Natalie Ho

Hello! I’m finally settling back in after returning from our wonderful honeymoon! We had such an incredible time touring parts of Europe but my most favourite were definitely the Greek Islands. Can I say, WOW?! I’ll be sure to share some photos with you once I’ve had a chance to go through them!

Packing for a two week vacation can be quite daunting, especially when multiple destinations and temperatures are involved. Regardless, when it comes to beauty essentials, I’ve always got an it-list, good for any travel plan. I’ve curated a number of beauty products that I’ve personally tried and tested, and I guarantee you’ll absolutely love them too!

Check out my Beauty Travel Essentials to learn more about my most favourited items to pack in the suitcase!

Most couples have a ‘song’, for Kyle and I, we never had a ‘song’ for the few years we dated. When it came time to find a song for our wedding dance, I thought the song selection process was going to require quite a bit of effort seeing that we never had a ‘song’, but to my surprise, the both of us unanimously (and simultaneously) made the decision of picking Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” as the special song for our wedding night.

In early June when Ed Sheeran scheduled his concert in Toronto at the Air Canada Centre, I tried to purchase tickets as a romantic way to gear up for our big day. As you would imagine, tickets sold out right away, and no dice for me! But thanks to American Express Canada, we were able to enjoy the Ed Sheeran concert this past weekend with Front Of The Line reserved ticket allotment and relived our first dance (how romantic!).

If you’re looking to score tickets to the next hot show or event I encourage you to explore the perks of being a American Express Cardmember. As an Amex Cardmember, you have access to Front Of The Line presales, reserved ticket allotments, Delights experiences as well as exclusive benefits at special venues across the country.  You can also check out www.AmexInvites.ca to learn more about some of the hottest upcoming events! For now, check out some photos I snapped at the concert and of course a photo of our first dance from our wedding!

Thanks to my friends at American Express Canada for letting us relive #ThisMoment!

To prepare for Thanksgiving this year, I want to show you just how simple it is to create your own modern centerpiece and table setting that is both suitable for the Thanksgiving holiday and further into the winter season.

Traditionally, when you think of decorating for Thanksgiving, you think of Fall colours such as reds, oranges, and browns, and of course items such as apples and pumpkins! For my own tablescape this year, I decided to go with modern home decor items and a classic fresh floral centerpiece made up of warm and cool hues of ivory and white. I also transformed this Pumpkin Soup Tureen from Chapters Indigo into the focal point of my tablescape, what do you think?!

I’ve prepared an easy shopping guide from some great merchants at the Manulife Centre, be sure to check them out!

Read further to see how you can accomplish a similar style for your Thanksgiving gathering!

Greetings from Prague! A super quick post today to share a glimpse of the first stop of our honeymoon in Prague. This city is beautiful! The architecture is incredible and every sight is breathtaking. During our stroll through Old Town, we wandered into a quiet alleyway and took a break from the busy streets. It was surreal to be tucked away while thousands of visitors were just seconds away.

I was so glad to pack my September Le Chateau shoes with me on our trip. These suede pointy toe bow ballerina flats are so comfortable, lined with cushions and equipped with rubber soles. They are also very flexible and lightweight which make it really easy to store away in luggage. Oh, they also come in a burgundy red which is THE colour for Fall.

What types of shoes do you typically pack for your travels?!

I was provided product by BEHR to write this post but the thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

I was totally surprised when Kyle said yes to letting me update our office space with a fresh coat of BRIGHT paint. Let’s just say I may not have exactly disclosed to him that I was thinking pink! I instantly fell in love with Pagoda, the fuschia pink colour featured as part of BEHR 2016 Color Trends. I had to get my hands on it and was willing to make any paint project work with this. The office was the perfect opportunity!

Since Pagoda (T16-02) is quite dramatic, I really didn’t want to use too much of it, but rather as a happy accent. I decided to paint two side panels behind our custom DIY shelving unit and really thrilled with the final result! To be honest, I am the one who primarily occupy our home office space, therefore I was ecstatic that Kyle agreed to let me put my own stamp on it. A little pink never hurts a creative soul, right?!

