today was the last choral concert for august , when next sunday morning rolls around here in canada it will be september. the kids will be having trouble sleeping anticipating new classrooms, new teachers and friends.

september welcomes back scarves and boots and luxe accessories hidden in closets and under beds for the summer months, we will be forced to pull out the tights and silk undergarments in order to go forward boldly into mrs. huizenga's favourite season of all.

the warm season of docks and patios giving way to brown liquor and eating indoors - still with some excitement, not the dour in front of the television eating indoors of the months to come.at our house when it is dark by dinner time we have been known to have reading dinners, but i must admit there aren't that many meals in front of the television, it just appeals as lazy luxury.

the junction is firing up for the arts festival weekend, september 8-12. mrs huizenga junction is looking really just super fine and has some new neighbors in the keele corridor, you really should come and visit.  

roncesvalles is doing its best imitation of a desert wasteland. thinking about gathering and releasing some tumble weeds. (do we have those here in ontario ? i grew up in alberta and you would see them from time to time even  on main drags in calgary) the dust clouds would fare well with the addition of tumbleweeds, it would give it an exciting -wild- west -anything- could- happen feel to our beloved mid-construction roncesvalles.

as it is, we have written some secret hidden messages in dust. perhaps you are the hearty stock who will be bold enough to venture out and write your own message- back in the vintage room, maybe even on a front window display piece -  the possibilities are endless and the dust is the history of roncesvalles rewriting itself right before our very eyes. i like that almost as much as high summer.

remember that great old school house rock piece ? i keep singing it in my head as i wander about the new shop up in the junction.  opening boxes of stock thinking this is fabulous AND  magical. this is crazy OR outrageous- take your pick IF you wish.

in retail it is all about location. usually location, location, location in fact.

the junction offers a magic reminiscent of parkdale back in the mid nineties, a little rough, a lot creative, good bones AND good folks.  i am one of the fortunate few that know what their function is. it doesn't translate to paper and for some folks it doesn't translate at all, but i know that when i am in my shop and loving up the nuttiness i am happy. i hope a small portion of that translates to your visit......387 keele thursday to sunday noon to six until september when we will go full throttle.

in the meantime, here is a slice of virtual junction....smooches

so here it is then, the culprit behind the lack of clever posts by team huizenga. this is 387 keele and it will be the home to the second installation of the mrs huizenga empire-fondly known as mrs huizenga junction.

this building was erected in the mid eighteen hundreds and has been home to an endless smorgasbord of business and individuals in the last hundred and fifty years. most recently and perhaps ingloriously it was home to a rather unsavoury bunch of characters that didn't seem to need much sleep.dundas and keele is down one booze can crack house and up one surprisingly attractive building now that the six dumpsters have come and gone....

although roncesvalles will always be our home we must admit the junction has stolen our hearts and we are so very grateful for the warm welcome from our new neighbors . we hope to open the doors so you can come for a peek by early august-stay tuned for the green light !

this past week i started getting calls and emails congratulating me on the shop's inclusion in the upcoming toronto life magazine.

it is nice -after almost five years -to know that my happy plodding pace is starting to pay off. i have always felt that word of mouth is the best advertising but to  have something in print that will challenge that theory feels a bit like evolution ....... bring it on babies !

The Roncesvalles Guide: Our 25 favourite eating and shopping destinations along Parkdale’s Polish drag

These floral chairs, oh man.  Yesterday me and Patti were talking about how much we love them, and how they are the perfect chair for porch lounging-chilly beer in hand, of course!  So much spring goodness at Mrs H right now, you should come over and check it out.  See you soon! -R