Meet The Hale Street Studio Beauties!

Back in the 1830s, when That Old House was new, a fashionable young lady would
have deemed herself very lucky indeed if she were dressed like this:

Isn't she darling?

In 2010, I think anyone who received this as a greeting card would also consider herself very lucky indeed.

Our daughter Anne, who is in the middle of a 3-year masters of fine arts program in theatrical costume design, has opened an Etsy Shop, Hale Street Studio, for her original ink-and-watercolor drawings and greeting cards.

Hand drawn in India Ink on handmade paper, and then washed with watercolors and a touch of DaVinci
iridescent medium for a bit of gleam, the fashions are Anne's original designs and are historically accurate.

This sweet lady is from around 1805:

Mounted on blank ivory 5 x 7 cards, with envelopes,
Anne's fashion plates make lovely keepsake greeting cards, and look great matted and framed.

I know. I pulled rank as her Mom, and got the first one:

This beauty of the 1880s is just perfect in our powder room.

Anne's cards are original artwork, not prints -- hand drawn and hand colored.
She will take special orders -- colors, historical time period.

I can attest to Anne's extensive knowledge of fashion history;
watching "costume" dramas on television with her is a trip,
as every fastening, fabric, collar, corset and bustle is subject to scrutiny.
Along with hair styles, shoes, hats . . . you get the picture.


Her cards can be seen at Hale Street Studio
on Etsy right here!

And if you haven't yet visited Etsy, an amazing online venue for things
handmade or vintage, you are in for a treat. -- Cass


It's Friday Finding Beauty
at Claudia's Dipity Road blog.
Visit here!







That's my proud Mama's
Show and Tell for Friday;
see what others are puffing up about at
Cindy's My Romantic Home blog, here.

Whew, Baby, It's HOT Outside!

Too much heat and too little rain. What we have here is a failure to thrive, if we are grass.

The grass at That Old House, in its wisdom, is playing possum and waiting for the next good rainstorm to send its chlorophyll surging back and turning it green again. Meanwhile, it will stay . . . well, not green.

In contrast, the deep rooted grape vine is holding its own:

In the flower beds, drought resistant perennials seem to be chugging right along:

Doesn't this daisy look cool, despite the searing sun?

Most of our watering is reserved for our tomatoes, the hanging asparagus ferns
on the front porch, and the few annuals that don't have the fortitude of their hardier brethren.

For our Dion, the coolest spot is on the kitchen floor:

Doesn't he look comfortable? And cool?

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For our Wednesday touch of red . . . something special:

You can find out more about her, and her sisters, on Friday!

Stay cool, blogger friends.
My daughter in California says they've had highs in the 70s this week.
Where's the justice? I ask you, where's the justice? -- Cass




You can visit Susan of
A Southern Daydreamer
for Outdoor Wednesday, here.






And Sue, at It's A Very Cherry World,
sponsored Wednesday is Rednesday.
Here!

It's a Boat! It's a Train! It's An Inclined Plane!

If you stayed up late to watch fireworks, in celebration of Independence Day,
you might have looked like this on Monday morning:

Or not.

If by chance you were the mascot for your town's 4th of July parade and celebration, and you really wanted to be anywhere but there, you might have looked like this:

Or not.

I hope you didn't spend Independence Day with these ladies:

. . . because they don't look happy.

I understand that when they finished the flag,
they used it to wrap up that starched nurse like a mummy, and make a break for it.

They were last seen at a 7-11, stealing a 6-pack of Bud and a bag of Twizzlers.

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In July of 1832, when That Old House was brand new, Independence Day celebrations
in New York City were subdued and cautious; the city was in the grip of a cholera epidemic.

But out in what was then the country, there were only
sporadic outbreaks of cholera, and patriotic celebrations went on as usual
in the country towns -- parades, fireworks, picnics and music; daylong celebrating.
Just as Benjamin Franklin hoped for in 1776.
Only, he thought we'd be celebrating on July 2nd.

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The big news of 1832 in northern New Jersey was the Morris Canal, a man-made ditch that ran from Newark Bay on the Atlantic to Phillipsburg on the Delaware River at the border with Pennsylvania.

102 miles.
Elevation changes totaled more than 1600 feet, made possible by a series of locks,
inclined planes, and rails -- powered by a giant underground turbine.
Pretty slick engineering for the early 19th century.

1832 was its first full year of operation, and boats passing on the Canal
could have watched That Old House being built;
our house is across the street from the old Canal site (now filled in).

This is a picture of the Morris Canal, as it ran through our town,
about a mile north of That Old House, which was on the left (or west) side of the waterway.
You can't see our house in the picture -- it would be further along in the lower left.

But if we had a picture of our house from those days,
it would show the house to be about half the size it is now.

That's 2010, a color photo turned sepia on the computer.

That Old House has seen many July Fourth celebrations;
let's hope there are many more July Fifths in its future!

My Dad came for dinner on the 4th; last year we brought him home from the hospital on the 4th of July, after his first of three pneumonias in the past year. This year, we used our tablesetting from last Thursday, Howard grilled burgers, and we all gave thanks.

Thanks to Mary for hosting Mosaic Monday.
Visit her at Little Red House, here!


And thanks also to Cielo at The House In The Roses,
for Show Off Your Cottage Monday.

Thanks to Karen at The Graphics Fairy, for the patriotic images, above.
Her blog is a fabulous resource of vintage art!

The New York Historical Society is where I found the cholera broadside, and from the New Jersey Canal Society comes the image of the canal, and the information. Interested in learning more about the best mode of transportation in the new republic, until the railroads came to town? Visit the Society here.

