Two weeks ago Ms. Jeannie held a little photo story contest on her blog with the chance to win this vintage photo…
The prize!
Well, we didn’t have any entrants, dear readers. Not one! But that is okay by Ms. Jeannie. This gives her another opportunity to exercise her imagination! She had been looking at this photograph for quite awhile now, trying to imagine all the scenarios and possibilities these two ladies could have gotten themselves into. For days and days she looked and thought, but she couldn’t get beyond a sentence or two. Not even with the handwritten prompt on back that read Grace and me. I have on Grace’s hat and she has mine on.
To help the story develop, Ms. Jeannie threw two other photographs into the mix…
and then the story just opened up a like a sunny spring flower!
Here’s the situation, Ms. Jeannie came up with, based on the three pictures…
Rudyard Noble just drove onto Main Street and already the telephone lines were hot with gossip. Word had it that Rudyard was here on a visit specifically to see Grace Dalton, who at the present moment was on a ladder in the rafters of her parents garage shed. There had been speculation of letters exchanged between Grace and Rudyard over an entire year, but this matter was not discussed publicly. Speculation of the Mayor’s family had to be handled delicately, and as first daughter of Wayfaire, the politics and private matters concerning Grace’s love life, although enticing, had to be considered off public record, for the betterment of the community at large. No one wanted to get on the bad side of the Mayor with that temper of his flaring up like wildfire in the July heat.
That being said, this was a horse racing community, and quiet bets were being hedged in every household. Everyone knew that Sam of Sam’s Machine Repair was doing his best to court Grace all the way to the alter.
But now it seems there was to be some sort of competition for Grace’s heart and it was going to be tough. Rudyard was a self-made man with a booming business back in New York, with the looks of a movie star and the language of a literary lover. Sam on the other hand, came from more humble roots. He worked with his hands, studied engineering and fiddled around with the science of botony enough to surprise Grace with a hybrid of wildflower wonders in his backyard garden. The linchpin was that new car of Rudyard’s.
You see, Grace had a curious head for business. Not for the political glad-handing of her father’s world, but for the basics of profit and loss. She and Daisy, her very best girlfriend since grade school, had started a little hat business, which is what brought Grace into the storage shed on this very day.
Their business at first was just simple repairs…loose threads, ill-attached decorations, flopping flowers, etc. These quick fixes garnered the girls enough money to go to the cinema once a week, where they delighted in the costumes of Joan Crawford and Greta Garbo. Inspired, the girls began to feel the excitement in creating and then selling their own designs, based on popular movies of the day. Grace didn’t fancy herself as talented a milliner as Daisy, but she did have a special calming knack for dealing with customers and keeping the books figured correctly and organizing ads in the local newspaper. They became quite a little team.
That’s where Rudyard came in. Daisy had dreams of taking their business as far as Kentucky…to Lexington, the creative epi-center of the hat wearing kingdom. But Grace, although more timid in personality, had bolder ideas. She wanted to get to New York, to London, to Paris with their business. She wanted to walk in the footsteps of Coco Chanel and decorate the heads of movie stars and royalty.
Rudyard had left Wayfaire exactly four years ago this summer, and he was already such a tycoon in the New York business scene, he afforded his own fully furnished 5th Avenue apartment, a country Hudson River house upstate and now, his very own automobile. In their year of correspondence, Rudyard had become Grace’s university on big city enterprise, offering her step by step practicalities of what it would take to make it in Manhattan.
While this correspondence was building between Grace and Rudyard, Daisy was building something of her own as well – a love affair with Harry, Sam’s brother.
In addition now to hats, Daisy also dreamed of wedding dresses and babies and a house of her own. There was still lots of room for business in that head of hers, but Daisy was a prioritzer and Harry was arduant, so more often then not, Grace would catch Daisy sketching farmhouses instead of feathers, baby clothes instead of berets.
All this wedding talk on his brother’s behalf, got Sam thinking about his own future. He sat back all summer long and listened to Grace’s lyrical way with the language of hats and he wondered where he fit in to her whole new enterprise. Grace might be shy when it came to words of love but ask her about a certain style of brim or the cleaning and care of a certain type of fabric and she could talk for hours. He loved the idea of her determination but he also loved the idea of having a wife. And in all of the word’s spoken from Grace’s pale pink lips, she never once mentioned the word marriage to Sam. He noticed this. He was listening hard for some prompt or sign to keep encouraging him down the road of matrimony. He had grown quite used to Grace and he could picture her face settled into the same farm lifestyle that he wanted with her arms full of chickens and freshly baked bread and summer evenings on a porch in Wayfaire.
But now Rudyard is here, shiny and sophisticated and equally fond of Grace and her ways with language. Daisy’s gone to get Grace down from the rafters in the shed. She’ll have to pull the cobwebs from her hair and exchange her hat for Grace’s hat since Daisy’s style looks better with Grace’s dress.
Sam does his own rearranging. He puts on a tie – his one and only tie. If today is the day he is going to propose, he at least wants to do it properly. Harry says it is a rash decision. Hang back and see how Rudyard plays out – those are the words of advice Harry offers as they walk the back road shortcut to Grace’s house.
{to be continued} Look for more on this saga in coming blog posts!
Meanwhile, the trio of photographs is now available for sale in Ms. Jeannie’s shop here.
Spring is waking up slowly here in the South. The nights are still cold but the afternoons reach into the early ’60’s on most days now. This afternoon warming makes for delicious stolen moments around the 4:00pm hour when Ms. Jeannie likes to take a cup of coffee outside with her and dream about all the potential and possibility for her garden plan this coming season.
In anticipation of all this gardening, Ms. Jeannie has been going through some of her favorite recipes so that she can figure out what she needs to grow so that she’ll have the freshest ingredients possible. One of her most favorite things to make is soup, so you’ll be sure there will be a variety of vegetables popping up!
In anticipation of such gardening delights and in anticipation of the upcoming Irish holiday, Ms. Jeannie cooked up one of her most favorite soups…potato!
Creamy Potato Soup
This recipe came from her Irish Isles cookbook, which was a birthday gift this past summer from her dad.
Straight from Ireland – music and recipes! Photo courtesy of irishshop.com
Not only was it a gift of recipes – but it also came with a cd of classical Irish music, which made for a well-rounded cooking experience!
This was a very sentimental gift for Ms. Jeannie. Many years ago, she took a father daughter trip to Ireland and together, they explored the Southern countryside for 10 days. They stayed at 3 different hotels and visited about half a dozen cities and towns. There were sheep (so many!), crazy drivers, the perilous N7 , endless Frank Sinatra on the radio, fabulous museums, trips to the lace-makers, dinners in castles, driving tours of coastal fishing villages, a wet and wild tour of the Cliffs of Moher, lunches in pubs and a million miles of laughter in-between. It was a fantastic trip – one of Ms. Jeannie’s most favorite of all her travel adventures.
