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Vegetarian Party Food : Three Quick Crostini Toppings

Christmas! (Swipe and Click)

    A Family Tradition : Making “The Mix” - Homemade Nuts and Bolts Snack
    Vintage Paper Part I : Christmas Cards

    A Sweet Treat : Nügateau Eclair Shop on Queen Street West

    eclairs seen through the window nugateau toronto


    A peek through the window of this tiny new shop, lured me right inside. Nügateau, located at 717 Queen Street West on the south side, just west of Bathurst St., selling eclairs in a wide range of tempting flavours.

    A Handmade Valentine Display using Vintage Cards

    vintage valentine girl with blue bird


    I thought I'd show you how I reused the Greeting Card Wall Hanging Display that I made at Christmastime, to make a Valentine decoration.

    A Fun Friday Night Lady-Date

    song dongs communal courtyard sculpture exhibit ago toronto


    In November, the art gallery (AGO) added a new weekly event on Fridays by extended their hours to 9pm and offering live music, interactive art-making stations, food and a large bar area. They call it "AGO Friday Nights" and my friend Meghan suggested we check it out last week. She's a member of the gallery, so admission for her and a guest (me!) was no charge but anyone can enjoy this fun night out for the regular cost of admission.

    Drugstore Beauty Department Finds

    shoppers drugstore beauty department haul
    As mentioned previously, I like to save the loyalty points I collect at Shoppers Drug Mart to use on items in their awesome beauty department. From time to time, they offer more bang-for-your-points in that department, so it makes for the ability to try out more products than I'd otherwise probably sample.Here's what I got on a recent trip ...Lise Watier Luminous Correcting Primer

    Good News about a Good Place : The Velvet Underground

    the velvet underground toronto during renovation
    ↑↑ I took this top photo a couple of weeks ago, after I’d read that the subject of it, The Velvet Underground nightclub, had closed down for good and was in the process of being converted into a wine bar.Having been open for over 20 years, The Velvet Underground has long been a favourite place to hang out, socialize and dance the night away. There was a period when I'd go there almost every week on either Friday or Saturday night. I loved the new music they played -- rock, indie and electronica -- and also liked the inclusive and laid-back environment. It was a fun place to be. Based on the feedback after it was announced that it was closing, lots of others felt the same way.In recent years, there was no doubting that The Velvet's high-times had passed, though. This was evident in how run-down it had become — the washrooms were a nightmare, only to be entered in case of emergency! Also, the crowds had dwindled down dramatically, which was quite noticeable the last Saturday night we'd been there last April.We'd also spent the last two New Year's Eves there -- here are some posts with pictures of the inside of the club : 2015, and 2014.I'm not sure if the people stopped going because the place had been left to its own demise and gone downhill, or if it had been abandoned by management because the people were no longer interested in going there.But clearly, its time had come and gone and it wasn't a surprise to find out it was shutting down. That didn't stop the feeling of loss and every time I've passed its darkened windows in the last four months, I've almost glimpsed the ghosts of my past flitting around behind them.These pictures were taken in October 2015, while it was closed and reportedly being converted into a wine bar ...