Sally skirt

When the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas came out I was instantly drawn to the character of Sally . I guess it was because I saw myself is her. Back then I too had waist length bright red hair, I loved all things spooky and best of all both Sally and I were proficient with needle and thread. To top it off we both had a brooding boyfriend whom we were trying to keep out of trouble. Since then my hair has gone through many changes, I am even more handy with a needle and that moody beau of mine has turned into one heck of a great husband and father. I hope things turned out as well for Sally.
Now, about that skirt. I came upon this fabric in a clearance bin. It was the hideous combination of Mc Donald’s shades of red and yellow. I bought it, dyed it and packed it away for a couple of years. In an effort to be as Dave Ramsey as possible I have been making my clothes lately. So, this week out came the patchwork and the Sally skirt was made. The little lady next to me is from my Nightmare Before Christmas collection. She is a marionette and for some reason she has pink hair and crossed eyes.

On a side note, if you also like Jack and Sally you may want to check out the book ‘The Patchwork Girl of Oz’ by L. Frank Baum. It was published in 1913 and the similarities are uncanny. The main character is a “well shaped” life-size doll made from “a bed-quilt made of patches of different kinds of colors and cloth, all neatly sewn together.” She has yarn hair and red leather shoes with pointed toes. She is made and brought to life by a magician to be an obedient household servant (sound familiar?). By accident too much ‘cleverness’ is thrown into the potion when she is being made and she has too much of a mind of her own to stay and be a slave. She sets off on many adventures. One of the characters she befriends is Jack Pumpkinhead! Jack cultivates a field of pumpkins so that he can carve a new head whenever the current one starts to spoil. Oh, and he has a dog too. The characters in this one are much more strange and interesting than in the Tim Burton tale, it’s definitely worth a read.

Soup Of The Evening

On these chilly winter evenings I like to have a pot of soup bubbling away on the stove. Eating it warms us up, the long duration of cooking time warms up the kitchen and the smell when you walk into the house is fantastic. It gets pretty cold in my house and sitting over a big bowl of delicious hot soup is a rewarding experience. Here are three soups that I will definitely repeat throughout the winter months. I try to cook what is seasonally available and what my body seems to be asking for.



I call this one ‘Golden Chicken Soup’. Pumpkin, carrots and a smidge of tomato paste give it a wonderful rich golden color. It’s pretty thick, almost a stew and it’s got a big pinch of thyme in it.



This is an Asian inspired soup. Make any broth, I use chicken or miso but veg would certainly work. Add some wide noodles, I used egg noodles here. Then have an assortment of cooked veggies, meat, hard boiled eggs, whatever you happen to have on hand. Also offer some condiments, a chutney, grated ginger, or a squeeze of citrus. I especially like a dab of garlic chili paste with mine. When I am feeling run down or someone in the house is under the weather this is good medicine.



The recipe for this one was called ‘Winter Vegetable Soup’. Of course I tweaked it a bit to use up whatever vegetables I had on hand. I think it originally called for parsnips and rutabaga, but I didn’t have those. What I did have was pumpkin, zucchini, carrots and potatoes. There is milk in it and lots of garlic. I served this soup with two kinds of bread, one topped with cheddar cheese and one with cinnamon apples.


In Alice in Wonderland The Mock Turtle sings the song ‘Beautiful Soup’. It is a funny parody based upon a popular song of the time. The original song is called ‘Star of the Evening’.

Soup Of The Evening
by Lewis Carroll

Beautiful Soup, so rich and green,
Waiting in a hot tureen!
Who for such dainties would not stoop?
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup!
Beau - ootiful Soo - oop!
Beau - ootiful Soo - oop!
Soo - oop of the e - e - evening,
Beautiful, beautiful Soup!
Beautiful Soup! Who cares for fish,
Game, or any other dish?
Who would not give all else for two
pennyworth only of beautiful Soup?
Pennyworth only of beautiful Soup?
Beau - ootiful Soo - oop!
Beau - ootiful Soo - oop!
Soo - oop of the e - e - evening,
Beautiful, beautiful Soup!

Recycling an old favorite

Twenty years ago I had a particular favorite shirt. It was already soft and faded when I bought it at a thrift store. What I loved and still love about it is the print. Once the shredding began I retired it to the fabric bin, I didn’t have the heart to throw it away. Well, this week it has emerged to give a little flavor to a plain raglan top I made. I cut a piece of the print from an area that was the least faded and made a collar. That old shirt holds a lot of good memories, a lot of history for me so I am very pleased to be able to wear it again. I’ve decided to turn the rest of it into a wide headband for me and a dress for a doll.
In the background of this photo there is a picture of me and my Dad from around 1988, in it I am wearing the old favorite.

