Saturday Farm Photo: Another Vintage Double Blanket

There's nothing better for a new vintage treasure than drying in the fresh air.

Remember that vintage blanket mystery you helped me solve a while back? It turns out my snuggly score was a double blanket—and a few months ago I found another one.

It's not nearly as soft as that beautiful blue one (which I was thrilled to find for just $7) and it has some really worn spots and a few bleached out areas along the edge (it's been well loved!), but I couldn't resist the wonderful pattern and colors—and of course the fabulous size. It was a $26 splurge (I didn't really need another blanket) that I plan to enjoy for years.

Double blankets don't work very well on king size beds (too long one way, too short the other), but they sure are nice for cozying up on the couch, especially with someone you love. Let's hear it for the season of snuggling!

More vintage? Here.

More laundry line? Here.

More Mr. Midnight? Here.

© FarmgirlFare.com, where it's still winter and leafless outside; it's just October in this photo.

Monday Dose of Cute: Time To Get Up!

It's Monday!

More photos below. . .

Sunday Farm Photos: Vintage Corners of Our New Home

More below. . .

Wednesday Dose of Cute: Organizing the New Pantry

Kitchen linens all in one place (at last!)

More photos below. . .

Monday Farm Photos: Hanging Up Spring in Fall

More photos below. . .

Tuesday Dose of Cute: Going Vintage Green Again

The newest addition to my well loved and well used vintage quilt collection

Back when I lived in northern California, I spent a number of years as, among other things, a part time antiques and collectibles dealer. I love all kinds of vintage stuff, and the business was a fun way to fund my own slightly-out-of-control collecting habit.

These days I'm mostly on the buying end of things, but no matter which side of the business you're on, there's one important rule to always keep in mind: If you love it, you'd better snatch it up right now, because otherwise it'll probably disappear.

More photos and the rest of the story below. . .

Monday Farm Photos: The Case of the Bizarre Vintage Blanket

Wrapped up in a cozy mystery.

Any blanket experts out there?

Saturday Farm Photos: These Blustery, Mustery Days

Are Perfect for Blow Drying

Before I got into vintage quilts, I collected old Beacon style blankets, and for years I kept them safely tucked away in storage boxes. Not anymore. Life's too short to keep the stuff you love the most packed away where you can't enjoy it, especially when it's something as useful as a blanket.

Wednesday Farm Photos: Vintage Quilt Love (Again)

We haven't been out cutting firewood yet this fall (we've been busy catching up with other stuff, like cutting 310 more bales of hay), but there's no chance we're going to freeze. I have an ever growing stack of cozy vintage quilts to keep us warm.

Friday Farm Photos: Another Vintage Quilt

I couldn't resist.

More below. . .

Monday Farm Photos: Two More Vintage Quilts!

So many tiny pieces of fabric.

A funny thing happened when I went back to the junk market last week to pick up the rest of my vintage haul from a recent bargain buying spree. . .

Wednesday Farm Photos: A New Old Quilt and a New Old Buying Habit

Lightweight and Lovely to Look At

While Marta Beast was at the dog spa last week (amusing before and after pictures coming soon), I headed over to my favorite junk mall to hunt away the hours. I managed to find all sorts of vintage treasures, including a few pieces of furniture for the new house (which Joe swears we're moving into next fall): two funky, yet surprisingly comfortable old chairs I couldn't resist for $3 apiece; an industrial looking, square metal cabinet with an indestructible formica-type worktop that I know will come in really handy somewhere; a darling little dark wood table with four tiny drawers that might become a nightstand; a rustic wooden footstool that makes me think of those stately old summer camps in the Adirondacks; and a cheerful painted yellow dresser that has glass knobs, a stylish curve to the drawer fronts, and isn't as big as I would have liked but couldn't be passed up for 30 bucks.

Thursday Farm Photo: A Nice Day

With a pretty view

Sunshine
Temps in the 40s
A colorful new vintage quilt (for just $20)
Wooly sheep in the background
Golden afternoon light
Chipping away at the giant laundry mountain
A homemade chocolate cake

More vintage:
1/3/09: Feeding My Addictions (and Pasta w/ Olive Oil, Garlic, & Parsley)
4/22/09: Every Day Is Earth Day—and I'm Eco-Chic (Who Knew?)
6/22/09: Vintage Laundry Line (more quilts)
7/26/09: Going Vintage Green
8/2/09: A Beacon in the Light
8/17/09: A Peek Inside My Potting Cabinet

