Snow Day Doings...

I've been busy this morning in The Humble Bungalow.

I "planted" the paper whites so that they will be blooming for Christmas.

These bulbs are forced into bloom using glass pebbles and water at their roots.

 I love their heady fragrance and pure white flowers.

Keep the water levelled at the roots and you will be surprised how fast they grow.

We woke up to see a light frosting of snow this morning and it is still snowing.

I love an excuse to stay home, keep warm and putter in The Humble Bungalow.

Our house guest left yesterday...

we had a wonderful visit.

I served her a curried chicken soup which proved out be a great time saver as we had gone to the late afternoon showing of Philomena starring Dame Judi Dench and Steve Coogan.

Steve wrote the screenplay, produced and starred in the film.

We had a funny experience at the ticket wicket...

The young fellow on duty assumed that we were both seniors!

I was ahead of my friend and I quickly moved aside to make room for her at the wicket 

and I was out of earshot while she was paying.

When she caught up with me she was smiling broadly...as was I.

I told her that I got in for $4.75 the seniors rate!

She told me she got the seniors rate too but the fellow had a problem with her debit card...

 so he said go on in the movie is on me today.

I highly recommend the film.

The soup "mix" base.

All you need to add are onions, chicken or prawns, a can of coconut milk, water and a few carrots.

I made this the previous day.

This hearty soup made a great meal.

We walked to and from the theatre and did not get back until just about 7 pm.

  I put out some fresh veggies and dip while I heated up the soup and we sat and had a glass of wine while we waited for it to get hot.

I'm going to spend some of the afternoon cooking before sitting down to finish reading my current novel.

The forecast is for a wind chill factor which will give the impression of minus 15...

I might need to light a fire in the fireplace to chase the chill away.

Cashmere socks and a thick fleece jacket are not quite enough!

 Definitely not my usual OOTD!

Hostess

XO

Sumptuous, Soft and Soothing ~ Cashmere OOTD

I adore cashmere!
Do you love it too?
Lately I have found that the cashmere sweaters available in our local shops are of lesser quality and almost whisper thin, yet the prices are quite steep for what you are buying.
I really wished that Lands' End would ship their cashmere sweaters across the Canada border but those gorgeous buttons made of Mother of Pearl or abalone shell are the reason that they cannot ship. Apparently they are "protected and at risk."

Years ago my husband gave me a luxurious black Johnston cashmere pullover. It is soft, thick and warm like no other sweater that I had owned before. It cost the earth though and I would need to save up for a donkey's age to buy another! Let's face it my lifestyle has changed and I really cannot justify that kind of expense at this stage.

Lands' End had some exceptional weighty cashmere cardigans a few years ago. I bought a black one which is still going strong, although it is a tad big now, I will not part with it until it is in tatters.

I couldn't believe my luck when I found a similar cardigan with a V neck and abalone buttons recently in the thrift shop.
The quality and weight was evident even before I even looked at the tag...alas it was a size small.
I wear a medium, but I tried it on anyways and guess what?
I bought it...I usually do not button my cardigan but did so that you would see that it is a bit on the small size.

Cashmere Lands' End in Navy Blue!

The pearls have a new partner in crime.

Pearls + Cashmere = Bliss 

We have a house guest in The Humble Bungalow for a few days so my posting will be sporadic.

I might manage a few minutes to check in but it will depend on how full our schedule will be.

We do love to focus our attention and energies on our friends when they come to stay.

Hostess

We may get some snow this week!

I love how beautiful the neighbourhood looks all dressed in white.

I will host a snow post if we get a frosting.

Forever Chic has arrived in The Humble Bungalow!

Blogger and writer Tish Jett's book Forever Chic arrived in the post this week!
The chic and savvy Deja Pseu hosted a giveaway on her blog and I was fortunate enough to be the recipient of this delicious book. Thank you Deja Pseu I am so grateful that the book arrived safely after the post office mix up.

I can hardly wait to read it but it will have to wait as we are busy with friends and the calendar is getting filled up.
I'd like to hunker down and take a couple of days and simply soak in all of Tish's words of wisdom.

I'll write a review of the book when I am finished reading it.

(Did you notice the card that Deja Pseu sent with the book?)

