Saturday Adventures

Last Saturday was full of fun and adventures, as my friend Jochen and I wandered around the countryside. Our first stop was not planned, but we came across a random shed with a sign saying it was the site of the original McLaughlin homestead (i.e. Robert McLaughlin, the founder of McLaughlin Carriage and McLaughlin Motor Car Company, which would later become General Motors). We stopped and had a look. The shed was filled with several beautiful old carriages!

 Next stop was Tyrone Mills, which is Canada's oldest operating water-powered mill. I bought some local honey, stone ground organic flour, and of course donuts! I don't even like donuts, but their donuts are homemade and completely amazing. They were super fresh and still very warm! 

We then continued on to Orono and then Bowmanville, for antiques and coffee. I was hoping to find an antique dress form to use for my Etsy shop, but no luck. I actually didn't end up buying anything, but it was enjoyable none the less. We stopped outside one antique store (housed in an old armoury building) to take some photos. My hair started the day very Veronica Lake-ish, but it was super windy and my style didn't last long enough to get pictures. 

I dressed more for comfort than style, but I tried to incorporate some vintage elements into my outfit. The skirt is a me-made full circle skirt. I made it from a leftover piece of fabric and added the lace to make it a bit longer. I'm so used to longer skirts that this skirt feels really short, even though it isn't. The sweater has been in my closet for years, and the cameo necklace I made from a broken set of earrings. 

See what I mean about the wind? I wore my hair down to show off the colour (I just had it hennaed again), but it got very tangled. I love how the second henna treatment deepened the colour. I didn't really need to get it redone quite yet (it was first done about a month ago), but I'm doing a photoshoot later this week and wanted to look my best.

I convinced Jochen to pose for a photo. I think this is the first time he has appeared on my blog, although we hang out most weekends. Maybe he hasn't appeared before because he makes me look so short? He's just really tall, I swear!

I have no idea if this is still an operating club, but I've always loved the vintage sign on the side door.

It was a lovely day, and one of our best adventures to date (although that might have had something to do with the donuts...). 

I hope everyone else had an enjoyable weekend!

That's All.

Spring Style (1921)

Almost Spring

Well we had spring for a couple days anyways... Right now it's back to cold days and the occasional snowfall. Hopefully spring returns soon! I want to plant some seeds in my garden!

As a result of the inclement weather, my outfit, which was going to very "spring-y", turned out a bit darker. Less pastels, more black. Oh well, I loved it regardless. This skirt is one of my favs. I made it last year as a prototype for my shop. While I love the look, I hated sewing it as it was too similar to quilting. I just don't have the patience for getting everything lined up perfectly! Where the corners meet it's a little wonky if you look too close... As such, I don't have any plans of making more like this one, although a single tier version is on the list of possible future designs for my shop. I need to use up some of my fabric inventory first though!

You may have noticed that my hair looks a little different. If you watch my youtube channel you may already know that I had my hair hennaed a few weeks ago. I LOVE it! It makes such a huge (and yet subtle) difference that I'm just sad I didn't go for it earlier! I had it done at a local henna-only since my mom wanted to try it too and offered pay for us to get it done together. Here are the before and after photos (same day, same lighting/location/etc).  

I was originally thinking I wanted something bold but I've been won over by this more natural shade. It fairly close to my natural colour, but with a bit more pizzazz! Here is the video if you want to see it in action and get a peak at my ginger streak:

That's All

Easter Hat

Ok, so this outfit didn't work out quite as planned. I always use Easter as an excuse for wearing some of my finery and had picked out a stunning outfit this year. I was going to go with a floral theme to match my new hat, with a full circle skirt and my gorgeous new purple petticoat. Then I sprained a muscle in my hip which left me unable to do things like put on tights or walk....

This outfit was a last minute attempt to dress up. Yay for easy to pull on long skirts! Even standing for these photos was a bit too much on my poor ol' hip, but I just had to get some photos of my new hat. I am happily feeling somewhat better now. It still hurts but I can move about a little more easily.

I am quite proud to say I made everything in this outfit except the brooch. The sweater was knit from the infamous 3-hour sweater pattern, and I really must get working on a couple more of these. The first time I knit that pattern I wasn't a big fan of the result. I have since made 2 more and I've grown to love them quite a bit. The looseness of the knit fabric makes the sweater breathable and super comfy to wear, and while it takes longer than 3 hours, it is quite a quick knit.

The hat I made a couple weeks ago from dollar-store finds. I have actually been experimenting with making hat bases, but for this particular hat I started with a cheap straw hat then added the flowers and decorations. I love the look of the faux grapes, but they do make it rather heavy. I was sad this hat didn't get a true outing this year.... Oh well, maybe I can find another excuse to wear it. 

Hope everyone had a lovely holiday weekend! 

That's All.

~The Vintage Vegetarian~ Gooseberry Fool

Time for another edition of my Vintage Vegetarian series! I haven't done one of these in ages, so I thought it would be fun to try out a Victorian dessert. I've managed to pull a muscle in my hip and have thus been super grouchy the last few days. The combination of shooting pain whenever I try to move and an inability to sew (I sew standing up, with most of my weight on the side I've injured) has left me grumpy and craving something sweet to lighten my spirits. I had some frozen gooseberries in the freezer, so when I stumbled across this recipe for gooseberry fool I knew it was perfect!

