Striped attire I’m currently wearing…
These boot slippers from Joe Fresh are the best. The fact that they are gray and white just make them even better.
Next up are some fingerless striped mittens I knitted for myself for use around the house. With the bitter cold we are having, having these alpaca yummies wrapped around my hands is much welcome. For those knitters out there, I used the Endpaper Mitts pattern from Eunny Yang.
And, to top it off, these blankets I found via Bre of Scout Catalogue (blog post here) have caught my eye too. Give me a snow fall, a comfy couch, a cuppa tea, a chick flick and one of these to wrap myself in and we’d have a perfect day around here.
The blankets are made by Mex Chic and can be found here.
What are you currently obsessed with? On a stripe kick too?
Photo Credit (blankets): Mex Chic
January 24, 2011 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: etsy, love
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I don’t know about you, but winter is kicking my arse right now. I used to love winter, yet the past few years, this particular season has been pushing me into hibernation mode overkill and if I’m honest, is feeding my already slightly depressive state. The only reprieve seems to be on the days when we get pretty snowfalls and this year, they have been rare in Toronto.
Of course, I could make myself get outdoors but seriously, today is -30 with the wind chill and so it ain’t gonna happen. The rest of the week doesn’t look pretty either and as I’m still fighting a cold, indoors is the only place I want to be. So, I am going to look for ways to break myself out of the doldrums within my home and get myself away from the computer. Here’s a few things I hope to accomplish over the coming days:
- Sew pillow covers for the inserts I bought MONTHS ago.
- Bake bread. It’s been too long and I’ve been promising J some for a long time.
- Break out the watercolor paints I bought YEARS ago but haven’t used as they intimidate me. Start small Adele. No one is judging you but yourself.
- Finally call the charity I’m donating a bunch of clothes too. I purged my closets late summer and the bags have been living in my spare, unused bathroom.
- Take more photos of the new furry additions to the family.
- Pick up my knitting again. I still haven’t finished this scarf though I did finish the mittens.
- Clear away/reorganise the clutter in the spare bedroom. I find a good organization session is good for the soul, don’t you?
It’s a small and simple list, but it’s a start.
How about you? Feeling the winter blahs? What do you do to feed your soul at times like this?
Photo Credit: Jeanette Svensson
January 23, 2011 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: life, ugh
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I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought about writing a post over here and my mind has promptly gone blank. But, rather than continue in silence, I’m just going to jump back in and say hi.
While it’s a little late to wish you all a wonderful Holiday and Happy New Year, I do hope you all had a wonderful time. Many things changed over here and some of those changes may include the addition of a puppy and a rabbit. More on them later.
And to my new subscribers (ironically I had a big jump while gone), welcome and please do say hello. I don’t bite I swear.
January 20, 2011 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: life
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I love the days when it’s so overcast out I can turn on the fairy lights around my windows and feel the spirit of the Holidays.
I love the days when the ideas/thoughts that stumped me 24 hours prior suddenly become completely clear and I know exactly what to do.
I love the days when I find my groove and do a days worth of work before noon so can call it a day if I so choose without feeling guilty.
I love the days when the only clothing that seems fitting is my PJs and I don’t feel like a total bum because of it.
I love the days when I know I should probably do more cleaning around my home but the neat freak in me says fuck it.
I love the days when I feel so utterly and completely content.
Today is that day.
November 25, 2010 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: life
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Earlier in the week, I tweeted this…
If only I could plop myself down wherever and whenever I please for a snooze fest too!
1 | Please ignore the shitty tape job from when we painted. The tape lifted and we didn’t realize until after the fact. So, I need to scrap off the excess and repaint the trim. Oh the joy!
2 | Some things you just don’t need to see.
3 | Weeks (and numerous heavy objects) later this corner of my rug still won’t lay flat.
Have a great weekend friends. Hope it’s a good one. I plan on enjoying as much of the lovely weather as possible, knitting myself some mittens and having a Harry Potter movie fest. Can you believe J. has never seen one of the movies? (!)
What do you have planned?
November 12, 2010 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: dogs, life
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While some of us work, others (Riley) get to have a cozy day on the chairs we are not supposed to be on.
I love how they all wrap their tails around their faces as they sleep. Rest assured those eyes are always watching one way or another.
