lady cordelia

weekending (what a weekend.)

Hey: check out what I found this weekend.

Yes, that is my a** in $160.00 jeans.   Oh Yaaaa.   Only $3.50 at what us locals call Old Folks Thrift Store. Nevermind why we call it that.  Just don't confuse it with New Thrift, Mr. Munchkins or Stinky's.  Anyhoo: check it out:  I never thought I would own 7 for All Mankind jeans.  (Nor was I really all that upset about not owning them, if you catch my dirft.  I mean, really.   Who needs to spend that much on jeans?  I'm lost on the point totally.  But, hey.  Put those pricey jeans in my face for $3.50 and I'll be super happy to brag about wearing them.)

Then yesterday I went yard-sailing with my favorite thrifting buddy (sans kids!).  She picked me up at 8 a.m. sharp.   Unfortunately, all the yard sales we hit really left a lot to be desired.  That is, until I took my chances with an Italian espresso maker (and also a milk frother. )

Oh. My. Goodness.  I will never use a regular coffee maker again.  Never.  Never.  Never.  I AM SO HIGH  ON CAFFEINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Plus it looks so rad in my kitchen.   I feel so Italian.  Even the guy at the yard sale told me it is "way Italian" of me to buy this coffee maker.   Wow.  You just never know what amazing things can happen to one girl in one weekend.  Me: an Italian coffee drinking person in $160 jeans.  Holy.  Freaking. Moley.  

And wait, that's not all.  We found a hummingbird in our living room.  (Our 5-year-old said she saw a very big bug and we should come look.) We thought she might die, she had been trying to get out the glass window for sometime.  She rested in my shirt and looked at me for a good long while.  She didn't move.  Her tiny black eyes just blinking.  (I think she knew I was wearing $160 jeans.  She just had that look in her eye.)  Then just as we were going to put her in a little open-topped box so she could rest and hopefully regain her stregnth, she suddenly flew away like lightning to the tallest tree around.  

Recap: Wearer of Expensive Jeans.  Italian Coffee Drinker.  Hummingbird Saver.  Can you improve on that? Perhaps not. Ciao.

weekending with amanda.

joy moments

joy moments:

dressing up brown dog.  happens frequently.  she's an interesting dog- moderately devoid of personality.  so when we can make time to fancy her up a little, it's real good for everyone.

 

white dog: more personality, way lovable, but total pain in the a**.  we dress him up just to bother him a little and get him back for all the times he annoys us.  of course he totally goes with it.  he's solid with wearing pink. I love that about him.  and yea.  I made the scarf last christmas.  made it for my neighbor who found it too short and made it a hella huge cowl. she may not be too amused that I dressed the dog with it before giving it to her.  it was only for a quick photo shoot.

of course I have a thrifting joy moment!  these plates are so gorgeous.  but I took the photo with a weird iphone photo app and now you can't tell just how rad.   4 of them for $6.  a tad bit steep for my thrifting eye, but I traded for something I had and didn't want.  see.  that's how I roll.  did I tell you about the huge handful of early 1900's silverware I found the other day?  $3.  la te da te da.

another joy moment: the egg poacher from yesterday's blog. 

and check this out: my 5-year-old says to me this morning: momma, if a mom is mean to their kid, and then that kid grows up and is mean to her kid and then..well it just goes on and on and on and on, right? And I told her: yeah.  that is basically the worlds biggest problem.  that is why everyone needs a nice mama and dada.

I'm so glad I'm a nice mama.  And that you are a nice mama (or dada.)  I think we can change the world together. don't you?

Have a great weekend!

linking with this moment and joy pockets.

 

lookie what I got.

Look what a friend got me at the thrift store.  A vintage egg poacher! I know you're not supposed to put in eggs with the shell on (duh!)  but I had just gotten these eggs out from the coop.   Aren't they pretty?  The egg in the upper left is a first from one of our young hens.  I'm so proud of this hen for laying her first egg.  I picked her up and gave her a little squeeze and said Congrats Hen, nice egg, good going.  Then I put her down and she looked back up at me like..Thanks for noticing, mom. These are the moments that make farming all worth it.  I can't bear to tell her I'm not her real mom.  We don't know who her real mom is and that can be really rough on a chicken.