This cookbook is a compilation of recipes from the country hotels and manor houses all over Ireland. There are even some recipes from the places where Ms. Jeannie and her dad stayed!
The Leek and Potato Soup Recipe that Ms. Jeannie just made comes from Newport House in County Mayo.
Newport House, County Mayo. Love all that ivy!
Built in the 1700’s, the country estate is now part of the Relais & Chateaux distinguished hotel group. It is a small, luxury country inn known most for its location overlooking the Newport River and its salmon and sea trout fishing, both in the river and in nearby waterways. The current owners, who were originally guests at the hotel, so fell in love with their accommodations they bought the hotel in the mid-1980’s to ensure that they would always have a fishing retreat to “come home to.” Imagine that! Going on vacation and purchasing your vacation destination because you loved it that much! Ms. Jeannie can totally understand – Ireland is magical like that:)
Here are some interior photos. The owners have decorated the hotel in a variety of antiques including Regency style mirrors. It looks like it has a lot of character!
The waterways surrounding the town of Newport. Photo courtesy of australiantraveller.net
It’s no wonder that soup is on the menu at Newport House. After a cool day of fishing on the water, Ms. Jeannie bets that a cup of hot potato soup is just what you’d want to have! She was delighted to see that it is still on the menu in the hotel’s dining room!
Ms. Jeannie’s Leek and Potato Soup…
Ms. Jeannie modified the recipe just a tad to incorporate items she already had on hand, which included a few bunches of fresh spinach tossed in at the very end.
Here’s the recipe, with Ms. Jeannie’s substitutions in parentheses…
Leek and Potato Soup – Serves 4
4 tablespoons butter (Ms. Jeannie used 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter)
1 1/4 lbs. leeks, cleaned and sliced
1 cup onion, chopped
3/4 cup celery, chopped
4 cups homemade chicken broth
8 to 10 oz. potatoes, peeled and chopped (Ms. Jeannie used 2 large russet baking potatoes)
1 spring fresh thyme, leaves pulled
1 fresh sage leaf, whole
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (Ms. Jeannie used 1/2 cup of 2% milk)
2 large handful bunches of fresh spinach
1. In a large saucepan melt butter (and oil, if using Ms. Jeannie’s version) over medium low heat. Add leeks, onion and celery and saute until onions are translucent but not browned (about 5-7 minutes).
2. Add the chicken broth, potatoes, thyme and sage. Simmer for 20 minutes until potatoes are tender.
3. Transfer to a blender and puree. Return soup to original cooking pot, add cream (or milk) and salt and pepper. Fold in spinach and cook over low heat for 5 more minutes before serving.
Ms. Jeannie served her soup with a multi-grain baguette which was good for dipping! And, despite having only a 1/2 cup of cream (or milk in Ms. Jeannie’s case) this is an incredibly creamy soup once it is pureed. And it is quick to make with few ingredients! Thank you Ireland for making dinner simple and delicious!!!
Over the next couple of weeks, leading up to St. Patrick’s Day (Mr. Jeannie Ology’s heritage day!), Ms. Jeannie will be trying the recipes in the cookbook from the hotels and country houses she and her dad stayed in on their vacation. These are sneak peeks of three of them…
The Park Hotel in Kenmare, County Kerry (Ms. Jeannie’s favorite!)Dromoland Castle in County ClareThe Shelbourne Hotel on St. Stephens Green in Dublin
Until next time…Slainte, dear readers! Which means cheers in Irish:)
After carefully cutting, wrapping, storing and dating (January 31st, 2013) her fig cutting as the NewEnglandGardener instructed, Ms. Jeannie was a little disappointed when she checked the clipping a week ago, only to see that nothing happened.
For three weeks the clipping had been tucked inside it’s plastic Ziploc, stored in a warm spot (on a shelf in the stairwell) and left unbothered to grow, grow, grow. But as of last week, the twig still looked exactly the same as when she started. No sprouts, no new green, no shoots. In the NewEngland Gardeners video, he already had sprouts after three weeks, so Ms. Jeannie worried that, perhaps, she had done something wrong and that she may have led her readers down a rocky garden path.
In speaking with a friend of hers about this matter, Ms. Jeannie learned another way that you could grow a fig clipping.
Method 2: Rooting a fig twig in a container of water.
In water! So Ms. Jeannie went out, cut another twig and placed that one in a jar of water and set it on her sill away from the sun.
This morning, she checked the status of both the Ziploc bag and the jar. This would now now be week 4 for the Ziploc bag and week 2 for the jar.
She was delighted to find this in her bag:
After 4 weeks in a ziploc bag!
Look closely and you’ll see a sprout at the very base of the twig…
A sprout!
Yey! Ms. Jeannie must have been a little impatient last week. This is a good reminder that you can’t rush Mother Nature. She is ready, when she’s ready!
The grocery circular that Ms. Jeannie wrapped the twig in is still moist, even though she has never added any more water since the start, and it is a little spotted with mold…
Still damp!
The Ziploc bag also contains condensation…
Condensation bubbles
…so essentially, Ms. Jeannie created her own little greenhouse!
Nothing’s happening with the twig in the jar of water yet, but now Ms. Jeannie knows just to give it time!
So what’s next for the sprouted twig? Well, Ms. Jeannie is going to keep it in the Ziploc for one more week to see if any new shoots will form and then transfer it to a shoe-box size plastic container with potting soil as the NorthernGardener suggested. In the meantime, she’ll keep her eye on the water twig to see what happens.
Until next time, dear readers, grow fearless!
Grow Fearless Art Print by Feed Your Soul Art on Etsy
And don’t forget! You have until midnight tonight to enter to win this photograph (click on the ladies for contest information)…
When Ms. Jeannie first started doing her genealogy research, the holy grail of success for her was finding the faces of her ancestors. She worked close to a year before she uncovered any. Ironically, that first photo that opened up the pictorial floodgates, was right under her nose… in an album Ms. Jeannie’s mom had forgotten about in the back of a closet!
The day Ms. Jeannie looked at the face of her great great grandmother Martha, for the first time, she was so overcome with emotion, she cried!
The first picture of great great grandmother Martha (on right)
Silly but true. Ms. Jeannie is not really the weepy kind, after all. Anyway, she just got caught up in the moment. All those months of researching Martha’s life – her 11 kids, her journey in covered wagon from Indiana to Ohio to Iowa, her husband’s military service in the Civil War, her farm life in Iowa… all those details rolling around Ms. Jeannie’s head for all that time. And then suddenly – there was Martha! There was the shape of her face, the evidence of glasses, the style of her hair.
