Merry Holidays!

tis the season to be Godly.


i wanted to wish everyone around the world a merry christmas, but i think the term "merry christmas" is becoming politically incorrect. we can assume that "merry christmas" refers to the holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, a man born thousands of years ago who apparently has been the only "living God" and the only "way" into another world we like to call heaven... where apparently we live for eternity. if we live in heaven or hell for eternity than we really must only be on this planet for literally a split second because eternity is a pretty frickin' long time. now, i'm not here to tell you what to believe or not, that's 100% your prerogative and ample use of your free will, however, as most of you already know, i don't buy the Jesus thing and most certainly never will.


i have my personal reasons of course, and a goal in my life is to study heavily the story of the man named Jesus and how the bible came to be. there's no use making claims of belief unless you have delved into what you believe thoroughly. so, i'm not here to make claims. but i will say that (like i've said in this post here), i don't think our creator judges us. and if he doesn't judge us, then he couldn't possibly have chosen "the one" or "the ones" because that would mean judgement has taken place. the definition of Christ is "chosen one" and the supposed man named Jesus Christ (the only chosen one) leaves a really bad taste in my mouth. because Jesus was human, that's all he'll ever be. was he a human with superhuman powers? no. was he a human using his fullest potential? YES. IF he existed at all, HE WAS HERE TO SHOW US WHAT WE ARE CAPABLE OF. WE ARE ALL GOD. there has been and forever will be, other humans that are here on this planet, in your lifetime, to lead by example the GREATNESS we all inhibit. YOU ARE GREAT! SO AM I! and to prove it (wink, wink) i received a lovely "Note From the Universe" this morning celebrating not only Jesus, but every single human being to ever exist. this is what it said . . .

If it's not yet obvious to you, the real reason for this, and all seasons, is you, Justine. A more perfect child of the Universe has never lived. Until now, only celebrations cloaked in myth and mystery could hint at your divine heritage and sacred destiny. You are life's prayer of becoming and its answer. The first light at the dawn of eternity, drawn from the ether, so that I might know my own depth, discover new heights, and revel in seas of blessed emotion.

A pioneer into illusion, an adventurer into the unknown, and a lifter of veils. Courageous, heroic, and exalted by legions in the unseen. 

To give beyond reason, to care beyond hope, to love without limit; to reach, stretch, and dream, in spite of your fears. These are the hallmarks of divinity - traits of the immortal - your badges of honor. May you wear them with a pride as great as the immeasurable pride we feel for you. 

Your light has illuminated darkened paths, your gaze has lifted broken spirits, and already your life has changed the course of history. 

This is the time of year we celebrate Justine McKnight.

Bowing before Greatness,
    The Universe

was this a short, random note to let you know what i believe christmas is about? yes. sorry to be so blunt. but i don't have too much time right now. in fact i should be in the shower right this minute because i have to go to work. but i wanted to let you all know quickly, that you should take a minute to really believe in the power you have. and know that whatever created us, loves you (and me) unconditionally, has always loved you unconditionally and is without judgement at all times. i sincerely wish every single one of you love, inner peace (which leads to world peace) and health for the coming new year!

love your fussygirl,

justine xoxo.

Hiatus

it's that time of year!


sorry for the pathetic lack of posting. i don't even know if anyone is still reading this blog anymore . . . hello . . . ? anyone? haha, yah. it's mainly due to 1) my incredibly old, slow and bogged down laptop that i now avoid using because it just makes me want to run myself into a wall and 2) i'm juggling two jobs in december . . . ouch! but everything is good, aside from my first job not being too happy with me dedicating my life and love to my second job that we all i know i worked my butt off to get. they even kicked me out of the secret santa - how nice of them to show the true meaning of Christmas by excluding me from joining in on all the reindeer games. well Rudolph was a non-conformist so eff the games :) 


i prlly won't be posting as much as i have been the last few months, my apologies to you, but i will be updating my makeup blog soon! i had my first official creative shoot with a photographer friend of mine ( check him out here ) and it couldn't have gone better! we worked in true photo-shoot-fashion and banged out a 14 hour day, accomplishing 4 different looks, 6 different scenarios and 2 different series. i can't wait to show them to you! i'm debating about moving my makeup blog to the new blog platform Tumblr . . . what do you guys think? is anyone using it? i have no idea how to customize it to my liking which is the con. 


