Mrs. Canary, New York
Age and Occupation: 24, Marketing
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Journalist/Editor
Engagement Date: February 16, 2007
Wedding Date: July, 2008
Blogging Since: October 19, 2007
Venue: Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers
About Me: I'm a born and raised New Yorker who loves all things crafty and artsy, food (cheese and dessert!), magazines, and shoes. I'm a power shopper always on the lookout for good deals or great quality-- sometimes I'm lucky and I find both! I love to dance and "shake what my momma gave me" but can also really enjoy a quiet night in with Mr. Canary and a good episode of Seinfeld or curl up with a good book.
Gimme More…. MUJI!
November 16th, 2007 @ 2:33 pm by Mrs. Canary
I am so ecstatic for Muji’s grand opening in Soho today. For those of you not familiar with this awesome Japanese brand, it’s all about simple and useful design. I was introduced to Muji at (where else?) the MoMA Design Store, which used to be the only place you could score Muji stuff state-side. The name “MUJI” is derived from the Japanese phrase Mujirushi Ryohin meaning “No Brand Goods.”
Today, they’re opening their first US store in Soho! I’m soooo psyched. Muji has great items for the home and office, but also great little knick knacks, for, well… just because. One of my favorite items that I plan to purchase as kid favors or gifts for junior bridal party members are these fantastic wood blocks called NYC in a Bag. How cute!
Screen Envy
November 15th, 2007 @ 4:49 pm by Mrs. Canary
A couple months ago, I discovered the small stakes, a design studio in California that creates great band posters and other paper products. Most of their portfolio is music related, but it doesn’t take away from the fantastic graphic elements in all their work. I realized that I’ve seen some of their work before at a small show at the Experience Music Project in Seattle devoted to show posters.
I love all of them! Unfortunately most of them are sold out. This would be a great upgrade from Mr. C and my college dorm room posters of our favorite bands. 
They’re also great inspiration for invitation icons and layouts. All of them are done by silkscreen. Here are some of my favorites.
Looming
November 13th, 2007 @ 12:52 pm by Mrs. Canary
While going through my daily blogroll, I happened upon another one of my favorite wedding blogs, Handcrafted: The Cure for the Common Wedding, and found a post on a local shop, Indigo Handloom. What beauties! Even if you don’t buy something, you have to check out the site. There is a plethora of information on the art of hand looms and this amazing artisan craft. The founder, Smita Paul, is a journalist turned fashion designer and her story is just as interesting as the products. The scarves themselves are breathtaking pieces of art. I think I’m definitely going to consider one of these as a gift to the moms once they decide on their dresses for the wedding. I just love every piece… I am tempted to buy one for myself!
Tastefully Gifted
November 12th, 2007 @ 11:48 am by Mrs. Canary
{image from TasteBook.com}
I just discovered another great gift idea. I love to cook… thus, cookbooks are an Achilles Heel. Though I have to be honest, I haven’t really cooked up a meal in months. I have a good excuse! I haven’t had my own kitchen in a long time– so I don’t get to cook my own meals on a daily basis.
But when I finally do in a few months… you know I’ll want one of these babies from TasteBook. It’s the coolest idea– you create your own personalized cookbook out of recipes you’ve gathered from Epicurious or your own collection. Granted, the whole point of sites like Epicurious is that everything is online so you don’t have a bajillion cookbooks, but with TasteBook, you can put together a collection of your favorite recipes, even theme them, and give them as a gift.
Phoenix Rising
November 9th, 2007 @ 3:07 pm by Mrs. Canary
When I was in Shanghai in the Spring, I made a point to stop by Chang Le Lu, which is notorious for custom qipao tailors. I wish I had taken pictures of the all the beautiful designs. I was surprised with all the modern variations, and many were so elegant– I could have started a complete qipao wardrobe.
I had visited a few qipao shops in New York’s Chinatown with my mom before I left for the trip, and she was adamant about having a dragon and phoenix design… because that’s just what you do for weddings! When you want to know why, just defer to Wikipedia!
The Fenghuang (phoenix) has very positive connotations. It is a symbol of high virtue and grace. The Fenghuang also symbolizes the union of yin and yang. It appears in peaceful and prosperous times but hides when trouble is near. In ancient
Read more…
Opposites Attract?
November 8th, 2007 @ 3:26 pm by Mrs. Canary
Mr. Canary sent me this great Slate article on why people are attracted to each other. (I had also been thinking about this after reading Miss Jasmine’s post on occupations yesterday.) The article talks about a particular study at Columbia University where two psychologists set up speed dating experiments to figure out what attracted people to each other. Is it really based on the traditional stereotype that men focus on looks and women care more about money and success? What really drew my attention was their findings on race…
We found no evidence of the stereotype of a white male preference for East Asian women. However, we also found that East Asian women did not discriminate against white men (only against black and Hispanic men). As a result, the white man-Asian woman pairing was the most common form of interracial dating—but because of the women’s neutrality, not the men’s pronounced preference.
This hits home because Mr. Canary is white and I am Chinese. But it’s not only that… I get asked fairly often why I’m not dating/marrying a man with the same background and ethnicity. To be honest, that question really pisses me off. You don’t choose who you fall in love with - I love Mr. Canary for all the things that make him who he is… intelligence, generosity, humor, looks… the whole package. Yes, there are major cultural differences and we have both learned how to adjust to it, but on the flip side, these differences may just be a matter of different upbringing, in different cities, by different families. A lot of our differences may be dictated by culture, but not all of them.
The Next Best Thing To Online Shopping?
November 6th, 2007 @ 6:31 pm by Mrs. Canary
Window shopping… online!
New York Magazine has this awesome feature called Shop-A-Matic which features the latest trends in everything! I get so excited when I get one of their emails, but I’m sure my wallet (or Mr. Canary) doesn’t.
Well Versed
November 6th, 2007 @ 11:28 am by Mrs. Canary
Mr. Canary and I are in the midst of working on our Save-the-Date cards with our fantabulous designers Nicole and Erin from Bird and Banner. But lucky for us, Mr. C is a writer and was really hands on with the text. We’ll dedicate a post to our beautiful cards when they’re done… but in the meantime, I wanted to share a great discovery.
For any one else needing text inspiration, there’s VerseIt.com, a Web site dedicated to helping you find the right words for any occasion (weddings, birthdays, business-related). There are even tips on adorning stationery as well as addressing envelopes.
Bling Blang!
November 5th, 2007 @ 8:34 am by Mrs. Canary
After seeing Miss Petunia’s finds at Regina B, I immediately made an appointment to check it out. I surfed the site first, but it’s just a small percentage of what they carry in the store. I was mainly searching for earrings. My wedding dress will have a brooch, so I didn’t want too much jewelery clashing and my other dresses don’t have necklines that would accommodate necklaces either.
Here are some of my favorites from the site:
{all images from www.reginab.com}
Sweet n’ Plushy
November 2nd, 2007 @ 6:35 pm by Mrs. Canary
While reading one of my favorite blogs, Toast and Tables, this morning, I discovered these lovely knit desserts from Pukashell Creative Designs.