The pattern for the new top is from the Japanese craft book Cotton Time, March 2006 issue.

Candleboats and New Year’s Eve

My family and I enjoyed a quiet, comfortable New Year’s Eve at home. I made an Israeli inspired dinner influenced by The Frugal Gourmet Keeps The Feast. Before we began eating we lit our little walnut shell candleboats. In turn we each said our wish/prayer for the coming year then we set our boats floating. It went off so well that I think I will make this little ritual a yearly tradition. I got the idea for the floating walnut candles from one of my favorite books on seasonal celebrations All Year Round. The candles and their reflections gave off a really nice luminous glow throughout the meal.
Our peaceful family dinner on New Year’s Eve was the complete opposite of the New Year’s Day festivities. We entertained a houseful of our boisterous friends and ate way too much food of the decadent variety. Two celebrations couldn’t have been more different but at the very heart of them they were just the same. Ringing in the unknown new year with those we love. Being thankful just because you are doing it together.

Special Gifts

I have been blessed with a husband who is attracted to and appreciates the same things that I do. So, it is no surprise that I am head over heels for the gifts he picked for me. My birthday is very close to Christmas so I received not one, but two wonderful pieces of hand made pottery from Bauman Stoneware. This photo of the pumpkin teapot and acorn casserole speak for themselves of their amazingly gifted creator. All I can say is that they are beautiful and magical as everything concerning Christmas should be.

Christmas baking

The snow is piled up outside. The tree is trimmed with favorite ornaments. Fairies, mushrooms, nesting birds and woodland critters adorn it's branches. Oh, and the red lights are twinkling, I do love my red lights. The Christmas music is playing. It's time to get baking. As a child of the 70's (not the healthy hippie 70's) I was raised on a lot of packaged food. Potatoes and cakes came from boxes and vegetables came out of cans. But, come Christmas time my mom would bake cookies from scratch and she did it very well. As far back as I can remember Christmas we had the green acorn cookies. Mom would make the dough with the big wooden spoon, no mixers here. Then she molded each little acorn by hand. After baked and cooled she dipped each one in melted chocolate to make the acorn cap. They are buttery, kind of like shortbread, but flavored with almond extract. When I got married I started making them our tradition too. This year I also made a batch of sugar cookies that we have yet to decorate. They are from my late Grandma Jean's 1963 "Cooky Book". They are called wonderland cookies and we cut them out in fun animal shapes: pigs, owls, chicks, rabbits plus hearts and diamonds. It's just not Christmas though without the green acorn cookies. That big, gorgeous brown glass acorn ornament is a new gift from a special friend who really knows what I like.


Each Christmas I make a birthday cake for Jesus. I also like to make a buche de noel. It's a french roll cake filled with whipped cream. It's a less sweet alternative to the buttercream iced birthday cake. I decorate it with merengue mushrooms and strawberries. Of course I take any excuse to put cute little mushrooms on my table!


When serving this cake to company, one friend was notably disgusted to be eating mushrooms with his cake! I took this as a mighty big compliment at the realism of the little shrooms.

The Storybook Home

It is bitter cold today. The perfect day to snuggle down with the latest issue of The Storybookhome Journal, which arrived in my mailbox just yesterday. It is a rare treat to anticipate and receive something of worth in the mail these days (not email!). The Storybookhome Journal is put together by the artist Al Young and his gifted family. It is a bimonthly publication centered around wonderful classic literature. Each issue spotlights one book or author. Various aspects of the book are brought to life in whimsical yet practical ways so that you can “live out” the book in your own home. In each fabulous issue you will encounter delicious recipes, home decor and handiwork projects, music pieces, gardening ideas and much more. Each idea is pulled directly from the book and personalized by this highly talented, very imaginative family. Each issue is a work of art in itself. There is beauty and inspiration at every turn. I find myself refering back to certain issues again and again.

If you are searching for something special to give this holiday season for mother, sister, or friend, a yearly subscription to The Storybookhome Journal is perfect. It is very reasonably priced for the ongoing gift of delight that it will bring. Individual issues can also be purchased. Here are just a very few past issues that will whet your appetite: Heidi, Litttle Women, Silas Marner, The Wind in the Willows, Bleak House, Persuasion, Little House in the Big Woods, Understood Betsy and Treasure Island.

Five years ago I was asked if I might contribute to the ‘Old Christmas’ issue which focused on the author Washington Irving. I was more than happy to oblige, it is very exciting to be a part of such a wonderful and worthwhile endeavor.