Winter Pink Marshmallow Dreams

Ah got you! you were thinking of some kind of pink marshmallow dessert concoction that I might have made and that peaked your interest. Well sorry to disappoint, but what you get is an outfit post. On the bright side I do look like a marshmallow in this coat! a stylish one if I do say so myself, haha.

I'm glad I waited to post this today as it is a super chilly day and from what I've seen on the weather network it's snowing in Calgary! Luckily for me I'm nestled warmly at my parents place where the heat is on and the only chance we have for snow is if it decides to move south of the city. Which, it probably will (insert sad face). 

Pea Coat: Pink Tartan - available at Holt Renfrew // Dress: Aritzia (similar) // Boots: Rag & Bone // Necklace & earrings: Aldo (similar)

Warby Parker Fall 2014

Warby Parker has launched it's new fall collection with 11 new styles starting at $95. Yes, just $95 Canadian dollars! If you're searching for stylish and affordable retro-style eye wear Warby Parker is the place to find them. I remember when I was looking for glasses 4-5 years ago and Warby Parker showed up on my browser, unfortunately it was only available to U.S. buyers at the time. Lucky for you Canada has even more options now!

Here are a few of my favourite styles:

Chandler Ti

Greenleaf

Annette 

Coley

Golden Beet & Spinach Salad

For those of you who follow my instagram feed here are those lovely golden beets purchased last week from Saskatoon Farms in a favourite salad of mine. I've never used or eaten golden beets so it was a fun change from the deep purple-red of the traditional kind we all get from the grocery. These were great to work with and share the same flavour and were a lot more friendly to my clothing and hands compared to the regular version as the colour didn't transfer and my counters didn't become red.

What you will need:
3-4 beets - around the same size if possible so they cook evenly
Goat cheese
Walnuts
Spinach
orange juice
lemon juice
prosciutto

Instructions: When I make this salad it's usually for about 4-5 servings for lunch over a week. Beets keep very well in the fridge for about a week. This is also great as a starter for dinners too.  Just keep everything separated until you are about to eat and it's easy to quickly mix it up.

cut off the stems and the stringy bottom of the beets if they have them and boil them in a pot for 45min-1hr make sure the water fully covers them. They are cooked if a knife can easily pierce them to the center. Cool them in a bowl of cold water for 10-15 min.

While the beets are cooking add 2 slices of prosciutto to a frying pan over medium heat. Cook like bacon. Once done chop up into small pieces to add to the salad.

You can peel the beets with a vegetable peeler, but I find that the top layer can easily be taken off with your hands. Once ready cut into the size you want.

Remember to keep everything separated until you are ready to eat unless you are serving multiple people then it's okay to do this all in one bowl, otherwise, take only your portion of beets in a smaller bowl to do the salad.

Using beets in a bowl (or single serving) add a splash or orange juice, squirt of lemon juice, pieces of walnuts, pieces of prosuitto bacon, and chunks of goat cheese. Mix it all together and top it onto a bed of spinach. Feel free to add more prosciutto and goat cheese to the top if you like.

 

Pink Skirts and Pink Stripes

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the long delay in posts. Its been a while and an incredibly busy month. Full or change and some exciting news (If you are following on Facebook & Instagram you will already know, but there will be a post coming soon about my big plans!) I've been moving and have realized that I have too much stuff, and it needs to be slimmed down. I'm approaching life with a minimalist attitude and it really makes me question why I have so much stuff that collects mountains of dust. Yeah, it's not helping my allergies either. 

Come Saturday I'll be leaving my apartment, and it's been a great 4 years there! It will be greatly missed, but for my next adventure it sadly cannot come with me. Since the move it almost done this means time for more posts! YAY! 

It's already the end of August. Where did the summer go? Yesterday was a cool and rainy day so I thought I would post something fall-esq to inspire a flirty attitude as we go into colder temperatures. The location is a favourite of mine in the city, and was originally known as "Beaulieu", the French meaning "beautiful place" those who recognize it will know it as Lougheed House. My thought was that the pink of the boiled wool skirt, very warm by the way, would balance the long trench and add some colour to an otherwise muted pallet. I really like neutrals and black & white, but adding colour cheers a person up when you realize summer is coming to an end. 

