Shelley's 10

The 10 list concept was invented for and because of people like Shelley.  List lovers. 

Daughter  of a prominent Canadian artist. Her Christmas tree every year is an installation, she makes beautiful cakes and  is a grand lover of tradition.  She was my first truly great boss. She taught me that you can be the owner, give direction, protect the needs of your business and do it all while making your employees feel that you're truly glad that they work for you.  A retail goddess, inspired buyer, merchandiser extraordinaire, trend spotter and successful shop keep. She is now the person that is called upon to source, assemble and create fabulous collections of merchandise.  Her sense of style is informed in equal parts by days gone by and next season's must haves. Shelley prepped me for my first trip to New York with a special envelope of pin money. She uses words like lanai and if you say tomato, she does indeed, in regular parlance, say it the other way.   She gives herself permission to say yes to the luxuries of life and lives by the rule that sometimes the most liberating thing of all is to simply say no. To know her is to covet some fabulous accessory that she's wearing right now. This is Shelley.

Here are ten things I love...I enjoy them each separately, but strung together they

would all be part of my idea of the perfect day.

1) MY J.SCHATZ YELLOW EGG BIRD FEEDER:

This really was the perfect gift. Given to me at Christmas by my friend Loreen, I hung it up immediately outside my kitchen door and waited. For over two long, cold months I waited. Then suddenly in mid-March they started to arrive. First the sparrows, then the red-headed house finches, then the gold finches...beautiful, chatty, musical. Best time: early morning. Open back door, check the feeder; make coffee, check the feeder; get the papers, check the feeder; sitting at the kitchen table, gazing out the back door, reading the newspapers, drinking coffee, checking the feeder. Perfect.

2) NEWSPAPERS:

As mentioned above, a very important part of every morning...I know many major North American dailies are now on life support, but I still open the door with gleeful anticipation every morning and gather up the strewn corpses of the local daily broadsheets we subscribe to (as well as the New York Times, after they seduced me with a four month free subscription). I do appreciate and use NYTimes.com, globeandmail.com, nationalpost.com, and thestar.com, but there is something about having everything strewn out on the table before me, whether it's a day when I only have time for a quick skim, or ideally, one of those days where I can luxuriate in every dense, minutiae filled article, that I find incredibly satisfying.

3) SMALL TOWN BAKERIES:

Mmm...what can I say.

I live in the city. I love the city. I grew up in the city. I love that less than 10 (walking) minutes from home I can get a perfect espresso and a melt in your mouth croissant. However, the giddiness that accompanies the sight of a classic, old school, small town bakery, is something I never tire of. No espresso (usually no coffee), but the best caraway rye, chelsea buns, butter tarts, peanut butter cookies etc. you could hope for. I also love and admire the often seen "cash only" sign, and the fact that you better get there by noon, or you're outta' luck sister!

Slim Aaron-Poolside Gossip

4) SWIMMING POOLS:

Beautiful. Heavenly. The sight and smell of a swimming pool has always been one of my favourite things. An ideal place for intense or mild exercise, or pure, floating laziness...with or without music, cocktails, lemonade or lunch. Under palm trees or oak trees, next to a beach or in the middle of a backyard... During the summer I spend a lot of time at my friend's pool in the country, surrounded by willow and maple trees, and a huge lush lawn, with a good supply of magazines, books, sunscreen and water. And, during late May and June, the heady smell of lilacs drifting by. I can't think of a better way to while away a summer afternoon. There's always one moment during one particularly perfect day every summer that we remember as THE moment, and go back to during those cold, grey, snowy days of winter, when lounging by the pool seems a lifetime away.

5) PERIODICALS:

I love magazines. From my weekly trash (People and Us) to my semi-trash (New York Magazine) to my definitely not trash (the New Yorker) to my beloved monthlies: Vanity Fair, Paper, Bust, Vogue, Elle Decor UK etc. I do have one subscription (for Toronto Life) , but still get a particular thrill from a visit to my favourite magazine store, its shelves bursting with the latest issues. As with my beloved newspapers, I also use online magazine sites to catch up on any issues I've missed, or to send articles to friends, but the real pleasure for me still lies in cracking open a new volume, on the subway, at home, by the pool, in the park, on the beach...you get the idea. By the way, a great magazine (e.g. the fashion or design issues of the New York Times Magazine), INSIDE a newspaper is particular bliss...

6) PARTY SCENES:

I've always loved parties..the fact that cocktails, canapes and cake are often involved only add to their appeal. From the pre-planning and the guest list to the menu, the decorations and the perfect party outfit, I'm interested in all the details. I'm sure that's one of the reasons why I get such a kick out of party scenes in movies: Breakfast at Tiffanys, Next Stop Greenwich Village, Auntie Mame, An Unmarried Woman, The Thin Man, Rachel Getting Married...just a few examples of movies with great party scenes that I never get tired of watching.

7) VINTAGE COOKBOOKS:

My Vincent Price Cookbook (the best cheesecake ever) and my set of mini Peter Pauper Press cookbooks from the 1950s (I learned how to bake from "The ABC of Cookies", and my friend Warren found "The ABC of Canapes" and "The ABC of Cocktails" online) are some of my favourite sources when I'm looking for dinner party inspiration. The recipes are always a bit different than what I'm used to, so I follow them exactly. Then I put on my Pucci palazzo pants and enjoy the results.

8) ACCESSORIES:

I like to wear black. Don't get me wrong, I love colour, but my wardrobe is basically black. The main reason for this is because of my love of accessories: earrings, bracelets, brooches, etc. etc. etc. ...and don't even get me started on bags and scarves. New or vintage, usually a mix of both, just adding one piece can re-define an outfit (all that black makes the perfect backdrop). There are definitely times to pile it on, but I usually follow Diana Vreeland's advice about jewellery, and "always take off the last thing you put on".

9) GOING TO THE MOVIES:

I adore the movies. Big or small, "movies" or "films". One of the things I love about going to the movies is that it's something I can do at different times with different people...I can take in an afternoon matinee by myself, if I feel like playing hookey; I can go to the early show with friends who like to be in bed by 9, or to the late show with friends who don't have dinner until 9.

Going to be the movies can be planned, slipped in on a week day " wanna catch the 6:50 show at the Varsity?" or be the spontaneous end of an evening with friends " come on, if we leave right now we can catch the 10:45 show of He's Just Not That Into You". I know they're too expensive, filled with ads and there is always the potential to be near a dreaded "talker", but there's still something about sitting in the dark with a bag of popcorn looking at the big screen with a group of strangers that can take you away and help you stay connected with your fellow citizens at the same time.

10) CHARLIE ROSE:

Ahh, Charlie. You talk too much, you interrupt and you don't always listen to your guests, but you're still one of the only places left on TV where I can tune in and hear an hour long conversation with anyone from Sean Penn or Brooke Astor to Joan Didion or Wes Anderson. Thank you PBS. Everything takes place around that great wooden round table of yours, that is usually piled high with newspaper and magazine articles about your interview subjects that you've actually read. I still tape (yes, on my VCR) your show everyday, even though I know I can go online and see all your old shows at: www.charlierose.com