Friends are the Bacon Bits in the Salad Bowl of Life

Although its true that my culinary skills are still far from boast-worthy, I do want to provide you all with a recipe!

-- A recipe for the Best Girls Night-in Ever! --

(This is where you all breath in a sigh of relief that I am not going to spend the rest of my blog explaining how to make PB&J sandwiches and juice-- When making a meal for guests my roommates put me in charge of the juice! Its a big responsibility but I'm pretty much a pro now!)
Ingredients:

1) For the main dish: A Chick Flick


We chose Definetly, Maybe.. but feel free to substitute with Sleepless in Seattle, or the Proposal.

2) Side Dishes: Pizza and S'mores


In order for true bonding to occur, there must be ample amounts of delicious food! We chose Pizza, Doritos and S'mores!



Now the secret to this recipe is all in the presentation. A fire is necessary for atmosphere and make sure everything is served wearing-- what else?!-- but the comfiest of Onesies!!




Finally, the absolute most important ingredient -- the only one you actually need-- is a best friend to share it all with!! (awwwwww!!)

Love you Brynnie!!

-B

JC, How I love thee!!

I had originally intended to make one giant blog cataloging all of the ridiculous and gorgeous shoes I have come across this past year. But when I actually sat down to write it I realized, "What the heck do you write about in a shoe blog?". Other than listing picture after picture of shoes, I didn't know what to do. Instead, I have decided to separate the pictures into smaller entries.

Now the ONLY place any shoe blog can start is with Jeffrey Campbell.
Last summer I was browsing shoes on Modcloth.com and came across the most beautiful pair of white flats. I basically stared at them for two months, didn't buy them and now that I can no longer find them, I really wish I had bought them in the first place. Ever since then, Jeffrey Campbell has been a tease. Very few of his shoes I can actually see myself wearing, but I still continue to dream. He is like that unattainable boy you secretly know isn't right for you but you just can't help but wish it could magically work out. ... yes I am still talking about shoes!

These are the JC boots that I am currently craving! They are the kind of shoes that you change your wardrobe for!


Wedges, clogs, platforms and boots are favourites of the Jeffrey Campbell name. He is known for unique details and chunky heels.


Wedges!


These are the ever so popular Lita platforms


Hello Boots!


This one is called the Unicorn Princess Heel
One day I will be brave enough--- rich enough-- to incorporate these gorgeous works of art into my everyday!

Hope you enjoyed a sneak peak into my Jeffrey Campbell love affair!
-B

Havana Cafe

A couple days ago, I spent the morning working at a brand new cafe on Bank St. called Havana Cafe and Catering. This was my very first time in a work setting that was a kitchen environment and I loved it--- I realize that most of you reading this are thinking that it was one of my first times in any kitchen, or at least one without a microwave! I was only at the store for a few hours; I ran errands, helped prepare sandwiches and gave samples out to people walking by on the street. I worked all morning with the chef, who is a super sweet, talented Cuban man that makes hilarious jokes in the same tone as if he were just telling me to pass him the salt-- they are so subtle and unexpected that they catch you off guard and make you laugh even harder! He introduced me to each of the items on the menu--- translation I spent the entire shift eating delicious Cuban food!! Seriously I was stuffed for the rest of the day!

We started with what he calls Mojito Lemonade, which is lemonade that I ground mint leaves into, leaving the lemonade with a minty kick. Then we put together some beef sandwiches, which I worried would be too hot for me when I added spicy peppers but somehow it just added delicious flavour without being painful for me to eat. It was fun making them. He asked me if I had ever made a sandwich before, and I wasnt sure how to answer. Sure I have made PB&J sandwiches before, but somehow I don't think that's what he meant! Embarrassingly later on, I had to ask how to cut the buns properly--- I know how I would cut a bun, but I was worried my bun cutting skills wouldn't meet his standards so I figured I should ask first before making a fool out of myself by doing it wrong.. I think what I realized is that I made a fool out of myself either way!
I went outside for part of the day to give out samples of Yuca. Yuca is from the potato family, it is cut up into strips like French fries and deep fried. It comes with a garlic/lime sauce. It was fun getting people to try it out on the street because most people, including myself, had never heard of it before.

I have a serious thing for fries-- french fries, sweet potato fries, you name it and I'm hooked.. well Yuca fries are at the top of my current list!

I also gave out samples of the Classic Cuban sandwich, which is my favourite! It is served grilled and the pickle gives it great flavour-- my mouth is watering just thinking about it.. I've been continuously craving it ever since!


Lastly, I tried a beef, vegetable and rice soup. The soup was really good but sadly I am the wimpiest of Canadians when it comes to spicy foods! My eyes started watering and I couldnt stop coughing! Try explaining to a Cuban that something is too spicy! He kept saying over and over, 'Its not too spicy'.. I am sure he is right for about 99% of the population but lets be honest, too much pepper is spicy for me!!

