Twitter Fronts – Content Partnerships & New Live Shows!

I love Twitter, I have since the day I joined over 10 years ago. It’s still my favourite social media platform, it’s the place news breaks and where you want to be when live events happen around the world.  Thanks to Twitter, I’ve been able to share my voice, meet like-minded people, and build life-long relationships. I love sharing random thoughts, photos, links to things I read and write, and getting the latest news. “When something happens in the world, it happens first on Twitter” @KayMadati, Head of Content at Twitter If you’re not familiar with the term ‘Upfronts” it comes from TV and has to do with advertising. The Twitter Fronts are a chance for agencies, brands, and advertisers to see what options are available for branded content and partnerships. Upfronts: In the television industry, an upfront is a gathering at the start of important advertising sales periods, held by television network executives and attended by major advertisers and the media. [Wikipedia] Read My #TwitterFronts Tweets Here Hellooooooo! ? #TwitterFronts pic.twitter.com/mJGbqEDv3h — CASIE STEWART ☀️ (@casiestewart) May 31, 2018 According to the source, Twitter users are engaged, affluent, and educated. They want to make sure brand partnerships have contextual relevance, they have to make sense, and be mutually beneficial relationships. They’re bringing exclusive partnerships for live content straight to Twitter to leverage their storytelling capabilities. We’re talking Buzzfeed, BNN, Corus, sports, BetaKit for tech, and a new media centre for brands who want to create live content. They’ve got everything covered, #onedirtydish will feature your fav chefs, This year, for the first time the MMVAs will be broadcast live on Twitter, the show AND the red carpet. This is huge! I was the social media manager for the show when I worked there back in 2010. It was a dream of mine to see the show live on…

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I’m Internet, but I’m Human Too

Do you ever just feel like you need a break? To run away. Get on a plane. Be alone. Put away your phone. Take flight and be free. I don’t know exactly why but today I feel frustrated. There are lots of things to feel great about but with a few roadblocks, no amount of meditation, water or walking is going to save me right now. I want to curl up with my computer on a patio of a villa somewhere far away, alone. I’ve got things I want to write and I feel like I need a secluded place away from everyone and everything. Life is full of distractions and no matter where I go, they’re all around. Maybe I should turn off wifi. I’m doing a wellness retreat this afternoon and in the middle of planning a trip with Aeroplan. Maybe I have travel jitters and I just want to leave now? Please remember that no matter how many smiling selfies, cute couple photos, designer dresses, great skin, and clean houses, nothing is that perfect in real life. We all have our struggles, battles, and have no idea what we are doing. But we’re doing it. I had no idea what I was doing when I started my blog and stuck at it. I was addicted to documenting, I love writing, smiling photos. Most of my blog posts aren’t even about anything other than how I’m feeling or where I’m going, but we all feel things and go places. Writing it down helps me deal with everything, it’s great therapy. I’m gonna go for that walk now. I think it might actually help.  P.S. When I opened up Twitter before leaving my computer for the aforementioned walk, this Tweet was waiting for me. Good read. I relate to this ‘smiling depression’ quite a bit. Hiding…

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TRANSFORM – What to See at FITC Toronto 2018

Over the past couple years, I’ve attended FITC in Toronto and highly recommend it. I’m not shy about my love for emerging tech and welcome any opportunity to see what’s new, learn from innovators, and get my hands on the latest gadgets. If you love that stuff too, you should GET A TICKET NOW. Use code FITCCASIE for a 20% discount. Tell your boss you need to go for professional development.  FITC is a hub for creatives and stands for Future, Innovation, Technology, Creativity. My first FITC was in 2011 and I was blown away by all the cool stuff I saw. It’s amazing to think about how technology has changed since then. Last year I was walking around showing off my Snapchat glasses and this year nobody really uses the app anymore. I love tech because it moves so fast and it always changing. I’m writing this to you from the tech centre of the world in San Francisco, California. ? Since 2012 FITC has held events all around the world bringing people like-minded people together to embrace design and technology. FITC: The Technology & Creativity Conference   What to See at FITC Toronto 2018 Here’s a few things I picked I’ve added to my schedule. You can make yours on the website. The list of speakers is great and there’s heaps to learn. Something I really like about the website is for each session they detail an overview, objective, target audience, and 5 things the audience will learn. This helps you maximize your conference experience based on your own personal interest and desire to learn. Play By Your Own Rules, Jessica Walsh April 8 2018, 10:00 – 10:45am How to Tell Your Story, Matt McCue, 99U Magazine April 9 2018, 11:00 – 11:45am The Weird and Wonderful World of Book Publishing, Radim Malinic…