More laundry line:
12/1/05: Warm Wash, Cool Dry
1/2/06: Winter Color
4/17/06: Monday Washday (and a Lamb Report)
1/12/08: Winter Wash and Dry (and the R-rated Version)
5/6/09: The Lamb and the Laundry Line (a look back at Baby Cary)
6/22/09: Vintage Laundry Line
8/2/09: A Beacon in the Light

More pretty views:
Farm Landscape Photos Part 1
Farm Landscape Photos Part 2
Farm Landscape Photos Part 3
Farm Landscape Photos Part 4
Farm Landscape Photos Part 5
Farm Landscape Photos Part 6

© FarmgirlFare.com, the fresh and clean and comfortably worn foodie farm blog where a lot of people seem to dread the month of February, but every year I find so many things about it to love—and often wish it lasted longer.

Monday Farm Photos: A Peek Inside My Potting Cabinet

A gardening girl can never have too many pots at the ready, right?











Every time I look inside this cabinet I smile.

I Love Old Stuff!
1/3/09: Feeding My Addictions (and Pasta w/ Olive Oil, Garlic, & Parsley)
4/22/09: Every Day Is Earth Day—and I'm Eco-Chic (Who Knew?)
6/22/09: Vintage Laundry Line
7/26/09: Going Vintage Green
8/2/09: A Beacon in the Light

© FarmgirlFare.com, the stuffed to the gills and ready for bed foodie farm blog where the first BLTs of the season (made with bacon saved specifically for this momentous occasion from the hog we had butchered last year, and served on freshly baked Farmhouse White of course) combined with freshly picked sweet corn purchased today from our Amish vegetable connection and a much needed (and wonderfully cooling!) late afternoon rainstorm all add up to one very nice summer day indeed.

Sunday Farm Photos: A Beacon in the Light

I love Beacon style blankets (this is another recent vintage buying spree find.)



And I Live in Overalls

Ahh, the sweet smelling luxury of a laundry line:
12/1/05: Warm Wash, Cool Dry
1/2/06: Winter Color
4/17/06: Monday Washday (and a Lamb Report)
1/12/08: Winter Wash and Dry (and the R-rated Version)
5/6/09: The Lamb and the Laundry Line (a look back at Baby Cary)
6/22/09: Vintage Laundry Line

Do you hang your laundry on a line?

© 2009 FarmgirlFare.com, the well washed foodie farm blog where while many people are already bemoaning the fact that summer (in all its hot and sweaty glory) will soon be over, we're happily counting down the days until we can bury the bed with blankets and quilts and prance around in polar fleece (which is one of the greatest inventions ever).

Sunday Farm Photo: Going Vintage Green

Form and function—a few of my new favorite old things

Before I moved from California to Missouri in 1994, I was, among other things, a part time antiques and collectibles dealer. This side business began—as it so often does—as a way to fund my own slightly-out-of-control collecting habit. I specialized in selling things from the 1920s through the 1950s because that's what I bought for myself.

For years I spent countless hours (and countless dollars) prowling around flea markets, yard sales, junk stores, and antiques collectives in search of cool and saleable stuff.

These days I'm more into hunting for heart rocks and bird nests than Bauer Pottery and bakelite jewelry (though I do still cherish my prized collection of it), but I've recently gone on a couple of local buying binges (thanks for the birthday money, mom!).

Except for a few really nice pieces of 'Made in Japan' pottery that fit perfectly with the ones I already own, I've mostly been bringing home things that not only make me happy when I see them but can also be put to good use—like a beautiful antique garden shovel and those two vintage quilts that now adorn the bed.

I've always been partial to kitchenware—everything from homemade aprons (I have a couple dozen and used to wear a different one to work each day when I had my little bakery), printed tablecloths, and bakelite handled gadgets to Pyrex refrigerator dishes, formica dinette sets and early waffle irons. Yet for some reason I never found myself drawn to old rolling pins or enamelware. This was probably a good thing. I am loving this gorgeous shade of what I call forties green—and that red stripe. I fear my collecting bug may be back.

I've also recently discovered the wonderful world of design & decorating blogs (where have I been?), many of which feature vintage finds. Decor8 is fabulous, though slightly dangerous (as in, Um, where did the last two hours just go?). I've been totally inspired to declutter The Shack, better display and make use of my treasures, and share more of them with you.

So what do you like to collect? Any favorite vintage/decorating sites?

© FarmgirlFare.com, the timeworn foodie farm blog where we love the fact that not only are old things often better made and better priced than their brand new counterparts (I paid $16 total for all three items in this photo), but buying something used is the ultimate form of reducing, reusing, and recycling.

