ikea hack

Last weekend, whilst avoiding schoolwork a tiny bit, I turned an Ikea serving platter into a jewelry stand. I’d been on the hunt for one for the past year and nothing in the stores really satisfied me. I didn’t want to settle on something ho-hum. When in doubt, DIY! I bought the serving platter a couple of months ago and the pretty paper from Midoco and the Paper Place in February. I don’t know why it took me so long to actually put it all together. It only took about 20 minutes!

I used a little bit of Elmer’s glue to secure the paper to the glass. The bottom piece of paper with the ginkgo leaves ruffles a little bit on the edges. I’m okay with it.

Here it is in action. It lives on the dresser in our bedroom. This is much better than me rifling through several tiny boxes to find what I’m looking for in the morning.

lake cecebe

I spend a three days at a friend’s cottage a few hours north of Toronto. There were seven of us (six nursing students, one nurse) and it was wonderfully restorative. I think I understand Toronto cottage culture now. It was so great to leave this enormous city, to breath in fresh air, see wildlife and beautiful bare birch trees, to walk on a frozen lake, to sleep in complete darkness and silence.

rookie mag

Have I mentioned how much I love Rookie Mag? It has been said by many others already, but I wish this had been around when I was a teenaged girl. This post about Degrassi is a good representation of Rookie’s awesomeosity.

Hope you’re having a nice week.

heart garland

I was in a dollar store the other day and saw all the Valentine’s Day merchandise on prominent display, including cards specifically for nieces and nephews. I’ve never sent anything to my siblings’ kids for V-Day before. Am I supposed to be doing this? Am I a bad aunt? I thought about sending a mass produced card and some equally mass produced chocolate but instead decided to send them something homemade and crafty.

I remembered seeing this ridiculously cute felt heart garland last year. Went to the local art supplies store, bought some felt, and got to work.

I ended up cutting out enough hearts for a three lengthy garlands plus one shorter one. One for my sister’s family, one for my brother’s, one for our living room, and the short one is perfect to hang on our front door. I’m going to put together care packages with these garlands tucked inside and send them westward to my loved ones.

silas at 30

Yesterday was Silas’ 30th birthday. Being an introvert means he generally doesn’t like his birthday or the attention that comes with it. I lean more towards the extrovert side of the spectrum and love all things birthday related. This means I like making a big deal about milestones like turning 30 and I write about it in every internet medium available. Silas was convinced I was organizing a surprise party for him and was preparing himself for how he would react to it if it happened. I kept asking him where we were going for dinner or where he’d like to go for drinks so I think this caused suspicion. But I know Silas well enough to not spring something like that on him.

We went out for dinner at a little place by our house called The Roxton. We ordered a charcuterie platter to start, Silas had the reuben with soup, and I had a burger with chips and salad. So much meat. We walked home a little bit tipsy and he opened his presents.

Not shown is the post-script I wrote in his card promising to knit him a (long awaited) sweater before he turns 31. Writing it on the internet make me extra accountable.

Then we listened to LCD Soundsystem and had a mini dance party by our front door.

I lit sparklers and presented Silas with his birthday lime tart.

Recipe here: http://everybodylikessandwiches.com/2012/01/lime-tart/

Happy 30th to you, Silas!

coast

Lomos from our holiday in Nova Scotia this summer.

summer

light

These blossoms are long gone now. It seems like spring came and went in a blink and now it’s full on summer. This morning we were awoken by the loudest thunder I’ve ever heard in my life. It must’ve been right above our roof. Now the sun is shining and the ground is already dry and the humidity is rising. Summer is my favourite of all the seasons.

good weekend

Friday: Tea with Samantha followed by a walk around Koreatown in the morning; used up some gift cards at the Eaton Centre in the afternoon; went to our friend Cory’s birthday party in the evening.
Saturday: Sunshine, warm breezes, walks around the neighbourhood, napping on the couch, eating salsify for the first time, braised ham, mini pavlovas, Scrabble and wine.
Sunday: A birthday brunch at the Gladstone for Samantha including Jason, Teri & Andrew, Pamela, and Amy; caught up on missed episodes of Modern Family on the internet; an afternoon drink with Ally; soup & sandwiches for dinner; re-watched Rachel Getting Married while knitting; accidentally stayed up until 3am to finish reading The Help.

Today is my last day of spring break. Back to the grind tomorrow for seven more weeks of classes. I had such a nice week off. I hope you had a nice weekend too!

day to day

 

My life looks so much better on film.