Since then, through help from online forums like ancestry.com and genealogy.com and the kindness of sharers, Ms, Jeannie has found handfuls of family photos. Her family. Spread out over many trees, many lines and many countries. These are some of the more recent finds…
Great Grand Aunt Anna’s house in IowaGreat Great Grandfather AlbertFourth Great Grandparents Maria & GarretGreat Grand Uncle J. WilliamGrand Aunt LeonaGreat Grandmother Juna and her sister Hannah
Had she never done the research, Ms. Jeannie would never have known what any of these people looked like. With the exception of great grandmother Juna, these were all brand-new faces of family.
Ms. Jeannie likes to look at these pictures and think about the context in which they were taken. What was great Aunt Leona thinking about? Why were Juna and Hannah wearing paper dresses? What was the pin on the lapel of J. William? Noticing small details like this paints a vivid picture for the imagination!
In the same vain, whenever Ms. Jeannie comes across old photographs for sale, she can’t help but do the same exact thing – she thinks about the back story surrounding each image. She has several examples of this in her Etsy shop… let’s take a look…(click on any of the pictures for more information about each photograph)
On first glance, you might just see a picture of a girl on a bench…
Ms. Jeannie named her Nina!
But crawl inside Ms. Jeannie’s head and she’ll tell you this story…
“Nina waited patiently for Spring. Well, technically, she was waiting for summer – but you had to get through spring in order to get to summer, so she had to dream in order. This summer, she’d be done. Done with high school. Done with wearing plaid skirt uniforms and done, done, done with all that homework, thank goodness. Sure, she was going onto college in the Fall, but that would be different. There would be boys, and classes she wanted to take and parents that she only had to see on breaks. At college, her preferences for life would bloom and Nina couldn’t wait for that. She’d study literature and she’d become a writer and her very first piece would be about the suffocation of long skirts and loafers.”
Here, you see two bathing beauties…
And Ms. Jeannie sees Rose and Evelyn…
“Rose and Evelyn stayed in their swimsuits the whole entire vacation. And who could blame them? With that ocean stretching out behind them and the infinity pool disappearing in front – it was all they needed. This was the vacation where Evelyn perfected her dive, and where Rose realized that she was now technically old enough to flirt with boys without looking ridiculous. It was an ego-booster for both of them, this vacation.”
This one is a school scene from the 1920’s…
Sometimes, Ms. Jeannie sees many stories in one scene. Such is the case, with this one! Here is all she imagined…
“There’s the obvious one, of course, about how smiling Dorothy is in love with Gilbert and absolutely thrilled that her crush of the past two years is now sharing elbow space with her.
There’s the story about lively Pauline (in the forefront) and how she talked her way into getting the traveling photographer to stop by her Biology 101 class. “You’ll want to document the budding scientific genius occurring in room 9, sir. I guarantee you that.”
There’s the story of Mr. Whipple, first year science teacher, who doggedly fought the school board for months over the right to buy 37 microscopes so that each student in his class (not just the boys) would have use of their own scientific study instruments.
Then there is the story of three friends, who spent all summer in the science lab researching why the bullfrogs in Tillman Pond were genetically bigger then the bullfrogs in every other pond in town.
And let’s not forget about humble Pauline who was the first girl, in the state of Texas, to win first place in the national science fair, which yielded not only a cash prize for her, but new textbooks and supplies for her school.
Oh, Ms. Jeannie could practically write a novel with all the situations going on here! Now it’s your turn to look close and see what stories you see…”
This one is a miniature portrait…
Ms. Jeannie called her Marion and wrote about her neighbor, Arnie (short for Arnold)…
“Marion’s got a suitor in her neighbor, Arnie, across the street. Well, technically he’s not really her suitor yet – but one of these days she’s going to fall head over heels for him. He just knows it. In the meantime, he does his best, on a daily basis, to try to impress her – nothing’s really gone gangbusters so far. Most of the time she stands there, with her arms crossed and that same as ever are you kidding me expression. But Arnie’s of a hopeful mindset…one day, she’ll see it.”
Ms. Jeannie got a little help from the inscription on this photo postcard…
This is what she thought was going on inside Bobbie’s world…
“Oh that Bobbie – she’s quite a clever kidder, calling her beau a schnook like that. She hopes this subtle Merry Christmas postcard tactic is all that she will need to make handsome Dean realize that she is quite over the moon for him. It’s only taken her the whole semester to get her nerve up – but what the heck does she have to lose now? It’s Christmastime and she’s feeling hopeful. She’ll just slide it under Dean’s dorm room door before she heads home for the holiday. Let him stew on that during winter break!”
Of course, all these photographs are open to interpretation,. You may see something totally different in the bathing beauties or in Bobbie’s cheering stance, but that is sort of the fun of these old photographs. Don’t you think?
Following this train of thought, Ms. Jeannie came up with a fun little challenge for all of you dear readers!
Here it is..
What is this scene all about?
Now it is your turn to come up with the back story about this picture above! Write your own quick little story snippet about this photograph and email it to msjeannieology[at]yahoo.com
It doesn’t have to be long… just a few sentences is great. The most creative entry, as determined by Mr. Jeannie Ology (for fairness, of course) will win the picture! The challenge will be open for one week so be sure to get your entries in by midnight on Tuesday, February 26th. Winner will be announced via blog post, and also email, on Wednesday, February 27th.
Lucky for you – there’s a little extra help with this challenge! On the back of the photo, written in pencil, it says…
“Grace & Me. I have on Grace’s hat and she has mine on.”
Here’s a few more close-up views of the photograph. In case you want to know the size – it measures 2.5″ inches x 3.5″ inches.
All of November and December, Ms. Jeannie was waiting for this one particular tree in her yard to drop its seed pods…
They have these wonderful round pods that Ms. Jeannie thought would look fabulous strung together in garlands for her mantel, on her Christmas tree as part of her natural ornaments and maybe on a wreath for her front door. This is what the pods look like up close…
They sort of reminded Ms. Jeannie of stars, especially when she was looking up at them hanging so high in the trees! Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other ideas, because these little stars didn’t fall until just two days ago, long past holiday time.
Now there are hundreds upon hundreds covering the ground. Ms. Jeannie could have made a million miles worth of garland!
Curious as to what type of tree these little beauties belonged to, Ms. Jeannie did some research and as it turns out, they are from the Sweet Gum tree, which is indiginous to North America, Mexico and Central America. The gum tree has been around since pre-historic times and is actually classified as a living fossil. It is one of the oldest recorded trees in history. Goodness gracious.
Ms. Jeannie found this information fascinating because the shape of the pods reminded her of some other-wordly items like the spiked wrecking ball weapons from the Middle Ages…
Ironically, you can buy these on ebay for $20.00!
