Shorehouse chic.

Luck be a lady.

2011-05-22T09:00:00.001-04:00

We went to an amazing fundraiser in Asbury Park (NJ) Friday night. A good friend of ours is on the Board at The Center, a local organization serving people living with HIV and AIDS. Their annual Center a la Carte event brings together local restaurants and beverage suppliers in support of their incredible mission. And there's nothing we like better than getting together with friends to raise money for a great cause.

There were games and prizes. There was a ring toss. The deal was you had to try to land your rings around the neck(s) of wine bottles, and you won whatever bottles you landed on.

Mike was first to go. His technique was what I would describe as a machine gun scatter shot approach. (Note from Mike: "It was not!"). An interesting technique, but he didn't land a ring-around-the-neck.

Next up: Me. I took a breathe, had a pep talk with my friends, and let the first of my rings fly.

And let's just say, turns out I have a hidden talent.

It's true. I totally rocked the ring toss. I have witnesses. My last ring even bounced, ricocheted off the shelf, and landed on the bottle. It was quite something. I have witnesses.

I picked up an ice bucket at a yard sale on Saturday to chill my winnings in. That, and I bragged a lot.

I think we're officially ready to get the whole Summer thing started.

Tiptoe through my tulips.

2011-05-11T15:27:00.000-04:00

Look at how my little garden grows!

Tulips and daffodils are new to the garden, thanks to a generous gift of bulbs from a former colleague (thanks, Pat!). I wasn't sure how they would do, especially given those little pesky squirrels who seem to enjoy my garden even more than I do. But I'm quite happy with the colorful results.

My other spring blooms made their appearance as the tulips started to fade.

Even the pansies I planted in the fall (that spent most of the winter buried under some 71" of snow) are blooming.

One of my neighbors says I have magical soil. Maybe I do.

Speaking of tiptoeing through the tulips, I've started to play ukulele. Not a typo. I bought myself a uke for my birthday a couple of months ago and a lovely young man (dude?) is attempting to teach me to play. Tonight's my second to last lesson. Maybe I'll make my performance debut on the blog.

But not just yet. My ukulele playing isn't nearly as magical as my soil.

Junk in my trunk.

2011-05-07T19:30:00.015-04:00

Spring is finally in the air at the Jersey Shore! The flowers are blooming, the sunshine is warm, the tents are going up in town, and my trunk is full of treasures.

Yard sale season kicked-off for me today with the town wide yard sale in Avon-by-the-Sea, NJ. I had a pretty good season opener, if I do say so myself, and didn't even spend twenty bucks.

One of my first stops was at this House of Many Frames. The most expensive one was $4 and it was on of those gigantic (40" tall) ones on the left side of this photo:

I got these three for $4 total:

I especially like the detail on the largest one.

Do I have a plan for them? Nope. But sometimes that's how I roll.

I think my favorite find of the day was definitely this antique ironing board.

And the price was right!

I do have a plan for this, and I can promise you it has nothing to do with ironing. That would be crazy talk.

I also nabbed two Fenton pieces ($5 for both). They needed to be hosed down (literally) and they're currently in the dishwasher, but I think I got a decent deal on these.

Oh, I also saw this door in someone's trash.

If it can't be in my home, I sure hope it winds up in someone else's and not in a landfill. (And by the way, the glass isn't frosted; it's dirty. But still!)

Any treasures in your trunk?

Wee William's Big Day

2011-04-29T05:30:00.001-04:00

My grandma was from Liverpool. As a result, I knew a LOT about the British Monarchy at a very young age. My Christmas and birthday gifts were often quite regal.

And I've inherited some interesting pieces.

(Our family jewels are of the faux variety. But a gal can dream.)

I just wrapped up (intense! busy!) work in London and was happy to spend some time combing the shops for Royal Wedding 2.0 memorabilia to bring home. I was super excited to come home this week to this, sent from a colleague across the pond...

I had a vivid dream about my British Grammy the other night which really didn't surprise me. I'm hoping she'll visit again tonight so we can sit down to a "proper cuppa" (for her, that would have been a cuppa milk) and have a chat about the nuptials. Though I'm sure Grammy would still be hung up on Kate's see-through dress. (I also saw a sketch of Harry's date's alleged dress for the wedding. Bare shoulder! In Westminster Abbey! Tsk.)

I've had some nasty computer issues (our home PCs...plural...are a hot mess) and I've actually started to snail mail people. I'm like a luddite blogger. The good news is, we're going away today and I'm looking forward to zippy hotel WiFi. The bad news is, our flight takes off in the middle of the Royal Wedding.

Travel fail.

Hope you're all well! Looking forward to seeing you again.

Beware the Ides of March

2011-03-15T14:45:00.001-04:00

Nature can be so beautiful…like these late winter waves breaking on the Jersey Shore this weekend.

Just a few blocks away from the idyllic scene, almost a year to the day of last year’s massive blaze, another windstorm spread one more devastating fire through the town on Friday. Miraculously, everyone survived.

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. ~William Shakespeare

And thousands of miles away, our brothers and sisters in Japan have suffered the greatest of tragedies at the hands of nature. A few of my colleagues left Japan that morning, on a flight to New York just a couple of hours before the first quake hit. They were lucky. Ten thousand people, and the countless loved ones they’ve left behind, were not. If you can, please be sure to help the Tsunami victims.

How can something as beautiful as nature, so full of wonder, so at the core of what makes my world go around, betray us in such a way? Some things, no matter I hard I try to, I will never understand.

My heart goes out to everyone affected.

We had a couple of minor health issues in the family this past week so we’re especially hopeful that the arrival of the Ides of March marks the end of a tumultuous period. Spring is in the air in our part of the world, the temperature is slowly rising, and nature is once again showing she can be full of hope and promise.

Happy Mardi Gras!

2011-03-08T08:00:00.001-05:00

Mardi Gras Indian, New Orleans Jazz Fest 2010

There are many things and places I love and one of them is New Orleans. I'll be back there in 52 days. But who's counting. Until then I'll have to wash down my not-quite-the-real-deal King Cake with a cup of chicory coffee. And by the way...the best, best King Cake I've ever had was sent to me by my brother last year from Sucre, a must visit when in the Big Easy.

Hope springs eternal. In the form of crocus.

2011-03-07T07:15:00.002-05:00

For some reason, I insisted on ordering crocus bulbs this past fall. Maybe I had a inkling of what a LONG (emhasis on LONG) winter it would be, and how welcome their colorful little buds would be when the ground finally thawed.

I was so excited to wake up to the first of the crop this weekend.

Since spring was kind of, sort of in the air (or at least poking out of the front yard ground) I decided to head over to L.B. Forcellati & Sons in Wall, NJ -- a nursery and garden center with one incredible greenhouse. It's the perfect place to visit when you need a little sunshine and warmth in the middle of the cold season. My friends and I think they should set up tables and serve high tea. Just to us.

The orchids were amazing. I was definitely starting to feel spring was indeed in the air.

This bird of paradise plant had a sold sticker on it, and I'm dying to know where it's heading. Somewhere fancy for sure (maybe another greenhouse), since I can't imagine this plant handling the frosty Garden State winters.

And don't get me started about how much I wish one of these Meyer lemon trees could come home with me. And I wish you had smell-o-vision right now, because these little trees smelled fabulous.

I walked out feeling ready to take on the world! Until I realized I still had my ankle length parka, hat and gloves on. What do you do to get through the last days of winter? (Other than scream, which is something I'm strongly considering this year.)

Rolling out the red (mostly black, with earth tone highlights) carpet.

2011-02-27T18:55:00.002-05:00

Oscar Sunday is as good a day as any to roll out a new carpet. There was a brief period of almost-warm-oh-my-did-I-see-crocus-leaves weather today, so we decided to do some pre-spring cleaning. And after scrubbing the floors Cinderalla style, I finally got around to laying out our new runner.

We picked it up at a home store in Asbury Park (Robert Legere) that twice a year marks everything down 50%. I usually pick up super fancy Christmas ornaments at the January sale to use as favors at my cookie party, but this year no ornaments. I was too late to their party.

The runner is replacing this one we got at Pottery Barn a couple of years ago that was a big fat fail. Jute - pretty to look at, impossible to clean up after. I loved the thickness and texture, and the color against the dark wood floors. But it created tumbleweeds larger and more invasive than anything that's ever rolled off our dog during peak shedding season. I would vacuum, go out to dinner, and come home to jute dust. Everywhere.

Speaking of the dog, someone thought the new runner was her new bed.

Maggie's quite good at making herself comfortable. This is how I found her when I woke up this morning:

Looks like someone had a rough (ruff?) Saturday night.

Hi, my name is Laura...

2011-02-19T18:15:00.001-05:00

...and I buy tchotchke.

I promised no more junque. But this little hand just waved at we. "Hello, pretty girl. You look like you could use a pick-me-up. So why don't you just pick me up?"

And at fifty cents, she may make the "best of" list for 2011 if she plays her (pun alert) hand right.

Now this one I can't explain. I'm not a sampler kind of girl, but I live in a friendly house by the side of the road. Maybe that's all I need to make questionable decisions.

Many times I find the story behind the object d'art more fascinating than the object itself. Or at least the story I make up. When I picked this one up in all her duct-taped, vintage papered glory, I knew there were plenty of good stories this piece could help me tell.

Incidentally one of the Valentines in my last post is signed "Estella" so you can only imagine the stories I'm making up!

The sampler could make a cute housewarming gift for the right person (and at only $7 I don't feel terrible about this purchase). I've got some nerve considering another piece for myself given the piles of unhung art piling up around here.

Today I was inspired to move one of the piles to a bed. Progress!

Maybe tomorrow it will move from the bed to the wall.

Now that would be something.

Things I love...

2011-02-14T13:15:00.001-05:00

My family, my friends, my dog. The amazing memories I have of any combination of the three.

Baking. Good books. Thrifting (duh!). I most love thrifting with my family or friends (two loves for the price of one).

This Vows column in yesterday's New York Times.

The shorehouse. Long walks on the beach. The smell of warm rain. The way the sky looks as the sun is setting. Skiing in the Rockies.

(Now this is starting to sound like a Playmate data sheet.)

I also love these vintage Valentines I picked up at the Ocean Grove Flea Market in the fall. They were $1 each and all addressed to some lucky lad named Victor. Can you imagine that children gave each other such amazing Valentines? Or at least I'm assuming they were given out to classmates. If not Victor has some explaining to do to Peter, Everett, Vic and Estella.

Things I don't like so much? Bronchitis with "a touch of" pneumonia. Which is what I have and why I've been MIA. Again. One of these days I'll get this blog thing down again.

'Til then, air kisses from a safe distance! I'm looking forwarding to a cup of tea (I may even go back to coffee today!) and visits with you (I owe many). I couldn't think of a better way to spend Valentine's Day.

Going Dutch

2011-01-31T07:50:00.001-05:00

My friend invited me to take a little Dutch Country, Pennsylvania, adventure this weekend. Any road trip involving thrift stores (eight stops in the town of Ephrata alone!), a flea market, hand rolled pretzels and Amish buy-in-bulk stores works for me.

The snow fell steadily while we were out and about, but it looked way more spectacular stretched across the farm-dotted Amish landscape than it does plopped across the roof of my car (which I dug out AGAIN yesterday when I got home. Ugh.). Did I take photos of any of the postcard-perfect scenery? Of course not. That would make too much sense.

But I did catch a couple of shots of our thrifting in action.

Jean was on a mission to find inexpensive turquoise vintage Ball canning jars. You know how it is when you have something specific in mind and then you can never find it? Well, apparently that doesn’t happen to her. She found a treasure trove at the Green Dragon

She scooped up the best of the blues as fast as her hands could scoop.

I exercised tremendous restraint. For the most part. I picked up a couple of milk glass pieces.

The hobnail piece is Fenton and more my thing, but there’s something about the larger piece I liked. I’m hoping the wide mouth will make for a nice flower arrangement; if not, it may be returning to a thrift store near you!

These little butter knives were too cute to pass up. A good deal for a set of six, and I think they’ll polish up well:

I know I promised that I would ease up on tchotchke purchases this year, but I think this little guy winked at me. And he was only $1. So how could I leave him on the shelf? Plus, I’m planning on using him as a cake topper (but am secretly hoping to keep him).

