My daughter and I were walking to a restaurant on Boulevard St. Laurent, in Montreal, when we came upon this amazing 3 sided + ceiling wall mural. The black and white artwork in these photos is very captivating. What is interesting is that the mural is painted in a private driveway/loading bay but creatively engages with the community in a way that reinforces a community’s sense of place or well-being in society.
A principle of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, “Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.” (Wikipedia)
This totally accessible street art made us stop and think about who these artists were, and what they were trying to convey to us through these images. More importantly, we engaged with Boulevard St. Laurent in a way we were not expecting.
We all want and need them. One’s openness to friends goes through a kind of complete exclusivity cycle. When we are little we’re open to a wide range of friends with few to chose from – but by the teen years we’ve become more selective and our definition of friend is very small. We long to be part of the ‘in crowd’ but more importantly we long to not be left out. In adulthood we’re almost back to our childhood ways because we’re more inclusive, and with a wide range to choose from, our lives become rich through a diversity of friendships.
The best friends of our youth may not be the ones we call best friends as adults. To evolve together as best buddies is a rare achievement. As parents, our friends tend to be parents of our children’s friends often met on the soccer sidelines with obvious common interests. That is, if you even have time to have friends. Parenthood is an all-encompassing activity.
An interesting thing happens when you hit a certain age. Your friends become the people you share something with and these friends come from all aspects of your life. Friends no longer reflect how you’d like to seen but rather provide definition to who you are. As I get older I find I have a new found appreciation for friends, both old and new, and I find myself reaching out to have them in my life.
I feel fortunate to have friends from many different areas. I have friends from high school and University, friends I have met through my children and friends from work. However, with the advent of the internet, something very unexpected has happened. I now have a big group of friends I have never met and may never meet. We provide advice and support to one another, we have a lot in common and a lot to talk about. We are ‘getting in the conversation’ as we pursue our dreams of creative living. These are my blogging friends.  We met through an on-line blogging course and connected through our blogs. Through this course I have become part of extraordinary community. Let me introduce you to a few of my new friends: Leah, Laetitia, Silke, Santa, Natalie, Marit, Coco, Teri, Deepa, Heidi, Mary, and another Tina.  Have a look at their blogs and get to know them too.
Many people would question whether these are true friends. How do you define true friends? Perhaps because they are virtual, and you can represent yourself in any way you wish, they are conceived of as artificial or inauthentic. I would argue that precisely the opposite is true. I don’t like these people because they look good or have cool clothes or cars. I like them in the simplest possible way – because of what they have to share and what they have to say. These are my idea friends.
So, blogging does lead to friends. Meet Jo Ann from Chicago, who I met through my blog when she left me a post about her Hermes Scarves. Jo Ann found out, from my blog, that I am a scarf collector and asked me if I would be interested in purchasing her vintage Hermes scarves. I was intrigued which led to some back and forth discussions about Jo Ann’s scarves. In the end, I was not able to buy these lovely scarves but I offered to post them on my blog to let my readers know about this opportunity to own some well cared for vintage Hermes scarves.
Jo Ann's Hermes Scarves
Over the course of the last month JoAnn and I have corresponded the old fashion way, via snail mail. JoAnn sent me an article she thought I would enjoy about Hermes’ attempts to recycle leather into large $100K pandas, and photos of her scarves.  Jo Ann’s scarves above in her words “are in fresh new pristine condition, but my photo skills are lacking!” So, leave me a comment if you are interested in my new friend Jo Ann’s scarves and I will let her know.
Oddly enough my experience of my blogging friends has some of the mutually supportive pioneer spirit my parents used to talk about. For me this has sparked the realization that it is one’s attitude and openness to friendship, regardless of how it is conveyed, that defines our ability to connect and stay connected with others.
Growing up, my family had a Punjabi expression for those days of leisurely wandering and shopping. We called it ‘mutter gush’. These days I have not had a lot of time for mutter gushing but today was different. I am taking an on-line blogging course called ‘Blogging Your Way’ and my homework assignment was to visit a shop, take pictures and talk to the staff.
There was no question in my mind which shop I wanted to visit. Graham and I discovered Walrus Design after seeing a movie at the Park Theatre, on Cambie Street, a few months ago. This contemporary lifestyle boutique, with its modern aesthetic, has become a favourite of ours because it showcases beautiful, unique items that are NOT in every design store in Vancouver. Most of the items are handcrafted and made by local designers and artisans. Every few months Walrus has an opening and showcases a local artist. The next one is on November 10th if you are interested.
Caroline Boquist and Daniel Kozlowski own Walrus Design. These two are extremely nice, knowledgeable, they have exquisite taste and an outstanding eye for detail. But don’t take my word for it have a look below. Or, better yet, go experience Walrus Design for yourself and tell them Tina sent you!
The traditional Chinese Cheongsam was a loose fitting dress designed to de-emphasize and conceal the figure of the wearer.
The modern version of the cheongsam was first developed in Shanghai around 1900, when the Qing Dynasty came to an end and people were looking for a more westernized style of dress. This modernized version of the Cheongsam was more form fitting and designed to accentuate the female figure, in sharp contrast with the traditional styles.
