Fall work must-haves

The cooler weather has me thinking about the work wardrobe items I would love to have right now, but my piggy bank brings me back to reality and so the lust-haves become more budget appropriate must-haves. In this past week I have had to dig out my trusty pair of gloves and woolen hat. By doing this, it has brought to my attention the need I have for a bigger everyday work handbag to accommodate the additional items I will have with me for the foreseeable future. I would love to fill the need with a Coach bag such as this:

Instead, I am more likely to end up with something similar to this Aldo handbag:

New work shoes are definitely on the list as well because my current pickings are starting to look a bit tired and may need to be put into retirement quite soon. I have never really been a high heel kind of girl, regardless of my height. As a result, I would be after something more on the shorter side and in black. So while I am crushing on the likes of these Nine West shoes available at Town Shoes:

I will probably end up with something similar to these Spring shoes:

I don't know about you, but in some areas I tend to forget I need to replace items until I actually go to wear them. In this case I am referring to tights, which are a must-have for fall and winter to wear as an accompaniment to your work dress or skirt. I go through a lot of pairs of tights during this time of year so maybe I could do with buying the better quality and more expensive pairs as opposed to the lesser-priced options. However, I am a fan of the patterned varieties available at Sears and unless I find a better option in this area, I am more than happy to experiment with what they have to offer.

If I let myself, I am sure I could think of plenty more things I must-have, but for now these are the ones to consider and would definitely be a welcome addition to my work wardrobe.

Pumpernichol cards

Creative talent and passion is a wonderful thing to have and definitely a lovely outlet to use to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life. For me, I know that I am at my happiest when I have commandeered the kitchen and am experimenting with a new recipe or whipping up an old favourite. As for my favourite Canadian, Steph, one of her passions is card making, which she happens to be incredibly talented at. It seems that what started with making the annual batch of Christmas cards and sporadic birthday cards has begun to resemble much more. People, myself included, have made requests for her delightful little creations, not only for cards, but also invitations and gift tags. With each request I can see the twinkle in her eye glow brighter and the vision in her head grow bigger at the possibilities. Whilst it is not a business just yet, it definitely could be one someday soon. If you are interested to know more, drop her an email, you won’t be disappointed at all, especially when you see some of her past work. The girl definitely has an eye for this sort of thing and I do quite enjoy having an added excuse to visit Michaels with her so she can stock up on more supplies as she thinks of new ideas to experiment with.

Just a little side note, in case anyone is interested, Little Missy (discussed here) are having a sale next week so please do check them out. If you like what you see then be sure to snap up a gorgeous bargain or two. 

Falling head over heels for pumpkin season

It is always a sad time having to bid farewell to summer for another year, but I know that this occasion marks the return of my favourite fall obsession, pumpkins. It all starts with the first sip of a pumpkin spice latte and culminates in a Halloween themed pumpkin carving by the close of October. After this I proceed to spend the rest of the season devouring whatever pumpkin flavoured fall treats I can get my hands on before they disappear again. I haven’t always been a pumpkin enthusiast. I really only used to dabble in pumpkin soup and pumpkin cooked along with the Sunday roast. However, last September this all changed for the better. I was in the windy city, Chicago, on vacation and came across Ghirardelli chocolate. As I walked into the store I was offered a sample of their limited edition pumpkin spice caramel square. With the first curious bite I was hooked and from there I went on to try all things sweet and pumpkin infused throughout the rest of the fall season. I sampled pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin scones covered with cream cheese frosting, to name but a few items. Now when I get to this time of the year, instead of focusing on the negatives of the weather that lies ahead of me until summer returns, I will bask in the glory that is the delicious pumpkin taste and smell. I have already begun with my own baking creations, experimenting with the likes of pumpkin cake pops and pumpkin scones.

Yesterday I made pumpkin cake pops using the recipe from here. Instead of making the whoopie pies, I made one large cake in a square pan and baked it for 40 minutes. I also didn’t have any pumpkin pie spice so I used 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and 1 tablespoon of ground allspice. For the frosting I made double the recipe so I could use the excess for my second baking project. 

I also had leftover pumpkin puree so I made some pumpkin scones, adapting the recipe from here. I used the basic recipe and added 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ teaspoon of ground allspice to the dry ingredients. I also added the leftover pumpkin puree (approximately ½ cup) before the milk. Therefore, I only used enough milk to get the right scone dough consistency. I baked them for 18 minutes.

Now just envision yourself, as I was, on a rainy and cold fall day snuggled up with a hot beverage and a freshly baked pumpkin flavoured treat oblivious to the world outside of this happiness bubble. So how will you positively savour the fall season? 

