Little Linens for Entertaining

These little pieced circles were billed as "doilies", but I shudder even typing the word. They are much more suited to cocktail napkins, don't you think?

Sure, place one under a few macaroons at tea on occasion, but let's not relegate these beauties to dainty affairs. Now, as you may know, I have a little bit o' old lady in me (we're talking big pearl earrings, big gold jewelry and wraps -- chic -- and a lot of "big", apparently). But, ironically the old lady thing includes little linens. I think it's a Southern thing. I like these circles because they aren't lacy -- but they are certainly refined.





I hate showing empty glasses -- seems akin to having an unburned candle on display in your house... a little fixed and cold, no? Oh well, we're looking at the cocktail napkins, right?

There were twelve in the set (incredible). A couple have a spot or two, but Mama is coming this weekend, and I think she might know a secret or two. You remember Mama, right?

I was also fortunate enough to get these place mats and napkins (again a set of eight!):



While these are decidedly dainty, they have a 20s/30s deco quality that reminds me of embroidered, monogrammed scarves that my grandmother wore. I love the way the flowers embrace the area where the plate sits. Sort of a "victory wreath" idea. And, they are actually a taupe color, not white, so that adds a bit of modernity and cuts the cute.




PS :: Don't fold napkins that way, please.

To Quote :: "Are You on Facebook?"

My good DAR friend M treated me to a Civil War reenactment in central Illinois this weekend. It was interesting to experience a Civil War anything above the Mason-Dixon line -- it was weird. I'm so used to everything being so pro-South. It's the same feeling that I had the first time I heard the words of the third and fourth stanzas come out of my mouth while singing "Illinois" (the State song, lyrics below, see the bold passages) at a DAR function. But we're all together now, right? Yes.

Well now, here the Yankees are advancing -- check out that standard!



And a quick shout-out to my NC rebel boys --



In the end, the Union won this battle. But we are in Illinois, after all! Everyone loves an at-home win.



After the battle, we walked around the grounds and came upon President Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln. As we passed them, we overheard Honest Abe ask, "Are you on Facebook?"

Lordy!


::::::


Illinois
Written by C.H. Chamberlain
Composed by Archibald Johnston

By thy rivers gently flowing, Illinois, Illinois,
O'er thy prairies verdant growing, Illinois, Illinois,
Comes an echo on the breeze.
Rustling through the leafy trees, and its mellow tones are these, Illinois, Illinois,
And its mellow tones are these, Illinois.

From a wilderness of prairies, Illinois, Illinois,
Straight thy way and never varies, Illinois, Illinois,
Till upon the inland sea,
Stands thy great commercial tree, turning all the world to thee, Illinois, Illinois,
Turning all the world to thee, Illinois.

When you heard your country calling, Illinois, Illinois,
Where the shot and shell were falling, Illinois, Illinois,
When the Southern host withdrew,
Pitting Gray against the Blue, There were none more brave than you, Illinois, Illinois,
There were none more brave than you, Illinois.

Not without thy wondrous story, Illinois, Illinois,
Can be writ the nation's glory, Illinois, Illinois,
On the record of thy years,
Abraham Lincoln's name appears, Grant and Logan, and our tears, Illinois, Illinois,
Grant and Logan, and our tears, Illinois.

::::::

Bringing Chicago Home

This spring I made the big decision that I was in Chicago to stay*. This realization put a fire under me to truly embrace this town -- and to integrate its imagery into my personal space. I've always used images and souvenirs of North Carolina (which will always be my home), but I had never really thought about Sweet Home Chicago in the house. It seemed pretty cliché.

But I love to turn around a cliché now and then. This little pillow was surely made by someone's auntie in 1984 (I know because she added her initials and the date), and it could be on the settee right beside one of my Mema's cross-stitched monogram numbers. When I was growing up, embroidered pillows were de rigueur. While my mother was having her cross-stitch moment, there was also a lot of french knotting (natural cord on natural cotton, of course), and my grandmother did quite a bit of needlepoint. At that time, it's what you did.

