Paisley and Flannel-Not Just For PJ's

We've had a bit of a cold snap, and so it was Danny discovered none of last year's clothes fit. At not-quite thirteen, he's now taller than his mama and weighs about the same. He has no problem lending me his clothes but for some reason the child is completely uninterested in wearing mine. I suspect it is the polyester. Anyhoo, off we went today seeking shirts with long-enough sleeves (harder than it sounds) and trousers that don't look like they've been slept in before being worn (also a bit of a challenge). I will say that I'm lucky having a son that is completely indifferent to fashion. He likes checked shirts and jeans without a bunch of crap on the back pockets. As teenage style goes, his is blissfully plain. Danny requested a denim jacket, which we bought, and a puffy ski-vest to keep his arms free when out bird-banding. Two hundred dollars and an hour later he had the jacket, vest, three pair of trousers, four shirts, a dress shirt, and something else I've forgotten. I'm going to be sad when K-Mart goes under (the death knell is already sounding) because you can't outfit a teen in a winter wardrobe for $200. at Target. 

My dress cost .99 cents at Goodwill, but I'm easier to dress and don't have long arms or legs. Hard to believe I carried that kid around in one arm. He was such a little thing coming into the world just over six lbs. His dad is 6'4 so I think this might be a yearly shop sort of thing for the next few years. 

You can see the leaves starting to turn on the street behind me. the large maple behind our place hasn't started changing yet, but soon I'll be outside doing a daily sweep of leaves off the patio. I loved raking leaves as a child, even if it gave me terrible allergies. We didn't burn them as my mum once ended up in hospital after inhaling god-knows-what in the air from a pile of burning leaves. Understandably she was reluctant to repeat the experience. We didn't burn them on the farm either, but we didn't have that many trees outside of the windbreak.  I still like bringing home interesting leaves from my walks, and I always have a basket of pine cones for decorations. Oh, I know you can go to Big Lots and buy silk leaves for decorating, but I prefer the real ones when possible. 

Anyway, all this babbling is my way of saying Autumn has arrived, and it is being reflected in our wardrobes. For my part, it wouldn't be autumn without paisley. 

Outfit Particulars:

1980's rayon dress-Goodwill

1990's bolero-Goodwill

Carole Dauplaise necklace-Goodwill

Brooch-Sarpy museum sale

Vintage crocodile handbag-Hand-Me-Ups

Shoes-K Mart (years ago)

Fragrance-Norell (thanks, Emily!)

Lippy-Estee Lauder Maplesugar (my standard autumn lippy)

 It wouldn't be autumn without some flannel either. This 80's does 50's number is perfect for a day that isn't quite cool enough for a jacket.

I do feel a bit more casual in a fabric intended for sleepwear and outdoor work clothing, but somehow I resisted the urge to go back to sleep (or cut down trees like a lumberjack). I think the velvet boots helped 😀

The boots might look familiar as I own the same pair in black leather (well, vinyl, actually). I bought these at the end of last winter at K Mart and I regret not buying another pair. The rubber heel is deeply grooved and provides excellent traction for a high-heeled boot. I'm of the mind that velvet boots go with everything, and I plan to wear them quite a bit. I hope you don't get tired of seeing them.

 Outfit Particulars:
1980's dress-Goodwill
Vintage handbag-Thrift World
Belt-Hand-Me-Ups
Earrings-hand-me-ups
Leaf brooch-can't remember
Vintage necklace-Hand-Me-Ups (has matching earrings and bracelet)
Boots-K Mart
Fragrance-Vintage Revlon Moon Drops (well that was an expensive trip down memory lane for something I'd describe as, "Meh").
Lippy-Wine With Everything (if only that were possible!) my "Other" autumn lippy

We're down to our last three apples from the visit to the orchard. Just in time too, as the pears are now ready for harvesting. I'm going to bottle some mini Seckle pears in brandy this week so they'll be ready for Christmas. Yep, it is time to start thinking about the holidays. Sorry.

Hope you're having a good week so far.

Culottes to Shorts

The first photos were taken earlier in the spring. I wrote the post, and I'm just getting around to publishing it. I've added on a recent set of photos for the second part of the post. As I have several older, half-written posts in the folder, expect to see a few of these over the next month or so as my schedule becomes crazier. Thanks in advance for your understanding. 

So bad, I simply couldn't resist.

