Lifestyle | The Conveyor Belt - A Fashion and Lifestyle Journal

The Little Persian Girl and the Starbucks Solution

I will admit it, I am a coffee snob and a coffee addict. Coffee to me is like cocaine to the average teen celebrity. I recognize and appreciate a quality coffee from a classy establishment.

So, I shouldn’t really need to explain why I indulge in the anti-Starbucks movement, but I will anyway: their exploitation of music, horrible coffee, cookie-cutter corporate culture, and pamphlets on “fair trade” practices are often infuriating.

In my neighborhood, I have several different options for obtaining my caffeine fix. Trees Coffee on Granville (superb), Finch’s Coffee on Homer and Pender (delightful), the little no-name coffee shop owned by the old Armenian man on Richards and Pender (charmingly Armenian). Lately, however, I have basically been living at my boyfriend’s…so, enter Benny’s Bagels.

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Published by Pariya on July 13, 2008 in Lifestyle. 10 Comments

Pender Island and Nu To You Haul

Spent a nice weekend on Pender Island to try and find some solid ground after a shaky week - I hadn’t ever been and it’s so beautiful. On Saturday we went to the weekly artisan’s market and picked up some fresh cakes and local goat’s cheese, browsed through pottery and jewelry, and I got these two beautiful spinning tops from some local wood turners:

The one on the left is juniper wood and has beautiful colours, and I think the striped one is fir. Later in the afternoon I went by Nu To You, the island’s thrift store, and found a whole load of goods for only $10.75: Nine West sandals, 2 dresses, 4 shirts, a mug and some knitting needles. The dresses need to be altered a bit and some of the items have tough (but minor) stains that I will have to work at - here are two of the tops:

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Published by Terri on June 23, 2008 in Fashion and Lifestyle. 1 Comment

How To Be Red

We hosted THE RED PARTY at our pad over the weekend for my birthday. I am a huge fan of colour parties - you get all the fun of dressing up without ridiculous themes like “Trailer Trash” or whatever people come up with these days. Last July we had the legendary black and white party for a triple birthday - the reprisal is so far a toss up between B/W: part 2 or the plaid party…unless anyone has more ideas?

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Published by Terri on June 11, 2008 in Lifestyle. 0 Comments

Internet 101: Part 1

Local clothing designer Kdon uses a blog format and regularly updates her site with photos of new goodies, which you can buy online.

These days, an online presence is vital to the existence and direction of your clothing brand. I used to boycott the internet, and play it off like I was too cool to ever touch a keyboard - but secretly, I was terrified. What if my site stats weren’t up to par? What are SEO’s? How can I take what I see of myself and turn it into 1’s and 0’s for the sheer enjoyment, pleasure and criticism of other people?

It was a nightmare, it was doom, it was horror! I didn’t know what to do about this online problem and my fears. Then I started working for a web 2.0 company that handled social networking within the film industry. I seriously thought I would die, every single day of my life I asked myself how I’d ended up there and how my boss could possibly think that my geek-talk was genuine.

Something magical happened, though. I began to fall in love with it all. Technical things started to make sense and networking events seemed to have ample drinking opportunities. Free booze and a few numbers never hurt anybody! Besides, my toned-down, absolutely undressy-dresses seemed like elegant ball gowns in a crowd full of programmers.

In all of this prancing around networking events and going to film festivals, I did learn a few things. The first thing, which deserves it’s very own post because it is so important, is this:

If you can’t afford a personal website, BLOG!

From this website alone, I have been contacted SEVERAL times regarding random PR related things, I’ve had feedback, I’ve been scouted to host a Fashion Televsion show with a $3.6 million contract, and have gone to many, many fashion shows.

Okay, so I lied about the Fashion Television contract, they’re just giving me the money because they think I’m lovely.

My point is: blogs are a brilliant way to get yourself out there. There’s no shame in utilizing a free blog service, and the bonus is that the publishing software is built in so it’s a dummy-proof way to get yourself on the net. Clothing designers can use the chronological posting format to showcase their most recent designs, and update on news and show events quickly and easily.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of my insightful musings on the importance of the internet and how to speak geek.

Published by Pariya on June 5, 2008 in Lifestyle. 0 Comments

The Revel Room Restaurant in Gastown

Apparently I’ve been living under a rock, because the Revel Room has been open for about a month just down the road in Gastown and I hadn’t even heard of it until yesterday. Shame on me.

Discussed some big ideas with friends over share plates - the naan bread with roasted garlic, gorgonzola and tomato relish was delicious, as was the daily soup (a coconut/curry vegetable concoction), grilled asparagus and the Chinatown fried rice. My only concessions were that the menu is very meaty and I’m veggie (although the kitchen was very accommodating and put all of the meat in side dishes for us), and the Caesar salad dressing tasted a bit too much like mayo. Next time I will try the fennel + tomato gratin, grilled polenta, and seared albacore tuna. Yum.