The only downsides of the trip? Seeing this gigantic painting at one of our stops (which I think may give me recurring nightmares) and finding an olive in my margarita.

I hope you all had lovely weekends! Thank you so much for your comments on my last post. I wrote it from the bottom of my stomach, which is much bigger than my heart, and your kind words meant a lot to me.

Bye Bye Bitty

2011-01-26T14:00:00.002-05:00

(Photo: Sally Stein via MarkBittman.com)

I nearly passed out in my pea soup on Monday when I read that Mark Bittman was ending The Minimalist column. Last night, I devoured every word of his last column as I would a slow-cooker veggie chili on a cold winter's day.

I know I shouldn't get emotional over the demise of a food column, but to me it was always more than just that. Mark taught me how to cook, really. He and I have spent many hours together in my kitchen over the years. I also watched with insane jealousy as Gwennie got to travel On the Road with him. ("Ah-hahaha...Oh Bitty!") How I wished it was my brunette mop flapping in the Spanish breeze in that convertible instead of her perfect blond locks...And that it was I who could eat and eat and eat like her without putting on so much as an ounce. But I digress...

Bitty (may I call you Bitty?), if you only knew.

What did Mike get for his birthday last week? No, not another gift certificate to a hardware store. He got heart healthy whole grain pancakes, so I can keep him around to fix things at the shorehouse for years to come.

Did the raw butternut squash slaw take center stage as you promised? Oh yes it did, and got a standing ovation at that.

I served nearly all of the farmers' market corn I bought last year Mexican-style thanks to you. Hola, deliciousness.

And as soon as I can find fresh basil that doesn't look like it got run over by a snow plow (winter can be so cruel), I'm definitely making your fazzoletti. And don't even get me started about your gnocchi.

I could wax nostalgic about The Minimalist 'til the grass-fed cows come home (and speaking of wax, you should really have a look at how wax beans play a roll in the Green Beans and Tofu Skins With Rice Sticks recipe!). But instead I'll savor the memories, and every last delicious meal we shared.

I think most of all, Bitty, I'll miss your candor. You've always been so patient and kind about my vegetarian ways (and even devoted a cookbook to it) and never made me feel like the one-eyed circus freak many people treat me as (and you know who you are, ahem). In fact, in yesterday's column you wrote:

“My growing conviction that the meat-heavy American diet and our increasing dependence on prepared and processed foods is detrimental not only to our personal health but to that of the planet has had an impact on my life and on that of the column.”

::sniff::

Best of luck, Bitty. 'Til we eat again.

Sunrise, Sunset

2011-01-24T19:15:00.001-05:00

For those of you not in my neck of the world, it is cold outside. Very, very cold. It’s so cold (“How cold is it?” Wow. Total Match Game flashback), my train literally froze on the way to work today.

Between the crazy snow and frigid temperatures, it’s been one heck of a winter here. But I think Mother Nature is trying to make up for landing her frosty one-two punch by ending each day with spectacular sunsets like this one at the shorehouse last night.

Either that or she has a wicked sense of humor.

Speaking of rays of sunshine, a bunch of amazingly kind folks have come by as I get my bloggy sea legs back. Shorehouse 2.0, if you will. A huge thanks to all the folks who’ve found me again and commented these past few posts…Kathleen at Purple Flowers, Ang, Erika Swain, Keetha at Eclectic Company, Joyce at A Perfect Beginning, Maureen, Tee at The Diva’s Random Thoughts, Deborah at The Fairfield House, Diane at A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words, Cupcakin’ It Up, Grey Cardigan, Liz at Violet Posy, Pat at Mille Fiori Favoriti, Moderne Momma at Beach House, Sheila at The Quintessential Magpie, Lauren, Caren at City Momma/Country Momma, j.cro at Snapshots and Confabulation, Susan at Black Eyed Susan’s Kitchen, Heidi at Faboolosity, Ola at Apple Tea, Patti at Pandora’s Box and Ina in Alaska.

I’m really happy to be back.

The Year in Thirft: Part Two

2011-01-20T06:52:00.000-05:00

Continuing on from my last post...

6. Ironstone gravy boat. Cost: 25 cents

Provenance: St. Paul’s Rummage Sale, Ocean Grove

I bought this the day before “stuff-everything” day (see #5 on my list). It is in perfect condition and may be the best way I’ve ever spent a quarter (aside from on pinball). It’s been used for marinara sauce on pasta night and for caramel sauce on a dessert buffet, so yay for using!

7. Wall mirror. Cost: $3

Provenance: Yard Sale, Oceanport

Virtually everything at this yard sale was overpriced. Laughably overpriced, in fact. Except for this dandy mirror at a mere three bucks. Plus it weighs a ton, so that's really only pennies a pound. (Note how I rationalize my purchases.)

8. Annie Selke fabric. Cost: $5/yard ($10)

Provenance: Allaire State Park Flea Market

My friend Jim and I almost plotzed when we saw this Annie Selke fabric poking out from under a pile of bolts festooned with dancing rabbits, neon roosters and the like. The only shame of this is that I only bought two yards. It was a hot day and clearly I wasn’t properly hydrated. Had I been of sane mind I would have bought the rest of the bolt and made fabulous curtains. Live and learn, fellow thrifters. Live and learn.

9. Pair of Yugoslavian Roussell chairs: $3

Provenance: Estate Sale, West Long Branch

What are Yugoslavian Roussell chairs, and how do I know these are they? Well:

True, they're nothing fancy, but this definitely qualifies as a non-tchotchke practical purchase. Plus they’re so cute and vintage looking and we needed extra seating for al fresco dining on the porch (with my vintage tablecloths, of course). And, hello: Three bucks a pair! Score.

10. “Mrs. Johnson.” Cost: $2

Provenance: Trinity Church Asbury Park Thrift Sale

This large oil on board portrait was the true score of the year.

I spent a lot of Saturdays rummaging and thrifting with my friend Jim in 2010. A LOT. And artwork just seemed to jump into our hands. We’ve amassed quite a collection of gems which probably deserve a post of their own. But Mrs. Johnson, oh Mrs. Johnson. Thank you for hopping out of a pile of crap and into my loving arms. And thanks to my friends Terry and Peter at Tumblety Howell Art for helping me put her damaged frame back together again.

At first I considered ditching the frame, but when I saw the artist signed it (along with signing the back of the painting) I realized it was original and really wanted to make it work.

I did a little online research and it turns out S.W. Peabody was Susan W. Peabody, who was a student at the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1920s. She had a couple of student exhibitions there, and appears to have been a benefactor to a number of museums over the years. Now whether or not she's related to the Peabody artsy patron family I don't know. But I'd sure like to think so!

I am so excited by this purchase I can’t even tell you. (Well, I guess I did tell you.)

I’d love to see your favorite thrifty find of 2010. Do tell!

The Year In Thrift: Part One

2011-01-13T20:00:00.008-05:00

As I mentioned at the end of my last post, 2010 proved to be a stellar year for thrifting in New Jersey. Here, in part one of two, is a look at ten of the things that made my thrifty hearty flutter this past year:

1. Statue of Liberty vase/cup/thingie. Cost 50 cents

Provenance: Ocean Grove yard sale

This past year, I made a promise to myself I'd limit tchotchke purchases and only buy things that served a purpose.

So I put my toothpaste in Lady Libby and gave her a purpose. Plus, she’s right at home with her family in the second floor bathroom.

2. Vintage aluminum sign. Cost: Free

Provenance: Next door neighbor’s trash

The sign said, “Take Home Kern’s Bread”…so I did. Right from my shorehouse neighbor’s trash.

3. Vintage linens. Cost: $10 (total)

Provenance: Ocean Grove Flea Market (by way of vendor’s Nana’s cupboard)

The tablecloths were $5 each which, even though that’s big bucks for me, I knew was a bargain. One still had tags on it!

Judging by the wild-eyed look on the face of the shabby chicified woman next to me when I asked “how much are these?” I have a feeling she knew I got a deal, too. The vendor threw in the towel (literally) for free. And they all laundered like a dream.

4. Funky necklace. Cost: 50 cents

Provenance: Allaire State Park Flea Market

A couple of snip-snips later and I shed the Travolta chain and added my own white gold one. Eventually I’ll also change out the gigantic loopy thing the chain goes through, but I can’t tell you how many compliments I’ve gotten on this thing. “Is that coral?” “Is that sculpted?” I’m fairly sure it’s plastique, circa 1970.

5. A whole slew of Shiny Brites and old timey ornaments. Cost: Free?

Provenance: St. Paul’s Rummage Sale, Ocean Grove

It was “stuff-everything-in-a-bag-for-$3” day at the rummage sale. They had a whole slew of glass vases, and since my friend runs a home-based florist biz I asked if he wanted them for his shows and such. While I was carefully filling the shopping bag, something shiny (and “brite,” if you will) caught my eye from a box under the table. I stuffed every single loose ornament in the vases, and the ones in cardboard sleeves slipped right in vases as-is. Since they fit in the bag that I already was buying for Bloom Boxx technically they were free right? Right.

To be continued…with ironstone, Roussell chairs, Mrs. Johnson and more!

What I did in 2010. Part two.

2011-01-06T07:45:00.001-05:00

Continuing on...

August 2010

In August my friends and I held our first ever Farmers' Market Challenge. The object was to make dinner entirely from stuff picked up at the Asbury Park Farmers' Market, a wee tiny array of vendors. You know how in the beginning of The Iron Chef everyone runs and grabs ingredients out of each other's hands? That's what we looked like. Which was pretty funny since most of the shoppers there were...well, just shopping. And we were grabbing. And running. And tossing produce to (at?) each other. But the vendors totally got into it.

The next week a couple of the them wanted us to email pictures of what we made. And thankfully, we didn't embarrass ourselves. Here's a sample:

September 2010

As the "Summer of Sawdust" drew to an end, our new bathroom was fully framed out and ready for tile.

The tile part was easier said than done (and we didn't even do the tiling ourselves), but I think you'll be proud when you see the final product. (I squealed when I got in the shower for the first time.) I must recommend is the Toto Vespin toilet. You may have heard of its "cyclone technology" and if not let's just say that's a mighty good flush. It also makes me want to hang one of Mrs. Limestone's pics of the Coney Island Cyclone to next to it. (Pssst! She's giving away her photos over at her blog! Head over to enter.)

October 2010

I saw a pig in dress in Asbury Park. And I'm not making a derogatory comment about some Jersey Shore girl. I saw an actual pig in a dress.

Halloween weekend, I walked with the zombies.

And scared the neighbor's kids.

November 2010

I went to a crafty meet-up inspired by Amy Sedaris' new Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People book.

I made this hair clip out of candy wrappers and entered Amy's contest on WNYC.

I didn't win.

December 2010

We headed to Key West for a pre-Christmas getaway. I went to my first-ever boat parade and loved it. I wanted the little boat in the photo below to win, partially because it really did look like a sleigh but mostly because it had a flame thrower in the back. Sweet.

Like me in the Amy Sedaris contest, it didn't win.

We had to drink hot cocoa and wear winter coats to keep warm. In Key West. Florida.

In hindsight I laugh a little about that, because when we got home this happened:

(That's my car under there.)

We were trapped in the shorehouse for five days waiting for the streets to be plowed. You probably wouldn't have liked me very much by day four.

So there you have it. What was my favorite part of 2010? Thrifting adventures. Oh, the thrifting. Honestly, it was a banner year. My friend Jim and I elevated thrifting to an art form in 2010.

Up next: Top 10 Thrifts of 2010

So what did I do in 2010? Part 1

2011-01-04T07:30:00.004-05:00

Believe me, I ask myself that question often. I mean, where did this year go? Here’s a look back…

January 2010

I made my first dress! Courtesy of the amazing workshops at M. Avery Designs.

February 2010

I finally made popcorn on the stove top. And I’ll never make it any other way again. This may seem insignificant to you, but it was a life changer for me.

March 2010

I learned to make donuts. And I never made them again. They’re trouble in a frying pan, I tell you. To think, delicious donuts are just a tube of refrigerated biscuit dough away.

April 2010

One door closed and another opened. I walked away from a job I was at for nearly a decade and sprinted into a new one.

But not before running away to the New Orleans Jazz Fest for a weekend.

And then we started our much ballyhooed attic renovation.

And then, I walked away from my blog.

