The House Dressing Company

Written by : Helen McIntyre

The Olympic Torch is coming to little Sidney By The Sea! Come cheer on the torchbearers as they sprint through Sidney!!!!!

You won’t want to miss it! The Olympic Torch is arriving at Victoria International Airport on the morning of Friday Oct 30. It is from there, where the torch begins it’s 45,000 km journey across Canada.

Sidney has such an amazing sense of community. At 11:30, there will be activities, refreshments and music set up at The Mary Winspear Center to kick off the great anticipation of the torch arriving in Sidney. There will also be video presentations being shown that highlight the stories that some people in the community have regarding the Olympics. All this sounds like A REALLY fun day.

We, at The House Dressing are big supporters of the Olympic Torch Relay. I have dressed up one of our windows to show our appreciation, spirit and support for the Olympic Games and Torch Relay. While your in Sidney come take a peak at this colourful display. The colours on the posters are quite vibrant and fun, so I decided to try and mimic this in the decor!

The Torch is actually aimed to arrive in Sidney around 1:00 pm. There is lots more fun going on in Sidney during this memorable day: Town Hall also has some great Olympic activities for the community!

Tulista Park is the final place in Sidney where the Torch will be. You will definitely want to be there, to enjoy MORE music and entertainment and also to wish the Torch Relay a wonderful time on their journey  across Canada!

I encourage everyone to come out and support The Olympics and show Canada and the World that Sidney knows how to cheer on the Torch!

If you would like some more information regarding the events and schedule of the Olympic Torch Relay, or you would like to find out how to participate/volunteer, please follow these links: http://www.sidneytorchrelay.ca/ or http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-torch-relay/

What I think is really fun…..is that you can view the actual route that the Torch is taking across Canada on any given day. Use this interactive map – http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/olympic-torch-relay/olympic-torch-relay-interactive-map/

Have a great week! Hope you are able to come out and cheer!

Written by : Ingrid

Birds, birds everywhere!  It’s that time of year again when our feathered friends are foraging for food to fatten up their little bodies before the winter sets in.  There are so many food sources out there right now.  I’m sitting in my family room with its large picture windows, and just watching these resourceful little creatures absolutely demolishing every berry that is on the massive Mountain Ash tree in our backyard.  They won’t stop until every berry is eaten and their bellies are full.  It is absolutely pouring with rain right now but the birds seem to love it!  They are joyfully bathing in the bird bath in between snacking and chasing each other from one tree to another.  If you watch them long enough, you’ll recognise  the “pecking order” that so well describes their system of who eats first between the species as well as within their own family groupings.  It seems the kids always eat last and have to wait their turn!

I love to watch the birds and hear their cheerful chirping and songs.  The Chickadees are such characters and I love the Robins with their orange breasts.  I’ve also spotted a regular Northern Flicker to my suet feeder, some shy little Towhees, the Juncos (back again for the winter months) and lots of song Sparrows.  The Anna’s Hummingbirds are still around and will stay for the winter but the Rufous Hummingbirds will be moving south pretty soon, if they haven’t already.  We also have a regular Blue Heron that comes to the garden and wanders around my pond.  I have it netted, much to his chagrin, and my fish are well protected.  Doesn’t stop him perusing it every now and then though!  He is really quite gorgeous.

Not only can we enjoy watching the birds outside, but in our homes we can decorate with all kinds of bird ornaments - from realistic looking to abstract.  From wood to metal and everything in between.

At the House Dressing Company, we have an amazing selection of all types of bird ornaments that can add to the flavour or theme of your decorating and help bring some whimsy and personality to your space .  For instance, you can use sea birds in your seaside themes to go with your collections of driftwood, pebbles, starfish, etc.

There are gorgeous, silver abstract birds that would look beautiful in a contemporary setting on a mantle piece or table year round.  You could pair them with a lovely set of silver candlesticks and plain, white candles.  So elegant.

Look at these gorgeous owls – we have them in all shapes and sizes and they can be complemented with these wonderful canvas prints.  They are fun for decorating in the Fall and Winter months.