Anyway, this friend who brought me this egg poacher...what a friend!!!  I met her not so long ago through another friend.  And I went to my new friends house for the first time and I was like: Wow.  We really have some things in common. We are both into "flea-market style."  I'll have to ask her if I can take some pics of her cool finds someday and how she has them displayed.  Way rad.  Plus: we are both side-of-the road-furniture vultures! She has found some amazing things on the side of the road!  I'll see her and I'll ask her: So, E, what do you want to find on the side of the road these days?  And she'll ask me the exact same thing. 

She loves that I make little quilts for my girls because she appreciates the days of old when women had to make quilts to keep their families warm.  You couldn't just run to Target, you know.  That's what she says.  And I love that she says that.  And you would hardly ever catch her in Target.  Unless, I am guessing, it was for underwear or something along those lines.  Because we live by the same credo: thrift shop til you drop.

My friend doesn't really read my blog because she can't get over how personal I get.  She's such a cutie that way.  But I'm going to show her how much I love my egg poacher pan by sending her a link today. 

I hope you also have a friend who thinks of you when she sees vintage egg poachers from the thrift store.   I really hope you do.  There's not a lot of friends like that to be found, you know. But they are out there.  I know from experience.

a day in the life of December

I love Christmas.  And I love it so much.  I put up the tree real early.   I am not shy about putting the tree up early. I do not like cutting down more trees than need be.  So.  We have a fake.  Looks real.  Miss the pine smell.  Saved a tree.  That's how I roll.

Shopped for vintage ornaments that were cheap.
Found a few and also some vintage cookie cutters. 
I was super excited.
BUT THEN, I was sad because once again, at the antique store and no vintage muffin pans.  I've waited so long.  Searched high and low.  None to be found. 

Ho hum.  Went to the local thrift and as I drove there I thought: it will happen when it's time. 

As I arrived at local thrift the owner was pulling stuff out of a box and in his HANDS had a vintage muffin tin. Yes.  True.  Swear.  It was kinda super rusty.  So I used it as art.  Still on the lookout for the Ovenex ones.  You know, like Heidi Swanson has in her latest cookbook. I wanna have baking gear like Heidi Swanson. Sure I do.

I like old kitcheny things.  I like vintage ornaments.  I like artistic photos.  Though, this one may be taking it too far.

Now you know a little more about me.   And that's my dog on the right.  He's oversized.

And now I have to go spend some time with my children who, it sounds like,  are inviting the chickens in the house for crackers.

 

things involving yarn and carbs.

Stop with the breakfast options already.  Right?  Come on.  This is fresh homemade granola and homemade strawberry compote THAT I froze and took out months later. With yogurt.  Greek style.  Come on.   But- you know all about this stuff.   I won't link to the recipes.  I just thought the pic was pretty.  Not even 6 months ago I could barely crack an egg.  Look at me now, ma!  Right?  Right.

Yeasted Bread.  Tassahara Bread Book.  Made it a million times.  (Or, maybe 10 times, or 15.  Close enough.) Check it out:  Tablespoons & Teaspoons.  Different.  K?  I have a dough ball just like the one you see above in my trash right now cause I thought I was way too cool to look at the recipe today.  If you like salt a lot, the one in the trash was the loaf for you.  (What a waste of 7 cups of flour.  And 4 tablespoons of salt)

Now.  Check this out.  Bag of already made granny squares at local thrift.  FULL ON BAG.  (Just sampling the amount in the pic.)  Now I can totally make the gran blanket I've been dreaming of without having to learn to make the squares!!!!  NOW you are jealous.  No?  But wait, it gets better.  $6.  Yes!!!  (Sigh. Blowing on fingernails and shining on shirt.)

And, on the serious side a little- a hurricane hat for a friends son who is undergoing 2 years of chemo for leukemia.  He will most likely push it into a lifetime of remission with this treatment.  But, it's been immensely hard for the family, as you can imagine.  He is a senior in college and still going to school because he wants to graduate with his friends.   

 I want to link with Yarn Along today, so I have to mention a book:
See it in my sidebar.  It's a bio of a famous Rolling Stone writer/editor.   Pretty cool read, actually.
My dad got it for me cause he knew the dude.  And, well, my dad's name is listed in the index.  He's even quoted in the book!   Kind of....you know....FULLY RAD!  My dad is just very cool.  He's going to be 80 next year.  That does not stop him from being super rock n'roll. 

Weekending

This weekend was another stay at home weekend.  My favorite.  The kind we almost always have.
Friday we had a few friends over.  The house ranged with kids aged from 3-11 and they all got along so sweetly.  I made stuffed tomatoes, and they were good, but did pale in comparison to my friends salad. Her name is EE. This is her salad:

EE's Salad
Organic spinach & arugula
Honey goat cheese
Toasted pecans
Orange soaked cranberries (dried.)
Corn

There.  Simple.  All these fine things you can get at Trader Joes!