Or those crazy underwater sea urchins…
Sea Urchin from the Getty Collection
The sweet gum pods (or gum balls, as they were nicknamed) are actually known as the tree’s fruit and contain one to two seeds within each pod. The trees can grow up to to 120′ feet tall and the leaves turn beautiful colors in the fall. Ms. Jeannie estimates her tree to be about 80′ feet and is indeed one of the tallest in her yard.
Here is an example of a sweet gum in the summer…
Sweet Gum tree photo courtesy of scstrees.com
and in the Autumn…
Sweet Gums in Fall photo courtesy of flickr.com
This species of tree was first recorded by Spanish naturalist, Francisco Hernandez de Toledo in the 1500’s.
Spanish naturalist and physician Francisco Hernandez de Toledo (1514-1587).
Francisco was the court physician to the King of Spain and in 1570 was sent to the New World on a botany trip specifically to study medicinal plants. In his journals, he noted the sweet gum tree bark as having a fragrant juice resembling liquid amber. Indeed, this liquid amber is where the tree got its name. Native Americans taught pioneers in America how to peel the resin from the bark and chew it in order to quench thirst, thus making it one of the first chewing gums in America.
The sweet gum tree was introduced in Europe in the 1600’s, planted in the gardens at Fulham Palace in London by way of Reverend botanist John Bannister, who had traveled to Virginia to bring back exotic tree cuttings like the magnolia, black walnut and cork oak among others – all of which are still represented in the palace gardens today.
The gardens at Fulham Palace, London. Photo courtesy of geograph.org
Throughout history the resin found in the gum tree has been used homeopathically to heal a host of ailments from skin conditions to bronchial infections. Likewise, it’s wood has been used commercially in the manufacture of low-grade hardwood products, plywood, crates, furniture and as an ebony wood alternative.
Ms. Jeannie had no idea, her tree was so useful! Now having learned all this , she is going to go out with a plastic bin and collect all the gumballs so she will be sure to have enough for her 2013 holiday crafts…
Place CardsHoliday wreath lightly spray painted white makes it look frosty!Garland!
Ms. Jeannie pinned these pictures above to her Historic Holiday board on pinterest, plus a few others. Stop by and see them here. She can’t help but think that these would be lovely spring wedding decorations for table decor or used in bridal bouquets – especially if you were having a spring outdoor wedding. These sweet gums are full of rustic charm and potential!
If you have any creative ideas about other ways Ms. Jeannie can use the little beauties, please send a message!
Mid-February marks two special events for Ms. Jeannie and her valentine. First, the holiday of love of course, and then two days later, February 16th, marks Ms. Jeannie’s wedding anniversary. Each year, her and Mr. Jeannie Ology alternate planning something special between the two events.
It’s fun to keep each another guessing as to what’s in store for a special treat. Some years, there are elaborate plans like a weekend getaway or an expensive gift, but mostly they are simple celebrations – a special dinner, a movie, a bottle of champagne. Time spent together is all that matters. Really they could sit at home and do nothing and still have a grand time together.
It was like that right off the bat for them. They struck up this wonderful conversation when they first met here…
in the lobby of the New York Hilton Hotel. Both were there on work purposes involved with running a tradeshow. Ms. Jeannie on the corporate side, Mr. Jeannie on the entertainment side. Ms. Jeannie had just been promoted to a new position with a ton of responsibility and Mr. Jeannie was there to keep the show moving along at an interesting clip. For three days, they worked side by side. For three days, they talked, they laughed, they got to know one another. For three days, they kept discovering small things they had in common…
…a profound love of Ireland. Photograph by TootsFair.…the same favorite movies. Vintage movie real canisters from PassedBy.… a newly discovered fondness for white cherries. Photograph by AmeliaKay Photography…the thrill of spontaneous travel. Vintage suitcase from epochco.…and a shared respect for each other’s dreams. Inspirational art from typoem.
As you can see they covered a lot of topics! By day three, it felt like they had known each other for years.
On the afternoon of the third day, the show ended. Ms. Jeannie packed up. Mr. Jeannie packed up. Ms. Jeannie felt ill at ease. In just a short while Mr. Jeannie would walk out those hotel doors and disappear from her life. Ms. Jeannie’s heart ached at the very thought of never seeing him again. So what did she do?
She gave him her phone number. Please note: this is a re-enactment for story purposes only and not Ms. Jeannie’s actual number.
By the weekend they went on their first official date here…
The Central Park Zoo
As it turned out there was a special celebration going on for the sea lions that day, which involved free cake for all zoo-goers. There was also a film crew, party balloons and a giant fish cake for the sea lions. It all felt very festive! Ms. Jeannie took this as a good sign:)
On a quick side note: If you have never been before to the Central Park Zoo, you must visit. It is a fabulous little hideaway tucked into Central Park and is often overlooked for the much bigger, much more well known Bronx Zoo. A lot of people don’t even know it exists, because it is laid out in Central Park in such a way, that every time you visit you feel like you have unexpectedly discovered it. Ms. Jeannie’s favorite exhibit is the penguins where you can watch them both on land and in the water in the same exhibit.
It’s like one massive fish tank. Photo courtesy of penguinnewstoday.blogspot.com
Ms. Jeannie just loves these penguins. They have zippy little personalities and always seem to be having a ton of fun. If you are lucky enough to find yourself alone in the exhibit – it can be very peaceful – just you and the penguins. Ms. Jeannie could watch them for hours!
Here’s a video of the exhibit Ms. Jeannie found on youtube. It gives you a feel for these active little guys…
So back to the date… the zoo, turned into an all day outing. And by the end of it, they still didn’t want to part. So they went for pizza. Then they went for cappucinnos. Then they walked to the subway – the long way – 25 blocks in total. They just kept walking and talking without realizing! It turned out to be a record breaking 13 hour first date, from 10:00am in the morning until 11:00pm at night. It was grand. Ms. Jeannie felt lucky to know such a great new friend.
Marvelous dates kept occurring. Ms. Jeannie knew she had met her romantic match when Mr. Jeannie took her up on the roof of an old hotel on the Upper West Side. “So they could look at the city at night,” he’d said.
Few things are more romantic then looking down on Manhattan from that perspective. The city almost looked fake. And all the lights seemed to twinkle. It was quite magical. New York provided quite the backdrop for falling in love.
