Villa in Pelissanne, and soap from Provence

We rented a  3 bedroom, 3 bathroom Villa in Pelissanne Provence
for our week long stay and to use as our "home base."

We knew that we would be driving to other villages during the daytime and wanted a comfy spot where we could make our dinners and sleep in a quiet authentic Provencal village.

For the first two days it was just two of us until my friend Cheryl, who lives in Auvillar France, flew in to Marseille to join us on the adventure.

Very well appointed accommodations...

art and fine furniture

cozy beds.

a harpsicord

a very large kitchen with room for 3 of us to prepare food, cook and clean up!

It had several areas for relaxing and dining.

Narrow streets in the medieval village

meant that cars were not allowed long term parking so

 we dropped off our things and parked in another area close to the Villa.

We had fun buying food at the Local Pelissanne Market Day! 

Roast Chicken with potatoes cooked below the rotisserie...

juicy drippings from the chicken roasted and flavoured the spuds.

A fabulous local grocery shop was well stocked...

Plane Trees are very common in Provence.

We saw many roads lined with them...

They look particularly attractive when their bark peels.

We drove to the village of Salon de Provence which had several soap factories.

Marius Fabre had a museum and a lovely gift shop.

We all purchased quite a few bars of soap!

Next stop was the Soapworks of Rampal Latour

I purchased more soap and a soap "purse" to use in my toiletry bag.

Soaps make great Hostess Gifts!

We'll be looking at some pretty quaint villages in the next few posts.

Hope that you can pop back and see them.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

I can see clearly now....

After procrastinating for months...
I finally got around to purchasing new glasses.
Several readers asked to see what they looked like when I got them...
so I took a couple of selfies in the bathroom!

The glasses are from Paris made by a company called Face a Face.

They have a few fun details that make them a bit more interesting than my previous pair which were also by Face a Face.

Check out the shoes!!!

I'm seeing much clearer now.

On the same visit I ordered Maui Jim sunglasses 

made up with my new prescription.

It was a wee bit of a splurge but the coating was wearing off my previous sunglasses 

the lenses were so scratched that when I wore them 

the world around me looked fuzzy!

And with such lovely things to admire in our neck of the woods 

why not be able to see them better?

My sister gave me a bar of pink Zote soap...

I just realized that you can see my reflection in the LG dial!

Clever perhaps?

not really

'twas an accident.

Have you ever heard of this soap?

It's new to me

she said it is an excellent laundry stain remover.

She spends time in Palm Springs in the winter and this is where she discovered its remarkable stain removing powers...

Speaking of new products...

have you tried David's Teas?

I was surprised that they carry so many different blends of teas.

This one caught my eye...perhaps it was the name

"Forever Flawless"

I like the taste 

brew a big mug full every day 

to sip it while I work around the house...

it helps to keep me hydrated and hopefully it is also helping my skin.

My skin tends to be dry, especially during the winter months 

I put that down to the the cold air outside and our forced air furnace.

I am diligent with my weekly exfoliation habit and I use moisturizer morning and night.

Avene mineral water spray helps add extra moisture throughout the day.

Drinking extra fluids...

(non caffeinated fluid)

 is important.

I read somewhere that for every cup of coffee one drinks 

that you need to drink 3-4 glasses of water to balance out 

the diuretic effect of that cup of coffee!

Made a roast beef dinner this past week...

one of the perks of making a roast is that there are leftovers to reheat the next evening.

Cook once dine twice is my kind of time saver!

Hope your week is off to a great start.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Renewal: refreshed, recharged, re-energized and "retail-ed!"

The past weekend was full to the brim with simple joys and bright moments which have left me feeling energized.
I have come out of a dark mood and into the light...

My morning cafe creme routine starts with counting my blessings,
I sit quietly reflecting on all the good things in life embracing and adopting the attitude of gratitude to set the tone for the day. I have found this to be very powerful and it changes the way that I see and interpret life events.

Mr HB and I walked in Chinatown...through Fan Tan Alley.

Victoria's Fan Tan Alley

My husband took me out for lunch at The Fan Tan Cafe, a popular Chinese food restaurant in our city's historic chinatown. It was busy, the service was great and we sipped our tea and chatted while we waited for our food. The food was not "totally WW friendly" (noodles were involved!) but the seafood chow mien was chock full of veggies which were so lightly cooked that they were still rich in colour, crisp and delicious.

Here's my fortune cookie and the fortune inside...

I did a wee bit of shopping at the Fan Tan Home Decor and Style shop.

A black dress by Angela Mara made in Italy.

Soft, cozy and the fabric is heavy enough that it does not cling but skims the body which is just the way I like a dress to fit.

It feels like a warm hug.

It was 50% off so I pounced on it and I said YES to the dress!

I plan to keep my eye on this shop as they have quite a few styles that I like.

I wore it out to dinner on Saturday evening when we dined with friends.

This lovely bouquet was a thoughtful gift from my nearest and dearest friend.

She bought it from those darling gals who run Thorn and Thistle Flowers.

They carry such pretty flowers and their plants are amazing...

our Christmas Amaryllis is an indication of their high quality plants.

They sell other things too and now offer coffee and treats

and they now located are in my old neighbourhood.

Sunday I cleaned house and went for my walk.

I opened a new bar of fragrant Verbena soap 

 it is currently scenting our main bathroom.

This soap was from my Mom's condo...

she loved the Verbena scent but she never used it as she loved her Pears soap.

While on the topic of fragrance and scents...

It was time to open a new scented candle.

This one was in the box from 

My Stylish French Box.

I am busy trying to finish my latest knitting project so that I can start my new one!

Have you got a project on the go?

Hope that your week ahead is positive

and filled with 

 lightness and cheer.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Decorating ~ free, thrift shop finds and some luxurious habits.

I love using "found" or foraged things from Nature in our home and cottage decor.

Thrift shop finds also factor in when it comes to things I have added to our bungalow...often they are unusual or somewhat quirky.

I have also been known to pull the car over when I see a free pile on the boulevard.

I am not particularly talented when it comes to interior decorating.

 But I do know what styles I do like and what I feel comfortable adding to our surroundings here in The Humble Bungalow.

Sea shells in a vintage canning jar.

Big barnacle

Chunk of coral

Glass Fish floats

Large Shell

Coral and shells mixed together.

a vintage flag

vintage enamel ware

I love using basic whites...

so versatile 

vases, trays and dishes.

White vintage Ironstone

Potted orchids

Emma Bridgewater tray...I also use her bowls for my morning cafe creme

White beach glass in a Ball sealer jar.

Emma Bridgewater Black Toast Pattern

Fresh flowers in an icy modernist vase.

Simple beach stones inside a bowl to keep the soap dry.

Vintage ironstone soap dish with built in ribbing for drainage.

Lovely soap...a weakness of mine is to buy quality french scented soaps.

Silver accents are peppered throughout the house.

My all time favourite candles...a splurge I know but so worth it.

First Nations baskets.

I love this book

by Tricia Foley 

Her simple style inspires me and I like to pick this book up from time to time and get re-energized about culling and curating what we have in our home.

 Tricia's ideas help inspire me when I am out perusing the thrift shops.

I tend to look closer at the "qualities" or the "bones" of a piece and am able to evaluate whether it is something that could add interest in our home.

Do you have a certain style when it comes to your home decor?

Have you ever hired a professional interior decorator?

What style do you admire?

Hope you have a lovely weekend...

the sun is shining here this morning and the day is going to be hot!

I plan to mix up a batch of lemonade and keep hydrated.