We also have a wonderful array of colourful birds that you can decorate with during the year.  They come in such a variety of colours, that you are sure to find some to fit your decor.  Here are some examples:

And then of course, there’s Christmas!  It’s just around the corner again, and we are getting the store all “Christmassed up”  just for you!  Birds will be a very big theme again this year and honestly, they look so sweet in a tree.  There are clip on birds, glass birds, gold and silver birds, traditional red Cardinals to place in your tree – you just have to see them all to appreciate them!  I know I’ll be adding quite a few to my collection.

Of course, the real birds outside will really benefit from us giving them a helping hand at this time of the year and during the winter months.  If you do start to feed them, don’t all of a sudden stop, as they will become dependent on the food sources you are giving them.  Also, make sure you clean feeders regularly – there are a lot of diseases harboured by dirty feeders, that little birds are susceptible to.  Keep the hummingbird feeders full during the winter, especially if we get snow.  The Anna’s Hummingbirds that stay during the winter, will need a little extra help during really cold weather.  You can make the mix a little stronger in the winter months to help prevent the mix from freezing.  I use a third cup of sugar to one cup of boiled, cooled water.  No need to add colouring.

Enjoy watching birds in your garden, and consider bringing some “pretend” birds into your home to liven up your space and bring nature indoors.

Written by : Helen McIntyre

Good Morning!

Some of you will be a bit frightened when I say…………”I have started to put out CHRISTMAS in the store!!”. I know…..I know…..It was only last week that I blogged about Halloween. However, in the retail world you don’t have a moment to spare when it comes to seasonal changes. Its SO much fun putting Christmas out – This process will be slow…….but in order to get everything just right, these things take time! I am super excited about all the wonderful items we’ve picked for this year!

Some of the themes that will be trickling  around the store include:

• Elegant, Woodsy (a take on last years woodsy…but with a touch of elegance and shimmer)
• Crisp White and Red (very classic with a tiny bit of whimsy)
• Antiqued Silver (some mercury, dulled silver – very sophisticated)
• Red Berries, Snow Berries and Greenery (a mixture of traditional berries with some fresh updates)
• Traditional Gold (very warm and elegant)
• Silver, Sparkle Glamour (lots of glass and bling)

For all you lovers of Christmas out there…………be sure to come in and have a look at our gorgeous collections!

Early Christmas Shopping is also a GREAT idea!  Bring your list…and we can help.

Have a great week!

Written by : Julie Cove

What I love about writing a blog is the creative process of finding ways to inspire you along with the constant weekly opportunity where I am pushed to be creative either with projects, photography or just with my writing.  It fills me up and I have many comments on and off the blog indicating that you all enjoy what I post as well as what the girls Helen & Ingrid submit.  We really appreciate your feedback!  This week I have some updates for you and a few snap shots to inspire!

This past week has been a bit of a blur with busy-ness!  Our team at the store and I transformed 50% of the displays in the shop- what a creative work over!  Our intention was to group the last of the products on clearance from our kids section and give focus to our adult bedding section which now looks lovely.  Our line of bedding that we will be focusing on is called Pinecone Hill- an absolutely gorgeous line with a catalogue and site to die for.

You can expect to see more of this line over the coming months. We can order you anything from this site in order to fluff your bedroom or you can borrow the hard copy catalogue from the store and peruse at home.  We also stocked up massively with the Wildly Delicious line of food products getting ready for the gift giving season.

Next up is Christmas!  Helen will be busy this week adding a holiday flavour bit by bit throughout the store- yeh we are sooooo excited to see some of the goodies making their way from the back stock room to the shelves for you to see.  So stop in and check out the progress and be the first to gather for your list- we often sell out of some of the best things before the end of October and we can’t order more- We pre-book in January for Christmas and what we receive is often all we can get.

We will also be fluffing our window to celebrate the Olympic Torch Relay that is coming down Beacon Ave on The 30th.

This site for the Olympic Torch Relay will offer more info closer to the date.  Mark your calendar so you can cheer with the rest of us as the entourage visits our town.  How exciting this will be as we begin to feel the excitement of the approaching Olympic Games in our Province.  It looks as though there still may be room for participation so if you are keen check out the site.