The scent of a new purchase

I am a big fan of the Bath & Body Works chain, a love of which began during my first summer working at an all boys' sports camp in Maine. At the time it was all about their wonderfully scented range of hand sanitizer. As you can imagine they came in very handy throughout the summer. I have never had a phobia of germs or anything, but there is something reassuring about that small squirt of sanitizer on your hands and the pleasant scent it leaves behind. Therefore, it really wasn’t long after I arrived in Vancouver that I had my shopping radar firmly locked on a local Bath & Body Works location. Since then I have kept myself in constant hand sanitizer supply, taking delight in some of the new scents of each season, whilst stay true to a few old faithful ones. This past week, a friend and I decided to venture into the downtown Bath & Body Works store in the hope of securing a few items that would form the finishing touches on a baby gift for a colleague. For some reason, as we entered the store I felt compelled to pick up one of the newly arrived candles to smell without even looking at the label to see the scent. It is funny because it has only been in recent years that I have even started to have an appreciation for candles as I used to unfairly lump them in with fresh flowers and felt that both were an unnecessary expense especially as they did not last. My tune has definitely changed in this area and now I find not only are candles a welcome addition to my life, but also they really do smell divine and liven up the atmosphere of a room, both lit or unlit. Anyway the candle, French Caramel Cake, smelt good enough to eat and I couldn’t stop thinking about it even after we had left the store with our gift purchases. As a result, another lunch break was partially spent in Bath & Body Works smelling candles. There was a two for $5 offer so I needed to find a partner in crime for the deliciously scented candle I already liked. I don’t know why I thought this would be easy considering the number of options available, which is why I went from one chosen scent to three quite quickly and eventually the final four. Mint Chocolate, S’mores and Homemade Cookies were chosen as the complementing scents to the original French Caramel Cake candle. It was quite the foodie themed purchase, one that I cannot wait to light up the room with.

My new Bath & Body Works candles

A good read indeed

For me, reading doesn’t always have to involve a bestselling novel or one of the classics. I also like to get my fix through magazines. When it comes to magazines, I used to readily purchase and consume ones that contained celebrity gossip. However, now I sporadically get my dose of gossip through the People magazine subscription we have at work for our reception area. I have never really been a fan of the more popular and established fashion magazines as I find it a little bit disheartening to flip through dozens of pages of advertisements for items I could never afford just to get to the contents page. I know that these magazines are reputable and quite often have very interesting and relevant articles, but I also know that they are not for me. Instead I have pledged my allegiance and loyalty to two magazines quite similar in content, People StyleWatch, an American publication, and LouLou, a Canadian one. Not only are they filled with fashion and style tips, but their suggestions and products cater to the more modest earners as well. I find that the magazines contain a wealth of useful information and are a great tool to refer back to time and time again for ideas on areas such as make-up application, how to coordinate your outfit and season must-haves. I must admit I get a little thrill every month around the time I know these magazines will be adorning the shelves of my local Chapters store. I simply cannot wait to absorb all the information they contain. For some people this thrill is experienced via the arrival of the magazine of choice into their letterbox, but for me it involves the imaginary ringing of the register as my purchase is made. It is no surprise then that for the month of September I have already acquired and devoured the latest LouLou magazine and eagerly await the same fate for the People StyleWatch one.

The latest LouLou Magazine (image courtesy of LouLou)

See you later summer treats

As the rain and cold weather returned to Vancouver last week I was offered a not so gentle reminder of how quickly summer can disappear without even a backward glance or a proper goodbye. Today, with the brief halting of rain, seemed like the perfect time to reflect on the refreshing treats that fleetingly occupied a summer’s afternoon or evening here and there. One might say I was a little bit spoilt for choice with the offerings at my fingertips. On more than one occasion I indulged in a pint of Ben and Jerry’s or Haagen-Dazs, with chocolate chip cookie dough being my real weakness. If I wanted to cap off a really nice day or go for a walk then my wanderings often took me to one of my local Marble Slab creameries. It was here that I was allowed to get creative, limited only by the ice-cream flavours and mix-ins on offer. Surprise, surprise, again my ice-cream choice usually centred on cookie dough as a mix-in, not very adventurous I know. For those who haven’t had their world brightened by the awesomeness that is Marble Slab creamery, you may be lucky to have a Cold Stone creamery or Cold Rock ice creamery instead. The basic concept is you pick your ice cream flavour/s and mix-in/s i.e. cookie dough, fruit, chocolate etc. and a staff member mixes them together on a very cold slab, stone or rock. The finished product is presented in a cone, cup or waffle bowl ready for consumption. On reflection, it seems I have been quite distracted by ice cream as a treat and haven’t paid any attention to frozen yoghurt, a situation I may be able to rectify sooner rather than later if we have more days like today in the coming weeks. Options that spring to mind in this area are Yogen Fruz and Pinkberry, a relative newcomer to Vancouver. Summer treats can also take the form of a blended beverage from the likes of Jugo Juice or Booster Juice. Of course I cannot neglect to mention Starbucks, where I have definitely consumed a frappucino and iced drink or ten throughout the summer. Well as the leaves turn and the days of prolonged rain become a reality, I will endeavour to consume a cool treat here or there. And now that summer seems to have finally left for the year I look forward to embracing it like an old friend upon its return.   

