MOVING

Please visit my new blog! That is where I will be updating from now on. XO

 

Two secret ingredients

Yesterday I went to the Dufferin Grove Farmer's Market and got carrots and beets. Today they impromptu turned into a soup. To liven up the broth, which was otherwise the salted water from simmering the vegetables, I fried minced carrot greens stems and parsley in olive oil with garlic. I also added two secret ingredients: sweet smoked paprika and aged dried orange peel that I previously wrote about.

Butterscotch Peanut Butter Marshmallow

Let me start by saying that these are all gone.

There is so much sugar in these that the Redpath factory went into backorder. 

I'm finding it hard to explain my love for these without expletives.

Just look at the pictures. And keep three things in mind:

1. Butterscotch chips 
2. Peanut Butter 
3. Marshmallows

Try to imagine this in your mouth

Pan-seared Ontario lamb crusted with rosemary and garlic. The sauce took red wine to deglaze, with some cream and wilted parsley to coat the pasta, topped with quail egg. I love whole wheat spaghetti; please don't hate on me for it. Also pan fried zucchini and tomato wedges. Good lord could life get any better.

Alteration experiment

I found this shirt and a few others like it while thrifting. They were all constructed similarly huge and billowing, in different polyesters, and I'm certain were handmade. The prints were wonderful though the shirts were far too giant. So that's where the alteration project started.

Picture a blouse this ample and billowy...

Altered down to make a little fitted crop top vest thing with cap sleeves, darts, tucks, and pins.

Pair it with silver leggings from LABEL

I like the concept, but still need to work on the execution.

Victory Soya Mills Silos

As seen from the hill in front of the Corus building

Happy birthday Tiffany

A big thanks to Ryan and Tiff for the opportunity to design and learn how to construct this necklace! The pearls from her broken bracelet were repurposed to become the centerpieces of this peyote-based architecture-inspired choker.

I'm not ready for autumn...

...But my wardrobe is! Check out this rich orangey-yellow jac dale vintage blouse. It has large side pocket details at the bust, and tuxedo tails in front and back. Here I've paired it with Toronto-based LABEL silver leggings which I got at the Muttonhead warehouse sale a few weeks ago, a pair of vintage Kaufman heeled rain boots, and a leather triangle necklace from Gigi's Little Art Department.

Incidentally, I've lived in a beautiful loft of the old Kaufman building, so these rainboots have a special place in my heart although they're a tad too small at size 8. Jac dale brand has been cancelled but was a subsidiary of Elanstyl Diffusion Ltee based in Quebec.

Geometry Obsessed

Geometry is no stranger in Gigi's Little Art Department. The latest are earrings of beaded hexagons in gunmetal Miuyki Delica Seed Beads. I owe it to my latest commission that I was able to construct these, because it motivated me to learn a new beading technique. While time-consuming, peyote is beautiful and rewarding to complete. 

You Know You Want It

Check out this new design! I developed it while trying to find a great way to use the coral chips. The necklace is accented with a knit tubular cord of fishing line beaded with coral chips strung on vintage copper chain. I am in love if I may say so myself.

Do You Support Art? IATSE Picket

August 24, 2012 - One perspective of the issue is the transition from film to digital itself reduces the craftmanship and authenticity of the movie. The outsourcing itself is a symptom of a departure from movie production as an art to facsimile. What do you think?

View of IATSE picketers from inside the TIFF Lightbox

First Cupcake

For Laura's one-year-in-Toronto anniversary I attempted to make her some banana pecan browned butter rum cupcakes. The cupcakes turned out del-ici-ous but I was a tougher sell on the icing. Its consistency was like fudge, and very sweet, and kind of grew on me!

Critical Mass

This is the last Friday of August, so that means it's Critical Mass! Finally I get to make it to one that isn't during the dead of winter, and hence has more than 9 cyclists. So what vibes do I get from Critical Mass? A friendly large group of riders riding through the city as a unified vehicle. Definitely a reminding statement that bicycles and larger vehicles share the same roads, and that numbers of cyclists is not insignificant. Just experience bike rush hour once along College or even Harbord. 

These photos are from the Darcy Allan Sheppard memorial preceeding the mass ride. 

Happy things happening in the Art Department

I'm loving these peyote triangles, which are made of gunmetal Japanese miyuki seed beads. I'm creating them for a commissioned necklace - finished product to come! I'm also seeing more bead weaving in the future <3

Bike Rave!!!

I rolled up to Christie Pits wondering where the bike ravers would be, and found them instantly by the glowing and the bike-mounted soundsystems. I scrambled to put all the glow sticks on my bike. 

Street Style

Check out these two dressed awesomely for the bright and 30 day we had last week. You guys rock!

Photos of Bloor Street

Do you know what these places are?

Saving Grace brunch place

Porchetta And Co is an amazing lunch, but when they were closed yesterday I was at a loss! Walking along Dundas West knowing there are a million awesome lunch places, I entered Ella's Uncle for a coffee and a delicious amazing berry scone (sorry, ate it too fast for a pic), and was told to go across the street to Saving Grace. Try the Angela sandwich, she said. I did, and the aftermath was drop dead gorgeous. 

I Love Tap Water

In light of the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) being given the shutdown notice by the Federal Government of Canada, here is a photo of mine hilighting the importance of things we take for granted every day. Tap water. The ELA has been a means of important and leading scientific research into the ways water systems react to contaminants and other stressors. I have used and processed data gathered in the ELA, and there is essential knowledge of natural water systems that would not exist were it not for this unique system of study. Since water systems are all eventually inter-connected globally, wonderful things like tap water are impacted by natural water systems. For instance, wetlands can filter out contaminants from water which many water filtration systms do not. Think of all the potential knowledge we will be missing out on for the savings of $79.3 million. This is just another reason for the brain drain to continue.

Snapshots of Roncesvalles

While enjoying a Cherry Bomb Coffee outside back when the weather was nice! This was also just after the peak of the cherrry blossom bloom a week and a half ago. I think Cherry Bomb and Cherry Blossom Bloom go quite well together. 

Vegetarians beware - graphic carnivorous descriptions!

Finally went to @PorchettaAndCo today for lunch after hearing so much about it these past months. I of course had to pick out some of the porchetta to eat on its own before letting the sandwich do its thing. First of all, porchetta defines everything good about land animals. Caramelised meat sugars, generous flavourful melting and crispy fatty layers surrounding tender juicy meat. There were some jerky-ish crunchy bits within the porchetta which added some extra texture.

Of the toppings available, I picked mushrooms and truffle sauce. Good combination - I'd more naturally think of having pork paired with sweet things such as apple, cherry, or pear, but I love the truffle flavour and it was not overpowering as it easily could have been. I chose mushrooms to back up and give some body to the truffle flavour. The bun was very good too, though I might opt out of the mustard next time. I'd keep the hot sauce.

I was still experiencing the luscious mouthfeel as I biked home after this much-anticipated lunch.