Talking Influencer Marketing on the #UrbanizeTHIS Podcast

This week I was a guest on the final episode of the UrbanizeTHIS Podcast with Matthew Slutsky & Ara Mamouran. We had a blast recording and a bunch of laughs before and after. I chatted about the web, influencer marketing, social media, and real estate. Click the play button below to listen!  I got to try on my first pair of Spectacles from Snapchat since Ara has a pair. I AM SO JEALZ OMG. I didn’t connect my Snapchat to test out recording but they felt cool. These glasses allow you to handsfree record videos and post directly to Snapchat. FOLLOW ME ON SNAP: CASIE STEWART   I am hoping to try and track down a par at CES in January! I’ll also be in LA so if the Snapchat Bot is anywhere near, I WILL FIND IT! Subscribe to the UrbanizeTHIS podcast here. I you have a topic suggestion or guests you’d like to hear from Tweet @aramammo or @iSlutsky. (Yes that’s his REAL NAME! ?)  

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Made a Thing: Little Wooden Laptop Table

This weekend I did more than just watch Netflix, I made a thing! On Friday night I saw this cool bed table laptop stand thing found it on Etsy. It was $60 but then $40 in shipping and I was like HELL NO. So I decided to make one! Saturday morning I went to Home Depot and picked up 1/2″ copper pipe, 4fittings, and 4 steel flange. I asked a dude who worked there for help to save time and he cut the pipe for me too. I didn’t think about cutting the pipe so this was a huge help! If you’re reading from the UK, you can buy copper from aluminium warehouse or somewhere similar instead. I used a large cutting board we had around the house as the table top. Next time I’ll use a bigger piece of nice wood from the bunch we’ve got at the cottage. I think rougher edges would look nice. All the pieces cost just under $50 and it didn’t take long to put this stuff together. The glue is to hold the pipe bits together and I let it dry overnight. So happy with how this turned out. I saw it, wanted it, and made it! I’m no expert on DIY, yet but I’ve got a long list of things I want to make for the house and cottage. This does however mean that I am going to have to invest in some more tools! Most important of all, I need to find a good cordless drill. The staff over at Coolest Gadgets made a comparison of the top-rated cordless options, so I will definitely be checking out their article for some inspiration. Making things gives me so much joy, I used to spend heaps of time in the garage with my…

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Blog Day Afternoon

This week I’ve been doing work around the house and on myself. I actually look forward to this winter wonderland weather each year so I stay inside and complete projects I’ve had on my to-do list. Thanks to Amazon Prime, Ebates, and Uber Eats I can get free 2day shipping, money back on purchases, and my fav food delivered. Why leave the house?  Today my new glasses arrived and some furniture from Amazon. Amazing! Would like to take a min to say THANKS everyone who joined the #InstaxHolidays twitter hang last night. We were trending in Canada for a WHILE and earned millions of impressions! There were 15 winners with $3,500 in prizes. This weekend I’m installing a new bed frame (yay Amazon!) and have a couple DIY projects I really hope I can pull off. It’s like you make the Pinterest board, get the supplies, then give it a go. More often than not my projects don’t nearly look as good as they should! We will see. I’m really focussed on planning for 2017 right now and have a couple projects in the works. Blogging might be a little sporadic over the holidays but it’s been like that for a decade so no real news here. Hope you are warm wherever you are and making the most of this holiday hangout time. Sending sunshine through the internet. ☀

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My Fav Tech Gifts from the 2016 Telus Holiday Guide

