Nokomis, I hardly knew you

This week I've been obsessed with stopping by a grocery store or two to get some supplies, then coming home and looking up recipes to try my hand at. Then, basically two hours later, I've managed to make an outrageous mess in the kitchen and a meal that isn't exactly what I was hoping for. Next, I proceed to scarf it down while watching one or two or three episodes of Season 1 of The Wire, and wonder how I can like Dominic West so much after his less than honorable character in 300 (it's most likely the Irishness). 

Today, however, I managed to make something rather delicious, being Caramelized Tofu with Brussel Sprouts, and I managed to cook my own tofu pretty much perfectly (see photo above of my finished product). I'm not sure how well I did with the brussel sprouts, as it's the first time I've ever cooked or knowingly eaten them, but I do know that kids are too harsh on them. I got the recipe from here, and pretty much followed it except that I used a nutted pilaf instead of cooking walnuts with the tofu and garlic. I have no idea how to mince garlic with the one little paring knife I have, but I thought the resulting little candied garlic bits were rather awesome. I also have no idea how to chop cilantro with said paring knife, but I love love love the smell of cilantro too much to feel bad about that green massacre. It's a shame though that I read immediately after my meal that Nokomis, i.e. the brick and mortar store in my town, is closing in the New Year. Just when I was ready to make the resolution to buy more Canadian, and to buy local. Raise a glass with me and sigh.

mono.

If you're thinking you've seen this post before, you're partly right. Notice the emphatic "." though. As in "mono - enough said". Or maybe you didn't notice that this post looks just like this previous one. Nevertheless, I have to do a little bit of repeating, because I have just tried on the coolest dress ever. I read last night that trusty ol' Nokomis got in one size small mono Scarf Dress, so I knew I had to sleepily stumble all the way up the avenue after work to feel what this 100% Tyvek business was all about. I had no hopes of trying it on, as according to the size chart on the monoshop site, I'm a mono medium, bordering on a mono large. However, when I got up close and personal with this creation, it seemed that we were meant to be, as it looked plenty big enough for my curves. And it was nothing short of a positively lovely experience having the dress on for a few minutes. While I think it looks great in the photos from the monoshop, this is definitely a piece that needs to be seen in person. First of all, the dress is so light and airy, that it's like you're wearing a cloud. A tear-proof cloud. A very wearable and travel-able tear-proof cloud. And I didn't notice it before, but that black dot you see in the picture below is a snap, so I could pull on the dress without messing my already wind-blown hair. I was already wearing a white tank, and I thought it looked perfect underneath the dress with the snap undone to leave a v-neckline.

And again, while you can kind of see it in the photos (above and below), I didn't realize what the attached 'scarf' really was. Basically, it's a super long piece of Tyvek sewn into the right-ish side of the back hem, which eventually comes to a point (see below left). I could play with this part for ages. The Tyvek is light enough that you can wrap it around like a scarf and have it stand up all structured-like, as it's quite malleable. My favorite though was to wrap it around my waist and tie it to itself to create a belt. A separate belt over top would look quite smashing with it as well (I'm thinking my ArtLab Clinical White Harness No.1 to keep with the white and snap theme). Wrapping it around in coil formation was fun too, and made me feel like I was wearing a Björk swan dress redux. The dress itself also has a very slight bubble shape to it at the bottom, and is amazingly flattering for a dress made of construction material. This would be the absolute perfect summer wedding dress for someone that does not shy away from the avant garde look. I'd imagine walking down the aisle with the scarf trailing behind like a train, and then wrapped around and secured with a knot or belt or pin for dancing on into the night. Alas, as I cannot have a third wedding, I think I would mostly wear it with the skinny grey jeans I had on today.

So many words for one dress, and yet I feel like I haven't explained it adequately. I'm just so shocked that I loved a white dress so much, as I pretty religiously stay away from white things that aren't layering tank tops. In truth, if this dress was grey, I would likely have bought it on the spot. But I must say, especially with the stark contrast with my noir locks, this dress made me look and feel fantastic, and so I might be changing my tune about white...

P.S. Don't forget to take 20% off the price if you're seeing if the Scarf Dress (or any other item in the monoshop) can fit into your budget with these magical symbols: XTRASPECIAL01

Quad vs. Long

Dear Readers,

I have two important lessons to share with you. First of all, if you are accustomed to drinking an espresso-based beverage containing three shots of said espresso, do not, under any circumstances order a drink containing four shots of espresso. It will indefinitely render you either senseless or (hyper)sense-ful or, in my case, both in no particular order. I've written this down as one of the worst decisions of my life, and as such will not repeat it again in my lifetime. 