Life got in the way. I could barely keep up with my new routine, and everything else just sort of fell by the wayside in 2010. The few spare hours I had I was happiest just sitting in silence with my dog and a good cup of coffee. And sometimes by "good cup of coffee" I mean "stiff cocktail."

But the rest of 2010 wasn’t a total wash.

May 2010

The tulip bulbs I scattered the previous fall bloomed just in time for Mother's Day.

They were late bloomers, but so was I and I turned out OK. Or so I'd like to think.

June 2010

By June the attic was fairly gutted and we realized "relaxing summer" would not be in our vocabulary.

The front garden went all jungle on me, only three years after planting it.

We also joined our Hands Across the Sand to help protect our beautiful beaches.

July 2010

Have you ever been to the Newport Folk Festival? I went for the first time because my favorite band (The Avett Brothers) was playing. We took a family road trip and it was the perfect weekend...just me, mom and my brother. I suspect I'll be back in 2011.

July held another first for me: My first ambulance ride. I don't recommend, but am very grateful to the Bradley Beach First Aid Squad for scooping me up (and to my friend for scooping up my bike!). And for the endless hours of entertainment provided to me by all of the guidos being treated in the ER. (This happened on a Saturday at the Jersey Shore, so you can only imagine.)

Next up: Farmers and zombies and blizzards. Oh my!

Should auld acquaintance*...

2011-01-01T11:55:00.002-05:00

Harry: What does this song mean? My whole life, I don't know what this song means. I mean, 'Should old acquaintance be forgot'? Does that mean that we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happened to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot?

Sally: Well, maybe it just means that we should remember that we forgot them or something. Anyway, it's about old friends.

- When Harry Met Sally, a movie I can watch over and over and over.

So what about really auld acquaintances? Have they been forgotten? If so, you're totally not reading this.

My excuses for extended absence from my blog and yours are pathetic at best. My adjustment to my "new" job has been tougher than expected, and this summer I got in a rather...how should I put this...ugly bike accident. And as much as I thought a "2010 Wrap Up" post would have been a good way to explain what I've been up to, photos of me at the office and/or photos of my kneecap stitched back together seemed a little morose. But I'm determined to focus on the bright side! Since I left you, a major attic renovation kicked off this spring, which looked a little like this at the middle stages:

And it's thisclose to wrapping up. To anyone out there who is a general contractor, I have a new appreciation for you and bow to your excellence.

Other than all of that, oh, the thrifty adventures I've been on since I left you (I went to a really good rummage sale on crutches less than a week after my accident, which proves my dedication if nothing else!). The past few months were among the best thrifting days ever. And the 852 photos I pulled off my camera while trapped in a blizzard this week proved it.

So I guess I'm saying that I'm back. And if anyone is still out there...thank you. A happy, healthy and prosperous new year to you all!

* Somewhat horrifyingly, I took this picture minutes ago. I pulled out the Christmas ornaments from the basement to stage the photo so I wouldn't look like a total nincompoop. The only holiday decoration at the shorehouse this year was the wreath outside. ::hangs head in shame::

Lights out.

2010-04-03T14:16:00.003-04:00

I turned off the lights in my office for the last time yesterday.

It was bittersweet. I've spent many (emphasis on many) hours in this office over the last eight years. I am happy to move on to my new job with new challenges (on Monday. Who doesn't take time off between jobs?! Apparently I don't.), but sad to leave behind a core group of colleagues I will miss working with.

I will also miss the stellar view from my office window of the Chrysler Building.

But the funny thing is I'll only be down the street. That's right -- one of the biggest cities in the world and I managed to find myself a job one block away. Go figure!

Hopefully I'll be able to do a better job of finding work/life balance this time around. That's the one thing I've failed miserably at.

Besides, I have blogging to catch up with!

I hope you'll stick with me while I continue to sort out my new life over the next couple of weeks. I mean, it's yard sale season! That's peak season here at the shorehouse.

Happy spring everyone.

Luck of the Irish

2010-03-17T17:30:00.001-04:00

(Memorial benches on the boardwalk. I wrote about them here last April.)

I know I've been a bad blog girl. I don't post. I don't visit. I don't even call you on the phone or bake you brownies. I'm not going to attempt to make excuses.

Well, yes I am.

You see, the luck of the Irish has smiled upon me. I got a new job! My one and only New Year's Resolution was to find a new job this year (well, that and lose my bubble butt). The job search turned into a bit of a full-time job in itself.

I found out about new job while I was in Colorado and will be at old job until I start new job on April 5. And in the midst of everything I took on a freelance job last month. So there is a whole lot of job in my life right now. But the good news is, everything's starting to come up roses. Roses and pansies. Because after all the snow (finally) melted last week, the pansies I planted in September started blooming! With new buds and all. I took these pictures on Sunday after the big storm:

It's like they were cryogenically preserved under all that snow or something.

I hope everything is rosy in your neck of the world. Today in NYC the sun is shining and the mercury is climbing. Life is good.

Sad day in Ocean Grove.

2010-03-13T16:53:00.009-05:00

I was hoping to come back and talk about our trip to Colorado, and about some really great things that happened this past week, but that seems pretty insignificant right now.

About three blocks from the shorehouse, chaos erupted in the darkness early this morning.

(Photos from the Asbury Park Press, here and here.)

We're in the midst of a terrible storm and the 48 mile-per-hour winds caused embers to be swept for blocks, making battling the blaze extra challenging in a town of wood-framed Victorian homes. Miraculously, no one was killed. But some people's lives were changed forever, many losing everything.

Clark, the amazing owner of The Manchester Inn, has lost his home and his business. His Inn was a favorite stop on the Ocean Grove House Tour. He would whip up the most amazing homemade soups (even a vegetarian one!) and his gratis lunch stop was always a favorite for those of us in the know. Anyone who's ever asked me about the Ocean Grove House Tour knows I say, "Make sure you stop at The Manchester Inn!" For the Holiday House Tour his special hot mulled cider was also on tap, along with recipe cards so you could recreate the magical potion at home. The Inn was solar powered, a project Clark took great pride in and would talk to anyone about with the excitement of a grade school boy who just hit a home run. A well curated photo display right inside the front entry helped tell the story.

The Manchester Inn was on a popular stretch of the local July 4th parade, and guests always spilled out of their rooms and onto the porches for one of the best viewing spots in the town. Here's a couple of pictures I took in 2008 (the Inn is behind the trees):

When I saw what was left of The Manchester Inn and its neighboring Painted Ladies this morning -- a pile of charred embers -- my knees got weak and the tears flowed freely.

Please keep my neighbors in your thoughts this weekend.

Things I've learned in Colorado

2010-03-07T22:57:00.010-05:00

So far, I've learned that waking up to a snowman outside of your window is a great way to start a day...

...that signs like these are just a suggestion to some people...

...and that the view on a gray day is still better than the view from a desk any day.

I learned when the sun shines on the mountains it is breathtakingly beautiful, and in a town this high up in the sky you feel like you could hug the clouds and kiss the sun.

I also learned that the thrift shops aren't open on weekends (that was a bit of a buzz kill, I admit)...

...and that waking up early on Sundays to have Nutella and banana crepes should be compulsory.

I learned that our friends' seventeen year-old son is pretty rad (or whatever it is the kids today call it) and I also learned that I think I am still seventeen, judging in part by the way I dress on a ski vacation.

(Notice the trifecta of ski vacations on the counter...peroxide, Band-Aids and sunscreen.)

I learned that Colorado is very dog friendly, and that people take their dogs everywhere (to work, to the ski slopes, to Happy Hour...). And that made me happy.

(That is a full-sized garbage pail. And a gigantic dog.)

And I learned that the folks back home are still as amazing as ever. I got an email from Beach House Living saying that she was once again donating to my Help for Haiti 2 auction. And look at the fabulous earrings and hand-stamped ribbon from her Etsy store that will go to the winning bidder:

The current high bid for the entire package of items is $100, and you have until 11:59 p.m./ET on March 10 to bid. You can choose to donate to the Haitian or Chilean relief organization of your choice (or split between charities). And think of all the gifts you can tuck away (or keep for yourself)! Plus remember: I'm matching the winning bid dollar-for-dollar and making a donation to the babies of Hudson Cradle. So click here to bid...and thank you in advance for your generosity.

There you have it. From 12,998 feet in the sky. Be back soon!

Snowing, I mean Sewing Challenge

2010-03-01T20:41:00.003-05:00

M. Avery Design Studios in Hoboken decided to host a sewing challenge that I just had to be a part of. And being that sewing is very much a challenge for me...how perfect!

Megan recently acquired a large lot of upholstery fabric samples. And by large lot I mean enough to cover New York's Central Park many, many times over. She invited members of her Meet Up group to come pick out one pound of fabric scraps. The $10 entry fee would be used to set-up a scholarship at the sewing studio for a young and deserving local lass. Great idea!

For the project you must use only the pound of fabric you grabbed. I had an idea in mind so grabbed Damask fabric from the same style/design group:

I also grabbed these little Asian inspired panels because they fit into my one pound pile. I'll make a separate project out of those...I'm thinking lavender sachets since the pieces are smaller.

The other, and somewhat unexpected, part of the challenge was this:

Waking up to yet another snow storm in the city and needing desperately to get to my Singer at the shorehouse to complete the sewing challenge in time for this Wednesday night.

Cool heads and excellent shoveling skills prevailed. I spent a good deal of the weekend cutting and piecing together and sewing. Here's a sneak peek of what I'll be entering:

The contest is Wednesday night so I'll show you my project in all of its (somewhat pathetic) glory after the competition has ended. Let's just say that I wish I didn't use Damask. Shredded, hairy mess.

I also want to thank all of your kind comments on my Help for Haiti 2 post! Wow. WOW. There aren't enough ways for me to say, "thank you." Sadly Chile now could also use some help so the winner can donate to Chili or Haiti, or split the donation between the two fund raising efforts.

Rue de la Clef has also pitched in some homemade goodness to the prize package:

Head over to the original post for more details, and thank you again for your generous bids and links.

As an aside, the lovely lady behind Rue de la Clef is also embarking on a month-long project to replicate Martha's calendar (yes; that Martha). Today's task was to feed the chickens and gather eggs. And it's only March 1 so this should be something.

Help For Haiti 2...and a little something extra...

2010-02-24T21:30:00.005-05:00

The debauchery of Fat Tuesday ushered in the season of lent. Many who celebrate do so by giving up something...sugar, soda, dessert (and these days, maybe reality television, facebook or twitter). When I was younger I gave up meat for the whole of lent, not just on Ash Wednesday and Fridays like the rest of them. I went, if you'll pardon the pun, whole hog.

It should be noted I was (and am) a vegetarian. But those nuns were never prouder of me, so why ruin a good thing?

But now I'm older (and wiser, and less deceptive) and think life should be more about giving back than giving up. And if all of us did a little bit, we could make the world a better place, I tell you what. I am astounded by the generosity of the blog community, and it's part of what has drawn me in.

So here goes: Haiti still needs a lot of help. As of this week, the UN estimates the death toll in Haiti could reach 300,000 and the number of people left homeless hovers somewhere between 1.2 and 1.5 million. I really can't wrap my head around these numbers. All we can do is try to help, even a little.

The Help for Haiti 2 auction at the shorehouse will offer the following prize package to the winning bidder:

Another nifty tote bag made by my own hands. This one is slightly larger than the one in the last auction, and is reversible!

Then there's a sweet little clutch from M. Avery Designs where I learned to sew. It's made with a great textural upholstery fabric, and lined in shantung silk. It has a snap closure and I added a vintage pin to jazz it up even more:

How cool is this? Bracelets with a Conscience is the brainchild of Point Pleasant, New Jersey's Ann Harmon. Talk about giving back! The story of her company and commitment to helping can be found online here.

More prizes will be added so be sure to check back. The auction will remain open until March 10 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Simply leave a comment in this post with your bid amount. At auction's end the winning bidder just needs to make a donation to the Haitian relief charity of their choice in the amount of the winning bid. I will ship the prizes at my cost anywhere in the world. This is the perfect way to get some (really) early holiday shopping done -- keep one prize for yourself, and tuck away the others as gifts!

Update, March 1: The lovely Rue de la Clef has added a tissue pouch and homemade pancake mix to the...well, mix! The winning bidder will also find these coming their way...