Monday Farm Photos: Vintage Laundry Line

I love my new old quilts (this one is hand stitched).

More photos below. . .

Every Day is Earth Day—And I'm Eco-Chic (Who Knew?)

Part of My Old Glass Collection, Mostly Found Around the Farm

We do a lot of reusing and recyling here on the farm, both by force and by choice. Not having the urban convenience of toss-it-and-forget-about-it curbside garbage pick-up (which I wrote about here) really makes you look at the world—and your garbage—in a whole different light. We also do our best to reduce our consumption of everything from plastic bags to power, often saving not only precious natural resources in the process but precious pennies as well.

Going green isn't always easy, and sometimes it can feel like it isn't worth the extra effort—especially when everybody else around you seems to be taking the wasteful way out. But every little bit really can add up in a big way. Country Living magazine's Eco-Challenge has come up with 30 small and easy ways you can reduce your environmental impact in one month, without giving up modern conveniences. Here are a few of their inspiring examples, along with my two cents' worth and some staggering facts:

1. Return wire hangers to the dry cleaner. Because: More than 3.5 billion hangers (!) reach landfills each year, amounting to 200 million tons of steel that could be put to new use. My two cents: Also consider buying an Eco-Delightful Reusable Dry Cleaning and Laundry Bag—or better yet, try and skip the dry cleaner altogether!

2. Put cloth napkins on the table. Because: Eliminating disposable napkins would keep 500,000 tons of paper-based trash out of landfills each year. My two cents: I love cloth napkins and have been using them every day for years. Not only are they money-saving, resource-saving, and fun, but they also work ten times better than paper.

3. Leave a bar of soap by the sink. Because: Most liquid soap comes in nonrenewable plastic packaging. Substituting one bottle with a bar in each U.S. home would keep 2.5 million pounds of plastic out of landfills. My two cents: If you just can't give up liquid soap, buy it in a big recyclable plastic jug and then refill your smaller bottle.

4. Stow a reusable bag in your car for errands. Because: If every American stuck with cloth totes, we'd waste 380 billion fewer plastic bags this year. My two cents: Once I started keeping a bag of bags in the truck, 'bringing my own' quickly became a habit. Some stores even reward you with money back, chances to win prizes, or donations to charities when you bring your own bags.

Whole Living, the wonderful website of Martha Stewart's Body & Soul magazine, offers up its own list of 30 'Do Just One Thing' Earth Day ideas, along with 10 Money-Saving Home Eco-Tips and 10 Ways to Be More Green.

As for my being eco-chic? Green style guru Danny Seo, author of the Simply Green book series,shares 25 Eco-Chic On the Cheap Ideas for your home on Whole Living, and number one is a mixed glass centerpiece of weathered bottles and jars. My collection of jars, most of which I found in old trash piles around the farm, fits the bill perfectly.

Want more green inspiration?
How Do You Make Your Kitchen Garden Even Greener?: Readers and I share our eco-friendly ideas and tips over on my kitchen garden blog.
Back 40 Books: Hundreds of helpful books on self-sufficiency and sustainable living from a small Missouri company.
Environmental Working Group: Works to protect children and kids from toxic chemicals in our food, water, air, and everyday products.
FoodShed Planet: Blogger Pattie Baker nurtures sustainability, close to home and around the world.
Ideal Bite: Sassy, bite-sized ideas for light green living delivered via e-mail.
Kitchen Gardeners International: Globally promoting the 'localest' food of all (and largely responsible for making the dream of a White House organic vegetable garden a reality).
Local Harvest: Find farmers' markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area.
Organic Consumers Association: Campaigns for health, justice, sustainability, peace, and democracy
Organic To Be: Neat group blog shares organic recipes from popular authors, garden and farm skills, plus news and opinions.
The Daily Green: The consumer's guide to the green revolution.
Union of Concerned Scientists: Nonprofit science advocacy group that works to ensure that all people have clean air and energy, as well as safe and sufficient food.

Do you know a great green website or have an easy eco-tip (chic or not)? Please tell us about them in the comments section.

Happy Earth Day to you!

© Copyright 2009 FarmgirlFare.com, the doing-our-best-to-be-green foodie farm blog where we've never cared much about fashion, yet often dress in designer labels for pennies on the dollar by shopping for previously owned (but ususally barely or never worn) clothing at places like The Scholar Shop in St. Louis, where all of its profits go toward local scholarships. It's a win-win situation for everyone—though Liz Claiborne and Anne Klein would probably be surprised by some of the things we do around the farm in their clothes.