Shopping; Sephora, Lands End, Amazon and Zellers

I took the opportunity this afternoon of perusing the mall near my Volvo dealership
while my car was been serviced.
It was a sunny afternoon and it might have been better to go for a walk along the seafront but I had a few things on my back to school list.
Sephora was my first stop...

NARS makes a great colour stick 

which can be used on the cheeks, eyes, lips

in a shade that works for many women.

It gives us a soft blush of colour...

do you know the name of the shade?

(Orgasm)

I'm not kidding!

Rosebud Salve 

is great for cuticles 

and my lovely daughter uses it on her lips and loves it.

I am test driving it on her recommendation.

If you read my last post with my list of needs and wants

you will see that this vest was not on either list.

OK I admit it I was swayed!

the weight and sturdiness of this simple vest

from The Gap

(on sale)

gorgeous grey

slimming

just had to come home with me.

Imagine this simple vest with a with a long sleeved white Tee

and look

there are some "vest friendly" friends waiting inside the jewelry chest...

 A Modernist 1970's necklace with two faces

a bipolar pewter pendant!

Canadian designer Guy Vidal

Some creepy extra terrestrials 

hanging out on a vintage pin.

E.T. call home!

Students lean in a little closer to check these out at the circulation desk

and these pieces open up the opportunity for dialogue...

any excuse to engage with these brilliant young minds!

I try to find out what books the students love to read.

Enthusiastic readers keep me energized.

Young, keen, bright students 

make my days worthwhile.

Cheap jeans...

40% off the regular price

95% cotton 5% lycra

Gloria Vanderbilt

who knew?

The fit is extraordinary

looks sturdy

and 

I am pinching myself at discovering this bargain.

I saw some cute shoes but I want to see more styles before I decide on a pair.

I may end up with more than one pair but I am embracing frugality

and being mindful of my closet space.

Ralph Lauren

 I love your shoes!

Frye

your boots rock my world

I cannot decide if I want to be a biker chick or a cowgirl!

I have been testing out some online shopping at the Lands End website.

Pedestrian and plain

but perfect for work.

Humble.

I have ordered two cardigans, a long sleeved white Tee.

I am crossing my fingers that they will fit and be to my liking...

I seldom order clothing on the net..

do I hear laughter?

Books online Yes!

I have some coming soon from Amazon

I'll post about these when they arrive..

books always fit 

so there is little risk...

I am getting together with my "girlfriends" for "coffee" 

(mine will be decaf it has been over 2 weeks now!)

Three of the four of us are grandmothers

and in a few months

there's going to be another grandmother in the group...

congratulations D!

Back to school wardrobe....basics that might bore you and a lip dub that won't!

The rain today reminded me that summer is slowly turning to fall.

In just a few weeks we will be back to school.

I have been giving some serious thought about what clothes  I "need" and what I "want". Embracing minimalism and thrift without suffering.

In the Library of a Middle School, one needs to dress age appropriately, professionally, and look polished.
The clothing needs to be comfortable for the physical aspects of the job. Everyday bending and reaching for textbooks and shelving of books necessitates that clothes do not gape or are too low cut to expose too much flesh.


Think of the "dress code" which dictates what is acceptable for students and it does transfer to staff.

I have spent enough money over the years to know that washable is preferable to dry cleaning and sturdy fabrics are worth their weight in gold.
Many a cashmere cardigan has been lost to the wear and tear of the job.

Dressing in layers is necessary...
heavy lifting, air conditioning and floor to ceiling windows factor into this decision!

My back to school basic need list:
Black fitted denim jeans, unadorned for versatility.
Black shoes which might be loafers this season.
White tops in a jersey knit, one with long sleeves one short.
Grey cardigan professor/boyfriend style in a short petite length.
Black cable knit V neck cardigan in wool for warmth.

