F21 T shirt | Dynamite Blazer | Skirt from HK | Coach wallet, watch & sunglasses | Steve Madden heels (similar)
Fall is in full swing in Edmonton, but I'm still trying to fit in those odd chances of wearing skirts when the sun is shining. Don't be fooled though, the sun is deceiving and it's actually pretty cold outside, hah. I lived in quite a few high-low skirts this summer, and I just love the silhouette as it's so easy to style. It can be worn casually or dressy depending on the print, and I'm sad to say bye to my skirts as the days get colder. But hey, I love the colours of all and all the fun with layering that can be done in the cooler temperatures!

Happy Thanksgiving Monday to my fellow Canadians! & Columbus Day to my American friends! Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend, wherever you are in the world. As it is Thanksgiving where I am, I cannot help but reflect on how lucky I happen to be. I have to be thankful for having wonderful friends and family whom are all in good health. I have to be thankful for living in Canada, a free country that fosters acceptance for all individuals regardless of their differences. And of course, I have to be thankful for everyone who has been with me on this journey through my blog. Everyday I am so grateful and amazed that there are people out there interested in what I have to say. So thankyou, thankyou, thankyou from the bottom of my heart for the continuing support and words of encouragement day in and day out. I cannot express my gratitude enough, and if I could personally thank every individual, I would! Happy Thanksgiving :)

Returning back to fall nail shades, this week I have Incognito in Sausalito, a beautiful deep blue shade from OPI's San Francisco collection for Fall 2013. Upon seeing swatches on the internet, this was a must have shade for me. This deep hue is what I like to call an almost-black blue. To most eyes, it seems like a black polish, but when examined closely, it's a deep blue - but does not cross into the territory of a navy blue. The colour is beautiful when seen infront of your eyes, and the formula is incredible. The polish just flows right onto the nail, self levels, and dries ever so quickly to a shiny finish. The colour lasts a full 4 days before chipping, and the only downside is that it still has the tendency to stain nails despite using a top coat. But trust me, it's worth it!

Last weekend, I had the chance to judge in a local culinary competition hosted by Dishcrawl. The event itself was called Battledish, where 6 local chefs were competing for the following titles: Most delicious, best cocktail, most creative, most authentic, and most modern. As Dischrawl is an organization with events across North America, lots of cities pitted their local chefs against one another on the same day to see who would come out on top.

As Dishcrawl is a walking culinary adventure, the six different stops on the map were all located within the downtown core of Edmonton. Every participant was given a map with a voting ballot, and the purchased amount of tickets to try out food at the different restaurants participating.

V Sandwiches - Lemongrass Chicken Vietnamese Sub

Fuss, Big City, Crave & Sweetcheeks Cupcakes - Assorted Varieties

Chef Andrew Cowan (Hundred Bar & Kitchen) - Pork Belly Sandwich + Dude Fizz Vodka Cocktail

Alley Kat Brewing Company - Beer Flights

Chef Paul Shufelt (Lux Steakhouse & Bar) - The Ultimate Slider + Old Fashioned

Chef Jonathan Spanton (The Burg) - Mac & Cheese Balls + Pimm's Number One Cup

Chef Harisha (Haweli Restaurant) - Indian Buffet
Just looking at these pictures, I'm sure you know I left the event with a full, happy tummy. There was so much food, I literally could not eat anything more at the end of all the stops, despite the buffet being extremely tempting. So for the results....

• Best Cocktail: Pimm's Number One Cup
• Most Authentic: Haweli's Indian Buffet
• Most Modern: Lux's Ultimate Slider
• Most Creative: The Burg's Mac & Cheese Balls
• Most Delicious: Lux's Ultimate Slider

And to tell you the truth, I was actually surprised about some of the results! I had voted differently in certain categories and was puzzled with some of the winners. I quite enjoyed Andrew Cowan's use of kimchi on the sandwich, and found the Mac & Cheese Balls cooked at the Burg to be pretty much inedible. The braised pork belly accompanying the cheese ball was absolutely delicious though. And the Ultimate Slider? It was quite difficult to eat, and portions of it were also not pleasing to my palate. I think the biggest issue with judging a competition of this caliber has to do with consistency within the restaurants, and that can be hard to do when you have 267 participants to feed at different intervals within a 3 hour time period. That being said, I still had a great time at the event and wouldn't mind doing it again. Word on the street is that Cocktail Wars is the next upcoming event. Now the question is... how will there be accurate judging for that? ;)