 I'm calling these trousers late 80's by the designer and the style, but the fabric has a sun and moon motif which I associate closely with the early 90's. I remember trying to buy a shower curtain that didn't have a sun and moon pattern and finally ending up at Bloomingdales where I paid more than any sane person should for a solid colour, unadorned curtain. Twenty five years on, I bought these trousers. It seemed like a suitable amount of time had passed. Looking at the photos, perhaps that's not an entirely accurate assessment. I'm not sure enough time will ever pass for these culottes to be stylish. Perhaps, like bloomers this sort of thing is best left in the past. Ah hell, what am I saying?! I don't give a toss about being stylish. Hmm, bloomers eh? *Makes mental note to look for bloomers*.

I went with comfort shoes  as I put my poor feet through hell earlier. I promise, next time I'll wear my gold sandals but today these soft, cushioned Clarks were like heaven.  There's a gold sheen to the rayon that doesn't photograph well, but looks luxurious in person.

Outfit Particulars:

Vintage rayon culottes-Goodwill

Twin set-Sears, about 20 years ago!

Clarks shoes-Hand-Me-Ups

Necklace-The Mexican Shop, Evanston, Illinois-early 80's

Vintage embellished bag-Goodwill

Earrings-K Mart

Fragrance-Sun Moon Stars (Had to).

Impossible to photograph. Isn't it always that way?!

 Anyhoo, back to the present. I liked these linen sailor button-front shorts so much in beige, I went back and bought two more pair in black. The buttons are just decoration as there's a zip concealed at the side. That's why they don't bunch or gape. These shorts go in the wash, sometimes the tumble dryer if  I'm rushed. and they always look perfect-no ironing required. For inexpensive vintage-look shorts these were a pleasant surprise.

 I had to buy this dancers brooch.

 This is a Nantucket Lightship necklace. When Danny was little he'd grab hold of it, pop it open and ask (loudly, often in public) if there were, "Any cheese maggots in there?" Then, he'd laugh and squeal pleased with a joke only he seemed to understand. We'd get some looks though!

See?  No cheese maggots!

 Outfit Particulars:
Sailor shorts-K Mart (this season, still available)
Sleeveless tee-K Mart
Cardigan-Years ago in Boston
Shoes-K Mart
Vintage straw and shell handbag-Antique mall
Brooch-Goodwill
Nantucket basket-somewhere in Massachusetts, but not on Nantucket where it would be priced for the tourist trade. I've only been out to the island once. It was nice enough, but it was March, and freezing cold. That was my dad's idea of a fun weekend.
Earrings-K Mart
Fragrance-Avon Mesmerize (90's version-sort of like Samsara without the floral notes. I absolutely adore it)


Just a reminder, there's still a day left to leave a comment on the chicken show post from last week to win a pair of rubber chicken toys (I'll throw something else in too so it is worth the postage). If you miss out, we'll do another giveaway in September for the yearly State Fair cookbook and other related items. We're both still baking like mad here trying out and perfecting our recipes. I cooked and froze some peach pie filling earlier this week, which ought to save some time later on.

We're back in the heat and humidity this week which means I might be doing my baking at 3AM when the house cools down. That's okay, I prefer sleeping during the day anyway.

I'll have an interesting recipe later this week for some rather successful onion buns I made today. For once, I remembered to write down what I was doing as I baked. Can you believe this was once a cooking blog?

First Sandals of 2017

 We were treated to some beautiful (if a bit windy) weather, so I seized the opportunity to wear these vintage sandals for the first time. This did require the varnishing of toenails in March, which is rather early for my tastes, but the overwhelming desire to wear new (to me) shoes got the job done. Don't look too closely-it isn't the neatest work.

This outfit reminded me of the sort of thing my mum wore in the 60's/70's,

I have no idea who this person is. Keep on truckin'.

Outfit Particulars:

Trousers-K Mart, 90's

Top K Mart-Last week

Vintage Enid Collins bag-Antique mall

Vintage sandals-Goodwill

Gold bangles-various stores

Rings-all over

Cazal frames-Mum's

Earlier in the week I tried out this vintage square dancing skirt for the first time.

It was the hat that attracted the most comments. 

Outfit Particulars:

Vintage square dancing skirt-Goodwill

Belt-Hand-Me-Ups

Boots-K Mart

Lobster brooch-Hand-MeUps

Bracelet-Goodwill

Polo neck-K Mart

Tights-K Mart

Handbag-Hand-Me-Ups

Jacket-bought it in the early 80's in Chicago

I called in to the K Mart to see if they had rechargeable batteries at a good price (they did) and I found some velvet boots in the clearance. I also located this magic wand/pinwheel that I simply waved about and the dude with the ponytail appeared to pay for it all. I love that! Like having a genii pop out of a lamp but without all that tiresome garbage of limiting your wishes to three.  I should try it out somewhere slightly more upscale than K Mart next time.

