Tuesday, December 28, 2010

all hail the king



King George VI, that is. I watched "The King's Speech" with my sister and I am convinced that Colin Firth can do no wrong. He could be cast in a low-budget, artsy fartsy film with a sub-par script and still churn out a brilliant performance. Colin Firth plays the character of George VI, who must overcome a speech impediment when he is suddenly thrust onto the throne in the time of great tension as Germany, under the leadership of Hitler, slowly marches towards war. Guided by his Australian speech therapist, Lionel Logue, played by Geoffrey Rush and supported by Helena Bonham Carter, superbly cast as Queen Elizabeth, the movie delves into the dynamic relationship between the odd couple, Bertie and Lionel and what will inevitably become a lasting, life-long friendship.

Monday, December 27, 2010

"i just want to be perfect"

Darkly intense or intensely dark, whichever you prefer, Natalie Portman deserves the accolades and the Academy nomination for her role as Nina, the prima ballerina for the opening production of Swan Lake in the movie The Black Swan. The movie follows her emotional and physical transformation as she struggles to prepare for the role of the Black Swan, while dealing with competition from a new ballerina, Lily, who is played by Mila Kunis. It's an emotionally disturbing movie, with some squeamish scenes of self-destruction that I couldn't handle but it is still a beautifully directed movie by Darren Aronofsky.

While I was browsing the web looking for the official movie poster for the movie, I also found these four lovely international versions of the Black Swan poster below, which I love even more than the North American version. They almost have a vintage feel to them, like something you would find in a little dusty antique store in the middle of nowhere. Too bad the studio isn't willing to be just as daring in their poster design for the North American release.

 


Images courtesy of geektyrant

Sunday, December 26, 2010

the christmas aftermath

Traditionally, me and my sister do our Boxing Day shopping downtown because a) we avoid going to the mall to rub shoulders, elbows and shins with the huge shopping crowds and b) at least we get some fresh air when walking along the streets doing window shopping versus the regurgitated air flow in the mall.

Boxing Day shopping started out slow. We went into a few stores to check out some of the sales and weren't impressed by what we saw on the racks. Then, we made our way to BCBG on Robson and walked out with a shopping bag full of dresses and a much lighter wallet.

My sister convinced me to get this dress. While I have a lot of black dresses in my closet, she says I don' t have a "dressy" black dress, I couldn't argue with that kind of logic :D
This gorgeous floor-length silk dress doesn't look like much on the hanger, but I swear, it's beautiful on.
My sister looked so good in this dress. It was a toss-up between this one and a stunning bright royal blue brocade tulip dress, but this one was the better fit.
After that, I wasn't in the mood to spend anymore money, but my sister insisted we head over to Holt Renfrew and just "look" at stuff. Needless to say, "looking" lead to buying and I am now the proud owner of my first Alexander Wang bag, the mini Rocco duffle!



I got the black laser-cut leather with black studs and I LOVE it! It's so roomy, and while the studs contribute to the heavy weight of the bag, I don't really notice it since I don't pack my bag full of crap. Or at least I try not to. This bag originally retailed at $1049, was marked down to $629 and after using up my gift-card, I only paid $380 for this beauty! Major score!

Side note: Usually, Boxing Day shopping is stressful, but when you're blasting the Indiana Jones theme song from the movie, "Raiders of the Lost Ark" on your iPod, it becomes more bearable. Instead of shopping, it becomes an expedition with the motive that I'm going to conquer the Boxing Day sales, and ride off into the sunset with my spoils, unscathed and victorious after defeating my foes (hopefully, with horrible accents!). Will have to remember this for next year.

Saturday, December 25, 2010

'Tis the season

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones! 
 

{I hope Santa was good to you, and if not... that's what Boxing Day shopping is for!}


Photo courtesy of stock.xchng

Thursday, December 23, 2010

i like the way you think

You’re a classy girl;
I’d like to stuff your stockings
full of dollar bills.
 For more gems, click here.

Saturday, December 18, 2010

festive baking

Nothing like holiday baking and decorating sugar cookies as overly hairy, sexually ambiguous woodland creatures to bring people together in the festive spirit.

Little Timmy Bunny and his overgrown chest hair. Dyed green for the holidays, of course.
Why, hello there Mr. Ted E. Bear. What shiny... eyes you have.
Titus: So. Full. Too many sugar woodland creatures in tummy.
Bean wants a cookie. Badly.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Monday, December 13, 2010

i ♥ joe zee


What does a girl need to do to be best friends with this man?!