In a lot of ways, putting me and kitchen in a sentence feels like an oxymoron-- knives freak me out, I seem to burn myself at every opportunity and I'm not lying when I admit that I had to ask someone a few months ago how to use a kettle. On the other hand, there is something very empowering and creative about making food. As I watched the chef meticulously arrange things on the plate, it was obvious that he looks at food almost as an art. He is proud of what he has made.. and believe me I've tasted it, he should be proud! Who knows, maybe if I put some time and effort into it- or my microwave suddenly breaks- I will find my inner chef!

-B

P.S.
Havana Cafe
1200 Bank St.
Mon-Fri 10am-7pm
Sat 10am-5pm
Seriously go check it out-- Prices are just as good as the food!

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Ottawa Fashion Week

Anyone who spent much time with me in the past couple weeks knows about the excitement- bordering on obsession- that I had with Fashion Week. First of all, the fact that Ottawa has such an event in the first place is exciting and shows how far the city has come in the fashion world, even just over the past few years. Not to mention the fact that it was held at the National Gallery-- hello glitz and glam! The Gallery itself is an architectural masterpiece and the catwalk looked amazing surrounded by windows on all sides showing the Ottawa river and parliament in the distance. This seasons show was especially exciting because my fabulously talented boss, Alison Hughes, was chosen as head stylist for the event-- what an honour!! She is amazing at everything she does and has a great eye for styling, so naturally I knew the end result of the show couldn't fail to impress!
The show started a week earlier for me this year because Ali asked me to help out at the model fitting the weekend before. Picture a hundred models, designers and clothes all piled into the LOFT hair salon downtown-- it was craziness! Fittings for each of the shows were going on simultaneously. The volunteers were amazing at making sure each of the models was in the right place at the right time! I spent most of the morning with a camera taking head shots of the models and then photographing models in the outfits we had chosen for them. I also helped fit models, which basically involves going through the runway outfits and choosing which ones go on which models, making sure they fit and look good. Before the end of the day I helped manage the male model casting call--- hello hot male models! All in all the day was so much fun and as an added bonus I got a sneak peak at all the clothes before they hit the runway!
After the fitting, Friday couldn't come fast enough as I was even more excited for all of the fashion shows. Since HUSH sponsored Fashion week this year, the HUSH girls were all given VIP seats, along with awesome swag bags that night!! We had front row seats for the shows that night and oooeh and awwed at gorgeous jewellery pieces by Micalla, and the awesome animal-inspired hair for the Goldenfish swimwear show. It was so much fun getting dressed up and as an added bonus Ali gave us a sneak peak of backstage.

Me and Jared-- Front Row! woo!

For me, the absolute best part of the night came right at the end. Leading up to Fashion week I was most excited about Adrian Wu showing his line. For those who don't know, Adrian Wu is a 20 year old genius designer from Toronto who is wonderfully talented and is on the verge of making it super big! Anyways, as we were chatting with Ali backstage, Adrian Wu, in a fabulous knitted floor length Camel-coloured dress, walked up. I seriously need to work on my tact. In situations like these you always hope that you will act cool and collected just as if you were meeting anyone else. Unfortunately, this is me we are talking about, I turn red at the drop of a hat. This instance was no exception, and the calm cool exterior I so desperately wanted, I failed at considerably. I was so surprised/shocked/excited to see him that the first thing I said (picture this in a 'he is dreamy' kind of tone) was "Oh! Adrian Wu". I'm really hoping he didn't hear that part, although I dont think its physically possible to stand 3 feet away from someone and not hear them exclaim your name! Anyways, Ali introduced us, I turned bright red and giggled uncontrollably (Remembering this is both making me very happy and horribly embarrassed all at the same time), we shook hands and I walked on air for the rest of the night!!
Now, if this were my Work Bestie's blog, I would tell you all about how amazing Saturday was because I got to hang out with Jessica Biffi and Adrian Wu all day by helping with their fittings. Sadly for me, that was Thea's day and not mine. Jared and I did go to a couple shows that night though and luckily I had my camera! Jana Hanzel's designs were flawless and were right in step with the 'ladylike ultra feminine' trend that is popular right now. My favourite part of her show were the gorgeous hats that I wish I was brave enough to wear in the spring time. (I'm really tall and feel like hats, especially big statement hats, just make me look like the Statue of Liberty!)




Judy Designs line was edgy and raw. The part of me that is obsessed with studs and motorcycle boots loved every minute of it!


Right before Judy Designs show, Adrian Wu and Jessica Biffi showed up at the end of the runway. Spurred on by Jared I went and asked to have my picture taken with Adrian! Seriously that man makes my heart beat soo fast-- I'll let you decide whether I'm talking about Jared or Adrian! ;)



All in all Ottawa Fashion Week was everything I hoped for and more! I had so much fun dressing up and checking out other peoples outfits! I think I could have gone by myself and entertained myself people watching the whole time! Whoever says that Ottawa Fashion doesn't exist seriously needs to rethink their stance.. we are a growing force and after the success of this years Fashion Week putting us on the map, it can only keep getting bigger and better!