I already have dressy pointe skinny leggings
a crisp white shirt
black jersey short sleeved top
black knit A-line skirt
several work appropriate black knit jersey dresses
grey tunic top with zippers (NEW)
undergarments (NEW)
Several long waterfall sweaters in black, grey and tweedy knits
and flats in silver and leopard print

Pearls, bangles, brooches, colourful scarves, and a few belts are waiting to add some interest with what might sound like a very boring work wardrobe.

Vintage baubles make up most of my brooch collection.

This was a gift from Lovely daughter

Thanks J!

Vintage boots

I would like some red shoes and new boots...
but they are on my "want list" not my "need list."

Behold the Bungalow Romneya

blooming on a sunnier day.

Lovely contrast of texture in yellow against that frothy papery dress she's wearing.

Or maybe a mustard yellow cardigan might be fun!

What would you add?

Any thoughts or suggestions?

What are your impressions of how the staff at your children's / grandchildren's school dress?

P.S. If you want to see an energetic campus lip dub....check this out
and I hope that put a smile on your face...
our young people have so much energy...
I think we've got to love that.

PH level eating...who knew?

The Humble Bungalow Garden is providing us with some great produce this summer.
Zucchini, swiss chard, potatoes, and red and yellow beets to name a few.

I love yellow beets and not just for their sunny colour 

they taste delicious.

We use the beet greens too.

No waste here, 

just rinse well and gently steam them in a little water 

until slightly wilted.

Vitamin packed with goodness,

and one of Mr. HB's favourites.

I've been reading about inflammation in the body.

The kind that causes aches and pains.

If the body is too acidic it is inflammatory and can cause all manner of troubles...

who knew?

Apparently some problems can arise that are much more serious than just an occasional ache or twinge.

Reducing the consumption of meat, grains and dairy helps rectify this situation.

Greens and veggies are touted to be the body's best friend.

If you want to read more...

Town and Country published an article in the September 2011 issue.

Amy B. Thomas discusses going alkaline

and she mentions a book by Robert O. Young 

 "The PH Miracle: Balance Your Diet, Reclaim Your Health"

I am not prepared to give up all meat, grains and dairy.

My thoughts are to have a wide variety of all the food groups.

As Mother and Father used to say...

"everything in moderation"

Avocados are very alkalizing...

tomatoes too...

Here is an alkalizing tasty salad recipe...

(thank you BFF!)

If you have a mandoline slicer 

you might like to use it for the zucchini 

you'll save some time.

Fresh goodness in a bowl

which accompanied a BBQ Sockeye Salmon dinner.

I served the Whitewater Cooks recipe for Arugula Salad

Vegetable Rotini Pasta Salad 

Stuffed Devilled Eggs

with artisan bread

dessert: 

Cantaloupe melon slices with

 "homemade chocolate cookies."

(Thank you to lovely DIL!)

Whitewater Cooks Arugula Salad

Hope that you enjoy this interesting salad

it has a peppery flavor from the arugula 

and the sweet dressing is complimented 

by the Manchego cheese and toasted hazelnuts.

It really works well together.

YUM!

Dishes are loaded in the dishwasher

counters wiped

all is quiet

even Pepper has gone to bed.

I'll be turning in very soon myself

It's been a busy day.

I love having the family come by for visits

the house feels more like a home when my kids come by

the sounds of young voices

the laughter...

The lovely Miss Isla's visit was a highlight!

I have to admit I am totally under her spell.

I could sit and watch her every movement for hours

she is perfection.

The Westminster clock has chimed 10 bells

so I am off to slumber.

Sweet dreams to all.

Happy Birthday Mr. HB

Mr. HB is celebrating his birthday.
Last evening we dined with friends and lovely daughter at a waterfront restaurant outdoors.
I should have snapped a few images on my new IPhone but I was engaged in the conversation and enjoying the view.

Mr. HB comes from a Scottish background 

and he does love single malt scotch.

 Lagavulin is his tot of choice.

I thought this card was suitable for this occasion.

I am having the family come by for an afternoon and dinner.

I am immersed in food preparations so without further ado I must run.

