New Designer on the Block

Today I went to Victoire, one of the cutest stores in Ottawa, and bought a hat made by my pal Amy! Her items are super soft, hand knitted and adorable.

Sorry for the super try-hard pose. It took forever to take a picture that actually showed off the hat properly, and I kind of dig random photo booth photo shoots.

You can find Amy's knitted goodies at her Etsy shop. And check out her blog. Woo to creative and business-savvy friends!

The Name Joanna

Joanna is a relatively common name, right? You would think so. And yet, I'm starting to believe it is as uncommon as Seven. Or perhaps I mispronounce my own name. Totally possible. While at camp it was really cool to ask a counselor to the end-of-session banquet. I had my eye on the hottest one. When I went up to introduce myself to him at dinner one night, he called me Jordana. Embarrassed, I didn't correct him. I was nervous, awkward and twelve.

When people call me Joanne, however, I'm quick to make the correction. I mean, c'mon, if your name is Julia and people call you Julie, you're going to correct them too, right? It's an entirely different name!

Most recently, I've been on the receiving end of the most interesting variations of my name, ever. There's a relatively new Japanese Izakaya in Toronto called Guu. It takes over an hour to get in. Ever prompt, I was the first to arrive and gave my name to the guy at the door who quickly wrote down "Jomammah for five." When my pals arrived, I told them to listen out for the name "Jomammah" - we shared a good chuckle. An hour and a half later, the waiter called out "Jomammah for five!" Not one hundred percent sure if I had heard correctly I screamed, "Jomammah, for five?? That's us!!" As we walked into the restaurant everyone around us was whispering about my name. Whatever, Jomammah was in the house, and hungry.

I order takeout from SushiGo every so often. Two of my recent receipts have read: Taranna and Carona. Sound out a T, a C, a J - the same? Nope. Regardless, I can't wait for the next name!

Want...

Wow! Do I ever want one of these scarves. I recently cleaned out/re-organized my closet (by recently, I mean back in September) and counted 50 scarves. FIFTY! Thing is, when I love one, I wear it all the time, so you wouldn't even know that I own so many.

Anyways, now I want to love this, forever and ever. Can I afford it at $118?? Nope. But I'm thinking about it... a lot.

Find it here

Almond Butter

Disclaimer: I am a great fan of Skippy Crunchy Peanut Butter - you know, the stuff that is really, really bad for you.

Nevertheless, in my attempt to be "healthy" this year, I bought almond butter at the grocery store the other day. It cost me $9 and when I opened the jar (a feat in and of itself) gross oily liquid spilled out onto my cupboard. As I attempted to stir the thick, grainy, brown goop, I wondered what I had gotten myself into. Much to my surprise, almond butter is kind of delicious. It isn't too sweet, isn't too salty, and has kept me full since 10AM (yes, I woke up late, and yes, I forgot to leave time for lunch).

Here's to trying new things! Up next: a new man friend?