Like Buttah!

The other week, when the Chefs came for supper, I made grilled peaches with whipped cream and a balsamic reduction drizzled over them. I had gotten a pint of organic heavy cream to make the whipped cream, and when I went to whip it with my immersion blender, and Chef John said that would turn it into butter, so he whipped it by hand.

Fast forward a week, and I still had the pint of heavy cream, minus a couple of tablespoons. So I thought about what Chef had said and decided to try my hand at making butter! I read through a lot of sets of instructions and concluded that I could probably do this all by myself. I started blending the heavy cream and it got all bubbly looking, but then it started to “break” and the butter solids began to separate from the buttermilk or whey. 

The instructions said to try and get all of the liquid out by pouring it off and then sort of rinsing the butter with ice water until the liquid ran clear. Then I put it into a piece of muslin to press any of the remaining liquid out of the butter.

I added a little bit of sea salt, kneaded it for a minute or two (I didn’t want it to start melting) and then put it into one of my gorgeous little lidded bowls. Tomorrow, I am going to go get some really good bread and try it out.  All in all, it took about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Gawd, this is scary… it’s like aliens have taken me over since I moved out of downtown and into the “country”.

P.S. I went out and bought a mini-baguette this morning, so I could have a French-style breakfast… It was perfect!

Three Day Tent Sale @ Sloans & Kenyon in DC

Are you a little freaked out by auctions? Do you think that if you rub your ear or sneeze, you might end up bidding on a priceless antique?

Well, Sloans & Kenyon Auctionseers just along the DC/Maryland border, is having a tent sale instead of an auction for the next three days! It’s going to be great, with new items added every day.

GREAT TENT EVENT
Friday, July 29: 10am - 5 pm
Saturday, July 30: 10 am - 3 pm
Sunday, July 31: 1 - 4 pm
An Avalanche of Personal Property
Attractively Priced for Immediate Purchase
Outdoors in the Sloans & Kenyon Parking Lot
Adjacent to Eastham's Exxon - 7100 block Woodmont Avenue
Four Complete Estates!
Antique and Other Furniture * Ladies' Designer Clothing (including this beautiful Hermès blouse)Men's Classic Clothing and Shoes * Including Polo and Brooks Brothers Sterling Silver * Porcelain * PaintingsJewelry * Box lots of Miscellanea (that coffee pot has my name all over it!!!) And Much, Much More!

My friend, ILOVELIMEGREEN works at S&K and was kind enough to send me some images of what’s on offer.  I’ve got my strategy planned out… including a fail-safe way to make sure I don’t buy too much! 

Remember, the sale is all weekend and you’re sure to find a treasure! I’ve been to their auctions before and it’s been worth it to attend!

Carolyne Roehm Yard Sale!

The style- and taste-maker Carolyne Roehm is having an actual, honest-to-goodness yard sale at her home in Connecticut next weekend, July 9 & 10. Here’s what she has to say about it:

Having just had a "milestone birthday" and embracing some of the ideas from the book--titled "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin, I decided to do more than clear a shelf or a closet. In my usual obsessive way I tackled barns and attics, my studio and the basement. Whilst I am not quite going zen in style (far from it), I am attempting to "declutter".

This will not be the organized, "pretty" tag sale like the one I wrote about in Veranda Magazine a few years ago, but just your classic old fashioned yard sale. With a mix of things from garden hoses to some of my beloved ribbons and silk flowers (it has been hard for me to give up some of those, but this is an exercise in editing), there is a bit of everything.

If you are around the northwest corner of Connecticut, please stop by.

If I wasn’t about a six hour drive, and didn’t already have plans, I’d be there in a heart-beat. You?

A Clothesline, at Last!

Before I moved to Wales, I had a tiny (10x15) back yard, that was part garden and part cement. But there was just enough room for a clothesline, which I loved! At my house in Pigtown, with its 12x12 back yard of 100% cement, and no sunlight, I wasn’t able to put up a clothesline because there was no place to anchor it on either end. When I wrote about clotheslines here, the post elicited a lot of responses. When I was looking at my new house, I noticed that there were the old iron T-bars at either end of the back garden for a clothesline. I was so excited to see that, and couldn’t wait to start using it.  I even bought some great wooden clothes pegs in anticipation. Today, a partly cloudy day, was the day I started with the clothesline. I washed some 100% cotton sheets and hung them out to dry. After about an hour, I checked to see whether they were dry, and they were. It would have taken about the same amount of time in the tumble drier, but it only used the sun and the breeze for drying. I don’t think it’s appropriate, especially where I live surrounded by neighbours, to hang everything out to dry. But sheets, towels, and linens are perfect.

I also have a little hanger with clothespins that I got at Muji in NYC last year. It’s very handy for hanging linen napkins. Click the image for the link.Do you have a clothesline?

More OKL Insanity

Last time I wrote about the OKL insanity, someone castigated me for being negative, but I think that I am being realistic. So let me preface this post by saying that I like OLK – a lot! I think they have some great things and I have purchased from them on several occasions and have been very pleased with my purchases.

And I love “Home, James!” and their look. Their range has some fabulous table top items that I covet.

However, you’re not likely to find me buying this little goodie. There’s a little beach near my current house and I find beach glass there all of the time. I get out my little diamond-tipped Dremel and drill holes in the top of each piece. I then string them on some fishing line and hang them from a piece of driftwood to make wind chimes. And then I give them as gifts to friends and family.