Friday, December 10, 2010

bratwurst, schnitzel and gluhwein

served piping hot at the Vancouver Christmas Market! Headed downtown after work to check out the festivities and while I thoroughly enjoyed my bratwurst (kid-size) and hot apple spice (spiked, of course ☺), I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. First off, an adult-size bratwurst would have set me back $8 (hence the reason why I got the kid-size version for $5) and as good as the bratwurst was (fried onions, sauerkraut with a generous helping of mustard, but no ketchup allowed!), I don't think it was worth $5. The spiked apple spice kept me warm and buzzed throughout the night, and I liked how they served it in a souvenir cup that you can keep or return to get your $4 deposit back (drinks are $4 without deposit). When we were strolling around the market, we noticed that there were some electricity issues still being worked out as some of the lighting had to be rerouted to other areas, and some stalls had to close down early, including the baked stuffed apple booth. I think once they work out the kinks, maybe lower the prices on some of their food items, the market will be more successful, if it comes back next year.

Drinks anyone?
Old-fashioned wooden toys that you don't find at your usual retails shops or department stores.
Entertainment at the gazebo. Lots of jazzy Christmas carols were sung.
Porcelain figurines, hand-made and hand-painted from Poland.
I'm not quite sure what this is, but it had a cat so therefore a picture was required.
Nordic Santa.
Who doesn't want an angry looking bear as their Christmas tree ornament?
Apparently, these figurines blow incense out of their months...
So cute!
Santa is packing up his toy sack! Kinda small this year, though... I hope the recession didn't hit the North Pole. Where will the laid off elves go?
Mr and Mrs Gingerbread!
Because that's what everyone needs in their lives: fruity looking soaps in the shower stalls and bath tubs. I predict it's going to be a hot ticket item. Get them while they're still fresh! (pun intended)
Glass Christmas ornaments would never work in my house, no matter how pretty they look.
I don't know what the sign says, but they sold cookies and that is what really matters.

clown college

Instead of 1920's Hollywood glamour, harkening to the bygone era of film noir and femme fatales, I end up looking like I'm auditioning to fill the position of Krusty the Clown's sidekick when I try to wear red lipstick.

But I think I might have found the right shade for me.


Afghan Red from NARS (the one on the left in the above photo) is a deep burgundy red that suits my skin-tone much better than a blue-red, or an orange-red lipstick shade. The Sephora downtown was sold out of this colour for 2 weeks before I was able to track one down somewhere in the shadowy depths of their store-room via a lovely sales associate. I was so thrilled to finally have this lipstick in my possession that I gave him a huge hug :)

Niagara is a lovely peachy colour that I've wanted to try for a while now, since I've seen the swatches on Temptalia. I love that website for it's in-depth descriptions, photos and colour swatches, although it's not necessary good for the lemming inside of me, because I start to covet everything!

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

i've got my boo-ooo-ooo-ooo-oots!

A little birdie told me that there was going to be a huge designer shoe sale (up to 50% off!) at the Hudson's Bay Company, so I booked it over to the department store right after work and scored the last pair of DV by Dolce Vita Prince boots in size 8. I ♥ them.





Addictive listening:

Sunday, December 5, 2010

let the holiday feasting begin!

Early Christmas dinner with friends this past Sunday at EBO restaurant. The name stands for East of BOundary, which is clever but also slightly misleading, since I thought we were having Japanese for dinner (sushi is totally Christmasy right?)

Green olive bread and sesame crackers was awesome. Generally, I'm not a fan of olives but I happily devoured a few slices of bread.
Ordered the tomato and bocconcini salad with aged balsamic and arbequino olive oil drizzle as my appetizer. Maybe too much cheese?
My friend ordered the crispy skin sockeye salmon filet with fingerling potatoes sauteed with olives and French beans and served with a side of lobster emulsion. The salmon was wonderfully tender and moist.

I had the scallop saltimbocca: roasted scallops wrapped in prosciutto, served on a bed of Parmesan risotto with teardrop tomatoes, capers and fennel nage. So good. Loved the scallops and the Parmesan in the risotto was not overpowering at all.
Shared a creme brulee with my friend for dessert. It was a lot creamier than what I expected, but still very good. Wish the sugar crust was just a tad thicker though.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

baker's dozen

It was the second to last weekend for the Baker's Market, and I wasn't going to miss out on homemade sweet treats! So, I followed the signs and ended up taking the scenic route to the market.

View of the inlet from Science World. Gorgeous.
Tree people have taken root in front of Science World.
Almost there!
Got sidetracked when I met this handsome fella. He came over, said 'Hi,' and sat beside me, asking for a back scratch. How can I say no to that face?
Selling Parisian macaroons in pastel colours.
Handmade marshmallows! Peppermint, vanilla, and peppermint chocolate covered marshmallows. SO GOOD. It's like eating clouds of sweet goodness.
They had some awesome gingersnap cookies, but of course, they were already sold out. Their cookie gift package would make an awesome Christmas present.
She had a table full of homemade pies, tarts and cakes! I just wanted to stick my face in the blueberry cake, it looked so yummy!
Walked away from the Baker's Market with sticky fingers and a belly full of sweet samples of cupcakes, cookies, chocolates, marshmallows and all kinds of stuff that dentists fear the most. Also bought some goodies to share (or not?) and gift (or not?) to others. Might as well spread the joy, right (or not?)