I was in the cross-stitch camp as a girl, and I've been hot to try my hand at needlepoint. I have tons of books but have never actually tried it. I'm hoping my good friend Martha can help me get started -- she's a needlepoint genius.

This pillow has become one of my favorite little pieces. It's as if Mema decided to bring a little Chicago into the sitting room.


*Add a clapboard beach house on the outer banks, and I will be in heaven.

Love :: The Secret of Southern Cooks

Best. Mayonnaise. Ever.

Dukes Mayonnaise is so good that whenever I drive down to NC, I bring back a jar of this fantastic stuff. I recently connected with a cousin of mine (my mother's 81-year-old first cousin who just got rid of his motorcycle last year) and told him this fact during the course of our conversation. Not three days later did a USPS flat-rate box appear at my mail box with this hefty 48-oz jar of Dukes rolling around inside.

You cannot imagine how happy this surprise made me on that run of the mill Thursday. I emailed him to say thanks, and his reply was, "Let me know when you are running low."

Thanks Jimmie!

Now That's What I'm Talking About.

Now this -- THIS is what I've been talking about! I have been wanting to try 12 Bones in Asheville, NC for a long time, and this week I finally had the opportunity to go. The barbeque was just right -- Eastern NC style (as in little to no vinegar-based sauce), even though we are decidedly in Western NC here. They do have an array of sauces you can add to your pulled pork or pulled chicken (they have ribs, too). Of course, my go-to order item for lunch is the pulled pork sandwich, and this one did not disappoint!

My brother recommends the green beans and corn pudding (which was more "country" than what I usually have in corn pudding -- think paté de campagne vs fois gras -- a little chunkier and "rough"). Add a big glass of sweet tea (those are not my sweetner packets -- I'm anti- fake sweetner), and you have it made!

My personal favorite of the 12 Bones sauces:




And a little taste of Chicago:



Let's face it, our President knows where to get good vittles. The line was out the door the whole time we were there. 12 Bones is only open for lunch!



I promise: Last barbeque post for a while. I've had my fill for now. I seriously need to add a tag on the blog sidebar for this topic -- I had no idea that I thought that this was one of the things that "makes life great". But, there you go.

Love :: An Interior within an Interior

This little snapshot (c. 1975) is of the entry at my grandmother's house. On the most perfect drop-leaf table, she had a portrait of me, one of her mother, and two small photos (in a little metal frame that folded like a book), one half of a pair of truly elegant chinoiserie lamps with silk shades, and on the left side of the table is a lantern (red candle!) that my uncle made on his way to becoming an Eagle Scout. It's like the ones they used in the mid-nineteenth century -- the only other time I've seen one like it is on a Confederate ghost walk.

I love a little vignette, and this little white-edged snap perched on its delicate brass easel is a peach. The best part is the "interior within an interior" effect (à la "play within a play"). The setting of the photo (endo-frame) relates so much to the setting (exo-frame) of which it's a part. The similar colors of the tables, a single lamp to the right, and the mirrors on the wall behind.

Why was this picture ever taken? It's unusual to to find a box filled with party-people and holiday smiles, only to come across one where the only people in the shot are two-dimensional. How did this one make the cut into the box with the party people? Talk about absence/presence and representation through image! Whoa -- heavy stuff, Mema!

Unpretentious southern decor: a bit of nicety, a lot of quality, and family ever-present. Mema had it.

Looks pretty good --

Oh but those hushpuppies were dense! Like little breaded super bounce balls.

Kitty and I made a barbecue run on Saturday between haunts -- to Sweet Baby Ray's restaurant. They say their BBQ sauce is "the boss" -- and it is good if you like the red stuff (on chicken, I would say).



But I dragged Kitty out to try an Eastern NC style sandwich. Kitty was raised in Chicago, so this was exotic! And I was ready to give this Chicagoland sandwich a try.

