Party Time

A collaboration post with Sloane Fine Tea Merchants and Bicyclette

As fun as it can be to get all dressed up and head out for a night on the town New Year’s Eve, we often forget the importance of celebrating the new year on New Year’s Day itself. One of the few moments in an entire year where everything is closed and one can truly relax, New Year’s Day is the perfect opportunity to gather friends and loved ones together to celebrate and make resolutions in style.

In fact, we think the best solution might just be a sparkly New Year’s brunch!

Whether you’re strapping on some glittery heels for a night of dancing and champagne NYE, or staying in with family and Chinese food to watch the ball drop, a New Year’s Brunch the next morning is exactly what you’ll be craving by the time midnight rolls around. Keep it intimate with a few of your bff’s, or welcome 2015 with the whole neighbourhood and a potluck-style feast. As long as there is pancakes, hot tea, and sparkle involved, we can almost guarantee your guests will be pleased.

It didn’t take much to get our brunch setup ready, especially with the help of homemade party supplies from Lampshade Bash. We strung up some simple banners, added glittery drink tags to our champagne glasses, and threw down a sequin tablecloth littered with confetti for good measure.

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When it came to food and drink, we wanted to offer more than just champagne, so we turned to our favourite local tea company and created a chic and simple loose leaf tea bar with some of their tastiest blends! All you need to replicate this set up is a few tins of tea, cute spoons, teacups, and sachets or strainers for steeping.

Keeping with the tea theme, we also infused our cake-like pancake tower with Sloane’s Rouge Provence herbal tea, a recipe they’ll be sharing very soon on their blog! Depending on the size of your party, you could also include a donut mountain, breakfast cookie platter, fruit skewers, or any other shareable brunch snacks you can dream up.

Of course we also included a bottle of champagne on the table for good measure, though it could easily be swapped out for sparkling pink lemonade if you’d rather keep your spread alcohol free but still include a toast or two!

Because beauty is in the details, we added a few special touches to our setup to complete the look. Celebratory bouquets bursting with blooms were a must, and on each place setting we included sparklers and notecards for guests to write down their resolutions and make a special wish.

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No matter how you choose to ring in the New Year, we wish you all a sparkly night and a cozy inspiring morning filled with confetti, party hats, and midnight kisses!

Photos by Jason Matos

Decor supplied by Lampshade Bash

Dear Diary

Those of you who follow me closely know that I’ve been going through a lot of big changes lately, and even though I’ve been trying really hard to keep my head above the water, things have obviously been slipping a bit around here. Today I wanted to share some details about what’s been going on.

Things surrounding my breakup have gone from great to good, to bad to worse, and I’m having a super tough time adjusting to not being close with someone who has meant, and still means so much to me. I’ve been trying to sell my car and a ton of my furniture, attempting to find a new apartment, and more, all the while getting used to doing everything I used to do with a partner alone. But this post isn’t about that, not really anyway… it’s about a big amazing positive new change, and I hope you will all be as excited as I am about it. I have a new job!

Blogging full time for the past year and a half has been the most exciting, challenging, and rewarding adventure I’ve ever embarked on, but right now the instability just doesn’t fit with everything else I’m going through.  Financial survival is almost impossible at times on a blogger budget, even with ads on your site, and working from home alone all day every day can leave a girl feeling so lonely that she starts to question her sanity. With all of this in mind, I’ve decided to continue blogging (don’t worry, RAOP isn’t going anywhere), but also take on a new full time job at my favourite tea company, Sloane Tea!

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I’ve been a huge fan of Sloane ever since I first came across their incredibly beautiful teas at Kitten and The Bear. I reached out to them about a month ago asking if they’d be interested in taking me on as their social media manager, and after a series of heartwarming meetings and inspiring brainstorming sessions, they decided to offer me a full time position. Of course I immediately (very enthusiastically) accepted!