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How to Make a Difference In Your Life

Wake up and smile at yourself. Look at the sky. Take some deep breaths. Think about what you are grateful for. Think about who you love and who loves you. If there is no sun, think about how you can be a sunshine that day. Wear something that makes you feel great. Use your best products you’re saving for a ‘special day’, each day is special. Put on your favourite makeup. Smile in the mirror. Keep that smile and flash it around to people in the street, in a store, at work. You will feel better about your life if you spread your smile around. Eat food that makes you happy, healthy is best but you got to live a little. Share. Write handwritten notes. Drink more water. Go for a walk. Look at the sky. Take some deep breaths. Think about your future. Set goals, write them down. Make your lunch. Think about travel. Dream of adventure. Call someone in your family to say hi. Feel warm sunshine on your face. Ride your bike through the park. Drink some water. Surprise someone with flowers. Thank your friends. Smile at yourself in the mirror. Inspired by this quote today: Smile in the mirror. Do that every morning and you’ll start to see a big difference in your life. Yoko Ono Female Cialis

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Cauliflower Makes a Great Instant Pot Soup Base

Omg, I am still sick and I hate it. Left the house for a hot minute this morning to get some meds and liquids but urghhh.  I know I’m smiling here but I feel gross, I sound even worse. My chest is heavy and it’s hard to breathe. I put a filter on it. You can still smile when you’re sick. ? I don’t even know if I feel better. I might be more stuffed up today than the last 4 days. I just don’t know anymore. My room is a mess, it’s more like a closet with a bed in it. Since I’ve been in the house so much lately I’ve taken to getting WILD with the Instant Pot. Today I was inspired by my grocery store trip to make a soup using mixed beans and corn. The Soup Is Easy I didn’t photograph making it. It was easy and unglamorous. Sean liked it. I’ll make it again. Cauliflower + broth + coconut milk make a tasty soup base. Put a head of cauliflower on the trivet chopped in two. Add can of corn (not creamed), can of mixed beans (drained), can of coconut milk, cup of broth, a cup of water, bit of salt, chilli flakes. Cook for 12 min on manual. Take out trivet, give a stir w/ a whisk, voila! Delicious soup. Top w/ cilantro and some pepper. In other news about things I made today, Sean bought a huge thing of dates so I cut some up in mixed in coconut, coconut oil, cocoa, and ground flax seed. Rolled them into little balls and popped in the freezer. They’re delicious. Since being sick I’ve been eating mostly homemade food and no meat. I’ve been drinking heaps of water every day and getting a lot of rest. Taking my vitamins. I don’t know…

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Meet Me in the French Quarter

Yesterday was so lovely. I spend hours walking around and taking in the sunshine. I sat in the park reading my book for over an hour then managed to get in some shopping and good food later in the day. Today is a bit overcast and we might get rain but I’m loving the warm air and finding inspiration around every corner. There are so many friendly people and bright buildings here it’s hard not to walk around with a smile. Sending sunshine from down south in the Big Easy! 

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Weekend Workshop + Book Recos + Monday Motivation

This weekend was fun. I went out for one last kayak before we put all the stuff away. It was surprisingly warm, but damp, great weather for getting things done. Although it’s a lot of work, and I can feel it in my arms today, closing the cottage is something I kinda look forward to. Sean and I do together as a team; heaps of lifting, holding the ladder, carrying the canoe, putting away the outside stuff, and family trips to the dump. We had Embot with us and her fav part was deff packing the trailer then chucking everything into the huge garbage at the dump. For years I’ve been wanting to make cutting boards from some of the beautiful wood laying around and we finally did it! I marked and measured, Sean put them through the planer, then cut them into pieces. I spent ages with the sander making them nice and soft. Before I started my project, I did a look of research and read quite a lot of information on orbital vs sheet sander. After careful consideration, I realized which one I should be using for a nice finish so it was a good job I looked into it! The next step is sealing, drying, and wrapping for the holidays. I need to visit Lee Valley this week. I spent lots of time in the garage with my dad as a kid so doing that as a family this weekend was nice. This weekend I finished a book called The Party by Robyn Harding (a soft-cover gift from Jen Kirsch!) and started another book called The Party by Elizabeth Day (on Kindle!). I was searching Amazon for one and found the other! Since I got a Kindle last year I’ve read SO MANY BOOKS. It’s the…

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Make friends. Make moments. Make memories.