Update, March 7: Look what Beach House Living has added. These gorgeous earrings with smokey colored stones...

...and handstamped ribbon that's tres chic. Both are from her Etsy store.

And wait! There's more!

I will match the winning bid dollar for dollar and donate my money to Hudson Cradle, a group home in Jersey City, NJ, providing full, nurturing care to homeless infants with complex health, development, social and safety needs. These folks are among the hardest working and most compassionate people I know, and we're in an economic time when charities need our financial help more than ever. Hudson Cradle is hosting a Taste of Hudson fundraiser on the Jersey City waterfront on April 29 -- I'm in charge of the auction at that event so if you have ideas for prizes, or want to learn more about the event or organization, please give me a shout!

And more...

Everyone who links to this post will be entered in a random drawing to win something made by little old me. Everyone who places a bid will also be entered. Little old me has been a little stretched lately (as evidenced by lack of blog time. Eek!), so hasn't exactly made anything yet but will this weekend. I'm thinking I'll make a pillow using that Ikatish fabric I recently blogged about (thank you for the kind comments on my "evolving" sewing skills!) and one of the 12 x 16 pillow forms I picked up at Jo-Ann's. So it will kind of look like this...

...just better. Because it will actually be sewn and all.

I'm also going to automatically enter everyone who so kindly bid on my last auction: Rue, Modernemama, Blondie’s Journal, Desiree at Lookiloos, Jane at Atticmag, Fairfield House (who has a fun postcard project going on -- go check it out!), Maureen at Mom Times Two and Northlandmom. Thank you, ladies. I think together we can all help make this world of ours just a wee bit better.

Now...start yer biddin'!

Happy Mardi Gras!

2010-02-16T18:49:00.008-05:00

How happy was I when my friend showed up at the shorehouse on Sunday with this little something he whipped up for moi? It's good to have great friends. And it's better to have great friends who are florists.

Whew, it's been a whirlwind of activity at the shorehouse. We finally decided on the contractor to work on our attic redo (gulp) and I had no idea how time consuming that whole process would be! Things like plumbing parts are about as exciting to me as walking a half mile in the snow every day to the train (yup; still snowing here). He'll help with the little half bath, too, which I'm sorry to say hasn't gotten much further than the vanity. I feel like my home life is moving in slow motion. And my work life...is interesting.

I dig manage to finish another dress. This is more of a pseudo-dress-tunic-cover-up-thingie, but it's cute, and unlike the other dress I didn't have to seam rip myself out of it. But truth told, I think I'll stick with pillows and crafty bits. I think building a house from the ground-up would be easier for me than reading a Vogue pattern that is suspiciously marked something like, "Super easy, moron-proof pattern inside!" Lies. The only thing I've gotten good at is sleeve patterns.

Speaking of sleeves, I've got something up mine. I'll be hosting a giveaway, a fundraiser for Hudson Cradle (the NJ charity I'm involved with) and a Help for Haiti 2 auction all together in my next post. So stay tuned!

Now I have to get back to something of personal importance. Which would be polishing off the delicious Mardi Gras snacks my awesome brother had sent to us from the Big Easy. And for the record for all you aficionados, the trendy Sucré on Magazine Street in NOLA is now officially home to the king of all King Cakes in my humble sugar-loving opinion.

Laissez les bon temps roulez! Which I think is Creole for "My butt is getting incredibly big from all the crap I'm eating. But who cares! WHOO HOO!" That's right; I put the Fat in Fat Tuesday, y'all.

"A day without snow..."

2010-02-10T12:29:00.007-05:00

Actually I have no idea what that would be like. It's been snowing at the shorehouse a LOT. And it's the shore...we're five blocks from the ocean. Very odd weather we're having this year.

Today it's also snowing in NYC and neither snow, nor sleet, nor rain will keep me from schlepping to work. No siree. I'm loyal like a dog. (Woof.)

(The other lady of the house is enjoying this weather immensely.)

Having said that, I just looked out the window whilst enjoying my lunch and am thinking I made a horrible decision.

The photo's not blurry; that cloudiness would be snow. Lots. Of. Snow.

Oops.

I have taken advantage of the snow-filled weekends, though. I popped my own corn using the instructions Chef Guas gave at my class last week. It took just a large covered (cover = very important) pan, 1/4 cup of canola oil, 2/3 cup of corn kernals, and excessive amounts of elbow grease (shake, shake, shake the pan over heat). Note to self: A mere two-thirds a cup of corn makes a LOT of popcorn.

I also bought what I would describe as Ikatish (Ikatesque?) fabric from the JoAnn's clearance rack a couple of weeks ago:

At only $4 a yard, I figured I would make myself a wrap skirt. But this past snowy Sunday had me hankering for a pop of couch color instead. So the standard issue sofa pillow went from this:

To this:

And when Mike wasn't looking I added this:

But I think that may be too much for him (And me. I think I stepped way over the trendy line with that pairing).

And once again, we spent a large chunk of the weekend shoveling. I spotted this duo on one neighbor's porch during my leg of the shovel-a-thon, and hours later they were still there.

They let me get in pretty close, so I rewarded their generosity with some popcorn.

Hope you're enjoying the day in your nest.

Baking myself out of a funk.

2010-02-03T23:48:00.006-05:00

It’s the winter, the world, the work, whatever. I’m in a funk and it’s not very pleasant. Nor am I.

But that funk was tucked on a kitchen shelf high out of reach the other night when my friend Karen and I headed to The Institute of Culinary Education. We were there for the New Orleans Desserts class taught by Chef David Guas, author of DamGoodSweet -- a damgood cookbook/memoir.

We signed up for the class way before the Saints were Super Bowl-bound, but that development just added to the experience. And when I spring a Gâteau de Sirop on the Super Sunday crowd, I'm going to look pretty cool. Laissez les bon temps roulez indeed.

The enthusiastic and charming Chef Guas led one of the best culinary classes I've taken. I didn't just learn how to make his banana pudding, I learned why it's important to him. I learned how loved ones weren't sent off with a New Orleans jazz funeral, but rather had their lives celebrated with a post-service buffet that always included family, friends, and one mean banana pudding. And I wasn't just told to add Steen's syrup to the Gâteau de Sirop, I was told why Steen's is a must in any self-respecting Louisianian's cupboard. When making caramel I wasn't just told to leave the boiling sugar alone, I was told "when sugar gets agitated, it gets cranky." (Way more memorable, n'est-ce pas?) Chef was also a total Southern gentlemen, offering up cuss-free kitchen colloquialisms like, "and that just kicks the you-know-what out of it." Where as I would have likely just dropped the "s" bomb.

I floated home on a confectionery cloud nine, with visions of a future as a pâtissier dancing through my head (and caramel in my hair). My elevated glucose levels had me barking out my new plans to Mike. I was like a sugar-fueled human machine gun: “IthinkIshouldgotoculinaryschoolandlearnhowtoreallyreallybakeandIcouldworkataninnoropenaninnorsomething…”

He’s a lovely man who supports my (many) whims and flights of fancy. But he gently reminded me that working as a baker would not always be sugar-coated fun; it would be a lot of hard work and long hours. And that financially it’s probably not a very sound decision right now, what with fairly major house renovation plans on the to-do list for the year.

And that reality check from the voice of reason annoyed the you-know-what out of me.

The Summerhouse in Winter

2010-01-28T14:00:00.004-05:00

Preppy Player told me I had to go. Jersey Shore cupcake cutey Jenny said, "WOW!" when she first visited. And I finally made it to Summerhouse in Point Pleasant, NJ.

And it is really, really lovely.

The mother/daughter duo that owns Summerhouse has put together a fabulously curated collection of old and new, with a distinctly vintage French vibe. I had a hard time putting anything down, and left with a few small treasures including a trio of vintage Valentines and this little metal "Entrance" sign I think I'll use for our powder room door.

At $5, it fits nicely into my $500 (hopefully) reno budget. With purchases to-date (including that vintage sewing cabinet/sink stand) I still have $320 left. Tight, but I may be able to do it. Or at least come pretty close.

I've been a busy bee without much to "buzz" about. Although you would think five hours of looking at tile would yield enough content for at least one blog post. To tell you the truth the store's proprietor was way more interesting than the tile shopping itself. I'm fairly sure he'll be the basis for a character in a future novel...

"Well dressed but wild-eyed, this fast talker's staccato laugh rose from his nicotine-stained lips like lava from a long-dormant volcano..."

On second thought, maybe I shouldn't quit my day job just yet.

New (old) bookcase, and playing dress up.

2010-01-24T18:36:00.000-05:00

How can it be Sunday night already? That seems...so wrong.

We did accomplish quite a bit this weekend. We went back to the store in Point Pleasant and retrieved the sewing cabinet for our vessel sink project. And at a hefty discount, I might add. I'm starting to think I will need more than $500 to do the powder room over completely but I'll try my best.

We're Cablevision customers, so we were reunited with HGTV and Food Network this weekend. We've been without for nearly a month -- they were yanked from our airwaves in a ridiculous Goliath vs. Goliath battle. Ergo, I spent way too much time watching TV this weekend. I was amused by a new show called Sarah's House where one bathroom was allocated $7000 for a "low end" budget makeover. And she still went over budget. Oh Sarah, Sarah, Sarah. Stick with me, kid. (It should be noted that the bathroom was beautiful, though.)

My friend Spence was cleaning out his storage unit and wondered if I wanted to be custodian of his antique lawyer's bookcase...no room in their new condo. It took me about a nanosecond to say, "YES, PLEASE!" And I put it together in the office-crafty-sewing room today.

And I am in love. I think I will use it to store my growing "collection" of fabric.

Speaking of fabric, I'm taking dress making classes. I have no time (or skill!) to be doing this, but new year, new challenges, blah, blah, blah. And Friday I completed my first dress:

Crazy, right? The fabric was in the clearance bin at JoAnn's so I only spent $1.50 a yard (three and half yards total). But since it took somewhere close to seven hours to complete the dress (I'm including the time spent seam ripping myself out of it when I got stuck in it. And yes, that's totally a true story) I'd say it was a wash. But at least my new hobby keeps me out of trouble and off the streets.

I hope you had a productive weekend. Now if you'll excuse me, I believe Designed to Sell is on...

One and done: Bathroom vanity found. Maybe?

2010-01-21T03:00:00.001-05:00

It was just Saturday that I mentioned I was tasked with finding a cabinet to rest a vessel sink on. Within 24 hours, in the very first booth at the very first antique store I went in, I think I found one.

I can tell you exactly how many times I find something right away: NONE! I don't know about you, but when I'm looking for something very specific, forget about it.

This old sewing cabinet has the age we're looking for along with the usefulness we need (a cabinet to hide both the plumbing and the spare papier du toilette).

A quick flip of the top shows where a sewing machine once lived. We'll pluck out the metal shelving unit and drill a hole through the top of the of the flip-top to rest the sink and run the plumbing.

I was pretty excited to see a tutorial on Young House Love for getting a vanity prepped for a vessel sink-- talk about timing! -- as well as their recommendation for an eco-friendly wood sealer. Especially since the wood has a lovely, somewhat funky (in a good way) grain:

I think this could be the winner (I have an utter fear of commitment that my loved ones will gladly fill you in on). I'll be back to visit her this weekend and if she's still there, maybe it's meant to be.

* * * * *

Congratulations to Carla who was the winning bidder on my first Help for Haiti auction. The tote and its contents went for $110! I am overwhelmed by the kindness of others. I will absolutely be hosting another auction to coincide with Valentine's Day ('cause I love y'all!) and I've gotten messages from friends who want to contribute so I guarantee you we'll have something fabulous for you to bid on.

You also have until noon Eastern today (Wednesday) to bid on the wares over at Renovation Therapy. Two words: Pucci print. (Two more: Click now!) And Reclaimed Home has set-up an eBay store of vintage goodness to benefit Doctors Without Borders. Fifteen percent of all sales will go directly to their relief efforts. I can't think of a better reason to shop, can you?

Haiti Auction at the Shorehouse - Ends Tonight

2010-01-18T11:45:00.003-05:00

I watched 60 Minutes on Sunday and I cried. I read this article and I cried. The stories and images are overwhelming.

