an ode to the colour, orange

i am not a colour person. anyone that's friends with me will know that i rarely wear colours outside my beloved neutral colour scheme. so much so that my poor mother has often bribed me in purchasing shirts and pants for me in exchange for them being in colour.

right now, i am a poor college grad ... so the thought of wearing black and grey helmut lang sweaters, leggings, etc. is like a whole different universe away where i coincidently end up being married to RyGos and stuff.

anyways, one colour i will always make an exception for is orange. somewhere in my crazy and weird head, i consider orange an acceptable colour. hear me out ... orange provides a pop of colour, looks great on most skin tones, and can really dress up or down your whole entire outfit. it really is the new black.

(all pics courtesy of every diamond diploma girl - pinterest)

An Ode to Jean

 Goodness gracious cyber friends. I cannot express how happy a certain little woman (I do mean myself) is to see, feel, and smell that spring is upon us! The most glorious aspect of the tail end of Montreal winter is it's unabashed leap into the spring.

Heck, sometimes the city even skips spring altogether and flies headlong into summer. Either way, my lungs are filled with floral scented air, my feet skipping along dewy streets, and my eyes seeing the beautiful colors of le primtemps. J'adoreeeee!!

In the beginning of last summer, my friend Rachel and I set out to explore the Little Italy section of Montreal. My absolute favorite part of going to this quarter, is visiting Jean Talon Market. This market particularly suits Rachel and I because we are of the sampling sort.

Upon entering the market, the scene is set a bit like this: The smell of fresh fish frying greets you from the very first seafood stall, where les montréalais, montrealers, tuck into their  fried fish and beer. Curious little wafts of lavender linger around you also, as the corner soap stall displays its petite wares.

You then look up and behold a wondrous scene. The main market lane! An abundance of colorful produce and fruit of every hue line the paths that weave through the scene.  You can smell fresh baguettes baking in the boulangerie and you can certainly not miss the scent of buttery croissants rising in the ovens of one of the many patisseries in the distance. Line-ups spill out of the cheese-mongers' stalls and colorful jam jars and butters parcels line wooden tables. You are here, this is Le Marché Jean Talon! 

Now friend, when I say that I am a sampling sister, I do mean it. You can walk up to pretty much any of the produce or fruit stalls and steal away with a freshly cut sample of each good. And yes, in case that sounded illegal, it is fully sanctioned and wholly encouraged! Some of my own thoughts upon sampling the goods: Who knew that fresh oranges were THAT GOOD. Or those darling grape tomatoes? Sweet, refreshing, and brilliantly red! The mangoes. THE MANGOES. Should I even mention the mangoes??

Suffice to say, Le Marché Jean Talon is beautiful and lively. Its colors, smells and sounds make you believe, after 5 long months of winter, that spring has finally sprung. And with joy!