Preaches n' Cream

“Love at home”

Wonder Woman Peg Doll

Orange Jupiter Bracelets

“The Enamoured Whale”

The weather has been gorgeous for the last few days.

Yesterday I spent the morning at the beach (Lake Ontario) by my parent’s house and for dinner my man and I decided to hit a patio, and that we did.

We found a cool little spot in Pickering at the bottom of Liverpool Road: little community built by the marina, called Frenchman’s Bay.

We went to a restaurant called Port and I was very impressed, it definitely will go on my “Best of Staying at My Parent’s House During Renovations” List :p

It was right on the water, very stylish, nice clientele, great staff…there was even a jazz band playing…on a quiet Sunday at 6pm! Amazing.

This spot is highly recommended by me, definitely check it out if you have a chance.  

Here are some shots:

Mussels + fries + a caesar + a beer + a sunset = Date Night <3

Me + Jazz Band + Yummy Food + Good Natural Lighting = Me Happy <3

If you’ve read my previous posts you’ll know that I’m staying with my parents while having renovations done on my Toronto crib.

I’m out in the ‘burbs…back to my roots and I’ve decided that not everything is terrible about Ajax. Here are the highlights so far:

• FUR Dog Grooming: I took Linus here to get groomed. The owner, Jody, did an AMAZING job. Linus has never looked better; Jody did exactly what I asked for but better than I could have imagined. She is very knowledgeable and has a great rapport with dogs. I’m so pleased with his new hair cut, and I think he’s very pleased with the attention that he’s been getting. If your in Ajax or surrounding areas and have a dog, go to FUR even if you love your current groomer, because Jody is better.

• Bone and Biscuit: Another Ajax pick for dog owners; I dig this pet shop. It’s big and bright, carries premium products and essential supplies. I met the owner, her name is Nicole and she knows her stuff, plus she did something I really liked: she didn’t question my dog food choices—Linus eats raw food and has a very specific diet and formulation. Typically if I ask for certain products at the pet store I get looked at funny and the staff try to sell my something different; Nicole had a good attitude, kind of like, “you know you dog best” (which I do) and she was able to help me within that context. However; I’d imagine that if you didn’t know what the hell you were doing she’d be totally capable of giving you the right advice to feed your dog a healthy diet.

• Costco: Jeez, I kind of miss this place. Costco doesn’t work well in the city because half the time the products it sells are too big to fit in Toronto condos :P That said, Costco has great prices on books, bedding, food and other supplies…It even had some nice Gucci watches! (Although I think I’d prefer the experience of buying my Gucci at Gucci). 

• Best of all-My mom vacuums my room and my brother cooks dinner! 

So far these are my Ajax picks. The restaurants and nightlife are severely lacking, but my search for Ajax greatness continues, if I find more you’ll hear it here first.

A recent school project of mine was to identify 10 of the most influential or memorable music videos I’ve ever seen. So fun—it got me thinking about imagery and styles that I like and the reasons I like them. It also got me on youtube looking up amazing old school videos that I’d forgotten all about and was happy to rediscover. 

Most of the videos that really made an impression took place in the 80’s and early 90‘s. This explains my thing for dangly cross earrings and extremely big hair :^)

Here’s my list:

“Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” Cyndi Lauper 1983

My first foray in rebellion against “the man”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIb6AZdTr-A&ob=av3e

“Addicted To Love” By: Robert Palmer - 1986

http://youtu.be/XcATvu5f9vE

The hair, the clothing, the makeup!

“Father Figure” By: George Michael - 1988

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_9hfHvQSNo&ob=av2e

Who didn’t want to be stalked by 1998 George Michael?

“Freedom 90” By: George Michael - 1990

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diYAc7gB-0A

I wish I was a 1990’s supermodel. Weren’t they just so damn amazing? 

“Wicked Game” By: Chris Isaac -1989

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAOxCqSxRD0

At the time: Hot. Now: Corny. 

Sorry.

“Vogue” By: Madonna -1990

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuJQSAiODqI

“Strike a pose” People still say that 21 (OMFG) years later.

“November Rain” By: Guns & Roses 1992

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SbUC-UaAxE&ob=av2e

The real Royal Wedding.

“That’s The Way Love Goes” By: Janet Jackson 1993

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUOkg4jFNus

I still want to hang with these hipsters. 

“Say You’ll Be There” By: Spice Girls 1996

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ro0FW9Qt-4

Saw this video, colored my hair red, changed my life.

“Sunday Morning” By No Doubt 1997

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiBX-ESFDF0

Gwen is just so cute in this video and I’m still a fan of her black cardi, animal print skirt, platinum hair and red lips.

Whats on your list?

So I’ve packed up and moved in with my parents in the suburbs, this is temporary, just while magical life changing renovations are being done on my Parkdale Palace.

Here’s what I’ve learned during my stay in Ajax:

There is a reason Ajax is called “Ajax”: the water is most definitely filled with abrasive bleach which is only fit for filling public swimming pools. You cannot drink out of the tap, that’s apparently a Toronto luxury that I didn’t even know I had. Even more importantly, this stuff is wrecking my precious cheveux!

There may be people out there having bad hair days and blaming it on genetics, products or their skill level when it could actually be the water supply.Please don’t be a victim, you can fight back.

First some pros and cons:

Hard water cons:

Strips hair of moisture

Screws with your colour 

Hard water pros:

Allows for better styling-I’ve upped the ante on my french rolls and buns and roller sets. There is no way I can just do a blow out, with hard water my hair looks too dry, but the dryness and weird chemical build up allows for so much volume and great braids and twists which are so hot right now. The glass is half full…of hard water.

Soft water cons:

Is almost too gentle, makes it difficult to wash product out of your hair.

It can leave your hair limp and difficult to style.

Soft water pros:

Gentler on your hair, therefore giving you healthier hair

Allows for soft pretty touchable hair

If you are having difficulty with your hair it may be worthwhile to find out what kind of water you have and buy the appropriate products to work with that type of water.

This morning I gave up on my Aveda and decided to try my Mom’s Biolage Hydrating Shampoo & Conditioner: Voila! My hair is back to normal, I got to do a blow out and my hair looks soft, pretty and touchable. 

It also got me thinking about vacations-the next time I go away I’m going to call the hotel and find out about what kind of water they have so I never have another bad hair day again. 

My apologies. I have been the worst blogger on the planet lately. I’ve been so damn uninspired and, well, BUSY. Here’s a quick update on me:

Doing some mayjah renovations on my palais royal:

Got me some foils:

Moved home with my parents during the renovations: