PAINTLOUNGE - MOTHER'S DAY CONTEST!

This past week I went to a blogger party at Paintlounge. I have always enjoyed painting as a child, but as life's responsibilies increased, my hobbies took the backseat. I do paint a bit for my DIYs, but it has been over a decade since I have painted a canvas. At first, I was a little hesitant, but a chance to paint with my hubby, and meet other bloggers, I just couldn't say no!

I am glad I went, because we had a fabulous time! With coffee and cookies, a paint party can become so much more fun. Though painting is usually a solitary activity, but putting a little twist in the concept is a great idea. Paintlounge is a space where you and your friends can go to relax, paint and socialize, it is called social painting, a concept Paintlounge pioneered in Canada. Paintlounge has been named a top romantic date idea by Toronto.com and one of the top 30 rainy day activities by BlogTO. It’s also a great idea for bachelorette parties or team building events, they even hold speed dating! 

What I loved the most about Paintlounge is that you can do this any time of the year! With our long winters, and rainy springs, Paintlounge is a great to escape for the evening and it leaves you feeling refreshed and relaxed! If you have never painted, don't feel intimidated as the staff is so helpful and always guiding you through your process. 

They are also running special Mother's Day Contest to give away one free Mother's Day package for two which includes two solo freestyle painting sessions, two cafe drinks, and a special tea sampler gift for Mom. 

You know your Mom is awesome … now, it’s time for you to show her off to the world!
Simply complete this sentence, “My Mom is awesome because … “ for a chance to win one free Mother’s Day package for you to spend some fun, creative, quality time with Mom this Mother’s Day.
To Enter: Complete the form on the contest page or respond via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram by adding the hashtag #PaintloungeContest. The winner will be announced on Monday, May 4, 2015.

Goodluck!!
~Nav

HIGHLIGHTS - IDS TORONTO 2015

I had the pleasure to go to the Interior Deisgn Show in Toronto this past weekend. For a design enthusiast this show full of inspiration. Great decor and design ideas, as well as local vendors that provide great products..IDS is the place to be for anyone who is looking to renovate their space with newest trends and personally meet the designers. Below are some of the highlights from the show, I took A LOT of pics, so please bare with me as I walk you through the chaos.

REVIEW: BUTTER AVENUE, TORONTO

The Christmas Market Toronto

I am already in love with the Distillery District, the architecture gets me every time! Now that is filled with boutique shops, elegant restaurants, bars and art galleries..it is by far my favorite place in the city to visit at any time of the year.

Christmas Magic is all around us. This is my favorite time of the year when everything is sparkling, the smell of freshly baked cookies, and cheer all around, how can you not get in the spirit of the season! So, naturally on my day off I would like to do nothing but enjoy the season to the fullest. One of my favorite things to is visit the Toronto Christmas Market at the Historic Distillery District.

If you have never visited the Distillery District, then now is time! The Christmas market is only around until this Sunday, so grab the whole family and visit this beautiful historic Toronto landmark. While you are there, don't forget to try a few grilled cheese sandwiches and mulled wine!

Beautiful natural decor adding to the historic nature of the area, it will make you feel you have stepping into another time..when things were simple and everything was homemade

Distillery architecture, and the traditional green paint on windows blends beautifully with the pine trees and reindeers outside the cafe..enjoying a cup of tea sitting with these little guys is nothing short of magical

While you are sipping on your tea or enjoying some mulled wine, don't forget to buy some goodies. These beautiful vintage tea cups are made into candles. Such a beautiful gift for vintage lover

Homemade honey, biscuits, chocolate, candles, and much much more. The Christmas market is a lovely escape from the everyday hustle and bustle, and it's a gentle reminder of the way things were.. simple, natural, and homemade. So take your loved one and hop over to the Distillery today!

(P.S. These is Santa for the little ones too!)

Princess Margaret Lotto: Yonge & Bloor Penthouse tour

Last weekend I had the pleasure to view this gorgeous  Princess Margaret Lotto Penthouse at Yonge and Bloor in Toronto. It is 1800sq feet of luxury! With two balconies, and panoramic views all through out the condo, spacious bedrooms with walk in closets, this Penthouse knocks it out of the park every time! The best part is that you can win this!! So don't forget to buy your ticket at Princess Margaret Lotto.
For those of us who might not win this place, it is a great inspiration for home decor. All the accessories and artwork are from Ikea and Homesense! So, follow me as I take you through the penthouse room by room.

Breathless view of Toronto's Fall colours

Outdoor sitting area, complete with indoor-outdoor carpet and spacious seating

Balcony big enough to hold a full size BBQ for entertaining

Foyer chandelier, with crystals in the blubs (can be ordered though Home Depot!)

The Grand (main) Entrance viewed from the kitchen

Click on "read more" to view more pics including my favorite room!

HOW I STYLED MY LOUIS GHOST CHAIR FROM STRUCTUBE

Hello Lovelies! I had the pleasure to go the BlogPodium this year, a great conference for Canadian bloggers! I got to meet some amazing bloggers, and learned about the business side of blogging. Best of all, I met some great sponsors! One of which is Structube. Structube gave away two styles of chairs to the bloggers, and I naturally picked the "Modern Romantic" style for myself. I have been in love with this chair since I first saw it in a Sex and the City episode in season 6 (shot in Paris), so naturally I was thrilled to have finally gotten my hands on one! Since picking it up from their Liberty Village location in Toronto, I have been busy styling it, and here I show you how I styled my Luxe chair.

Painting my room white was the best thing I have ever done! It is a blank canvas that really makes the accessories pop. I have never been able to commit to one metal, so I blatantly mix gold and silver, and with enough repetition you can make this concept work very well. My room is slowly turning into the romantic oasis I have always dreamed of.

First, I decided on my themes and then chose objects that fit more than one theme. My themes for my bedroom are Travel, Gold&White, Feminine. I then broke down each accessory into a theme:

Travel: Eiffel tower + Sea shells + Paris books

Gold: Sea shells + Decanter + Gold dot book cover + Tea cup

Feminine: Tea cup + pretty books + curvy lines

More details below.

Nothing says glamor like a crystal chandelier, from Home Depot!

The Gold sea urchin metallic wall hangings are from Target, spray painted gold against to match the decor. With so much gold in accessories, it is nice to break it up with cool silver. You don't want too much matchy-matchy. 

Table top acessories: I purchased the side table from Homesense (similar at Westelm). Eiffel tower from Paris (of course), Gold seashells from Costa Rica I spray painted myself placed in champagne glass from Chapters-Indigo. Gold decanter also from Chapters-Indigo (holiday collection from last year). Books are also from Chapters-Indigo, clearly all things French! I topped it with tea cup I purchased from Homesense and did a little DIY with gold sharpie.

This goes to show you don't need to spend a lot of money to make a space look luxurious. Little bit of paint, and an eclectic mix of pieces can really tie a place together as long as you have a theme or two. Definitely have more than one theme, it keeps the place looking more interesting and easier to shop for! With the Chair so simple and clean, I decided to keep as it is and decorate around it.

OFF TO THE RACES!

I have lived in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) for a long time. Actually, for the past few years I have lived less than 10 mins from the Woodbine Race track. I often drive by it but never really thought much about seeing the races. I didn't know much about horse racing and found it quite intimidating. 

But, when I got an invitation from Dan Tordjman, from America's Best Racing, to come and enjoy a day at the races along with a VIP tour to see the horses up close, I jumped at the chance! Dan and Victoria invited a group of Toronto bloggers to experience a day at the races. Needless to say it was a day full of fun and adventure, and I cannot wait to go back!

We started the day at the stables, finished it with some winnings, not to mention met some great people during the day!

Starting the day early at the stables, around 10am we got to see the horses having lunch! Apparently their day starts at 4am, and then training begins. Some of these fellas were a bit moody but some couldn't wait to pose for a picture!

