A few days before we went to the Venice Film Festival in September I was booked on a holiday campaign. It was the first job I booked with my new agent and part of what got me the job was my selfies! Ha. I do have a LOT of practice!
I went for a fitting the day before the shoot and when I showed up to set, I was so happy they picked this cute, red, sparkly number. Totally something I would wear!
If you’ve been following me on Instagram for a while, you’ll remember last year when I posted about my first venture into textile design. Using a piece of my art made on iPad Pro, I uploaded the image to Weaver & Loom‘s digital platform and the process of creating my first rug began. 🤗 Fast forward to 2023, and I’m heading to Miami with the Weaver & Loom team!
The first image below is my design from iPad, the second is a rendering of my 18 x 18 sample, the third is a color strike rendering of my 31 different colours, and the last image is my hand-knotted sample. The day I received my sample I was SO excited I decided to have a photo shoot with it! I was blown away by the construction and how vibrant the colours were.
Going through the rug-making process with Weaver & Loom was incredible, as my rug went through production, I received updates from the weavers in Kathmandu, Nepal. Here’s my rug on the loom!
My full-size rug (5ft x 3ft) is now on the floor in my office and I fall in love with it over and over again each day.
A Bit of Backstory
I was first introduced to Weaver & Loom’s founder Ali Ghassemi while working at Funday Agency. I started out doing some of their social media and as I created my floor art, fell in love with the business. Over the past few months, I’ve been working closely with Weaver & Loom to build their brand/marketing plans and launch a beautiful new website.
The Weaver & Loom is the first digital platform for artists & interior designers to create bespoke hand-knotted rugs on demand. They’re reinventing an age-old craft, using software to cut out middlemen, resulting in a process that is cost-effective, seamless, and sustainable.
This summer, we worked with Toronto/Mexico-based artist Jules Monson to create a line of rugs for Yorkville Murals. Jules’ ‘🐍 Sssnakes‘ installation was a huge success, drawing attention and praise from the art community + attendees of Yorkville Murals. Her rugs are so unique, just like her!
This week, I’m heading down to Miami for Art Week to attend Design Miami and Art Basel where we will be hosting a series of designer luncheons. I can’t wait! I haven’t been to Miami in years and I look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new people.
If you or someone you know will be in Miami this week, I’d love to connect with artists & and interior designers to chat about what’s possible with Weaver & Loom’s bespoke rug-making platform. Send me a DM or email!
Sharing a couple of photos from the media preview of Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody at the AGO earlier this week. I won’t share them all because I want you to go see it! The exhibit with over 120 works by Keith Haring, is on from November 8, 2023 – March 17, 2024 .
Adult tickets are $30 but for $35, you can buy an annual Pass and go for free all year! Girl Math that and you’re easily saving money if you go 2 or more times. I buy an annual pass each year and especially love going to the AGO in the winter for an art escape. I will be going back to see this a few more times before the spring. TBH I am obsessed with all the bright colours.
I went with my friend Nate Kogan and for the talk, we were sitting behind Keith Haring’s sister Angel Haring! On stage are Gil Vazquez (Executive Director, Keith Haring Foundation) and Sarah Loyer (Curator and Exhibitions Manager, The Broad, Los Angeles), in conversation with the AGO’s own Georgiana Uhlyarik (Fredrik S. Eaton, Curator of Canadian Art, AGO).
I can’t believe that it’s almost November. Where did September and October go? September was busy with film festivals and before I knew it, Libra Season was here. This past month our house had the plague Covid, it was the first time since it came on the scene that any of us caught it. I was sick and positive for a few days but Sean was not as lucky, he was sick for daaaaaaays and we all stayed home.
I do have some good news to report, this week I booked a (tiny!) role on a TV show that I am shooting next week. Look out Hollywood LOL. It’s a small step in my new acting career and I am truly grateful for every opportunity. I love being on set and I can’t wait to share it with you when it comes out. Over the past two months, I have done a ton of auditions and I feel like I get better with each one.
I am also heading to Miami in December! I can’t wait to share what I’ve been working on for the last couple of months. More on that later!
On Wednesday this week, I am speaking at a LinkedIn Local event on the topic of content creation, the creator economy, and building a personal brand. Tickets are free and you are invited to come! Sign up here!
Why YES I DID stop by a pumpkin patch just in time for a post about the change of seasons! It’s fall y’all! On the 2nd last day of summer, I went to the media preview of a pop-up by GayLea Foods at the Stackt Market. They had coffee, snacks, and a pile of pumpkins for the perfect photo op. Side note, I have still never had a PSL.
The change of seasons is always bittersweet, I love layering but it means the hot summer days are few & far between. It won’t be long till I venture over to the storage unit and pull out my array of coats and sweaters. Until then, I’m making the most of light layering, open-toe shoes, short sleeves, and bare legs.
I recently shared a fun partnership with Value Village for their #ThriftProud Campaign. I had two pieces of content on my feed and there’s more that will be shared by the brand. I picked up all the items in the content from my local Value Village except for the white shirt above (it was my Dad’s!). POST 1 & POST 2.
I recently went to the opening of Illuminarium Toronto in the Distillery District, an immersive art experience. I almost didn’t go because we were leaving for Venice Film Fest the next day but I am so glad I did! I’d actually like to go back when it’s not an event so I can take it all in.