Come along ponytail dude, there's an antique shop that needs exploring. 

Come Armageddon Come

I've written and deleted so many posts over the past few weeks I've stared wondering why I bother at all. I suppose that's a good thing-the impulse to edit that saves me wishing I hadn't hit the Publish button. Oh, there's nothing exciting to report, just that I don't like my general tone of disgust. I mean, yeah you'd have to be in a coma to not be disgusted, generally but as I'm not prepared to do anything about it, the tone seems a wee bit out of place on a blog set up as an entertainment. If the content of these posts seem a bit thin of late it is because I (like everyone I know) am insulating myself against a bleeding ulcer by meeting the anger with a shrug, and trying to keep things generally positive.

Maybe this was a bad time to be reading, It Can't Happen Here aloud with the kid.


Here's something to love about America...an entire wall at the small supermarket devoted to crisps/chips. Know what's on the opposite wall? Soda! Oh, there's produce too, but that's over in the disused corner by the loading dock because only livestock and weirdos eat that shit.

America! America! 
God mend thy every flaw
Confirm thy soul in self control
Thy liberty in law.

Sigh. Sorry, it is that "tone" thing again. Besides, no one knows the lyrics to America the Beautiful after the first verse anyway.


Oh hey, everybody look! Clothes!

The skirt is vintage (late 70's/early 80's but the top came from K Mart a few seasons ago. I seem to be going through a Hawaiian phase as I counted over a dozen skirts, dresses, and shirts as I unpacked the summer clothes. Come on, you'd buy something with a label that read, "Hilo Hattie's Hawaii" wouldn't you? You know you would! Anyway, I'm seeing a wardrobe trend which means the huge hair flowers can't be far behind. My columbines are trying to bloom in the garden. I expect they'll open by tomorrow (fingers crossed). 

Better keep the cardigan handy, just in case. At least I've moved to a cotton cardigan, and am hopefully done with the woolens for a bit. 

Outfit Particulars:

Cotton top-K Mart

Hawaiian skirt-Goodwill

Cardigan-Hand-Me-Ups

Shoes-Hand-Me-Ups

Straw bag-Goodwill

Bracelet-Garage sale

Earrings-K Mart

Rings-All Over

Necklace-Salvation Army

Vintage seahorse brooch-Art Show

Fragrance-Lucy B Tiare and Coconut 

I've embarked on a new project of creating a master list of my perfume collection. I wanted to have them sorted by house, category of fragrance, vintage or not, etc. I thought this might be helpful so I don't end up with (several) multiples. I'm all for hoarding scents I like, but no one needs multiple bottles of Tigress. Probably. Anyway, when you own hundreds of perfumes it is no small job getting them listed, and I'd abandon the project except that I'm better than halfway through. Really, what was I thinking? This is going to be a never-ending project. 

My kid just bought a computer with alienware that you can use as a touch screen and talk to. It addresses you by name, so he set it up to call him, "Dave." His name is Danny. He wants to hear it say, "I'm sorry Dave, I can't do that." All day I have been thinking he's calling me from another room when he's just been talking to the bloody computer. It'll serve him right if he gets jettisoned into space. 

I'm off to try and improve my mood. I'll start with dubbelzout but I think we all know it will end with Boodles. 

Hope your week is treating you well. 

Freak Snowstorm or...

...Freak in a snowstorm?  You decide. We recorded this as my neighbour two doors down was going to his car, head down and pretending not to notice my performance.

 Man, it was a strange day. We had snow, sleet, hail, and something called graupel which is like having slush fall from the sky. I covered the garden as a precaution, as it will be cold this evening. Spinach and peas can take the cold, but I'm less sure about the beets and broccoli rabbe. We'll be back to normal seasonal temps by the start of the week, but this was quite the surprise.

I had a slew of errands to run, but I managed a quick trip to New Life Thrift where I hit the motherlode of vintage Avon (in crazy bottles). The fragrances were still in good condition, so I bought Cotillion, Sweet Honesty, two bottles of Moonwind, and I nearly bought another bottle of Charisma before stopping myself (I already have several large bottles of it). I paid, .98 cents per bottle, most of which were full, and one of the Moonwinds still had the groovy 60's box. So basically, I'm happy. I found some interesting clothes as well, but the Avon was definitely the score of the day.

 The sudden cold weather gave me an opportunity to wear my blue faux fur jacket. I watched this jacket all season at K Mart until it finally went on sale. I didn't think I would get a chance to wear it this year, so I was pleased to have the opportunity.

