sfuso … Loose Stuffs

Tags

6th Borough Studios, Antiques and Collectibles, Cyber Monday, etsy, gaming, Keith Decent, repurpose, Shopping, style, Upcycle, videogames, vintage

It’s CYBER MONDAY … here is my addition to the world of internet commerce …

sfuso ~ say it like its spelled … it’s a great word, a word that we have been using around the house for years.  Obviously an Italian word, direct translation means “bulk”, it’s most often used when referring to wine, or vino sfuso … most rural Italians take a demijohn to the neighborhood vineyard or local wine co-op and fill ‘er up.  The translation I embrace is  loose stuffs … hence the name of my new Etsy Shoppe … sfuso … Loose Stuffs!

A collection of vintage and antique Loose Stuffs, curated by Me, featuring kitsch, country, rustic, rusty, collectibles and anything else that I dig.

Vintage Painted Tole Ware Tray

Vintage Fruit Crate Label

Handmade RePuposed & Upcycled items from Sixth Borough Studios can be found in the Decent Shoppe section of the store.

 UpCycled Industrial Antique Candle Holder

Joust Arcade Light Box made from Vintage Arcade Marquee

just starting to “populate” the store, on the hunt for more …

Happy Shopping!

~ Peace

Food Triage …

Tags

Food, Home, Ideas, kitchen, Money Savers, Offbeat Home, Organize, Pantry, perishables, prepare, Triage

Not meal planning … The Chef does not do that.  He decides everyday, on the way home from work, what is on the menu for that evening.  That said … we still have to plan a little.  I mean come on, I live here too, and I plan!

Our compromise, inspired by the Offbeat Home article Make better use of your kitchen’s resources to waste less food and save more money … specifically THIS picture.

Photo by Cat Rocketship

Here’s mine …

Here’s how …

Take stock of the perishables …

• Crisper Bin … see the leftovers too!

• Cold Cuts

• Check your freezer, any prepared meals in there?  Anything that really should be cooked soon???

A well stocked pantry combined with keeping track of your perishables means less waste,therefore, more money!  Who doesn’t like more money?

~ Peace

Other Pantry Posts …

Simplify your Pantry …. An Experiment

Simplify your Pantry … Follow Up

Pantry Lists & Shopping Strategies

Pantry Experiment … Eat ’til It’s Empty

Confession … Last Year’s Paper

Tags

Family, homework, Organize, paper, repurpose, school

So yesterday was an around the house day … I had to wait for FedEx.  While I was hanging I decided to hit the pile!  I have a pile … it is an old laundry basket where I keep the things that require my attention, but not my immediate attention.  You know what was in there?  All of Anthony’s Kindergarten papers …

Last year was a transitional year for my lil guy, I had to be able to document his progress and/or regression … it was progress!!!  That means the paper can go, so I sorted.

I keep the funny, interesting “Anthony” things, like this,

and this … it’s a Praying Mantis!

What do I do with the other stuff?

Have me ship something to you and you may just get some of Anthony’s Kindergarten papers …

Lucky you!

 

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No Polish, Polish

Tags

Aluminium foil, baking soda, polish, silver, silver plate, Sodium bicarbonate, Tag Sale, tip, trick

Sometimes when I am prepping for a sale I have a ton of silver plate … I don’t polish silver as a rule, but sometimes it just shows so much better with a little less of that lovely tarnish.

Take for instance this lovely Art Nouveau style … I am going to call it a “Wine Bottle Coaster” … shows well, but could be better.

With no polish!  What you need … baking soda, warm water, aluminum foil and a non-reactive container (glass or plastic)

Foil goes in, a few tablespoons of baking soda, some warm water, and submerge.

Leave it in there for a bit, take it out and rinse in warm water.  Some pieces may need a little rub in the detailed areas.  Now it is not like the TV commercial … where you dip it in and a miracle happens.  This technique works very well, but if sparkly shine is your goal nothing works like elbow grease and Tarnex …

Go and get some tarnishy, wonderful silver plate at a Tag Sale this weekend and give it a try … Happy Hunting!

~ Peace

Fall Decorating: It’s Right in Your Own Backyard

Tags

Decorating, Garden, Halloween, Jack-o'-lantern, Mother Nature, Nature, Porch

I love Fall. Aside from the fact that my birthday falls on Halloween (cake, presents, AND candy), I have a pretty cool front porch that looks like it could have been a movie set for a great Hitchcock flick, and I really couldn’t go another year and not take advantage of it.

