As Thursday evening rolled in, I finally got away from my computer desk to grab some desserts with my bestie. With few treats down and the gossip aside, we headed over to Future Shop to pick up my camera lens. Aside from much-needed girls’ time, this trip was the next step on my quest to buy new equipment. Given my beginner’s knowledge of photography and that an average decent camera lens costs a couple hundreds, it was no small endeavour. As for why all of a sudden I am shopping for “serious” equipment, I am very proud to announce that I am officially a small business owner. As the recipient of a government grant to further develop With Love… , I have been given the opportunity to do what I love and transfer my hobby into a business. I feel very fortunate to have an opportunity to work in two areas that I truly adore: art and social media.

Call it destiny or call it luck, but there are times when the shoe fits and there’s no escape from going home with it. I am not an impulsive shopper and always follow my heart when it comes to acquiring new items: I must really love something before I decide to buy it. There is one exception to this self-control rule: Marc Jacobs. With him, every rational thought is squeezed out of my head by cute tees with little Miss Marc on them, and the leather masterpieces most people call shoes and purses.

Inside With Love... Closet: All things Marc Jacobs from Marta Tryshak on Vimeo.

All reason goes out the window when I spot a new collection of Marc by Marc Jacobs shoes. Despite the fact that I walk into a shoe department and feel like hypnosis has been performed on me: “You are getting sleeeeeepy. Browse through the shoes, take out the Visa and swipe away.” But one way or another it never plays out quite that way, as I always torture myself over the prices of designer items. It’s almost as if you have to sell a limb in order to purchase something to wear on that limb! Therefore as a finance-conscious Marc Jacobs addict, it is hard to resist when you come across an item that makes your heart race. Then reality hits when you turn over the price tag and feel a heart attack coming on. No more heart skipping beats; it stops completely when your eyes lay upon those triple zeros. If this sounds like you, you’re not alone.

Surely you’re thinking, “Racing, again?” No one is as surprised as I am! The things a girl will do for the man she cares about apparently include wearing a pair of jeans in +35°C and waking up at 5:30 am. Despite the minor glitches, which included boiling in the sun and walking half a marathon, I was more than excited to support E and his team at the Toronto Indy.

As an unofficial (though definitely enthusiastic!) part of the team, I have rare access to the pit lane of the races, which I must admit is worth boiling in denim for. For safety reasons, it is a requirement for everyone in the pit lane to be entirely covered. This limits fashion options, but I cannot complain, as the weekend was tons of fun.

I hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend. I definitely did, by spending it with my family. As some of you might know, we have added a new member to our family: a beautiful 5 month old English Bulldog baby girl, named Bonnie. She’s a little ball of fire with an attitude that is larger than life. She has brought to much joy and energy to our household.

As dog owners will know, walking becomes a regular part of life with a canine companion. In our family, an hour long evening walk in the park has become a tradition. Having an 11 year old Cocker Spaniel and 5 month old English Bulldog is quite a challenge in handling when it comes to play time but never the less it is always fun.

Once in a while, there are days when the entire city comes alive with events. Thursday, June 16th was one such day. Toronto was abuzz with events in every direction. For me, this meant attending four soirees in 12 hours. I went from a lunch to preview Converse’s fall 2011 line, to Flare + Guess’s Launch Party, to H&M pre-MMVA party, and finally to the launch of YYZ Magazine.

During such events, a girl is bound to speak to a number of new and interesting people, as mingling and networking is one of the purposes of these events; however not every conversation is a winner, and there are times when a girl is stuck in the sticky situation of talking to a nosy stranger. Socializing is definitely a skill that one acquires over time, and I assure you that I am far from being good at it. In person, I am quite shy and reserved, and sparking a conversation and making best-friends with strangers is not my area of expertise.