I've got to harvest some beets, make a few salads, stuff a few eggs, and go buy a salmon for the BBQ.

Cheers!

Have a lovely weekend

and stop and smell the flowers.

That 70's Show...

If you have been around as long as I have you probably have some relics from your past.
I cannot part with certain oldies because they are truly goodies.

Happily the avocado appliances have long worn out and been replaced with stainless steel!
There are a few reminders of days gone by that I unearth every so often when I go foraging in the dark recesses of the cupboards.
I have a twinge that stops me in my tracks a startling reminder of my youth when I spy these pieces.  I marvel at how much water has gone under the bridge!
Older, wiser, and a wee bit wizened...

Lavender freshly picked and popped into this circa 1970's pottery vase.

Mr. HB and I were married in 1974 and this teak salad bowl was our first wedding gift.

It has a few bumps and scratches 

but considering how many salads we have served in it since '74

it is remarkable that it exists today at all!

Crisp romaine lettuce washed, spun and torn...

the beginning of a great easy peasy meal.

Caesar Salad 

a Humble Bungalow staple.

I use a Braun whisk to blend this in a tall container.

I have one by Baumix called ZauberStab

 it is like many that come with the Braun whisk.

Whatever you use it must be taller and slimmer or you'll end up 

spattered with olive oil

trust me on this!

I dress the salad just before serving and often omit the croutons.

Remember potpourri?

I had bowls of the stuff and kept it until it got truly dusty and musty.

Today I throw a few rose petals in a bowl after the current rose bouquet starts to droop

and leave the scent to waft about the room.

What relics from your past do you have in your possession 

that you cannot bring yourself 

to part with?

Calling, texting, and cruising the net just got so much easier...

I have had a cellphone since 2003.
It was never a snazzy jazzy swanky phone...
just a simple dial and talk model in basic black.

My adult children are way ahead of me and so is Mr. HB...they all have IPhones.
Most people that I know have Smartphones, Blackberry's or IPhones and I was feeling left out as my kids text instead of talking,
it's free with most plans so that's a no brainer.

My dear Husband has been encouraging me to get one for the past few months and I was resisting.
Why? I really don't know.
So we went together and bought one.

The Humble Bungalow Roses

are carried with me as are thousand of my photos

especially my "brag book" with sweet Isla's images.

I sent my first texts to my children letting them know I was now "available to chat" (text)
The second text was to my BFF which said...

"Hi! I just got an O"...

I inadvertently hit send instead of backspace.
We were sitting on a bench in the mall laughing so much my eyes teared up and I could not see clearly for a few moments to resend the correct text message.

So I am on a learning curve...
I feel that I have entered the 20th Century...or rather the 21st Century...
(those grey haired moments have been happening a lot more frequently!)

I keep this vintage landline as it works during a power failure

and I love the sound that it makes when dialing.

When I was young we were on a party line which meant that another family shared the same line.

My sister and I would listen in and eavesdrop if Mother was busy elsewhere.

(she would have grounded us if she caught us)

Sometimes our breathing or snickers would be audible by the other party and they would say

"if you don't get off this phone right now I am going to tell your Mother"

Those were the days when Father had an egg timer by the phone and 3 minutes was the extent of our conversations.

I remember turning the sand filled vessel over before time had elapsed to see if I could talk for longer.

Often if Mother and Father were enjoying a pre dinner cocktail I'd get away with it.

Most of the time though my sister would come by and say in a very loud voice...

"I'M TELLING!"

Things have really changed.

Have you resisted embracing change

or are you the first on the bandwagon?

Wool is the word...

Metscan posted asking what we have purchased for the upcoming season.

While I have been avoiding the shops I did take my lovely daughter to The Great Canadian Superstore that offers President's Choice products...and the president is Galen Weston.