I really wanted to give a nod this season to a more natural style of décor with an earthy feel, and needed something quick and easy. So I bypassed the glitter pumpkins in the stores and went straight to the backyard. Gathering up fallen branches, I stuck them into the holes of a milk crate I’d turned upside down.  I weighted the whole thing down with a few bricks, wrapped it in burlap, added a few black crows from the craft store, and voila!  Instant creepy tree for the front porch.

After seeing the witches’ brooms in the stores, I knew I had all I needed in the yard to make my own.  So again I made the trip around gathering dead weeds for the bristles, and an old tree branch for the broom handle. A piece of bailing twine from my garden, and I had a broom in about 10 minutes.

What I love best about using the gifts from Mother Nature is that I killed 2 birds with one stone this weekend. I cleaned up the yard and used the bounty to decorate. And when it’s time for clean-up everything goes right into the compost pile. Even better.

For inside decorating, I collected all my treasures that spoke to me of Fall. My consignment store pumpkin, my pewter bowl & tray, an old croched doilie and a silhouette of yours truly circa 1975.  Gathered together they make a homey statement, and a few carefully placed plastic spider rings and leaves from our old ash tree gives a touch of unexpected Halloween fun.

A set of vintage darts looked great on the mantle entwined with eucalyptus, and a vintage sewing machine manual adds that worn look to a Fall vignette.

The key to remember: it’s about colors and textures, not necessarily the subject matter when it comes to Fall decorating.

 

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Buttons, Buttons Everywhere …

Tags

buttons, fashion, jewlery, notions, sewing, vintage, vintage buttons

Oh yeah and they are beautiful vintage buttons too …

These are Black Ocean Pearl Buttons, this big one in the center is over an inch in diameter …

Black jet … the picture does not do them justice, PROMISE!

The back of this sheet simply says “Very Old & Very Rare”.  I would have to add inspirational …

Very old black glass … Like jewels!

and I will share one more sheet … my favorite button of the collection is on this one!  Can you guess which one?

In all there are 531 buttons, they are OLD buttons, and in beautiful condition … just a little tease.  Want to see the rest?

~ Peace

Related articles

• The BIG BUTTON GIVEAWAY (theroadtoetsy.wordpress.com)

When a Label is Not Enough …

Tags

Family, garage, keepsakes, kids, Organize, storage

Box going into deep, deep storage … thought it needed more that a label. Who knows how addled I will be by the time my kids are looking for stuff for their kids. Here is what I do to help me remember what’s what on that back shelf.

What You Need

• Storage Tub (no little boy in yours)

• Camera

• Clear Packing Tape

• Blue Painter’s Tape & A Marker

What To Do

1. Make sure everything is clean. Always wash and check the pockets before you put clothes/blankets in storage.

2. Set out everything that is going into this tub. I sealed my stuff in individual plastic bags, the kind sheets, and bed sets some in, because this box will be in my garage.

3. Take a picture

4. Label the storage container. I use blue painter’s tape, not a label maker.

5. Print the picture and tape it COMPLETELY to the side of the bin with clear packing tape.

What went in to deep storage for my kiddles … the blankets and sweaters their Great Grandma made for their trip home from the hospital, the quilts their Great Aunt made them, a couple of sentimental books, my daughter’s first Halloween costume, and that one super soft blanket that helped my son finally sleep through the night.

The box is now bound for the deepest recesses of the garage. Here’s to hoping it stays there for at least 25 years or so …

~ Peace

SbS Consignment Service …

Tags

Consignment, Home, Organize, Service, Tag Sale

Along with cleaning and organizing, decluttering and “Greening”, AND Estate Sales … We (ME) are now accepting Consignments!

Have some great stuff, want to get some cash, not interested in online sales (me neither!) let me sell it for you at one of my “Famous” Porch Sales … I have at least 2 SbS sales per year, hoping to do 3 in 2013!

