Bainbridge Island ~ a long awaited pilgrimage...

Seattle has been one of our travel destinations for many years...
it is close to Victoria and takes only a few hours by car or a high speed ferry.
We enjoy the sights, shopping and the fabulous restaurants...there is always live theatre, The Seattle Art Gallery, The EMP, Chihuly Glass Museum, Space Needle and various heritage sites.

We have not explored the areas surrounding Seattle very much...

we have been to Tacoma and travelled south to California.

On this visit I suggested that we take the ferry across to Bainbridge Island.

Bainbridge Island is across the water from downtown Seattle.

It turns out that the ferries run frequently and the trip takes only 35 minutes.

The view as we are arriving at the Bainbridge Island Ferry dock

you can see the snow capped mountains in the distance...

Bainbridge is a beautiful island which serves as a bedroom community to Seattle and is linked to Poulsbo Washington at the far end by a bridge.

There are many large vineyards, luxurious waterfront homes and vast acreages that dot the island.

The streets near the ferry dock are lined with quaint shops, galleries and cafes.

My main reason for making the pilgrimage to Bainbridge Island 

was to visit the knitting store Church Mouse Yarns and Teas.

The shop offers lessons, sells patterns and yarn, 

Teas and Emma Bridgewater Black Toast patterned china.

Three of my favourite things all located under one roof!

You can sit inside at the great table or in a cozy chair and knit to your hearts' content.

I purchased this reversible poncho pattern 

I am using the Berroco Ultra Aplaca yarn in the same shade as the pattern.

The progress so far...

when it comes to the grafted seam I am going to be in need of some assistance.

Hopefully a few of my expert knitter friends will be able to guide me...

or else I will pop into our local wool shop The Beehive for a tutorial.

snapshots from our walk on Bainbridge Island

sign in a toy shop

stone figures along the waterfront

a beautiful heritage arts and crafts bungalow

circa 1913

I would have loved to have been invited inside.

We had lunch at The Harbour Public House

 sipped a tasty beverage from The Blackbird Bakery

perused many lovely shops.

Among my favourites were:

The Berry Patch

Heart

Lark

Pastiche Antiques

Petit and Olson 

(wow this shop is fabulous!)

Salt House Mercantile

Seattle Children's Hospital Bargain Boutique

Our stay was short and sweet and I would eagerly return.

The Gardens at The Bloedel Reserve are reported to be spectacular and I can imagine them on a sunny summer day...

there is a wee bit more to share  with you from our Seattle visit in the next post.

Hope that your week has been going well...

Have a lovely weekend! 

Fresh from Seattle...

My previous post generated an amazing number of comments and responses.
Thank You!

I had no idea that it would create such a flurry of emails and comments.

Thank you for taking the time to write and for sharing your thoughts...
Just knowing that google was responsible for the sudden drop in followers makes me feel better.

I write the blog as a hobby, not as a job and post only when I feel the desire.

Readers are important...I'd be kidding you if I said it didn't matter.
It is not for the "approval" as one commenter mentioned...
there is comfort knowing that there is an audience of readers out there.

So without further adieu...

Mr. HB and I have been away on a little jaunt to Seattle and we returned last night to our cozy Bungalow, which was well taken care of by our house sitter...who also took great care of our cats.

View from the BC Ferry crossing the Strait of Georgia.

The Clarks are super comfy and we walked a lot!

The new leather cross body bag by Maggie turned out to be a winner.

Not too big and the area at the front has a pocket for my IPhone which is handy for taking pictures!

My carry on bag had plenty of room as I packed light.

I wore my Barbour jacket

NYDJ skinny version

took various Eileen Fisher tops

a dressy pair of ponte knit pants 

my new coral top and sweater.

a warm grey knit pullover

Burberry cashmere scarf

walking shoes by Clarks Artisan 

It was chilly walking around downtown in Seattle and there were rain showers.

I got a chill and so I kept sipping hot beverages.

Turns out the chill was a warning of a cold coming on.

It is the first cold that I have had in over a year!

Pike Place Market is always on our list of spots to visit when we go to Seattle.

The flowers are really beautiful and so reasonably priced...

Love white bouquets with simple greenery.

We had lunch at a French cafe...

the menu was much like those I visited in Paris.

Ham, baguettes and cornichons.

Olives, salads, oysters, terrines, sausages.

We enjoyed a steaming hot bowl of French onion soup.

When we visit Seattle we always stay at The Mayflower Park Hotel.

It is comfortable, the location is close to shopping and situated close to many fabulous restaurants.

Valet parking, an award winning bar ~ Oliver's 

a restaurant  ~ Andaluca 

wonderful ambiance 

comfy beds

lovely decor

prompt room service

fresh flowers

The staff are efficient, polite and friendly.

Old world charm built in 1927...the same year that my Mother was born!

I'll be keeping close to home until I shake this cold.

