On the difficult days,
when the world’s
on your shoulders,
remember that diamonds
are made
under the weight
of mountains.
– Beau Taplin // D i a m o n d s
This is My Life | Hello, September
It’s September. Season’s change. Great time of year to make a fresh start. Clean the house. Clean your closet. Finally drop of your dry cleaning. Get rid of clothes and paper. Organize your mind. Clear your thoughts.
Last night I did a massive clean around the house and everything in it. It felt great waking up to a less cluttered space, less clothes, more room. Did a massive closet purge and nothing will stop me from dropping it off to a second hand today.
I went for a power bike this morning before it gets too hot, y’know crank it up to the hardest gear and ride like a StairMaster. I’m sitting at Cafe Neon neat my house near the window, starting the day with a blog and workout is my fav way to stay motivated. Early August I set out to accomplish a few goals, a new blog layout and generally laying low. I spent most of the month in Muskoka at the cottage and gave my blog a total face lift. It had been years since this baby had a makeover and we all need to reinvent ourselves now and then.
Sending you good vibes for a great month. Use it as motivation to check something off your list. I like to play a lil’ rewards-based game with myself so that I get things done and feel accomplished with the smallest tasks. Workout before coffee? Great start!
CASIE☀️
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Events | A Toronto Scavenger Hunt w/ Ford Canada
Oh haiiiii! That’s me in the new Ford Escape w/ CBC news anchor Peter Mansbridge in the background. The scavenger hunt I did on the weekend called for a photo with a famous person. They didn’t specify if it had to be a famous person IRL, y’know?
We started out at Rock Lobster Queen East with a bunch of bloggers for some eats. There, we got a tour of the features including Ford SYNC 3 and AppLink.
It was my first time having brunch at Rock Lobster and the food was delish. We were two of the first to arrive and it was so fun seeing the blog crew arriving. Lots of hugs and screaming and laughter.
I’d worked with most of the crew hired to shoot the day (via 1188), so we all had a chuckle when I walked in!
The rest of the afternoon had us touring the city with a list of tasks to accomplish before meeting to tally the winner our last stop. We ended up having a car to ourselves, so we sang really loud to Justin Bieber and the playlist Ford made us on Spotify.
This is one of Toronto’s weird houses. It’s covered in dolls and children’s toys. It’s super creepy. The owner once won the best garden. Seriously. For more photos and a few close-ups, see my blog post from August 2009 ‘we have hundreds of McDonalds toys‘.
Thanks for the nightmares! #thehunt pic.twitter.com/DO2sgqPFZ5
— CASIE STEWART ☀️ (@casiestewart) August 29, 2015
Another task on the list was snapping a photo of the Escape in one of Toronto’s many graffiti alleys. I love this one of Kate Moss in a mock Supreme shirt. It’s located King & Portland behind Portland Variety. There’s heaps more graffiti alley art around King/Queen West, see more here.
Know where this house is? Well, this half-house is located at 54 1/2 St. Patrick. It’s a product of history, poverty, property changing, and has a story that’s way too long for this blog post. You can read it on BlogTO if you’re keen.
Value in 2013 was ~$650K, it was vacant. Given the TO housing market it’s probably $1M now.
Towards the end of the hunt we really got creative, time was getting short. Spell out FORD and make a collage? OK! Flowers, Oranges, Raspberries, Driving.
We arrived at Big Crow at Dupont & Davenport around 5:30 for BBQ. I ate a few shrimps right when I walked in and OMGWHOA they were good. Unfortunately, I didn’t stay for the whole meal (we were heading to cottage) but it looked good. I saw a rack of ribs on someones Twitter and I’m still thinking it about days later.
We didn’t win the Toronto scavenger hunt but we DID have a super fun time w/ heaps of laughs. I thoroughly enjoyed driving the Escape all afternoon. It’s a powerful lil’ SUV that’s not too big, good for city driving. Great turning radius and Active Park Assist means you can parallel park like a champ anywhere, anytime.
I’ve done it a few times. Here’s a vid of me parallel parking an Escape with no hands back in 2013.
https://youtu.be/vnb46qtu6vU
Thanks Ford Canada for a fun time w/ friends exploring our city. I’ve lived here for 10 years and there’s always something new to discover. If there’s any footage from the GoPro or video from Ford I’ll update this post. I’m sure you’re just dying to hear us singing loudly! ?