Give me a call, we can spend a day sorting & organizing; and at the end of our time together I will take away your unwanted items either for donation (usually to St. John’s Riverside Hospital) or I will them at my next sale …

Want details?  Call me … Next sale in October in Yonkers …

~ Peace

Aunt Kim’s Chili …

Tags

Chili, Cook, dinner, Food, Recipe, vacation

Most people think of chili as cold weather comfort food, something to serve at your Super Bowl Party, not me, chili makes me think of Aunt Kim, and when I think of Aunt Kim I think about her cabin on the lake in Cooperstown and Summer.

Years and years ago she shared her “recipe” with me, I have tweaked it a bit, and now I bring Aunt Kim’s Chili with me on our Summer Vacation … my brother makes it at the Firehouse … all of us do it a little different, some different ingredients, but all inspired by Aunt Kim.

Ingredients … ISH

• Chop Meat (the fattier the better) ~ I have made it with Ground Turkey Thighs too…
• 1 Large Yellow Onion
• 2 Jalapeños Peppers … what type and how many depends on how HOT you like your chili
• 3 large cloves of Garlic … again how many depends on how garlicky you like your chili
• A good dark beer (or what ever you have on hand)
• 1 can each Red Kidney & Pinto Beans
• 1 large can whole peeled tomatoes
• Chili Seasoning
• Cayenne
• Salt/Pepper/Sugar

Technique …

• Brown the meat!!!!  Brown the meat well … all liquid should be gone, and lovely little brown bits should be stuck to the pot.  Don’t forget salt & pepper … SEASON AS YOU GO
• Remove the browned meat from the pan.

• Blend onion, garlic, and peppers in the food processor.  Big thanks my brother’s firehouse for this idea, helps to make sure that no one gets a giant piece of pepper or onion.  Add this mixture to the HOT pan after the meat is removed.  The liquid from the veggies will deglaze the pan, and all of those lovely brown bits will scrape off the sides of the pot.  Cook until the veggies look dry.

• Add your dry spices … I don’t know how much.  Sorry!  A few tablespoons of Chili Seasoning (I make my own blend), some cayenne, and a teaspoon or so of sugar, cook until they smell really good.

• Deglaze with your beer … and don’t forget a taste for the Chef!

• Add beans (drained), tomatoes, and the cooked meat back.  If you need more liquid add some hot water …

• Let simmer on a low flame until you just can’t take the amazing smell anymore and absolutely need to have a bowl.

It is all about developing the flavors and good ingredients.  Don’t forget to season as you go, SUPER IMPORTANT … you can always make it spicier with hot sauce when you serve it, but you CANNOT take the SPICY away once it is there (believe me!), so add a bit at a time, taste and adjust.

This time I made a double batch to take away with us on our family vacation to The Shore, it is expected.  Chili always tastes better the next day right, and it tastes even better after a day at the beach!  I freeze it flat in FoodSaver bags so I can use it to help insulate the coolers … probably next Wednesday or Thursday morning we will all be sitting around wondering what we will do for dinner and remember YEAH AUNT KIM’S CHILI!!!!!

Thanks Aunt Kim!

~ Peace

Simplify Your Stay …

Tags

Family Trip, House Guest, packing, Travel, vacation

House guest for a week with the kiddies … here are a few of my tips to combat “The Spread”.  The spread is what happens when we are in a large, unfamiliar house, have no set routine, and Mom spends the afternoons drinking …

1. Unpack ~ Settle in and unpack what you are sure you and the kids will need.  Don’t take out the fancy clothes, you will probably never use, or the sweatshirt you packed for a week in July in the South .. DUH!
2. Stash Stuff ~ We have a very high bed here, all of the bags are under there. Usually I put our bags in a closet, the less clutter in a shared room the better.
3. Make rounds ~ Take a stroll around after or before meals, at least make a habit of doing it once a day.  Collect what belongs to you and yours.  Earbuds, IPods, clothes, toys, shoes, and … and … and put them back in your space.  Even better make the kids put their own stuff back!  Saves you from “The Search”.
4. Hamper ~  Designate a spot for dirty clothes.  A bag works great, the floor of a closet, one spot for all of the wash helps cut down on clutter, and prevents lost clothes.  I pack a camping bag, find a door knob and park it there … my kids are trained to put their dirty clothes in there, when we do wash if it’s not in there it doesn’t get cleaned … TOO BAD.

Settling in, hiding clutter, rounding up, designating spots are just a few tricks for making my visits a bit easier.  By now you guys know that I am a work up front enjoy the down time kinda chick …

~ Peace