And if you drive around northern New Jersey, you can spot dozens of "Morris Canal" historical markers that pinpoint some still-existent canal ditches, and spots where the canal crossed what is now a modern road.

I wish you a Happy 5th Of July, 6th Of July, 7th Of July . . . you get the picture.
3 cheers for the red, white and blue! -- Cass

Summer Inspirations

The room in That Old House that most inspires me -- my favorite room -- is our parlor.

It is simple, symmetrical and pure -- just exactly what classic American design should be. I am continually inspired, and humbled, by having a near-perfect example of an early Greek Revival room in my own home. For me, an old-house junkie from childhood, it is pure joy.

Completely naked, this room is beautiful.
(And how many of us can say that?)

See?

The parlor is lightened up for summer.
Softer colors, less stuff.

Out went the wine red window swags, in came a sea grass rug
Out went the needlepoint and silk pillows, in came a sweet little embroidered chair from the yellow guest room.

On the mantel, what else? Flowers from the borders.
Today: hydrangeas in blue and cerise, and a few sprigs of myrtle.

Also on the mantel, crystal candlesticks from Big Lots, 19th century books, and the head of a bust of Shakespeare
that broke off in a flood at our last house. Summer is a time to read,
so the Bard seemed an appropriate companion in the parlor, my favorite place for solitary reading.

What is your inspiration in your home? You can share it at The Inspired Room blog, in a linky party.
Why not check out what inspires others? Links to this and other linky parties at the end of the post.

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Now. . . food! Summertime lunches are more structured than my winter ritual,
which is grabbing something and eating it standing up. Usually near the sink. So I don't drip.

But in summer, lunchtime food actually makes it all the way on to a plate,
because usually there are 3 for lunch, and it gets too crowded for us all to lean over the kitchen sink.

Today, it was tuna salad on crusty olive oil & rosemary bread.
Howard had cherries with his.
I had green olives stuffed with aged provolone; I really have to stay out of the Italian deli.

Yes, those olives are amazing. I added capers and herbs and a bit of vinegar to the tuna salad to raise it above the school-lunch-box level. I would have topped it with tomatoes, but the chipmunks got there first!

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And still speaking of summer inspirations . . . it's the beginning of the Fourth of July weekend.
Independence Day! By Sunday night, I will have cried several times
at patriotic songs, fireworks displays, displays of the flag, and maybe a parade.

On Thursday I did a tablescape in our sunroom, using red, white and blue,
and last night lit the candles and grabbed my camera.

Ok, slightly spooky looking, but I'm new to this shot in the dark stuff.
I am lucky the camera strap isn't visible in each shot.
I do like how the candles are reflected over and over in all the sunroom glass.

Have a marvelous weekend, and if you are celebrating your country's independence (and you know who you are!) then I wish you a joyous and blessed Fourth of July. -- Cass

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Now ... you can visit The Inspired Room for more, well, inspirations! Or join in the fun yourself.

It's Show and Tell Friday at Cindy's beautiful
My Romantic Home blog.
A visit is highly recommended!














If you're hungry, or need inspiration
for your next meal, check out
Foodie Friday at Designs By Gollum.
Seriously, do so!










And if you can find beauty in what
is around you, then join Claudia at
Dipity Road for Finding Beauty Friday.
You'll be glad you did.

A Yankee Doodle Table and A Pitcher Named Molly

Yankee Doodle went to town, riding on a pony. Stuck a feather in his cap, and called it macaroni.
Yankee Doodle keep it up, Yankee Doodle Dandy. Mind the music and the step, and with the girls be handy.

And this, boys and girls, is why macaroni salad is traditionally served
at Fourth of July backyard barbecues all across the United States.

I just now made that up.

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It's the Fourth of July (almost -- use your imagination!) so what else is there to do
but put together a table setting in the red, white and blue of Old Glory?

Come on, sit down . . . .

It's a lovely cool day, no need to put the air conditioning on in the sunroom.
Open windows and soft breezes, that's summer.

The white cabbage pedestal plate from Goodwill is playing host to a Dollar Tree pillar candle,
some Party City floating flaming stars, and daisies and hydrangeas from the garden.

The Liberty Blue Staffordshire china dishes -- a legacy from the Bicentennial -- rest on
our red party plates, with antique monogrammed linen lapkins (eBay) tucked underneath.

Big summer wine glasses -- because summer is a thirsty time -- Dollar Tree.
Blue swirled votive cups -- also Dollar Tree.

The Liberty Bell is here, crack and dust and all . . . just in case we want to ring for the servants.
We'll be ringing for a long, long time.

And George and Martha Washington have come to lend a little spice to the table.
If George looks a little disgusted with Martha, it's because she just can't help making a spectacle of herself at parties. If it's not a lampshade on her head, it's a frilly flag toothpick.
The girl's got game.

So set yourself down.

I have not a clue what I'll be serving for our Fourth of July jamboree,
but I'll do my best
to serve it in style. With maybe a frilly flag toothpick in my hair.
Me and Martha, sisters under the skin.

Speaking of sisters . . .

. . . the fine sister manning (womanning?) that cannon is Molly Pitcher -- whose real name was not
Molly Pitcher, but she went down in history with that nickname.

At the Battle of Monmouth in New Jersey she buzzed around, dodging bullets and cannonballs, bringing water to thirsty troops (it was June and blazing hot). When her husband collapsed at his artillery post, she took over the cannon and helped to win the day for the Patriots.

Yay, Molly. She might have lived in Pennsylvania, but she was born in New Jersey, and became the stuff of legend here. She died the year That Old House was built -- 1832.

Well, golly, it is after 7:00 in the evening, and I am just getting around to my Thursday post.

Ye gods and little fishes!

Go visit the following blogs for more posts and parties! Click on the logos below. -- Cass