Weekly Randomness for Friday, March 27, 2015

It snowed last night here next to the lake. Our foxy neighbor was out too. You can't tell from this photo that this is our back patio. This fox regularly trots right up to our back porch on its way into the backyard on its way into the ravine behind our house. Sure wish it did a better job of scarfing up the ground squirrels and the rabbits... (big prints are Nora, little prints are the fox)

News that made me stop what I was doing to look it up.

• George Washington Carver would be pleased. 
• Cool. But is it raccoon proof? I think not. Sigh... 
• Saving ancient art one way or another. 

Weekly Shits n' Giggles

• Because I've recently discovered that I love popcorn.  
• I'm intrigued... mixer? Maybe with champagne?? (that might defeat the whole non-alcoholic-healthy-for-you aspect though...). Love the recipe note: Because of the fermentation process, it is best to open the lid and release some of the gas that accumulates. (unless you want ginger beer splatter on the inside of your fridge... duh!).
• My Pinteresting Randomness

Weekend Aims

• Popcorn trials! 
• Home & Garden Show - they sell Bloody Mary's at the bar (what else do you need for checking out landscaping rock and new curtains?!). There's a garden metal artist out of Appleton, WI that always has neat stuff; we have several pieces and try to pick up something new each spring. 

The Linen Closet: Hanky for February 18, 2015

Another piece in the Hanky Project. 

In keeping with the theme of the last hanky that also had appliqued details. 

Impressive handwork. 

I don't know that I would have the patience for it. But we have so many more distractions, such as TV, Pinterest, blogging... (wait a minute...)

Latest Splurge: Wedgwood Bullfinch china

Sometimes, when we're out piddling in the flea markets and antique malls, I see something that I just can't stop thinking about. We've trained ourselves to have strong "useless crap" filters, and to keep impulse collecting in check by walking away from something. If you don't remember anything after perusing room after room of goodies, then it didn't make enough of an impression. 

One of our favorite places to poke through is Antiques on Second in downtown Milwaukee. And not long ago, at almost closing time on January 1, I saw this: 

I must have walked away from it half a dozen times, convincing myself I had no need for it. I thought about picking up a piece or two. But then how to choose. In the end, I left a note for the dealer to see what an asking price for the whole shebang was. 

And five days later came home with the whole shebang. Well, this partial service, which was all there was. Usually available sets are dining pieces: plates, bowls, cups, saucers. Serving pieces are hard to come by. That may have added to my fascination with this partial set: there are a lot of serving pieces. 

I've since learned it is Wedgwood china, Bullfinch pattern, circa 1875 (that's really old for me! most of my collections are mid-20th century). Described as brown color asian-inspired floral transferware, brown border, polychrome overpainting. This little gravy/sauce dish with lid and platter is my favorite:

I can find very little about the pattern. More modern versions use instead a relief molded rim instead of all the color. I'm also a little stymied by the marks. I can date it and verify the pattern number, but can find nothing about the small asterisk/flower imprint, the single letter imprint, the single painted letter,

and absolutely nothing about this raised diamond-shaped cabochon mark: 

The large platter has a display home up next to my beloved Friendly Village platter. The rest, well, it may be time to reorganize the china hutch...

The Linen Closet: Hanky for December 2, 2014

I posted the first of these linens in the Hanky Project in August. Since then, I've learned, well, to be honest, nothing new to add. Information about vintage handkerchiefs is hard to find. Our Milwaukee Public Library has some reference books in their Fine Art Reference collection. And I swear I will get there one of these days...

In the meantime, here's another hanky. The skill to make this one is so impressive. 

Each of these leaves was hand shaped, and the edges of the pieces folded over before sewing it onto the hanky square.

It has a nice layout. Very simple. Even the secondary corners have delicate decoration.

Up close, you can really see the hand done details. I keep thinking: this must have been what women of gentile leisure did to pass the time in the early 20th century. It has some blue to it - was this part of someone's trousseau?