Marble Slab creamery in Victoria, BC

Discontinuation doesn't equal devastation

For the most part, I have a strong grasp of what I like and what I don’t. This doesn’t mean that I am averse to trying new experiences or buying new things, it just means that when I do, I usually know quite quickly whether there will be a repeat performance or purchase. If you were to look around my home you would definitely see evidence of this, from the clothing and footwear items that differ in colour and not style, to the constant refilling of the pantry with the same food. However most items that sustain us are fluid, changing under the influence of factors such as the environment, the seasons and trends. Just because I like something does not mean it is going to be easily accessible to me for as long as I continue to hold it in good favour. A few years back I took quite a liking to a particular shade of L’Oreal colour riche lipstick, #520 – Romance, a soft mauve that completed my workday make up perfectly. To my dismay the colour was discontinued. As a result, I feel like I did what any person in my situation would have done, I bought all of the lipstick shade that I could get my hands on. Each one was used up completely with the assistance of my trusty Manicare lip brush. I seemed to be good at making them last as I only just used up the last smidge of it this week, which meant I had to venture out and find a suitable replacement. I make a conscience effort to buy the items that I use on a daily or regular basis on offer. I guess I am thrifty that way. So before I began the process of trolling through the cosmetics aisle, I looked online at the usual suspects, Shoppers Drug Mart, London Drugs and Rexall, to see what offers were on this week. Armed with this knowledge, I ventured to London Drugs on my lunch break. I was on a mission and wouldn’t be able to leave without obtaining completion status for it. A decision was made after lots of lipstick smearing on my poor hand and that all-important second opinion. This story definitely has a happy ending courtesy of my new L’Oreal colour riche anti-aging serum lipstick, #102 – Pucker Up Pink. I embraced this opportunity and made a change by purchasing a pink shade, while sticking to a brand I trust, although I don’t think I quite need the anti-aging element just yet.

My new lipstick shade (image courtesy of L'Oreal)

Launching into the new Fall TV line-up

Yes, I am one of those people who has shows that must be watched, somewhat religiously, every week. I even love to debrief about them with friends I know that also watch those shows or whom I am trying to convince that they should. It has gotten to the point where I have no less than a dozen must-see shows across a calendar year, a list that usually gets longer with each new Fall line-up and only lessens with the ending of a series, a sad occasion that eventually becomes a happy one when I realise I have gained back another bit of life outside of TV watching. This week marks the beginning of the return of pretty much all the TV shows I love to watch. In these past few months, during the TV show hiatus, I have been occupying a little of my time with a few summer shows; one new discovery, Necessary Roughness, and one familiar face, White Collar. I have also discovered a love of the US version of The Office. How can you not love the antics of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, a paper supply company, especially Jim and Pam’s office romance. Again thanks to my local public library, I was able to whiz through the first 3 seasons, but have now hit a bit of a stand still as they do not have the next 4 seasons to borrow. I guess that is a good thing for the time being because as of tomorrow night I will be re-acquainting myself with the characters of my favourite shows. As well as, being introduced to characters in a couple of new shows whose promo trailers have perked my interest. In the coming months, in no particular order, I will be spending some of my nights and whenever else I can squeeze in some quality time with my TELUS PVR, with the cast of:

• Revenge (ABC Network) NEW
• The Vampire Diaries (CW Network)
• The Secret Circle (CW Network) NEW
• Glee (FOX Network)
• Modern Family (ABC Network)
• Grey’s Anatomy (ABC Network)
• Supernatural (CW Network)
• Gossip Girl (CW Network)
• Hart of Dixie (CW Network) NEW

Hart of Dixie TV show poster (image courtesy of TV Fanatic)

