Friday.
Edition 18.
It’s hard for me to believe that I’ve already been home for a week!
The girlie went to her first sleep-away camp last Sunday…
3 nights!
So there was the hustle and bustle of preparing for that. Which included rounding up some summertime clothes. You’d think she was a growing teenager or something. 😉
Working Teens.
The oldest got a part-time job. Manual labor. Which I think is a good fit for him.
The middle son has started applying for jobs. It’s a little harder for 15-year-olds to find work, typically because child labor laws are stricter for 14-15-year-olds. I have finally ridden as his passenger while he is learning to drive. I was very pleased that he didn’t make me push my imaginary brake or grip the door (I don’t passenger very well).
Candy!
One of my favorite things when traveling overseas is to try the candy that I can’t find at my local store. We had a lot of fun doing this in Amsterdam and Paris. So candy was what I brought back for my teens.
Another reason for this being their gift was because as I’ve shared in the past and talked about extensively in this post,
I am on a path to simplicity… or minimalism…
Or just less…
Less clutter.
Less distractions to steal away my time.
The candy creates a bonding time as we discuss which ones we like best and why. And best of all, it’s a consumable. It doesn’t take up long-term residence in my home.
Scarves.
I had certain items that I knew that I wanted to purchase prior to going to Scotland.
Items that would not be consumable.
The benefits of living in a climate with a real winter, such as I have in Virginia, is that I actually wear scarves. I went to Scotland with every intention of adding some scarves to the few that I own (when I moved from Florida 4 years ago, I had zero).
It was important to me that the tag said: “Made in Scotland”. Quite a few scarves sold along the Royal Mile are actually made in China. Some people may not care about that fact.
But part of my desire also had to do with my ancestry. My 4th great-grandfather, James Baird, is listed on the 1841 census as living on Flowerhill Street in Airdrie. His occupation: a handloom weaver. On the 1851 census, his 15-year old daughter (my 3rd great-grandmother) is listed as a handloom weaver. In 1881, Agnes is on Flowerhill Street listed as a shirtmaker. Her 16-year old daughter, Agnes McLachlan (my 2nd great-grandmother) is listed as a cotton weaver.
The tan scarf is Made in Scotland and 100% cashmere. The gray scarf is Made in the British Isles and is 100% Lambswool.
Blanket.
Another definite purchase that I wanted to make was having a Scottish throw. I was in the store picking out scarves when I saw this blanket on a lower shelf. I had almost given up on a blanket actually having a tag with Made in Scotland. But here it was, and reminiscent of my Roger blanket. Lambswool and Angora and not another like it in the store. I was overjoyed!
After having a conversation with the sales lady at The Real Scot, which is on High Street, about whether or not they had the McLachlan or Scott tartan pattern in a scarf, she suggested that Roman and Paterson on Princes Street might carry those patterns and even called them to see if they did. They confirmed that they did and since our hotel was near Princes Street, we decided to stop by on the walk back to the hotel.
I did feel a little guilty about now having four scarves. In case you’re counting, the Smith scarf was a gift for my husband ;). The reality is that I would have only passed on the gray one if I had known the others were available. Having said that, gray matches my wardrobe very well and will be worn quite often.
Extras from Scotland.
At this point, there have also been some things that I bought on a whim. Things that while I bought them, I wavered in my mind, “should I”, “shouldn’t I” and bought them anyway. A bracelet…a wallet… a beanie… and some coasters.
The bracelet is a HeatherGem, which is actually nice. Made in Pitlochry, Scotland from natural heather stems. However, at the time, I didn’t notice that it was beginning to tarnish. The buying experience was not wonderful, hence why I am not naming the store, and I have no idea what the metal is made of and if it is able to be cleaned or will just continue to tarnish like a piece of costume jewelry.
The wallet was very much an impulse buy. I was purchasing other things. Plus I liked the tweed. And I liked that it was woven in the Outer Hebrides. However, I did not spend time looking it over thoroughly. I do not like that it is made in China and that the interior is plastic and feels as such. Also, it was on sale at the time and I didn’t notice until afterward that I was charged the full price.
The beanie and coasters I will enjoy but could have taken or left them. As a person pursuing minimalism, I should have left them.
Tea.
I did purchase another consumable. This one for myself. A tea collection by the Edinburgh Tea & Coffee Company. They are blended in Edinburgh and the flavors include Whisky Flavoured, Heather, Thistle, and Scottish Breakfast. I’ve only tried Thistle so far, but it was delicious. I already shared about the amazing shortbread in last week’s Friday Faves.
Hoarding.
The night that I returned home, I had a nightmare that I was decluttering and the piles were enormous and I felt almost like I was drowning in the overwhelming nature of it. I turned to my husband and said: “we’re never going to get through all this”.
I’m not sure what led to a dream like that. I have known actual hoarders. And I don’t mean people who say that they are hoarders, but actually, have lots of clutter or are packrats. I mean actual hoarding tendencies. And I think it scares the heck out of me. My accumulations of stuff give me no joy. In fact, they cause me quite a bit of anxiety. The next morning I woke up and started back where I had left off on the decluttering.
Each day a step forward toward simplicity…
Toward minimalism.
Toward freedom.
Music.
In searching for a song to share about simplicity, I bypassed some of the obvious and chose this one, which came up in the search because of the stripped-down sound. I remember loving it when it came out. Simple and yet phenomenal in its simplicity:
I hope that you all have an amazing weekend!
Get lost in a good book, soak in the beauty of nature, eat that piece of chocolate.
Let your light shine!
Amy
Nice finds! Have a great weekend.
Thank you! I hope you have a wonderful weekend as well. 🙂
I have a *thing* for scarves – winter weight, spring, summer, fall – I have a *few* and my eye always seems to get drawn to the display of scarves when I walk into a store.
