Land Of The Free

Cardigan Vintage Scotland Cashmere - Tank Urban Planet - Highwaisted Jegging Lime -
 Boots Dr Martens - American Flag Scarf Free People (available here)

We all have those lists of words we hate having people use to describe us. For me, that list includes "cute, good, all-american and quiet". Don't ask me why that is because I don't know. However, I do know that I certainly won't be able to complaint about being qualified as "All-Americain" when wearing this scarf. Hell, I'm kind of asking for it. The scarf has been at the very top of my wishlist for almost a year now. Most of my favourite youtubers were seeing sporting it at the begin of the spring in a pastel colour variation. I knew it was from Free People so I had a hunch it wouldn't be in my normal price range. Maybe not extremely expensive but a bit much for someone who's so used to thrifting with an employee discount. For those exact reasons, I never really thought I would own it. It was also never obsessed over and my hunt to find it was pretty much non existent. However, the damn scarf was also one of those pieces I knew would get a ton of wear making it impossible to forget. It would make the perfect finishing touch to my basics all the while being a nice change from my usual neutral scarf picks.

I completely forgot about its 38$ price tag when I found myself in the middle of the Free People store in a Boston mall. It was the only one left so I blamed my purchase of faith. Plus, doesn't it make the best souvenir from my road-trip to the states! Way better than all of those Harvard/MIT shirts,

I'm curious to know, what souvenirs do you tend to pick up when traveling?

Thrifting Finds: Tiffany & Co Heart and Key Pendant

Necklace Tiffany & Co via Village des Valeurs (9.99$)

Every girl should own a  piece from Tiffany. Their classic yet really fun designs make them really versatile pieces to have in your jewelery box that you know you'll be wearing for years to come. The problem is what are you to do when the budget for expensive jewelery (compared to the usual F21) can't really be justified...Hope for a thrifting miracle, of course! I found this beauty at Village des Valeurs for only 6.99$ and yes, it is authentic!

The Smell Of Impressionism

This blog had given me so many amazing opportunities over the past few years and I've always been really thankful for it. Just like in everyday life, you sometimes life those moments where you almost have to pinch yourself to realize what is going on around you. I had one of those moments when I was standing in front of the Renoirs and Monets surrounded by less than 20 people in the quiet of an after hours Montreal Museum Of Fine Arts. The only sound I could hear was the voice of our lovely (private) guide taken us through the Impressionism period. 

Who do I have to thank for this great opportunity, the lovely Clarisse Monerreau who invited me along with a few other lucky bloggers to a crash course in parfumerie along with a small history lesson on the Impressionists. What do those things have in common you might ask? Well isn't the art of scent all about interpretation. The notes in a perfume as well as our personal appreciation of a certain smell will vary according to our history and emotional memory. Pretty similar to the way impressionist chose to paint something according to their own vision and emotion, no!?

I had so much fun learning about the different base notes and history's most important fragrances thanks to our interesting host Clarisse who just opened the very first parfumerie school in the city. The woman knows her stuff! If you are interested in taking the course yourself, don't forget to visit Clarisse Monereau's Facebook page to get all the latest infos on her École en Parfumerie.    

This would be the best gift to get the girl (or guy) in your life that already has EVERYTHING. I know I would be really excited if I was on the receiving end of such a girl. With all my new found knowledge on the subject and my need for research material, I could probably justify my extensive perfume collection. 

As for the Once Upon A Time...Impressionism exhibit, it runs until January 20th 2013 at Montreal Museum Of Fine Arts. Why don't you just do yourself a favor and add it to your to-do list during the holidays!

Photo Diary - Conor Oberst 2012 Tour

Get ready for it, this is a long (but fun) one!