Chocolate chip cookies

One of the first things I made when I started to get back into baking were chocolate chip cookies. I have a friend and former housemate to thank for this. She is quite the baker and I have been privy to her talents when it comes to cake decorating as well as her ability to make the simpler delights such as chocolate chip cookies. When she left Vancouver she gifted me a lot of things including her baking ingredients and tools. Amongst the items were some Nestle Toll House chocolate chips and a hand mixer. Armed with these and other essentials I made my first batch of chocolate chip cookies from scratch, having previously used pre-made cookie dough from the supermarket for such a task. I used the recipe on the chocolate chips packet, which can also be found here. My first batch was a success minus the blowing up of a very low powered hand mixer not built for such a task. I haven’t looked back and armed with a new hand mixer, whilst longing for my very own sparkly KitchenAid stand mixer, I have continued to sporadically make these cookies whenever the mood suits or the requests for them come. Occasionally I will set aside a chunk of the dough and refrigerate it to add to some ice cream for my own version of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. I haven’t managed to find the Nestle Toll House chocolate chips since the first time I made the cookies so instead I have used Decadent, Hersey or Baker’s brands and each have worked well. The sweet tooth in me also means that I tend to be quite generous when it comes to how many chocolate chips I add to the recipe. On a few occasions I have used white chocolate as well as milk chocolate chips. This weekend I made a batch using a new cookie sheet I had picked up from Michaels. 

I can’t think of a better way to finish off my Sunday night then with some freshly baked cookies and a glass of chilled milk.

Out with the old, in with the new

Every weekday I begrudgingly get up at 6am and proceed to get ready for work. Sometimes in the darkness that is morning I begin to do a mental clean out of my wardrobe in preparation for the coming seasons of Fall and Winter. At the present my focus has been locked on footwear with my first unlucky targets being 2 pairs of well worn boots that I‘ve definitely gotten my money’s worth out of, but now need to bid farewell to. With this in mind, I have been looking online, cyber window-shopping as it were, at two of my favourite shoe shops, Aldo and Spring. I know it may not be necessary to have 2 new pairs of boots just because this is how many I am casting aside, but I am quite keen to have a stylish pair for work and a funkier pair for play. A few options that have caught my eye are:

Boots for play or work (images courtesy of Aldo)

The knowledge that I may soon have to put away my flip flops for what I hope is only a little while has also got me thinking that the return of rain won’t be too far off. It is with this sad thought that I begin my rain boot fund in the hope of having a pair of pretty and practical Hunters on my feet by the time the first raindrop hits the sidewalk. This has been my desire every Winter since I arrived in Vancouver, however I have always settled for the quick fix instead of quality and longevity. This year I will have those Hunters and my dry, warm little feet will thank me for it.

The Hunger Games book trilogy

I’ve just finished reading the Hunger Games book trilogy and wanted to spread the word so that others may experience these great books too. I won’t spoil any of the amazingly crafted storylines. However, it is books like this that seriously make me wonder how authors come up with such great storylines, ones that I don’t imagine I could come up with in a million years. If you want to know a little bit more about the trilogy and the author, Suzanne Collins, you can go to her website. There had been a bit of hype about the trilogy and I often see it as a staff recommendation in a bookstore or as part of a Q&A with a person of interest when asked what they are reading at the moment. The interest in this trilogy has also been fuelled by the news it is being turned into a feature film, as is often the case with a lot of bestsellers these days. So based on the hype and the thought of seeing it on the big screen someday soon, I decided I would put book 1, The Hunger Games, on hold at the library. It was easy enough to patiently wait my turn in the queue until it became available. As it turned out I wasn’t the only one curious to see what the fuss was about so it was a bit of a wait, but I was okay with this as I still wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I mean the target audience was young adult and the only bit I could relate to these days was the adult part. However, its appeal definitely seemed to be extending beyond this if I was anything to go by. This seems to be the case for most serial bestsellers with the young adult target audience that are transformed onto the big screen. Finally I received the email notification letting me know it was my turn and, with this, the first book was secured and promptly devoured. It was a real page-turner that you couldn’t put down until every word was read. The rollercoaster of emotion was high with each plot twist and developing attachment to the main characters. It had me wanting for book 2, Catching Fire. As I had borrowed the first book and not purchased it I reluctantly placed my hold knowing a wait was ahead of me again. If it weren’t for the fact that I had recommended the trilogy to a friend, who proceeded to tear through it at lightning speed, I would still be in the queue waiting. The knowledge that someone knew what had become of it all, in combination with my own overwhelming need to get to the end of the tale and learn the characters’ fate on my terms, propelled me out of the virtual hold line and into the Book Warehouse where I purchased book 2. I stormed through it in less than a weekend, too gripped by the words on the page to put it down for extended periods of time until it was read cover to cover, becoming more engrossed with each page. As you can imagine I was very eager to find out what would become of all the characters I had invested many hours into. Little did I realise that en route to my home at that moment, courtesy of Amazon and the friend that I had recommended the trilogy to, was the complete set of books. It was quite a surprise when I got the package notification because it wasn’t my birthday or anything. It was an even bigger and much appreciated surprise when I realised what it was and how awesome a friend I had. Although this meant I had 2 copies of the second book, I now had the complete trilogy so I could read book 3, Mockingjay, and then share with any friends eager to read them too. This past weekend, with the sun shining brightly, I promptly consumed book 3. It was quite an intense read, which left no question unanswered. All that is left for me to do now is recommend the trilogy, maybe re-read them at some point and to hope that the feature film captures the essence of a talented author’s words.

