The new love in my life...

Do you remember when you were a kid receiving a toy or a costume of some sort that you didn't want to part with?  You may have put up a fuss when your parents tried to get you to change out of your princess dress or superman outfit.  Maybe you carried your toy everywhere you went and cried when you had to leave it at home when you went to school.  Regardless of what it was, this feeling of clinging to an object, not wanting to let it out of our eyesight, does not seem to come often as an adult, at least for me that is.  Until recently....

A few weeks ago I got my first and very much desired KitchenAid Mixer.  I don't know why I didn't know about the gloriousness of the KitchenAid when I got married otherwise I would have registered for one but I did not and for the past 3 years I have coveted my friends KitchenAids and looked forward to the day when finally one would sit on my kitchen counter too.

A few weeks ago my Mum's side of the family wrangled over to my Mum's house to celebrate Easter. I spent the day in the kitchen helping my mum and realized how time consuming and stressful cooking for big occasions actually is.  I have much more respect for my aunts who usually take such good care of us in the food department.  So picture this, much like a small child up past their bed time, after a long day of excitement, I was wiped and maybe this is why I was so taken aback when my uncle brought in the famous KitchenAid box and presented it to me for my upcoming birthday.  I have to say, I am not easily surprised, I usually pick up on the change in peoples behaviour which come with trying to pull a surprise together, not to mention the fact that the people closest to me are bad at keeping secrets, but this time I was completely taken aback.  Surprised in a stopped on your track, don't know what to say, inexplicably emotionally surprised.  Yes, tears of joy did fill my eyes, I will admit it!

And now she sits on my counter and I want to keep going into my kitchen to look at her.  I wish I could put her on my beside table so she would be the first thing I see when I wake up.  I am super excited to break her in but in the same way I hesitate to use her I am afraid to lose the wonderful newness she possesses.  So for now, at least for a few more weeks, I will admire her in all her beauty.

Fresh ideas...

Lately I have been doing some flower arrangements for various events and I have found I am particularly enjoying this new pastime. I also find it personally satisfying to create arrangements for as cheap as possible.  The arrangements below both cost less then $7 a vase, my best find - 8 roses for $2.99.  Men, you have no excuse with prices that great!

I have a great little florist up the street from me (Queen E.) whose prices are quite reasonable but I am a sucker for the cluster of flower stores at Avenue Rd. & Davenport, especially Jong Young Flower Market. If you haven't stopped by these stores there is no better time then now, with so many spring flowers in bloom you are sure to have a great selection to choose from.  Maybe I'll see you there, I'm the one who is obviously in the zone, choosing bunch by bunch and repetitively changing my mind, so many choices!  For me it just means I have to go back the next week and pick up more; flowers just make me happy!

Pick of the Weekend

Today we finally got to the Tim Burton exhibit at the Bell Light Box.  I wish we could have gone sooner but thank goodness the installation is in Toronto for a good length of time allowing procrastinating people like me the chance to check it out.  


Now I am a pretty big Burton fan and love the fantasy worlds he creates in their darkness and mystery.  This exhibit lived up to all my expectations with drawings, notes, letters, actual stop motion puppets and costumes, it was Burton heaven!  The exhibit is only on for one more week so check it out if you can.  


For those of you with little ones the Sprockets festival, a film festival for children and youth is also on and I was intrigued by the very neat on-site activities they have going on for families to check out before or after the kid friendly films such as the special effects make-up session.  This festival is happening this week through to the 17th of April.  


Speaking of all things film my favourite film festival is coming to Toronto soon.  Hot Docs begins April 28th and goes through to May 8th. There are so many documentaries I wish I could check out, if only we had a money tree, thankfully we have places like the Film Buff and Queen Video for post festival rentals.

Anyway, back to Tim Burton.  If you are a fan of his style check out one of my favourite shops on etsy, Obsolete World which in my opinion mirrors the fantasy worlds Burton creates. I purchased a bunch of prints a few years ago for friends as I love the simple beauty of the artists work, I also like the titles, like this one - 'The Ever Silent Spaces.'  You can also check out the artists' blog.

Get me to the church on time

I have been out of commission for the past few weeks as I have been busy with a few projects and of course life.  I thought I'd add a quick post of two bridal hairpieces I just finished.  

Feel free to contact me if you are getting married or refer me to friends who are about to tie the knot.  With wedding season on the horizon it also means us guests might want a fun piece for an upcoming soirée, I love doing custom orders so let me know if an event coming up might be the right place to debut some feathery fun.  My hairpieces range in price typically from $15 - $45; these two bridal pieces are $30.

A few other pieces I'm working on - photos to come:

Feather boutonnières for the men – a fun way to do the typical boutonnière with a twist.

Feather shoe clips – a great way to add some jazz to your shoes and a fabulous bridal party gift.

Prom hairpieces - this year we are going with some jewel tones, very fun!

I am also trying to learn how to knit, it has proved to be more difficult then I thought. More to come on that soon.

Spring is in the air

Today the sun was shining and the world just felt a bit brighter.  I know they say it's not spring yet but today gave me a little hope (although the temperature tried to prove me wrong) that indeed spring is on its way.

This week has been busy with a few side projects on the go.  Today after work I went to my favourite flower markets to grab some flowers for a few centerpieces I am making for an event at work.  I was so eager to get in and get home to start creating that I almost looked over my oh so very favourite thing... Peonies!

These beauties surprised me as it still seems early for them to be appearing, although I guess today is March 1st.  I was so excited to see my first peony since last spring, it made my day, so after gathering my purple and yellow array of buds and pointing while winking to my husband who showed up after his class we cashed out, peonies in hand.

Now they sit in my entry way looking so beautiful as they ever so slowly open up.  The way peonies blossom truly encompasses the essence of spring; tiny folds of feathery pink and white leaves pushing the next aside as they reach for warmth.  New life - I love spring!

And you know what spring means - wedding season is upon us which is the reason behind said busyness as I have begun making up some wedding and prom hairpieces.  I'll post some photos of these soon but in the meantime I am enjoying gazing at my peonies as I breeze through my hallway and am thankful for the refreshment they bring in the midst of the busyness of life.