it seems everyone around us is getting slammed with snow, but somehow we're managing to be missed. i really would rather a chaotic amount of snow. it would be the final touch on making this time of year feel more festive and of course, would make things much more exciting. there's still 13 days left until the big day so lets hope we Torontonians are blessed with snow. LET IS SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW! by the way for some reason or another ( prlly because i'm feeling fussy right now ) i find myself refraining from swearing a lot in this post. you're welcome!


all the best for the last 12 days of shopping! oh, and try not to do it in your pajamas! k thanks,


justine XOXO

The Fuss & Ish Show!

november edition.


i remember as a child, the month of november felt like an eternity. it was a full 30 days, the final month before Christmas and always seemed to draaaaaag on. well, not as an adult! here we are, headed into the last month of 2010 and i've got pictures to prove all that was experienced during "the longest month of the year". fall was lovely, weather has been superb (although, i really want a white Christmas, so i'm ok with it getting colder) and lots of loose ends are being tied up. i love new beginnings, clean slates and fresh perspective!!! into December we go . . . (time to get out faves like National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, The Santa Claus and Elf)

post-MAC-interview

Ish's paparazzi shot

jimmy the babe blogging

Ish and our tiny chocolate mousse! perfect.

jimmy the babe & his scarf

uncle jake & jim

getting his beauty sleep

first fire

Ish's housewarming party

wine & cheese

Fuss & Ish

friends

awkward sibling photo

a living room dance party

Gifts From NARS

for your makeup lover. or just for yourself.


i just checked out NARS for holiday gifts and they have some beautiful sets for very reasonable prices. i thought i would feature some of my faves for those who need Christmas ideas or are in need of some holiday makeup. i'll be doing a highlight on MAC's holiday collection as well in the very near future. happy shopping! oh,  ps. for those of you who have no idea what NARS is or where it came from, allow me to introduce you to Francois Nars. his makeup is absolutely beautiful to work with, blends wonderfully, stays on, bright pigments and he does a joyous job putting colours together. he's also got incredible names for his shades. . .  one of his most well-known and loved being the "Orgasm" collection. the blush i'm using right now is "Deep Throat". how fun!

Lip Gloss Collection, $40

Best of Lips Palette, $50

Modern Love Palette $55

Everlasting Love Palette, $75

Doucers de Paris, $55

Crazy Heart Lip Gloss Coffret, $50

images via NARS

do you use NARS cosmetics? do you have a favourite product/shade?

My holiday...

Down time is important.

Ahh! I feel the wonderful pull of laziness lingering in my soul as I realize...my holiday is over :( However, if we weren't so busy all the time - we would never appreciate the "holiday" like we do now. I was able to extend my vacation by a whole week and have never felt so relaxed. I don't live to work, I work to live and I believe taking a real break is very crucial to our health and happiness. I arrived in Toronto on Dec. 19th while battling a bladder infection I was trying to get rid of for days. Have you ever been on a plane for 5 and a half hours with a bladder infection? Probably the worst case scenario you could think of ;) "There's no place like home," is what I wanted to be thinking but all that was running through my mind was, "there's no place like a Walk-In clinic." Before I even got to see my beautiful mother - I was happily sitting in a Walk-In clinic waiting for antibiotics. Fast forward to the following day. I was a bridesmaid in the wedding of one of my only friends from high school - Miss Sahar Harb. It turned out beautifully and Sahar looked as gorgeous as an icicle shimmering in the moonlight. Head to toe, the bride & groom knocked everyone's socks (and boots) off their feet as they made their way into the winter wonderland Sahar had created. I wish them nothing but the best of the best (and knowing Sahar, that's all she settles for).

Up until Christmas, I spent the days shopping, seeing friends and family, shopping, and sleeping. Christmas day was wonderful as per usual - we always have eggs and bacon after we open our gifts and eat some candy from our stockings (I was the only one who did this, this year...) We then headed over to my aunts to celebrate with yummy Hungarian food and more gifts. I found that each Christmas day goes by faster and faster as I get older...it makes me a little sad. The next day (Canada's "Black Friday" is called Boxing day) I did not do more shopping, instead Phil and I spent the day with his side of the family which includes many, many kids. I ended that day off with heading to Toronto with my good friend Ashley and meeting up with one of my besties, Tamsyn Cooper, to drink strawberry flavored beer (yum) and exchange...more gifts!