The Hunger Games book trilogy courtesy of Amazon and a lovely friend

Chocoholic buffet

Sweets are near the top of the list when it comes to weaknesses of mine, so imagine my delight, when a few months ago I stumbled across the knowledge there was a chocoholic buffet at the Sutton Place Hotel, Vancouver. I cannot for the life of me remember exactly how I found out about it, but I definitely wouldn’t have thought to goggle the subject so it must have been through one of the various e-newsletters I subscribe to. The chocoholic buffet has two seatings every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Within your seating there is a gorgeous spread of predominantly chocolate-based sweets to sample as much as you have room for. Not that I needed an excuse, but a friend’s birthday provided the perfect opportunity to experience the chocoholic buffet, especially as she is often my partner in crime when it comes to indulging in sweets. The reservation was eagerly made in advance so all we had to do was patiently count down the days. The evening was finally upon us this past week and with the eagerness of a child being allowed to have dessert for dinner we arrived at the elegant Sutton Place Hotel. The chocoholic buffet experience exceeded all expectations, from the chefs on hand to make crepes as desired to the lavish spread of sweets ready to be consumed. These included exquisitely decorated cakes, tarts, mousses and profiteroles with an eye catching chocolate fountain surrounded by fruit ready to be dipped and devoured. Usually I am not a fan of buffets because I never consume enough to see the value in them. However, if there is one exception to this, it was the chocoholic buffet as evidenced by my four reasonably filled plates. The standout sweet for me was the white chocolate and raspberry tart, my first victim as it were, for which I am most grateful because I definitely got less appreciative of the sweets as my stomach got fuller. A good tactic, yes I am talking tactics when it comes to the chocoholic buffet, is to try a crepe as part of your second serving because it definitely helped as a bit of a breather if you are like me and don’t pace yourself at the beginning. A rookie error I don’t plan to repeat on visit number two. It has to be done again as unfortunately there were a few items that didn’t make the cut on the first visit, which is unacceptable in my eyes and not fair to the neglected sweets. The chocoholic buffet at the Sutton Place Hotel, Vancouver, is a worthwhile experience, especially for those with a sweet tooth or a love of chocolate. 

Lots of sweets to be sampled

Nailing a Fall trend

It is funny how when you move to a new country you tend to adopt their terminology sometimes without even realising that you do it, hence the use of the word ‘Fall’ instead of ‘Autumn’. An irrelevant observation, but one I felt the need to share. Back to the topic at hand, as someone who isn’t very graceful, when I think of nail polish my mind automatically goes to the toes and not the fingers because I know it will last longer on them. Prettily painted and put on display in open toed shoes, your toes become an instant accessory to any outfit, giving you a polished appearance. This is part of the reason why I am really fond of purchasing nail polish, in combination with the fact that it is relatively inexpensive and can be used more than once making for a very economical accessory. In the last few weeks, I have taken quite a shine to neutral colours, which seems to be the latest trend along with rich jewel tones for the coming season. The first neutral must-have was a subtle grey that has an almost lilac undertone to it. Since then I have been thinking about what colour to acquire next. This was the perfect excuse to finally indulge in my first Essie nail polish purchase. For a while I have been admiring, from afar, the sleekness of their understated bottles and haven’t been able to take my eyes off their fall collection so it was only a matter of time before I made one of their colours mine. As I stood in front of the Essie display the choices were overwhelming. I found myself with several colours in hand preparing to use the old eenie meenie miney moe method for decision-making when the sensible me decided I could have two shades at most. With this firm resolution, I logically chose from their fall collection Lady like, a subtle mauve, and Carry On, a deep burgundy, which isn’t very neutral but lovely all the same. The colour choosing should have been the tough part, but now I have to decide which one to use first.

My Fall nail polish collection so far