Fall 2010 Vol: 1 Issue: 1
The Lifestyle Magazine
Entertaining ideas from our customers MODERN BAMBOO
Get the look ... for less!
The Lifestyle Magazine Fall 2010 Volume 1 Issue 1
Chief Party Enthusiast Allison Straker Host Extraordinaire Rochelle Straker Contributing Photographer Nathaniel Anderson for Nathaniel Inc. Published by Cry If I Want To, Inc.
Store/Office Location 1175 Queen St. East Contact Us info@cryifiwantto.com 416.466.CRY7 416.466.2797 www.cryifiwantto.com
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Cry If I Want To - The Lifestyle Magazine
Editor’s Page When you dream, you dream big; after all isn’t that the whole point of dreaming? Just recently we had a customer come into the store and ask us if Cry If I Want To is now what we had envisioned it to be from the very start. Wow ... what a great introspective question. We thought back to the night we shared a bottle of wine over dinner (to get those creative juices flowing) at a lakeside restaurant and we crafted what we envisioned as our ideal business. We wanted to do something that first and foremost incorporated our favourite pastimes ... partying, entertaining and of course shopping! As we scribbled ideas out on our napkins, themes kept flowing. We believed in affordable luxury, fun, style, elegance and sophistication. We wanted a business that reflected who we are and the type of lifestyle that we live - if you look closely, as of today, these inspirational words make up the wallpaper of our website. As the ideas flowed, very quickly we came up with an empire that rivaled the likes of Oprah and Martha Stewart. But most importantly, we determined that we wanted to work in an environment that was fun and one that inspired people to do what we loved ... party and decorate for parties! Photo by John Rait Photography www.Pentimento.com
Our answer to that customer who asked us the question was that every day, we get closer and closer to our original vision. We started running our business out of our homes, built a website, moved on to share space in a store, then moved into a space of our own which we could brand with our own sense of fun and style. And today we have our first (although tiny) magazine but tomorrow who knows, we may compete with O Magazine and Martha Stewart Living, and the empire continues. Who knows, one day you might all be scrambling to buy the Cry If I Want To scent (just joking ... we think). Perfumes aside, we hope this magazine provides you with inspiration for your own events, whether its dinner with your partner (but with food that looks so much better after using stylish appetizer picks), a great dinner party for your closest friends, or a baby shower. This issue features great ideas to help you enjoy the fall entertaining season. We hope that you enjoy this new publication and are inspired. We’ll continue to work “our you know whats” off to produce an even better Fall issue for you. Thanks to our amazingly supportive family for without them, our doors would have never opened, thank you for teaching us, encouraging us and empowering us to dream big. Thank you to our wonderful friends, whose designs, ideas and pictures (thanks Nathaniel!!!) are regularly featured in our store and publications, and of course to our phenomenal customers, who with their dedication to supporting local business keeps our doors open. Cheers, Allison and Rochelle
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Coming Your Way! October 2
Mid-November
November 20
Magazine Launch Event Special Sales in Store, and a launch party and Pentimento Gallery in the evening! Winter Edition Our next issue will be available! What’s Pink & Green All Over! Join us at our 2nd Anniversary party - it’s a celebration that features live entertainment, hors d’oeuvres, cockatils and gift bags. At this shopping opportunity, partial proceeds are donated to Willow Breast Cancer Support Canada
To register for any of our events please email us at rsvp@cryifiwantto.com
Sorrel Shandy Ingredients: 1 bottle light beer 2 teaspoons Wild Hibiscus Flower Syrup Steps: Pour syrup into bottom of beer glass, and top with light beer. Garnish with one wild hibiscus flower. Bon Appetit!
Cornbread Muffins Ingredients: 1 cup flour 1 cup corn meal
1/4 cup sugar 4 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup milk 2 eggs 1/4 cup butter, softened
Steps: Mix all dry ingredients together. Combine the liquid ingredients with softened butter. Combine the dry and wet ingredients. Pour into lightly buttered muffin tin Bake for 20-25 minutes at 425 degrees These are yummy!
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Cry If I Want To - The Lifestyle Magazine
Tales of a Great Party
We asked some of our customers to share their favourite inspirations and entertaining ideas
Christen, Art Gallery Intern The Last Party I Threw: It was a summer beach party for my friends from our softball team. I made foam invitations that looked like sandals and invited my softball team. We had balloon fights and played a few other games; it was a lot of fun. I held the party at a friend’s backyard, and served umbrella drinks. What Inspires Me? Beautiful days like today! I love to bring a friend (like friend CynLeft to right: Christen, friend Cynthia (student) thia, pictured right) and check out different areas, browse the shops, any thing that comes up - I like to be spontaneous. I enjoy finding shops I haven’t been to before. as part of a summer abroad school program. It was like a big family party, where you could buy a ticket What was the last memorable party that I attended? to get your food and drinks. They had this mediaeval The last party I attended was in Italy. I lived in Siena for five weeks race, where you could place bets. It was an awesome outdoor nighttime party, with food, drinks & games.
Jackie, Associate Marketing & Community Relations Manager, Global TV I’m throwing a housewarming party this Saturday, and it’ll be a Barbecue – some chicken skewers and steak from George across the street and I’ll be making up some summer salads. We’ll serve it with cold drinks, including champagne with your hibiscus of course. There will be lots of great music.
