Baby Heirloom Tomatoes

I bought some of these at the farmers market yesterday.

(Doesn't this almost look like a quilt?)

Yum!  These baby heirloom tomatoes were delicious!

I sliced them in half and put them over the top of my pasta tonight.

I'll use the rest to make a basil and fresh mozzarella salad tomorrow.

A couple of months ago somebody posted a recipe for a tomato and cheese tart.  

Does anyone remember who that was?

Be Happy!

Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.

- A. Lincoln

So...

Put a smile on your face.

Count your blessings.

Stop feeling sorry for yourself.

Do something nice for someone else.

I promise, you'll have a great weekend.

Linking my pink zinnias and glads to Pink Saturday at How Sweet The Sound.

Happy Birthday, Miss Potter!

Happy birthday to Miss Beatrix Potter.

 One of my very favorite children's authors and illustrators. 

Botanical artist, naturalist, preservationist, farmer and loving aunt.

Certainly a woman ahead of her time.

Several of her sweet little books are scattered around my house,

along with children's china from Royal Albert and Wedgewood.
(Four of the books were mine when I was a child, and
are looking quite tattered, from repeated readings.)

Which one of her tales is your favorite?

I have to call it a four-way tie between

 Pigling Bland, Jemima Puddle-Duck, Tom Kitten and Samuel Whiskers.

  

PS- April, (Whatever Is Lovely), also did a post about Beatrix Potter today.
Hop on over to visit her at Happy Birthday To You, Miss Potter. 

Bath Time For Soapy!

It's bath time for wee Soapy!

(And it looks like it's laundry time for that dirty robe too!)

Soapy Siddle came with her very own gilded claw-foot tub, plush towel and talcum powder. 

My sisters and I had other Liddle Kiddles, but Soapy is the only one I still have.

We had Kiddles that were in perfume bottles,  lockets and soda-pop bottles.

They were so much fun to play with!!

(these 3 photos were borrowed off the web.)

If you were a child in the 60's, you probably remember playing with these too.

Did you have a favorite?

Look here for lots more images   Liddle Kiddles
I also have some Liddle Kiddle paperdolls, on my paperdoll page.

Happy Little Bluebirds

Tweet!  Tweet!

I think I have enough little bluebirds scattered around the house 

to ensure happiness within these walls for a very long time.

I like that some of them still have their coldpaint faces. 

(Paint applied over the glaze, after the firing process.)

At least two of my birds are genuine Shawnee.  I'm unsure about the others.
(Any experts out there?)

Shawnee did not mark all of their pieces and there were reproductions made. 

It doesn't really matter.  I just love the way they look.  

What's making you smile these days?

Have a happy weekend, everyone!

Golden Peach Crunch

Golden Peach Crunch

One of my favorite "comfort food" desserts.

The whole house smells yummy when this is baking.

Golden Peach Crunch

2 cans (1 lb, 13 oz) cling peaches

1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1 cup oats

1/3 cup melted butter 

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Drain peaches. Mix with cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon juice. 

Put in 8 or 9 inch square baking pan. 

Combine rest of ingredients. Mix. Sprinkle onto peaches.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

Serve warm with fresh whipped cream or a scoop of cold vanilla ice cream.

(Sometimes I double the topping for extra crunch.)

I made a double batch tonight. 

One pan for my family.  

The second pan for a family with a daughter in the hospital.   

Please say a prayer for Miss N.  

Crazy Crinkles And Wrinkles

Oooh, I found some green Crinkle!

I love these wrinkled bowls!

"Crinkle" was made by Morgantown Glass Co  in the 60s and early 70's.

(and Seneca Glass fulfilled the remaining orders after Morgantown closed their doors in 1971.)

This pattern was made in an amazing rainbow of 25 colors, 

with great names like Pineapple, Amethyst, Topaz, Peacock and Gypsy Fire.

But plain ol' green is the one I like best.

At least I THINK these footed sherbet bowls are Crinkle!

There were other wrinkled glassware patterns that looked really similar 

and it's kinda hard to tell them apart.

Take a look at ALL these other wrinkled patterns:

(These are not mine.)   

"El Rancho" by Bryce,

"Milano" by Anchor Hocking

  "Driftwood" by Seneca

and "Lido" by Anchor Hocking.

A person could go crazy trying to keep these sorted out!

Thank you to these websites for help in identifying:

Crinkled and Wrinkled Glass
Those Other Patterns

Amy, Magic Doll

Do you all remember the paperdolls that had clothes with no tabs?  

Their clothes just stuck to them.  Like magic.

This is Amy.  (Whitman 1968)

I do declare, I must have been out of my mind 

when I dressed this poor doll in a thick sweater for the bloggy-fashion-shoot.

It's a roasting outside!   She needs to be in a swim suit!

That's better!

Hope you are staying cool, too.

