Looking for the perfect summer getaway? A place with history, romance, and delectable cuisine? A destination where you can walk just about anywhere- with quaint cobblestones underfoot?
Quebec City might just be the perfect North American vacation- so close, yet somehow, it’s magic feels worlds away.
Leaving right from downtown Toronto with Porter Airlines, we touched down to begin our little holiday.
The last time I enjoyed the many splendors of this beautiful city was in the winter, or winter wonderland I should say! Now I know, Quebec City truly is a four-season paradise.
I have returned to McBlooms feeling refreshed and renewed, and still basking in the glow of some great wine, romance, and history from a destination that so many years ago, determined the fate of our great country.
I cannot recommend Quebec City enough. Bonus points if you’ve got a handsome man to stroll
the streets with-and better yet- help with your McBlooms Nourishing Foot Cream….trust me, at the end of the day filled with all that walking, you’ll need it!
This year marked the 60th anniversary of the Calgary Junior League- an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, education, and improving families and communities across Calgary. The Junior League was thrilled to be a part of the Calgary Stampede this summer, where they promoted themselves and their good work within the community. McBlooms was proud to provide the Junior League with the gifts that were used as “Thank You’s” for participants from all walks of the Stampede…including the Stampede’s very own Queen on the Stampede!
One of my favorite stops on the way up to cottage country is the classic roadside fruit and veggies stand where local farmers set up shop, showcasing their fresh array of seasonal goodies.
This past weekend, some dear friends and I were able to kick back and enjoy Ontario’s own crisp Sauvignon Blanc from Cave Springs alongside the perfect summer salad: Caprese! Farm fresh Ontario tomoatoes. Melt-in-your-mouth Buffallo Mozzarella. Hand-picked Basil….Mmmmm.
And while it’s already time to harvest this year’s tomatoes, why not have a go at planting your very own next season. With enough love and sunshine, they can even grow quite happily in containers for your patio or balcony.
Why not try your hand at these easy and delicious summer tomato recipes by the irrisistable Jamie Oliver this season. Perfect for dining Al Fresco!
Tomato and Fennel Salad with Fish and Baked Pasta with Tomatoes and Mozzarella
Cheers!
We love kids and kids are the future! So, this summer season, we have chosen to support programs aimed at the advancement and support of children at home and abroad. We are proud to support the following three programs:
Our very own McBlooms team member, Don, canoed from Ashbridges Bay in Toronto to the Humber River and back to raise funds for sending children to summer camp. Amici is a charitable organization that raises funds to help send financially challenged boys and girls to summer camps. Amici believes in the tremendously positive effects that a camping experience can provide to children.
Through our local church, Kingsway Lambton, the mission of El Hogar Projects is to provide a loving home and education in a Christian environment for abandoned, orphaned and hopelessly poor children, enabling them to fulfill their ultimate potential as productive human beings in Honduras.
Through one of our local golf clubs we have supported a fundraiser gala to raise money for Sleeping Children Around the World. Sleeping Children Around the World believes that it is the basic right of every child to have a comfortable night's sleep. Through free-will donations and in partnership with our volunteers, S.C.A.W gives bedkits to needy children in developing countries, thus helping them to face the challenges of the coming day.
…if you have a moment, I think you’d find it interesting to click and find out more about these great projects. We’re happy to be associated with them.
After a long Canadian winter, it’s time to take off our boots and treat our hard-working feet to a little pampering. Our feet are an essential, if not often neglected, part of our bodies. They carry us where we want to go, and are the grounding support to our entire body weight. Pedicures and proper foot care encompasses far more than a simple coat of colour on toenails. Rather, a pedicure can revive, renew, and refresh tired, overworked soles.
Women’s Health Magazine has a wonderful, step-by-step version to do at home. Try it Here!
And it doesn’t stop there! Healthy feet start with proper shoes. It is simply not enough to live in flip-flops with perfectly polished toes all summer long. Dr. Oz shows us an interesting video and simulation of the damaging effects of wearing non-supportive flip flops for extended periods of time. Check out his video here!
No pedicure would be complete without our very own McBlooms Nourishing Foot Cream. Designed to soothe and condition cracked heals, while refreshing feet with essential oils of eucalyptus and peppermint. We have even heard feedback from sufferers of Athlete’s Foot who love our product for the natural antibacterial properties of the essential oils.
May your feet take you somewhere fabulous this summer!