?? CASIE
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Travel | Working From the Cottage Today
Hello, hello? What’s that sound? Waves crashing in the background! Stayed a little longer at the cottage this weekend and am working from this little spot after spending 2 hours on emails + editing in the hammock. It’s a rough life!
Biebs just released the video for What Do You Mean and I’ve been playing this tune over and over. I’ve always been a fan of his! Back in my days at MuchMusic & MTV he performed at the MMVAs and I was SO close. Once I got to meet in him NYC.
Here’s to a great week my friends. SUMMER IS NOT OVER. This week is gonna be mega hot, get your togs on an hit the beach!
☀️? CASIE
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This is My Life | Sirius XM, NKPR, Greta Constantine, ALO Restaurant, H&M Studio
This week was a busy one! I was looking through photos and decided it would be a good idea to take a look back.
Monday I was back on Sirius XM co-hosting the Todd Shapiro Show. It was super fun. Listen to it here. 
I’m working on a big project at 1188 and we had a meeting over foot massages. SMARTEST IDEA. There’s a little spot at Queen/Portland, $25 for 30min. Not prices like Thailand but the massage was just as good!
Work work. 
Tuesday was the NKPR pre-TIFF media event at Natasha’s house. Tahnee was there! It was great to see all the fashion/media peeps after a long relaxing summer. The crazy is about to begin! Can’t wait for TIFF.
Recognize these bachelors? Tim (L) and I shot a TV show earlier this year with NKPR. Todd isn’t a bachelor anymore tho. Brad (R) is on TV in Canada and a former Bachelor for those of you not from here.
The NKPR IT Lounge has been going on for 10 years. It’s a VIP gifting suite and portrait studio. Caitlin Cronenberg is shooting it for W Magazine again this year. I’ll be popping by on Sept. 9th.
Wednesday night Greta Constantine hosted La Piscine. A glamorous night held at 77 Admiral Road, a three story brick mansion with beautiful backyard and pool. See more photos of peeps at the party on shedoesthecity.com.
Recognize this babe? Abe Hotaki was there stomping grapes in his underwear. He was at our cottage this summer for the Archibald Men magazine shoot.
Next week I’m attending a top secret party hosted by Rickey, if you don’t know Rickey, you will soon. #ChezRickey is sure to be an amazing night. 
The tips I ordered for my new Jeffrey Campbell boots arrived. I think these are my new thing.
Thursday I got a preview of the new ALO Restauraunt. It’s beautiful. Located at Queen/Spadina on the third floor, it’s a dining experience with a New York feel.
They made an AMAZING cocktail with cilantro infused vodka. I can’t stress enough to how good it was.
Was great to see so many friends this week at all the events. April & Jillian, I love you!
Next stop was the H&M Studio preview hosted at the Horizons Restauraunt atop the CN Tower.
H&M Studio is the collection of seasonal pieces, created by their dedicated in-house design team. Each season, H&M Studio presents directional fashion and shows at Paris Fashion Week.
I absolutely LOVE this look. Need. Want. 
We walked from ALO to the CN Tower. Talia (middle) is a stylist and a cute little button. Love her. Nice to meet you Britlynne!
Beckermans were there, all smiles. Blondes unite! They’re kinda a big fashion deal…@beckermanblog.
The H&M Studio collection is worth checking out. I will let you know when it’s in store around the world. These two items are from the KIDS collection. Aren’t they amazing!? I can already see myself trying to get Emily all dolled up.
Sean and I closed out the week with dinner at Valdez on King West. The food there is really good, ceviche, octopus, and beef ribs are a few of my favs. ?
? CASIE
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Sending You Good Vibes Through The Internet As I Type
Well hello there gorgeous! It’s a great day to be alive. Was up early to greet the day and have heaps on my TODO list. I’ve been working out of the 1188 office most the week on a new project and was so heads down yesterday I MISSED A HAIR APPOINTMENT. I would never!
As I type this I’m sitting at Starbucks beside a very tall man who is working on something about biology and organic acid catabolic process. Makes missing a hair appt not really seem THAT bad, ha! It’s ok, I rescheduled for Friday afternoon. 🙂
Started wearing my fav Rudsak leather jacket yesterday. This time of year is bittersweet, I love fall fashion but summer is so magical, I wish it would last forever.
