Recipe or Receipt? To Roast A Pig's Head

Warne's Every-Day Cookery, 1900 Receipts, With Coloured Illustrations.
I recently ran across this great old cookbook; it's undated but appears to be from the 1890's. The first paragraph gives you a peek at life for the lady of the house.  "The mistress of a family commands daily a small realm of which she is queen.  Let her rule with justice, meekness, and quietness....we should have fewer bad servants if they were all under the firm and patient training of an employer who understood what their duties really were..."

Further reading takes you to a section covering the "Duties of the Housemaid", "Duties of the Housekeeper" and "Duties of the Footman".  The housemaid "is required to be a nice-mannered, respectable-looking woman. She should be a tolerably good dressmaker..."

The duties of a housekeeper "require early rising, both to get business over well, and as an example to the servants."  As for the footman, he "is required to make himself generally useful, though, of course the number of men kept will diminish or increase his work."


The recipes or "receipts" are most interesting - here's a sampling of the titles:
Baked Eels
To Roast a Pig's Head
Pig's Pettitoes
Pie of Larks or Sparrows
Cottage Soup - A Very Cheap Soup
To Bake A Pig
To Prepare the Brains of a Lamb's Head for Serving Under It
To Fricassee Rabbits Brown
To Collar a Calf's Head

Are you hungry yet? Once we get past the meat section, things look a bit more "normal". Desserts look downright appetizing. I was going to try making the sponge cake until I read the directions:

Take half a pound of sifted loaf sugar, break five eggs over it, and beat for full half an hour with a steel fork..." My arm was tired just thinking about that!

The book concludes with "Useful Receipts for Housekeepers and Servants".  Below are two which might be helpful in dealing with vintage garments.

"To Take Stains Out of Silk or Cloth"
Pound some French chalk fine, and mix it with warm water to the thickness of mustard. Put it on the spots, rub it lightly with your finger or the palm of your hand. Put a sheet of blotting, and of brown paper over the spots and press it with a warm iron.

"To Clean An Old Silk Dress"
Unpick the dress and brush it with a velvet brush. Then grate two large potatoes into a quart of water; let it stand to settle; strain it off quite clear, and sponge the dress with it. Iron it on the wrong side, as the ironed side will be shiny. 

There's no housekeeper, housemaid or footman here, and so I'm very thankful for my freezer, my microwave and the occasional dinner out!

Under the Thunder

7:30 a.m.  It's ominously dark outside and the rain is bouncing off "the" chair.  This old gal followed me home from an estate sale earlier this spring. I thought I'd sell her; but I've become rather attached to her cheery outlook.  On the gloomiest day, she is the lone spot of brightness.

I know that a lot of you love storms, and this one is a doozy. I wish I could post the sound of the thunder for you; The door is open for better listening, although it makes me jump at times.

Gracie is stressed, to put it mildly.  She's not a fan of lightning, thunder, or even plain ol' rain.  I heard her yelping and went to investigate.  It seemed that she was contemplating whether it would be more scary to stay upstairs, or to venture down into the dark basement alone. I turned the light on and  haven't seen her since.

It seems like a perfect day to tackle some indoor projects. Here's hoping that sunshine or rain, your day is bright!

I Heart Farm Sales

Going out buying wasn't on my "to do" list today; I'm in the midst of cleaning my overstuffed storage area and need to finish.  When I woke up early and saw what a beautiful day it was, I couldn't resist the 45 minute drive to a farm sale...those of you who love to go "junking" understand the siren call of a big sale. This one turned out to be worth the drive.

The farmyard was nestled up against an old cemetery.  That proved to be a fitting location, as the farm itself appeared to be the final resting place for dozens of farm implements and hundreds of other old items. 

The owner of the rusty abundance bounced around answering questions since he "didn't have time to get everything priced"...ya think?

Aside from what was out in the yard, there were numerous outbuildings on the property; a peek inside revealed more waiting for future sales.