But I am comforted a bit by the kindness of others that I’m experiencing in the blog world. Thank you to everyone who linked to my Haiti auction post and bid on the bag I made:

Since I’m relatively new to the whole sewing thing I definitely had to add to the prize to make it worth the while of my generous bidders. So along with the bag, I will toast the winner with one of my handmade wine/water bottle tie totes:

(I’ll email the winner photos of ones that I have and they can choose the one they’d like.)

And…

…I will send along this handmade journal I bought from a local crafter so the winner can note how lovely the world can be.

...I will tuck in a little milk glass vase. Add your own flowers so you can see the beauty in life.

…I will show my love with this fantastic antique Valentine I picked up Sunday at the Summer House in Point Pleasant, NJ (more on that tomorrow).

PLUS, I received an email from Beach House Living who will be adding this handmade bracelet (with lampwork beads and a sterling silver "s" clasp) and hand stamped gift tags to the prize package!

Be sure to stop by her Etsy store and blog to show the love.

All of the above will go to the winning bidder on my auction post. Bidding remains open until midnight Eastern Time tonight (or very early tomorrow morning I suppose that would be) so click over to my original post if you're interested in bidding.

MORE WAYS TO HELP HAITI:

* Don’t forget that Reclaimed Home’s necklace auction also ends tonight at the same time. Hop over there to place a bid. She also posted about a great ongoing silent auction benefit happening over at Indie Fixx.

* And if you’re in New York City, The Lil Bee has information posted on an organization called charity:water that will be collecting goods to ship to Haiti. Collection day is today, Monday, January 18, at their 200 Varick Street offices. More information on The Lil Bees’ blog.

* Speaking of NYC, amazing benefit concerts are lining-up over at City Winery in Manhattan this Wednesday, January 20, and at The Bell House in Brooklyn on Wednesday, January 27. Thanks to my brother for sending the info on these.

I spent a bit of the weekend at the sewing machine so I’m hoping to host another auction later this week. Stay tuned, and thank you all.

New year, big projects.

2010-01-16T11:46:00.003-05:00

Last year was the year of getting the shorehouse infrastructure in place. Installing a central air conditioning system in a hundred-ish year-old home was our big project for 2009, and while I don't have any pretty pictures to show (there's not much pretty about duct work and air compressors), we couldn't be more pleased with our little HVAC that could.

Since the majority of the installation work was done in our half-finished attic, this has left us with a third floor in need of some love. Love in the form of major duct-hiding, laminate-floor lifting, bathroom-relocating, ceiling-lifting, good times. So to kick-off the New Year, we spent last weekend shopping everything from upscale showrooms (I never knew just how expensive a toilet could be), to local mom and pops, to the trifecta of home makeover big box stores -- IKEA, Lowe's and Home Depot.

Do you know what IKEA is like on a weekend? Bang your head against the wall really hard for ten minutes and you'll get a similar sensation. But I love their $90 vessel sink:

And I like these faucets:

Mike has placed me in charge of finding a small vintage piece to potentially rest a vessel sink on. I've accepted the challenge. The duo will (hopefully) go in a teeny tiny half bath on our first floor (another project)which currently looks like this:

It is as we inherited it. There is so much stuff in there it kind of looks like ten pounds of potatoes in a five pound sack. The goal is to re-do this room on a $500 budget. Since I love me a thrifty challenge, I'm embracing this one (and leaving the monstrous attic to the menfolk).

After looking at sheets and sheets of tile, we both keep coming back to the old school, black and white hexagonal ones. And the price is right, too.

Our inspiration is the old floors you can still sometimes find on the Lower East Side of Manhattan (an odd inspiration, I admit). We'll grout in a pewter-color to add a little something-something.

Today we're headed to the Jersey Shore Home Show, where we'll be able see everything from toilets to tile under one roof. Even Top Design's Eddie Ross will be in on the action.

If you're looking to get your house in tip-top shape for 2010, Reclaimed Home put together a fantastic list of "all those little jobs you've been putting off around the house." So embrace the New Year and the caulk gun, and get sealing!

* * *

Ed note: I am overwhelmed by the kindness of everyone who's commented, linked to and bid on my tote bag to support the Haiti earthquake victims. My heart is filled with love and hope. The bidding has gone higher than I ever expected so I'll update the post tomorrow with more goodies to add to the bag.

Help for Haiti

2010-01-13T14:07:00.011-05:00

Truth is, I feel pretty helpless. But I thought of a way we can help.

Thank you for all of your kind comments on the vintage fabric tote bag I recently made. I'd like to auction it off to raise money for the victims of the horrific earthquake in Haiti. I know it will only be a small contribution, but small steps can lead to big differences when we all work together.

Here's how my auction will work:

You will be bidding on this bag, which I will fill with other handmade items and happy surprises.

In the comments section on this post, leave the amount you'd like to bid. Remember the cause and please bid generously.

Bidding will remain open until Monday, January 18 (Martin Luther King Day here in the U.S.) at midnight, Eastern Time.

At that time, I will ask the highest bidder to make a donation to the Haitian relief charity of his or her choice in the amount of their bid, and ask them to forward me a copy of the receipt as proof the donation was made.

I will gladly ship (at my cost) anywhere in the world.

Separately, if you are looking to make a donation on your own here are some organizations:

Doctors without Borders lost three hospitals in the quake, and could really use our help to bring vital medical support to the victims

Haiti native Wyclef Jean’s non-profit Yele

Mercy Corps

UNICEF

And, you can text "Haiti" to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross relief efforts. Or text Yele to 501 501 to donate $5.

Thank you in advance. Now, let the bidding begin!

UPDATE: The lovely keeper of the house at Reclaimed Home is auctioning off a gorgeous necklace she made on her blog. Click here to hop over to her online home for bidding on this gem:

Plum Cottage Antiques

2010-01-06T13:00:00.003-05:00

Red Bank, NJ, is one of my favorite places. This hip little riverfront town is home to some of the best antique stores in the state, great shopping and eating, and an intimate little non-profit theater where you can catch everything from classic movies to the Dog Whisperer (yes, the Dog Whisperer!). All happily located just a stone's throw from the shorehouse.

There are many places in Red Bank I have yet to discover, and until recently Plum Cottage on Red Bank's Antique Row (Front Street) was one of them.

Truth told, it was the chair in the window that got me in.

But it was the crafty corner tucked in the back of the store that kept me there. For longer than I care to admit to.

That "1" above? One dollar. I had found crafty mecca, and it was good.

While I didn't buy the stripy fabric (why, I have no idea) I did buy the lot below for $8 total.

Pieces of the black stripe and solid white were relatively quickly (for me) made into a little tote...

...with a golden oldy from my thrifty button collection:

I also added a double pocket inside with a small scrap from my (growing) pile(s):

I think I'm getting the hang of this sewing thing. And it's much better for me than, say, binging on cupcakes. (Though I miss my little frosted friends.)

Speaking of crafty and Red Bank, The Art Opera is coming to town April 7-10. Art Opera visionary Lisa Kettell found there was a void in our area for like-minded creative folk, so she's filling it.

"I found I was always traveling a great distance to do the things I enjoyed, and once there I met so many teachers and students doing the same thing ... many of them were from the East Coast, and expressing their wish for an event that could bring their favorite teachers and friends together without doing all the travel."

Click here to visit the web site and learn more about the seminars and sessions being offered, and be sure to visit Plum Cottage while you're in town.

Plum Cottage
212 West Front Street
Phone: 732-747-5333
Saturday and Sunday 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.(weekdays by appointment)

Art Opera
April 7-10, 2010
Oytser Point Hotel
Red Bank, NJ
www.artoperanj.com
www.theoysterpointhotel.com

Wisdom for a new year.

2010-01-01T23:36:00.003-05:00

An "auld" mug. Found in Dot's basement.

A couple of weeks ago, I asked readers to share the wit and wisdom passed down to them from grandmas, mothers and other women in their lives. The responses were too good to keep to myself. Many were sweet and poignant, and some were even snort-out-loud (SOL?) funny. Who couldn’t use a little wisdom and a chuckle from our foremothers to kick-off the new year?

Modern Mama:
The juiciest fruit lies just out of reach - to encourage us to pick more!

Purple Flowers:
My Grandmother passed this saying to my Mother: "When the trees dress, we undress. When the trees undress, we dress."

Kathy from Aspiring Ameliorant:
A Dairy Queen run is a perfectly acceptable substance for dinner!

The Quintessential Magpie:
My grandmother's favorite quotes:

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Pretty is as pretty does.

And my personal favorite: Old people and babies are the only people that can get away with anything, and when I'm old, I plan to take full advantage of that!

And she did! :-)

My mother always told me to give the bigger slice of cake to the other person, and company does as company pleases. I still try to adhere to these adages, and life is sweeter because of it.

Rhonda at Shellbelle’s Tiki Hut:
My mother taught me that if you rub a bit of cooking oil around the rim of your pot when boiling pasta it will not boil over.

I also have one I passed on to my 18-year-old granddaughter just last week. Score just the skin on a pomegranate in quarters and then break it apart in a large bowl of water. Gently scrape out the seeds with the flesh of your fingers. The seeds will fall to the bottom, while the skin and membranes all float to the top.

Deborah from The Fairfield House:
My Grammy taught me about the 8th wonder of the world -- vinegar -- and all it's uses; apply to sunburn to take the sting out, use it with newspaper to wash windows, use it to clean any appliance (washing machine, coffee maker) to name but a few.

From Maureen B. (no blog, but she should have one! :-):
My grandma used to have a little ditty she recited to me, "Whatever you are be that, whatever you do be true, straightforwardly act, be honest, in fact, be nobody else but you."

Susan at Crunchy Granola:
My grandma taught me that you're never too old to eat hot peppers straight out of the jar. And that knitting is fun, and button jars are a good habit to cultivate.

Linda at Lime in the Coconut:
That real butter is where it's at... "what is in that oily, yellow stuff anyway?! "

Jennifer at The Laundry is Never Finished:
"Be" in the moment-truly put your all into it instead of longing for the past for future.

Save, organize, label and date things of great importance or sentimental value-it's a wealth to future generations.

Write love letters and keep those that you receive. Bundle them in twine-it's such a gift for those that come after you!

Jean Martha at Renovation Therapy:
Grandma Martha always insisted that you apply fresh lipstick before you go out, fluff your hair and do NOT entertain men who pursue you too aggressively. Shut them down and move on. Additionally, lavender looks lovely on everyone.

Heidi at Faboolosity (whom I must thank for giving me the biggest belly laugh of this post):
This is easy, since I already blogged about her: Mama taught me how to squeeze a nickel so tight, that the Indian rides the buffalo. And of course, to keep an aspirin between my knees, so I don't get pregnant :-)

Emily from The Southern Belle Blogs:
I know that my advice isn't as fun as some of the others, but it's important to me. My mom always pressed the issue that you're never too old to come home again. As a 22 year-old with no direction in life, that means a great deal to me that she is always ready to welcome me back home.

From Melody:
My grandmother, Miss Prim the beauty pageant winner, taught me to keep a cocktail napkin wrapped around my glass at house parties. Stay sober enough to hold the glass and the napkin together, and use it to hide when your drink is low so you pace yourself without getting offers for more refills. Of course now everybody uses colored plastic cups, but she taught me this when I was in kindergarten. Nobody else in my family dared mention drinking until long after I'd started. I wish I'd had more time with her before her stroke. I sort of taught myself how to sew. But I know how to hide my drink from sailors.

Amy Sue Nathan of Just Write:
A little sand on an apple never hurt anyone.

(crunch)

Peg Brantley from Suspense Novelist:
Don't breathe in the scent of flowers too deeply. You never know when you'll get bee poop.

Sarah from Sarah’s Scribbles:
My favorite wit from my mom: Don't be an idiot (Yeah, she's a real softy).

She also taught me the best thing for a bad sunburn (we're all pale enough to pass for Cullens) is to sit in a bathtub full of Deft.

My paternal grandmother was still doing cartwheels in the back yard when she was 55.

My maternal grandmother always says: God made dirt and dirt don't hurt.

S. Bear Bergman:
My Nana's favorite is: "Fortune favors the well-prepared." She says it whenever my brother or I attribute any part of our success to luck.

SvelteSTUFF:
"NEVER STAY HOME TO DO HOUSEWORK IF YOU GET A BETTER OFFER" - Those are words of Mom's that I will ALWAYS live by!!