OKL and Home, James! also offering these knives, of which I have dozens. The sale price is good and it is about what I charge when I sell them. Mine are identical to these, too! Let me know if you want any of these French Ivory knives, since they’re sold out here.

Caspari

Bunny Williams is doing a line of paper goods for Caspari, one of the most creative paper-goods companies around. Her first collection for them will be a range of faux bois pattered goods. I can’t see Bunny putting her name on anything less than top rate, so these will be good. Caspari products are inspired by such museum collections as the Musée de l’Impression sur Étoffes, The National Gallery, Williamsburg and The Royal Horticultural Society, as well as outstanding private collections and archives. Artists from around the world partner with Caspari to create a portfolio that represents an international approach to design. Caspari originally started by importing holiday cards by European artists and then branched out to table top, stationery and more. They now have a shop in Paris and one on Charlottesville, Virginia.

One of the great things about Caspari is how totally on-trend they are. Regardless of which contemporary style you’re going for, they have something that fits! Even though I love using linens, when I have a party either at home or at work, I try to use paper products, and I always check out what Caspari has first, and always find a lot of pieces I love! Speaking of entertaining, check in tomorrow for some fun news and a big celebration!

A Little Teaser

We’re getting ready for our Tasteful Tag Sale this coming weekend, and Flip sent over a little teaser to add to the list of things. This is a 1950’s lucite necklace and earring set, just one of the many fun things that will be on offer on Saturday, April 30th!  Details here.

As for me, in addition to selling lots of china, silver, glassware, linens and more, I’ll be giving away some of the treasures that I’ve picked up at the Book Thing. Like these:

If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me here.  So sorry that I can’t post pictures of everything we’re selling. I will be putting some more items on the Atelier Pigtown this week, so watch out for them.

Hope to see you on Saturday!

Classical Glass

Anyone of a certain age will remember the instrumental song from the 1960’s called Classical Gas by Mason Williams. If not, click here to listen.

For a few years, I have collected classical glass – glassware designed to look like classical Wedgwood Jasperware patterns, right down to the Greek, Roman, Egyptian and even Chinoiserie motifs, as well as the colours and details. It is generally referred to as Hellenic ware, even though it’s not all Greek motifs. This glassware was made by the Jeannette Glass company which was founded in Pennsylvania in the early 1900’s and went out of existence in the late 1980’s.

The colours of the glassware range from a pale bright Wedgwood blue, to a darker blue to the lovely green. All of the pieces have white figures on them, just as the Wedgwood Jasperware pieces do, and much of the glassware has hand-painted gold rims, although many glasses’ rims have faded over time. The Hellenic ware comes in a huge variety of shapes and sizes as you can see here. All of the themes are classic, more than 2000 years old!  You could find a Greek, Roman or Egyptian vase in any museum with nearly the same figures in the same poses.The glassware is very detailed, with the motifs covering nearly the entire piece. I have listed a number of these glasses sets on my Etsy site and they always sell.  This set is Egyptian. This set has an Indochine motif. This set is Chinoiserie. I think these classical glasses are lots of fun. What about you?

Snowtrees

I had the chance to meet David Patrick Columbia, the editor of New York Social Diary, a few months ago. I’ve been a fan of his for about six years and was delighted to meet him in person.  There’s always something interesting on NYSD, and if you’re not subscribing to it, you should!Today, as snow prepares to dump on this part of the country again, I was enchanted to see a photographic feature NYSD did about Snowtrees in New York’s Central Park. Brad Bateman, a real estate agent and artist, takes the snow and melts it in his hands, and then applies it to trees, specifically along a path in Central Park. Here he is on the left, with Lonesome Juan, and his friend, Gann Brewer. I really love things like this that are so unexpected, so simple and yet so joyful. If it snows tonight, you might just see some snowtrees around my neighbourhood tomorrow.

Shameless Self Promotion!

I have just added a whole range of items to my Etsy Shop and with the holidays fast upon us, I thought you might like to do a little shopping there, instead of braving the mall next week.

Since Nate Berkus has decided to title me “Treasure Hunter”, I’ve been busy treasure hunting so that you don’t have to! I am willing to make the sacrifice of picking through dusty bins and checking out the hidden treasures just for you. {grin}

Seriously though… I have found some really fun items for you, like this classic blue and white transfer-ware casserole dish or soup tureen. It’s a sweet piece with great lines. Your bar cart would get a classical boost with this vintage Penguin Ice Bucket from West Bend. It has Bakelite handles on the sides and on the lid. There are funny little penguins marching around this ice bucket, probably searching for their cocktails. Doesn’t everyone want life delivered up on a silver platter? This one is huge – 20 inches from tip to tip. It has a Gothic font “S” monogram in the center and weighs a ton. It’s marked on the back with a hallmark from Sheffield, England and probably dates from the early 1900s.

These were my favourite thing that I put up for sale. They’re wonderful candleholders with wee cherubs holding a torch and a laurel wreath. I even got a great picture of one. But here’s what they both look like. Sorry, they’ve already sold.Enough of this… Go check out my shop. There’s plenty there for everyone and I am adding more and more each day, including several sets of the fabulous French Ivory knives and forks, including a set with either an M or a W monogram. Oh, just one more thing… If you’d like to join me on the Holiday Shop Hop, drop me an e-mail. I am limiting the group to about 15 people, and we’re getting close to that number. Any more than that, it’s too hard to manage and I don’t get a chance to get to know everyone.