I bought this Cheongsam style dress from Woo Vintage in Vancouver. Â It was the colour that drew me to it, and the fact that it wasn’t too shiny or cheap looking. Â On the contrary, the colour was a turquoise blue and the fabric has a subtle pattern of gold and silver. I have always loved these Asian style dresses and was thrilled to find one that met my strict criteria. Â I have worn this dress open as a jacket many times. Â I wear it ‘for good’ because I feel really special when I wear it. Â I had the pleasure of attending an Asian themed party recently and was very happy to have an excuse to pull out my Cheongsam.
We have lived in our English Cottage style house for 15 years. Redoing our front garden was a longstanding dream that has only recently been realized. The garden design was a collaboration between Smith Architecture and DB Gardens. The stonework was done by Organic Matters Landscaping. The planting is still new but the transformation is dramatic and extremely gratifying. We are so happy with the way it turned out.
Our recent purchase of the vintage metal table and chairs definitely influenced the direction of our garden design.
The masterful stroke of the design was that it harmonized disparate existing planting, fence and trees in a way that made them all work together as a cohesive, attractive and organic whole. In other words it feels like it was always meant to look the way it does now.
 Remember when you were young and invited to a friend’s birthday party? Remember how much fun it was to dress up, make believe style, when the party had a theme? It didn’t matter if it was a princess theme or a Cowboy and Indians theme. The point was you had to think about what to wear and put the package together. Of course your parents and older siblings may have been there to help but the fact was you left your home in character and had an opportunity to become someone else.
So why then after we get older do we stop the ritual of dressing in theme? Why do we stop believing in the transformative power and fun of dressup?Â
My love of the theme party started as a child when I watched Mr. Dressup. I loved that ‘Tickle Trunk’ full of characters waiting to be born. I knew then that I wanted a costume cupboard. My collection started at age 20 when I developed a love for vintage dresses. I started collecting them and wearing them. I had beautiful dresses from the 50s and 60s that I still have today. Of course they no longer fit me but my daughters and their friends have used them many times. I still continue to collect and enjoy vintage items.Â
When I had kids I wanted them to have theme birthday parties because I loved to see the excitement in their eyes as the decorations and fantasy world evolved. I also loved the intensive design decisions resulting in microenvironments or stage sets that would last for 2 hours. We had cowboy parties, princess parties, swinging sixties parties, Hawaiian Luaus, pirate parties and the list goes on. As the birthdays approached, my kids would ask me “what are we doing for my birthday party� Having a theme gave us a chance to brainstorm and come up with something we thought would be fun. After a while having a party at the usual birthday spots was not an option. The kids wanted each party to be different. The party was always fun but I would get so stressed because back then I would want every detail to be perfect. I am no longer that anal but I have decided to revisit the theme party as an adult.
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 This past couple of years we have had a couple of adult theme parties. Both were in the summer and started with a Tiki theme. The first one was my 50th birthday and the theme was ‘Hawaii-5O’. The second was my husband’s 60th birthday and the theme was ‘Swinging Sixties, Tiki style’. Many people dressed up and the rest just wished they had. The ‘theme’ gave us the nucleus upon which we could build the decorations, the food, and of course the outfits. We could all be in ‘character’ and that always helps break the ice.
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 My daughter will theme at the drop of a hat. Here she is with a friend at a lawn bowling fundraiser. Photo byVairdy Photography.
We may not admit it but every time we get dressed up for a special event we are basically theming. Think of your high school prom or a Wedding. Everyone knows what the ‘theme’ is and they build up the evening based upon it.Â
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My daughter and friends dressed as Canadian Celebrities, Shania Twain, Nelly Furtado, Alanis Morissette and Avril Lavigne.
The theme accomplishes a lot of good things at once. It gives us a sense of anticipation as to how people will respond sartorially and, in turn, how the group will respond to their outfit. It gives us a chance to be creative and even goofy if we so desire. Basically the theme is a lot of fun and gives us a temporary imaginary world or framework. It’s part of that strange, seemingly contradictory phenomenon that teenagers engage in whereby they simultaneously express their individuality as distinct from the mainstream while expressing style solidarity with their peers. In this case the peers are just a temporary assemblage for a party but it does give a kind of ‘ain’t we special’ feeling to the evening. The group theme thereby confers a kind of temporary acceptance and sense of belonging that people enjoy.The difference between these special event themes and a theme party is simply the level of kitsch and I say the more kitsch the better!
As a designer I know that everything that surrounds us is influential; None of us design in a bubble. It goes without saying that the more you expose yourself to the world, the more design will factor in your life. Influences can come from a variety of places as you can see below. They can come from architecture, holidays, food, fashion, the environment, nature, and the list goes on. Â Sometimes it is hard to determine what came first, the chicken or the egg because we internalize design and what we see after we are exposed to it.
My necklace and earrings are by jewelry designer Gay Isber, who I had the pleasure of meeting at Cabaret Vintage on Queen Street West in Toronto.
When I was looking at old photos I realized how similar my hallway is to my son’s ensemble and the Hawaiian surf boards he is standing in front of.
I had to include this image because not only is it beautiful but it so clearly describes the blurring of design boundaries. The image is from KontaktMag.
So, keep your eyes open and let the world of DESIGN enter your psyche.
This totally accessible street art made us stop and think about who these artists were, and what they were trying to convey to us through these images. More importantly, we engaged with Boulevard St. Laurent in a way we were not expecting.
