Milk Glass Multiples

The thrift store always has some of these vases sitting on the shelf by the front. A single vase is bland, even depressing, but lined up with its cousins, it packs a cheerful punch, and any cutting from the yard, garden, or roadside will look stylish when set out in a line.

These sweet spicy Sarah Van Fleet roses will only last a day or so, but then I'll cut some more from the overflowing bush, or cut fronds of fern, or tiny oak branches.


These footed dishes are another great thrifting find--great not because they are rare and costly, but because I can pick them up for a dollar or two, and set them in a row on my bathroom windowsill to hold pretty supplies. They look beautiful with the sunlight streaming through, and they are practical as well . . .


because you can drape necklaces over them!

Thrifted Bird Candles

I had a great week at the thrift store! Grabbed up a whole armload of linen dresses to transform into aprons for the shop next week (and maybe a tutorial), lovely little metal trays in yellow printed with dogwood blossoms, and these sweet bird-shaped candles for only thirty cents apiece. I love how they look with a cutting of the Lady Banks rose, the same creamy color.

Wisteria in Full Bloom

Oh, the wisteria is in full bloom! The arbor is a mass of bee activity and the fragrance is incredible.

The girls and I are running our 5K race in the morning, which has nothing to do with wisteria, but is on my mind at the moment. We've been "training" off and on since January, and hope to complete it smiling. Giles, who qualifies as an "elite runner", has much higher hopes for himself.

Added on Saturday: Giles ran a 22:30, I ran (slowly!) the whole way without walking and came in at 34:30, and Clara and Bella finished at 36:30. We are all feeling proud!

In the Vintage Kitchen: Baked Custard

We started with butterscotch, and now we're on chocolate. I don't like to eat custard, I just like to make it, and Felix eats it.

Pansy Pillow

More sewing fun from thrifted goodies, for sale here!

Divided Pyrex, Again

The divided Pyrex dish comes in handy again, while serving sliced avocado and tomatoes.


I do love turquoise right now.

An Elegant Linen Apron

I'm in love with my new linen apron. Why? Because it's slim, elegant, practical, and I made it from a thrift store find in about half an hour.


I took one of those so-nineties dresses that has a straight skirt with slits in the side seams, and tabs or ties at the waist to shape the torso. I cut off the blouse part and was left with the front and back skirts still sewn together at the sides. I turned them inside out, and stitched the sides and bottom together. Turning it right side out, I now had a double-layer skirt with an opening at the top. I pressed the edges and corners, then cut out and sewed on a waistband long enough to tie in back.


My apron is two layers thick (wonderful for gardening and messy cooking). It cost $3 and is made from quality linen.


And it looks great with a skirt or the odd pair of jeans!

Daisy Decorates Her Trike

. . . with apple blossoms.

Vintage Lamp Inspiration

"Cornelia did wonderful things in the way of artistic shades for little electric lamps that Carey rigged up in odd, unexpected corners, made out of all sorts of queer things: an old pewter sugar-bowl, this with a shade of silver lace lined with yellow, a relic of some college costume; a tall gray jug with queer Chinese figures on it that had been among the kitchen junk for years, this with a dull blue shade; a bright yellow vase with a butterfly-yellow shade; and a fat green jar with willow basket-work around it on which Cornelia put a shade of soft green, with some old brown lace over it."

--Grace Livingston Hill, Re-Creations

Evening Kitchen

Embroidered Tees for Daisy

Cheap tee shirts from Old Navy made fancy with a little embroidery . . .


I love that a little bit goes such a long way. Fifteen minutes for a masterpiece.


Transfers from Sublime Stitching and Pattern Bee, as usual.

A Handful of Items in the Shop

Two smocks and a Dick and Jane bag in the shop tonight.

A Romantic Dress for Clara

The girls and I have been happily engrossed in the 1999 BBC miniseries Wives and Daughters, which we have never seen before. Daisy above everyone is obsessed with Molly, Roger, and Cynthia, and is full of questions. Why does Cynthia wear two buns AND a ponytail? Why is Molly good? Is it because she has better dresses? Did Roger die? And more.


Molly's dresses actually are enchanting, probably to the point where they truly would make you a better person. Clara wanted one and we made it from Sense and Sensibility's Romantic Era Dress pattern. Clara was confident that she could handle the Big Sleeves so we went for it.