Secondly, if you happen to find yourself in my city, go to Nokomis! This is one of the two brick-and-mortar shops I (semi-)frequent, and I should frequent it more. I always seem to forget that they carry complexgeometries, and so, whilst browsing for something to send in a blog-swap package to Finland, I was delighted to be able to try on a few pieces that I'd put in my online cart long ago. In particular, I'd almost checked out with cg's long leggings quite a few times, but wasn't sure I wanted to spend that much on jersey hosiery. Nokomis, however, somehow has prices that are a few dollars lower than cg's webshop prices. This, along with their wonderful staff, resulted in me walking away with a size smaller than I would've mistakenly ordered from the cg site. And, they put my purchase in a delightful handmade fabric bag. If you are on your way to my city, check out Nokomis' blog first to see if you spy anything you'd like to snatch up in particular. And if you can't make it to Nokomis, I highly recommend ordering these leggings from cg. These are what I've been looking for since joining the leggings club, as they are the first pair that actually fit, are comfy, and stay up all day (and I mean all day) without any tugging. And they feature an extra high 'waistband', which can be worn up as a tube top, or folded over like a mini-skirt. I knew before trying them on that I'd love that, as I have two pairs of pants by treehouse28 with the same feature which I always wear to lounge around in. Now,  let's just hope the fashion police don't spot me in my head-to-toe complexgeometries outfit today...or tomorrow.

Sincerely,

A recovering long-legging-ed espresso addict

Mittens = Happiness

I was beginning to question the saying that "mittens buy you happiness" since, even after I bought myself some wonderful new mittens from Nokomis this morning, it was still turning out to be a fairly unhappy day. (What? You haven't heard that saying? Hmm...) However, later on in the day I received a gorgeous pair of Vivienne Westwood harem-type pants in the mail that fit me ever so perfectly (and were only $39 on eBay!), AND my man found out he got the part-time job he had interviewed for this morning. Both these things reduce my stress ever so much as I now have the perfect pair of 'holiday' pants, and I can justify still buying myself something every once in a while (hello Stacey Grant dress!). Oh yeah, and my man's tuition will be covered. I do wish I could include a picture of these amazing pants, but it seems like every Vivienne Westwood piece I own (total now = 2) does not exist in Google Images, at least not in the colour/fabric I have. Which makes me a tad nervous, but I'm sure they're still authentic. Anywho, if you're stressed, buy some mittens - you just may need to wait a few hours for the happiness to kick in.

(Photo of my new Nokomis mittens via here)

Edit: Here are some pictures regarding the VW pants (there you are Stace!). The first is actually of the pants, but I could only find full pictures of very similar looking Worlds End pants. Mine are from the Anglomania collection, are silvery with a black inner buttoned layer, and are made of viscose, wool, and mohair.

Top 3 Purchases of the Summer

I almost felt a tiny tinge of regret on buying my beloved complexgeometries two face dress today. The reason is that I got an email from local only-Canadian-brand-carrying Nokomis, announcing their birthday sale of 15% off absolutely everything tomorrow night AND the arrival of their complexgeometries shipment. So I went down to the shop today to see how much money I could've saved if I had waited for that email. And I can still sleep easy. The prices are actually the same or slightly lower (pre-tax anyway) than cg's online shop. However, they did not order in the two face dress or the other two cg pieces I want (the stifler sweatshirt and the lanky t). Also, it seems they only ordered smalls and mediums, and the piece I quite liked (the choke dress in tank form) looked like I needed a large. However, when I wear my two face as a halter, it looks quite similar to this piece, so all is okay! All in all, it was a good trip, especially as there was an adorable old border collie meandering through the store with a bone in his mouth.

And so, without further ado, the Top 3 Purchases of the summer. Incidentally (or not), all three of these will carry over nicely to the present fall weather, as they can all be layered to my heart's content. They also all go well with a Grande non-fat, extra hot, Pumpkin Spice Latte, the tell-tale sign that fall is concretely here.

1) complexgeometries' two face dress in black

2) ArtLab's Andromache's Deconstruction Noir dress (which looked fabulous yesterday with my Las Lopez Wood Nymph Shawl!)

3) Liza Rietz's Waffle Tucked Tunic in black and white herringbone (on sale for a couple more days in Liza's Etsy shop!)

What are your best purchases of the summer? Oh, and if you're wondering what my worst purchase of the summer is, head on over to my shop where I've posted it for sale/trade. Hopefully someone else will find it suits them better.

Shopping rant

At the risk of being too cacophonous with my barrage of blogging today, let me have one more silent rant (ooo, I almost made the awkward move of using my blog title in my blog entry, didn't I? - yikes!). I just conducted my monthly-ish experiment of trying to redeem shopping in physical stores. It, once again, failed. The shopping trip started with a horrendous bang, as I was treated to the most deplorable customer service at my neighbourhood American Apparel. There was honestly 15 employees standing around twirling their hair, and not a one of them said boo to me, their only customer. Not even when I left the changeroom. Good riddance. Then the Chie Mihara sandals that I was planning on rescuing (well, trying on) were completely sold out. I do usually get great service at Gravity Pope, but that was the only shoe I was interested in. Sigh. The only good thing about the whole trip was the adorable puppy I saw and my delicious layering job of my long light brown treehouse28 wide strap dress under my Liza Rietz scooped cowl knit gown. Oh, and the AA track jacket I snagged for $20 for my hubby, NOT at the AA store.

Honestly, since I discovered Etsy just over 2 years ago, you have to drag me kicking and screaming to physical stores. And we won't even mention malls. Three exceptions remain, being the aforementioned Gravity Pope, Bamboo Ballroom, and Nokomis (which carries independent Canadian designers such as Norwegian Wood). Aside from those, I'm quite happy to click away with my measurements and credit card in hand. And I have yet to find better customer service than my trusted friends and sellers on Etsy and other websites such as Ma Jolie and Not Just a Label.

Okay, I'm done.