Everyone keeps saying they've got a feeling about 2010. I don't remember hearing that last year. I hope this is a good sign, for everyone. For any of you reading this that are not following your dreams...please give yourself a chance. Don't let others around you influence you. I know it can be hard to stay true to who you are, but if you don't, then you'll become a mixture of everyone else and eventually realize, you are very lost. Let this new year be a chance to start over. I am. I'll start over again and again until I reach my goal.

More updates later! Hope your first week of 2010 is going great.

ps. I am very excited to see Jimmy The Babe who has been taken care of by my friend, Dawny.

Lots in the works...

It's that time of year!

Life is getting crazier by the day - I guess that means the holiday season is approaching! I have been trying to work so much between 3 different jobs right now, I'm so thankful for the moula but man I'm getting tired and kind of stir crazy. I should prlly get out and dance. This coming Thursday is American Thanksgiving and I am soooooo excited to stuff my face and bake my pumpkin pie. It feels like it's been a while since I've had a big feast. I actually can't remember that last holiday meal I ate...I'm pretty sure it was last Christmas. Dang. It is exactly 4 weeks today that Phil & I fly back home for 11 wonderful days and I am so excited. We put up our little tree up last night and I should get shopping very soon - when I get some spare time!

 ^ little tree ^

 I also have a new endeavor that I'm stoked about starting. For the people who know me well and have been in my life since childhood, they could probably say I've attacked them once or twice with a makeup brush :) I've always loved the art of makeup, and have watched my mom do hers (once a makeup artist as well) since I can remember. I've been doing friend's makeup since we were old enough to wear it and I have plenty of practice under my belt. I'm also hoping to take a class or two in the new year. So. I have decided to start my own makeup business that caters to everyday people for special events & occasions, bridal, and who knows what else. I shall call it, fussyjussy beauty. I will hopefully be launching a website and will have business cards available before Christmas. Since I don't have a portfolio of work, I will be doing nothing but complimentary services until I build up some evidence. Therefore! Ladies in LA - if you need any holiday makeup services done, please leave me a comment! I would be more than happy to be of assistance.

Sorry I have been slightly MIA on the posting - I have dedicated my life to making a buck at the moment to help with the extra holiday costs. I'll leave you with a holiday suggestion spot: TopShop, (which I've talked a little about before) is a UK based store (for the ladies) and has the trendiest, funkiest, clothing, shoes & accerories at fairly reasonable prices. They cater to the States but not to Canada. Sorry Canada :(  If you need party dresses, gift ideas, or a Christmas gift for yourself, check it out!

Hope all the Americans have a wonderful Thanksgiving week...<3

and futhermore,

Etsy Goodness.

Good afternoon everyone! I am so excited that Christmas is only 7 weeks away and we fly home to Toronto in 6. Time to get shopping!!! For those of you who don't know, Etsy is a great site to find unique, fun items of all sorts that are made of recycled materials or gently used clothing/shoes. Most things are hand made and it is a great outlet for the creativeness of creative people. One of the blogs I follow, oh, hello friend has suggested a great Etsy shop for adorable doily clocks (see left). They are hand made by an artist named Brenda and run for about $26-$28.50 - what a cute Christmas gift! Check out Brenda's Etsy shop and furthermore, for her clocks and other fun pieces for the home.
Also, check out oh, hello friend for lots of inspiration, attention-to-detail EVERYTHING, and their Etsy shop that consists of great hand made rings, necklaces, hair accessories and more.

In other news! I'm thinking about taking my blog up a notch. I know I don't have too too many readers at this point and would like to change that by adding different sections on different things - what do you think? I would have a page just for reviews, a page for my personal blogging on my life & such, a page on my makeup business, a page on career, etc. If you have any suggestions/ideas/comments I would LOVE to hear them - please email me at fussyjussyblog@gmail.com.