With October still offering it’s bounty I wanted to share an autumn project that Elliott and Amelia and I all did that is lasting quite well.  Pumpkin bouquets.  All we did was hollow out 2 small pumpkins and add water and greens and then some pretty flowers- there are remnants from the garden like lavender and rosemary and a few odd nasturtiums.  You may find a few treasures if you look hard enough.  Then we added a few stems of florist chrysanthemums.  Don’t be afraid to cut the stems quite short- the tighter the bouquet the better and always start with greens first, then florals.  I rather like the surprise of the purple with all the orange but you may just want the harvest tones.  Have fun and don’t forget to take a snap shot of your creative work.  We also roasted the seeds which were so yummy- just rinse them and pat dry, toss with olive oil and salt and any spice you like- my son loves Montreal Seasoning so I just sprinkled a wee bit and they were gobbled up in no time.  Roast at 400 for about 10-15 mins until golden and crispy.

I just added this photo to my desktop that I took last week at out lakeside cottage in Youbou- couldn’t resist the blue lake and the golden leaves. Enjoy.

Here’s hoping that October brings us more lovely days to enjoy before Jack Frost shows up to stay a while!

I am off for a family vacation and will do my best to pop you a line next week but if I don’t I’ll give you an update the following week.  Helen and Ingrid have some fun stuff up their sleeves so stay tuned.

Have a great week.

ps.  I have extended the draw opportunity to win Paintings by Rose Cowles till the end of October since we still have more kids stuff to clear- be sure to check out the deals and help us make room for more goodies!

Written by : Helen McIntyre

Hello Everyone!

The Holiday often associated with ORANGE and BLACK is fast approaching! Yes…you guessed it- HALLOWEEN. This year it lands on a Saturday! It’s wonderful for all the children who are trick -or-treating! The Jack -o-Lantern, a carved pumpkin, is also a very unique and strong symbol associated with Halloween.

I was reading a bit about the history of Halloween from “Wikipedia” and this is what I found. I thought it was quite interesting and could make a fun story to tell your children.

“Halloween has origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain [pronounced: sow- wen] (Irish pronunciation: [ˈsˠaunʲ]; from the Old Irish samhain, possibly derived from Gaulish samonios). The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture, and is sometimes regarded as the “Celtic New Year”. Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient Celtic pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Celts believed that on October 31st, now known as Halloween, the boundary between the living and the deceased dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops. The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which the bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks being worn at Halloween goes back to the Celtic traditions of attempting to copy the evil spirits or placate them, in Scotland for instance where the dead were impersonated by young men with masked, veiled or blackened faces, dressed in white.”

There are many activities that are part of the Halloween tradition: ghost tours, trick -or- treating, bonfires, haunted houses, costume parties, scary stories, horror movies, wearing costumes, carving pumpkins and funny pranks. No matter what age you are………there are lots of  fun ways to celebrate Halloween. My fond memories of Halloween consist of my dad and I carving pumpkins together, and me dressed up in my favourite “white” witch costume.  I used to love sorting all the candy in different categories when I got home.

We have lots of Halloween goodies in the store right now! Doormats, Pumpkin stands with eyeballs, bat candles, paper napkins, crows and spiders!! I have set a Halloween table at the store. Its so much fun on the round cream table! The black place-mats sure stand out! Have some fun with your table decorations! You could use black licorice as napkin rings. You could also pour that orange hard Halloween candy in small glass votives for a base for all your twinkling tea-lights!! Bring in some twigs from outside and place them in a vase as your centerpiece. The artificial crows would look fantastic in amongst the twigs!!

Take a look at these great Pumpkin Stands! There is no need to carve your pumpkin. Just simply place it in the stand. The crazy attached eyeballs extend out to create a fun face!!

I am fortunate to drive by the pumpkin fields everyday on my way to and from work! Take a look at some of these great shots. We sure live in such a wonderful place!

Halloween would not be complete without a SPOOKY recipe!! There are loads of great ones at these websites: Just click on the links below

http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/halloween/index.html

http://www.britta.com/Hw/hwr.html

One in particular that is really yummy and that look so creepy are the “Witches Fingers”  A friend of mine makes them every year!

Enjoy this great time of year and make the most of this fascinating Holiday!