As I’m sure you already know, I always follow my heart, and I couldn’t be more excited for this new chapter. Sloane is an incredible local company with beautiful philosophies and so much passion for tea, and I truly think together we make a perfect team. We both believe in everyday beauty, affordable luxuries, and the magical ritual of drinking tea, and spending time in their warehouse this week has left me steeped in inspiration and excitement for what’s to come. I hope you’ll follow my tea adventures on their various accounts, or at least pop in on Instagram to say hello once and awhile.

Again, don’t worry! I plan on pouring more of myself in RAOP than ever, though posting may become slightly less regular/often. I have a ton of great projects in the works, including a a super fun apartment makeover (start checking the hashtag #pastelpalaceproject soon!) and some exciting collaborations I’ll be announcing soon.

Your love and support continues to help keep me and my sparkle magic going every single day, and I couldn’t be more grateful to have such a wonderful band of unicorns behind me, especially heading into this new chapter.

Party Time

Random Acts of Pastel and Bicyclette Boutique are always dreaming up new adventures, and social media is a massive part of what we do on a daily basis. We love snapping Instagram photos and updating our Pinterest feeds, and over the past few months we’ve worked together to grow our brands, both on the personal blogging front, and the business promotion front. After a lot of giddy discussion, we decided we wanted to share our knowledge about this fun way to promote yourself with, well, all of you. In case you haven’t guessed already, we’re doing our first Social Media Workshop right here in Toronto!

As small business owners, freelancers, creatives, and makers, we use social media tools on a daily basis to share what we’re up to and communicate with our followers. It’s a way for us to connect, to offer a peek behind the scenes, and share our personal style and aesthetic, which in turn helps build a brand- all the while inspiring ourselves and others through the process of doing so.

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Each different platform holds value in its own way, and when you bring all of them together to build a cohesive online presence, you’ll really start to see them working for you. Because social media varies so much from person to person, It’s really about finding the balance that works best for you and allows you to be authentic and genuine, while still getting your brand out there.

We’ll be offering a 2 hour seminar led by Alyssa (Random Acts of Pastel) and Paige (Bicyclette Boutique) early next month that goes over each of these platforms and provides tips and tools to manage each one effectively to make them work for you and/or your business, all while establishing your brand in the online world.

We will be covering pre-planned key topics and points, but we also want the workshop to feel collaborative and open, so we invite you to bring any specific questions you may have with you, and we’ll be sure to cover them through discussion. We’ll also be offering scones and jam from Kitten and the Bear and Sloane Tea, a photo booth where you can get your ‘gram on, and special swag bags with all sorts of amazing surprise goodies! Please note, tickets are non-refundable.

When //
Saturday, October 4th from 10 am – 12 pm

Where //
Studio B, 882A Queen St. West

Cost //
$15o

Interested? Sign up here!

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Sips, Sweets & Snacks

This week’s local love is a new Toronto spot that I might even call my favourite cafe in the city. Specializing in tea, coffee, house-made confiture, and the fluffiest, butteriest scones you’ve ever tasted, Kitten and the Bear is the perfect place for an indulgent afternoon tea alone, a romantic outing, or just catching up with friends. Due to extremely limited space, expect to take your goodies to go, and be pleasantly surprised if a table is available (don’t worry, a picnic in High Park is just a few blocks away!)

Owned and run by Sophie and Bobby, two of the cutest folks you’ve ever met, the shop offers scones and mini servings of jam to-go if you’re in a hurry. They also sell tins of Sloane Tea, hand-picked vintage tea ware, and their fresh, handmade, local-fruit-filled jams in adorable jars to go (in case you’re ever planning on getting me a gift, look no further.) They’re always dreaming up something new too- in fact last time I visited there was talk of jam parfaits with local yogurt, and I got to sample some not-yet-released jam sweetened ice tea (which, in case your wondering, is the best thing ever!)

I could go on and on about banana jam that tastes like heaven, and pots of Perfectly Pear tea, but just take my word for it: stop by Kitten and the Bear next time you’re craving something sweet. I promise you’ll leave will a full belly, a smile on your face, and most likely a shopping bag full of jam, tea, and tea ware to take home!

