i love crazy crowds

click here to see a video of the vancouver crowds reacting to the gold outside the stadium!

Isn't the photo (above) an amazing shot? Found it on Globe + Mail website

click here for even more crazy reactions on video of people climbing things!

{and click here for a video of good old Toronto's reaction!}

I KNOW you watched the game last night, and if you're Canadian like the 'Bloomers, you're absolutely bursting at the seams with pride. And not ONLY because we won the most gold medals ever in a winter games, but because you have never witnessed Canadians so driven, so proud, and so darn excited to just be Canadian all together. I just love it. I love seeing people going crazy with excitement - and perhaps this is why the Bloomers love the high of producing events - we're junkies for human reaction! From Alex Bilodeau's first gold medal, when the Canadian crowds went bananas, to Sidney Crosby's last gold medal-winning goal last night, people jumped for joy, and screamed, and climbed random things, from Vancouver to Nova Scotia - and my cousin says even in France the game was epic! I have so enjoyed the extreme high I have gotten after each medal was won, and am actually very disappointed that the Olympic games are over. I have REALLY enjoyed this nationalistic pride (albeit, I do feel emotionally exhausted from the rollercoaster of anxiety and happiness I've been on). But yes, I cry each time Canada wins, and last night was no exception; in fact, it was the pinnacle! The icing on the loveliest cupcake ever. Yah Canada, we deserve a gold medal for our crazy cheering crowds!!!

Oh, and if you're interested, a good overview of the gold medal hockey game win last night is here on the ctv news website!

good design at the vancouver olympics

Well the Vancouver Olympics are soon drawing to a close {sniffle...what will we watch on tv from now on?!} but as a design junkie, I wanted to do a post on some of the impressive design choices that were made for the 2010 Winter Games!

Melanie mentioned a few weeks ago the staging and lighting at the opening ceremonies which was incredible, and I wonder what's in store for the closing ceremonies. Here are a few other things je t'aime...

First, I really like the athlete's bouquets. I know some people think they look like broccoli. But as someone who has been honing their eyeballs on good floral design the past few years, I am relieved that the traditional, and often cheesy, rose bouquet was tossed for this fresh, green one that represents the lush green of British Columbia. Feminine enough for the ladies, and masculine enough for the gents, I thought this was a great choice. And bonus: the bouquet’s designer, 75-year-old June Strandberg {owner of Just Beginnings Floral society} teaches, employs and empowers women who have left prison, are recovering addicts, suffer disabilities or have been the victims of violence. So these bouquets are bettering the community too!

Have you noticed the ceremony podiums? They are gorgeous! By industrial designer James Lee, the podiums 'echo the undulating peaks and ridges of the Coast Mountain Range'. The medal trays are beautiful too, made with the same wood harvested in BC forests, and have a special coating so that the medals don't slip.

And speaking of which, the medals are pretty cool too. Designer Omer Arbel created the very artistic 'wavy' metal look, again inspired by the west coast landscape of mountains and water. The medals each have a unique element of aboriginal artwork which are constructed in a 30-step process. Looking at the medal designs over the past few winter Olympics {all are a bit ew with the exception of Turin's}, you might agree that this are the most unique, stylish and visually pleasing!

The outfits of the medal presenters are awesome too, and were created by every Canadian gal's favourite store Aritzia. I'm loving the heritage knit sweater coat...how cozy!

Is there an Olympic design that you like? Johnny Weir's skating costume perhaps?

{sources from here, here, here and here!}