Black Friday Wishlist: Schmidt Home Depot Cole Haan

A sudden life change gave me the opportunity to begin to arrange my home in a way that suited my new circumstances.  As always, Black Friday is a great time to replace those things that are worn out and need replacing to getting those coveted must-haves that have been sitting on one's wishlist forever. So herewith is my wishlist.
I was given a knife block set years ago as a Christmas gift.  To be honest, I have always hated it.  It took up a huge amount of counterspace.  The knives have begun rusting and I just don't use many of the knives.  I am sure we all have gifts that we don't like and simply tolerate because they were gifts.

I picked up this set of Schmidt knives this past weekend.  This small curated set is all I need.  I find I reach for the 6" chef's knife over and over again.  The Schmidt knives aren't top of the range but they aren't Dollar Store knives either.  They are wicked sharp and have a balanced feel in the hand.  The wood handles are gorgeous and will look better and better over time.  They are available in Canada at Crate and Barrel.
My unitized washer and dryer is slowly dying on me.  The last time I was at Home Depot, there were no sales at all.  Black Friday sales seem to start earlier and earlier each year so hopefully I will be able to pick up a replacement very soon.

via Home Depot

I am in love with Cole Haan right now.  I ordered this pair of winter boots and the timing of their arrival was perfect as within days of said arrival, Toronto experienced its first snowfall of the season.

They have shearling cuffs and as with all of Cole Haan's Zerogrand line, serious take-no-prisoners treads.  In the middle of a Canadian winters, the sidewalks become perilously slippery and boots that grip onto snow and ice are a must.  There is lots of room for thick socks and, remarkably, were comfortably straight out of the box, no breaking in required.

via Cole Haan

I am definitely going to drop by Cole Haan again and see what else captures my eye.
So what's on your wish list?

This is not a sponsored post.

LBH Weekly Roundup: Roots Canada Crossbody Bag, Integrated LED Track Light

Time for another Weekly Roundup!  One of the few cons of a capsule wardrobe is that items tend to wear out with greater frequency simply because they are on constant rotation.  I love a crossbody bag because it leaves my arms free and distributes the weight across my body.  Sadly, I noticed the straps on my old bag were getting really worn and it was looking the worse for wear.  So it was a great thrill to pick up this Roots bag this week.

It has so many outer and inner pockets.  I don't know about you but I love pockets.  It is made of woven suede instead of smooth leather so I don't have to worry about scuffs and scratches.  The "Peace" symbol embroidered onto the toggle adds a fun 60's hippie touch.  Monsieur was quite surprised when I brought it home as I have never really channeled the hippie look before but I was really taken with the quality and construction of the bag and the many, many pockets.  With the sudden onset of Autumnal temps, I have been fleshing out my Autumn capsule wardrobe and this bag came at just the right time.  If you want me to write a post about my capsule wardrobe and how I put mine together, let me know!

This weekend was Thanksgiving in Canada.  Now, you know when you have hit a rut in your relationship when you spend a long weekend at Home Depot contemplating the omnipresent DIY list...alone.  Monsieur was nowhere to be found.  A ceiling light fixture had stopped working a long time ago and I was determined to tick off my list.  With both of us dealing with health issues and one of us disabled, trying to replace burnt out ceiling light bulbs is akin to asking us to climb Mt. Everest.  I picked out an integrated LED track light.  

The wonderful thing about an integrated LED light fixture is that it never needs its light bulbs replaced!  It is Energy Star certified and should last 50,000 hours. So over the course of its lifetime, there should be significant savings in electricity consumption, not to mention light bulbs being prevented from going into landfill.  Monsieur did lend a helping hand with installing it and, reno rookies that we are, we lived to tell the tale.  I am sure if you had seen us wobbling back and forth trying to attach the wires, you wouldn't have known whether to laugh, cry or run far away.  

And that's it for this week.  Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian readers!

This is not a sponsored post.