Are you all ready for your Halloween festivities? J and I are keeping it easy as we’ve both been exhausted lately. So, all plans were canceled and we are just hanging out at home giving out candy to the kids in our building. There’s only a few so I imagine the majority of the candy will be consumed by us and then live on my butt until next Halloween. Great.
What are you up to tonight? Getting dressed up? Have kids? What are their costumes? Do share…
Photo Credit: paulgalbraith
October 31, 2010 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: life
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I find there are two main sources to creative blocks. The usual and perhaps most dreaded kind being the days (weeks) when you are simply uninspired and have got nothing. Zip. Nadda. Then, there are the days when you have so many creative ideas/thoughts that you are so high on excitement you eventually begin to bounce all over the place. You may get somewhere but slowly you reach a state where you can’t think straight. Before you know it, you begin to feel overwhelmed. Then you begin to doubt things. Then the downward spiral speeds up and you’ve guessed it… creative block rears it’s ugly head.
I found myself dealing with the latter early afternoon. Rather than sit and work through it and likely get nowhere as I so often do, I opted for a healthy doze of fresh air. When I’m in a “creative zone” I often forget to take the time to enjoy the outdoors as I get so lost in what I’m doing. But, as J. had left St. Lawrence Market missing some of our meat order, I decided to walk back down with him and take my camera along.
As I walked, I found my brain slowing down and just absorbing the beauty of my surroundings. My thoughts began to feel less scrambled and overwhelming. I felt my focus coming back and soon knew exactly what I wanted to do creatively and had pushed aside all the doubt that had crept in. Phew!
Thank you dear outdoors. I need to remember how essential you are to the creative process more often.
Yesterday was one of those days that was perfect on every level. No plans. Beautiful weather. The freedom to let all your to-do’s fall to the wayside while you just let the day take it’s course. Living in the moment at it’s best.
It started with a yummy breakfast made by J, then a quick trip to pick up some Fall clothes and followed up with another marathon dog walk. When we set out on these walks we never have plans or intentions to stay out as long as we do. This time 5 hours. Once again, we took the Don Valley trail but instead headed south.
About an hour into our walk we found a spot that allowed us to hit the creek. Wanting to give the dogs an opportunity to cool off, we headed down. I unfortunately headed down literally… ON MY ARSE. Here’s the proof.
We carried on regardless.
James and I have been discussing buying a house. We’ve considered a few areas in Toronto but something tells me we’ll find ourselves in The Beach where James grew up. We always seem to end up there.
I hope your Saturday was just as relaxing and carefree. What did you get up to?
Happy Sunday.
It’s Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada and I’m hosting my first Thanksgiving dinner. Eep! It was sprung on me last minute on Friday. Thankfully, it’s a small party of four so it’s not too overwhelming. Although I should probably figure out what the heck I’m making huh? I bought so much food over the weekend so now I just need to decide on what the dishes will be. Wish me luck, I’ll need it!
I have so much to be thankful this year. It been a wild one so far to say the least. Hopefully what remains of 2010 will be less tumultuous and I’ll gather even more moments to be thankful for. To all my fellow Canadians, Happy Thanksgiving! And if it’s not a Holiday weekend where you are, I hope it was a great one regardless.
We spent so much of the weekend outdoors running errands and spending time with the pups. We are having the most glorious weather in Toronto that being indoors feels just wrong. The cold weather will be here in no time so we are soaking up this weather as much as possible.
What did you all get up to?
Photo Credit: freefotouk
October 11, 2010 //
Filed under: Etcetera
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Tagged: life
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I love rainy days. Especially when I’m in the comfort of my own home. Yesterday was one of those days and it called for some of my favorite things… tea, tomato soup and good old cheese toasties (grilled cheese).
What brings you comfort on rainy days?
In late August, J and I spent the afternoon at Riverdale Farm. It’s just a short walk from my home and such a fab little place to leave the city without actually doing so. Sadly, I didn’t get as many photos as I would of liked (I find shooting in the blazing sun so bloody hard) but I was able to capture J and his new friend, the goat.
They spent a good 20 minutes together and they have plans to reunite next month when hopefully I’ll get more pictures.
What about where you live? Have any hidden gems like Riverdale Farm were you can forget the hustle and bustle of city life and escape for a few hours?
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