Darling Canvas Tote -- Thrifted

I bought this darling canvas tote yesterday on my home from getting my new title and plates for my car.

It's a vintage Boston Hand Print.

My laptop fits perfectly inside.

I love it and it will be perfect to take to the office when I'm planning to come home afterwards. If I have to go somewhere after my office meeting I will bring an insulated bag for my laptop. I don't like to leave it unprotected in the car when it's hot or cold outside. I don't think extreme temperatures are good for electronics. I am so happy with this $2.00 purchase. I don't think it was ever used even though it's vintage. I wish I had owned it yesterday. It would have been perfect for my paperwork and tools at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

xo

Here is a black insulated bag like the one I have for cold or hot car travel. Mine has black leather strap and trim and the body is olive green. It is designed for two (or three) bottles of chilled wine. I have never used it for that purpose. I got it at an estate sale with only my laptop in mind and it turned out to be perfect. Repurposing an item is always on my mind whenever I go hunting. xo

New Curtain Rods at Firehouse Flea Market

My favorite day was Saturday. The annual Firehouse Auction and flea market was back after a two-year absence due to Covid. I have been looking and looking and looking for new curtain rods for my dressing room and found them just before I was leaving for the day. I spent most of the day on Sunday looking for screws to hang them with the wooden brackets I already had. I looked through all of my screws and found nothing so I was forced to go to Ace Hardware nearby and one of the men there helped me find the perfect ones. 

I dashed home, got out my trusty new ladder, and hung the first one. The one on the right is the before photo. I have been unhappy with the old rods for a long time but have been making do until I found just the right new ones. Saturday was the day for scoring them. Now I can close them in the winter quite easily to prevent heat loss at night. My old rods were tension rods within the window frame and the curtains fell out when I tried to close them. I think moving them up to the top of my woodwork has transformed the whole room. I am in the process of putting away summer and getting out winter clothes and bedding. I put the cover on my air conditioning unit outside yesterday too. I had a great weekend, hope you did too.

xo

UPDATE: See an older blog post with the old look of these draperies HERE.

John Derian: Easter Decoupage

I have always loved all of John Derian's decoupage.

His line for Easter is fabulous!

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Artichokes at My Cottage

I purchased the three artichoke finials at a thrift shop in February before the stay at home mandate. I knew immediately they would be perfect in my garden. I even went out and purchased artiichoke seeds that are still in their packet while I plan my garden in my head. I got the book on Irish Georgian architecture at a used book shop and it's wonderful. I left the finials at the desk of the small thrift store and every single person who went to check out wanted them too. Nobody knew exactly what they were so I stood my ground when asked if I still wanted them. Of course I did. Pineapple finials are rather common, but artichoke finials are rare! 

Here is my seed packet. I really should have started my seeds indoors but it's almost time to plant them outdoors, so I shall wait. Stay safe while sheltering in place. xo

Guinea Hen Sighting This Week

I was creeping along in my car in order to take this photo, waiting for this small flock of Guinea Hens to get out of the way and it took quite a while. Luckily I was the only car on this country road. I actually took a video and paused it to get this photo. Why was I out and about? I was coming home from a local farm market that has curbside pickup and puts your order in the trunk of your car with no human contact. It is a family owned business that was founded in 1922. I figured all the big box stores and large supermarkets will be okay but the little local guys might not. It was also good to go out and drive my car. At one point, I was a little concerned that I would not be able to stay within the 10,000 miles per year maximum mileage allowed on my three-year auto rental. This year, it will not be a problem!

See more info @ eBirds.com on Guinea Hens or Guinea Fowl. I love these polka dot birds and was very excited about my encounter with them this week. Stay safe, my friends and enjoy your Sunday. xo

New Maytag Washing Machine LOVE

My new Maytag washer arrived yesterday and I am thrilled with it.

The lid opens perfectly as if it had been designed for my tight spot. The dryer is recessed and my old front loader used to match it, side by side. But I think it looks fine this way. I had to pull the washer all the way up to the door surround in order to be able to fully open the door but I am very pleased with the way my new laundry room is working out. I absolutely LOVE my new washer and have done two loads. I think this top loader gets my clothes a lot cleaner than my old machine and it spins them almost dry. Today I did my double bed sheets and four towels and I will use the sheet setting again because I like a tub nearly full of water. The load I did yesterday was on a setting that used very little water but the clothes came out clean. I can't wait to do some sweaters on the hand wash setting. One of these days I will photograph the other half of the room which is a half bath but I need to do a deep clean first. 