Fast forward a few years, and Mr. Jeannie proposed in Florida on a tiny little boat during a Christmastime vacation. Ms. Jeannie was surprised, she had no idea Mr. Jeannie had such big plans prepared! Ms. Jeannie said “of course” without hesitation. Mr. Jeannie cried the whole boat ride back to shore:)
A few years later they were knee deep in wedding plans. Since it was so expensive to get married in the city, and because they were such big fans of road trips, they decided to get married somewhere else. They looked into Vermont, into Maine, into Connecticut, but couldn’t find just the right place. A friend of Ms. Jeannie’s tol;d her about a fabulous movie she had just watched, noting in particular, the gorgeous coastal New England town setting. Here’s the trailer…
The next weekend, Ms. Jeannie, Mr. Jeannie and their newly adopted border collie, were on the road to Rockport, Massachusetts where the movie was filmed. If you are unfamiliar, Rockport is located on the very tip of Cape Ann, just north of Gloucester (which, incidently, was the setting for the movie, A Perfect Storm). It’s a 5 hour drive from NYC and only a 45 minute train ride from Boston.
When Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie drove into town, this is what they saw…
Bradley Wharf. Photograph courtesy of fineartamerica.com
Bradley Wharf sits in the center of the scenic inlet that leads out to the Atlantic Ocean. The town of Rockport surrounds it on three sides. The red barn, known as Motiff No. 1, is the most painted barn in America and Rockport, itself, is an actual artist community. With views like this how could it not be?!
Rockport Harbor
The town sits nestled against the hillside, facing the water and is filled with gorgeous, historic seafaring captain-type homes.
View from the harborHouse built in 1711House built in 1900House built in 1771House built in 1840
Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie stayed at Carlson’s Bed & Breakfast, the only b&b in town, at the time, that would accept pets. Sven Carlson was a painter himself along with his wife (who dabbled!). They were extraordinarily interesting hosts.
Carlson’s Bed & Breakfast (on the left) . Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie stayed on the top floor in a yellow wall papered room that was bright and sunny.
Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie did all sorts of exploring up and down the coast. They went lobstering with a boat captain as he picked up his pods for the day, they went shopping on Bearskin Neck (see photo below) and they ordered take-out lobster from Roy Moore Lobster Company which they took down to the beach to enjoy. True picnic decadence:)
The shops of Bear Skin Neck.
You might also recognize Rockport from the movie, The Proposal, with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. The movie is supposed to take place in Sitka, Alaska – but it was actually filmed in Rockport and the neighboring town of Manchester-By-The-Sea.
Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie returned to Cape Ann several more times for vacations. Each time having more fun then the last. They decided on the Emerson Inn as their wedding venue, because it was located on a bluff right above the ocean. Also Ms. Jeannie loved that it had literary connections in it’s namesake, Ralph Waldo Emerson.
It had been lodging house, always, since the very beginning in the 1850’s. Ralph Waldo who spent summers at the hotel with his family, was said to have gathered poetic inspiration from the landscape.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) Boston born poet and philospher credited with leading the transcendentalist movement in America.
Ms. Jeannie and Mr. Jeannie were married at 8:00pm in a small candlelight ceremony, by the town clerk. They wrote their own vows. They held each other’s hand. Mr. Jeannie cried:) They danced to Ella Fitzgerald’s At Last. They had two cakes, a traditional lemon creme pound cake with rolled fondant and fresh flowers and then a red velvet groom’s cake in the shape of a lobster. Both of them agreed they were the best cakes they had ever eaten.
The Emerson Inn at night.
For their honeymoon, they traveled with their pup, up and down the Massachusetts coastline for a week, exploring each small town. They visited parks and cafes and antique shops. They ate lobster and drank wine and walked to the beach every day. On their last night, they stayed near the water’s edge until late in the night looking for their dreams in the depths of the stars.
Fast forward all these years now, and Ms. Jeannie and her valentine are still adventuring together and still dreaming. Their pup has come and gone, their lives have twisted and turned, and their love has lasted. And for all that, Ms. Jeannie feels incredibly lucky. To know such experience and to know such a man.
Thank you New York Hilton, thank you Central Park Zoo, thank you New York City, thank you best dog ever, and above all, thank you Mr.Jeannie for starring in the best love story of Ms. Jeannie’s life.
The two fig bushes in Ms. Jeannie’s yard, as pictured last summer.
In preparation for some spring gardening projects, our dear blog reader, Amy, sent in a gardening question about fig trees and whether or not she would be able to grow them from cuttings in her neighborhood, which happens to be arid Arizona.
Instantly, Ms. Jeannie thought sure, why not grow them in Arizona since figs first originated thousands of years ago in Arabia. But she wasn’t sure about the cutting department, so she did a little investigation on Amy’s behalf.
Lucky for us, Ms. Jeannie learned that since they are one of the oldest fruit trees in the world, they have now been adapted and modified to grow in just about any climate. Which is good news for all fig lovers! So first order of business is to determine which type of fig tree that will grow best in your neck of the woods…please consult this list.
Next, once you’ve found the right variety, you can visit your local nursery or garden store and either buy a small fig tree that has already been started or you can order a cutting online and start your own. Ms. Jeannie found this great video on youtube from the NewEnglandGardener which takes you step by step through the cutting process…
Ms. Jeannie was so inspired by the video – she decided to try her own clipping project, following the NewEnglandGardeners helpful guide. Here is what Ms. Jeannie used…
1. Garden Scissors 2. Publix Grocery Flyer 3. Quart size Ziploc bag 4. fig tree cutting (this one is 7″ inches)
She clipped a section that had a green sprout already (in hopes that it will encourage more!)
Close-up of clipping
Here’s the finished product. Now we wait for a few weeks and see what happens. Ms. Jeannie is going to keep the bag in her kitchen stairwell, which seems to collect all the heat in the house.
Grow big, little fig!
Please keep in mind, as noted in the video – growing trees does not happen over night. It will take a few years to get your cutting tree well established. However – they are fairly fast growers, so you’ll see changes over the course of months instead of years, like some other trees.
This is what the fig trees in Ms. Jeannie’s yard look like now, in the middle of winter (aka the dormant season, as the NewEnglandGardener refers to in the video)
A picture of Ms. Jeannie’s fig trees taken today. Stickily looking things in winter, but they still retain a nice shape.
If you look closely, you can see they already have buds emerging even though it is only January. This is a perfect stage now, to take a clipping.
You can see two of last year’s figs now dried on the twig. Ms. Jeannie wonders if this is inspiration for the new shoot!
Isn’t it amazing that this little sprout will grow from a tiny little wonder into this, in only about 3 short months…
The fig trees in Ms. Jeannie’s yard are over 12 years old and reach about 10′ feet high x 8′ feet wide. They’ve been pruned every once in awhile but otherwise, are incredibly low-maintenance. You may recall, last summer, the two fig bushes in Ms. Jeannie’s yard had a banner production season. There must have been hundreds of figs that plumped up from July thru September.
Mostly she passed buckets along to her friends, ate a few cups each day and froze gallon bagfuls for a jam lesson that never quite came into fruition. No problem though, as of late, Ms. Jeannie has been enjoying the frozen figs in her morning yogurt shake. Why add ice cubes when you can add some frozen figs instead?!
