Bijoux of a different sort at Birks

 
 It doesn’t take much to tempt me to go to Montreal, which may be my fave Canadian city. Love you too, though, Halifax and Vancouver! So news that the iconic Birks flagship store in that great town now houses a resto-boutique (I think that’s Quebecoise for cafe) called Café par Europea, is enough to make me dial the Porter number (although I LOVE going by train).

The new establishment is the creation of Jérôme Ferrer and TV host Francis Reddy, who are fast foodie friends. It’s inspired by the “art de vivre” or “art of living” theme; which is about slowing down sufficiently to enjoy both the visual and culinary pleasures of a space. Any dishware, glassware, and cutlery used at the Café can be purchased from Birks. You can also take home beautiful macaroons, chocolates or madeleines in the trademark Birks blue box. But I don’t think you can take home the 200 kilogram chocolate Birks Lion (shown above), hand-sculpted by chocolatier Christophe Morel

I’ve got to say that recently I’ve been looking longingly at the cut-crystal Gemstone Wine Glasses in cobalt blue from Birks. Maybe it’s my eastern European roots showing through, because whereas once I thought them fussy and slightly garish, now I’m really drawn to the rich colour and the way the light catches the cut surface. I also wouldn’t mind taking a tootle around the vintage jewellery section, even though it would be window shopping only!

Ah well, a few hours looking at pretty things, and a glorious cafe au lait and pastry. That’s the kind of extravagance I can afford. The Café par Europea is open seven days a week during store hours. There will be a lunch service, a European-style Salon de thé, a wine card and gourmet food .

Alors, a bientot, Montreal!

Bathroom bling and trading up on tableware

While chatting about bathroom trends this week with style expert Arren Williams for my Hot Home Products column, he shared what he thinks are three tips for getting great style. “The biggest mistake is not buying a good faucet,” says Williams. “And you should. You’ll be handling it every day, and it’s a visual focal point. So make it a little jewel!" He also suggests running tile all the way to the ceiling for a cleaner look, and building in “storage niches” for bath products when doing a shower redo. While Williams like a sleekly spa-like feeling in bath design, he concedes that ornamental elements and colour are creeping in. The raised white bowl, set against blue tiles, from a new collection from Villeroy and Boch, shown above, is a good example.

Speaking of Villeroy & Boch, the renowned tableware company is sending Isabelle von Boch, who represents the eighth generation of family members involved in the business, to a Dinnerware Exchange event being held at their Cookstown location on May 22 and 23, at which attendees can "trade up" to Villeroy & Boch pieces. Folks whose tableware has seen better days can turn them it for upgrade, and get style tips from von Boch. Walk-ins are welcome, however appointments are highly recommended. For more information or to reserve a space, click here or call the Cookstown House of Villeroy & Boch at 705-458-0435.Customers who can’t get to the event can still take advantage of the promotion, which launches May 14. Personally, I was delighted to learn that the V & B has re-issued its Acapulco design, as I inherited a set of the sunny, seventies-style dinnerware from my mother, and need a few replacement pieces.

Lovely, lovely linen

There’s a huge trend toward more natural fibres, such as linen, in bedding right now (see the gorgeous example from Au Lit Fine Linens, at left). A little birdie told me we may even see something similar in the Dream Home at the National Home Show next month. If you like the the look, but prefer something crisper, choose a linen/cotton blend. While I love both the look and feel of linen, you do have to be aware of how to care for it.  Well-made linen can be extremely durable, and can actually get both stronger and softer with washing, as the weave will shrink slightly and get tighter and smoother. But you need to understand your linen. Unless they were very dirty, I’d be inclined to wash linen sheets on a fairly gentle cycle, as linen tends not to like to be twisted around too much. I don't have linen sheets (yet) but I do have linen table linens that came from my husband’s Grandmother and must be at least 70 years old. They are in pristine condition. While I'm not over-protective of it (we use it frequently), I try to be respectful of it.