Lovely daughter does not drive and lugging numerous heavy bags of groceries is not much fun nor is it very ladylike wearing heels. Groceries were the main reason for driving for 30 minutes out of town.
I browsed the Joe Fresh section, as did she...
I found a new grey wool tunic top to pair with my leggings.
Lovely daughter found much more and reasonably priced too...she looked very happy with her haul!

While it might look like a gunny sack here

it is much nicer looking off the hanger.

Are you loving zippers as much as I am?

We had an unfortunate incident while shopping there...

when I started the car the gas tank showed empty and I had filled up the day before!

I can't believe that someone siphoned off an entire tank of gas...

well that's what I thought at the time

My trusted mechanics enter on the scene today 

and the news is not great.

The mechanic said that someone did try to get the gas 

and that Volvo's have a screen and a system which prevents siphoning

and they have broken the sensor with whatever they put into the tank

and they also keyed the side of my car...

so it's in the hands of the insurance brokers now.

Janet at The Gardener's Cottage 

is over the moon about her new luxe linen drapes and I love her enthusiasm.

 While my recent find pales by comparison it has excited me nevertheless.

I found a new bowl that makes my heart soar with joy.

It is a simple white vessel

round and olde

and I cannot put it away just yet

I want to soak in all it's simple beauty.

Bowl of beauty 

with Frog Tree Alpaca wool yarn.

My latest knitting project is a "Faux" Mobius wrap.

I googled Mobius and watched the You Tube presentation and realized that I was not savvy enough to tackle it!

I am knitting one long strip 

using the easiest garter stitch as it looks very loose and lacy

and then twisting after completion before joining the seam.

I have cast on 125 stitches on size 6.5 US needles and will knit until I have about 48 inches in length, give or take...

I'll wrap it around and see if it is adequate for the look that I want.

I highly recommend bamboo needles 

they slip the stitches as if they were silken gossamers with wings.

I will post the finished product but that will be many weeks away as I do not knit 24/7!

What projects have you got on the go right now?

I am closing with an image of the newly printed vintage photos in their new frames 

(this is for you Ida!)

Sea Scallops

While we were on our boating holiday in the Gulf Islands we invited our lovely daughter to join us for a weekend.
Seafood reigns supreme onboard our Chris Craft and not to disappoint we kept the theme going and bought some sea scallops. There are many ways to serve these tasty morsels and I have tried numerous recipes and as we sat chatting about how we should prepare these...lovely daughter grabbed her IPhone.
(which is never far from her reach!)
She googled scallop recipes...she found this great one and while my BFF (whose boat was tied up next to ours) and I sipped our cocktails she prepped this delicious appetizer...
did I mention that I have a very clever daughter?

It could be a main course if served with a salad.

Don't they look delicious?

cooked and prepared in our teeny tiny galley

served on the aft deck in the sunshine.

If you'd like to make this dish

go here for the recipe.

Bon appetit!

Adventures in Fashion!

Independent Fashion Bloggers are a breed unto themselves.
They take the time to document what they are wearing with their OOTD posts and sharing their individual thoughts on trends and highlights. There are hundreds of Independent Fashion Bloggers and I follow several of them. Today I am highlighting and sharing one that I know and love...

These bloggers are creative, colourful, stylish risk takers who manage to look chic in thrifted vintage finds combined artfully with off the rack and haute couture.
Accessories are not to be underestimated, ever!

Never wearing head-to-toe all of one designers' line, but creatively mixing it up with a flair for fashion and pushing the envelope just enough to get keep us looking a wee bit longer, in appreciation of their personal style.
I find their images inspiring and exciting and I love that they link a lot of their clothes to the source so that we might peruse the stock and make a purchase if we are so inclined.

There is so much creative talent out there and so many of these women show us hip and savvy ensembles.
I know Vickie and she has been working hard on a project which she has just posted and I thought I'd like to share her work with you.
Please go and look at her portfolio that she is submitting to Elle magazine...
to become the next Style Correspondent!
Good luck Vickie, my fingers are crossed for you.

 Adventures in Fashion 

Pop by and cheer her on and please let her know I sent you...