*****
Be sure to visit my paper doll page under the header.

Round-Up

I have started to round up some creative storage containers that can be used to reorganize my sewing area.  My space is neither messy nor disorganized, but it's not very appealing.  I'm tired of supplies being stashed in humdrum cardboard boxes and boring plastic bins in the closet.  It's time to make this a well-ordered, imaginative and cheery space.  

I found a couple of fun pieces at a flea market last weekend and a few others were right here in my own house.  

This little doll sized hutch only stands 17 inches high.  

It has 2 nice sized drawers and shelves that could display small things. 

Maybe I should paint it.  What do you think?

I've had this Marjolein Bastin hat box for several years.
Time to put it to better use in the sewing room?

My daughter used this stair-step shelf while she was in college.
Now it might help my organization project go vertical.

Fabric pens would look nice in a bluebird planter.

This wooden filing box was once used for recipes
Hmmmmm... rickrack and trims would fit nicely.

I found a little powder tin with a tight fitting lid.  

So many possible uses for it.

I already group vintage spools of thread in milk glass compotes
and display buttons in glass jars.

This is just the beginning.  My eyes are peeled for interesting flowerpots, boxes, baskets, baking pans, and other items that can be repurposed.  What are your favorite storage and organization solutions?   I'm certain to find oodles of clever ideas and artistic inspiration when I browse "Where Bloggers Create 2011".   

Dixie Dogwood

Isn't this a pretty pattern?

It's called "Dixie Dogwood" (Joni)

It's kinda like Blue Ridge pottery...... but it's different.  

Sometimes it's hard to tell what's what.   If I understand things correctly, some of the designers/artists from the Southern Pottery Inc (Tennessee) who created all the "Blue Ridge" designs, left and went to other potteries in the area, like Stetson.    Once at their new jobs, they continued to handpaint the same type of patterns with just slight differences.  Later, Erwin Pottery reproduced some of the Blue Ridge designs.   To complicate things further, the various potteries marked some of their pieces, but not all.   So, confusion ensued, and today people have trouble telling who made what and which one is which.

  Look at these pictures and see how easy it might be to get the two mixed up. 

(especially if you are not looking at the two side by side.) 

One of these is "Dixie Dogwood" (Joni), Stetson.  

And the other is  "Southern Dogwood", Blue Ridge, Southern Potteries Inc.

My serving bowl is the Dixie Dogwood (Joni).  I believe it was made in the mid 50's.

The backstamp is hard to read, but it says:

"The legend of the Dogwood dates back to the crucifixion.

Early lore likens the Dogwood petals,

 shaped like a cross and stained with red,

to the Cross of Calvary."

If any of you are collectors and have more (or better) information on this, I'd love to hear from you.  

Connecting to:

Vintage Thingie Thursday at The Colorado Lady

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Look at these wonderful giveaways!!!

Gillyflower

Sweet Bee Cottage

The Kitchen Witch  at The Mouth of the South

Embroidered Tea Napkins

I found some sweet little napkins last weekend 

and knew they would be perfect for tea parties with my friends.

I love the delicate embroidery work on these little beauties.

The crocheted and cross stitched hems add a nice finishing touch. 

I wonder about the people who made them, and how they came to be in the store.

I wish the original makers knew how delighted I was to find them!

Chicken Scratch

I went "treasure hunting" today 

and here is one of the things I found and brought home.

A green Chicken Scratch apron.

Sometimes called  Gingham Lace or Snowflake Embroidery, 

Chicken Scratch is done on gingham fabric to create a lace-like design.

I think it's so pretty.   And it uses very easy stitches.

Google chicken scratch to find all sorts of images and free patterns.

And this site teaches some of the basic stitches used.

Since I'm showing aprons, I should also share this little cutie.

The tiny apron my Mommy made for me when I was a wee girl.

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PS- I see that this has become a popular post.

Please leave me a message so I'll know you were here.

And I'd love to have you follow my blog.

Picnic

Look who came to our picnic!!
Superman!

(Mr. Garden!  I love his sense of humor!)

(family photos may not be borrowed or pinned.)

(Nieces)

Enjoy the time you get to spend with your family!

(SIL, nephews and niece.)

(family photos may not be borrowed or pinned.)

Have a good splash in the water!  

Stay cool!

Happy July 4th!!!

Happy Birthday, Canada!!

(All photos taken by my Dad and/or Mom.  May not be borrowed or pinned,)

Dear Canada,

Happy birthday!

Thank you for being such an amazing place 

to spend my childhood years.

Love you forever,

Garden Of Daisies

Pictured in this post:
Lake Louise,  Bow Lake,  Peyto Lake,  Moraine Lake, 
Banff,  Kamloops, Vancouver,  Cranbrook,  Hope-Princeton Hwy,  the Ogopogo (Kelowna)