The mural at Bandra Cafe in Surrey, BC In the Spring of 2021, I decided to quit my corporate job (without the safety net of having another job to go to) after being in post for almost five years. After 18 months of covid craziness, I knew I needed to make a change. A drastic… Continue reading The Bandra Mural – Behind the Scenes
Author: Val McDowall
Born in the seaside town of Kirkcaldy and raised a stone throw from the East Coast of Central Scotland in the county of Fife, I was always fascinated by the strange and the paranormal. Anything supernatural soon captured my curiosity and held my attention and, lucky for me, the local history of where I grew up is steeped with gory stories of witchcraft and sorcery that I heartily absorbed and which fuelled my vivid imagination.
I emigrated from Scotland in October 2007 to Edmonton, Alberta in the Prairies of Canada where I lived with my husband and cuddly black cat for 6 years until relocating to the West Coast of British Columbia in the summer of 2013.
Spring Equinox
"Ostara" by Amanda Clark The occasion of the Spring Equinox is celebrated around the world by a pagan festival called Ostara (also known as Eostre). The festival marks the midpoint between darkest winter and the height of summer which takes place on March 20th or 21st each year in the Northern Hemisphere and around September… Continue reading Spring Equinox
Lady of the Rainbow
"Lady of the Rainbow" - original water colour by Val McDowall (1984)Abundance awaits at the end of your rainbow! I painted this water colour piece when I was at high school in 1984, I think I was around 15 or 16. I remember being influenced and loving the surrealism art style and famous painters that… Continue reading Lady of the Rainbow
Enter the Tiger
Happy Lunar New Year - Enter the Year of the Tiger! Happy Lunar New Year everyone or “Gung hay fat choy” which means congratulations and be prosperous in Cantonese. But it's not just Chinese New Year on February 1st this year, it's also known as Spring Festival, Lunar New Year and the New Moon Festival… Continue reading Enter the Tiger
A Kind of Burns Supper
Burns Supper ambiance with bonny thistles and tartan Happy Robert Burns Day to all our family and friends across the world and everyone with even a hint of Scottish blue blood running through their veins! Every January 25th, the Scots (and many others around the world for that matter) gather to celebrate the life and… Continue reading A Kind of Burns Supper
Ode to an Outlander Living in Canada
I'm sure Outlander's Head Cook Mrs Fitzgibbons would be impressed by my homemade Pigeon Rolls and Scotch Eggs! Around this time of year, just before Rabbie Burns Day on January 25th, I tend to think about hearty Scottish fare. Possibly that's because it's usually still cold at this time of year but more likely its… Continue reading Ode to an Outlander Living in Canada
Christmas Croquettes
Getting ready for the Christmas feast tomorrow! This is a great recipe if you want to use up leftover mash potato but I made a huge pot of mash potato today on purpose so that I could have a go at making croquettes ahead of time for Christmas dinner tomorrow. For the regular mash potato… Continue reading Christmas Croquettes
Mulled Cider with Fireball Whisky
Time to warm up with some Festive Cheer! Oh the weather outside may be frightful ... but the festive cocktails inside can be quite delightful! Who doesn't want to warm themselves up with some festive cheer? There are so many festive cocktails to be had. Last year I made a different cocktail pretty much every… Continue reading Mulled Cider with Fireball Whisky
Festive Cranberry Gin & Spicy Cranberry Sauce
Time to bottle my Festive Cranberry Gin Liqueur! I love making liqueurs and regularly have a batch or two of different flavours on the go! For Christmas time I like to make Cranberry Gin Liqueur. It's really simple to make and so delicious. I made this batch on Halloween and put it away for two… Continue reading Festive Cranberry Gin & Spicy Cranberry Sauce
Christmas Orange Pomanders
Our Christmas Kitty Roxi eyeing up my pomanders! Today I find myself reminiscing about Christmas Past. As a young kid growing up in the 1970's, besides seeing what Santa had brought us, we used to love checking out our Christmas stockings. Back in those days, we didn't have the fancy stockings you see in the… Continue reading Christmas Orange Pomanders
Val McDowall 