All you do is just pick, rinse and air-dry the figs and then pop them into a freezer bag and stick them in the freezer.
Ms. Jeannie tosses these little frozen delights right into the blender, straight out of the freezer in this state. They make the shake cold and add extra vitamins to the start of her day. Figs are high in vitamin K (good for blood clotting), vitamin E (protection from cell damage) and vitamin B6 (good for the nervous system, the breaking down of glucose and for cell energy).
They also contain the minerals manganese (good for your bones) and potassium (good for your blood pressure) and are also really high in dietary fiber. A delicious superfood! This is Ms. Jeannie’s recipe for her morning shake, if you are so inclined to try it…
Yogurt Fruit Shake
Makes two 8oz. glasses
1/2 cup organic 2% milk
6 whole frozen figs
1 banana (broken into 4 sections)
1 cup fat free vanilla yogurt
1 quarter fresh cantaloupe (rind removed and roughly chopped)
Add all ingredients in the blender and pulse on low until all the figs break down into pieces (about 30 seconds). Then put the blender on crush and let it mix for about a minute, which blends all the fruit and incorporates air to make it light and fluffy. If the shakes seems too thick, you can add more milk. Otherwise pour and enjoy! You can also add different types of fruit if you like. This is a really basic recipe and can be modified eighty million different ways!
Ms. Jeannie hopes this mini fig lesson will blossom into something wonderful for Amy and anyone one else with figgy aspirations. If you decide to start a fig tree from a clipping, keep us posted on how your progress goes. Ms. Jeannie in turn, will keep you updated on hers as well. Happy growing!!!
We are in the middle of our first ice storm of the season, here in the South. The weather is so grey and dark and COLD, Ms. Jeannie thought this would be a lovely time to take a little trip. Where are we going, you ask? Why, it’s off to France, my dears! To visit a bookbinder in Lyon, who specializes in upcycled journals.
Since she was small, Ms. Jeannie has had a love affair with journals and diaries, doodlebooks and sketch pads. But it wasn’t until her early 20’s that she really started to depend on them as confidante, emotional therapy and creative outlet.
During one particular portion of her life, Ms. Jeannie carried a journal around with her everywhere she went. She was in her early 20’s, living in New York, attending college, working at a Manhattan publishing company and living in an old warehouse in Brooklyn. She was exploring the city with her girlfriends, falling in and out of love with boyfriends and in the last book from those years, fell in love with THE boyfriend, who eventually became her husband, the very handsome Mr. Jeannie Ology.
These are her journals from that time…
There are quite a few of them because she challenged herself for one entire year to put down her reading book on the subway (her most preferred activity for train travel) and to pick up her pen and just free-write in her journal. If you are unfamiliar with free form writing, basically you just start with a thought and go from there without any sort of restriction or point. A steady stream of conscious, if you will. For example…The train smells like onions today. There are pearl onions in my freezer, in a blue bag with a bird on it. I think the bird is an eagle, with wings outstretched. I wonder if an eagle has ever ridden on the subway. Maybe it would get on at Central Park and get off at Battery Park… maybe the eagle is going to visit the Statue of Liberty. Maybe they are friends and spend their days discussing the stresses of being national icons. (So there you go from onions to eagles to national symbolism – all in a minute with Ms. Jeannie!).
For the most part this activity occurred twice a day while she was commuting, usually once in the morning and once at night. The writing project sparked a few short stories, but mostly they were just daily observations of things going on around her…sights, sounds, feelings. Notes from a girl and a city going through their daily paces.
As you can imagine, New York is a bevy of interest and intrigue practically every moment – so there was lots of material. She started going through journals faster then she’d ever had before which meant journal shopping became a regular routine. She had this one favorite bookshop, in particular, in the World Trade Center, that she loved. They carried a whole section of handmade journals there and Ms. Jeannie loved the fact that no two ever really looked the same. Her first book purchased from that shop was made out of recycled banana leaves, the last out of silk fabric scraps from India. Both very different in style yet each had been made by hand. Selecting which one to buy seemed as important as selecting which words to write.
So that brings us to our little trip. Ms. Jeannie thought it would be fun to learn about the writer’s craft from the other side of the notebook. So off we go on a magical trip to Lyon, France to chat with Karen, bookbinder extraordinaire beyond the Etsy journal shop Spellbinderie …
Ms. Jeannie: Your shop really is magical – from the name right down the line to the contents. How did you decide on Spellbinderie?
Karen: The name came to me after many agonizing nights spent brainstorming with my husband. I wanted a shop name that reflected the concept of binding while also suggesting upcycling/transformation and my location, France. Finally Spellbinderie came to me while I was thinking about words that had -bind or -binding in them. This word said all I hoped my journals would be, enchanting, fascinating, unputdownable. I think upcycling is a bit of magic, it’s transformation, a second life, so the wordplay kept working, spell, craft, bind. Once I was settled on the name, my husband suggested the spelling, using the “ie” instead of a “y” for a French touch.
Lyon, France. Photo courtesy of globeimages.net
MJ: Tell us a little bit about living in Lyon. Is that where you grew up?
K: I’m American, my husband is French. We met in Brooklyn just over 5 years ago and after three years together, he asked me if I’d be willing to leave my beloved Brooklyn and move to his hometown, Lyon. I was admittedly smitten with the idea of living in France and jumped at the opportunity. Plus we both wanted to have more time to create with our hands and do more traveling, instead of work, work, work. Brooklyn is an exciting place to live but it’s very much a career-oriented, go, go, go, type of city and I felt ready for a change. Lyon is a pretty city, famous for it’s gastronomy and well-located in the southeast of France. It’s a calmer pace, which I enjoy, while still being a good sized city, but I do miss coffee to go and good Mexican food!
This is a photo of some vintage booksellers who sell near Karen’s home
MJ: How did you become interested in binding?
K: Honestly it just sort of happened. My romantic move to France had the ugly reality of finding a job. A big hurdle considering I did not speak a word of French. My former career was in documentary film editing but I wanted to change my path. A friend of mine back in the US was doing really well selling vintage on Etsy. He encouraged me to do the same here. I began going to flea markets, thrift shops and yard sales, picking up this and that to sell, constantly drawn towards the gorgeous vintage books, often damaged but still enchanting. I’ve always had a passion for old books, started to collect them when I was quite young. I started to collect more here thinking eventually I’d figure out what to do with them. From there I researched upcycling ideas online and stumbled on bookbinding. I knew that was it, I just had to learn how.
French book published in 1909 now offered as a wedding registry book by Spellbinderie.
MJ: I love how your books are actual stories within stories. Does it take a long time to concept the construction a book? What is your most favorite part of the process?