The restaurant spans across two floors and was entirely renovated before opening, resulting in an interior marked by warm decor and ambient lighting. And here is the tip you really need to know: though Gastown is an “up and coming” neighbourhood, the lounges (ie. Chill Winston, Six Acres, etc) in the area haven’t quite caught up and liquor licenses generally shut things down by 1am. The Revel Room, however, has their license until 2am. Game on for late(r) night drinking!

Published by Terri on May 29, 2008 in Lifestyle. 0 Comments

Monday Night Madness

$It\'s foos, foo$

Long weekend Monday, and after a bottle of wine at the Cascade Lounge Carleen and I were itching for something to do. Back home to Gastown, so the Lamplighter for a game of pool was top priority. Turns out it’s hip hop night on Monday, and as we entered we were urged to buy 50/50 tickets. I am the ultimate sucker for 50/50, so Carleen and I split the bill of $5 for 3 tickets and kept our fingers crossed. I had a good feeling.

$Hip Hop 101: It\'s poetry, fast$

3 games of foosball (I dominated) and 2 games of pool (Carleen dominated) later, the lights were on. My intuition held fast and we won the 50/50; a paltry $20, but better than a kick in the pants. Plus a t-shirt and 2 CD’s. If only we had been at GM place during a Canucks game - something in the neighbourhood of $15,000 would have been just dandy.

Published by Terri on May 20, 2008 in Lifestyle. 0 Comments

Thrift Store Scores: Saltspring Island Edition

Took a wonderful trip to Saltspring Island on Wednesday with a couple of friends, and found this great blouse at a store in the town centre for just a couple bucks:

Also visited the beautiful Bullock Lake Farm bed and breakfast where I picked up farm fresh eggs, met some Muscovy ducks and checked out their wool shop. This is definitely where I’ll be staying next time I spend a night or two in Saltspring, so idyllic!

Published by Terri on May 15, 2008 in Lifestyle. 1 Comment

Grandma’s Recipe Box

My mom handed off this old recipe box that belonged to my Grandma - she had so many recipes, so this is just one of many boxes. My Grandpa made this one out of an old cupboard, and I hadn’t really gone through it until today. Mostly desserts, but I love these old housekeeping and hosting tips:

“Sherry before dinner is in good company with: tiny, sizzling pork sausages mounted on a whole golden grapefruit. crackers and a cheese spread mixed with finely chopped pickles and chives. thin slices of chipped beef rolled around a cream cheese and horseradish filling.”

I’ve been back on the Dubonnet train lately, and I want to learn more about other fortified wines such as sherry and port - this little card reminded me of that!

Dessert wines 101: Wikipedia explains that, “After fermentation is complete, sherry is fortified with brandy. Because the fortification takes place after fermentation, all natural sherries are dry; any sweetness is applied later. In contrast, port wine is fortified halfway through fermentation, stopping fermentation so not all the sugars are allowed to turn into alcohol and so leaving a sweet wine.”

I may add some more photos soon, as there’s a great old magazine pull out called “Summertime drinks” with 5 tasty recipes that will be nice to share once the sun comes out again.

Published by Terri on May 13, 2008 in Lifestyle. 0 Comments

Dove Chocolates Pleasure Kit

300 women across Canada were selected to receive a Dove Chocolate Pleasure kit, which included 20 purse packs (small boxes containing 4 individually wrapped chocolate pieces), 4 chocolate bars, 3 cartons containing individually wrapped chocolate pieces, a journal, a foot pamper pouch, a tote bag and a wine glass - and I was one of them. This is a really efficient way to market a product, I think. My friends love me right now, as I am continually feeding them chocolate. I carry chocolate around in my purse, and I even have a little bowl of chocolate treats on our coffee table, just like Grandma.

Each individually wrapped piece has a printed note inside - some are cheesy and cute (”Read a trashy novel,” “A push up bra isn’t cheating,”) while others prompted unsavoury memories (”Remember your first,” — no, thanks). When opening them with friends, it’s really easy to find relevance in the little messages and have a good laugh over them. Like fortune cookies!

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Published by Terri on May 12, 2008 in Lifestyle. 1 Comment

Bicycle Success!

Finally found a bicycle the other day, after a painstaking search. My quest began at JV Bikes with some of the worst service I’ve ever experienced; led to Reckless Bicycles which had amazing service but I couldn’t afford the brand new Biria bike I wanted; and ended with craigslist and finally nabbing an old cruiser before anyone else.

I got an Apollo Capri, 19.5″ frame, red with chrome basket and chain guard. I may give it a facelift soon - maybe a brown leather seat and matching handle grips, and perhaps some new pedals. Otherwise she’s golden!

For my inaugural ride, after years of not being on a bicycle, I was brave. Started in Gastown, rode along the seawall from Science World, stopped and picked up Carleen and her ol’ bess at Burrard, and straight on to Third Beach at Stanley Park for a well deserved rest. Aired out our swits, dug for clams and took some photos. Cut through and took the Coal Harbour seawall route back home, and managed to cycle within traffic without injuring myself, thumbs up!

All we can talk about now is, where to cycle to next?

Published by Terri on May 9, 2008 in Lifestyle. 2 Comments