  Jacket: H&M (similar) // Shirt: Pink Tartan // Skirt: Pink Tartan // Shoes: Zara (similar)

Ikea Rast Hack/DIY

I've been sitting on this Ikea hack for well over a year now. I'm guessing the images got shuffled around with some old pictures and was lost and forgotten about! So imagine my surprise when I looked over to my left (that's where it sits next to my bed) and thought... "hmm did I ever post about this DIY?" and BOOM realization hit. No I had not! so after some searching the images were found and all you lovely readers can find out how I changed this....

Into this!

What you will need:
Rast drawer Chest  - $40
Wood stain - mine is by Minwax in the colour English Chestnut
White high gloss paint - mine was some left over trim & door paint just in basic white.
Ring pulls - I purchased mine form Lee Valley in the 51mm size. They're pretty cheap at $2.90-3.30 each.
Washers - the ring pulls length is a little longer than the thickness of the wood doors so you will need a few washers to make up the space to make them a tight fit. 
Varnish - I used an aerosol version to apply 1-2 coats. I always have a glass of water on my night stand so this was a must.

It's pretty straight forward on putting this one together. I strongly suggest staining and painting all the pieces before putting them together to get the best coverage.

When applying the stain I used a tea towel and for the paint on the doors I used a roller which was far easier to get even coats on than trying to use a brush. 

This is a great project to heighten the look of an inexpensive side table and in total the cost was around $70 with all the supplies.. also factoring some of the thing I already had.

Coconut Green Tea Popsicles

It's been a hot couple of days here in Calgary and I'm sure many of you are enjoying stampede and everything that it involves. With the weather being so amazing it makes us all want to find the best way to cool off a bit and what better way than with a nice treat. This one is for the not too sweet tooth but for those looking to enjoy something refreshing and dairy free, and that can be hard to find with frozen desserts. I've found a love of using coconut milk as a dairy substitute and it has turned out amazingly!

What you will need:
1 Can Coconut Milk (400g-ish)
1 Cup Almond Milk
4 Tsp Matcha Green Tea Powder
3 Tsp Agave Nectar or more depending on how sweet you like it

Mix all ingredients together and pour into moulds. Allow them to freeze for 5-6 hours, and there you have it! Simple Coconut Green Tea Popsicles. Yum! 

*For those wondering I didn't have moulds so as a substitute the little Rubbermaid dressing containers that come in the food storage sets were used with some well placed elastic bands to hold the wooden sticks. Yes, I'm talking about the plastic containers with the red lids that come in multi packs at Wal-mart and all the grocery stores. 

Stampede Style with Plenty

Spirits are running high in the west and the Stampede parade has just finished. It's time to dust off those cowboy boots and get your YEE-HAW's ready for 10 days of western filled fun. I've paired up with Plenty to bring you a stylish Stampede ready outfit that's not too kitschy but has all the essence of Stampede with pieces you can wear again. I honestly thought I would need to drive to the stampede grounds for a good setting, but after leaving with my roommate to location scout. Driving only 3 minutes away from the apartment we scored and found an old school house with the perfect amount of charm!

The weather didn't want to be on my side unfortunately and after 20 minutes of trying to keep my eyes open from the blazing sun (it was honestly 31 degrees out yesterday!) or the wind blowing in my eyes. There was some serious squishy face action happening in 99% of the photos.  

So if you are searching for the perfect stampede dress or the denim to spend the next 10 days in visit Plenty! All denim is 20% off from July 4-13th. Yes, that includes sale items!   

Dress: Propaganda // Jacket: Levis // Shoes: Chelsea Crew // Hat: Borrowed

Giveaway! Start your summer right!

Start your summer right with a few perfect summer accessories! Here is a little giveaway for you to win. It includes:

Joe Fresh Straw Fedora
Kate Moss x Topshop Tote Bag
OPI polish in Hussy
Bumble & Bumble Straight - Tester size
Skull Candle - Made by me!

 To enter:
Follow @themavric on Instagram and repost with #themavricgiveaway
Like The Mavric on Facebook

Contest runs till June 30th!  

