Picking berries and frolicking on lush carpets of grass at my old neighbour's backyard in my B.C. hometown. Oh Canada, I've missed you so much. It's already been three years since I graduated and moved back to Hong Kong, I can't believe just how fast time flies.
Next I stopped by Vancouver fashion designer
Jason Matlo's studio in Gastown, he took a chance on me when I was just a super green first year student at Ryerson and I interned there for the summer. I'm still super grateful for the experience. He also makes amazing chicken salads. I made this sketch of his
White Cashmere collection as a little present when I went to visit.
And what is a day in Vancouver without the VAG? That's right, the VAG, the
Vancouver Art Gallery. And also the gay village on Davie St. where this rainbow sidewalk was.
Speaking of stripes, my lovely friend Phoebe in Taiwan just ordered the Stripes in Shibuya iPhone case? Doesn't it look so cute? Get yours at my
Society6 store.
My family and I did a 5 day trip to Banff, it was ah-mazing, I forget how beautiful Canada is sometimes. Every second was a perfect photo opportunity and the clear mountain air was better for my skin than any facial.
Then it was off to the land of cool cafes and wonderful friends, Toronto, my very first love. Having a delicious yogurt parfait at the beautifully restored
Dineen Coffee.
But this vacay isn't all lounging and lattes, my friend Markus and I organized an exhibition of my illustration work that opened while I was there. We did tons of preparing and promoting after I landed. Even walked all around Queen St. West
and Kensington posting up flyers and chatting with stores in the area.
The show is on until
November 10th at Cafe Pamenar, so feel free to drop by!
After all that hustlin' we needed some R'andR', so it was off to the country to my friend Markus's childhood home where his lovely mom made us delicious food and 4 kinds of pies and we spent the weekend lazily watching House Hunters with his awesome family and various pets.
Toronto is so lovely and full of friends, I stayed in Harbord Village near the Annex and kept bumping into friends on the street.
Hong Kong can be so lonely sometimes and maybe because Toronto is my alma mater city but it just feels so cozy, I didn't want to leave.
Postcards I printed for the exhibition opening, I'm all sold out except one last pack of the
Shoes I Never Wear series (Email me if you would like that last one - $20CAD for 5 postcards). I'll be doing another print run soon to sell at the
Tangram Gift Shop pop-up coming this Christmas. Keep your ears peeled for that.
On my last day in Toronto, we walked down to the Drake hotel on West Queen West and did the chemical photobooth there. Only $2! So worth it. I try to do a photobooth in every city I visit, so far I have Taipei, Korea and now Toronto too.
Toronto is such a creative city, passed by this beautifully illustrated poster for the Fringe play
Fort Isabel by Anna Standish.
And lastly, for some super exciting end of the month news! I've been working hard on an illustrated Halloween story for
Dazed & Confused magazine! It's so cool to work with such creative people. The piece comes out online tomorrow morning, I can't wait!