K: Right from the start I wanted to make my journals more than just blank pages. What inspires me is a book’s history, where it’s been, who’s hands held it, what were they thinking, doing, eating, sitting, dreaming? The old paper calls me with it’s soft texture and warm color and I’m absolutely smitten by old handwriting or bits of paper or cards left behind. In the end, it’s my own imagination, my need to tell stories, my love of secrets and mystery, that is my favorite part of the process. I want that to be bound right into the journal.
Mixed paper journal by Spellbinderie
MJ: Do you have a sourcing method for all the old books and papers you incorporate into your items? Are you scouring France for great papers?!
K: I’m scouring my section of France for sure! I have a wonderful local thrift shop and the proceeds go to help the poor and needy, so an added bonus for buying there. I also shop the flea markets and vide-greniers, or “empty attics”, the French version of a yard sale. I’m lucky that my in-laws are avid thrifters and often find amazing books for me to use as well. My vacations tend to include a bit of thrifting now too.
MJ: What is your most favorite item in your shop at the moment?
Custom Made Art Journal Sketchbook by Spellbinderie
K: My custom made “Layo” artist sketchbook, I think. The photos don’t do it justice, I’m limited to how many photos I can add on Etsy so kept the focus on practical matters. The “Layo” was made for a repeat customer who’s an artist and avid journaler. We always work together to create very unique sketchbooks that fit her needs and I love each and every one of them.
MJ: What’s your best customer story? Do you sell your books anywhere else besides Etsy?
K: My best customer story is related to the “Layo” sketchbook. The sketchbook is named for her of course. She is very creative and pushes me, in a good way, to be more creative and learn new things. Her orders are the most time consuming because they are never simple and sometimes I need to think outside the box to make what she wants or to find suitable material. I love the challenge and the result. She’s been a customer for almost a year now and has become a friend through our conversations and collaborations. I probably would not know this amazing woman if I weren’t selling online!
I just started to list on Dawanda but Etsy is my main focus for selling.
MJ: Are most of your clients writers?
K: I’d say my clients are brides, next would be writers. I also get quite a few men ordering custom journals as gifts for their creative girlfriends. I LOVE that! It’s really exciting to make a special gift for someone and I have to say it, I’m impressed with these super cool and thoughtful boyfriends.
Wedding registry books by Spellbinderie.
MJ: Do you have an educational background in bookbinding?
K: No, I am self-taught through instructional videos and books plus lots of practice before I opened my shop. I am interested in taking a few courses in high level binding in order to improve and perfect my technique and be able to offer more variety in binding style but haven’t found the right course in my area. I’ve also reached out to some professional bookbinders for advice and found the community supportive.
Personalized Wedding Guest Book by Spellbinderie
MJ: Do you have a shop bestseller?
K: My wedding guestbooks are by far my biggest sellers but next would be my Retro Journal Series which are crafted from small antique books that have a math, literature, science or geography theme. I fell in love with this type of book early on, drawn to their distressed covers and simple cream and black color scheme.
Rustic Vintage Mixed Paper Journal by Spellbinderie. This one is Ms. Jeannie’s favorite!Retro Journal by Spellbinderie
I wanted to make them more distressed and mysterious, gatekeepers of secret formulas and agendas, by adding bits of the text, tattered reclaimed paper and burning the paper edges. I loved that it looked like it had been traveling around, maybe having a few too many drinks and a bar fight for it’s own good. When I listed the first one, it sold immediately, which shocked me because I honestly thought it would take awhile to find the right buyer. Turns out people love them just as much as I do and just like that this line was born. Which just goes to show you, ALWAYS follow your heart and your own style.
MJ: Is there an ideal type of book you look for when your sourcing your papers?
K: I look primarily for whatever catches my eye, could be great illustrations, a beautiful cover, a wonderfully distressed cover. I stay away from anything rare or in demand as well as too damaged or fragile.
MJ: When you are not working on your books what else occupies your time?
K: I love watching movies, reading, traveling, camping and photography. I also love to cook, and eat quite frankly. I enjoy infusing booze too! I make my own bitters and infused rum, known as rhum arrangé here, which comes from Reunion, an island off of Africa. It’s delicious! Only hard part is being patient for at least three months before you can enjoy.
MJ: Are your customers mostly in Europe or the US?
K: Primarily in the US and UK, then Canada and Australia.
MJ: Are you a journaler yourself? If so, do you make all of your own journals?
K: I’m always a bit nervous when asked this question because I am not a journaler and wonder if buyers would be turned off by that. My pleasure is in bookbinding and designing though, not in writing. I’m a storyteller but do so visually. My former career as a film editor probably seems so different from my new career but both involve taking pieces of something and stitching them together to create a new thing. Both end up with my interpretation of the story.
Rustic Wedding Guestbook by Spellbinderie. Note the vintage needlework she included!
MJ:What is it about the art of journaling that attracts people?
K: I think I’m not qualified to answer since I am not a journaler but I would assume it’s the same thing that attracts me to bookbinding or film editing: it feels good to do and it’s necessary to do, to create.
MJ: Do customers ever send you pictures of their journals or guest books all filled out? I bet they’d look incredible!
K: I’ve been hoping someone would but I think journaling tends to be a private thing more than not. I made a guestbook for a friend of mine in Lyon and that was so exciting. I got to see the reaction of her guests to my creation and see the guestbook afterwards.
MJ: What is your design space/studio like?
K: We live in a loft like space with a mezzanie. The area of Lyon that we live in is known for these kind of apartments because this area was formerly a silk weaving neighborhood. The buildings have very high ceilings to allow for the silk weaving frames and the mezzanines were where the weavers slept or for use as offices.
Karen’s studio space and her handmade bookbinding frame.
My studio space is not separated from my living area which means there is no door to shut, making it hard for me to really draw a line between work life and private life. That can be tough sometimes but I love my neighborhood and my open space. As much as I’d love to shut the door and go home at the end of my work day, I enjoy having everything right at hand too.
MJ: What inspires your work (besides antiques books, obviously!)
K: My neighborhood. I walk around looking at the architecture, I’m particularly drawn to the distressed doors and wood beam ceilings. I am also a fan of Keith Smith, a book artist. His work is very very different than mine but inspires me and pushes me to try new things.
The amazing architecture of Lyon, France. Ms. Jeannie loves those doors too!Keith Smith, book artist. For more info on his work, please click on the photo.
MJ: As far as gathering books for eventual re-purposing into journals, what subject matter interests you most?
Generally fiction because of the ornate covers and pretty illustrations. I love the drama, especially a darker, more gothic type. I also love geography and history books with old maps and descriptions about various places. I recently started making journals for a US buyer who spends quite a bit of time in the Alps. He’s an avid mountaineer, skier and journaler. He contacted me to find old books on the subject to transform into journals and now I am hooked on these books too. I discovered Pierre and Georges Tairraz, amazing photographers who traveled around taking incredible photos.