Dressing
locally sold fig vinegar and lemon olive oil. (you can do your own favorite vinegar and olive oil)
some minced shallots and garlic
mustard
salt and pepper

Sorry- don't know the exact amounts.  Just do it all to taste.
Wow.  Best. Salad. Ever. I am driving the 30 minutes to Trader's today so I can have it again tonight.

Saturday: An estate sale. Wow. I did something I never do and purchased a furniture piece.  I replaced the two weathered garage-sale shelf units for all my kitchen mixing bowls and such and got a vintage shelving unit.  I know.  Hard to imagine it without a pic.  And if my kitchen had light in it, you would not have to imagine it.  Blame it on my kitchen. And the fact that I won't use a flash. 

Also this: a tiny vintage flour sifter.  This I could drag into the light of the window.

And: had to share a weekend art piece from the 5-year-old.  Complete with shells I got in a $3 bag from the estate sale. (We have lots more, if you want to come and craft with little shiny shells.)  She is really into mermaids.  I always dreamed I would have a little girl who drew mermaids.  I love it when dreams come true.

Last but not least: my mom emailed me this link this morning with the subject: "Are you getting paid for this?"  This is what happens when your songs are licensed by a corporation.  You never know that your music was used in a Taiwanese tissue commercial (unless your mom randomly finds out for you.)

Hmmm...what else do I now know about?  As long as it shows up on my royalty check, frankly dear, I don't give a damn.

linking with Amanda for weekending!

Muffins & Lamps.

 
This morning I took on English Muffins.  The dough had to be chilled overnight, as is the way of Peter Reinhardt's baking methods. I mention his books so often, I don't need to show the link, do I?  I don't want to let you believe it was not a little time consuming.  But, the result?  Yummmm.  And I even messed up the recipe and used the wrong kind of flour (all-purpose instead of bread flour, they both have blue packages.  Whoops.) Also, it's so hard to take photos of food.  I am not very good at it.  But I can't make EM's and not show you what they looked like.  Tomorrow they will be "day-olds" and so we will toast them and they will look even better. 

Anyhoo.  I was downright proud of myself that they turned out even a little good.  Look how you "bake" them!  (Who knew?) They were really more, say, medium good to very good.  Maybe a little more on the "very good" side.  Another mission accomplished in the baking world of Lady Cordelia.

 

Thrift Mission?  Yes please.    How about a sweet vintage glass lamp for $5?  Cute as heck. Tiny.  But heavy as a mo-fo.  The Brad tells me all this cheap thrifting adds up.  To that I say: Be quiet.  Thank you.  Do you see me getting pedicures?  Having a cleaning lady? Shopping at Pottery Barn?  Driving a BMW?  I thinketh not, me lad.  So kindly let me have my $5 lamp and put homemade & handmade English Muffin in your face.  Off to take my little one to her first dance class.  She got all ready at about 6 a.m.  Little legs.  Little tights.  Little leotard.  She is very exicted. 

So. Gotta fly. Peace. Out. 

 

Weekending

Meet Lucy May.  World's cutest and sweetest kitty.  The girls are doing great being mommies to little Lucy who was found abandoned with her litter and brought to the local shelter.   Lucy is starting to understand that she hit the jackpot and is going to be immersed in loving adoration for all her days. If only all of the planet's creatures were so lucky.

Meet Saturday's real find from a thrift store down the street.  You can't really tell in this picture, but every star has a little rose in it.   I don't know how this could have been done so perfectly by hand. 

Meet my "Mermaid Blanket."  I show it folded here, but it still is only big enough for a little girl.   This sweet blankie was inspired by an ocean-inspired quilt I saw on soulemama's blog.  She had some awesome mermaid material and I was like: wow.  I'll never find cool mermaid material like that.  sigh. whatever.  But guess what everyone!  I did find some on Etsy!  Just little remainders.  Priced way too high, if you must know.  But I absolutely had to have a mermaid blanket.