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 Gooseberry Fool

From: Practical vegetarian cookery (1897)

The original recipe

My initial thoughts

Sounds yummy! And easy. I like easy, yummy recipes. I may have to make a couple changes though... I try not to eat regular sugar, but swapping that with honey shouldn't have a large impact on the final result. I'm also going to halve the recipe since I only have about half the amount of cream required. Not sure why the original recipe says cream or milk? You can't really whip milk....

The Ingredients

(Makes approximately 6 servings)

• 1/2 lb green gooseberries, with stems removed (I'm using frozen, but fresh would work better)
• 1/4 cup honey or sugar
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 tsp cornstarch (optional)

Cooking Instructions

1. Mix the gooseberries and honey with the water in a sauce pan. Bring to a gentle boil and cook until the fruit has softened.
2. Pulp the mixture through a sieve (I used one with fairly large holes. This steps is mainly to remove the seeds and skins).
3. If the pulp is too watery, add 1/4 tsp of cornstarch to the liquid and bring to a boil while constantly stirring. 
4. Set gooseberry mixture aside to cool, while whipping the cream until it has thickened to firm peaks.
5. Mix the cream and gooseberries together, stirring well to incorporate. Serve immediately. 

The Result

SOOOOOooooOOooOOOooooooo delicious!!!! It has the consistency of pudding,  but is incredibly light and delicate. The airy texture is perfectly matched with the sweetness, which is neither too overpowering nor too light to balance the tartness of the gooseberries. The taste is reminiscent of something served at a fancy summer garden party. I will definitely be making this again, especially if I have a tea party or some other suitably elegant occasion.

This could also easily be made vegan by swapping the cream with 2 cups of dairy-free whipped topping. It probably taste amazing if made with coconut "whipped cream". 

Let me know if there's any type of recipe you want me to try next, or a specific ingredient (or alternatively a recipe that doesn't include a certain ingredient, such as dairy, eggs, etc). Hope everyone is having a great week!

That's All.

Video Time

Oops, I'm rather behind posting my new youtube videos on here. Here are the last few I've posted embedded below. As always, subscribe to my channel if you want to know when they are first posted, since it's usually at least a couple weeks (or months...) until I remember to share them on here.

I have a couple more in the works that have been filmed but not edited. Once those have been posted I may try out some different ideas. I plan on continuing the hairstyle videos of course, but feel the need to push myself out of my comfort zone and try something new. Maybe a vlog or some sort of video with me talking? I had a speech impediment as a child so I get a bit self conscious of my voice, but I may give it a go anyways. If I hate it, I can always just delete the footage and pretend it never happened right? ;)

Raspberry Chocolate

Long time, no post! It's been rather silent lately on the ol' blog, mostly as a result of not having a lot to say. My health is still being an issue, and most frustratingly stopping me from sewing/drawing/creating everything I want to. It's been a year without even getting a firm diagnosis, but I'm currently waiting on some test results so hopefully they turn up something! 

To cheer myself up, I decided to give my "new" hat a spin. I picked it up a couple months ago at an antique store, but the weather has been too miserable to wear it. Luckily today the sky was bright and the wind was minimal (I still went with two hat pins, just to be on the safe side!). I'm not very good at dating hats, but this one seems late 1930s/early 1940's to me. Any hat experts out there with a second opinion? It unfortunately doesn't have any sort of label, so I can't research it's origins. 

I'm calling this colour scheme raspberry chocolate. I don't wear brown nearly as much as I should! Black tends to be my neutral of choice, but I'm really loving the brown-red combo. Most of this outfit is modern-ish with a vintage style. The jacket is about 12 years old and the skirt is a hand-me-down from my grandmother (what can I say, she has nice clothes!). The brooch is the compressed heather one I shared a few posts ago, and the shoes were a birthday gift to myself last year bought on clearance from DSW.

I'm continuing my attempts at nail art. I hand-painted some dots and a heart for valentines day:

And tried a swirly thing with my new nail stamper this week:

I have some more nail stamp plates arriving in the mail (hopefully soon), and am excited to continue experimenting. Working with water-based nail polish is a bit different, which means I'm having to invent my own stamping technique. Unlike traditional polishes (where you need to work quickly), water-based polishes seem to stamp better if left to dry for a couple minutes first. 

I've also been contemplating dying my hair. Currently, it's my natural brown with more than a few greys throughout, but I'm dreaming of a deep red, burgundy, or maybe even purple...

I can't use traditional dyes with my chemical sensitivities, but I'm contemplating either a semi-permanent or henna. The problem with semi-permanent is Manic Panic is the only brand I can find that doesn't contain fragrance (I'm allergic), but I've heard awful things about dye transfer. I like to be able to wet-set my hair, as well as wear vintage hats, without worrying about staining! Henna also scares me, as I've read it's difficult to dye over if you hate it. It also loosens natural curls and I'm not sure if my hair would become difficult to set/curl... Anyone had experience with either product? I would love some advice.  

I am also eagerly awaiting the Toronto Antique and Vintage Market at the Exhibition place next weekend. I rarely get into the city and am looking forward to hopefully scoring some new vintage pieces. My friend is going with me, and I have given him strict instructions to keep an eye out for vintage hairstyling tools, clothing, and vintage phonographs (like I have anywhere to put one! haha). I know most of my readers don't live in Ontario, but if anyone else is going let me know and we can maybe have a mini-meetup or grab a coffee or something. 

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

That's All.