Lunch at Home

Let's talk lunch.

When I worked downtown I had a routine for lunch and I enjoyed it - a lot. I hit a coffee shop and had a scone and a coffee and took time out with a book.

Now that I'm working at home my lunch is drastically different. It's taken me a while to get into a routine. I usually dig around in the fridge and throw something together. Grilled cheese sandwich, toast, fruit and yogurt....cereal.

The other day I kicked it up a notch.

Grilled cheese with caramelized onions. Hell yes! I get to make it the way I like it, sit in my own comfy chair and eat without worrying about the food in my braces. Woot!

Yet another perk to working at home.

Chambray Shirt

Have you ever splurged on a piece of clothing? Have you ever owned something that cheers you up when you put it on?

I saw this shirt a couple months ago in Club Monaco and scoffed at the price. Then when I decided to seriously pursue a capsule wardrobe, I went back and bought it.

Words fail when it comes to describing how this shirt feels. It's super soft and but way better than silk. I can roll the cuffs, leave it for a couple hours, unroll them and the wrinkles fall out. Sometimes when I walk through my closet I touch it as I pass by just because it's so amazing.

It's like it's already been broken in. It looks good with the cuffs rolled - or not. It doesn't gape at the front when I do it up. It goes with anything and even tucks into jeans well.

I can tell the quality is above grade because the buttons do up easily. This thing is made well, no loose stitches and the material is going to last and stand up to abuse. A huge part of my capsule is quality over quantity and this shirt fits in with that motto.

If you're looking for a chambray shirt - don't skimp on the cost. It's a major part of my wardrobe - capsule or not.

My First Capsule

Have you guys heard the latest thing!? I'm. So. Fully. On. Board.

A friend showed me this website a couple months ago and asked me if I'd re-vamp my cloest and do this with her.

I'll admit that at first I wasn't completely interested. I kinda sorta agreed but with hesitation. Then I went away and actually looked through the website thoroughly. This girl is classic style all the way. Really, her blog describes the style I've been going for (but flailing aimlessly and never quite nailing) for years.

What I walk away with is this: buy less, create a wardrobe you can completely mix and match and above all, buy quality.

First, I went through my closet and ditched a lot of clothes. Stuff that doesn't fit, stuff that I don't feel great wearing and stuff I haven't worn for a long time.

Next I created my first capsule. I bought 4 items to achieve this, the rest I already owned. My fall capsule contains 22* items including shoes and scarves.

So with these items I can dress super casual to meet someone for coffee, dress it up for a work meeting and even attend a cocktail party.

Sweaters/Button-up Shirts/Blazer (x6)

Two of the four items in this group are new, the chambray shirt** and the white/blue plaid shirt***. I have my favourite-goes-with-anything grey cardigan sweater and a white cardigan. The black one on the bottom is an unstructured blazer that dresses up or down.

Graphic T-Shirts (x3)

I dig graphic t-shirts, I don't know why I haven't been wearing them more often. I bought these three beauties in San Francisco and they are perfect in this capsule.

Jeans (x4)

What would we do without dark denim skinnies? I can dress them up or down, feel great in them and they go with everything. I bought these and a more washed out version in San Francisco. I have a pair of boyfriend jeans and dark grey skinnies. Done and done.

Shoes (x3)

Fall. Blundstones are a must. Converse are essential and a pair of simple black flats that go with anything. I'd love a pair of those ankle boots that everyone is wearing but I'm in a holding pattern with this capsule for now.

Plain Shirts (x3)

In the winter I layer. Always a thin shirt, sweater over top and scarf. These shirts are kick ass staples and go with everything. I want that striped one to never wear out - ever.

Scarf (x1)
I cannot leave the house from October until June without a scarf. This is my favourite one and goes with everything. Plus it's one of those big ones so you can do a lot with it.

I also have a basic black dress and a basic black skirt.They can both be dressed up or down, I could wear the black dress with a sweater to dress it down or the black skirt with the blazer for a power meeting. I could also wear a graphic T with the black skirt. Seriously, it's endless.

Here's everything together.

I am so stoked! I have lots more clothes in my closet that I'm curious about. Will they make it into my capsule over the next few months? What will I find I want to add to this? A lot of the clothes in there are summer so they don't count.

Would you consider doing this?

* A sweater is missing from this photo, it's a light tan cardigan.
**This shirt deserves it's own post.
***This shirt will get it's own post very soon.

Book Review 23

I had three or four epic reading fails in a row this summer. That will be another blog post. For now, the usual.

Left Neglected - Lisa Genova

I found the main character in this book annoying and shallow. She's begins by being so obsessed with her work I feel like she already has major issues other than the devastating diagnosis that's in store for her. I understand the author isn't exactly writing a novel, but it doesn't make me want to read more from her. Overall the book fell flat in many ways.