One of the reviews I read said to walk away from the machine after starting the wash. I decided to watch it because it's fascinating the way it works without the center agitator that I grew up with. I did today's load in all white but threw in an old pink and white striped towel that I use for cleaning. It was so interesting to see that it changed positions in the load so the other things must have also. 

The stainless steel tub is huge but not overly deep so you can easily unload the wet clothes. See what I mean about the center device? I guess the sides work like a wash board and they say the clothes get clean by rubbing up against each other. There are lots of interesting sounds and the clothes are always doing something, sometimes fast and sometimes slowly. I was prepared to be disappointed but instead I am delighted with my purchase from Lowes. They aren't paying me to advertise this, I'm just sharing with my friends.

xo

Apples and Fall are Perfect Together

This is the big antique wooden charger in the middle of my kitchen farm table. It is 25-1/2 inches wide at its widest point and is out of round due to shrinkage. I love it. I bought an 8-pound bag of Cortland Apples yesterday at Wegmans, a large new grocery store just beyond Morristown. It's not a big box store but it does have family packs of certain items. Yesterday there were all varieties of apples in 8-pound bags for $5.99, what a bargain! I counted them when I got home and there were 18. I put half on the table and the other half in my crisper. They are everything I hoped they would be in an eating apple -- crisp, juicy and sweet but not too sweet. I love an apple that snaps when you bite into it and I would have been crushed had they been mushy. Now I am all set with fruit for two weeks. They don't have stickers on them either, and I like that. They remind me of the old-fashioned apples my mother and I used to pick at my oldest friend in New Jersey's house but she moved a couple of years ago and now I have to take my chances with apples and buy before I can taste them.

I put this photo on Instagram yesterday but liked it enough to put it on my blog too. I am looking forward to Penelope Keith's Hidden Villages tonight on PBS. After that, I'll watch something I have recorded because there's nothing else on that interests me. Enjoy your Friday night and have a great weekend. I turned on the furnace for the first time on Wednesday and last night it got below freezing. I am so glad I emptied all of my galvanized watering cans and put them in the garage yesterday before they froze and exploded. I learned that lesson the hard way. xo

The Creaky Shed: Fresh Produce Greenwich UK

I love the name of this shop and the hand-drawn font they used for the sign. The Creaky Shed is a green grocer in Greenwich UK. The gallery of photographs with seasonal displays outside the shop plus more can be seen here. Looks as if they are all set for Halloween decorating with all the pumpkins. See you later with news of my car. Fingers crossed. xo

Burberry Burns Unsold Merchandise

The Burberry store in Mayfair on April 26, 2018 in London, England. Photo: Jack Taylor (Getty Images)

I have been watching/listening almost exclusively to BBC World News America lately and today I learned something shocking about Burberry, a brand I have long admired. "The British luxury retailer Burberry has taken protecting their brand to new extremes, reportedly burning over $33 million in unsold merchandise rather than sell it at discount or donate it." Read more here.
I hate to shop and I am not a fashionista but if I were, this brand would be off my list forever as it takes planned obsolesce to new heights. I am completely stunned, how about you?

Interior Design in A Walk-in Closet

This curated closet is gorgeous and must be a happy place to get dressed for the owner. He has such good taste! via

My Set of Antique Copper Pots with Monogram

I discovered this matched, graduated set of old copper pots at an outdoor antiques show years ago. Each one has this monogram on the front opposite the handle. Somebody was really proud of them and so am I because they look wonderful on the top shelf of my pantry. The large dovetails are beautiful too. The bottom of the biggest one is marked on the bottom with an incised E. I don't know what that signifies but it's probably a maker's mark. I didn't look on the bottom of the others. They fit inside each other nicely in a nest for easy storage. I like them lined up better. At my former house, they were displayed on a standing pot rack. The insides need to be re-tinned so I don't use them. Plus they are really heavy! I have posted this photo on my blog in the past but in view of questions about them, I decided to post it again. This set must have belonged to a gentleman cook with the initials B.M. Jr. 

I shall enjoy this rainy Sunday. All of the snow has melted so I will be seeing more snowdrops soon and maybe some blossoms too. xo

Another Peek into My Pantry

I found a beautiful brown transferware pitcher on Thursday at a rummage sale.

Here it is on display in my pantry. There is a window to the left behind the geranium.

Here is the other side showing my little downstairs desk where I work on my blog with my laptop. This little room is a favorite place because it's small and has two windows. The one with the desk looks out to my front garden and the one behind looks out on my barn/garage in the back. When I bought my cottage, it was a tiny screened porch.