Most memorable thing at a party Construction Chic was in support of Ronald McDonald House Toronto – proceeds from the event went towards the new home they’re building. Everything at the party was “construction-esque”. From servers dressed as construction workers, and bricks, pylons, bungee cords, tape measures and hammers as the centre pieces, to scaffolding hanging from the ceiling, to the sundae dessert toppings being served out of toolboxes - they certainly stayed true to the construction theme. The entertainment was a dance crew wearing metal bodices, which they used power tools on. Sparks were flying everywhere, it was quite a sight!
If Stuck on a Desert Island I Would Need ... Most Stylish Party I went to the White Knight Gala this past May – it’s a charity event put on by the Ron White Foundation benefiting Free the Children. It was held at the MacDonald Family Estate, and was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Everyone wore all white, paired with their most outrageous shoes. It was the most stylish event I’ve been to, there was even a white carpet. Toronto’s social elite and Canadian celebrities were among the crowd.
I’d need music – Bob Marley – I could listen to him for hours, days even. It’s the kind of music you never get sick of. And food, obviously!
What’s inspired me lately Leslieville & the local vendors! Local artists, photography, vintage shops. Decorating magazines too, but mainly the neighbourhood.
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It’s so Am
Bamboo Amuse Bouche serv at your next ap Tiny bites of delight are the things to serve up at your next cocktail party. But how you present these "amusements for the mouth" are just as important as what you serve. The latest in amuse bouche serveware will have you checking out your calendar to figure out the best date to host your next soiree. These bamboo amuse bouche pieces seem too good to be true. They are everything a busy host wants: modern and sleek,
Perfect for a fresh fruit salad., pick up this set of 50 Bamboo “Boat” Bowls for only $12 trendy but with a bit of an edge, ecofriendly (when you are done with them just throw them in the composter), timesaving (no washing of little dishes required!), and best of all they are affordable. So when is the party?
Our set of 10 Bamboo Tongs ($6 ) are great for serving desserts, appetizer portions and sugar cubes
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Cry If I Want To - The Lifestyle Magazine
musing!
veware to help you have fun ppetizing event
The great thing about using amuse bouche pieces is that they take ordinary food and make it look spectacular. When we found these bamboo tasting spoons, we were blown away. They are perfect for serving bits of julienned salads, Spoon up mousses, cavier, and mini these bamboo pies. tasting spoons at $5 for a set of 50 And, for all the air guitar pros out there, get the real thing. Our guitar
Guitar Picks, set of 50 ($8)
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picks are so hot that we`re having difficulty keeping them in the store! Use them to serve fruits, or delicious cheeses with deli meats. And you can use tiny bowls to serve individual dipping sauces (prevents double dipping), these bamboo bowls also double as a great container for novice chopsticks users to eat sushi in. The pièce de résistance are these umbrella skewers. A twist on the Take home these Bamboo Bowls for only $8 for a set of 50
parasol that you would put in your fruity cocktail, these are also perfect for bridal and baby showers ... or even just a rainy day. If umbrellas aren”t your thing, try seahorse picks, which are also now available in store. Umbrella Bamboo Picks, set of 50, $8
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Cry If I Want To - The Lifestyle Magazine
Event Scenes
Cry If I Want To recently decorated a wedding at Balsam Restaurant (2343 Queen St. East) Pictures from top left: We created a Money Box in the wedding colours of pink, black and white. A bird cage was decked out with lighting and roses. The back patio featured chandeliers rented from Cry and floral arrangements. We created custom pillows to adorn the couches. This July, Cry If I Want To was the event decorator at the Scream Literary Festival (www. thescream.ca). Their book reading dinner was held at the Women’s Art Association (23 Prince Arthur Avenue). Our decor featured images of Victorian class (both high and low). We added a corset-like tieback to burlap, creating chair covers , and embellished bird cages as their centerpieces, placing within them objects inspired from chapters of the book they featured.
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Have you ever attended an enchanting event, and wish
ambiance in your own home? In this section, we’ll show y own home with items you can find at Cry If I Want To.
Colin Cowie is an internationally renowned Event Planner Winfrey, Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Murphy, Alyssa Milano, Elton Jennifer Lopez. His theme for the event pictured here is “ this in the decor, menu, place settings, and music The ba minimalist, helping the red accents to stand out even mo
Colin pairs bold colour with sculptural glassware to create colincowie.com
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Cry If I Want To - The Lifestyle Magazine
The Look ... for Less
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Bringing Home
the Look Bring this look home with our rich red glassware serving bowl ($40) Cry If I Want To, add the beautiful hurricane lamps/ vases in the same deep colour ($20 each), the curvy lines of the durabar glass ($54 for a set of six) echo the lines of the glassware on Colin’s table. Go bold with red linens ($30 for a set of 4 hemstiched napkins), and continue the dramatic elements with black dinnerware. Add multiple votive candles on the table so that the dramatic rich, elegant, style of Colin’s table can easily be recreated in your own home.
Rent White Tea light holders $0.20 each
Ingredients to Recreate This at Home
Purchase Red and Clear Hurricane Vases $17.50 each Purchase White Musaceae Pendant Lamp Shade $90 for 14” (electrical sold separately)
Purchase Red “Potbelly” Hurricane Vase $17.50 each
Purchase Durable Electro Martini Glasses $54 for a set of 6
CONTEMPORARY DECOR FOR EVERY DAY OF ENTERTAINING
1175 QUEEN ST. EAST, TORONTO, ON