seems to put on a good show. Sold. This is the performance that did it for me:

This one is pretty entertaining too:

And then I heard her new single 'Bad Romance' and that pretty much cemented the deal. The beginning of that song? LOVES it. The rest has grown on me too over the week. Now that I'm into her it's like she's popping up that much more (though I know it's the same as before I'm just more aware of her now). This past weekend I caught her on SNL and earlier this week she was on 106 & Park (missed that one) and now every time I turn on the radio I hear her. And I'm totally diggin' it.

What about you - any Gaga fans reading?