I have enjoyed a rainy Saturday baking muffins and just being generally busy doing inside chores and reading. More rain is predicted for tomorrow too. Have a great weekend. xo

Asprey Campaign Photo: Old Westbury Gardens Long Island NY

Asprey Campaign, Old Westbury Gardens (New York) shot by Bruce Weber via Google Images. 

At first I thought this might be a very spoiled child's birthday present but it turned out to be a photo shoot for Asprey

Marie-France: Tour Her Parisian Home

Marie-France’s home in Paris is deeply rooted, and elegantly dressed, in old world charm. Today, she invites us and shares what turns a house into a home. See many more photos and read the article here.

DIY Wine Cork Pen/Pencil Holder

This looks like a clever gift to craft using your wine corks and your glue gun. Photo found here. Christmas is two months from today so you'd better get started.

Small Electric AGA Cooker/Range

If you are fascinated by AGA cookers, as I am, here is an alternative version to consider.

more information here

First discovered here. Read more about this renovated lake cottage in Canada here.

Shop Local -- Here's Why

Food for Thought. via

My Metal Polishing Products and Secrets

This post is on the fly this morning. Running late for an office meeting.

Yesterday I polished this antique copper coal scuttle. Last time it was polished during my stewardship? Never! I left the inside unpolished. I use this for storing old magazines. It's really a fireplace item but I don't have room for it there.

I polished all of my brass candlesticks and trivets. First I spray down the item with Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day multi-surface. Then I dip my dampened cleaning rag or sponge into some Bar Keepers Friend cleanser which I have in a shallow bowl. The rest is magic. The spray loosens the tarnish and the cleanser dissolves it before your very eyes. Wipe and buff. For really old tarnish keep spraying and dipping and rubbing. No need to wipe it all off until you are finished with the entire item. 

For horizontal surfaces like switch plates you will have to soak your rag in the liquid (just the part wrapped around your finger) and wipe over the tarnish first. Then do the second step. I used a Q-tip when I was polishing an engraved brass plate on the top of a cellarette without ruining the wood.

Just experiment. You will be amazed. Handle the powder with care. It's powerful stuff and is probably quite dangerous. But it's been around since 1882 and hasn't been recalled yet. I don't plan on using it every day so I don't think it will kill me before I'm finished. 

I got this "Radish" Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day spray at TJMaxx because this "scent" has been discontinued. I'm sure almost any multi-surface spray will work; this is just what I had on hand. I polished all of my silver trophies using this method and nothing got scratched. You can probably make a paste using these two products as well to "dissolve" the powder if you are afraid of scratching. All of my things are antiques and have already been around the block so I wasn't worried.

Good luck. I think I have hunted down almost everything tarnished in my cottage except for my copper pots and my antique andirons. I will tackle them soon. I spread a small tarp on my kitchen table to do the coal scuttle. For the smaller items, I used a folded turkish towel on my kitchen counter near the sink and rinsed under running water before drying and buffing, Just play around and see what works for you. You can also "rinse" small items in a dishpan full of water and keep using it for that purpose. You can soak heavily tarnished brass candlesticks overnight in this solution for really easy cleaning the next day.

My Three Favorite Things

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Coffee and Sleep and My Pillow

via

I have a new pillow from Costco that is really helping me sleep and dream better than I ever have.

I have always heard keeping your head cool and your feet warm is the secret of a great night's sleep and I found this 1925 article that proves it.

What kind of pillow, you ask?

It's a cooling gel memory foam pillow in a standard shape, not a contour. It has one side that feels like bubble wrap filled with a cooling gel. The other side is plain. It took me a while to get used to it. At first my neck felt stiff because my head was elevated higher off the mattress than my old pillows. But I felt more rested so I knew it was a good pillow and I went back to Costco and purchased a second one. Now I have a matched set and can search for cool spots across my entire bed. I am a hot sleeper and have always tossed and turned flipping my pillow to find cool spots. Now I can't wait to see how these pillows perform in the summer. I keep my room cold at night in the winter so it stands to reason that the gel away from my head will stay cool as the part I'm resting on absorbs my body heat. I just automatically gravitate to cooler spots without really waking up. I'll do another report in the heat of the summer. Fingers crossed.

My shoulders are feeling better too because the new sleeping height is reducing stress on them. Hope you like this "unpaid" product review. See you later. I have to attend a home inspection later today. xo

A New Little Pitcher for My Pantry

Today's thrift shop find: Stoneware creamer $3.50

Tiny little chip on rim.

Love the dogs.

Now this little pitcher is hanging out with all the other items with handles in my pantry. The white teapot has a small chip on the underside of the spout. I usually don't buy damaged things but these two were meant to be together.