MY LIFE | Ryerson Alumni in NYC

I've officially joined the alumni club, even though it's already been a year since I graduated from Ryerson University — now I've got the blue and yellow scarf to prove it. I attended a New York alumni reception and was surprised that there are so many Ryerson graduates in the big Apple. I was definitely the youngest one there, but it was still a fun time!

- Christina
Follow my adventures on Twitter: @christina_dun

MY LIFE | May 2015

May was a great kick-off to summer. Here's what I got up to this month:

 Interviewed the lovely Amanda Seyfried & Thomas Sadoski on my last day at NY1

MY LIFE | Toronto Visit

I love making spontaneous visits back to Canadaland (spontaneous meaning, I was homeless for a bit in NYC so I needed somewhere to go...that story another time). I got to go see some pals in Toronto and have some much-needed relaxation time.

My trip in photos:

FOOD | Cooking with Master Chef's Graham Elliot

During my visit to Toronto, I got the chance to participate in a cooking class—and not just any cooking class (actually, I think this was my first official cooking class....). I was taught by the one and only Graham Elliot, one of the culinary geniuses from Master Chef. Partnering with Walmart Canada, the event was a fun class full of great food, wine and people. The products we used from Walmart were so fresh and were seriously delicious.

UPCOMING | INLAND

Heads up Toronto! This weekend, head over to 99 Sudbury St. for a shopping event that supports Canadian designers - 80 of them! I love the concept of INLAND because there's so much cool stuff coming out of Canada, everyone needs to show them some love.

I've rounded up some of my top picks from some pretty awesome companies - check it out:

Province of Canada

Lightweight Crewneck Sweater Marble Grey $114

MY LIFE | NYC Week 8

Cool street art in Williamsburg

Here's what I got up to from October 13-19:

 I finally got to check out the Jeff Koons exhibit at The Whitney during its final week! His gigantic balloon sculptures are my fave.

EVENT | Canada's Walk of Fame 2014

I made a short visit to Toronto last week for an event that has become somewhat of a tradition. The Canada's Walk of Fame gala is something dear to my heart because, not only do I leave feeling like the proudest Canadian ever, but it also allowed me to have a hilarious "15-minutes of fame" type moment with comedian Russell Peters, Grey's Anatomy Star Sandra Oh and rapper Drake. Yeah.

This year's inductees included actress Rachel McAdams, hockey star Hayley Wickenheiser and actor (& soon-to-be daddy!) Ryan Reynolds. The Allan Slaight Award went to the incredibly talented artist The Weeknd.

For the past four years, I've been attending the gala as a seatfiller, which is usually a pretty rad experience. This year did not disappoint...I mean, I got to breath the same air as Ryan Reynolds and Rachel McAdams.

FASHION | Launched: Clocks and Colours

I met Toronto-based jewelry designer Shane Vitaly Foran about two years ago at the launch of Vitaly Design and it's been great to follow along with what he's been up to. Most recently, he launched Clocks and Colours, a high-end men's jewelry line that is handcrafted by Balinese master silversmiths. Inspired by motorcycle, barbershop and tattoo culture, the unique assortment of accessories are a great addition to any cutting-edge outfit.

Take a look at this kick-ass lookbook, a collaboration with Toronto photographer Matt Barnes:

FASHION | Muttonhead SS15

Photo via Facebook

A lot of great fashion comes from Canada. There's something about tons of Canadian brands that just exude that subtle cool factor. wings + horns, Raised By Wolves and Mackage all come to mind. One of my favourite unisex clothing brands is Muttonhead. They recently released their Spring/Summer 2015 lookbook, called "Dog Days of Summer."

Take a peek:

UPCOMING | Meet Nicky Hilton in Toronto

FYI Toronto!

FASHION | Shelfies

Although summer is sadly coming to an end, I'm glad I got the chance to spend some of it working with a company whose goal is to make clothing that makes people smile. Shelfies is a Toronto-based clothing company that does just that by creating memorable clothes featuring anything from sloths and pineapples to hamburgers and Kanye West eating ice cream (one of my personal faves). I spent a few months as the brand's marketing intern, helping out with social media management and media outreach, and I had a blast.

Take a peek into my Shelfies experience:

Kollar Clothing Mid Summer Collection | EVENT + LOOKBOOK

I visited my friends at Kollar Clothing on August 16th for their midsummer pop-up shop at 498 Queen St West. They released a special mid summer collection and held a fun party, complete with cake and champagne.

MY LIFE | Toronto Summer

This summer has been pretty fantastic. It's been full of friends, food and fun times — no complaints! Here's a glimpse into my TO summer so far, via photos.

Becoming besties with pets of friends | Crepes in parks

NXNE Part 2: Danny Brown, St. Vincent & More

Here are some other highlights from my whirlwind NXNE week of festivities:

YONGE-DUNDAS SQUARE

 Danny Brown, June 19

He put on a seriously dope show after finally getting across the border

NXNE: 20th Anniversary Party

NXNE is always a busy time. I had a jam-packed schedule that I had to balance with my part-time job and other life stuff. But I love NXNE because there's so much going on and I can usually time things so that they work out pretty well. One of the first events I checked out was the 20th Anniversary Party at Edward Day Gallery on Queen West.

I had a spot at the red carpet and here's a glimpse of who came out to the party!

Adriiana, musician | Tre Armstrong, choreographer

4Count, musicians

Toronto's First Cat Cafe: Pet Me Meow

Earlier this month, I got to tag along with my friend Takara Small for a shoot featuring Toronto's first-ever cat cafe: Pet Me Meow.

Located upstairs at the RedFish BlueFish Creative Cafe (73 Harbord St), Pet Me Meow had a room set up full of playful and adorable kittens. I met Jeff Ro and Ashkan Rahimi of Pet Me Meow, who gave us the run-down of their latest entrepreneurial venture.

 This one was my FAVE. #grumpycat

Their pop-up cafe ran for a few days only, but they're working on opening a permanent location this fall! Keep an eye out :)

Find them on Twitter >> petmemeow

- Christina
Follow my adventures on Twitter: @christinaaa28