Remind you of someone?

Danny thought I should do this song whilst shoving cookies in my mouth, but I still have some self-respect left. Not much, but a bit.

Outfit Particulars:
Skirt-bought online from a very cheap, terrible retailer that I wouldn't dream of buying from again.
Top-K Mart
Cookie Monster Jacket-K Mart
Boots-K Mart
Vintage vinyl handbag-Goodwill
Vintage necklaces-Both Hand-Me-Ups
Bangles-all over
Earrings-New Life Thrift
Turtle brooch on jacket-K Mart
Fragrance-Vintage Shalimar (and loads of it because there's no point in wearing Shalimar unless you apply it like you mean it!)

 You have no idea how warm this jacket is. I think it might be warmer than genuine fur.

Now that all my chores are out of the way...I should go find something exciting to do tomorrow. There's an All-Day Polka Fest happening in a small town near Omaha. That could be fun. I do genuinely love to Polka, but I'm afraid it might traumatise the kid. We'll see...you know I have the clothes! 

Hope you're having a nice weekend. 

Block Head

Colour blocked, anyway. I couldn't face the January bleakness this morning without a jolt of brightness. Orange, purple, and yellow might not be an obvious combination, but people kept telling me how well it worked. I wouldn't want to be quite so colourful every day, but it certainly filled a need today. Pow!

 A colour combination I'd never wear in Chicago as I would be accused of supporting the Minnesota Vikings. My dad (not a football fan at all) once bought a hat with the colours and team logo on it only to have a customer pull it from his head and replace it with his own Chicago Bears cap. people take their football seriously in the Midwest. We don't have a pro football team in Nebraska, so I think I'm safe.

By happy coincidence, I own a cashmere polo neck in the exact same shade as my tights. Obviously, that means wear them together. As the kids say, "That's a no brainer", or "Duh." I don't do a lot of solid colours in combination, but I would definitely wear this one again-such a mood lifter. 

Religious tat. I found these at the K Mart in the Latino neighbourhood. As they don't carry this sort of thing at the other location, I'm guessing it was a deliberate marketing decision. The beads are wood with the images glued on, and shellacked over.  I have a weak spot for this sort of thing  and was excited when the Vatican started selling images of the artworks in their collection as notecards and necklaces. I have a few, and if you like Renaissance art, I suggest you keep an eye out on eBay. These bracelets from K Mart aren't anything spectacular, but they were $1.99



I can't remember for certain, but I think this brooch came from an antique store in Salem Massachusetts, but it might have been Marblehead. I bought two similar pieces that day (likely from the same collection) but I can't remember what happened to the other piece, which I recall was on wood. Something made me think it was Russian at the time, but today I'm less sure. It might have been a tourist item, though at that time very few American tourists were headed to Russia.

As evidence the 80's never really dies, I have these earrings purchased a couple years ago at K Mart. I wore stuff like that in the 80's with oversized sweaters, leggings, and ankle boots. These days, I stay away from leggings, but who could resist clanging, dangling, metallic earrings. Not I!

Danny thought this scarf looked "vaguely Vera-ish" (I don't agree, but eh, whatever) and bought it as stock for his upcoming shop. As mother of the proprietor, I get to plunder the stock for free. I'll give him the buck he paid for this one, but the colours go with too many items in my wardrobe it let it go. 

Outfit Particulars:

Cashmere polo neck-Marshall Field's Country Shop, late 80's

Skirt-K Mart

Tights-Walgreen's

Boots-K Mart

Cardigan-Talbot's via Goodwill

Enamel brooch-Antique store in Massachusetts, decades ago

Earrings-K mart

Religious bracelets-K Mart 

Rings-Purple (K Mart) Green (Hobby Lobby) 

Vintage scarf-Hand-Me-Ups

Belt-Goodwill

Fragrance-Guerlain Guet Apens

Cazal frames-Mum's

I stopped in at Hand-Me-Ups in their second location today and found a French tapestry that I believe was a tourist item in the 50's. I might have let out a little cry of happiness at that. I like nice things, but I loathe paying for them. If I wait long enough, I find them in the thrifts. I also found a few nice wooden bangles with mother-of-pearl inlay. I do like the way wood can look with summer clothing so perhaps it will be a good luck talisman of sorts to get us through this terrifyingly cold week we have ahead. I should be used to sub-zero cold by now, but it can get difficult to comprehend when the numbers fall too far. We have all manner of warnings in place for tonight and tomorrow, but the rest of the week doesn't look much better. That's OK-I have my chores sorted, and I don't need to leave the house for at least a week. Last evening I baked wholemeal biscuits, and if the weather keeps up like this, I'll just keep baking. Take that, Mother Nature! I also bought a few pounds of limes, so I see some marmalade making in my plans as well. That should keep the house warmed up nicely. 