Christmas is just over a week away and there’s a good chance you still have few people on your nice list (including yourself!). ?? Telus has a ton of amazing gifts you can buy online or from one of their interactive stores across Canada. You’ve gotta check out the Eaton Centre store in Toronto if you haven’t yet, theres heaps of things for your home, travel, audio, AND toys, aside from phone stuff. Last year I got a Nest thermostat, amazing JBL speaker, great USB cables, and a MIP robot for the child. Here’s a few of MY FAVS from the 2016 Telus Gift Guide. These are all things I’ve gifted or been given in the last year – Fitbit, Instax camera, BB8, and the PureGear Metallic Cable. BB8 Sphero Robot – $189.99 Last weekend I surprised Embot with a tiny little BB8 Droit. She loves Star Wars and robots. BB8 comes with a stand for charging and connects to Force Band through the app on your phone via Bluetooth. Once connected, you use THE FORCE to push, pull, and control BB-8 like Em is doing here. She’s been having so much fun using to guide him around the house. He can easily go over carpet, rug, tile and wood floors too. Instax Mini 8 Camera – $99 This camera is great. A total hit at holiday parties and with the parents. I took photos of everyone at mums one Christmas and this year I’ve packaged up some stuff to send back to New Zealand filled with Instax prints from the last few months. You can order one of these online or pick up at a Telus store. They’ve got the Instax Mini 8 cam available in Rose Gold, Blue, Black, and white. See this post for an #InstaxHolidays giveaway + Twitter party details for tonight!  Fitbit 2 Charge  –…

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21 Days Till the New Year – Why Wait to Make a Change?

Went for my first yoga class in a while today. I feel so good. Found a studio that’s a 7min walk and beside a great coffee shop. I also downloaded a countdown app for my next trip (California!) and set a countdown till the New Year. There’s 21 days till 2017 and since it’s been such a sh*t year for heaps of reasons, I’m gonna try and make the last bit really great. IF NOT NOW, WHEN? In case you’re just tuning in, I had breast reduction surgery this summer and have been a bit slow getting back to it. The recovery was not too long/hard but big stretches with arms over the head were not in my favour. I did some aerial yoga about 3 months after but not full on yoga-yoga. Plastic surgery is something that I had been thinking about for a long time so I made sure to do as much research as I could before committing to a procedure. One of my friends has recently had a breast reduction operation at the luxurgery facility in New York. I cannot wait to meet up with her soon so we can swap stories about our procedures. Today was the day. Registered for a noon class at YOGA YOGA and set out to make it a good one. A couple weeks months ago I picked out some great yoga gear from the new Gaiam website as a gift from the brand. THANK YOU! Today I opened all the packages and put on new stuff for class. WOO HOO. YOGA YOGA is a vinyasa yoga studio in the Junction Triangle super close to my house. Had it not been a snow storm I’d totally have been there in 2mins via bike. Felt good to stretch. The class was warm…

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#InstaxHolidays | Printer + Camera Giveaway & Twitter Party Signup!

Two things I totally love things about blog life are travel and new tech. Nothing like a great adventure or new gadget to kick things up a notch! This week I got the new Instax Sp-2 printer and this lil’ thing is so awesome. It’s a sleek printer that takes any photo from your phone or tablet and prints it on Instax film. It makes a great holiday gift for someone you love or yourself because you can print out your all your selfies for the fridge/fam. I already have so many of these prints around the house! I’ve joined forces with a couple blog friends to do a sweet giveaway worth $350 that includes the Instax SP-2 Printer, an Instax camera, and a bunch of film. We’re also hosting a Twitter party with $3,500 in prizes. Scroll down and enter both ASAP! A video posted by ? C A S I E S T E W A R T (@casiestewart) on Dec 10, 2016 at 8:34am PST You know I’m a big fan of the Instax camera ever since I directed the commercial for it last year (this one). This new printer is next level, you seriously print ANY photo from your phone or tablet in t-10 seconds. It’s super easy to use right out the box and you don’t need to be tech savvy to operate it. Pop in the film cartridge, line up the yellow stripes, charge it up with the USB cable, and you’re almost about ready to roll. Just download “instax SHARE” from the App Store or Google play and connect wifi to your phone or tablet. The thing I like most about it is the design, you can store it on your book shelf or dresser as decor. These photos are amazing keepsakes. I have so many in our home. It’s super easy…

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Send Money in Style with PayPal’s Holiday Cards Designed by Jonathan Adler