Today, I’m excited to share not only my September BEHR DIY Expert Paint project with you but privileged to also share the projects from my fellow BEHR paint ambassadors AND a fabulous BEHR Paint Giveaway! Be sure to check them all out and enter the giveaway at the end of this post.

Four lucky winners will receive three gallons of BEHR 2016 Color Trends Paint! Yay! Best of luck!

With the official arrival of Fall means more cozy nights in. I love hosting intimate gatherings at home during the cooler months, it’s a fantastic time to catch up with friends and enjoy each other’s company. Hosting dinner parties can be a bit overwhelming, especially if you’re hoping to impress your guests. With my busy schedule, hosting an elaborate dinner party is almost impossible, therefore wine & cheese nights are much more manageable in my opinion.

However, hosting an ultimate wine & cheese night does require some preparation. The wines and cheeses you select are definitely going to be the superstars to your evening, but home decor, dinnerware and your entire tablescape is certainly going to be ‘wow’ factor.

I recently hosted my own Wine & Cheese Night with the help of some fabulous merchants from Manulife Centre, thoughts?!

Hello! For those of you who follow along on Instagram, I posted a photo last night of these yummy yummy donuts and asked if you could guess what I dressed them with! I’m pleased to reveal two super easy options to elevate your basic treats with an added touch of REESE Spreads. If you haven’t tried REESE Spreads, the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter flavor, stop what you’re doing and pick up a jar, it will change your life!

REESE Spreads are perfect to add to simple snacks such as apples, waffles and pretzels, but of course I wanted to tackle a couple of options that are not only super tasty BUT pretty to look at! Because why wouldn’t you want to feast on pretty treats?!

Read further to see how you can create your own decorative donuts and floral sponge cakes!

Happy Friday friends! A few weeks ago, I introduced a new way of ordering your meals directly from your phone and skipping annoying lines during lunch time. The RITUAL app has certainly become a frequented tool since I’ve downloaded it a few weeks back! It not only saves me time, but also have managed to introduced several new spots for me to try at nearby locations.

For those of you who follow along on Instagram, I love sharing photos of my food. I’m a sucker for sweet and savory treats – croissants, donuts, cupcakes, macarons, pies, and fries… you name it! I decided to use my RITUAL app to help me discover a handful of new treats to add to my list of favourites.

If you’re interested in trying RITUAL, here is $10 to get you started! Download the RITUAL app, using this unique link and get $10 credit deposited right into your account!

In the meantime, hope you enjoy my #BestofRitual drool-worthy sweets and treats I sampled in the last week!

This post originally appeared on the Joe Fresh Post.

Fall is the best time to stock up on denim! They pair fantastic with cozy sweaters, basic buttons ups, and ankle booties, all of which are my favourite fall wardrobe items. I’ve recently been smitten by a more relaxed fit and absolutely adore the Boyfriend Cut.

With the many emerging rich fall hues, I couldn’t help but to add a punch of colour to my own pair of Boyfriend Cut denim from Joe Fresh with the ever so popular burgundy colour. My abstract painted denim was inspired by garden roses, what a great piece of summer I can take alongside with me into Fall!

Whatever you may be inspired by, follow my simple steps to create your own pair of abstract painted denim.

After two long months of patiently waiting to catch a glimpse of our wedding day photos, the day finally arrived! We are so very delighted and absolutely adore them!

Let me set the tone here for you. It was a rainy wedding day, and I’m not referring to a light romantic drizzle, but rather, a downpour all day kind of day. Luckily, our photographers, Kirk and Angela of Afterglow Images held magical powers and despite the rain was able to capture the blissful day we had.

Not too much more to say here other than, “a picture is worth a thousand words”.

Keep reading to enjoy a few of our most-loved and to see more, visit the the Afterglow Images blog.