October 27 - November 2, 2013

I'm doubling up this weekend with a second posting. I am now finally up-to-date again. As my jewellery boxes are emptying, I realized it's time to be current once again.
 I love Hallowe'en - from the little tykelets to the teenagers, love the costumes, love the parents dressed up on the sidewalk. Once dins is over, my husband holds down the fort and I meander through the neighbourhood, checking out the pumpkins and Hallowe'en displays, saying howdy to friends and getting a bit of chocolate now and again. There were a lot of soggy costumes out there this rainy Hallowe'en but it didn't dim those intrepid treat-or-treaters - hurray!  

I debated whether to polish this old brooch or not years ago, but I have yet to polish it. I love it just the way it is. A miniature tambourine (no, it doesn't jingle) and a beautiful piece of mother of pearl. A favourite.

A friend recently came back from a toot in Scotland, her camera brimming over with photos of that beautiful country. She brought this back for me. I do love the sound of bagpipes. As a kid, watching the Toronto Santa Claus Parade roll by, bundled up from the cold, it always stirred me when the pipers marched by in their kilts, playing that wonderful soulful music.

Another childhood pin. I don't recall whether it had been a Sunday School pin or a school one. The company who made it - David C. Cook Publishing made a lot of different pins back then; they're now classed as vintage - yikers!

Muriel was a funny, charming lady, with button brown eyes and a long smile. A good friend gave me her beautiful cameo brooch. I love cameos and I loved his Mom, Muriel.

This brooch garners a lot of praise when I wear it. It has life to it, the bird caught in a split second of movement. It's another one of these - I've had the brooch for a long time and I think you really should have it instead - type of gift. A lovely gift.

When I left BGM, my old work place in Toronto, a friend gave me 2 brooches - the scary mask one that I wore months ago and this one that he made for me that has 2 of my favourite things - the Eiffel Tower and a bird. A one-of-a-kind brooch. Like, like, like it lots.

This is my other cat brooch that I bought in England from a store "Katz" back in the early eighties. There is a quality that a black and white cat has that is unique to that colour combo. This one looks pretty dapper and has that je ne sais pas quality.