1. Road-tripping alone for the very first time required a lot of planning...which I, of course, procrastinated until the very minute. Thank god for google maps!
2. One of the few pictures I have of myself during the trip and probably one of the only downside I could find about traveling alone. This was taken at the very beginning of my Greyhound journey which totaled an astonishing 24 hrs over the course of 3 days. I now consider myself a survivor!
3. I quite enjoyed going through small towns. It made for great scenery and I must admit I was charmed by the white picket pence neighborhood I spotted along the way. Most looked straight out of American Beauty.
4. The destination! Unfortunately, the WiFi wasn't working in the bus I took on my way down. Good thing I had taken the care to download a few movies and the entire Freaks and Geeks series. I found myself laughing aloud quite a few times watching the latter. Instant classic!
5. The most uncomfortable part about traveling alone has to be eating in a pub...I had no problem with it but most patrons seemed uneasy with me being solo. They probably thought I was just stood up on a date or something. Lol! Don't be fooled by the picture, the burger was really disappointing. Tasted like nothing but burned meat...
6. HI Boston was the highlight of my trip...well apart from the concert itself. The design of the place, its cleanliness and the amazing staff made the experience  worthy of any high class hotels. A must for any of you that are planning a Boston get-away. Bonus points for the Eco-conscious sign placed all over the hostel.
7. 320 Miles away from home  yet I felt totally at home in Boston. Definitely a place I want to visit again with my mother and sister. 
8. The HI's amazing library. Would you look at that decor...worthy of pinning!
9. After checking-in at HI Boston, I went looking for the concert venue and decided to do a bit of shopping at Downtown Crossing. I was so surprised by how messy the store are in the States. Most of the ones I visited looked like they had just survived a tornado. Nevertheless, I have to admit that the deals are insanely good. I did pick up a few bits which I will share with you really soon. 
10. Fell in love with this Bar II dress and was so excited when I realized it was on crazy clearance. 20$ instead of 185$. I unfortunately had to leave it behind due to it being the last one and the wrong size. :(
11. The gorgeous New State House! Such a stunning backdrop to the Boston Common park, my fave hangout during my stay in the city. I must have walked through that thing at least a dozen times. 
12. Don't be fooled by the shinning sun, I freezed my ass off all of the 48hrs I spent in Boston. It was so warmed when I left Montreal that I didn't bother bringing my big winter coat...silly me! I blame the treacherous winds for the constant chills I had. 
13. Boston must be such a beautiful city in the summer.
14. How cute are those little town houses. I could definitely see myself living there!
15. Check out the even more stunning Boston Public Garden. A tv shoot was taking place on the day I was there, I don't know what it was but I sure had fun watching the crew doing their thing for a little bit. Also, some scenes from the movie Good Will Hunting were filmed by the man made lake. How cool is that!
16. Love this statue, love this shot.
17. Something seems so wrong about one...
18. Coolest tree ever! Would love to have this in my backyard...if I had a backyard.
19. Here I am back to my old ways...lol.
20. Those Canadian gooses were the scariest shit ever. It probably has to do with the fact that I was once chased by one when I was a little kid. I did man up for a bit and snapped some shots. 
21. Picture perfect bridge. Would have loved to shoot an outfit post in this location. Next time I'm bringing my camera tripod that's for sure!
22. Look at that mean stare. "What do you want fucker? You better not mess with me!"
23. Something straight out of a wonderland
24. It's all in the details! Loving the light on this one. Just outside Boston Public Park.
25. Yummiest Tuna from Legal Sea Food. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the restaurant. I chose it on a whim but did not regret my decision. The perfect lunch option with it delicious clam bisque and various seafood options. 
26. I love the contrast between the synagogue and the building behind it. So gorgeous. 
27. Who ever said America is all about  Christmas!?
28. Window shopping at its finest! The amount of designer stores in Boston would make any fashion lover fall over with envy.
29. Mere moments before the weirdest Conor encounter ever. You see, the venue was in a dead end with only one entrance. While some new friends and I were talking about our common love for the man, he basically walked right next to us, said hi and walk in. All of us were too stunned to react or do anything. We had a pretty good laugh about it afterwards but I am pretty sure most of us are kicking ourselves for not reacting in the moment.
30. I had the best seat in the house: front-row dead center. I really can't complaint about the last minute change of venue!
31. The man himself. Perfect ambiance, perfect crowd and perfect set list. Some favorites include White Shoes, At the Bottom of Everything and Lenders in the Temple.
32. Ciao Boston...now onto Toronto, Canada.