Lucky Me!

Look what came in the mail! I won a give-away from Nadine at Little Lovelies. This little crocheted Egglet is simply darling and beautifully presented. Following her blog is very inspiring and I am very excited that I get to enjoy Nadine's work firsthand. It is great to look at creative projects that use a skill that I do not have. Lately, crocheting has drawn me in and all I can do is a simple chain. Nadine has been showing her work in making granny squares with inspiring colour combinations.
Also tucked into the parcel are three covered buttons. Take a closer look.



I love buttons and will just be enjoying looking at these for quite a while. Hours were spent going through my Mum's button box when I was a kid and I have told her that I want to inherit it! She feels pretty much the same as me about buttons so she takes this request seriously. When I was a child, I visited a lot of fabric stores but my favourite was a haberdashery or notions shop called Buttons and Bows. Apparently it is still at the same location so I will need to visit it in my next visit to Victoria.


I was also lucky the other day because we had the opportunity watch our sons dance both Monday and Tuesday night. It is wonderful to see the culmination of the year's work and dedication but the thrill is to see how much they enjoy themselves. So why the skillet pictured at here you ask? Well with the two boys at pre-performance rehearsals, we had the chance to eat a quick vegetarian meal. But what to make? We have onions, garlic and tomatoes along with some pasta and cannellini beans in the pantry. I had the makings of quick, impromptu pasta dish. I chopped two onions and slowly browned them in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Cook them slowly enough to bring out the onions sugars and then add 2 to 3 cloves of chopped garlic and 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes. Chop two tomatoes (mine were vine-ripened but unfortunately not organic) and slowly cook them down (around 7 minutes). Add the rinsed and drained beans to heat. While putting this together I found a block of cream cheese in the refrigerator which was perfect for holding the dish together and marrying the flavours (I only used half the block) and added a small amount of Parmigiana and chopped,fresh flat leaf parsley(from the window sill) before tossing it with the pasta. I photographed it before adding pasta as I had gluten-free quinoa fusilli and my husband and daughter had regular rotini. The meal conversation was very quiet compared to usual and somewhat refreshing to be without our vivacious carnivores.

Of course, seeing a special performance means dressing up a little. I have always loved linen and silks. I look forward to wearing this jacket in linen which is beautifully cut and embellished with the taupe skirt (pictured in the back ground). Recently I found a sleeveless silk blouse at the thrift store which works perfectly with this outfit(great print and fit too) and the jacket is the ideal base to one of my vintage brooches.


Another thrifting find is this vintage wicker handbag. I use my felted purses in cool weather but I like summer-like textures as it gets warmer. This purse is in good condition and although it does not have a label, it does say Empire Made on the inside. The Liberty scarf was found at our church's Nearly New Shop. If you love print and pattern, Liberty's can keep your attention for long stretches.

Nadine included a personal note in the parcel which was typed (with a typewriter) and information on creature comfots blog for making free postage labels. My old Smith Corona needs to be used again. Sharing my luck inspires me to have my own give away soon.