Sweet peas + roses = painterly pursuits for Floral Friday.

An imperfect vintage glass vessel...
found in a thrift shop.

I bought this because of it's tilt.

Sweet Peas 

Jude The Obscure Roses

Inspiration

The most recent painting...

Happy Floral Friday!

Thank you for all your kind and wise words about yesterday's post on Mother.

I appreciate the support.

Craving Comfort Food.....a tonic for sleep deprivation.

Let me seek out comfort food without judgement......
let me feed my belly with something satiating.
I am in dire need of some "feel good sustenance"
sleeping sporadically...
listening to the neighbourhood sounds as most slumber....
thoughts running through my head refusing to be still.

Mother's health has become a factor, and it's affecting her daily routine and I am quite concerned.
She says that I am the worrier in the family...it's true.

She tires more often these days and it is difficult for me to accept that she is not as spry and energetic as she was even a few months ago. Changes that I see with our regular visits and shopping trips, lunches and teas.
I do not know why I am struggling except perhaps to come to grips with the fact that she will not be on this Earth forever.

She has also become very nostalgic and wants to talk of the past and has mentioned Father more and more in her conversations. She misses him so much.
It must be lonely living alone, the hours pass slowly and her voracious habit of reading must help fill the time and be of some comfort...but it's not the same as sharing a home with a spouse.

Happily she is surrounded by a lifetime of treasures and many family photos framed and hung on the walls remind her of happier times.
Her bright condo on the top floor of an older building has views to the ocean on one side and the treetops and roofs looking toward town on the other. It's a warm and spacious place which she loves and rarely does a day go by that she doesn't thank me for finding it. (The credit goes to the realtor that we hired but she thinks it was me)

Having Mother living so close makes it easy to see her often...she is just a hop skip and a jump away!
She is close in proximity and at home in my heart.

It's funny to think how far we've come.
From our struggles when I was a teenager wanting to stay out late, negotiating to wear to school what was then a new trend, "jeans" and our disagreements over the use of make up. Those days are long gone and they lasted only a few years and in the end Mother was right about being protective and her idea of proper attire does not go unheeded as she has set the bar very high.
Her "no make up look" has stood her in good stead and the skin care routines that she instilled upon me have influenced my regime to this day.
I owe her a lot...
Thanks MOM!


Sitting here somewhat sleep deprived, sipping on decaf tea...
(I have given up caffeine for health reasons)
I have thought enough and now I need to get on with things.

So I am succumbing to a little butter melted on apricot raisin bread.

a little indulgence is going a LONG way!

Let's have some fun and forget our troubles.....

"Keep Calm and Carry On"

"Views from the Sink" participating bloggers

Last Wednesday Views from the Kitchen Sink was an idea...and I hoped that a few other bloggers might share their images.

I am happy to share the links of those who have participated...

Thank you!

pondside
metscan
privilege
materfamilias
Faux Fuchsia
cupcake caramel
SydneyShopGirl
une femme d'un certain age
Judy Heinrich
restinginmotion
smallbutcharming
moonlightreflections
the gardener's cottage
lovelythings
a farmer's wife
Mummaducka's kaos
SewWest
breaking ground
My Yellow House
stepping my way to bliss
Blighty

if you have posted a view from your sink on your blog
please comment and I'll add your link here!

Remember to Moisturize

I love this oil

I love the scent

it's rose

so that's probably no surprise!

Janet at the Gardener's Cottage has recently discovered Olive Oil

Olive oil is the only oil I use in cooking and salad dressing.

Mother used to give her hair an Olive Oil treatment

she would apply it to her hair

 wrap it in a towel for several hours and then several shampoos later

resulting in glossy healthy looking hair.

Real friendship, like real poetry, is extremely rare - and precious as a pearl. 

Tahar Ben Jelloun 

I appreciate the connections that I have made here on Blogger

your email and comments are very important to me.

I am in debt to you...

in gratitude.