Tray Cheek!

Some things come into your life totally by accident.
(No jokes about children, now . . . behave yourselves.)

A couple of weekends ago, Howard and I were in the tiny courtyard
of a city row house, politely haggling over the price of an old
wrought iron table and chairs, when, from the corner of my eye,
I spotted some very alluring curves.

They belonged to this:

An enormous tray.  Painted white.

All these pictures were taken after an initial cleaning; the tray was black with dirt when found.

I didn't want to frighten anyone with the serious schmutz that was on this tray.

This is after some hard scrubbing.

It was being used as the lid for an outdoor recycling bin, and was beyond filthy.

I lifted a corner, and felt its heft.  Which is considerable.

It's huge, has gorgeous lines, and I thought, "Hey, let's make a deal."

You have to be a little cheeky that way, to get the best bargains.

So, we did.  Make a deal.

We agreed to a price for the table and chairs,

and in return we also got the big tray.  Smiles all around.

I figured it was silverplate under the paint.  Yup.

 I found three marks on the bottom.

I don't know how to use the Macro setting on Howard's camera yet, so this is the best I could do:

 Time to Google.

Research always pays off.  The Internet is my friend.
This mark, below, means it was made by the Barbour Silver Company, in Connecticut,

and the E.P. in B.S.C.E.P. probably means "electroplated."

In 1898 Barbour was bought by International Silver, and that was added to its mark.

So . . . this fellow is quite the old gent.  At least 113 years old.  Wow.

The tray's underside was not painted.

It's had a long, busy working career; look at the wear on the feets.

I wonder how it felt about being out in the weather, keeping alley cats out of empty recycled soup cans?

It is so big that I can't fit it into my gargantuan kitchen sink.

When I started cleaning it, some paint peeled off,

and I understood why someone had painted it in the first place.

Whoa.  Technicolor tarnish and wear.

So what would you do with this tray?

Obviously it needs more cleaning.  But after that . . .

Strip the paint off, and probably find that most of the silver plating is worn off, topside?

Or give it a good sanding, and simply repaint it?

He is crazy heavy, but ain't he a beaut?

My tray cheek netted us something tres chic, I think.
Oh.  That's so corny it hurts.  -- Cass

Look!  A monogram! I spy a K on the right,
but can't decipher the other two.

A Link Party

Kathleen at Faded Charm hosts White Wednesday.

If you are a fan of white -- and who is not? -- then please visit!

Click here.

Cookies, Coffee, Robert Burns, and Knock-off China

Come Autumn, sae pensive in yellow and grey,
And soothe me wi' tidings o' Nature's decay!

Ah, that ol' Robert Burns could turn a phrase, couldn't he?

Even if he did talk funny.   :-P                

Outside here, it's all gray skies, dark gray tree limbs, with a few

brilliant leaves still soldiering on.

Yellow and gray and pensive.

November.

The perfect day for a cuppa and a something-else in the study at That Old House.

Sorry, it's not tea for me today; it's French press coffee.

I'm using pieces from a luncheon/dessert/tea service for 6 that I got two years ago at a hospital thrift shop.

It's an unknown manufacturer, but it's a dead-on ringer for Noritake's Adagio pattern.

This, below, is the real McCoy; it has silver trim; the imposter has gold.

I discovered Adagio as a newlywed, and thought it so graceful and charming, but we couldn't afford it.

I was delighted to find this knock-off at the thrift shop.  I like it as much now as I did 30 years ago!

Love the rust and blue and gray design.  Such good colors for November.

This isn't fancy, delicate bone china.  I don't hold my pinkie finger up when I drink from this cup.

But I think it's pretty and I know it's practical -- I put it in the dishwasher despite the gold trim.

How daring is that?

Now . . . about that something-else snack.  

I usually have Duncan Hines brownie mix on hand; I think it's the best of the bunch.

And you can make cookies with it.

You need:

And you follow these instructions:

For "other stuff" think: white chocolate, nuts, raisins,
coconut, dried cranberries, peanut or butterscotch chips . . .
pretty much anything but olives.
Use a meatball scoop to form the cookies, or a coffee scoop.
Be generous.

After baking, you end up with these, and boy are they good:

Confession:  I did not bake those cookies today (Sorry, Howard).

I baked them almost exactly two years ago, when I first used these pictures and recipe in a post.

Pictures of That Old House are from this afternoon.

Hey -- I'm busy with my TBDBT List!  I'm not baking until the day before Thanksgiving! -- Cass

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Love dishes?  Lust over all types of china? 

Then you'll want to enter the Giveaway for the big new coffee table book

on dishes, called DISH!  Just go to Monday's post and leave a comment.

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Link Parties:

Marty at A Stroll Through Life hosts Table Top Tuesday.   Click here.

Diane at A Picture Is Worth 1,000 Words hosts 2nd Time Around Tuesday.   Click here.

At Linda's Coastal Charm blog, it's Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays.  Click here!
And now for the Tea Parties:

Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage, and Tea Time Tuesday.  Click here!

Wanda Lee at The Plumed Pen, and Tea For Two Tuesday.  Click here!

Wanda and Pam of A Breath of Fresh Air host Tea Pot and Tea Things.  Click here!

And ... it's also Tea Cup Tuesday at Artful Affirmations with Terri.  Click here!

