Venice Beach

A Pastel Guide to Venice Beach

February 29, 2016February 28, 2016 by Alyssa Garrison

Coming from the West Coast, I’ve been lucky to have been able to see a lot of California from a very young age. My family was constantly taking road trips down the coast in search of the sun when it seemed like the rain in Vancouver would never quit, and over the years I caught glimpses of San Diego, San Francisco, endless tiny surf towns, and so much more. There will always be a special place in my heart for Big Sur, for Beverly Hills, and of course for Anaheim (the home of Disneyland), but in the end my adult favourite has turned out to be Venice Beach.

There’s a certain degree of whimsy and magic to Venice Beach that’s hard to describe. Built to mirror Venice, Italy, canals with little boats run between beautiful pastel houses with cactus gardens in the front yard. On the main streets like Abbott Kinney stylish babes wander the streets with ice cream cones and overpriced sneakers, and down on the boardwalk surfers and skaters fill the massive sidewalk. It’s the perfect combination of relaxed and exciting, stylish and fun, and oh, there is so much colour around every corner!

Scroll down for our favourite spots…

Food and Drinks //

Salt & Straw
Sunny Spot
Moon Juice
Lemonade
The Butchers Daughter
Cafe Gratitude

Shopping //

Urbanic Paper
Negarin
Ilan Dei
Illesteva
Bountiful (so many cake stands!)

*if you happen to visit on a Friday don’t miss the Farmer’s Market!

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Dress Up

California Sunsets

November 19, 2014June 22, 2015 by Alyssa Garrison

Winter is in full swing, the holiday season is upon us, and Paige and I’s California trip feels like a distant memory, but luckily we took so many pictures on the trip that we still have a few posts left to share before fully committing exclusively to winter weather and holiday posts.

Today’s outfit post takes us back to Venice Beach, one of our favourite neighbourhoods in LA. On our way to shop the adorable independent boutiques along Abbott Kinney blvd we stopped in front of a massive bush covered in pink flowers to take a few outfit snaps featuring some of the pieces we’d picked up on our buying adventures. The sun was setting, the air smelled sweet, and winter parkas were so far from our minds that they seemed like fiction. As the snow falls outside in Toronto today, we can’t help but daydream about bare legs, sandals, and those perfect California sunsets.

Dress Up

Bows at the Beach

October 24, 2014June 22, 2015 by Alyssa Garrison

As much as I love winter and cozy weather, I’m such a sun baby, so visiting LA this month during a heat wave was like hopping a plane to paradise. I got to unpack my shorts and cute dresses from the depths of my closet, and I even got to try out a few new bikinis that I’ve been saving for a sunny day.

I’ve been a big fan of Lolli ever since I saw their adorable watermelon phone case on Designlovefest’s Instagram. Their bikinis are flirty and fun, and always have the sweetest little details, like a big floppy bow on the butt or a heart-shaped cut out. I opted for a sweet white set with a bow bandeau, and paired it with some baby pink gingham shorts, a Ban.do hair twist, and a massive pink beach blanket, and headed down to my favourite LA boardwalk, Venice Beach!