Points for having the slaw on the sandwich when it arrived. I did have to add some extra sauce, to really get a good vinegar taste, but all in all, not a bad sandwich. I had been jonesing for this for two weeks, so I'm sure I am being generous, but happy to do so (before our visit, I was on the verge of calling Kings in Kinston). As I mentioned, the hushpuppies were hard and dense. And get this -- they charge $2.49 for four puppies. I sweet-talked them for gratis, though. Good thing, since they were not up to House-Autry snuff! And no sweet tea, of course.

I was happy to just have a little bit of sandwich to taste and review... worth the drive for this Chicago-southerner. Sweet Baby Ray's is serving Eastern NC style barbecue during the month of June, so check it out for yourself and share your thoughts!

Wish List :: Bar-B-Q King

It's Sunday, and I have a hankering for a visit to the barbeque place. Alas, none here in Chicago. Oh, they can call it "Carolina pulled pork", but it's messy and doused in red sticky sauce, but that is not my barbeque. Shredded pork with clear vinegar "sauce" is what I like -- Eastern NC style. The photo above was taken during a road trip with Mama. We were traveling from Asheville to Charlotte and decided to take the business route into Lincolnton for lunch.

Luckily we found the Bar-B-Q King. Everything you ever wanted in a barbeque place. Good, fast and low-key. Every table had a bottle of ketchup, a roll of paper towels (the kitchen-Bounty variety), salt/pepper and a a bottle of Texas Pete. This place is pretty far west, but is on the geographical edge, so to speak, of where barbeque goes from shredded to sliced and sauce goes from "clear" to red. It was a great lunch. And the tea was pretty good, too. (I have a friend whose mother says that a place's sweet tea is the only real way to judge a restaurant.)

Somewhere I have the card of a barbeque place that overnights food. I need that card. I'll make tea today -- halfway there.

A Low Country Treasure

Charleston has quite a few historic plantation houses, but after pouring over the details of the lot, we settled on Drayton Hall on the Ashley River for a visit. Drayton Hall is the house of an old indigo and rice plantation. It is spectacular in its state of preservation. The paint is peeling, the floors creak, and you can still see where the family marked children's heights on the door frame.





This house has been preserved, not restored -- meaning that since it was acquired by the National Trust from the Drayton family in 1974, it has been kept as-is. The wonderful part is that not many changes had been made since the mid-eighteenth century (it was built in 1742). Shutters were added in the nineteenth century, and repairs made with contemporary materials as needed, but on the whole, it's very similar to how it would have been back "in the day".



There is no furniture or artwork inside the house, since there is no air conditioning to protect it. Windows are wide-open as you pass through the rooms. Window views of languid spanish moss and lush grass are the art. The ultra-verdant landscape contrasts sharply with the dull green-gray of the walls with bits of red wood underneath, and striking greek key on the mantels and star motifs on the molded plaster ceiling. This place is a feast for the eyes.



Find out more about Drayton Hall here.

Haunting :: Back in the Day

From the pages of the Hugh Morson High School in Raleigh, circa 1930. My favorite: "A certain Buick".

Haunting :: Mottled Green Marble Bookends

I spied this pair of mottled green Italian marble bookends on the second scour of the bric-a-brac section of a little nothing place in NC. They have some issues, but those wear more like patina than damage, and the green is so good -- so good. They will be good in my living room. And they are so heavy, there is no way that my books will fall over.

The little books shown here are part of the Penguin 60p series from the 90s. Penguin sold these little guys for 60p each to celebrate the company's 60th anniversary. They were perfect for toting through London during my study abroad trip... to have one of these on the Tube or while waiting in line for theater tickets was supposed to be smart use of your time, but inevitably I just liked to watch the people hurry about on the street or study the design in the Tube stations. And when I came home I picked up a few more American books (I think they were 95¢ in the U.S.), things like the United States Constitution and the Fannie Farmer Cookbook.