Illuminarium was one of Las Vegas’s top immersive attractions and now you can experience immersive storytelling as a permanent fixture in the city of Toronto.
The event was super fun, we danced, drank, and immersed ourselves in the art around us. My favourite was the safari adventure, seeing the animals all around you was a cool experience.
About
About Illuminarium
The immersive venue uses cutting-edge visual, audio, and projection technology to bring you shows and experiences unlike anything you have ever seen Illuminarium will transport you to the surface of the moon, face to face with an African lion, or down the rabbit hole to Wonderland.
Guests attend Illuminarium as it opens its first Canadian location in Toronto on August 30, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario Guests attend Illuminarium as it opens its first Canadian location in Toronto on August 30, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario
This year’s Toronto International Film Fest was so much fun. I was hot off the heels of Venice Film Fest and the whole experience felt like a movie. One of my favorite events every TIFF season is the Bask-It Style lounge hosted by Glo Communications. They bring together a variety of brands spanning fashion, beauty, and lifestyle, inviting media to discover what’s new and take home a great selection of items.
Natalie and I met up to view the brands together and it was truly a great time. We had our makeup done by Stila, hair by Marc Anthony, tried on glasses by Victoria Beckham, and more. One of the BEST gifts was the Philips Sonicare Prestige, it has Bluetooth, an app, and uses AI to get to know your mouth. Incredible!
We sampled wine from the Rueda region in Spain. A personal favorite of mine, ever since I visited the region back in 2019 (see here!). Wine sommelier Renée Sferrazza was on site to take us through the different blends and I took home a 2020 bottle of Nēkora by Diez Siglos. Renée was a guest on our Cast of Creators podcast earlier this year, listen here.
At the start of September, Sean and I flew to Italy for the Venice Film Festival. His immersive documentary, Spots of Light was accepted into the Venice Film Festival competition! It was also my first time in Italy!
We arrived in style with an Official Festival car picking us up from the airport and taking us to the airport boat dock. I’d been dreaming of taking a fancy water taxi and arriving just like Lady Gaga’s iconic arrival in 2018. It was close to that, aside from the paparazzi and me dangling my feet off the side of the boat lol. We arrived at the Excelsior Hotel (where all the celebrities are dropped off!) and were whisked away to another festival driver for hotel delivery. I was loving every moment!
Over the past 2 months, I’ve been working with Weaver & Loom through Funday to bring this exciting project to life for Yorkville Murals featuring rugs designed by Jules Monson. 👩🏻🎨🐍🐍🐍 This was especially exciting because Jules is a friend, our first guest on the Cast of Creators podcast, and I have a few of her pieces on the walls in my room.
Using the Weaver & Loom platform, Jules created a series of rugs for her ‘Sssnakes’ installation at the Manulife Centre. This installation includes 18 unique snake-themed rugs, available in three different color schemes and various sizes.
This collaboration has shown the incredible opportunity for artists like Jules to transform their art, both new and existing, into exquisite, high-quality floor coverings.
We worked closely with Jules throughout the entire process, from design and initiation to production and shipping, completing this remarkable project in just two short months. Weaver & Loom’s digital platform streamlines the traditional rug-making process by removing layers of middlemen, making project delivery more efficient and cost-effective than this industry has ever seen.
If you’re in Toronto, check out Yorkville Murals this weekend to experience Jules Monson’s large-scale installation inside the Manulife Centre, near Over The Rainbow.
🌟 If you’re an artist/interior designer and want to explore the platform or dream of creating your own beautiful bespoke rug, shoot me a DM.🌟
Last week I was at Stoney Lake and it was a sweet escape from the city. Our time was filled with cooking, family-style dinners, peaceful afternoons in the sun, naps, and lots of sunsets. I took Sean wakeboarding with the sea-doo, spent a good amount of time floating, and finished an entire book (highly recommend!). My friend Jen brought her dog, Gary, and I made some new friends from NYC. It was a bit bittersweet as our friend who owns the cottage aka ‘Scottage’ is selling the property.
As much as it was great to be away, it’s always nice to be home. I’ll miss these beautiful sunsets tho!
This summer has been so busy, can hardly believe we’re almost half way through August. WHERE DID THE TIME GO? These bright yellow photos were from the KIND Summer Fair last month.
This week I’m taking some time to recharge at Stoney Lake with Sean and some friends. I’ve been swimming, tanning, sea-dooing, cooking, laughing, running, reading, and doing yoga. It’s amazing how a few days at the lake will refresh your perspective, help you sleep, and brighten your mood. Sean and I did this almost every weekend for years.
Yesterday I did a self-tape for a commercial from the cottage. I can’t tell you what it’s for but if you are reading this please put out some good vibes that I book it!
Can you spot two differences in these photos??
We’ll be back in the city on the weekend then it’s the homestretch of summer before we go to Italy in September (more on that later!!!). 😁
In other news, this is one of my fav songs right now. Good lyrics.
This thing from Amazon is my latest obsession, Octobuddy! It’s amazing for taking selfies when you don’t have a photog around (which is almost always lol). All the photos in this post were taken with my new lil’ guy!
The name has over 38M views on TikTok while the brand account only has 662 followers. Influencers everywhere have been posting about Octobuddy and I had to get one. It’s a little silicone sticker with multiple suction cups that attaches to the back of your phone and sticks to shiny surfaces (mirror, window, etc).
It’s great for hands-free selfies/videos and is around $20 CAD on Amazon.