My lazy lunch...

leftover butternut squash, a few strands of spaghetti noodles, and an egg beaten up and topped with chives.

When I bought this wee frying pan I had no idea that it would get so much use.

It comes in so handy for roasting nuts, cooking up an egg or two and making a single serving of French Toast.

I must be off as I have some chocolate zucchini cakes to bake.

The Root Cellar had zucchini on sale and I could not resist a bargain.

Be Well and remember Kindness never goes out of style.

Hostess

Black Friday, OOTD and a blog anniversary.

It's BLACK FRIDAY.
This is a black post so if you are looking for colour you'll be disappointed!

In Canada, shopping Black Friday is relatively new, but for our neighbours to the south it is the kickoff for the season of holiday shopping. Stores open early and there are sales galore.
It sounds quite crazy when people camp out or stand in line for hours waiting for the stores to open...
I suppose it is no different than standing in line to get tickets to see Bruce Springsteen and I seem to recall doing that many years ago.

I was able to take part in a little bit of Black Friday shopping but it was only Thursday!
The shop I was in was having a "black friday sale" and all black garments were 25% off!

Black Giacca coat with feminine details.

OOTD

Chillax coat

DKNY jeans

Franco Sarto loafers

Burberry scarf

Adrienne of La Vie Quotidienne mentioned how much she liked the Benefit mascara 

with it's new wand.

 This mascara was also the best seller at Sephora so I decided to take her advice and give this a test drive.

There should be four candles alight...

you may ask why.

Let's pretend this is cake shall we?

The Humble Bungalow Blog is celebrating a four year anniversary today.

The blogging journey has been full of surprises.

Writing has opened up many opportunities for growth.

Who knew that through blogging that I would forge new friendships near and far.

The Humble Bungalow Blog has become a part of my everyday routine....

whether I am thinking about a future post or taking a picture of something beautiful.

The blog material is never far from my mind.

 I think I look more closely at everything around me than I ever did before.

Often it is the ordinary and simple things that inspire my posts.

I plan to keep blogging as long as I have something to say.

I hope that you will be interested enough in what I have to say to stop by...

To those who read my blog and comment I am very grateful.

Thank you.

Hostess

XO

A tasty homemade Hostess Gift

If you have been following The Humble Bungalow Blog for awhile you might remember that my BFF lives in a vast arts and crafts home "Tigara" with gorgeous gardens on several acres. I posted last June and July about her home so if you want to read about her home click on the tag arts and crafts and you can find the Tigara posts.

Her kitchen has lots more room than mine so naturally when we decided that we were making a big batch of treats we got together at her place.
Our project "Chocolate Dipped Dried Fruit" required ample counter space to set out the dipped fruit before filling the tins.

The AGA cooker has a hot hob on the left and a simmering one to the right.

We used stainless bowls over top of pots of boiling water to melt the Foley's chocolate buttons.

Parchment paper, waxed paper and cookie sheets at the ready.

Foley's chocolate buttons before melted.

Dark and light chocolate were used.

An assortment of dried fruit purchased from the local health food store.

Apple rings, apricots, cherries, papaya, mango, peaches, pears, and ginger.

Doilies, tins and ribbons.

The Christmas cactus on the dining room table is spectacular!

Some of the larger fruits were cut into smaller pieces.

(in case you were wondering we did not have any wine!)

My BFF made the most delicious coconut curry soup for our lunch and we drank several mugs of restorative tea.

The dipped fruit ready for the tins.

The doilies line the tins...waiting.

Not bad for a days work.

And it is so much more fun when made with a friend.

Despite sampling a few of these at my WW weigh I was down another half a pound.

Just a couple of pounds left to go.

What a journey this has been.

I made a big batch or tapenaude last week too...

for me, retirement is all about having more time to make things from scratch.

 Pondside met me for a walk and a coffee this week.

 I told her about the Hostess gifts and she mentioned she made a big batch of antipasto with her friend.

(BTW I have tasted her antipasto and it is delicious.)

We seriously could have talked for hours and were still chatting as we went our separate ways!

Are you making any edible gifts to give as Hostess gifts this holiday season?

Do you have any standard or trademark gifts that you like to give?

Take care,

Hostess