Vintage Craft Books: Popular Science, April 1955 (For Dads Day!)

Back in the day, men tinkered with broken things around the house as moms baked cookies and fretted over what apron match their enormous, full skirts. At least Popular Mechanics made it seem that simple and innocent.

This particular issue from APril of 1955 is a gem filled with wonderful images sure to inspire the dad in your life or designers needing to rip off ideas, er, I mean, seeking inspiration.

Get your copy in the SXS Etsy shop here. Makes a great father's day or birthday gift for that special guy.

 

Classic & Simple: Vegetarian Lentil Soup Recipe

Sometimes you just need to get back to the basics! Lentil soup is classic and so easy to make and so yummy in your tummy! Once you get this down, next time, try tinkering around with the spices, add more or different vegetables, use different lentils. Play with it until you make it your own!

Classic, Basic Lentil Soup Recipe
Serves 4, vegan

Ingredients

• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, chopped
• 1 Tb olive oil
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp sage
• 1 tsp marjoram
• garlic to taste (or hing)
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 1 cup of dried lentils
• 5 cups of water
• sea salt & black pepper to taste

Directions

In a soup pot, on medium heat, add olive oil and spices and garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add chopped veggies. Saute for for a few minutes. Add bay leaves and lentils, stir for a few minutes and then add water. Turn down heat and let simmer for about 30-40 minutes (depends on the kind lentils you use, they should be soft, but not falling apart, when done), stirring occaisionally. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice or with hot, crusty bread!

Vintage Cookbooks: Home Preserving & Bottling

Home Preserving & Bottling by Gladys Mann (published in 1970) is an awesome reference for all you hipster homesteaders. From jams and chutnies to pickles and beer. There really is something for everyone in this ultimate compendium of preservation.

Thank goodness the menfolk can appreciate all the ladies' hard work!

Something to do with rhubarb other than pair it with strawberries. There are lots of very interesting combos like this one in the book.

Great creepy 70s food photography!

Apple and Red Pepper Chutney! Intriguing! Recipes are given in both US, Imperial, and metric measurements.

Pickled cabbage! Chow chow! Pickled onions (yuck!).

Jams and booze. Booze and jam. And parfaits? A little something for everyone.

Get your copy of Home Preserving & Bottling here in the Scissors and Spice Etsy shop!

Vintage Children's Books: My Mother is the Most Beautiful Woman

Quote on the inside cover: "We do not love people because they are beautiful, but they seem beautiful to us because we love them!" --an old Russian proverb

A split vintage children's book by Dandelion Library: "My Mother is the Most Beautiful Woman in the World" (Story by Becky Reyher; Pictures by Ruth Gannett) and "I Saw the Sea Come In" (Story by Alvin Tresselt; Illustrated by Roger Duvoisin).

Get this copy in the Scissors and Spice Etsy shop: Buy it Now!

Peace & Love Cards: Kids Letterpressing for a Good Cause!

Help support Lila fund her school's reading program by buying this card she letterpressed herself!

My sweet daughter has always been the type to want to help out. One year for Halloween, we collected for Unicef as we visited our neighbors' houses. When we got home, we tallied up how much she raised, and when asked if she would like to contribute to her total, she went and grabbed the Halloween card with "treat money" she received from her grandparents. She took all the money out the card, handed it over to me, and said, "Mommy, I want to give it all. It's sad that some children have nothing at all and I don't need anything. I want them to have it all!" Of course, this brought tears to my eyes. She's so naturally inclined to give.

We had a letterpress workshop lined up for her at Lead Graffiti in Delaware (led by the wonderful owners Ray and Jill) in the same week that a letter came home from her school that they were raising money for a new reading program for the students. We were brainstorming over what her card would look like and say, and I asked her if there was one word that she would like to set. Her response was, "Peace!" I asked what she would like to do with the cards she made and she didn't know, so I suggested that maybe we could sell them as a way to raise funds for her school. She really liked that idea and was very excited that she could do something to benefit her community.

The day came for the letterpress workshop, and when we presented our gracious teacher, Ray, with the idea to make this not only a learning experience, but also a giving one, he enthusiastically gave us a big "Yes!" He donated all the materials to our good cause and we are extremely grateful for his contribution.

Now, Ray is not the type of instructor to just let you watch as he does everything. Even though Lila is only seven, he had her right in the thick of things! She picked out the metal and wood type she wanted to use, she chose the colors (pink and purple, of course!), she assisted him with figuring out what size leading and furniture (the large blocks which hold the type in place) they needed (great math lesson!),  she helped Jill with the ink drawdowns, she tightened the chase, she cut her own paper, she put the ink on the press, and she even got the press running! She really did it all! Her favorite part though was...


...actually running the press. We were all so impressed with her focus and desire to print! It was pretty adorable to see this little petite girl operating this gigantic 50+-year-old press all by herself.



She's so small that she needed a little platform to get her up to the right height!


After she pulled her first card with the first color and image (an owl to match her school mascot), she was hooked. Look how excited she was!



When it was time for the second color, and the "PEACE" text, my husband and I helped her by loading paper and we took a few runs at operating the press ourselves. I can see why she liked it so much; it is a very releaxing and meditative process.


The end result! Lila with her awesome teachers! Thanks Ray and Jill!

Now, here's where you come in:

You can place an order for Lila's "Love & Peace" cards via my Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/150536112/set-of-4-letterpress-peace-love-cards. A set of four with envelopes is only $10 and one is $3. All proceeds to benefit her school's reading program.

You can give them as gifts. Save them for Christmas! Write to your long-lost 5th grade pen pal on them. Buy them and get kids reading! Lila will be so happy that you did! All profits will go towards reading programs at her school (the back of the card states that they were printed by her to raise funds for her school!). Thanks so much for your help!

And please check out Ray and Jill's letterpress shop. They often conduct workshops, so you can learn to letterpress just like Lila!

Lead Graffiti 
120A Sandy Drive 
Newark, Delaware 19713
http://www.leadgraffiti.com/