MJ: Do you have any new year’s resolutions? What is one thing you plan to accomplish in your Etsy shop this year? K: Double my sales, hire a part time assistant for the spring/summer wedding rush, come up with new ideas, learn a new binding technique.
Karen is currently reading:
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. My favorite author!
MJ: What music are you listening to?
K: Hmmm, I’m 44 and sadly finding I’m listening to less and less new music! My iTunes recent playlist shows: Joy Division, Bjork, Kate Bush, Portishead, Bear In Heaven, Birdie Nam Nam, Mahmoud Ahmed, PJ Harvey
Karen, the artist behind Spellbinderie.
Do you have questions for Karen? Post them in the comments section and Ms. Jeannie will be sure they get to her. Or you can visit her shop here. Also, click on any of the Spellbinderie journal pictures in this post for more detailed information.
Not ready to leave the beauty of France quite yet? No worries, my dear, read a previous interview with French photographer Yann Pendaries here.
Or enjoy a year full of Ms. Jeannie’s other interesting interviews here.
This morning, Ms. Jeannie woke up to this on one side of the yard:
Frost as thick as a blanket!
and this on the other side of the yard…
the blooming of the crocus’!
Isn’t it amazing that two conditions like this can co-exist at the same time? She could almost hear Mother Nature asking – “…and which do you prefer Ms. Jeannie? The gift of winter or the gift of spring?”
Ms. Jeannie picks Spring! She’s looking forward to new year of gardening adventures! What about you?
The other day when Ms. Jeannie went over the year in review, she mentioned making a batch of cinnamon-nutmeg scones. If you don’t recall, here is what they looked like:
Scones, antique ironstone and vintage Royal Jackson china.
Blog reader, Amy, wrote in to request the recipe agreeing that such a simple treat would be the perfect partner to mull over one’s thoughts with. This recipe is an easy one and made even better by adding home made jam on top.
Ms. Jeannie’s sister, Marianne, makes AMAZING jams and jellies. Those pictured above are the latest batch she just sent. It is a happy day whenever a box of goodies arrives from her. Mr. Jeannie Ology can hardly contain himself while the box gets unwrapped. This gift box included: Blackberry, Raspberry, Orange Cranberry and Italian Plum jams (Italian plum not pictured – because it’s already been devoured!).
Each jar holds a magnificent concoction of flavors – this one is cranberry orange.
Marianne picks all the fruit herself, in the Seattle summer months (aka the non-rainy season!), and then gets to work canning away. She also makes her own labels – so cute! She was a true Martha Stewart way before anybody knew about the actual Martha.
Gorgeous jam in a gorgeous package!
She’s actually really crafty in all the creative areas. When Ms. Jeannie’s other sister, Christine, got married in 2010, Ms. Jeannie and Marianne put together all the floral arrangements and wedding bouquets.
Wedding flowers in route to the wedding!
Their work space for the bouquet assembly was the hotel room floor the morning of the wedding. It was festive and fun to see a floor full of flowers. The arrangements came together with ribbon and laughter. It was frantic but in a good way and left such an edible memory – one of her favorites of the entire wedding weekend.
So, as you can see Marianne’s creativity knows no limits. From jam to floral arrangements – she’s a one woman wonder.
Back to those scones… Ms. Jeannie recommends, that once you remove them from the oven, you should add a healthy dose of butter and jam on top of each scone while they are still warm. Hopefully you are lucky, like Ms. Jeannie and have an excellent jam source too.
Nutmeg-Scented Scones
Makes eight triangle shaped scones.
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup golden brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons freshly grated whole nutmeg or ground nutmeg
1 egg white, beaten to blend with 2 teaspoons water (for glaze)
2 teaspoons sugar
Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in processor; blend 10 seconds. Using on/off turns, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add sour cream. Using on/off turns, blend until moist clumps form. Turn dough out onto floured work surface. Knead 4 turns to form ball. Flatten dough to about 3/4 inch thick circle. Cut into 8 wedges. Brush with egg-white glaze; sprinkle with 2 teaspoons sugar and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg. Transfer to baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart.
Bake scones until tops are golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer scones to rack and cool slightly.
Recently, RoseMary from Shasta Lake Shop on Etsy, also wrote in about the Royal Jackson china (pictured with the scone). This is what she had to say:
“FYI The Autumn pattern was discontinued in the early 1950s. I was married in 1952 and chose it as my fine china pattern. I was devastated when in about 1953 I received a call that the pattern was being discontinued. I had just a few pieces, probably a service for 6. Replacement services were unknown at that time. It wasn’t until 50 years later that I found someone on ebay who had many of the pieces. I bought everything he had. Now I can set a table for 20+ people with all the extra serving pieces. Homer Laughlin also made a matching pattern in semi-vitreous china. Don’t know what its called or much about it but bought a set to help fill out my pattern for a while.” – RoseMary, The Shasta Lake Shop
Ms. Jeannie loves hearing stories like these! She tried to do a quick search for the Homer Laughlin pattern that RoseMary mentioned but she couldn’t come up with anything yet. If you know what the pattern name is, please write in! This china is so pretty – Ms. Jeannie couldn’t imagine having an entire set. RoseMary is one lucky lady!
Set of 6 Royal Jackson teacups – available in Ms. Jeannie’s shop.
When Ms. Jeannie got married she didn’t register for one specific china pattern. Instead she registered at Fishs Eddy, which is a vintage/contemporary china store in New York City.
The magical Fishs Eddy store on Broadway and 19th Street in NYC. Photo credit: David Mills.
They sell a mix-match of vintage and antique dishes mostly from old hotels and restaurants, and then they offer some unique new patterns from designers like Cynthia Rowley too. Basically every time you visit – it’s a new experience.
So Ms. Jeannie registered for a color scheme (blue and white at the time!), which meant any piece of china that fell under those two colors was a gift in the making. Some people thought Ms. Jeannie was brave for being so whimsical in giving guests the “pick whatever you like” experience – but Ms. Jeannie thought of it as an adventure. Besides – there was nothing at Fishs Eddy that she didn’t like – so how could anyone go wrong? As long as it was blue and white – it was perfect!
And as it turned out, each piece that someone chose as a wedding gift, carried with it a little bit of personality from the gift giver. So it became a great memory stacked on top of another great memory. This is the kind of stuff Ms. Jeannie loves most about china. It’s not only the beauty of the actual piece – it’s the beauty of the memory that it represents too.
A big thank you for sharing your thoughts, dear readers! Ms. Jeannie looks forward to more conversations. Until then, happy reading (and writing!).
In the Vintage Kitchen: Where History Comes To Eat 