Will work on a few more snippets from our trip and post them when I get time.

Thank you for stopping by The Humble Bungalow Blog!

The writing on the wall...perhaps?

Something rather disconcerting is happening here on the blog...
while several thousand readers pop by daily to read The Humble Bungalow posts,
the number of followers on Google Friend have recently decreased...
not by too many but enough that I noticed...and am curious.
So the question in my mind is WHY?

Here are a few of my thoughts...
~ The Hostess has been here for too long and has overstayed her welcome ~
~ the writing is dull ~
~ there is nothing of value for readers ~
~ your lives are busy ~
~ Paris dreams and travel was an exciting time and now a distant memory ~
~ since retiring my life has become fairly routine, it is quiet, simple and I am content ~
~ I have very little to share that you find of interest ~

So I am going to take a break...
I will be posting on Instagram if you care to pop over there...click on the pretty hydrangeas on the side bar and the link will take you to my page.

Yesterday was a whirlwind of activity
packed a lot into a weekday morning and afternoon.
Full to the brim with new things and above all ~ it was FUN!

I did something that I have never done before...

I had a professional make up application.

This is the "after" picture

at the Spa where I had a "makeover."

I am wearing more make up than I usually do.

The gal at the Spa used various Jane Iredale products...

primer was new to me and she used just a little and it covered my entire face.

Apparently it creates a base for all the other products.

Powder, eye shadow, blush, mascara, lipstick followed...

The results were quite startling, 

it was me under all those products...

my complexion looked even

my eyes stood out more

my brows looked fuller

it does feel like a lot of fuss and bother.

I like to keep things quick and easy 

~ Simple ~

I purchased two products that I was ready to replace...

powdered foundation and eye shadow.

The powder is in Satin and the eye shadow is called Supernova.

Lovely containers and all Jane's products are mineral based and safe.

Earlier in the day I went to the Tillicum Winners Store.

You can see my skin naked "before make up" here while I was shopping.

I do look a bit anemic without make up!

I bought a coral knit layering piece

not quite a jacket or a cardigan

something in between.

(very reasonably priced)

and this top

I have been craving colour.

(another bargain)

A light cross body bag was suggested by my doctor 

who recently diagnosed me with "supraspinatus tendonitis" 

a very painful condition that has reduced the mobility of my arm and shoulder.

I need to go to physiotherapy, do specific exercises, generally try to rest the arm and shoulder

 and if that fails to bring relief he will order a cortisone shot.

 He has advised me to stop carrying heavy things...

like purses and grocery bags.

I needed new boots and these were on sale.

Clarks, comfy and somewhat stylish...

will wear them with jeans, pants, skirts and tights. 

I wear boots almost every day and the Clarks that I bought last year are showing signs of wear on the soles, so before they fall apart I pounced on a new pair.

I did not overspend

everything I purchased was reasonably priced 

and having been very frugal lately I felt no guilt whatsoever.

This pretty pink rose bloom caught my eye on my walk...

this bud will open in the warm sunshine someday soon.

Heralding that Spring must be just around the corner.

Bring on the sunshine and roses!

As always I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Hostess

Wednesday ~ Pictures and a few Words

5am ~ the mournful droning of a freighter's fog horn in the nearby Strait wakes me.
I toss and turn
the cat stirs
licks my face...

I am wide awake!

5:30 ~ Sleep eludes me so I tip toe out of our bedroom
close the door
go into the kitchen and make an espresso.

the jolt of caffeine is welcome

Am I too groggy to compose a post this early?

Oh but then I remember it is Wordless Wednesday 

maybe all I need to do is find a few images

post them pronto.

the sparkly Christmas bauble 

left lying in a tangle of twiggy branches

forgotten

the pretty fuchsia blooms

clinging on for dear life 

in the winter chills of January on The Avenue

the novel that has threatened to shut down the domestic team of one

in The Humble Bungalow

L'Occitane Shea Butter

Hostess endorsed "star" performer

keeping my skin supple

(here's the silver star ~ my good housekeeping icon of approval)

Aveda helps keep my curls clean and soft...

I had my hair cut last Saturday.

It was driving me crazy.

Too long and limp and the weight pulled the hair down

so a few layers were added to allow the curls to spring back to life!

My hairdresser gave me some samples of Bumble and Bumble 

their newest products for curly hair.

I am excited about the new Primer...

it helps define the curl and refreshes curls without having to shampoo the next day.

(My hairdresser recommends shampooing every other day.)

On the same topic 

~ Advice from the experts ~

I booked an appointment for a Jane Iredale natural make up session at the Spa.

I am keen to see what products and colours they recommend for my skin tone.

Since I opt for the no make up look, it will be interesting to see the results.

Coffee consumed

cats fed

still dark outside

post finished

ready to publish

~ 7:00am ~

Good Morning from The Hostess of The Humble Bungalow!