These flowers are for you…
I like to blog when I first get up before doing any other work. It’s something I think about all day if I don’t. I guess that’s how some people feel about working out. If I spent 1/2 as much time jogging as I did blogging, well… we won’t go there!
Sending you good vibes through the internet as I type. Looking forward to the weekend! This weekend I’m doing a scavenger hunt with Ford Canada on Saturday and on Sunday CARLY IS GETTING MARRIED. I can’t wait to see her walk down the aisle. Looking forward to a slowdance with my man too.
?☀️?? CASIE
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Behind the Red Carpet is Now on Amazon & iTunes!
Around this time last year we premiered the film Behind the Red Carpet at The Spoke Club in Toronto just in time for TIFF. It was so exciting! The film documents what goes ‘behind the red carpet’ of the Toronto International Film Festival. (It was filmed at TIFF in 2013). Earlier this year Behind the Red Carpet premiered’s on CBCs documentary channel.
I’m happy to share that it’s now available on Amazon and Vimeo on Demand!
Here’s a video of me & Chris Jancelewicz talking about the film with Natasha from NKPR on Rogers Your World This Week in February.
About the Film:
Behind The Red Carpet (60 & 90 min documentary) directed by Michelle Daides. The film is produced by Michelle Daides and Tom Strnad and stars PR Maven Natasha Koifman, Celebrity Photographer George Pimentel, Lifestyle Blogger Casie Stewart, Venue Operator Pierre Jutras of The Spoke Club and Lead Entertainment Editor of Huffington Post Canada and Moviefone Chris Jancelewicz.
CBC’s documentary Channel aired the Canadian Television Premiere in February 2015.
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Army of Sass – Pinup Girls Picnic
Earlier this summer, a bunch of ladies from my dance crew gathered in Trinity Bellwoods for a pinup picnic. it was so much fun, we drank, danced, and soaked up the sunshine in our vintage swimsuits, big glasses, and red lipstick.
I’d been dying to wear this dress somewhere. Reminds me of the old flower print dresses mum and her BFF Pat Hope (my Fairy Godmother!) used to wear.
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You’re A Pizza Work! … I Got A PIZZA Tattoo!
A couple weeks ago I randomly went to get a tattoo. No, not really! The design wasn’t random, we found ourselves with a free hour on a Friday afternoon so we made the most of the moment. We got in touch with a friend at Black Line Studio and scored last minute appointments for two. YOLO!
I have heaps of tattoos and they all have a story. This one is kinda funny, but seriously, who doesn’t love PIZZA? ❤️?❓ I wrote about some of my favourite tattoos here.
This was what our little pizza slices looked like when we first got them done. We opted in for getting creamy garlic sauce on the side, because pizza. Can’t go wrong there guys!
Tattoo Aftercare
If your tattoo is important, make sure it heals nicely by taking good care of it. You went through the pain and there’s nothing worse than not having it heal properly. Find some some tips for aftercare on the FY Ink website.
Here’s my tattoo now:
If you’re looking for a great tattoo place I recommend FY Ink on Queen Street near Portland or Black Line Studio, King West. I’ve had a bunch done at FY Ink the last few years. If you want to get a pizza tattoo too, be my guest! Here’s 30+ shared by Buzzfeed recently.
OK, who’s ready for LUNCH? ???
?☀️? CASIE
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New From Polette Eyewear – E-Polette to Protect Your Eyes
Over the past year I’ve been a partner with polette eyewear in France. This week I wanna share something neat about new glasses they have available. The collection is called e-polette and they’re specially formatted to protect your eyes from the harmful glare that comes from looking at screens.
I check my phone about 8,000 times/day and spend heaps of hours per month in front of a screen. It’s not confirmed that long term damage can harm your eyes but you can develop Computer Vision Syndrome resulting in, dry or irritable eyes, headache, or blurred vision.
The e-polette lenses have a slight tent that acts as a filter to make staring at a screen easier on the eyes. There’s a whole bunch of stylish options and they start at $19.99.
About polette eyewear:
Polette was founded in France by a young entrepreneur who saw an opportunity to cut out the middleman and offer fashionable glasses at an affordable price. Frames and lenses come straight from their factory therefore they don’t have to charge a high price for consumers. The website was launched in 2011 and since they’e become a leader in the online eyewear market.
Check out some of stylish sunnies I’ve picked out at over the past few months at casiestewart.com/polette. Check out all the available glasses for men and women at polette.com and find e-polette here.