Had a great weekend after my super relaxing day on Friday. Saturday morning I went to yoga at 8:45 am, then came home and went to the Yoga & Wellness show w/ Sarah. It was pretty small so we walked around the whole show and went for lunch. I bought a beautiful rose quartz/gold/sandalwood bracelet. We walked to Terroni and got a gorgeous little table by the window upstairs. I ate the Saturday Special lasagna (my fav) and washed it down with a nice glass of wine. It was perfect. The last year or so I’ve been trying to make more time for my friends not to just hang out but to hang out in pairs/small groups, to talk, listen, and make memories. For so long I spent heaps of time going to events and not really listening or opening up. I feel so grateful to have smart & talented people around and I wanna cherish that. I may not see some of my good friends all the time but when we do hang out, it’s magical. Last week I went over to visit my friend Sasha who just had a baby and the other week I sat down with an old friend for a tarot reading. So energizing! If you’re ever having a bad day, or want to make your good day better, write down 3 friends you haven’t seen in a while, call them. If one doesn’t answer, call the next! You’ll feel a smile on their face when you say hello and you’ll both feel an electric charge.     

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Candle in the Wind 

I remember exactly where I was when I found out about Princess Diana’s death. Before we get to that, you’ll need to know a special connection I’ve always felt to her. The day I was born my mum held me in her arms and said ‘you are going to be someone special‘ her and my dad named me Casie Diana Stewart, after the Princess. Growing up I followed in mum’s footsteps admiring her, we had a bunch of China from Diana’s Royal wedding and commemorative plates around the house. I was so in awe of the way she lived her life, her beautiful smile, great sense of fashion, and desire to help everyone around her. August 31, 1997 I was at Lisa Baker’s house for a sleepover, the last big hang out before we all started back to for the first day of high school, grade 9. A bunch of us girls were sleeping on the floor and all over Lisa’s room in the basement of her parent’s house. I remember we had been up late in the backyard and I tried smoking pot by the river for the first time in my life. We were woken up early by a phone call from my sister, who was 10 at the time. She was talking really fast. I could hear mum upset and the tv in the background. I really don’t think my sister understood what happened and who paparazzi were. She was trying to tell me the paparazzi killed Diana but she got the words wrong and said ‘Pavarotti’. So, here I was in trying to relay the message to my friends, some still sleeping that an Itallian opera singer killed Princess Diana and it’s all over the news. Mum came on the phone shortly after the mix-up and delivered…

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Balance, It’s a Lifestyle!

Yesterday I was rushing around after being in ‘cottage mode’ for the last few days. I have a bunch of work to get done and will be hustling into the night to get things done by tomorrow. Today is crunch time before Thursday. Tomorrow,  Embot and I are going to Vancouver for a shoot on Friday, then home Saturday. Next week I’ve got a big client presentation w/ 1188 and a speaking gig. Safe to say, I’ll be spending a lot of time at my computer until then. I think one of the most important things I’ve learned to manage over the past few years of not having a ‘regular‘ full-time job is BALANCE. You can easily get caught up in doing all the work and/or going to all the things. Before the start of this year, I knew I needed to make a change. I was feeling uninspired, unhealthy, and my brain was dull and clouded. I considered quitting my blog and whenever that happens, I KNOW it’s time for change. After my solo trip to LA in January, I came back feeling renewed and inspired. I mentioned the sound bath I went to and how it really made an impact on me. I started back at yoga end of January and have been averaging 3-4 times a week since. I book my classes at the start of the week and in order for me to miss a class, it has to be work or something I really want to go to. I used to spend so much time going to events, sometimes more than 2  night but those days are few and far between lately. I’ve had to prioritize my time and that involves staying home, going to yoga, cooking, sitting on the couch, reading, drinking less, getting sleep. I think I’d tuckered myself out…

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Throwing Shade: New Celine Sunnies

I didn’t even know today was ‘International Sunglasses Day’ when I planned this post! It’s always crazy when those random days seem to line up with something you’re doing. A couple weeks ago I received an email from SmartBuyGlasses with an offer to pick out a pair of new sunnies for summer. It’s times like this I reallllly love my blog! I’d been eying a pair of Céline glasses for a while but couldn’t justify paying full price. Well, SmartBuyGlasses is the place to go! They’ve got heaps of designer sunnies at discount prices. I really like their huge selection of Carrera and RayBan (next on my wishlist!). I’m wearing the Céline ‘Tilda’ from SS15 which retails for about $500 CAD and on the SBG website they’re under $400. They’re made of acetate but have an expensive feel, as in they’re kinda heavy. I have a pretty big huge collection of sunnies ranging in price and save fancy ones like this for special occasions. They’re a little big on my head but I’m gonna try some Nerd Wax to keep them in place.