Update: I wrote this post late Saturday night, and it is now Sunday morning. We've reached -40 degrees F windchill which is the same as -40 degrees C. I suppose that's some sort of achievement. Oh, I know the Canadians are laughing as they get that for real temperatures, not windchill but I'm not cut out for this sort of thing. The sun's shining though, that's something. 

Second Update:

I went outside briefly. they weren't exaggerating! Ugh. I really don't know why I'm not spending my winters in Florida. I need to look into that. 

Blondin v.The Gingerbread House 2016-the Re-Match

"Hey, this is even tastier than last year's house. Good work there, lady!"

He'd better eat quick, as the rain has really been coming down today, and it is likely to become a soggy pile of dough before long. He seemed rather excited by the fruit leather shingles.

I took advantage of a rainy day to tackle organising my wardrobe. It really didn't need much work (I keep things tidy for the most part) but I was disappointed to see I hadn't worn most of my holiday pieces before running out of time. That means either I have far too many Christmas outfits, or I need to start changing clothes multiple times during the month of December. I'm going with the latter, because truth be told-I do love outrageous holiday clothing.

Just as Blondin likes to tuck in to a good meal, so does Mr. ETB. I love his fork and knife clutched in fists pose, but I really laughed at him putting pajamas on over his work clothes before sitting down to supper. It is the human equivalent of gnawing at the roof of a gingerbread house. Nice to see him enjoying the pajamas though-they were a Christmas gift.  I've finally perfected my lasagna noodle recipe:

3 large egg yolks plus 1 whole egg (save the egg whites for the cheese filling)

3 tablespoons cold water

1 scant teaspoon salt

1-1 /2 cups semolina flour

Whisk together the eggs and water until light. Add salt, then beat in the semolina until you have a very stiff, dry-ish dough. Wrap in cling film and let rest 30 minutes. Roll as desired. 

Because they are fresh, thin sheets of pasta they do not require much cooking-no more than a minute in boiling water. Drain quickly so they do not continue to cook. 

I use sieved  cottage cheese as a filling, and it works best to beat some egg whites into it along with a handful of grated, hard cheese. It does take care of using up the egg whites. 

I have an old, Imperia pasta maker that rolls quite thin, but if you are using a rolling pin, it should still be manageable (I've done both). This was a meatless lasagna, so I was able to use very thin sheets of pasta as it didn't need to support ground beef or sausage. I call it, "Knife optional" noodles, as you really can cut it with a fork. This is a good, basic egg noodle recipe that can be used for ravioli, or really any noodle you like. I won't give you a recipe for lasagna because I make the sauce slightly different each time depending on what I have. I tend to vary the cheese selection as well. 

"How do you know I don't like lasagna? Did you ask me? You know what they say about assuming. I  do too have room for lasagna!"

I thought such a grey day needed a bit of sparkle. The shoes proved to be a dumb choice, but eh, whatever. It wasn't like I was standing and waiting for a bus in a downpour (or standing on the patio gnawing at a gingerbread house). 

 I guess it is time to redecorate the hall-tree for the next holiday. Maybe I'll tack a kilt to him for Burns Night.

 Outfit Particulars:
Sparkly sweater-K Mart
Vintage camel skirt (part of a suit) Goodwill
J- Lo Shoes for Kohls-Goodwill
Vintage Coro earrings-Sequels thrift store (in the Dairy Queen) Council Bluffs, IA
Vintage West German beads-Hand-Me-Ups
Vintage handbag-Goodwill
J Crew jacket-Goodwill
Brooch-Goodwill
Nan tights-Leggs Sheer Energy (a lie! I'm no more energetic than I was before I pulled them on)
Fragrance-Vintage formulation Diorissimo
Lippy-Revlon Snowy Peach

 Not good shoes for sleet.

This brooch is difficult to wear as it is so pale it tends to disappear on anything except black. I really like the frosted plastic flowers, but finding something to wear it with is a challenge.  

As I've been writing, the rain has turned to snow-the sort that falls straight down when there's no wind, and makes huge flakes because the air is so humid. It is definitely time to pack away those shoes!

Guess I'll just have to rely on my sparkling personality to light up the room...there should be a picture of me flipping you off here, but I didn't take one, so just go ahead and insert a mental image.

Love 'Ya
Goody.