Toronto weather has been really beautiful lately so I’ve been keeping my looks short and feminine. This light Robbie & Nikki blouse is actually an unusually awkward length; a little two short to be worn as a dress and too long as a top unless it’s tucked in. I love its sheer delicate chiffon and how it drapes over the shoulders so I was determined to make it work during my visit. Thankfully I remembered about my old vintage skirt and threw it into the suitcase last minute. The gold and black combo is timeless, classic, and easy to put together.
belt
shadow play
Some readers have been asking me to write about how I do my eye makeup and I think the time has come for me to address this question. Personally, I don’t think there is anything particularly exceptional about my application techniques or my choice of colours because I usually just strive for a “clean and simple” effect. I begin by applying a light base of powder eye shadow (by Teye Minerals) on the eye lid from lash line up to eye crease using an all over shadow brush (by Quo). I then use my fingers to apply a cream eye tint (by Becca) to blend a deeper shade into the crease and slightly above it. I use a Becca brow shaping gel for the eye-brows and a Kiehl’s Marvelous Mineral Mascara for the lashes, which is pretty amazing actually. When I go out, I use Becca’s eye powder control brush to apply Becca’s powder shimmer eyeshadow (in Organza colour; almost white) to the bottom-inside corner of the eye and underneath the brow. This really makes the eyes pop.
a day in LA
My friend Alex and I spent the entire day in downtown LA yesterday. The day started with us driving around the same block about 3 times because our GPS apparently thought it was still in NY. Whenever we travel to new places we use the site urbanspoon for rankings of best restaurants in the city, and a place called Starry Kitchen was on top of the list. It was exactly this “talk-of-the-town” establishment that we sacrificed our morning looking for and after we finally found it, they were just closing. But the staff of the restaurant was so nice that they just gave us two main courses of free to-go food, which was delicious; not a bad way to be welcomed to a new city. The rest of the day mostly involved walking, stopping to take pictures and eat a taco, and then continue walking. Apparently there isn’t all that much to do in downtown LA but it was still fun. I couldn’t get those 2 Pac lyrics out of my head, “California knows how to party (knows how to party).”
all kinds of purple
This purple little garment has an identity crisis. It’s being worn and accessorized as a dress while it’s not a dress at all…but a long, fold-over skirt. I remember first seeing it in the sale section at Marciano, neglected and passed over by most. At the time I wasn’t crazy about the idea of a maxi skirt either but I was immediately drawn to its colour. After a few minutes of experimentation in the change room the skirt was redefined and I became one dress richer.
Happy Valley
As part of this road-trip, the second school to visit on our agenda was located in State College, Pennsylvania. The town is economically and demographically dominated by the presence of the main campus of the Penn State University. The disproportionate presence of young people manifestly dictates its general atmosphere in every regard. As I was looking out the window on our drive through the town it felt almost surreal. It’s like I was in some twilight zone run by jocks and girls in booty shorts (the weather was beautiful). While I’m sure the experience of living there is enjoyable in its own way, I personally couldn’t imagine it for myself. The more exposed I am to the lifestyles of different people the more convinced I become of my inherently metropolitan nature…at least for now.
