Time to SHINE

I was excited to chair this year’s SHINE Fashion Tea, a fundraiser for B.C. Children’s Hospital, held at Victoria’s Fairmont Empress Hotel. What could be more compelling than raising money to help sick children and their families who are in need of medical care and family support.

We were pleased to once again welcome MC’s Todd Talbot of HGTV’s Love it Or List It, and his wife, actress Rebecca Talbot. Their fun-loving banter made for an entertaining afternoon of tea time in the iconic Empress Ballroom, along with an engaging fashion show and a tempting silent auction table, all to raise money for BCCHF.

And who doesn’t love a fashion show… especially when kids are involved!

Ashlyn Talbot working the runway!

 

The collection from Catherine Regehrwas truly amazing. Pictured here at the Q Lounge at the Empress Hotel

If you missed out on this year’s SHINE fundraiser for B.C. Children’s Hospital, please join us next year for our 2021 SHINE Fashion Tea!

Our fabulous champagne wall! Decor for this event was conceptualized and carried out by The Good Party of Victoria, B.C.

Photo credits to Tegan McMartin Photography and to Timothy West Photography.

‘Tis the Season!

A festive table for the holidays!

Those who know me, also know how much I love Christmas and entertaining over the holidays. To quote the song, it truly is “the most wonderful time of the year”! This season, I’ve enjoyed the muted bronzy colours mingled with my Christmas decor and love how cozy it makes the room look and feel.

Greek Night!

I am fortunate to have a wonderful group of friends who have been part of my life for nearly 25 years, and we quite loosely called ourselves “The Gourmet Group”. Don’t think for a minute that we are very professional or very gourmet-ish, but we do love to get together, we love to cook and bake, and we love to socialize and chat about absolutely everything. It’s a great concept – one person hosts and prepares an appetizer, while the others bring various dishes for the evening (soup, salad, main course, veggies, dessert, etc). That way no one is stuck with a lot of work and we all get to experiment with new recipes. And someone always remembers to bring wine too! For our latest gathering, we embarked on a “Greek Night” and it was certainly very tasty and a lot of fun.

Creating a Greek themed table was part of the fun!

And of course, what Greek meal would be complete without Baklava?

Hope you also find inspiration for cooking & entertaining from the vast array of cultures we can choose from.

Where have I been you ask?

I realized with surprise today that I have been MIA for about 11 months! Where have I been you ask? Closing one chapter and beginning a new one. During this past year, I came to an important life decision and that was to retire from my position as an English teacher at St. Michael’s University School, a private school in Victoria, B.C. I loved my 27 year career there but now feel that I want to devote more time to writing, blogging, travelling, volunteering with B.C. Children’s Hospital and other organizations, and looking for other new challenges and adventures. I am hoping that means I’ll get back to more regular posts, sharing my ideas and inspirations for home entertaining, decorating, baking, socializing, etc. Stay tuned!

My final graduation ceremony reminded how much I have been shaped by my career as a teacher. It has afforded me a wealth of experiences and interactions with so many wonderful young people over the years. I have learned so much from them and have also been fortunate to have helped shape the minds and lives of these amazing students who will go on to do great things. Thanks for the memories! Vivat!