From mbmiller:
"You can paint a hearse fire engine red, but that don't make it a fire engine."

I took this to mean that you can change the outward appearance of something, but it doesn't change the essential nature of that thing.

Caren from City Momma/Country Momma:
The best advice I ever received from my mom was to read everything you can. It's served me well over the years. When others don't know where to go or what to do, I always do because I read signs, directions, all kinds of info that passes right by everyone else. Thanks Mommy!

j.cro at snapshots and confabulation:
This is kind of sad... I don't know if I have any tips from my Grandmothers - they both died when I was young - or too young to really appreciate any wisdom they would have had for me. However, my grandma Sid used to say, ‘If it's meant to be - it will be.’

I do have Matty's Gram (she's turning 88 this year!) and the saying I always attribute to her is, ‘It's not for me to judge.’ The best part is - she MEANS it. She's one of the most open, caring, giving and forgiving people I've ever had the privilege to know.

Weef from Rue de la Clef:
I thought long and hard about the best piece of advice my mom or grandmother had ever given me. While both ladies have/had a lot of wisdom to give, I couldn't really think of anything until last night.

I was on the phone with my mom lamenting my wilted poinsettias and I asked her: "Mom, how often do you need to water poinsettias? " and her advice?

"Google it!"

Best advice from a mom? If you don't know something, know where to look for the answer! (And be techno-saavy).

Maya from Springtree Road:
My grandmama, who was born in 1913, always told me not to get married until I was at least 30 because "you don't have any kind of good idea who you are before then." One day, when I was 28, she asked me when I was going to get married. I told her I was following her advice. She said, "Well then, I guess you'll do all right. "

Kwana from Kwana Writes:
Something I learned from my grandmother? Well, when stirring batter you have to put your wrist and back into it. Yes, it should be some work. She is not a fan of the hand mixer. Oh, and bang out air bubbles. Thanks for letting me think of this.

And thank you to everyone who shared memories. Here’s to making beautiful memories in 2010.

When life imitates art.

2009-12-30T18:18:00.004-05:00

Miss Maggie enjoyed the snow at the beach more than any of us (though my Christmas Eve day-off-romp-in-the-snow with her pictured above was pretty much the most fun I've had in eons). But can you believe just one week to the day after the Nor'Easter, our house went from looking like this:

To this:

(And yes those are Halloween pumpkins on the porch rail. Don't judge. :-)

Spreading the love.

2009-12-29T16:15:00.001-05:00

Bedspreading, that is.

Remember that awesome chenille bedspread I landed for $8 at the Visiting Nurse Association Rummage Sale in October? (Pssst: The spring rummage sale dates have been announced!)

My intention was to use it for crafty projects. But I soaked it in Oxy-Boost and now it's looking good. Much too good to sacrifice to my marginal sewing skills.

I tossed it on the bed in The Green Room to have a look-see. Even though the bedspread is twin size, it falls right to the top of the side rails on my full size bed frame:

But maybe it looks a little too antiquey? Maybe I should throw some of the original bedding over it, like this:

Or perhaps I should just stick with the original bed covers and accessories...

...maybe even swapping out seasonally (chenille can be my "winter look" or something).

Or maybe my brain is too fried from the holidays to make this decision. So please feel free to chime in!

Speaking of spreading the love, thanks to Let's Have a Cocktail via The Lil Bee for pointing me to a charity to donate holiday cards to. St. Jude's Ranch for Children recycles the card fronts to make new cards! Great, right?

Boxing day.

2009-12-26T23:22:00.005-05:00

I can't think of a better way to celebrate Boxing Day than to box up a copy of Erin Bried's new book How to Sew a Button for the winner of my bloggy giveaway.

A gigantic thank you to everyone who left a comment on my giveaway post. Erin picked a winner from among the comments. She mentioned many goodies (there were a LOT of great ones!), but in her words:

"For the winner, I finally settled on the advice from (drum roll please) S. Bear Bergman's Nana: 'Fortune favors the well-prepared.' It's just plain great advice."

Congratulations to S. Bear Bergman's Nana for doling out such sage advice! All of the comments left here were amazing so on New Year's Day I'll link to all of them to inspire you for 2010. And a huge "thank you!" to Erin for making this giveaway possible.

I've been absent this week, which has has been a whirlwind of activity: Snow storms, and cookies, and Christmas (and very spotty internet access) -- oh MY!

That snow storm that hit the Jersey Shore was a doozy. Thanks to Mike and his incredible vitamin intake, our house, my car, and the neighbors on either side got shoveled out (he still can't lift his arms much higher than his waist, granted, but all for a good cause).

Imagine my surprise when 13 intrepid souls (re: mommies trapped with small children) burrowed their ways out of their homes and over to my apartment for our annual cookie exchange this past Sunday. Northern New Jersey didn't get hit with as much snow as the shorehouse did, so travel was a bit easier. The ladies really hit it out of the park with their baking projects this year.

My co-host Karen painted her seven dozen shimmery silver stars (and promised she'll never do that again):

And Tory, baker of the spritz, was determined to get to the party no matter what since she finally baked a cookie she was proud of (they were delish, but her previous contributions have been, too. No matter what she says.).

I used my "new" $3 punch bowl with great success! Thanks to the comments left on my punch bowl post, I had some inspiration. Mrs. Magpie suggested freezing juice in a bundt pan to create an ice ring that wouldn't water down the punch. Fabulous! I couldn't find my bundt pan (I think I have one?) so I simply froze the juice in ice cube trays. That won kudos from the cookie crew so thanks for the hot (cold) tip, Mrs. M! I also floated slices of blood oranges, and the festive red fruit added a pop to my conconction. And it truly was a concoction. I totally improvised but it was yummy. I meant to take a picture, but by the time I remembered, it looked like this:

I also meant to take a picture of Karen's amazing and beautiful baked brie, but again I was a bit late. Here's what it looks like when it's totally decimated:

If nothing else I guess you can see that a good time was had by all.

Mid-week we happily found out that our Christmas table for six would have to be set for 12 (!), so we shopped a little more, and took photos a little less. I barely got the food on the table. I did manage to take a picture of Maggie, who wisely figured out which gift under the tree was for her:

Today I actually spent most of the (rainy, nasty) day boxing up stuff. And in the midst of doing so found a box of ornaments that should have been on my tree. Ugh. Resolution: Get my act together (as best as someone like me possibly can) in 2010.

I hope everyone is having an amazing holiday season. I can't believe another year is drawing to a close, and I can't believe how many people have become a part of my life here on these here cyberpages. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for stopping by. You are all a part of my extended family (I know it may sound corny, but I mean it) and know that my Christmas was merrier because of you.

From the shorehouse to your house, thank you for an amazing year.

Snow day.

2009-12-20T10:07:00.006-05:00

That is my car at about 8:30 this morning. Perhaps we will see her again in the spring.

The Jersey Shore surprisingly got more snow than just about anyplace I've heard of. We never get snow....n-e-v-e-r. A couple of inches is a big deal. Mike and the Maggie dog are trapped like hamsters in a habitrail.

Mike, clearly a descendant of one of the original Wise Men, made me get in his car yesterday morning in my pajamas to get out of there and back to our apartment. Today, I will be hosting an abbreviated version of the annual cookie exchange here for about eight women who are intrepid enough to come out (it should be noted they all have small children at home. ;-).

Having a ball, for four bucks.

2009-12-16T17:00:00.003-05:00

Since first embedding at the shorehouse, I've scooped up a number of Christmas balls -- mostly at rummage sales, but also at a flea market and a yard sale.

Last year, our first Christmas at the house, I sprinkled out a few. But by this year, if you'll please pardon the expression, I had a lot of balls:

These things are readily and cheaply available, you just may need to do some digging since vendors typically bury them (they're not exactly big movers apparently). Despite my voluminous collection, a little investigating on this here blog showed the entire lot cost me around $4.

I needed to do something other than squirrel them away like a furry nocturnal creature on a pre-winter bender. So this past weekend I finally dragged them out of the basement, inspired in part by the Victorian Holiday House Tour in Ocean Grove, NJ, that I went on which made me feel like a total decorating-challenged underachiever.

I started by placing some of the more dainty and vintagey looking ones on a small but mighty tree I bought at the supermarket:

Then I moved on to jars...

...and bowls, including the one I just got at the SPCA thrift store for $3 specifically for this purpose...

...and my great-grandma's pressed glass compotes:

Then came the mack daddy of them all. I took a wire hanger (free with overpriced dry cleaning) and strung up a collection of blues, and silvers and golds...

...and created something that, if he were alive to see this, I'm sure Elvis would proudly hang in the living room at Graceland.

I turned to the now ubiquitous Eddie Ross model for guidance. I trimmed about eight inches off the hanger with a wire clipper to make mine smaller, and wished I had followed Eddie's advice to glue the metal caps to the balls before I started stringing the ornaments. A few broken balls and several slivers of finger skin later, my gaudy little star was born. The tinsel was a scrap I grabbed at an everything-in-the-bag-for-a-buck sale and kind of forgot about until I dumped the ornaments out of the bag. I tucked it in to cover up the wire in some spots it was exposed. It's not glued down so if I want to make it a little less Vegas, I can easily remove the garland.

After all was done, here's what I'm left with:

Not bad for a day's work.

A happy "How-To," just for you!

2009-12-11T11:30:00.002-05:00

What if you could take all of the Grandma Helens, Nonni Roses, Nana Frans and Babcia Katerinas in the country, get them in one room (granted, a big room) and ask them to share their best homespun wit and wisdom? You'd have How To Sew a Button (And Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew), a fabulous and witty compendium by author Erin Bried that spares you the logistical nightmare of the above mentioned Grand Grandmere Convention. She interviewed grandmas throughout the U.S. who shared their best advice and shortcuts on everything from how to wear red lipstick, to how to unclog a drain, to, well, how to sew a button!

Speaking of buttons, Erin happens to be cute as one. Click over to her YouTube channel to see her demonstrating how to fold a fitted sheet, which may have actually changed my life.

The book's official release date is December 15, so there will still be time for you to stock up for stocking stuffers. But guess what? You could win a copy right here! And to make it a little more fun/challenging/exciting than your average giveaway, leave a comment with your favorite piece of wit or wisdom that you learned from your grandma/mom/aunt. Author Erin Bried will pick her favorite from among the entries (oh yes, she will!). A copy of the book will be on its way to you, along with a few buttons from le grand sac I picked up at the Paris flea market so you'll be able to put that whole how to sew a button advice to good use.

You have until midnight Eastern on December 15 to leave your comment on this post. And, hey, maybe you'll even give Erin enough material for the sequel.

(P.S. Actually got the Christmas tree decorated last night. Phew! I'll have to see if Erin's book includes any "How to avoid procrastination" advice...)

How lovely are thy (bare) branches.

2009-12-09T17:30:00.006-05:00

December 9? Really? Trouble. With a capital "T." And that rhymes with "tree" and that sounds like...well, tree. (My tribute to show tunes is a little spotty today.)

We actually bought the tree Sunday night for our city abode (that's where we host Christmas). And it's one big beauty. She's got her lights (thanks to Mike):

And two ornaments. Two.

Here's where the rest of the ornaments have been since Sunday when I pulled them out of storage:

Ugh! Maybe I can have a blog contest...winner gets to come decorate my tree?

And that tree photo is awful because I took it at dawn, which is the only time I'm home anymore. All work and no play is making Laura a dull and unproductive-in-matters-of-the-home girl.

The good news is, I did my holiday shopping throughout the year so no last minute shopping for me. The bad news is, I went back to my homeland this weekend where there were an inordinate number of flea markets and crafty good time holiday fairs. Talk about trouble!

This is my face upon realizing that most of the ~~crap~~ stuff in my mom's trunk now belongs to me, right down to the fabulous knit hat on my head (hey, it started snowing. So I needed a hat, right?) which I bought from a knitting club's table at Sailors' Snug Harbor Cultural Center for $5!

(Photo by The Brother, who may have been guffawing at me at this point.)

I am so in love with it I've worn it every day this week.

Among the other highlights...

At one church's fair, there was an adorable older couple who sell the husband's paintings, mostly of east coast lighthouses and other beachy fare. I have a couple of his mini paintings already, and let me tell you the price is always right.

See these two paintings?