The back is almost as finished-looking as the front. 

I have several handkerchiefs with these kinds of piecework additions. I'm hoping to learn more about them. 

Antique Doll, New Costume: Part 2

I'm in the process of re-clothing this doll, an antique china head/china hands & feet doll from the late 19th century (best age guestimate). The first thing was to decide whether she is a "child" doll or a "lady" doll. 

The difference in clothing choices are pretty distinct between the two. Tough choice: the chubby cheeks on this doll are more child than lady, but her body proportions are more lady than child. The body will be hidden by clothing, but not those chubby kid-cheeks. So: child clothing it is. 

You see that spool between her feet? Keeps them from knocking together and chipping. 

Putting her in child clothing may be completely wrong for the doll, but since no outfit is permanent, I can always make something else if it looks awful. 


Stage 1: knickers. 
She's going to need some knee-length pantaloons. Garments of the day looked something like this: 

Her current pair are way too long and poorly shaped, with elastic at the ankles. I like the lace though, and I would like to re-use it somehow.

I'm debating between reshaping, pintucking, etc. these, or starting from scratch. I picked up some aged woven cotton at the thrift store (i.e. an old shirt) for fabric, since new fabric just feels too, well, new. It even has some eyelet along the hem I could work into the garment. 

I haven't been able to find a pantaloon pattern per se, so after taking measurements I drafted this: 

I have a whole new appreciation for tailor's tools like french curves and chalk. It makes me wonder about tailoring my own clothes. Some day. 

But first: knickers. And after the knickers, the chemise. Stay tuned. 

Glossary: TBT

ThrowBack Thursday: Old-timey recipes, modern kitchen

October 9, 2014  
Gancel's Encyclopedia of Modern Cooking, ©1920, revised 1956

You could accuse me of cheating on this one. I didn't mean to. This book claims to have over 8,000 recipes in it - that's a great deal more than most Pinterest boards. And it's suitably old. 

Reality is this is more glossary than cookbook. Pocket-sized to hide in your apron, every term for every style of cooking is listed in here; heavily influenced by European styles and in particular the French. Mr. Gancel provides his professional references as a prelude, and it's impressive. 

Most "recipes" are little more than shorthand versions of what it should contain. I've not found the abbreviations list. I need an interpreter...

There are a few descriptions that give volumes and amounts, but I need to look up terms here too; how much is a gill? Timing is "wing it!" I've come to think of it as the dictionary of secret chef-speak, like a secret handshake. Maybe this is where real cookin' and less "recipe-followin' " begins. 


Throwback Thursdays features a recipe from an antiquey style cookbook. Hard to know what age to put on it, but you know an old-timey  one when you see it. I have at least 10 oldies now, a number which, being greater than 3, implies a collection. It also means they need their own shelf in the cookbook bookcase.

Chicken Paprika: TBT

ThrowBack Thursday: Old-timey recipes, modern kitchen

Image from TheGraphicsFairy

October 2, 2014  
Chicken Paprika
From The New York Times Cook Book, ©1961

Chicken seems to be a go-to meat for a lot of folks, probably because it's really versatile and has a mild taste which is good for taking on all sorts of flavors. This recipe is one-pot simple and seemed doable on a week night.

Approach
Pretty straightforward: chicken, onion, garlic, stock. The "one tomato" and "one green bell pepper" are a bit vague; I have no way to gauge size of the average tomato 40+ years ago. The recipe note suggests "genuine Hungarian rose paprika" for best results. From what I can gather, the Sweet Paprika from Penzey's will do fine. I'm also assuming that half & half with a splash of heavy cream will do for the "light cream."

If you're observant, you will notice 1) the chicken is still frozen, and 2) I'm using orange Italian frying peppers. Use what ya got, right?