(By the way: I sew like I knit: imperfectly and with moderate to no attention for rules and regulations that may or may not hamper the overall effect of the finished item.  Simply, for better or worse, I do things my own way.  I've accepted this reality about myself, as any other hope is a lost cause. And so, my seams are not perfect -far, far from it.  Scissored material cuts are more uneven than a 3-year-old's self given haircut.  Measuring tape?  Oh..ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.   You are so darling to joke like that.  I love a good laugh, I do. From a distance, it looks mighty fine.  From close up, it looks mighty "cute" - like a 3-year-old's self given haircut. And so I add to the plethora of funky homemade little girl blankets that grace their wee beds.  Soon, they'll be in real big girl beds and need twin blankets. Way too much work!)

Also: My 5-year-old lost her two bottom teeth this weekend (first teeth lost.)  She asked daddy to pull the first out for her and sat unflinching as he did (what a kid!)  Then the next day she opened her mouth to reveal the other little tooth on her tounge. It had fallen out all by itself.  I was laughing and crying on this most sweet rites of passage.  (Are you crying happy tears again? my toothless daughter asked.  Yep.  Again.)

~Linking today with wonderful Amanda at Habit of Being.

 

who throws away such things?

We pulled out of the driveway and saw two men piling stuff from the abandoned house next door into a big truck. (Owner is in a nursing home and has been for many years.)  For the dump? I ask.  Yep.  They are cleaning up the old lady's yard as per her granddaughters instructions.  In the junk heap were:

3 Herman Miller chairs (from the 50's)
2 different antique-y shelving units on wheels
Many lovely terra cotta planting pots

Oh!  Please, can I have those things?  I asked (as I climbed onto the back of the truck.) 

I knew that one day the house would start to get gutted.  I only hoped I would be around to, well, do what I did: beg for perfectly great stuff that would be passing by my eyes and loaded into a dump truck.

LOOK!  I said to husband. 

Him: [in annoyed tone] More chairs?  Really?

Me: Dude, these are 'Herman Millers'. 

Him: Great. Then return them to him promptly. 

Me: No. That's the person who made them.  In the 50's!  They are worth about $75 each according to ebay. And no I'm not selling them.  So don't ask.  And they are going on your studio porch!

Him: Oi.

Anyway, I'm now off to make a salad with fresh lettuce from our garden. 

Herman Miller. Fresh lettuce. Ducklings. Again, I ask you.  Does it get better? And can I also tell you...the shelving things (not pictured) are exactly what I needed for my kitchen. I know you are really desperate to see photos of them.  But I moved them in my kitchen so quickly and then it was too dark to take photos.  I hope you survive without seeing photos.  I know the suspense is killing you.

 

 

Happy Day!

 

Oh.  I'm so happy.  Happy day.  Oh love of loves.  Oh good things.  Oh happy good things.  

It was 9 a.m.  I was checking email.  I realized it was Saturday.  I realized it was my morning to sleep in but my husband was snoring in bed.  I looked up the local yard sales on Craigslist.  I told husband:  Bye!  It is my morning! I grabbed jeans and sweatshirt. I drove without hesitation to the bank.  I pulled out money that we are supposed to use on bills (with a little hesitation.)  On the way to my Craigslist-posted yard sale, I found another Rummage sale.  I stopped in.  Saw a bunch of people circling 6 awesome farm-styleish chairs.  I swooped in like an eagle, and loud (a bit too loud) above the calm mumbling I yelled (and to no one in particular): HOW MUCH FOR THESE? A voice came out of the crowd.  $30 for all six!  
My voice: SOLD!   

I had a few bucks left- this sweet shelf with hooks will go perfectly in our bedroom by the back door. 

And because I was so excited over my new chairs and wall hook decor, I decided to snap a few more shots outside.   As Spring comes, I allow to believe that my own personal reflection of home will continue to manifest in our outside space. 

And then, would you like to see what we did yesterday?  We ladybugged our aphids.  

I had to.  I had spent too much time preening my pretty Jackson & Perkins rosebushes that B. got for free on a job. Unfortunately, it rained last night.  I think $16 worth of ladybugs may have moved along off my rosebushes.  I'm scared to check it out.  (Please don't tell my husband I spent $16 on ladybugs.) 

Do you like oranges?  Blueberries?  Apples?
 Stop by later this year.  Or next year.  Not sure when the apples and blueberries will really truly fruit.

Oh, I believe that I would like an acre someday.  But, boy.  This is fun too.

Nice to bloom where your planted.  And I've been planted in some nice fertile, happy soil.  

See how happy $30 farm chairs get me?  And some coffee?  La te da te da. Happy weekend!  Go find yourself some good Rummage sales! 

Or...if you're not as hyper as me right now...you can do this.  Rest is good too (I hear.)