A Few Fun Finds To Share

I found these kitchen utensils at our local good will.  They didn't look so pretty as they do now though.  My girls and I spent some good quality time together sanding them down, slathering them in mud, drying them on the front patio, sanding them again, and pounding them with a screw driver.

Pottery Barn randomly sends me magazines because I ordered Christmas stockings from them 4 years ago.  I usually hurry and flip through it and toss it into the recycle bin but today a picture caught my eye.
In fact I actually said "oh" out loud.   In my mind I hurried and cleared the room out and what was left was and awesome space for a "me" room.  What would you do with a "me" room?  Check out the wood floors.  I love them.

This week I stumbled upon a really relaxing and creative blog.  I can't wait to go through this thing picture by picture.  She does an awesome job with her photography and writing.  www.afinefarmhouse.blogspot.com  Check it out.  I bet you'll be hooked too.

Relax With Me

When things get a little crazy I like to drag the lawn chair into the middle of it all and take some breaths.  So sit back with me and relax for a minute and enjoy what's growin' around here.

Ahhh.  That's better.  It's going to be a great harvest.  I can't wait.

Aging Wood Yourself- Tutorial

Sometimes you just can't find what you're looking for.  I needed some hooks to hang my bonnets on and despite my shopping trips and online looking I just couldn't find the right look.  So, I set out to make my own.  I found just the right hooks at Real Deals and then set to work.

 This is what I started with.  I chose this hook because the metal was already rusted.  

 Take all the hardware off if you can and, using a medium course sand paper, sand most of the original paint off.  

 Make a mixture of mud and course sand that is pretty thick.  I used a coffee filter to get most of the water out.  Brush a coating on that is not too heavy and dry it out in the sun.  I left the hardware on for this part because the mud would cover up the original screw holes and I didn't really want to make new ones.

 After the mud is dry sand it all off again.  Remove the dust with a damp cloth.  Take a small Philips screw driver and pound clusters of holes together in your wood.  Scratch it in some areas and chew a few of the corners up.

There, that's better.  So pretty.  Now off to find the perfect spot for them and build a beautiful display.

CHRISTMAS IN JULY- Free Patterns

Every day is like Christmas if you can find something great for free.  Sandy with the The Old Country Cupboard is so extremely generous with her patterns.  She has such cute ideas and although many may not be totally "prim"  there are ways to make them that way just by aging your fabric or wood yourself.  I have had an eye on these gingerbread men for a while and think they would be so cute displayed in an old mason jar.  So go visit her site and enjoy her Christmas in July as well.

CHRISTMAS IN JULY- Christmas Tree Display

I had so much fun finding pictures for this weeks display day. Christmas tree stands weren't even used until 1876 so it seems fit to display your Christmas tree in crock or barrel. Each tree is unique in it's own sphere. Then fitting it into a vintage container and making a display with it creates some awesome "eye candy". Have fun looking.

flicker

  inprimitivethymes.blogspot.com

 oldcrowprimitives.blogspot.com

 cidermooncottage.blogspot.com

 starspangledpretties.blogspot.com

 taylorsfarmhouseattic.blogspot.com

depenhomestead1862.blogspot.com

 Country Sampler

Country Sampler

My own little rendition

CHRISTMAS IN JULY- Fabric Scrap Christmas Tree

I'll admit that I would listen to Christmas music all year round if my family would allow it. Christmas in July was the best idea ever invented. It's so fun to search around and find fun "Christmasy" things during the summer. When I find a crafty project to do it has to be one I can accomplish in one sitting and for only a few hours. I can't have unfinished projects laying around all over my house. I love this tutorial for that reason. I also love that it has the possibility of looking very old if the right kind of fabric is used. I can just picture a woman sitting in her home by the light of the fire and taking scraps of old dresses to making something like this for her family. Here is the complete tutorial. It comes from a fun blog- preferablyprim. preferablyprim.blogspot.com/2009/11/homespun-raggy-prim-christmas-tree.html

An Amazing Kitchen

There are some people, who in this life, have the ability through a camera lens, a computer, and an amazing talent, to inspire and uplift passerby's of their blog.  Where would I be without people with blogs like the deppenhomestead1862.blogspot.com.  Today I wanted to share part of her kitchen.  It is AMAZING.  I love everything about it.  Especially the way she covered her refrigerator.  I could stare at her pictures all day for the hundreds of neat things she has on display.  So take a peek at some of her pictures here then stop by her blog for a tour through her complete kitchen make-over.  And thanks again deppenhomestead1862 for giving me something to be inspired by.

 Yah!!! Here refrigerator is in there. Cool hu?

 I just love all the colors.

There are so many things to look at.

1800's Pancakes-Tutorial

We just couldn't eat another bowl of cereal around here.  I decided that my kids could use some good old fashioned pancakes and by old, I mean old.  This recipe comes from an old Willimantic/Windham Connecticut news paper.  It was submitted September 7, 1881.  The link.llThe pancakes turned out really well.  I admit I was worried about the consistency and if they would turn out to be more like a crepe so I added a little baking soda.  I also halved the recipe and it made plenty.  

PANCAKES (TWC Sep 7 1881) - Beat up three eggs and a quart of milk; make it up into a batter with flour, a little salt, a spoonful of ground ginger, and a little grated lemon peel; let it be of a fine thickness and perfectly smooth. Clean your frying pan thoroughly, and put into it a good lump of dripping or butter; when it is hot pour in a cupful of batter,and let it run all over of an equal thickness; shake the pan frequently that the batter may not stick, and when you think it is done on one side, toss it over; if you cannot, turn it with a slice, and when both are of a nice light brown, lay it on a dish before the fire; stew sugar over it, and so do the rest. They should be eaten directly, or they will become heavy.Windham newspaper


Here is what I did
*Blend half quart milk and 2 eggs.  Beat in a spoonful ginger, 3/4 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. baking soda, and 2 Tbs. lemon juice.  Add 2 1/2 c. four and mix until smooth.   Heat a griddle with a small amount of oil or butter.  Cook both sides until golden.

Entry Way

I thought to myself, "who in their right mind would put their own home on display unless it was magazine worthy"?  Then I had a change of heart when I realized I really was proud of my display and I really do love the antique items handed down from my grandparents.  I love my pioneer doll and small chair.  I love the stacking houses and the wash bin.  And that primitive screwdriver is a great self defense weapon sitting right by my front door.  "Yes, I will put my own home on display".

Old Windows

Oh, how truly ecstatic I was to find this beauty.  Of course you have to hold most of it in because people will start to wonder what is wrong with you to get so excited about an old window.  Not to mention the fact that you went nosing around in your in-laws barn. But the possibilities this baby holds are almost endless.  Stay tuned.

Old Houses

As primitiveness settles into my blood I am finding that it's not just the artifacts I am drawn to.  It's the houses, the people, the way of life.  It's a time where things were more simple and hard work was the way of life.  When people helped others and life had value and meaning.  A time when integrity, honesty, and some one's word meant something.  These pictures are pinnacles of the the past helping us remember those times.  I captured shots of these old houses and barns in the Bear Lake Valley of Idaho.  I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I did taking them.  The pioneers settled that valley in 1863.

Willard Stuki house.

An old polygamist house with two front doors.

 This small cabin was the first to be build in Paris, Id. by Thomas Sleight in 1863.

 Later, as materials became more available and times more prosperous, more rooms were added onto the original cabin as seen in this photo.

 An abandoned church house in Ovid, Id.  Built in the mid 1800's it served as a ward house for the Latter Day Saints.

I believe that some of the barns that people have in their pastures behind their houses may have been old cabins as there are chimney ways on them.