When it comes to holiday shopping, I do it from my couch with PayPal. If you follow my tweets you’ll know my love for online shopping borders on obsession!  Scroll down to read about PayPal’s holiday digital greeting cards AND leave a comment with something on your wish list this year. I’m gonna surprise two people with some holiday spending money in their PayPal account. ?? I have a few loved ones on my gift list who love shopping online as much as I do. This year, I’ve decided to surprise some of them with money in their PayPal account so they can go out and treat themselves to a shopping spree. Weeee! I was jazzed to see PayPal launched designer digital gift cards with New York based designer Jonathan Adler when you send money as a gift. If you’re not familiar with Jonathan Adler, his company has designed luxury homes, hotels, and restaurants around the world. His website has basically everything I want my dream house to look like. Jonathan Adler’s unique holiday card designs make sending money easy and fashionable — something you don’t normally find in gift cards/traditional holiday cards. You can also add a message to make it even more personal. Here’s one of mine! “Money makes the world go round, which kind of makes it the perfect present. Sending money digitally as a gift never felt truly personal or stylish — until now,”  “With PayPal, we have created something that with just a few clicks, lets you send money easily and chicly. It’s a gift people are as excited to receive as they are to spend.” The digital holiday gift cards — six in total — include festive greetings for Christmas and Hanukkah with fun text like: “Joy to the World”, “Merry to the Max” and “Glamorous Greetings” and an appreciative…

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#tbt Photos Make a Great Gift

This week my computer had a non-fatal heart attack. Luckily I’ve got a backup of all my files. During my 3.5hr stopover at the Apple Genius Bar yesterday we wiped my Macbook Pro clean and started fresh with the operating system. It was so full before that it could not even. It’s so much faster now, I’m never letting that happen again! I’ve been looking through thousands of photos on my backup drive and came across these ones of my mum and sister. We hung out in the beaches one afternoon a while back and for christmas I edited and framed a few of them for my parents. One year I had a bunch of stickers made with Social Print Studio and stuck them on everyones cards. Once you download the SPS app you connect Instagram, and easily print your photos in frames, on wood, cards, stickers, life size prints. This year I’m working on 2 projects one for holiday cards and another photo thing for my fam. I’m a little behind but going through these photos is good motivation. Can’t wait to spend some quality time with these ladies over the holidays!

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Auchentoshan + Sam Roberts Band at Common Sort

I’ve been a fan of Sam Roberts Band since the debut album with ‘Don’t Walk Away Eileen’ and those long glorious locks he had . Each summer he closes out Labour Day weekend at the Kee to Bala in Muskoka and we usually take a crew from the cottage. They’re a really good live band, amazing acoustic, and even better up close! This weekend, Sean and I were guests of Auchentoshan Whisky for a private meet & greet + acoustic show at Common Sort. It was honestly so fun and I finally got to MEET SAM ROBERTS. YAY! (I posted an excited selfie on Twitter.) The show was at 5pm and we arrived a bit early to sample cocktails from Auchentoshan. Sean’s dad loves this brand. I quite enjoy whisky in the winter, a nice sipper to warm you up on a cool night. Auchentoshan is single malt Scotch whisky, triple distilled near Glasgow, Scotland. The band played a few tunes then took requests from the crowd. As you can see I was RIGHT up close. There were a couple kiddos jamming in front of me and a huge crown behind. Hit play on these tweets to watch!  Uhhh @samrobertsband is so good. Thanks for this @CommonGood @Auchentoshan! ?? #distilleddifferent pic.twitter.com/gvSCKrjLdW — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) December 3, 2016 Don't walk away Eileen! ? @samrobertsband w/ @Auchentoshan ✌?️ #distilleddifferent pic.twitter.com/A8heTxTrLZ — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) December 3, 2016 After the show, Sam (first name basis now heh heh) grabbed his drink and walked right down to the kids for photos. I gave him a cheers and said ‘that was great’. I felt a bit like a dork but whatever!  A day before the show I posted a giveaway on Twitter for 2 VIP tix to join us. My winner was Stephanie, aka @stefiedrew from the internet who writes  ‘The Tallest…