I had a lot of fun poking around the property and gathering a pile of shabby primitives to bring back. Here are some snapshots of what you may find in the Gracie's Cottage booth at upcoming shows...enjoy the pictures!

Gracie's Cottage (temporary) Weekend Move

We temporarily moved Gracie's Cottage to Rummage-A-Rama last weekend and teamed up with Lilac Lane Boutique to load a large booth with an eclectic mix of great old finds. It's always nice to see our loyal customers and meet some new folks. The busy weekend at R-A-R left us with room for all the new finds that we're unearthing daily. We think that you'll love what we have planned for Elkhorn next month. 

We also met the talented mother/daughter team of Altered Ever After, who were selling at R-A-R for the first time,  Candyce Martens and Jill Kerne.  Candy's imaginative creations are colorful and immediately evoke happiness, (see photo below). Jill's steampunk jewelry is so intricate that a quick glance won't suffice; I loved studying each piece to see what she had incorporated.

We were excited to learn that when we get to Junk Bonanza in September, Altered Ever After will be selling there as well.  Check out their site...we know you'll love their creations as much as we did.

Easy Project - Embellished Town Names Cards

Do you have boxes of "schnibbles", small little treasures & bits of ephemera that have followed you home? I do. I love tiny things, but what do you do with them?  It's difficult to display them so that they won't be overlooked. This weekend I decided that I would give a few of them the respect that they deserve.

Several years ago at a flea market I purchased a vintage post office training kit. It consisted of a suitcase-sized wood box with dividers, to mimic post office boxes.  With it came boxes from various states, with hundreds of small cards with town names printed on them.

I went through the box from Montana and pulled out the cards with interesting names. Digging in my boxes I found items that would complement the names.   An old brass button with a horse head on it was the perfect match for the town of  "Hungry Horse".  "Rosebud" was a no-brainer; a shabby millinery rose and a bit of scrap.

 A small cowboy hat charm was attached to "Roundup" with 20 gauge wire and I couldn't resist using that same wire to make a circle to attach a round token to the "Circle" card.  (The token reads "For Amusement Only".) All items can be removed from the cards for another use later, if desired.  

This idea is easily adaptable to any tiny treasure.  Print or stamp cards with a word or phrase to complement  your item. Attach your "schnibble" to a vintage postcard or photograph.  Select items specific to your guests to use as place cards or party favors. It takes just a few minutes to make each one and the possibilities are unlimited. It's fun, easy, and you'll enjoy showcasing your smallest finds.

A Sunny Day & Flea Market Style

Light nourishes me. The sun popped out this afternoon and it was the first time this year that it was warm enough to sit out on the deck.  (It's in the mid 50's, but felt downright balmy to this Northerner).

Gracie and I enjoyed an hour of pure bliss basking in the sun while I pored over the pages of Flea Market Style. I'd been looking for this magazine since first hearing about it and finally found a copy on a road trip last weekend.  Junkmeisters Ki Nassauer and Matthew Mead have put together the ultimate inspiration for junkers like me.

I've read every page and am going back over it finding things that I missed the first two times.  My favorite line in the magazine comes from an article on Canton Texas Original First Monday Trade Days: "Ki, who is attracted to anything you can buy in quantity...".  They could be talking about me - I'm irrationally thrilled by multiples. (In the past couple of weeks I've purchased over 300 vintage feed sacks, twice.  For the math challenged, that's over 600 feed sacks in my small storage area!)

My favorite seaside colors show up frequently in the pages of Flea Market Style and reminded me that a junky old tavern chair is in sitting in the garage waiting for a coat of paint. Maybe tomorrow.

Easter Whimsy - Vintage Bunnies, Chicks & Baskets

Today is the first day that carries a hope of spring.  The warm sunshine is melting some of the piles of snow and reveals bare grass that will return to green one day.  Easter must be coming.  I've been gathering old easter baskets, bunnies and chicks for years.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Smile...spring IS coming!