This was the price they were each marked:

BUT...since I liked both he said I could have the two for $20. Original art, people! I mean, really. I couldn't leave them there.

He also decoupages random clip art and old advertisements onto pieces of flotsam and jetsam:

At 25 cents each, these are cheaper (and more environmentally friendly) than greeting cards and that's exactly what I plan on using them as.

And, want to take a guess at who this was "SOLD" to?

I know. Shocking.

I have always wanted a punch bowl but thought it would be a storage issue. And you know what? It will be! But, I mean, three bucks for all this. (By the way there are actually 15 cups, despite what the sign says. I think perhaps math may not be an Episcopalian strong suit? My father, however was both an Episcopal and and accountant. But I digress...) How could someone like me (who clearly is one step away from being on that show Hoarders) walk away from it?

The punch bowl set will make its debut on December 20 at my annual cookie exchange party. Where...fingers crossed...I will also be selling some pieces from my debut sewing collection to help raise some money for the babies of Hudson Cradle, my favorite charity. So if you're in the market for made-with-love (but not necessarily with talent) crafty bits, have I got the item(s) for you!

So two questions:

1. What kind of punch do I make?

2. Are you planning on being near Hoboken, NJ, on December 20? If so the cookie party is the place to be, and the more the merrier!

I'll even pour you some punch.

Once again...

2009-12-02T18:31:00.006-05:00

...I have found another thrift shop. And it's actually named Once Again.

I can't tell you how many times I've driven past this place (on Route 35 in New Jersey, across from Fort Monmouth) . And when it looks like this...

...and has a thrift shop sign in front of it, it kind of makes me think I may have literally been asleep at the wheel.

About 80% of the store is clothing and kids' gear, but in the "dining room" (or what I imagined was the dining room when it was a house...I can't walk into an old home with redecorating it in my mind!) there were quite a few shelves of goodies. And that sign you see below says "25% off all housewares." Joy to the world, indeed.

There was some really good vintage tucked on those shelves, like this super old cup and saucer in great shape ($5.25):

This set of highball glasses ('cause you just know many-a-highball has been served in these!) had golden images of Francs, Deutschmarks, and other fantastic foreign coins replaced by that nasty Euro. The set of four? Seventy-five cents!

Here comes the bride, festooned in vintage lace and plastic orchids. I loved this though couldn't really justify the purchase (as if I can justify half of the junque I buy) . But at only $1.50 I think I should have gone in...

...if only to get better photos to play around with. I did snap one close-up and began playing with the contrast a bit:

I think with a little more work it could make a great vintagey wedding card image.

Naturally, I didn't leave without buying. That would be crazy talk.

I scooped up a new-with-tags Martha tree stand:

We're thinking of putting up a small tree at the shorehouse (the monster tree actually goes in our apartment, believe it or not). I'm not even sure if this fictional tree will require a stand (maybe I'll buy a potted tree?) but I figured for $1.50 I'd take my chances.

The reindeer napkin holders leaped right into my heart and shopping bag. These set of six brass beauties also only set me back $1.50.

This tall milk glass vase might be the deal of the day at 75 cents! I think it will make a great hostess gift, filled with flowers from the grocery store or evergreen branches for the holidays.

Or I may just keep it myself.

Ironically the Monmouth SPCA Cats and Dogs Thrift Shop is on the way (well, kind of on the way) so I popped in there to get more 50 cent men's ties for my wine carrier craft project:

And I also grabbed another milk glass bowl that I do plan on keeping and filling with some of the many (if not hundreds) of vintage Christmas balls I've picked up thrifting over my last two years at the shorehouse.

It was the most expensive thing I bought all day.

And it didn't exactly break the bank.

The Cheating Baker

2009-11-27T02:10:00.001-05:00

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

OK, here's the deal. I've always wanted to be a good cannoli maker. I grew up on Staten Island. My people are from Brooklyn. My first job was at a pretty popular Italian bakery. I mean, this should be in my DNA. But I never could make those shells. I tried. I gave up. I took a class at the Institute of Culinary Education. There were about 15 people in the class, a couple of them who baked/cooked for a living. We made delectable cannoli cream. Brilliant cassata. And pretty much every one of us made awful cannoli shells. Seriously. Awful. More Chinese won-ton than Italian cannoli.

So I panicked a little when Lisa Michele announced to The Daring Bakers that her challenge would be cannolis. But armed with chutzpah and a pasta maker, I decided to try again.

And I failed again.

I was a really pressed for time and I think my dough sensed that I was trying a little too hard. On Thanksgiving eve I had to surrender.

I decided to turn to the Italians.

I know, I know. I'm a total cheat. I'm the Milli Vanilli of the baking world. And Lisa Michele's hosting the challenge. She's a baker! She's a Yankees fan! I could not let my bloggy friend and kindred spirit down. So I picked myself up by the bootstraps and to make it up to her I made my own ricotta cheese from SCRATCH on Thanksgiving morning. I even used her recipe.

Click here to check out the recipe. It's really, really true: If you can boil water you can make ricotta! I can't wait to do this again.

The yield is really minimal -- four cups of milk reduced down to this:

There was quite a bit of liquid left, and I think the next time I will use the remaining strained milk to make a bread pudding so I'm not so wasteful.

To further ~~kiss up~~ make it up to Lisa, I made her pumpkin cannoli filling. I am so glad I did! Delish. A little looser than a traditional cannoli cream due to the addition of the pumpkin so I'd definitely give it a little longer in the refrigerator to firm up. I've posted her recipe below. It would also be brilliant as a filling in a layer cake.

I toasted and chopped some pecans to dress my cannoli, in lieu of the more traditional pistachio.

Does this mean I'll never try cannoli shells? I'm no quitter. Just like the bubbles on Lisa's picture-perfect shells, I too shall rise.

PUMPKIN CANNOLI FILLING

1/2 cup (123 grams/4.34 ounces) ricotta cheese, drained
1/2 cup (113 grams/4.04 ounces) mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup (122.5 grams/4.32 ounces) canned pumpkin, drained like ricotta
3/4 cup (75 grams/2.65 ounces) confectioner’s sugar, sifted
1/2 to 1 teaspoon (approx. 1.7 grams/approx. 0.06 ounces) pumpkin pie spice (taste)
1/2 teaspoon (approx. 2 grams/approx. 0.08 ounces) pure vanilla extract
6-8 cannoli shells

1. In a bowl with electric mixer, beat ricotta and mascarpone until smooth and creamy. Beat in confectioner’s sugar, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and blend until smooth. Transfer to another bowl, cover and chill until it firms up a bit. (The filling can be made up to 24 hours prior to filling the shells. Just cover and keep refrigerated).

2. Fill the shells as directed above. I dipped the ends of the shells in caramelized sugar and rolled them in toasted, chopped pecans.

The roast is in the oven.

2009-11-26T10:44:00.005-05:00

And by roast I mean this:

Now, now...I just saw you roll your eyes.

For the first time in nearly 30 years as a vegetarian I'm trying a Tofurkey roast. Not sure how this will go, but I marinated it in vegetable broth, orange juice, sage, rosemary and sea salt. So if nothing else, I can drink the baste.

I actually became a vegetarian because I was watching the news with my mom and there was a story on turkeys. I made the connection, didn't eat the turkey the next day, and never ate meat again.

I guess you could say...I quit cold turkey. Ba-da-dum.

We're sending our warmest wishes from the shorehouse to your house this Thanksgiving (Mike wanted to get in on this, too, now that he knows he's a blog superstar). I am thankful for many things, and if you're a visitor to this here blog I am thankful you take time out of your day to spend some time with little ol' me.

Life in black and white.

2009-11-22T18:02:00.006-05:00

Are you familiar with Springtree Road? If not, you should be. Maya is a wonderful photographer, and gifted artisan (I've never seen yarn more beautiful than her hand-spun ones, available in her Etsy shop).

For the month of November, all of the photos on her blog are in black and white. I've loved seeing the neutral world through Maya's eyes and lens this month...it's really a spectacular essay and I encourage you to visit her.

This week I've been cleaning-up -- cleaning up my house (three bags went to Sallie's Army), cleaning up my professional life (making piles at the office disappear...or trying to, while figuring out how to get more out of my day job), cleaning my to-do list (Christmas shopping -- pretty much done), and cleaning out some space on my camera...since there were apparently 511 pictures on there. Oops.

Some were black and whites from my trip to Paris last month. They are far from perfect, shot with my palm-sized point-and-shoot, but a few aren't half bad considering I'm definitely not a photographer.

A while back Maya shared some advice on her blog, which I believe was something like, "never, ever, ever, ever use the flash!" So I don't. With varying degrees of success.

Some day I'd like to take photography lessons. But I have a whole lot of cleaning to do in my life before I can make the time for that to happen.

For now I'll just enjoy everyone else's!

Peak-a-boo, we found a pew.

2009-11-17T07:36:00.001-05:00

It wasn't we so much as it was he. Here's how Op Pew went down:

Last week, Mike headed out on an uncharacteristically beautiful November day for what I like to call "a Lance Armstrong bike ride." About an hour later, my phone rang...

Laura: Hello?

Mike: I'm at a yard sale.

L: Who IS this? (Ed. note: Mike at a yard sale is analogous to me at a hunting convention. And I'm a vegetarian, fyi.)

M: I saw a pew so I pulled over.

L: OK, really who is this?

(Ed. note: We were looking for something to put against the long wall in the Napoleon Room, and he mentioned how a church pew would be nice. As knocked over as I was when he came up with that, I was now beside myself with pride that he actually found one!)

M: I'm not sure it's exactly what we want...it's kind of plain, has a very high back...but it's $20.

L: I'm getting in the car NOW.

M: But...

L: TWENTY BUCKS!

The pew didn't fit in my trunk, so Mike and our friend Spence returned yesterday to pick it up in Spence's fancy big boy vehicle.

Mike and I wriggled and turned and maneuvered the pew up our hundred year-old staircase (how DID they get furniture up those things in olden days?), and introduced it to its new home in the Napoleon Room. You can see it around the bend when you first peak in the room...

...on the wall next to the bed. We need to do some reassigning of the antique plate rack above it, but I think the pew will work quite well there.

M: Am I going to make the blog?

L: You are SO making the blog.

Update: The feedback's been so great (thank you!) how could I not link-up to Thrifty Thursday? You should head over, too, to see who's thriftier than Mike. Though I can't imagine such a person exists. :-)

Wrapping up the week. And my laptop.

2009-11-13T23:30:00.002-05:00

I decided I'd wrap up Thrifty Gift Week here by wrapping up my laptop. Literally.

As some of you who hang out here know I am a novice sewer. On my good days I can sew a straight line. On my really good days I can sew a straight line and get through a project without consulting the Singer's user guide. So when I tell you this is easy, believe me it's true.

I know, I know...this looks a little more hardcore crafty but it's a very basic sewing project. Click here to check out Jean's adorably easy-to-make bags and her step-by-step tutorial. I believe my little Type A friend has whipped up about 107 of them. Give or take.

Definitely click here to follow her directions, because, um, I don't measure or have very good technique. I whipped this up today and with minimal supplies and a bit of patience, you can do this.

My decision to do a laptop cover was guided by finding this scrap of quilted goodness in the remnant bin at JoAnn's:

You don't need a lot of fabric at all so I pulled two remnants out of my pile (you can use one piece if you want to make the inside and outside the same, but two pieces will allow you to use smaller remnants).

I will share the highlights (though that word's a bit of a stretch!) of my project...

Where Jean's directions call for fusible interface, I replaced with the quilting.

Make sure you allow for the depth of the laptop (and seam allowance. And I still can't believe I know what "seam allowance" means!). And since every laptop is different you're going to need to get your paws on the measurements for your recipient's.

You lay your fabrics out just as Jean tells you...nice sides kissing (right sides together), and then stick the quilty stuff (or batting) underneath...

You're going to sew it all together (all sides except the top), and flip it inside out so that the nice side are facing out, and the quilt is on the inside.

Since I, er, you haven't measured, stick that laptop in there one more time just to be sure it works out. Fold up the bottom...and you'll top-stitch the sides to form a bit of an envelope:

The top flap needs to be sealed shut, so you'll fold the flaps in an inch or so, and top stitch that, too:

At this point even I broke out a tape measure. I placed a piece of Velcro in the middle of the flaps that would come together to seal the case shut...