Annihilation - Jeff Vandermeer

I saw this book all over the place and was in the mood for something eerie so it seemed appropriate. It's a short book, only about 200 pages and honestly - it's weird. I finished the book and wondered what I had just read.

My craving for eerie/creepy reading went unsatisfied yet again...

Floating Staircase - Ronald Malfi

I realize I'm taking a risk with these books, but this little voice in my head keeps saying "What if it's what you're looking for? Give it a try." Well, this one wasn't great either. It read like a Hollywood TV mini series, and a cheesy one at that. Nothing too creepy either.

Plus the ebook came as a pdf which added more layers of annoyance.

Enduring Love - Ian McEwan

I love this guy. Nobody builds up tension like McEwan and I totally dig it. The only problem is sometimes the tension builds up, the book is awesome, the "big event" happens and then it's "downhill" and I'm only about halfway through the book.

That being said, I'll definitely read him again.

Old City Hall - Robert Rotenberg

This guy has migrated to the top five of my "page turner" authors. He writes what you wish John Grisham wrote about - the crimes, cops and lawyers who solve them. Plus he includes the trials. It's like Law and Order in a book and best yet - he's Canadian so it's even more relevant. I'm now on his fourth book (I read this one over a year ago) and I'm hoping he writes more.

Death Comes to Pemberley - P.D. James

Normally I scoff - SCOFF - at anyone who comes near Jane Austen and messes with her books. But if there is an author I can forgive it's PD James. She also wrote an apology in the beginning of the book which I love. This mystery isn't bad either, good page turning and she brings back Elizabeth in a classy way. She also treated Lydia perfectly. 

At least there were no zombies. Don't ask.

Hornby and Denman Islands

Just got back from vacation. It was awesome! 

First we went to Hornby Island for camping. It was the first time for our new tent.

It was super simple to set up. We love it, it's so roomy and has a vestibule for our shoes. Imagine.
 

We stayed in a private campground which we don't normally visit. But this one was steps away from an amazing beach so we gave it a try.

Woah. Totally worth it. This was one of the nicest beaches I've visited out here. 

Got up early and caught the low tide. We spent a few hours exploring. The rest of the time we spent either relaxing in the campsite...gin and tonic....

 ...or exploring other hikes and walks around the island. This is the best way to chill - hang out in nature. We are so lucky to live here.

 Then we visited another beach that was like something from Star Trek Original Series. 

At one point we were looking in a tide pool and something big frantically started splashing under one of the big rocks. "What the - ? Is something evolving under there!?"

Then we visited Denman Island for three nights in a cabin on the water.

There was a great walk we could do from the tip of Denman Island to Tree Island when the tide was out.  This photo is looking south towards Denman Island from the beach at Tree Island.

Brad convinced me to wear my bathing suit. I don't usually swim in the ocean - it's way too cold. But it was a hot day so we did it - it was so refreshing coming out of the water. And there were tons of little jelly fish swimming around us.

I learned that if I put my phone on airplane mode I can last three days on one charge - and that's with taking tons of photos.

This will become the norm for me now while I'm away. Who needs emails about work coming in when you're hiking or hanging out on a beach!?

Little Tent

We love camping. Before I even met Brad, this guy I worked with offered me a tent for forty bucks. I bought it right then without even looking at it.

It's been our little tent ever since and....ahem - trust me it's been a long time.

After we moved to the island we didn't camp for a few years because....well, remember the chainsaw enemas?

So last summer we finally got back into camping and couldn't believe we had gone so long without going.  This summer we've gone more often and it's been really fun.

Last weekend a storm blew through here and guess where we were? We knew it was coming so we weren't concerned. We have tarps and a good tent with a fly. No problem!

The first night I woke up to the rain - it was super loud and heavy. I didn't mind being awake, listened to the rain for a while.....then I put my arm on the outside of my sleeping bag and realized it was totally wet.

The tent was leaking!?

I wasn't wet myself but by the morning things had gotten pretty soaked. Our pillows were dripping, the tent was a mess, sleeping bags, clothes, mats....you get it. We had to cut our trip short and go home.

Before we left we managed to hang stuff up to dry out. Unfortunately our tent ended up blowing into the bushes at one point.

Well at least it knows how to go out with a bang.

(This totally looks like an advertisement, but that's our little tent in action!)

Today we wandered into three shops looking for a new one. We found two that were excellent contenders and decided on one. It's massive compared to our old one. I feels like a bachelor pad!

We're heading out on Tuesday to try it out.

Gin and Camping

You guys.

We have found the best drink.

Get this four-pack of tonic. It comes in four different flavours. They are yummy even on their own but who would?!

It's the perfect drink for camping. Just measure your gin, add ice (if you have it, we weren't always so fortunate) and it's ready.

Our summer camping was ramped up this year. We have one more trip to go but we had a mishap last weekend. Another post entirely.