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Sips, Sweets & Snacks

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I swear tea has magical powers. When you’re feeling chilled it warms you up, when you’re sad or tired it gives you a boost, and it always seems to bring people together one way or another. The first time Paige and I met in person it was over tea and scones at The Kitten and The Bear, and from that moment on we’ve been dreaming up RAOP x Bicyclette magic, so it was only fitting that we’d eventually make one of our projects something to do with tea.

We’re both big fans of Sloane Tea, a local brand with incredible blends and super pretty packaging, so we rounded up a handful of our favourites and started experimenting together at Studio B. By the end of the afternoon we’d come up with 6 delicious, fancy iced tea recipes to keep you cool this summer. Some have caffeine, others are caffeine-free and kid-safe, and all promise to bring magic, fun, and togetherness to your summer.

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Crimson Berry Punch 

(Makes 2 cups)
5 tsp Crimson Berry Sloane Tea
12 oz Hot Water
Fresh Berries
4 tbsp Peach Juice
1 tbsp Agave

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Steep the tea for 4 minutes. While you wait, fill two cups with berries of your choice (we used a mix of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries) and ice. Once the tea is steeped, carefully pour it over the ice and stir in 4 tbsp of peach juice and 1 tbsp of agave (or to taste). Serve with a berry garnish!

Add some extra fun with red wine.

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Pineapple Pear Fizz

(Makes 2 cups)
5 tsp of Perfectly Pear Sloane Tea
12 oz Hot Water
Pineapple Syrup
Sparkling Water

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Steep the tea for 1.5 minutes. While you wait fill two cups with iced tea. Once steeped, pour the tea over the ice and add pineapple syrup to taste. Top it off with sparkling water and garnish with a pineapple slice!

Add some extra fun with vodka.

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Rose Pineapple Chai

(Makes 2 cups)
5 tsp of Persian Palace Sloane Tea
12 oz Hot Water
Pineapple Syrup
Rose Water

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Steep the tea for 2.5 minutes and fill two cups with ice while you wait. Once steeped, pour the tea over the ice and add pineapple syrup and a splash of rose water to taste.

Add some extra fun with rum.

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Sparkling Peach Rose Pink Lemonade

(Makes 2 cups)
5 tsp Jasmine Pink Lemonade Sloane Tea
12 oz Hot Water
2 tbsp Peach Juice
Rosewater
Agave
Rose Syrup (available at BYOB or The Spice Trader)
Sparkling Water

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Steep the tea for 1.5 minutes and fill two cups with ice while you wait. Once steeped pour the tea over the ice and add a tiny drop of rosewater, 2 tbsp peach juice and agave and rose syrup to taste. Top it off with sparkling water or bubbly!

Add some extra fun with gin.

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Coconut Peppermint Patty Iced Latte 

(Makes 2 cups)
10 tsp Mint Chocolate Sloane Tea
8 oz Hot Water
Vanilla Coconut Milk
Agave

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Steep the tea for 4 minutes and fill two cups half full with ice while you wait. Once steeped, pour the tea over the ice and add vanilla coconut milk and agave to taste. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.

Add some extra fun with mint liqueur.

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Lavender Coconut Cream Iced Latte

(Makes 2 cups)
10 tsp Heavenly Cream Sloane Tea
8 oz Hot Water
Vanilla Coconut Milk
Lavender Water
Agave

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Steep the tea for 2.5 minutes and fill cups half full with ice while you wait. Once steeped, pour the tea over the ice, then add vanilla coconut milk, agave and lavender water to taste. Garnish with lavender buds.

Add some extra fun with Galliano or another vanilla liqueur.

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And as an extra special treat for our readers, enjoy 20% tins of Sloane Tea at The Kitten and the Bear until next Wednesday when you say the code word ‘Random Acts Of Pastel’ or ‘Bicyclette’. The perfect excuse to stock up for summer and up your iced tea game!

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This is a collaboration post with Bicyclette and it can also be found on their blog too!