I used a beautiful Moda print from their "Kansas Trouble" series. We piped the sleevebands and waistband in contrasting red, and trimmed the neckline with tiny cotton lace. Covered buttons do up the back. The skirt is two straight panels of fabric gathered, and the bodice is lined with a very delicate cream voile.


And while wearing it so far, Clara hasn't jilted anyone at all.

Giles Visits California and Makes a Decision

Third and last college tour completed by Giles and the Composer. This last trip was to Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California.


Even excluding the fries, there was a lot to like at this school.


Natural beauty, an intensive and rigorous course of photographic study.


However, Giles found that Brooks lacked the sense of community he is looking for in a school for now . . .


and has decided to go to: Savannah!

Dogwoods

Who can believe these beautiful fragile blossoms grow freely in the woods?


Such easy beauty.

Backroads: Abandoned House with Rosemary

After dinner we loaded up in the car to go see a newly discovered abandoned house This one we found on our way back from the lake one afternoon in the fall. In October, it had an enormous bush of rosemary blooming madly beside a little stone wall.

Incredibly, the rosemary was blooming even more generously yesterday--smoky blue flowers and that ancient piney fragrance, and taller than Felix.

A beautiful evocative ruin, a home that had been lived in by gardeners who planted redbud trees, grape hyacinths in the lawn, and tiny perfumed narcissus which had spread in a carpet.

Blossoms taking over the porch; Giles capturing beauty.


A perfect weathered gray door.

A dignified front yard boundary: the waist-high stone wall, good for leaning and smiling.

Who will remember this beauty every year if not us?

Felix Has a Big Day

All week Felix had been planning today's Big Green Day--that's a birder's term for a day spent identifying as many birds as possible using only walking or biking to canvass the territory. He had his route laid out from before sunrise to late afternoon, his supplies in his backpack, and his bicycle tires aired up and ready to go.

It was a Big Success: 80 different species spotted today, including ten birds for the year list. His best find was black-bellied whistling ducks.

He covered eighteen miles, got a little sunburned, and is quite satisfied.

Tiny Cobblers

I think it is Pyrex Inspiration Week around here. Yesterday I did my weekly duck into the thrift shop during Clara's piano lesson and found seven of these pyrex mugs. And they were very clearly saying "Tiny cobblers!" to me.


I used a ball of pie crust dough from the freezer, cutting into approximate sevenths. Made up some blueberry pie filling to fill the mugs, and then plopped a circle of dough in each cup. And they have plenty of headroom for dropping a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

Ladies Vintage House Dress: Advance 8666

Here a heart-breaker: a dress that came out beautifully but is just enough too big that I can't enjoy it. I think I've figured it out--it was meant for a housecoat, and so it's got extra ease designed into the pattern.


But isn't it so great, the way it ZIPS all the way down the front? It called for something like a five-foot-long zipper. Too bad the one I found was only about three feet long. That's long enough! And it went in without a fuss or a peep, and it doesn't peek out!


And that spreading collar! It lies so flat, with such quality. Quietly waiting for pearls.


And (yet another) pink rhinestone buckle on the matching belt. Maybe there's something wrong with me, thinking that every dress I sew requires a sparkly buckle. Or maybe you think so too.

I must find this dress a home where she can be appreciated. Bust 36, waist 28, hips 40. If you're interested, let me know; my e-mail is in my profile.

With Soup Tonight

To serve with soup tonight: classic saltine crackers and slices of cheddar. I like to serve these in my divided oval Pyrex dish. Everyone owns one of these. They appear in the cupboard in the night.


Also a plate of broccoli crudites. For a dairy-free dip, I mixed into a cup of mayonnaise: the juice of a lemon, a crushed clove of garlic, salt, pepper, and a tablespoon of chopped dill I had frozen this summer.

A Regency Blouse for Clara

Clara suggested a blouse from the Regency dress pattern. I had just enough of this beloved vintage polka-dot fabric to do it, if I pieced the back.


Nice to have the fitting issues already worked out and folded up in the pattern envelope!


Goodies from the stash--vintage navy blue velvet ribbon and unbelievable buttons in sort of a polka dot miniature.