Everybody Knows

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It’s spring time in Toronto and everybody knows that the one place to go at the end of April-to-early May is High Park to try to snap some beautiful shots of the Cherry Blossoms. Trevor and I explore High Park as often as possible, as the trails are simply beautiful and even when the main attraction (the Cherry Blossoms) aren’t in full bloom there is so much magic to discover there.

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With the cooler weather this year, I’ve found myself living in denim. I can’t seem to get myself into the season’s dresses and skirts, so jeans has been my go-to staple these last few weeks.

When dressing up this essential, I’ve found myself always looking for statement coats to really add that something special to my rather basic outfit. This collared-floral coat by Diane Von Furstenberg (which I have the matching dress for) is the perfect nod to the cherry blossom season and the right weight for these confusion spring days.

Coat: Diane Von Furstenberg, Denim: Marc Jacobs, Tank: Helmut Lang, Boots: Timberland, Hat: Lack of Color, Frames: Clearly.ca
Photography by 2Boo Studio

Statement Spring

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One of my favourite accessories to invest in are earrings. Timeless, elegant, and statement pieces that can stand alone to add detail and glam to any outfit. I often tag @tnegin in jewellery posts on Instagram to inspire him for my next anniversary/birthday/just cause present. My theories regarding gifting include to know your audience – so never be afraid to give people hints.

Earlier this year, Trevor and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary of being together, which is really surreal and definitely has been feeling all sorts of old. To celebrate this special moment, I was spoiled after pointing out earrings by Michelle Ross while shopping at the One of a Kind show. I loved the distressed aesthetic of antique hammered gold mixed with the fresh water pearls.

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Being my birthstone, pearls have always meant so much to me, and I have been collecting special pieces over the years. These reminded me of a pair of earrings that my mother used to wear of cluster drop-down pearls.This spring, statement earrings are all the rage and there are so many different versions, from natural stones like these, to colourful fringe to (my next purchase) gold hoops.

Dress: Ganni, Earrings: Francie by Michelle Ross Shoes: old (similar, similar, similar), Frames: Joseph Marc from Clearly.ca

Our Kitchen Reveal

They say “good things come to those who wait.” If that’s true, then I’m deserving of all of the good things.

A few years ago, my husband and I, as newlyweds, purchased our first home together. It was a pre-construction, and move in was set for summer 2015. Due to, literally every unforeseen circumstances, we have just moved into our new home this past February, that has three bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths. (Which has also been the reason for my recent disappearance.)

Due to the delays, there were a few things we’ve realized that we had the time to do, like save, plan and invest. Staying in our tiny apartment for those extra years, was definitely a strain to our lifestyle, but as time went on, both of us were able to continue to save money, as we tried to live with our new budget.

We spent a lot of time figuring out how we were going to use the space; today, a year from now, and five years from now. We bought a stacked town house, aka too many stairs – but it’s turning out to be a great workout. Our main floor is an open concept living space that hosts our living, dining, cooking and entertaining. This is my favourite space, probably because it’s the most complete, but also because I’ve been shopping for most of these pieces over the last few years, and at last I can see them.

Today I’m revealing kitchen to you, and over the next few months, stayed tuned as I complete each room and share with you our journey as we make this space our home.

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Trevor, and I are entertainers. We love to host, so creating a kitchen and dining area that made sense for group gatherings was really important to both of us. We started with keeping things open – which meant loosing our upper cabinets and allowing our beautiful collection of dinnerware and serving pieces to shine. We found sturdy and beautiful floating shelves from Silicate + Studio, a design studio and lab in Idaho, and fell in love with the perfect imperfections of their wood pieces.

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Next came to adding the show stopping piece. I was fortunate enough to have partnered with Delta Faucet Canada to upgrade my kitchen space. This Champagne Bronze beauty is not just about her looks, she’s also brilliant. With Touch2O Technology, a simple touch anywhere on the curved spout will turn the water on and off, and will automatically shut-off after four minutes to conserve water. I love the colour and how well it works with the mixed metals, whites and woods, blues and citrus theme I have.

 We still have a bit of work to to do in this space, like adding the rest of our door handles, figuring out storage solutions for our cabinets and adding flush under-mount lighting to the shelves. But overall I couldn’t be happier with this space, it’s exactly what I’ve pictured and had hoped for.
Photography by 2Boo Studio
Faucet: Delta Faucet Canada, Shelves: Silicate + Studio, Dinnerware: Villeroy and Boch, Cookware: Le Creuset, Cake stands, cheese boards, accessories: Hudson’s Bay & Home Outfitters, Cat ring tray: Kate Ubbi,
Barbara is wearing: Top and skirt: Who What Wear Collection, Glasses: Clearly.ca
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Thank you to Delta Faucet Canada for sponsoring this post, all opinions are my own. To inquire about sponsored posts and working together, please email amy@shineinfluencers.com