MaryJane's Farm Fair 2009

MaryJane Butters and I!


This is my sister on the right and myself on the left. We are just about to leave to go to the MJF store!


I am posing in front of the MJF store. I am in the black dress and the long pearl necklace.



I was lucky enough to be able to attend a part of MaryJane's Farm Fair 2009. I travel to Idaho every fourth of July to visit my grandparents. It's been a family tradition for the past many years. So I thought it was perfect that the Farm Fair would be in northern Idaho-an hour away from my grandmother's home!

If you haven't heard about MaryJane's Farm, you should look at some of my past postings and go to her website at www.maryjanesfarm.org.

I was able to attend the Farm Fair kick off at MaryJane's store in Couer d'alene, Idaho. It was fantastic! It was 1920's themes. I had been to her store prior and really enjoyed it, but this was great! There was so many people there for the event in the plaza mall that houses her store. There was a live 1920's style band, free organic food, fun, happiness, and best of all...MaryJane and her family!!! She was such a gracious and kind person! Reading her magazine I had always hoped that she really was that kind and wonderful in real life and lo and behold it was true! She took time with so many of the guests and made each one she talked to seem special and important. She never seemed to rush with anyone, but took her time and actually conversed with her fans, such as myself.

I wanted a picture with her, but for some reason was to shy to ask for it...Luckily, I brought my sister with me! My sister made sure that I was able to meet MJ first-hand and get a picture with her.

I wore a black flapper-style dress, and my sister wore a cute vintage dress and hat. MaryJane's outfit was the prettiest though :)

Vintage Cookbook: Better Homes and Gardens

My favorite cookbook of all time is definitely my Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. I have an edition from the 1990s and I love it so much! I love the recipes and the tips and the fact that it is a binder style book. It is very easy to flip through it and find what I am looking for at any given moment.

A few weeks ago I was looking up old/vintage cookbooks on Ebay and I came across a wonderful, old edition of the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook! I was so excited and I bought it right then-and-there. The cover is different from my current copy of the book. The book is a 1953 edition and is in great condition! It is very vintage styled and nostalgic. The pictures throughout the cookbook are wonderful and call from an older time. It makes me happy looking at them. The women in the picture cartoons are all wearing lovely aprons!

Just wanted to share my find with you!

Bread...Yum

Hello everyone! I just wanted to make a quick post on my breadmaking last week. I love to bake bread! I love the whole process...but I sure do love to eat it! I baked three loaves of bread a couple of days ago. I use a recipe my grandpa gave me from the internet. I will post it sometime so you can see it. I used half white and half wheat flour, as well as wheat germ, and oat bran. It tastes so delicious and always turns out well. I definitely recommend giving breadbaking a try if you haven't already. It is fun to make and is even better to eat! :) I do not have an electric mixer or a bread machine, so I have to do it the old fashioned way. I mix everything by hand (it sure is a work-out) and then I let the yeast rise twice and then bake it in the oven in bread pans.

Homemade Blackberry Jam

The other day I was at my mother's house when I noticed she had many delicious-looking, ripe blackberries in her yard. I had a fabulous idea to make jam out of them. I took it upon myself to call my dad and make sure that it was safe to pick them. I went into the house and found the largest bowl I could and proceeded to fill it entirely with the plump morsels of juicy goodness. I wrapped it in a plastic bag for the journey home.

I had never made jam before and had only just talked to a friend's parent about the process a few days earlier. I didn't have any of the materials so on my way home I stopped in at our local Safeway and picked up a flat of 12 8oz. kerr jam jars, as well as some pectin.

Upon returning home, I washed the jars and lids in warm soapy water and boiled the jars in a very large pot of water. I looked online for a good (easy to follow) recipe for blackberry jam and began the process. I found a good recipe at http://www.recipezaar.com/40235 The recipe was submitted by MizzNezz on September 15, 2002 and said:

Homemade Blackberry Jam

Ingredients

5 cups crushed blackberries (do not puree, crush with a potato masher) 7 cups sugar 1 (1 3/4 ounce) package fruit jell pectin (I use Ball but Sure Jell will work too)

Directions

1. Carefully measure out the berries, put them into a very large pot (8qt).
2. Carefully measure sugar in a lg bowl.
3. Add the pectin to the berries a little at a time, stirring constantly.
4. Heat on hi, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a FULL boil.
5. Add sugar ALL at once, stirring.
6. Bring mixture back to a full hard boil, stirring constantly.
7. Boil for 1 minute.
8. Remove from heat and ladle into clean, hot 8oz jars, leaving 1/4 inch space at the top.
9. Wipe the rim of the jar and put canning lids and rings on firmly tight.
10. Place in canner with very hot water, make sure water is 1 inch above jars.
11. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
12. Remove and set them upright on a towel to set for 12 hours.

To me, the jam turned out delicious and great! To a jam queen, it was probably a little runny...but it wasn't REALLY runny...just a bit. It is SO good and the seeds in it are yummy! It tastes so good over toast!! I am really happy with how it turned out...especially for my first batch!

The New Apron

This is the wonderful apron that goes along with the antiques in Snohomish and button posts below. I purchased it at the Star Center Antique Mall in Snohomish, Washington just the other day. It is SUPER cute and vintage! It has four front pockets in the lovely blue material and the roses are hand embroidered! I love it so much and have been wearing it frequently!

The Buttons

These are some of the many buttons I picked up while browsing through antique stores a few days ago. Keep scrolling down to see more beauties.

More of the Buttons

A close up of some of the buttons I purchased at various antique stores in Snohomish, WA the other day. So pretty!