Unraveling by Peggy Orenstein

I recently read Unraveling by Peggy Orenstein after borrowing it from the library. The book, whose subline is ‘What I Learned About Life While Shearing Sheep, Dyeing Wool, and Making the World’s Ugliest Sweater,’ follows the author’s journey through learning ‘essential skills for the apocalypse’ during pandemic lockdowns. This entails all the skills needed to […]

DIY: Crochet Snow Queen Beret by Brenda K B Anderson

Crochet Snow Queen Beret by Brenda K B Anderson

I had my eye on the Snow Queen Beret by Brenda K B Anderson for quite a while, and I finally got around to it! The pattern is from the book Crochet Ever After: 18 Crochet Projects Inspired by Classic Fairy Tales. The hat is a beret I crocheted with one skein of Wellington Fibres worsted weight […]

The Year in Books: February with Confessions of a French Baker by Peter Mayle

Confessions of a French Baker by Peter Mayle

I’ve finished all of Peter Mayle’s novels and non-fiction books, and have turned to Confessions of a French Baker, a little tome on French baking. Co-authored by famous Provençal baker Gerard Auzet, this book is divided into two parts. The first half of the book discusses Mayle’s relationship with the French baker and his observations of the […]

Free Things to Do – Winter in Toronto

Edwards Gardens

Finding free things to do is important way for us to save money, and it can be especially difficult during the winter in Toronto. Summers in Toronto are full of street festivals, cultural festivals, Pedestrian Sundays in Kensington Market, picnics, and afternoons spent cycling. In winter, which in Toronto spans November to March, many people generally hunker down […]

The Year in Books: November with Encore Provence by Peter Mayle

Encore Provence by Peter Mayle

In November, I’m reading Encore Provence: New Adventures in the South of France by Peter Mayle. Having recently visited New Orleans and driven throughout Quebec this past year, I’ve found that I’m devouring books about France and French culture. Although of course the French culture in North America is vastly different than that in actual […]