Memorial Day :: Thank You

That's my grandfather on the right. He served in the Pacific theater in WWII. He came from a small mill village in southwestern North Carolina, and his family had lived in the area since Tryon County was half the state. I workout with a woman whose husband is in the National Guard and this spring returned from deployment in Iraq. I think that serving in the National Guard is very honorable, and I told her so. The DAR is going to be laying a wreath at General Logan's monument at Grant Park today, and I will be there.

Thank you to all the men and women who have served our country.

When in Chicago...

I love the designers over at MeTV. The spots they create to promote the network's vintage programming are right-on, and not syrupy-sweet nostalgic. Check out this great promo for The Andy Griffith Show. Especially at 00:35 where Barney's song is answered by Andy.

I had this idea about a year ago that my perfect man was about 85% Rob Petrie and 15% Andy Taylor. No kidding.

When in Chicago, watch MeTV! You'll feel good.

Haunting :: Candlesticks

I wasn't on the hunt -- I wasn't planning on looking, even. But I was in NC, and untested places scream "opportunity", so if you're feeling lucky, it certainly doesn't hurt to check one out.

I like to scour a haunt in sections, and the first walk through this place didn't reveal much. But as I made my way to the middle of the place, I spied these ironstone candlesticks with orange and black transfer color and painted gold stripes. And the fact that these were a pair made them a must-have. I snagged them straight-away.

They remind me of one of my old design profs -- he had this insanely huge collection of colorful vintage candlesticks, pottery and glassware of this vintage -- all crowded on tables and shelves. So much color!

Photo above: transferware candlesticks as found in the wild.

There's a Teapot in the Room -- Two, in Fact

These are the fab elephant teapots I mentioned last week. I spotted one at a good haunt, and while there was a second little guy there too, his finial was broken. So, I put out an APB with K (a fellow haunter), and she found one, no problem! Thank you, K!

This pair of pachyderms will be great for tea time. Their pristine white surface will blend well with all kinds of white china, and since they are so simply styled, they can work with stark minimal pieces and more English-inspired ones... think Imperial India. I need a safari jacket, pronto!

Haunting :: Moravian Cookies

A little bit of Winston-Salem! These are traditional cookies -- "the world's thinnest cookie" -- made in the old Moravian communities of colonial days. We used to have these with coffee after the Moravian Christmas Eve service. I picked up the Spice Cookies and the Key Lime variety. I like the traditional, but the Key Lime could be great for a summer tea.

PS :: They had cheese straws too! Don't get me started on cheese straws -- too good.

Find out more about the Old Salem Moravian community here, and more about the cookies themselves here. Enjoy!

Clayspace Co-op :: The haunt for NC pottery

Top, pot with brushwork, Kyle Carpenter. Above, pots drying in the Clayspace studio.

My brother has been a member of this group for about two and a half years, and I have to say that I love this place.

North Carolina's pottery heritage lives at Clayspace Co-op in Asheville. From Matt Jacob's house jars to Eric Knoche's sculptural pieces to the traditional forms and painted designs of Kyle Carpenter (my brother), I think that this place is a pottery paradise. Craftsmanship is king. Form is paramount. And making with clay is a way of life.


Clayspace Co-op gallery, Asheville River Arts District.

North Carolina has an long heritage of ceramic arts. Since colonial days, North Carolina potters have been creating functional and decorative works from the clay soil found in the state. Six potters work out of the Clayspace studio in Asheville's River Arts District, and their work is as diverse and appealing as the state itself. And as a working studio and gallery space, you can see the work from start to finish, and talk with the artists one-on-one. Have a question? Don't be shy -- these folks love to talk pots.



Pot in progress, Eric Knoche.


Heather Tinnaro works at the wheel.

This is one great Asheville haunt.


North Carolina pot detail, Kyle Carpenter.