I never sewed Velcro before, and it was ~~a bit of a pain~~ not too bad. I sewed around twice, just to be sure it would stay in place.

It actually didn't look too bad at all once I finished...

...but I made sure in advance that I had a gigantic button ready to cover it right up...

Did I have problems along the way? You betcha.

Like when this happened...

...because when the quilted fabric folded into an envelope it was pretty thick, and my machine is far from a pro one.

And I knocked over a tray of snaps that I painstakingly had pieced together earlier in the morning.

But I had Project Runway on in the background, and when Tim Gunn told me to, "make it work," I did.

You can do smaller fabric envelopes for gift cards, make-up bags, pencil cases...the possibilities are endless.

But please follow Jean's tutorial. Because I really have no idea what I'm doing.

Monday - Tie one on! Bags from vintage men's ties.
Tuesday - DIY cake stands.
Wednesday - Bake up a thrifty gift.
Thursday - Tea for two

Tea for two. Or more.

2009-11-12T23:37:00.000-05:00

It's day four of Thrifty Christmas here at the shorehouse and (shockingly) I'm still going strong.

We blog. We tweet. We text. We work. We commute. We take care of families. We work some more. We walk the dogs. We feed the cats. We clean the toilets. We do laundry. We fall up the stairs running to catch the phone. (Or is that one just me?)

Some people even do it all simultaneously. What happened to the art...of doing nothing?

Here's a gift idea: Take the time to get together with a friend or group of friends and have a tea party. Turn off the cell phones, and just...talk. Laugh. Spend silly time together. I can't think of a better gift than that.

Set-up is simple. Boil the water, grab a festive tea (cinnamon apple's nice), bake some cookies (or the brownies I posted yesterday) -- and better yet, display them on a handmade dessert stand. But before the big day, hit the thrift stores and pick up some tea cup and saucer sets. I really struck gold when I found these at a church rummage sale this summer...

They were on a table of mismatched pieces. My brother and I found some unblemished pairs among the rubble, and the price was right:

The cups were priced separately from the saucers, but still -- 50 cents a set? Score.

After the tea party, everyone takes their cup home with them. And every time they look at it they will remember your friendship, and the day you all made time....for time.

The Mad House and Violet Posy also have super easy tutorials for making soy candles in tea cups, another fabulous thrifty holiday gift. Plus, once the soy's finished the cup is still food safe so it's truly the gift that keeps on giving. Click here and here to hop over to their blogs and you'll be a master candle maker in no time.

More ideas from thrifty gift week:

Monday - Tie one on! Bags from vintage men's ties.
Tuesday - DIY cake stands.
Wednesday - Bake up a thrifty gift.
Today - Tea for two
Coming Friday - ??? (Seriously. I have no idea.)

Bake up a thrifty gift.

2009-11-11T23:27:00.002-05:00

It's day three of Thrifty Christmas here at the shorehouse.

I found these jars filled with apple crisp "supplies" at a craft show the other week. Pair it with a vintage cookbook you pick up on a thrifting venture and you've got a gift that will make the baker in your life squeal. In a good way!

The jar has everything needed for an apple crisp (except the apples, which would have been hard to jam in that jar. Oh, and the butter. Because that would be rancid.). A crisp is the perfect thing to prepackage since most of the ingredients just get mashed up with butter and you don't need to whisk, separate, sift, etc. Just throw it in a bowl. My kind of recipe.

This is an easy idea to replicate. Canning jars, or any jar with a tight seal, can be found on the cheap (they're available at many dollar stores, including Jack's 99 Cent Store in Manhattan) and the crisp ingredients are for the most part already in your pantry. The Neelys over on Food Network have a very good crisp recipe, click here to get that one. (The addition of pecans is well worth it, I promise you.) I have tons of fabric scraps, and I think I'd rather use a fun retro fabric than a Christmasy one...I may even go crazy and top-stitch it. And the recipe card is calling out for a funky font and some retro clip art.

Speaking of recipes...yesterday there was a comment from the lovely Pat at Mille Fiori Favoriti asking about the recipe used for the brownies on my cake stand.

Good point! I actually love the recipe, and found it many years ago on a tin of cocoa powder. It's the shortbread crust that makes them super duper. So here it is...another suitable holiday foodie gift:

Brownies with Shortbread Crust

1-1/4 c. unsifted flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. cold butter
14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1/4 unsweetened cocoa powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
8 oz semi sweet chocolate broken into pieces (or chips)
3/4 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans, or omit)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl combine 1 cup of flour and sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Press onto bottom of 13" x 9" baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

In a large bowl beat sweetened condensed milk, cocoa, egg and remaining 1/4 cup of flour, vanilla and baking powder. Stir in chocolate pieces and nuts. Spread over prepared crust. Bake for 20 minutes or until center is set (so not overcook). Cool before cutting.

I used a heart shaped cookie cutter for a couple of the ones above to dress the plate a little, but adding a dash of ginger to the cocoa and using a gingerbread man cutter would be fun...in fact I'm filing that idea away in my mental Rolodex.

Thrifty week ideas from the shorehouse:

Monday - Tie one on! Bags from vintage men's ties.
Tuesday - DIY cake stands.
Coming Thursday - Tea for two (that was supposed to be today...whoops.)
Coming Friday - Jeez, I better get working on that!

Dishing out another thrifty gift.

2009-11-10T15:00:00.004-05:00

I first "dished" on this a bit back in July 2008, but I wanted to bring it back along with some new ideas for your thrifty holiday gift giving consideration.

This DIY dessert stand is not only easy, it's well under $5 US if you play your thrifty cards right.

Get yourself a good epoxy glue. I use Goop, and I have to say it lives up to its promise of being pretty amazing. It's available at most crafty stores (I purchased it at Michael's for a few dollars) but I've also seen it at my local hardware store.

The "bases" are glass candlesticks I find at yard sales, thrift shops, rummage sales, etc. I've never paid more than $1 US for a pair (OK, once I think I paid $2 a pair and was kicking myself over the expense later), and you can often find mismatched singles for much less.

Just make sure the top "lip" is flat, since that's where you'll be affixing it to the dish.

It seems every yard or tag sale in my area has fancy dishes. And when I spy one in decent shape for a good price, I rarely pass it up.

Wash everything in warm soapy water and let them dry thoroughly before you begin. I just run the glass candlesticks through the dishwasher.

Following the instructions on the epoxy you're working with, affix the candlesticks to the underside of the plate and wipe away any excess with a damp towel.

Let them set upside-down for 24 hours, and voila...a bevvy of dessert stands!

The final product is totally hand washable but should not be immersed in water.

If you really want to go nuts, you can bake treats to gift with your plate. Here's my favorite brownies (under the watchful eyes of my four grandparents):

I've been finding a lot a lot glass domes that have been separated from their cheeseboard companions. When they're $2 or less, I pick them up to make the stands even fancier. The total cost for all of the supplies in this one below was $4.49:

Dishes without stands can be gussied up to make nice gifts, too. Here's a three for $4 set I bought at a local yard sale:

I always save packaging and gift boxes that I receive (much to my closet's chagrin), and found the perfect "nest" for one of the plates. I added a silver knife ($1) that I polished up and a vintage postcard ($2) that had a remarkably similar pattern to the dish!

You could look for vintage holiday-themed postcards, or find an electronic image of one you like and print it on card stock. And again, you can pair this with homemade goodies or cheese and crackers for a complete holiday hostess gift.

Yesterday: Tie one on -- wine carriers from men's ties.

Tomorrow: Baking up a thrifty gift.

Looking for more thrifty inspiration? Head over to Bloggeritaville.

Tie one on this holiday!

2009-11-09T19:00:00.000-05:00

Can you believe it's November? I certainly can't. It's only a matter of time before plummeting temperatures (although it was 70 DEGREES in New York today!), crowded malls and shopping-'til-you-drop-'cause-you're-overheated-and-wrapped-in-a-down-coat combines to create the most unwonderful time of the year.

Well don't I sound like the Grinch today.

Don't get me wrong; I love the holidays, and my live Christmas tree and my cookie party and spending time with my family and friends. But despite being a Jersey Girl I'm not a fan of the mall. (Don't tell; they may kick me out of the state.) Especially when they are filled with overzealous shoppers and enough tinsel to stretch from the shore house to China and back again. I like to shop at my local haunts, support local artisans, and make my own gifts.

And speaking of making my own gifts...

Starting today, Violet Posy is hosting a week-long celebration of all things thrifty, so be sure to stop by her place throughout the week, and maybe even contribute a thrifty goody of your own to the idea pool.

I'm planning a post every day this week (oh yes I am!) featuring a different thrifty project. And every single one will be below $10 US to make, but may require a little elbow grease and imagination on your part.

Let's start by tying one on...

Remember when I bought a bunch of ties at the Monmouth County SPCA Cats and Dogs Thrift Shop for 50 cents each?

Now look at them:

This thrifty pouch is also the perfect (and environmentally friendly!) way to wrap a bottle of wine or sparkling cider (which would certainly keep it under $10 total). We have a lot of BYOB restaurants near us, so these will come in handy for toting vino to our favorite haunts.

While I didn't have much of a "plan," I took photos of the second one I made which went quite a bit smoother than my first attempt. So here goes...

Measure out three of your four ties, about 10" up from where the point at the bottom starts:

You can use the bottle you plan on wrapping as your guide. Also try and find at least two wider ties so your bag won't be a super tight fit. Cut and pin them together, with one full tie on the end:

Top stitch them together...

..but leave about one inch unsewn on the tie that is next to the full length tie:

Roll the top (hence the one inch above that you didn't sew)...

...and flip the "handle" around to the tie that will be on the opposite side of "full tie." Now you can run a top stitch across the top, and when you get to the handle be sure to back stitch to reinforce:

Now it's time to bring the bottom points together. As with the side panels, you just sort of pin together on the outside...

...and top stitch:

Voila! I added a button as a tie tack to anchor the flap. You could also top stitch that whole tie flap, which I think I'll do with the next one to both anchor the flap and reinforce the handle a bit more.

Tomorrow: Recycling (in more ways than one) my favorite thrifty gift idea.

A roadside diner day.

2009-11-07T18:48:00.007-05:00

And not just any roadside diner, the Roadside Diner. I spied this place on my way to the apple orchards a few weeks back, so we decided to have a lunch date there today. In order to live in New Jersey, I believe the love of the diner is a prerequisite before residency status is officially granted. And how could you not love a place that looks like this?

It only gets better and better on the inside:

Mike ordered the special of the day, fried pork chops with split pea soup, mashed potatoes and veggies. “Are they real mashed potatoes?” he asked, before committing. Waitress, without missing a beat, “Is this a real diner?” Touché. And hello, all that food for $7.95? I felt like we had time traveled to a place where the blue plate special still hangs off the plate…

…and the people are actually nice:

When we got home I did a little investigating. Turns out The Roadside Diner was delivered to the lot it sits in (at the intersection of Routes 34 and 33 in Wall, NJ) in the 1940s by the Silk City Diner Company. According to Wikipedia, “the diner (was) used for filming of a scene for the 1983 movie Baby It's You and also appears on the cover of the 1994 Bon Jovi album Cross Road: 14 Classic Grooves. In 2008, it is featured in the music video for ‘Girls in Their Summer Clothes’ by Bruce Springsteen.”

Well you just don’t get more Jersey than Bruce and Bon Jovi. Clearly The Roadside has “made it.”

Maybe it was the ~~slight hangover~~ crisp fall air that made my fries and grilled Swiss on rye taste that much better. Or maybe it was the door that slid open to reveal a slice of Americana that made me want to indulge in the ultimate diner comfort meal.

Whatever the case, I’ll be back. And I’m taking on the pancakes next time.

The Roadside Diner

Wall Township, NJ

Routes 33 and 34 (The Collingswood Traffic Circle)

Phone 732-919-1199

Thanks to everyone who commented on my last post...I didn't think there would be much of a "cross-over audience" but I'm pleasantly surprised that there are other Yankees' fans hanging their hats here. What a week!

Oh happy day!

2009-11-05T00:26:00.004-05:00

Thhhhheeeeee Yankees Win! Photo: NY Times

I'll be back to my regularly scheduled programming tomorrow (now that my nights are free!).