At Home with Kim Vallee

GIFT IDEAS, Gifts for HER | February 10, 2010

MarieBelle Chocolates’ Blue Box for Valentine’s Day

If you are not ready or if you already gave her the Tiffany blue box, here is another signature blue box that will please her this Valentine. I like the drawings on the artisanal chocolates. It is common these days to see design like the chocolates made by Christopher Elbow. The MarieBelle chocolates gain points for [...]

DINING, TABLEWARE | January 30, 2010

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Wood You Like a Cup of Tea by Jakob Solgren

As we visited the Interior Design Show in Toronto last weekend, one trend that is still going strong is the tree barks and branches. My husband and I were happy since our banister design is inspired by branches. The Swedish design Jakob Solgren put it at a new level with his stylish teapot. I love it. At €1,500 [...]

GIFT IDEAS, HOSTESS gifts | January 17, 2010

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Matcha Green Tea Shortbread Cookies by Tea Aura

I enjoy shortbread cookies because they are not too sweet. I bake my own but I also like to try gourmet shortbread cookies. After all, they come handy when you are in a hurry. My latest find is the Matcha Shortbread cookies from Tea Aura, a small brand located in Toronto. I could not stop [...]

COOKING tools, DINING | January 6, 2010

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I love my new Breville Variable Temperature Kettle

I first introduced it when I talked about innovations for tea kettles. Our electric kettle broke last December after 4 years of service. I started to use an Italian stainless stove kettle that I bought many many years ago. It works fine except that it takes ages to boil the amount of water I need to [...]

TRAVEL | December 22, 2009

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Crown & Crumpet Adds Fun to the Tearoom

Having tea at Crown & Crumpet is on my agenda for my next trip to San Francisco. This place inspires me from the whimsical decor to the menu. They served 4 menus: breakfast, lunch, an afternoon tea and the evening menu. They all look delicious. Plus, you can select from 38 types of tea. Two tea lovers, [...]

DINING, TABLEWARE | December 15, 2009

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Bone and Cozy Cups by PMO Design

Last weekend was the seventh edition of Souk @ SAT. Every year, it is a chance to discover fantastic designers and artists. The smart thing about the Souk is that they rotate the exhibitors. Therefore, you do not see the same things year after year. The kiosks are simply made with one or two low [...]

GIFT IDEAS, Gifts for the COOK | November 11, 2009

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Four Gift Ideas for the Cook or the Hostess

Bodum products are typically built to last, perform well and look good. Three good reasons to like them and to not be afraid to add them on your holiday shopping list. If you are looking for gift ideas for cooks or the hostess, you may consider: + BODUM Round Automatic Gravity Operated Salt and Pepper Grinder [...]

DINING, EATING out | November 3, 2009

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Tea Service at Windsor Arms Hotel

I went to Toronto for two days last week to research stories for my blog, to attend a social media event and to meet people. One thing on my list was having a formal tea service. When I saw that Windsor Arms starts serving their tea service at 1 pm, I jumped at the occasion. Some [...]