I am very happy to report that I went home with this great little "N.C." pot of Kyle's. I am big into North Carolina -- it's my home state -- and I was so enamored with this piece commemorating the Old North State. And the hand lettering!

Haunting Brings Unexpected Things

Like these guys, for instance. At an immaculately styled shop in Chicago, a group of these figurines stood on a small silver tray -- a little army of duos. Some wore sky blue tunics, some sage green. This pair was the only one with terra cotta and gold stripes.

When I picked them up for closer inspection, I noticed the sticker said "Chang and Eng". I knew those names! From North Carolina!

A bit of background: Born in Siam (now Thailand) in 1811, Chang and Eng Bunker were connected at the chest. As teenagers, the twins traveled the world giving lectures and demonstrations. According to their travelogues, they visited the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1834. Chang and Eng were such international celebrities, the term "Siamese Twins" became the common name to describe conjoined twins.



After traveling the world, they came back to North Carolina and married two sisters, Adelaide and Sarah Yates of Wilkes County. The two families eventually produced 21 children!



Back to the haunt: When I asked the shopkeeper about the little Chang and Eng figurines, he said that John Derian (of decoupage fame) had found a lot of about a hundred of them in England, and that they had been made when the twins were worldwide celebrities. Mr Derian brought them back to the U.S., and this group of figurines ended up at my haunt. I think you could have knocked that shopkeeper over with a feather when he heard the North Carolina story... just seems out of left field.

I poured over the little rugged porcelain army, studying their painted faces and contemplating the colors of their robes until I settled on the best pair. Now they live on my desk, reminding me about the Old North State and all its variety, and how these two men made such rich lives.

Watercolor image and history source: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill University Libraries

Score! :: This Weekend at the Haunts

What a great weekend at the haunts. I visited my "first on the list" place (it's very convenient), and -- nothing. Not. A. Thing. That almost never happens.

But I was feeling lucky. So I pressed on. Next up? A place I visit every month or so. It's pretty good. But Saturday was very good. Check it out!





These little china cups are so, so delicate. And they will be great with my new pair of white elephant teapots.* They have a Belleek feel, but no markings. They're fun little things.

I also scored a 1960 Emily Post etiquette book. I love a good etiquette book. They are so definitive. I have an Amy Vanderbilt edition of the same era, but my absolute fave is my Mrs Oliver Harriman tome from the 1940s. This lady was serious about etiquette. She had a very old-school perspective that I think sounds more 1920s than 1940s. My grandmother was quite the It Girl of Raleigh in the twenties, and the tone of the book reminds me of the tidbits about her wedding festivities in the society pages of old editions of The Raleigh Times.

I like comparing etiquette advice from book to book. And with a sprinkle of Martha Stewart (particularly her Weddings rag), a dash of all the etiquette and civility blogs on the web, and well... maybe I'll write a paper on it all one day.

Though there were more things in my buggy -- a crystal decanter, a little Italian cake stand (tiny with daisies), a crystal honey pot -- I'll end with this piece:





What is it?

Other than some type of mug and saucer, I have no idea. It's china with teal and gold transfer color, and there is an inscription that ends in "1969r." (the script you see in the photo above), but I can't figure it out. Any ideas?

There's also a mark, but I haven't had a moment to research it:



I'm thinking of using it with a great big peony bloom! Love that gold!


*The elephants will make an appearance in a few days... I love them too much not to share.

Antietam

I visited Antietam National Battlefield last summer on an incredibly beautiful day. Virginia never looked as lovely as it did on that day -- and that is saying a lot. The sky was perfectly blue with a few bright-white clouds, and the grass of the rolling fields was a luscious swath of green.



But -- the type!

This lovely sample of bronze script was just one of many inscriptions that point to landmarks in the countryside for the visitors high above in the the memorial tower on the site. This type is truly beautiful... so well-crafted, and the patina makes it come alive. The tower and that incredible sky: