I'm not one to shrug off November

...instead I'll happily don a timeless navy blue shrug and welcome it with open arms!



Outfit details

Prescription eyeglasses: (frames) Venus Eye Design V-12
Navy Blue headband: unknown (possibly back from my Girl Guide days)
Pearl necklace: Birthday gift from Tony ♥
1950s plaid shirt: etsy seller Precious Garbage 
Navy blue shrug: Sears
Vintage style eyeglasses brooch: etsy
1950s corduroy bucket purse: etsy seller Rue 23 Vintage Clothing
1950s navy blue pencil skirt: eBay
Yellow and purple bangles: Forever 21
Green bangle: Local swap meet (I think)
Faux pearl stretch bracelets: Real Canadian Superstore
White eyelet sling-back flats: Payless
Lip colour: Red Apple Lipstick's Firstorm Lip Gloss over their Red Lipstick

Photography by Antonio Cangiano  











♥ ♥ ♥

Yes indeed, though November sometimes get a bad wrap, I can't help but enjoy it more often than not, especially when the weather wants to cooperate! November can be jam packed with pre-Christmas activity, but it also brings with a certain late autumn serenity that is a welcome treat after a highly busy summer and start of fall.

It's a month when I love to spend time at the library (loading up on wonderful reads - yes, mostly history books - shocker, I know!), predicting the first snowfall (I'm pegging it as November 25th this year, Tony's even more optimistic and is saying December 14th), cooking hearty stews, baking up rustic, heavenly scented pumpkin and fruit breads, hibernating more in my basement craft room, dusting off my heavy winter coat, and finalizing my holiday card list.

Though the temps have certainly swooped lower than they were earlier this fall now that we're into November, and while my heavy duty winter coat  is rearing to go, it hasn't been called up to the frontline quite yet. No, these days I've mostly been wearing medium weight skirts, my beloved Freddies jeans, knit cardigans, vintage gloves, and cute button front blouses (and umbrella to fend off the rain we've been getting often lately!).

This particular 1950s plaid shirt is quite big on me. I knew the sizing was a bit large when I bought it online, but I didn't realize until I tried it on just how much extra fabric there'd be around my midsection. I think its a darling top though - perfect for everything from camping trips to days, like this one, spent running errands or visiting relatives - and with a lot of tucking in of the extra material in the back, I can usually get it to look a bit more like it's actually the right size.

I'd been running around town for quite a while before these snaps were captured and didn't realize that some of the fabric had wiggled loose a tad in the front on the right side (so hence why it looks a little poofier there), but that's certainly not enough to deter me from sharing these photos with you.

The gloves, which you may recognize from this post last spring, are so sweet and lovely to wear. There's just something about looking down and seeing faded white crochet on a sea of elegant navy blue that makes me smile.

Plaid also makes me smile, and so does this adorable spectacle shaped brooch, and this 1950s pencil skirt (which I debuted here last month in this post), all of which seem like such a fun way to dress for a month that sometimes needs a bit of pepping up, due to the fading colour around us and the "in between-ness" of Halloween and Christmas (especially since those of us up here in Canada have already celebrated our Thanksgiving last month, so we don't have that to look forward to later in November).

Soon though, I know, these winter coat-less days will be completely behind us, and those few immensely hardy roses in our yard will vanish once and for all until spring's delicate return in 2013.

Hard to believe, isn't it, that we're less than two months away from the start of that year, a new year, and all the prospects and possibilities that another January holds in store for us all. Let's not jump ahead too much though. I still want to savour the moments of late autumn sunshine that remain, bake a few more pumpkin breads, and mail out those aforementioned Christmas cards first. :)

The vintage nurse will see you now

...Or at least she would have had you knocked on her door on All Hallows Eve!

 

{I love this shot that Tony took of our pumpkins from Bear's fruit stand in Keremeos all lined up on the little railing on our front porch. So festively pretty!}


Costume details

Vintage nurse's hat: etsy seller Vintage Mementos
Vintage nurse's uniform: etsy seller Elizabeth Jean Vintage
RN pin: eBay
White stockings: The dollar store
White pumps: Payless
Lip colour: MAC Russian Red
Nail colour: Essie Red Nouveau
Photography by Antonio Cangiano     ♥ ♥ ♥

The seeds of inspiration for this Halloween costume were first planted last January when I, in the midst of one of my usual vintage hat searches on etsy, chanced upon this mint condition vintage nurse's cap. The price was reasonable, so I snapped it right then and there, and thus knew what I was going to be for Halloween 2012. A few months later I found the vintage nurse's uniform (also on etsy), and I picked up the lovely little RN pin on eBay this fall.

As a child playing hospital was one of my all-time favourite games (in part because I sometimes thought as a little girl that I might grow up to be a nurse or doctor) and I’ve always adored pictures of vintage nurses, so in many ways this costume is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to dress like one - if only for October 31st.

Though, much like it had for the past five days and has subsequently ever since, it rained on Halloween morning, but much to our delight, ceased for a few hours in the afternoon and evening, which meant that the adorable little trick-or-treaters (of which we got about 70 that night) could run around without getting drenched. Given the fact snow is a very real possibility on Halloween in Canada, I couldn't complain the weather, even if it was grey and nippy. A dry Halloween, no matter the temperature, always beats a rainy or snowy one!

That evening my mom and step-dad came over for a few hours and we handed out candy, made and then devoured a tray of GF Rice Krispy treats, and watched the Great Pumpkin again. Tony and my parents didn't dress up in costumes, but they did all have orange and/or black on (Tony looked especially sharp in an orange shirt, black tie, black trousers, and a smart new hat he picked up at Moore's a few days ago). We had a thoroughly wonderful time and, without a doubt, this was one of the nicest Halloweens I've ever experienced.

Though I'm a little sad to see my favourite holiday come and go again, we had such a marvelous time this year that I don't mind the fact I have to wait nearly twelve months again to carve pumpkins (because the awesome memories from this one will keep me smiling until then).

I like to take down my Halloween decorations right away (I find doing so lessens the potential likelihood of feeling blue about Halloween being over) and did so bright and early on Thursday morning. I haven't brought out the Christmas one yet, but it won't be long now and all, and goodness, am I excited to deck out this place for the winter holidays for the first time!

So while it's always a little tough to wave good-bye to Halloween again, I am eager for jolly old St. Nick to return and like the fact that I've got almost a whole year to think up my next Halloween costume! 

A hearty 1950s chicken recipe that's perfect for fall

For ages now - and I know exactly why (initially, years ago, I first started posting recipes here on that day of week) - I've almost only posted recipes (be they vintage or modern classics) on Wednesdays. A creature of habit, I didn't deviate from this pattern much, but it's been gnawing away at me lately that doing so is rather unnecessary, as there's no specific reason why recipes need to appear on Wednesday, and I rather like the sense of shaking things up that comes from posting them (at least sometimes) on other days of the week as well.

With that thought firmly planted in mind, I woke up on this nippy November morning and decided it was high time a recipe appear on Friday. And come to think of Friday makes a lot of sense as a day on which to chat about cooking, as it's always lovely to have a new recipe or two in the wings as we head into the weekend.

As I'd imagine many of you are up to your ears in candy and chocolate, today's recipe is not for a dessert or other sweet treat – fear not! Today the focus is on dinner (or a wonderfully filling lunch), and comes in the form of a thoroughly yummy looking vintage recipe from 1957 called Harvest Chicken.

While some parts of the world are already shaking hands with snow again, others are still beautifully immersed in the midst of harvest season (and certainly Thanksgiving later in the month is all about celebrating the wondrous bounty that autumn delivers), so before Old Man Winter comes a knocking again, I wanted to share this recipe with all of you.



{Don't you just adore the cute crooning chickens on this cold weather perfect 1950s recipe page for Harvest Chicken? Image via Charm and Poise on Flickr.}



Of course, you can make it any ol' time of the year that your heart desires, I just like the fact that it's a fifties dish with a seasonal name to it. The ingredients themselves aren't overly autumnal, but the sight of a stick-to-your ribs chicken dinner like this certainly is.

With Thanksgiving and Christmas rounding the bend once more (hard to believe, considering I can still see our jack-o-lantern from here, I know), you could just as easily make this crowd pleasing dish with turkey meat instead. Pork - such as lean pork loin - used here would also make for a lovely, stick-to-your ribs kind of supper. (And of course, you can swap out the shortening for butter, margarine or your favourite cooking oil, if you’d prefer.)

I like to serve saucy poultry recipes like this with a steaming side of rice - perhaps basmati or a wild mix, just depending on my mood - or some plain pasta (tossed with a little butter). Sometimes polenta, mashed or baked potatoes, or quinoa step in, too, or instead of rice or pasta. Alternatively, you can skip some carbs and just go to town on a big plate full of this chicken and vegetable mix, perhaps with some sautéed baby spinach or a salad of mixed greens and grapefruit to accompany it.

Aside from the chicken itself, this vintage dish is quite economical, which I just adore (I also love that it's gluten-free, without me having to ditch or change any ingredients), and is a breeze to toss together - making it especially well suited to the holiday season when money and time alike are both often very precious commodities.

Happy start of November, sweet friends, I hope the month ahead is a fantastic one for everybody - and am really looking forward to celebrating another fantastic tail end of the year with all of you!