Terrarium DIY

 

As you have probably learned from some of my previous posts, plants are not my forte. I do love having some greenery in the apartment to add some life and to prove to my self that I don't kill everything (it's only the start of the summer so I'll get back to you guys on that one.) There has been a huge rise in the popularity of cacti and easy to care for but still beautiful arrangements or terrariums that they are called. Having seen some incredible ones at Market Collective and ones made by fellow bloggers and istagramers like Ryan from ImMrFabulous and Lori of theoriginal10cent it's hard to resisted trying to make one myself.

So with a few supplies it was pretty easy to create my own terrarium.

What you will need:

2-3 cactus's (you can also use succulents, and like me I used a small aloe plant) these were purchased from Wal Mart for $3 each
A variety of mosses - My package is from Michaels and is $10. They almost weekly have a 40% online coupon for one regular priced item. So I used the coupon and paid $6
Extra potting soil - I reused the soil that the plants came in along with a bit of soil left over from the plants re-potted earlier in the season. 
Glass container - This one is from Homesense for $15 and is the perfect bubble shape that I was going for. You can also try so many other shapes like apothecary vases or a large wide bowl. 

Extras: only if you want too..
Drift wood,
Rocks - for decoration or for extra drainage depending on the type of plants you choose
Sand - also for decoration or if you want something lighter instead of soil - but remember what kinds of plants you are using not all cacti will survive in sand.
Silly's - that means things like plastic toys, a hobbit paradise, anything to make it yours. 

Adding everything up my terrarium came to $27!

I've also been left with a huge amount of moss.. so there will likely be other projects and/or gifts to friends being made will it.

DIY: Plexi Glass Wall Art

I'm always changing things in the apartment. Either moving things around or putting things in interesting places. Sometimes it's creating something so it can evolve that it really makes my day. I came across the idea for these hanging boards while browsing a few different sites and of course Pinterest. Some bulldog clips were spray painted funky colours or they used a variety of materials like metal sheeting or wood for the backing. My direction is more simple. I went to the local Home Depot and purchased a large acrylic sheet (18 x 24 inches) and cut it into 4 pieces. Of course you can purchase pre-cut pieces but I found I saved quite a bit by cutting them myself. You can watch this handy video on how to do it. The clips are from staples.

There's not much explaining that needs to be done for this DIY. It's as simple as cut, clip, and hang. The fun part is that you can constantly change the items that are clipped. You don't have to put photos in a frame and it's so simple to pull you favourite clippings from a magazine and have them hanging in a second!

Day to Night and Rock & Roll in Pink Tartan

I've spent the last couple days obsessed with Pink Tartan and decided to play around with some pieces. The collection boasts some amazing dresses perfect for day to night wear and the washable collection of pants, tops, and dresses really make it easier to take care of luxury pieces without constantly having to go to the dry cleaners. I love wearing the neon dress (last pic) not only because it is washable but it is incredibly versatile, sexy, and most of all comfy! 

The light weight sweaters are butter soft and are great tucked into skirts or simply worn with their stretch dress pants. My go to combo is a tight pant with the sweater. The outfit just says chic without any fuss.  I really want to go out to a jazz bar in this outfit but the only Jazz bar in the city has changed and is now headlining country/folk music. Though folk is alright it's a hard pass for country music for me.

A women needs a wardrobe that is versatile and can take her from day to night for those parties, events, drinks, dinners, dates, and everything else in between.

Dress: Snow Leopard // Knit Top: Key Hole Crew Neck // Pants: Legging // Dress: Gwyneth

Pale Blue + Stripes + School Steps

It was a gorgeous day on Tuesday so I decided to take some photos outside of Hillhurst School. It's only a few blocks away from my apartment and the building has so much character. If only all schools could look like this still.

Continuing my love of pale blue is this crop air knit tee from Pink Tartan that has the feeling of scuba material like what you might have seen in skirts the past few seasons. It has great structure and stretch for comfort. I've paired it with my favourite skirt and shoes from Zara. Those shoes have been worn to so many events lately and I've only had them for a month!

Top: Pink Tartan // Skirt (similar): Zara // Shoes: Zara // Sunglasses (similar): H&M

p.s. the Pink Tartan top is part of the Washable Collection so no need for dry cleaning!