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Watch Sean Rip It Round the Track! #FordFathersDay

Wednesday this week I took Sean to a track with Ford Canada to giver in the Ford RS and Mustang GT. I’ve driven on tracks with Ford a few times so know just how fun it is. It really helped me learn to handle a vehicle and be a more confident driver. Ford invited me to bring a dad in my life in celebrations of Fathers Day. Sean works really hard and I knew this would make him feel great! I only went one lap and let him take a few extra just to see the smile on his face. WATCH THIS Our options to drive were Ford Mustang GT Convertible, Ford Mustang GT Fastback, and the Focus RS. The Focus RS is REALLY FAST. You’ll see Sean say it’s amazing in the video. ? One of my fav things of the day was doing a ‘hot lap’ with professional drivers Darryl Timers (Ford of Canada’s Performance Driver since 2013). Our vehicles were fully stocked with GoPro’s to catch our reactions. I also woer my Snapchat specs while driving so hit play below to see a first person view of me on the track. Wore my @Spectacles on the track. Cool experience. Really teaches you to handle a vehicle! TY @FordCanada! #FordFathersDay #FordMustang pic.twitter.com/2zgweeqXLC — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) June 14, 2017 THANK YOU Ford and the team from National PR for a memorable experience with a fav dad in my life. We’ll continue to talk about this day for a loooooong time! Don’t forget to say hi & love you to the dads/uncles/granddads/brothers and dad friends in your life this weekend!

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LEARNING NEW THINGS IS GREAT!

For Christmas Sean got me an iPad Pro with Apple Pencil and my first reaction wasn’t what he was expecting. I kept saying ‘It’s so big!” and thought about returning it the first couple days. BUT now, I can’t imagine my life without it! Last week I signed up for a creative hand lettering course so I could learn how to use Procreate and it is SO COOL.  The course ($45) is by Caroline Kelso Zook who has a website called Made Vibrant for creatives. I’ve subscribed to her for a few months and ? her work. I’ve been staying up late drawing, then dreaming about drawing. I’m only just getting started and on part 2 of 4 in the course. I’m learning new things every day so you’ll start to see colourful creations pop up more and more. Using AirDrop to share seamlessly between iPhone, iPad, Macbook is so incredibly awesome. YAY technology and internet and art. I started my drawing blog ‘Borderline Artistic‘ back in 2008 when I got my 1st gen iPad. I loved that little thing. Remember Andy? Now with iPad Pro, I’m creating more than ever and I’m planning to update things around here with more art.   Went to Wake Up at Yoga Yoga this morning and had a coffee/croissant at Hale. Both places give me so much joy!   Tonight is the media opening of Drake Commissary and I’m taking my yoga teacher, Sandy! Today is going to be sunny to put a smile on your face and flash it around. Sending you some sunshine through the internet, across the sky, right to your screen.  

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The Hardest Part is Through

This past week was a hard one for me. Actually, this entire month has been a challenge, I’ve been on the verge of a meltdown since May 2017 started with birthday anxiety. I had a trip to Jamaica that started with an allergic reaction in my eyes, where I couldn’t see that well, it rained heaps, I missed my bf, and I got my period. When I got home I was overwhelmed with anxiety about work I needed to get done, and it was a short week. I went to the 1188 office every day to get the music video I directed wrapped up, and didn’t really have time to work (at home like usual) on blog things. The week finished week with a full day on set. I was so tired. Finally, on Saturday, it happened. I legit had a meltdown. Our car had a problem with the tire so I rented a car for the afternoon with my car sharing app and left around 11:15 to make it to Scarborough by 12:15. Well, no, that wasn’t happening. It took me 45 min to get to the DVP (highway downtown for non-TO peeps) and by then I was feeling super stressed after leaving the house in a huff w/ Sean. Then mum called and it opened the floodgates to me balling my eyes out, stuck in traffic. It seemed like everything around me was collapsing. Then, it started raining and the event I was about to drive an hour to was canceled. BUT, I was already on the DVP and still in traffic. I took a few deep breaths and decided to get off the highway. Didn’t really know where I was heading but the end goal was home. I decided to put on the Lumineers album and for…

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