That means, for example, never overdrying it.  I take my table linens (and cotton bed sheets) out of the dryer after about ten minutes and hang them over a door or — on a nice day  — on the line. Even if you love that fresh air fragrance, though, don’t leave them on the line for too, too long. Sunlight is kinder on fabrics than chemical bleaches (although I’m not adverse to the occasional use of bleach when necessary), but too much of it can weaken fabric. I want to pick up some old-fashioned “bluing” – a laundry additive that’s supposed to brighten dull whites — to try on some cotton/polyester sheets I bought years ago that have become dull. I’ll report back soon on that. Those sheets were actually the last ones I bought with polyester in them as I find it doesn’t “breathe” that well, and that it tends to pill. (I use them as an extra set at the cottage now.) And when laundering your bed linens, don’t forget to wash your pillow covers once a month or so, and mattress covers twice a year. For more good information on linen care, go to The Linen Way, a family owned company that distributes linen - mostly from Eastern Europe - to higher-end retailers across Canada. Good points — and gorgeous stuff to look at!

Of comfort foods and slow cookers

I think slow cookers are great for making winter comfort food. The original, AKA the CrockPot (shown at right) has helped many a busy parent, but I love the new one I'm testing from Hamilton Beach that has a food thermometer built in. All-Clad also has a sexy new model that's being sold at Williams-Sonoma.  

This is the time, if ever there was one, for some cosy, warm-me-up winter foods. If you feel the same way, perhaps you’ll enjoy one of my fave slow cooker recipes for brown rice pudding, which was inspired by the brill food writer Mark Bittman. Here goes.Take 1/2 cup of brown rice and put in a grinder or blender very briefly – just to break the grains a bit. Add it, along with two 14-ounce cans of coconut milk, about ½ cup of maple syrup, and a cinnamon stick to a slow cooker and turn it on low for a couple of hours. You can use regular milk but the coconut milk is so much more delish. Before serving, stir in about ½ cup of white chocolate chunks and/or chopped pan-roasted hazelnuts. Oh yeah, it's good. Do you have a great slow cooker recipe? Share it with me, please - check out my Twitter request/contest for recipe ideas.

I'll drink to that

If you read my column regularly, you know how much I love Wedgwood china and Waterford crystal. So I love this fun idea - the venerable manufacturer has gotten creative with technology and come up with a ‘Clink-Clink’ iPhone application, through which users can scroll through an assortment of beautiful Waterford stemware and choose from more than 100 toasts that they can then send to friends and families from their phones.

Click here for a video demo of the ‘Clink-Clink’ app.

Fragile, my foot!

If you think that china is too delicate for the rigors of everyday life, this pic may make you rethink your stance. It’s an image of an electric car perched on top of just four Wedgwood  teacups outside the William Ashley store in Toronto. Crazy, no? There is a point here, however. Bone china is in fact the hardest and most durable ceramic available, which means that these Wedgwood teacups, and the venerable manufacturer’s other lines, will last longer and perform better than cheap imitations. So it’s far less likely to end up in a landfill a few short years after purchase. Beautiful and eco-friendly — what more do you want? And as long as we’re busting myths, let’s take on the notion that china should be saved for “special occasions”. Hogwash! Use it every day to bring beauty and pleasure to your life.

 

 

Lord Wedgwood - my close personal friend

As I was saying to Lord Wedgwood the other day while lunching at the British Consulate...Oh pardon me, what's that, you didn't catch what I said? Nothing really, I merely mentioned that I dropped by the British Consulate the other day for luncheon (slightly surprised that there were no chip butties!) and had a good old chat with the completely charming Lord Wedgwood of the famous china dynasty. Okay, okay, there were about 30 other media types there, too, and it was to mark the 250th anniversary of this illustrious company. But still, I did talk to him, and we did chat about how deeply founder Josiah Wedgwood changed and affected the materials and design of the plateware and vessels we use for food and ornamentation. Josiah was also a fascinating individual - an abolitionist when it wasn't that popular and a great supporter of artisans and craftspeople. More about that in an upcoming feature for the New in Homes section. In the meantime, feast your eyes on the gorgeous teacups and saucers from this hugley historic company (and check out the Wedgwood exhibition at the ROM) And if you run into His Lordship, do tell him I say hello!