Not Your Standard Pyrex

Sick of weeding and home repairs, Dad decided that we all needed a break, and we were long overdue for a day of antiquing. We headed all the way to A Unique House Antique Mall in King George. Among antique malls, it proved itself more enjoyable than most, despite the lack of AC. I pined for several, random household items, from a cute copper watering can—too pricey—to a Jadeite measuring cup with matching juicer—seemed like a great idea until I realized that my desire for a Jadeite piece didn’t outweigh the fact that I couldn’t actually read how much was measured through the creamy green material. I finally settled on a pale blue, Depression glass, casserole dish, complete with matching lid and trivet. It was a little pricier than I would have liked, but I had never seen such a piece before. Labeled as Fire King Oven Glass, it should cook as well as any Pyrex. I figured that I didn’t have a casserole dish, and why should mine not be beautiful as well? I think that is slowly becoming a new motto of mine. William Morris said, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” I have a few concessions, but I like to think of it as also reading, “If it is useful or needed, try to make it beautiful as well.” Happy surprise, I got a little discount at checkout.

Also, when walking out, I picked up a great brochure/map on Eastern and Northern Virginia antique malls/shops. So handy. I’d love to get one for the rest of the state. I plan on keeping it in my car for long drives with a little down time. Not all the shops listed can be trusted to be superior as they pay to advertise. We went to another one that was listed, and it turned out to be a total dud. But that is the story of antiquing, hits and misses!

Update: I found a bunch more of the glass at a little shop along the drive back from camping. The lady specialized in Depression glass. Her stuff was pricey…all of it, except the light blue. Lucky for me! As I don’t own any baking stuff, I got a small casserole dish, a lidded loaf pan, a medium roasting pan, and two pie dishes. It will be simply delightful to bake!

Lap Desk

I have had a lap desk for years, a small, purple bean-bag one with a marker-scuffed, poly-board top. I probably got it when I was eight. The back has been falling off, and the beans just get on my nerves. With my laptop aging, it is now a necessity to use a lap desk to keep my legs from getting burned. I’ve been looking for one, but have been disappointed by the selection. Ninety percent are black or dark brown. The other ten percent look like an angsty teenager’s closet, all black and hot pink with horrible patterns I wouldn’t even want in a dorm room. I really just wanted a nice big, wooden desk with space to write and a pretty floral backing. I’d even settle for stripes. No go.

So I made one myself. I contemplated just getting a board cut at Lowe’s, but that seemed too rough and unfinished. A quick Google search set me on the right path. The key is using a cutting board. Genius. I realized I could even get one of those with a drip groove and let that catch my pen or pencil. I picked out a nice maple one at Walmart for $16, and then purchased a light foam board like you use for tri-folds. With some one inch foam left over from some project of Mom’s I made a backing, layering and trimming so it gradually angled. I just glued the foam and foam board together with a hot glue gun. I added a layer of cotton backing for a little extra give. After that, I dug around in my cloth scraps, finding an old floral shirt that was the perfect size. Laying the foam backing on the cloth, I cut a piece to cover it, then adhered it with hot glue, taking care to shape the corners. Finally, I measured out where the backing would go, quickly covered the area with glue, and stuck the two pieces together. Voila! A functional and feminine lap desk. The only thing I have noticed is that it is a little heavier than I might like. I blame it on the sheer thickness of the cutting board, but I am sure a lighter board or a different material would work well. Maybe I’ll make a smaller travel one too.

Going Turkish

That’s it. I’ve converted. I’m going Turkish. Well, Turkish towels, that is. At the D.C. Eastern Market, I came across a lady selling Turkish towels. I had heard of them before and was very interested in trying them. But I was tentative to buy any online without seeing if I really liked them. She had a goodly selection in various colors, many of them soft pastels. All the towels had tassels and narrow edge stripes. The regular towels were huge, and the hand-towels were quite generous as well. I bought a white one with lilac stripes and a lilac hand-towel with white stripes.

I LOVE them. I can’t believe they haven’t caught on more here. There are so many advantages over the standard fluffy towels that are popular. They can be really big without taking up storage space. They fold to next to nothing, giving that they are just a light cotton weave. They dry really quickly and are fairly gentle on your skin. You know how you have to dry towels in the drier to make them soft? Doesn’t matter with the Turkish towel. This translates to less energy use, especially in the summer if you use a clothesline. You can easily use them at the beach as they don’t collect sand. They also get softer with age. They remind me of old Victorian linen towels that I still hunt for in antique stores and at auctions. There is nothing like a nice fluffy towel taken straight from the drier at the end of a cold day, but I may just exchange it for the practicality of a Turkish towel, at least for the warm months. Maybe I’ll completely convert someday…

See the Antiochia towels online at soapsantiochia.com. 

Country By Jasper Conran

The last time I was in Williamsburg I wandered into the bookstore and immediately gravitated to the home design section as I am wont to do. Having perused through most of the shelf, I tugged out a large book, simply titled Country. The cover was filled with an image of the most peaceful, green, fog-enshrouded lane I have ever seen. Hefting its goodly weight, I flipped through pages of quiet, muted photographs of English countryside, jars of marmalade, and worn faces etched with crow’s feet. Intrigued, I read a few paragraphs. Jasper Conran seemed to be describing all that I love most about seasons in the country. Even if the nationality was wrong, the basic commentary about struggles and joys within a rural landscape rang true. Nothing idealized, yet subtlety positive; the words comforted me in familiarity. The coordinating photographs by Andrew Montgomery were mesmerizing. I was charmed. Flipping over the cover, the price was a mere twenty dollars. Sold. I thought I could handle that for a bit of literary and pictorial eloquence.

I devoured the book in a day. It’s an easy read, often with just a couple paragraphs on a page, if any at all. I highly recommend it, if simply to refocus our busy lives to things simpler and more meaningful.

Funny enough, as I was reading, I came upon a section discussing Crookabeck Farm in Patterdale and the lady who works the sheep and goats there. That farm is a ten minute walk from where I stayed in the Lake District last month! It was odd to see a full-page photograph of the woman from whom I bought my angora scarves. Of all the farm shops to visit! It really is a small world sometimes. 

I Scream! You Scream!

A couple of years ago at a church raffle, I won a second-hand ice cream maker, in near mint condition, cast off from some over-cluttered kitchen. It wasn't anything special, just a Cuisinart automatic, rotating, frozen bowl with a simple blade and cover. I had always been a fan of the old fashioned, crank-until-you-get-a-stitch-in-your-side ice cream makers, requiring primitive things like rock salt and sweat. I even made Mom promise to buy one of these classics for a wedding gift someday—I read a touching story one time about a young married couple who worked through a particularly horrid fight by taking it out on the ice cream. As a massive fan of the summertime dessert staple, I fully expected to find this somewhat extraneous appliance on my wedding registry. But winning one? I may still have my heart set on the old, ice-filled, wooden tub, but I have no complaints in the meantime.

Lemon Ice Cream:

Tangy, crisp lemon melting over your tongue with a smooth, creamy finish? Yes, please!

1 cup sugar

1 cup skim milk

1 cup half-and-half

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

Combine ingredients in a mixer. Transfer to your ice cream machine, and let it do the work!

Breaking Out of the Egg...

I have always had a lot of ideas running around my head. Many make it all the way down to my hands and out into my home. In the age of Pinterest, blogging, and all sorts of digital sharing, it seems only natural to let others share in these ideas and joys as well. Here is my humble attempt. Enjoy!