Dishin' On A Giveaway

What better way to start the week
than with a Giveaway?

You want just the facts?  Here goes!

Who:  That Old House, of course!  It's not a spectacular giveaway
but it's just right for curling up in cold weather with a (pretty) cup of tea.

What:  T.O.H. and I are giving away a brand new copy of this book:

and it's all about -- you guessed it -- dishes.

When:  The winner will be drawn from among entries
on Monday, November 21st.  

Where:  It all happens right here, in this post,
and in next Monday's.  No need to visit any other websites or pages.

Why:  When I did a blog post on October 19th that included this book, here, some of you were delighted with a book that boasts hundreds of pictures of hundreds of dish patterns, along with random tidbits of info about those same gorgeous plates.  

So I ordered a second copy of Dish, and as even using both of my eyes
I can only read one book at a time, it is time to give one away!

How:  Easy as pie.  No hoops to jump through, no complicated 
"do this, do that, then stand on your head" rules.

All you need to do is leave a comment on this very post.  Simple.

One comment = one entry = you're done!

Entries will close at midnight EST on November 20th.

If you are a new visitor and would like to become a Follower,

I'd be delighted, but following is not a requirement for winning.

If you want to mention this Giveaway on your own blog,

or link to it, that would also be very welcome, but -- not required.

I'm trying to make it easy for one of you who loves, loves, loves dishes to win this big, beautiful, fun book.

Good Luck!  -- Cass


P.S.  Just a reminder -- I need to be able to contact whomever wins Dish.  If you comment anonymously, or have "no reply" with your comments, or don't have a link to a blog or website, or don't have your email in your profile . . . you may win, and never find out!  Some commenters are already in this position; I'm talking to you, Nancy Lee and Susie!  :-)  If you see this, please send your contact info to me so I can reach you if your number is pulled.  Thanks!

I Am A Camera

I had a camera, and, sadly, it has decided to no longer work.


So I am making do with Howard's large and lumbering Nikon D3000,
which is way more camera than I am used to using.

I have to admit, he takes a nice picture, that Nikon fella.

It's just hard to be discreet, you know?

Like on Friday when I was trying to photograph the hermit's place on top of the hill

with the "Savage Dog" sign on the gate . . . well, that's a tale for another time.

Today's tale is a re-run, from last winter, when my little Canon went walkabout in the bush

for several weeks until I found it hiding in the bottom of an unused handbag.

In those weeks, I made playground friends with the Nikon, and posted about it.

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(From February 15, 2011)

My camera is still A.W.O.L.

Luckily Howard has a camera, and although it is big and scary,
and weighs a ton, this morning he kindly showed me how to use it . . . 

Here is the result.

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 (Fanfare and flourish.)

I hereby declare this a day for Pretty Things.

Among the prettiest: the roses Howard sent me for Valentine's Day.

They are the most gorgeous true red, and not fully opened yet so they'll last a good many days.

How beautiful; nothing we fashion can touch Nature's style.

But we'll give it a shot.

Let's move those roses out of the kitchen -- we'll lop off their skinny legs and plop them

into my favorite rose bowl -- and then we'll decide what to do with them.

  Out of the kitchen you go!

 As long as today is Pretty Things Day. . .

what could be prettier than things that cost only a dollar?

 I always think that being cheap inexpensive just makes something more attractive.

Ladies, do not tell this to my husband.  Or yours.

Or, come to think of it, your unmarried daughters.

If there weren't already a Dollar Tree around the corner from That Old House, I'd have to invent one.

Look at what hopped into my cart on my last visit a few weeks ago:

Mirror-and-ruby-glass votive holders.

I mean, really!

Eureka!

Red and shiny.

I wanted to take their glamour shots last night, in the dark,

but I didn't know how to use the camera then.  Still don't, if I'm honest.

Red Valentine's roses pair perfectly with shiny candleholders from Dollar Tree, right?

But we knew that all along, now, didn't we?

Let's put the roses where they can be enjoyed.  By me.

Ah . . . now this is bliss.

 A pot of good black coffee, some pretty, shiny things, several new decorating books I treated myself
to before Christmas, and the time to enjoy it and let the tension headaches of the past two weeks fade away.

 That's a vintage Wedgwood Patrician mold cup and saucer, in the Bognor design.
Embossed and hand painted.

 Howard's Mom gave me the white coffee pot.
And you already know where the votive holder came from!

 Books to dream over, and the pillow my sister Peg made for me last winter.  Perfect.

I'll share the bliss with the Snowman family inhabiting the mantel.

I like to hold over holiday reds and wintry snowmen until the end of February.

 They brighten bleak winter days.

 And snowmen just look so darn silly that I can't resist them.

I'll be back.  After I have my coffee.

I'm afraid I've only set out a cup for one today.

 Go get your own!  You know where the kitchen is. -- Cass

Link Parties!
The Tablescaper hosts Seasonal Sundays every, well, Sunday.  Click here!
At Happy To Design, it's Sunday Favorites.  Re-runs of favorite posts.  Click here!
Visit and enjoy.  :-)

Check with me on Monday; I've got a Giveaway that -- if you love dishes -- you will want to win.
I guarantee.  Hint:  Big book.  China.  Lots of china!