I love your choices, even though I personally cannot wear a plaid. Is there an Italian who looks good in plaid?
Me too, me too.
Your Italian comment made me laugh. I’m (much, not as much as you) Italian and I think I look good in my red, autumn only, plaid poncho. But just that. lol
hehehe!! I look dreadful in plaid and that’s my official excuse 😉
I always check out the scarves when I pop into a store. It never occurred to me that I might not be able to wear plaid. lol. But it does seems to suit my pale, freckled skin. 😉
Yes, I would think you look lovely in plaid 🙂
Thank you! 🙂 I hope so since I rounded up so much of it 😉
I support your scarf collection, as I have my own. Scarves are the chosen accessory for fabric hoarders. I do not mean that lightly. I love fabric and have boxes of it. Yes, I quilt, but I really love to just look at and touch it. ferreal. I definitely support the Harris Tweed. I know you will wear it PLENTY.
I have learned to love scarves now that I’m in a colder climate! 🙂
Your scarves a beautiful! That must have been an incredible trip. Whenever we travel we like to pick up different sweets. My husband is in Baltimore, right now and I have no doubt he will come home with half a dozen Mr Goodbars. (We live in Canada)
Jo-Ann
Thank you. 🙂 I love Mr. Goodbars. I never think to buy them on their own, but they tend to be in the assorted packs passed out at Halloween and I always took the kid’s stash of them. Now that they are too old to trick-or-treat, I may have to pick some up! 🙂
That’s too funny that you take the kids stash! I’m bad for taking their Nibs and KitKat bars lol.
I’m in your scarf boat. I have loads of them. Probably not as many as Joey, but pretty close. I bought scarves, and wraps in Paris, jewelry in London, blankets, jewelry, and vanilla in Mexico, sandals in the Virgin Islands, and candy everywhere I go! Those Kinder bars are really good!
I love finding foreign foods, and candies in different countries. It’s so fun to find brands you love look so completely different and have a different name in another country.
Even finding my nasal saline spray in Paris was an adventure and the can is beautiful! Not like the boring can here. I kept that can for years, but the real high was being able to tell the pharmacist what I needed in French and he got it! I floated on that for a week. Okay, I won’t lie. I’m still floating on that language achievement! 🙂
If I’m ever blessed with the good fortune to get to Scotland or Ireland on the top of my souvenir list is made in Scotland, or Ireland a wool sweater. I’d wear it all fall, winter, and well into Spring so it would be investment piece that would get a lot of use.
I think you balanced your minimalism and consumable items perfectly.
BTW- I live with a hoarder. IT DRIVES ME CRAZY! I believe it’s an inherited trait because I saw it with an in-law. I don’t get it, and I wish I had the right words to say to change the behavior with this person whom I love so, so dearly. I’m not the cleanest housekeeper in the hood, but I’m tidy, and this example for a lifetime hasn’t helped AT. ALL!
Everyone always seemed to mention the Kinder bars when they would hear that I was traveling to Europe. We tried them in Amsterdam and found that they were quite good.
Shockingly, the Picnic bar was their favorite, and the one I thought they wouldn’t like and would give to me!
I would like to get a sweater, but I only had so much luggage space and the blanket was a top priority. Plus, I think I’d like to get it while traveling in the Highlands. Which is what I’d like to do when I return.
My scarf collection is slowly growing! 🙂
My husband likes “stuff” less than me and seems to have no sentimental attachment to things, which is the area where I have the hardest time letting go. I’ve learned to ask myself, will my kids care if I’ve saved this sentimental thing or will it just add to their weeding obligations when I’m no longer here.
There’s definitely a happy balance to be found. 🙂
Hello. Nice to catch up on some of your life. It seems you have returned from your travels with some lovely purchases. I really like the bracelet, although it is a shame that you didn’t have a good experience buying it, and it is tarnishing… I also like to eat the different chocolate bars they have in England, when I visit my family. The taste of a Lion bar, Wispa or a Toffee Crisp always brings back memories of childhood (and my university days where I would eat a chocolate bar a day 😛 )…I’m wondering what the Milk sweets are that are in your photo?..
Take care and wishing you a lovely weekend.
– carly
Thank you.
I knew that I like the Lion bar from our trip to Amsterdam. The other two were quite tasty as well. The milk chews ended up tasting like a vanilla tootsie roll, in my opinion. They are shaped similar to these little caramel squares that I used to love as a child. So for some reason I thought they might taste like that…. even though it said nothing about caramel. lol.
I hope that you have a lovely weekend as well! – Amy
Ummm, I want some sweets now!
I love the bracelet, what a pain that it is tarnishing. I am so interested in the fact that you have such different chocolate in the US. Some of the chocolaste bars in the photo’s are really common where we live. Crunchie’s are the best. Although I don’t eat them very often these days – lots of child hood memories though!
I was fascinated to learn that we have different candies. And some that are the same, but have different names. I’m pretty sure that “Bounty” is the the same as a “Mounds” bar here. Although I think chocolate is made different in each place.
I discovered while in Canada that I love CEMOI dark French Truffles. Fortunately for me you only see them on the shelf in South Africa around Christmas time, because I have a very hard time resisting them…But the kids and I definitely do the same when traveling – DISCOVER THE CANDY! 😀 In Canada I also found Blue Whales, can’t find them here.
In Germany I loved the Milka chocolate with popcorn in, but that they’ve recently started stocking over here.
Love your scarfs – especially the grey one!
Ooohhh… Sounds yummy! I haven’t seen either of those before, but I haven’t been to Canada. I do love chocolate and popcorn. I’ll have to see if I can find that on my next trip.
Thank you on the scarves… I’m hoping to get a lot of use out of them when it turns cold again! 🙂