We also met "Escaper", the winner of last years races..such a beauty!

Got to pose with some of these horses. It's real how gorgeous they are!

Oh yes, and then we got to go to the track! The track is getting prepped early in the morning for the races. What a feeling to be standing in this place!

Oh yea, I also fell in love with this guy. I couldn't believe we were in the middle of the largest city in the country, and it felt like we were in another world...simply breathtaking!

The horses getting ready for the races. Getting some brand new shoes fitted.

What a beauty!

Now at the races! Not only did we go a wee bit crazy instragmming and tweeting..we actually got to bring home our pics with us! How cool is that? 

What a feeling to be at the races...oh did I mention I ended up winning! Not much but hey not bad for a rookie!

We even got to go to the Paddock. This was one of the coolest things about being a guest of America's Best Racing team. This is where the trainers prep the horses, and make their way to the starting line. Seeing the Jockeys up close was a surreal experience..I definitely felt like a VIP!

I want to give a big thanks to Americas Best Racing for this amazing opportunity. I had a blast, and learned so much about Horse Racing. Thank you Dan and his team for putting this together for us, there is nothing else I would rather do on a Sunday afternoon!

SILVER LININGS..

Funny, I started this blog in the middle of winter, right after the big Ice Storm of Toronto. Which was a total nightmare to be honest, and here we stand 5 months later finally experiencing some much needed change in the weather. When I started my blog, I figured I would talk about my travels and share my love for Home decor, but this past winter changed everything! Having nothing pretty or scenic to photograph outside (I mean how many diff ways can I photograph snow?).. I don't live Downtown or next to the lake so scenery around me is pretty bland, which lead me to create beauty around me, hence all the "pretty" posts. I must say if this winter wasn't so brutal I wouldn't have bothered learning "indoor" photography, which is a challenge like no other. It seems there is never enough light no matter how many windows you have. Having to shoot at optimal hours is also a must. But anyway, I am thankful to the winter of 2014 as it taught me a whole new skill, but I am also not sad to see it go because these beautiful Magnolia Blossoms will always win my heart! I will carry on with my "Pretty" posts, but here I share with you Spring in Toronto!

Photography: A day out in Toronto

It is rare for us to take pictures of our own city, because we take usually it for granted and leave the picture taking to the visitors. But, once in a while it nice to take a walk and really take in the city. See it as you would if you were visiting it for a few days and you want to take in every detail you can. I love taking pictures of not only the main attractions but also smaller things, like light posts, fire escapes, things that make up the city. I took these pictures a little while ago, and I was playing around with PicMonkey edits, so here is what came out. Picmonkey is a great site for beginners who want to play with cool and unusual effects but don't want to commit to an editting software. So here we go..Toronto through my eyes.

Let's begin with the icon of the city, CN Tower. I used a texture background, using Picmonkey, on this image and I like it! It gives it a poster like finish, combining photography with hand painted elements.

The Eaton Centre, the busiest shopping center in Toronto. It is also known for  the bird sculpture installation “Flight Stop” by Michael Snow. The sculpture depicts Canadian Geese in flight. I absolutely love it, because it a sight we see often in Canada at sunrise and sunset!

The Royal Ontario Museum, Age of Dinosaurs. A truly breathtaking experience, seeing these larger than life skeletons. It is not only fun to walk around but also fun to photograph with all the silhouettes against the natural light, reflection in the display cases. I could honestly spend a whole day just in one gallery room.

The Royal Ontario Museum, Age of Dinosaurs

Queen st. is of course known for its trendy shops, but I think true beauty of the city lies in the structures that make it. On a bright sunny day even mundane objects like street cables, and fire escapes come to life!

There is something so soothing about curved lines. I could look that this picture all day, there is something so calming about it. It is kind of ironic to find a light post calming, especially in the mist of the city bustle. But as they beauty is in the eye of the beholder.