Life is Good

I'm chilling at a TuffBeans in Tofino, enjoying their wireless as my cottage doesn't actually have wireless as advertised (boo). Hence the reason for no posts the last few days.

My feet are brown from the sun, and I can't seem to wash the sand out of my ears. I've been blessed with sunny weather, and I can't remember feeling so much like I'm on a foreign holiday ever in Tofino. I like this.

Hubby and I have been doing quite a bit of surfing, and mostly eating and chilling. We had a nice lunch at one of my fave spots, the Botanical Gardens. Darwin's Cafe serves really fresh and simple food with an emphasis on herbs plucked right out of their garden. The Botanical Gardens is a slice of eccentricity in this hippie town - 12 acres of brambling gardens, forest and shorelines accented with sculptures.

Modeling a DIY deconstructed t-shirt below after lunch at Darwin's. The shirt is actually something quite symbolic to me - it's part of the Raise Your Hand campaign, a project that I've worked on for 3 years. Sponsored by WorkSafeBC, Raise Your Hand raises awareness about young worker safety - you can read more about the campaign here or check out the website and make a button to show your support.

I basically cut the shirt in the front and back, cut up the sleeves, and cut out the collar. Then, I stretched out the slits for a distressed look. There's lots of great videos on youtube about t-shirt deconstruction, and I'll share some in upcoming posts.

I also found a very cool shop in Tofino that sells tees and hoodies made out of bamboo and cotton blends. it's incredibly soft! i picked up this purple hooded top with pointed sleeves.


I'm really excited for tomorrow as I'll be joining in a surf yoga session by Eoin Finn. Then, it's another afternoon of surf and a seafood BBQ to end the day.

We Can Live Beside the Ocean

We can live beside the ocean
Leave the fire behind
Swim out past the breakers

Watch the world die

I'm off to Tofino for a week to chill and take in all the good things in life. I should have some photo updates in between surf sessions and BBQs.

Above: not Tofino but my fave spot in the world to surf and for beach holidays - Kauai.

Later skaters.

Sunday Morning

We were up at 5:30am this morning to catch a ferry to Victoria (on Vancouver Island, about a 2 hour ferry ride) to attend my baby nephew's baptism. It was a gorgeous sunny day. I really wanted to get some pictures of my two beautiful nephews and their mummy, my dear friend and sister-in-law, but hubby and I had to rush back to Vancouver for a meeting.

This outfit is partly inspired by a style icon I've admired since high school: Gwen Stefani. I was a bit of a Gwennabe during the Tragic Kingdom days. I had a pink version of the Spiderwebs plaid hip huggers and a cut-off beater. I remember seeing No Doubt play MuchMusic and Gwen had a vintage shrunken black cardigan that said Anaheim on the back (video here), and I asked my Gran to knit me an identical one, except I had a ZERO patch on the back instead (dedicated for my other fave band at the time). I still have that cardi and love it.

My leopard cardigan reminds me of Gwen in the Sunday Morning video, with her sassy leopard skirt. The classic cutting of my grey dress is very much Gwen's Hollywood glam style in her later days, once the bhindis and DIY pants grew old. I'm just missing her trademark red lipstick, which I'm afraid, I can't quite pull off.

Outfit:
Grey shift dress, Teenflo
Leopard cardigan, from Hong Kong
Black cork wedges, Donna Karan
Blue and cream wayfarers, RayBan

The Little Sweet Things of Life

Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life.

I love that phrase, and right now I feel more inspired than ever to make positive changes in my life. My mood is pensive, and I've been doing a lot of inward searching. And I think I'm well on my way to some answers. I've been inspired by friends, many of which are going on to follow their hearts and dreams. I'm also inspired by a recent book that I've been reading, a true story about a climber-turned-school-builder in Pakistan.

This post about happiness, from one of my fave blogs, Vancity Allie, made me think about the little things in life that I treasure (in no particular order):

-sipping a cup of steaming tea, staring out the window.
-yoga, deep breathing, finding stillness.
-puttering around my garden amongst the flowers and herbs. Sniffing fresh cut flowers.
-sipping really lovely wine in the company of fine friends.
-weekend strolls with hubby.
-lounging around in bed on a late Sunday morning, listening to rain.
-being with my horse, whether it's galloping on a beach, flying over jumps, grass walks.
- traveling the world with my best friend (hubby), getting lost, getting found, laughing and crying.
-riding smooth waves
-anything chocolate
-whizzing around on my bicycle

Speaking of inspiration, the below is a list of wonderful blogs and I'd like to share the love and pass on this blog award, which I received from Haute World.

The Stylish Wanderer - beautiful, sweet photos
the Clothist - gorgeous, sexy street style
Noshwell - Written by a couple of peeps that I respect so much. I'm very lucky to have such witty, kick-ass friends. Also makes me hungry.
VancityAllie - covers all the things I love like travel, surfing, Canucks, and gourmet food in an earnest, genuine style.
Olsens Anonymous - best place to get my Olsen twins fix.

PS - I drafted this post last night before the news today about Michael Jackson. RIP - and another reminder to live life to the fullest potential day.

3.1 Phillip Lim Resort 2010

Ever since I saw a very haute hippie pair of Birkenstocks designed by 3.1 Phillip Lim for Tatami, I've watched this designer with interest. After all, this is a man that made me want to shell out over $150 for birks - a brand of footwear that made me shudder. Now comes his very wearable and New York-chic Resort line, and I am enamored all over again. I adore the lace work on the little white dress and mini skirt - romantic but not too frilly to be sexy. The high waisted, rolled-up shorts and jacket combos are smart and modern. There were some misses, namely patchwork denim, and a light denim jumpsuit (even though I normally love jumpsuits). However, most of it is highly wearable. I love how Lim brings back old-fashioned, feminine touches, like lace and polka dots, and makes them so chic and new. The look is pretty, but distinctively urban.



All images from Style.com

I Dance and Twirl

I feel happy and girlish when I see Fernanda Cohen's beautiful illustrations. I love how she captures a joyful sense of movement, and how the soft swirls of colour which make her work appear so playful.

I'm reminded that I need to have fun and SMILE - things have been so hectic and a bit stressful and I forget sometimes. I do have only a week more before I go and unwind in Tofino for a few days: time for some self-reflection and focus. Hoping to catch a few waves in between and enjoy a few BBs at our beach side cottage. I really need this time for myself.


All images courtesy of Fernanda Cohen at http://www.fernandacohen.com/

Happy Father's Day With Love

I'm putting this post up now as it is actually Father's Day already in Hong Kong, where my awesome Daddy is. He's enjoying a round of golf with my mom, and I called him earlier to wish him a Happy Father's Day. My dad is one of the most amazing individuals I know - kind, intelligent, and light-hearted. I absolutely adore him.

There's nothing as important to a daughter than the love, guidance and support of her father, so to all those wonderful Daddies out there, I hope you have a very special day.

For those hip, young daddies, this site is for you. Squidfire has deliciously unique designs on screen printed tees. I love ordering tees for hubby from here. They are quirky, cheeky, and totally original.

I have the girl version of the stag tee below. Bicycle tee is perfect for hubby.




T-shirt imagery from Squidfire.com