We’re closing up our workshop early this Friday -- leaving inside and heading out ... and following that great Canadian tradition of heading up to the cottage for the Victoria Day Long Weekend. Whether your getaway is to your cottage, or to visit with friends in the country, or to set up camp in a tent or cabin in the woods... how sweet it is to leave behind the hustle and bustle and smog of the city and take in that fresh country air!
And while this weekend would surely be incomplete without a few cold ones on the dock, let’s not forget the annual "rolling-up-our-sleeves and opening up the cottage" work that inevitably must be done for the approaching summer season. Sweep the pathways! Patio furniture out! Screens onto the windows! New propane tank for the BBQ! Chop and stack firewood! We are loving the printable checklists put together by the good people over at Cottage Life Magazine right now for helping us organize and simplify.
…Now all we’ll need, along with a little warmth and sunshine, is some bug spray, sunscreen and some of our favourite Extremely Rich Cream to look after all of our hardworking hands—guys included!
Then it's time for some great music, good friends, and good food and drinks as we sit out on the dock and savour May 2-4... the first long weekend of our sweet Canadian summer.
Cheers to a safe, relaxing and joyous long weekend to you all!
If you are in the Toronto area, you must come to our annual Spring Open House Sale. There will great specials and refreshments. We would love to see you, and bring a friend too! Wednesday May 5, 10am to 4pm & Thursday May 6, 10am-7pm.We are located at 4195 Dundas Street West, Suite G11 (just east of Royal York near the Jones New York Factory Outlet)
One of my all-time-favourite girlie movies has got to be Steel Magnolias, with the all-star cast of Julia Roberts, Shirley Maclaine, and Dolly Parton. Steel Magnolias is a make-you-laugh and make-you-cry story about family, love, relationships, and female friendships. And there is something to be said about those Southern Belles, isn’t there? So poised, so put together, and so polished! Wouldn’t it be nice, all that time with your girlfriends in the beauty parlour? Here at Mcblooms, we have always enjoyed our trips to the South for various trade shows, and industry-related events. There is certainly something to be said about the elegance and class of southerners…and especially the gentlemen, too! If you are in the area, be sure to stop by Elizabeth’s Garden in Mobile, Alabama, for the beautiful McBlooms display they always put together. I truly cannot wait to get back down there, breathe in that breathtaking Gardenia and enjoy some warm evening strolls.
Check out the trailer for this wonderful movie classic on YouTube at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3kPolyuMnU
A Happy and healthy Mother’s Day to Mums everywhere!
Earth Day is next week, and naturally, this has me thinking all things green! With this great weather we’re having here in Southern Ontario, it is a perfect time to start sprucing up our garden for spring. We have a bunch of shady pockets in our yard that need to be planted up with some shade-loving beauties. As a general rule, leafy green plants will thrive in shaded areas. Ferns, ivys, hostas, and mosses will all do well in shade. This year, I am going to keep things simple, clean and fresh with colour blocks of green and white. For the green, there are the aforementioned plants, and for some pretty white petals, I will block in some shade-loving impatiens and begonias.
We have some wonderful garden centres-like Plant World, Sheridan Nurseries, and West Van Florists, that carry our McBlooms Product line, and these centres have many friendly and knowledgeable staff to help you with your spring planting adventures.
www.plantworld.com
www.sheridannurseries.com
www.westvanflorist.com
Spring! -- it is just around the corner again! Where did the winter go?? With the coming of this new season, it is time to throw open the windows, roll up our sleeves, and prepare our homes ~ and our hearts ~ for the warmer days ahead!
I admit, I have, like so many others, turned to unnecessarily harsh, maybe a little environmentally-unfriendly, commercialized cleaning products at some point or another to give our house a really deep down spring clean. Just recently, I have seen a TV commercial from Seventh Generation eco-friendly home products where they mention feeling the need to “hold your breath” whilst cleaning with many of the commercial cleaning products on the market today. How many of us have felt this way before! Not a very good way to feel. Check out their line at www.seventhgeneration.com ~ it is truly wonderful -- a much safer, people-friendly and earth-friendly way to clean up this season.
Another fresh way I'll be looking at spring cleaning this year?? My daughter Devon has got me hooked on Real Simple magazine for their easy, inexpensive and completely natural “home remedies”. Head on over to www.RealSimple.com to discover the many wonders of lemons, vinegar, baking soda, and a whole lot more!
Hurry up Spring -- I can hardly wait to get started!!