Result
It came together very easily; all the work is in the prep. It's really more of a pink sauce, thickened with flour, light cream, and sour cream. I wasn't expecting a pink sauce, so I was probably confusing this with cacciatore or something. I took the meat out of the pan when I thickened the sauce although the recipe didn't say to. We served it over some leftover potatoes, but I think it would be especially good over pasta.

Verdict 
Keeper. Rich flavors, will probably be great leftovers. (added later: yes, yes it was excellent leftovers)


Chicken Paprika
The New York Times Cook Book, by Craig Claiborne, ©1961

2 tablespoons butter (I used 1+ tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil)
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used more like 2/3 cup)
1 clove garlic, smashed (it was a really, really, really big clove...)
1 1/2 tablespoons sweet paprika (Hungarian rose paprika if you have it)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tomato, chopped (more like 1 1/2 cups)
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped (1 1/2 cups orange pepper)
3/4 cup stock
1 3-4lb chicken, in pieces
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup light cream (2 tablespoons half & half and 1 tablespoon heavy cream)
1/2 cup sour cream

Melt butter in large heavy saucepan (or dutch oven). Add onion and garlic, sprinkle lightly with pinch of salt. Sauté lightly until softened and turning golden. Add paprika, salt, tomato, pepper, and stock; bring to boil. Simmer for 10 minutes covered. 

Add the chicken. Cover and simmer until the chicken is tender, 40-50 minutes. Remove chicken from pan to a plate; cover and keep warm. In small bowl, combine flour and cream; mix well. Stir in 1/2 to 1 cup cooking liquid, mixing well to prevent lumps. Add back into main saucepan, again mixing well to prevent lumps. Add the sour cream; heat through. Return chicken to pot and bury down in the sauce to warm through. Serve it over rice or pasta. Or even potatoes. 



The New York Times Cook Book, by Craig Claiborne, ©1961

This cookbook is "a collection of nearly fifteen hundred selected recipes that appeared in the pages of The New York Times between 1950 and 1960." I tried to paraphrase that, but said almost the exact quote anyway. Found at an antique/flea market. (The photo looks funny: it's only the spine, and a floral tablecloth. The cover was otherwise plain black. Meh.)

Throwback Thursdays features a recipe from an antiquey style cookbook. Hard to know what age to put on it, but you know an old-timey one when you see it. I have at least 10 oldies now, a number which, being greater than 3, implies a collection. It also means they need their own shelf in the cookbook bookcase.

Dutch Sweetness

But I don't mean chocolate. 

This pair of Dutch children used to hang out in my grandmother's kitchen. I'd have to ask my mom if they predate her childhood. Growing up, like most kids, I had no appreciation for tchotchke. I'm still no fan of clutter, but these have really grown on me. 

I'm guessing they date to the 1920-30's, made of chalkware*. While not rare, I find this pair unusual to what I can find online. 

Most Dutch wall figures are painted in shades of blue and pink. Clearly these are not. Also, most pairs seem to be either dancing or carrying water buckets. These two, at least to me, seem to be bashfully flirting. 

This pair came to me when we downsized my parents into their condo. Even then, they hadn't been on display in years. They are the perfect colors to match our kitchen, so I'm happy to say they are hanging out once again. 

*Collector's Weekly has a really nice article about the history of chalkware here. 

This post was previously shared on my Around the House page. 

Antique Doll, New Costume, Part 1

I've had this doll maybe 15 or so years. She came to me as a gift from my aunt; she thought the doll reminded her of me as a child, all those blond curls. In all truth, I'm not much of a doll-collecting sort, but I have to admit this one is particularly nice (and not because of any personal resemblance...). 

I have never cared for her outfit though. I've always thought it was the wrong style and out of proportion. It's also terribly faded, has been since before she came to me. My husband surprised me with a really, really nice new sewing machine not long ago, and I keep looking for reasons to use it. So... time for Ms. Doll to get a new outfit. 

So far, step 1: measurements. 

There are no stock patterns for period clothing to size, so I will have to draft my own. Stay tuned. This promises to be quite a process.