Saturday 31 December 2016

the end of summer


The summer we enjoyed this year was spectacular.  

Then the weather got a little cooler and the air a little crisper.  I remember the first day I had to reach for boots.  Ugh.

The good news about fall is ponchos!!




When people say, "the best thing since sliced bread", I feel they are doing a disservice to ponchos.  Anything that feels like a blanket, which can be worn at work and while running errands, should have it's own idiom.

Enjoying snuggly warmth while impressing people with my fashion acumen is always a big plus.  Usually when I'm this comfortable, I'm wearing sloppy, over-sized, sweats.

One day when I was trawling through the Halloween costume rack at Value Village, I stumbled across this beauty. 


$25...what??


I peered at the label and was delighted to see it was made in the USA.  Bemidgi Woolen Mills is in Minnesota and judging from their website, they sell all manner of cozy things to keep you warm. Technically this isn't a poncho, it's a cape. But whatever.





I wore the cape during an especially chilly 5 degree Celcius day, and it kept me toasty warm. It's the perfect thing to wear if you plan to spend extended time outdoors.  If I were going to a daytime, outdoor event, I would wear it over a heavy sweater and jeans.

If you walk or commute, it's the best thing ever.  It has pockets where you can keep your cell-phone and bus pass.

If you drive, you will have to take a few minutes to tuck the folds of woolen material around you. 



I found this lovely in the beach-coverup section.  I guess it pays to check all the weird aisles to find ponchos.


$15...yes!!


I refuse to acknowledge cold weather (until I really have to).  So if wearing a poncho means delaying putting on a coat, then it's all good. 






Other great things about fall are boots, sweater dresses and road trips with amazing blue skies.


Roots stripey poncho, vintage silk blouse, RW leggings.

Most comfortable boots ever.

American Eagle sweater dress (thrifted $5!) Plaid coat (thrifted) Canadian made boots (Hudson's Bay)


If you are visiting Ontario during the autumn, you're in for a treat!  The fall colours are so beautiful.

Wardrobe staples for me are silk blouses over cotton t-shirts, my favourite RW leggings and boots.  Toss on a poncho and you're set for chilly offices or a walk outdoors.

Here are some pictures from my fall road trip.  Driving across Ontario makes you really how really BIG Canada is.  I stopped to take some pictures.

It's common not to see anyone for miles on the highway.  So when I saw this train, I had to take a picture.

Canadian or what?


Small town Ontario.



If you look closely, you'll see stacked rocks on top of the rocky outcrop.  I saw scads of Inuksuks  and stacked rocks along the highway.




Spectacular sky.


happy thrifting everyone ;)
























5 comments:

  1. I love coming here and learning a bit about Canada. Inuksuks aren't something we see down here :)

    That cape! What an absolutely incredible find. It really makes me wonder why it was in the Halloween section? What could you be dressed as? Super Minnesotan!

    Stay warm, and have a happy new year.

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    1. Aw thanks Goody. I've spent many quality hours driving from one part of Ontario to another...it can get super lonely on the highway because you can literally spend hours without seeing anyone. All you see is the highway, trees, telephone lines, the odd cell phone tower, the railroad (off course)....and piles of stones or Inuksuks. Inuksuk started up wayyy up north. The Inuit would leave piles of them so that you could see them across miles of Artic plains. I started seeing more and more of them along the highway starting in 2010 - that's when Canada hosted the Olympic and the Inuksuk became more publicized as one of the host country's symbol. If you ever have a chance to watch the Kids in the Hall episode, where the Queen meets Tammy...she says "Ontariarioooooooo"...that was the "thing" to say about Ontario back in the 90's because Ontario is so darn vast.

      happy New Year's, eh?

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  2. Look at those skies! Absolutely beautiful!
    I love that tartan cape, what an epic find. xxx

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  3. I know! The skies are so beautiful here up north! So blue, and crisp! If I get the chance, I"ll try to take a pic or two of the Northern Lights...best colour scheme ever!!

    Thank you! I love the cape and the alpaca poncho!!

    Happy New Year's, eh?

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  4. That tartan cape (or poncho) was such a great find, although I can't for the life of me understand what it was doing in the Halloween section. You are right that it pays to check all the weird aisles. I often find vintage dresses in the nightwear section! Love the spectacular skies! xxx

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