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Feeling Better Finally

After 72 hours of couch + takeout + binge watching I feel a bit better. Back at the office today and have actually had quite a productive day. I did however answer the phone at nearly 2pm with ‘good morning!’. Being sick really sucks. This moring I felt like I had so much to do and the house is a mess and I’m still not 100%. Thanks everyone who sent well wishes. Appreciate it! I’m still in love with my new light! Snapped this on my phone over the weekend. It’s so bright you can’t even tell I’m sick! Early night, home by 7pm ??? + Pho + Netflix. Any lesser known series or movie recos? I feel like I’ve watched everything. A photo posted by ? C A S I E S T E W A R T (@casiestewart) on Dec 3, 2016 at 4:33pm PST Tonight I’m picking up a tree for the office at Bacardi’s Holidega. Later this week I’m having my sister over for a photo shoot. Hopefully by then I’ll be back to my old self w/ lots of energy! Here’s to a great week!  

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Netflix Binge weekend + Lots of Soup

I spent most of yesterday in bed or in the couch. Can't deny it anymore, I have a cold. ? pic.twitter.com/hl3v5Dz6fP — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) December 2, 2016 Today I’ve been watching Marcella on Netflix. A drama series about a female detective trying to solve a serial killer mystery based in the U.K.  I’m on ep3 but will probably finish the season today.  This little JBL speaker is usually in my travel bag and is perfect for watching Netflix in bed on my computer. Earlier this week Ricola sent an advent calendar and it is saving me right now. Sean has been such a dear, made me soup & toast while I’ve been in bed nearly the entire day. I finally set up my Saje Wellness humidifier thing and it smells like a spa in here. The other show we’ve been watching is HBO’s Westworld. It’s a futuristic show about an alternate reality game. A tweet I posted last night was RT’d by the show and over 100ppl showed love for it. I like these guys and their latex outfits on @WestworldHBO. Want one of those mini collapsible tablets. pic.twitter.com/6FLuQe4C0O — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) December 3, 2016 I’m really keen to find a new book. If you have any recos please let me know! I like twisted dramas with murder mystery. Or chick lit!

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How to Have a Stress Free Holiday Shopping Experience

On Friday night I went shopping with Emily for some snow pants downtown. I honestly don’t know what I was thinking because like, 1) it was Black Friday, 2) I couldn’t find a park, 3) it was annoying carrying stuff. I should have gone to Yorkdale. I tested out RBC’s Avion Holiday Boutique before it opened the other day and they’ve really put some thought into making your trip to Yorkdale a pleasant one. RBC Avioners get complimentary valet, coat check, parcel check, snacks, drinks, gift wrapping, and a nice spot to be chill at. You can also test out their new VR Experience. Once you’ve left the car with Yorkdale Valet, waltz into the Avion Holiday Boutique, and check your coat. Grab a coffee, water, and sit down in a white leather chair, with a cold cucumber infused water, and delicious cookie. [Same cookies they have on Porter Airlines!] Scroll your list using free wifi and make a plan. Sometimes when I’m out and about all I want is to sit down, collect my thoughts, and have a glass of water. Y’know?! Before leaving the boutique, go on a 2minute beach vacation via VR. It’s really quite amazing how the sights and sounds of the beach will calm you down.  Take your experience next level by downloading the Avion Passport App (text “AVION” to 722722 or search in app store). In the app you get exclusive offers, faster gift wrapping services at the RBC Avion Boutique,  and you can text valet to bring the car around,  ? Thanks RBC for inviting me to be a partner and share this experience. Great job on the RBC Avion Boutique! For info about getting yourself on the RBC Avion VIP train, visit this link. The card is packed with travel rewards and you can use now your RBC Rewards at Best Buy and the Apple Store.…

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