Sunday, June 27, 2010

Sleepy +Poet = Bargain Fun



Do you love antiques, vintage, or just fun Junque? I do…in fact I thrive on it. You never know when you will need an additional punch bowl, a new set of Fire King Bowls, or even some new plates, silver or what have you. If you read this blog, then you already know I love linens and many other things from the past. Where do you find such great items? Well, let me personally endorse the Sleepy Poet in Charlotte, NC. The shop is located at 4450 South Blvd, opened late Friday and Saturday, for those of you who hate to stop antique shopping at 5 o’clock - (704) 529-6369 for more details. This 55,000 square foot store offers anything you could possibly need, want, or purchase. This mega mart of antiques boasts some of the most unique items you will find in the Upstate/Metrolina area.
So, what have I picked up there? Over the years numerous items for home and office have come from the “Poet.” One of my favorite finds was a steal of a deal – a bridge table with inlaid wood, a shocking $45. You just can’t find deals like that anywhere else, I know, trust me, I’ve done the leg work in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and even a few peeks into Tennessee.
So large furniture is not your thing due to limited room in the house? Well, I believe one can rearrange the house to squeeze one more thing in the rooms. Recently, I have come to the realization that I need to build-on to the house to accommodate more furniture. As I shared this with one vendor in the “Poet,” she told me she used to supply extra rooms on homes, but due to the recent swing in the economy, home construction for items was no longer a service. This is an example of what make the “Poet” a great place to shop. You see vendors in the shop all the time and get to know many of them personally as they strike up conversations with those wide-eyed shoppers.
In The Sleepy Poet, you will also find a wide variety of glassware and silver (sterling and plate). I enjoy looking at each piece, and I even have my eye locked in on a beautiful item to hold my decanters, I would love to tell you about its location, but then you might think it would look beautiful in your home too. I purchased 6 embroidered linen napkins on my last visit for $6. Vintage linens for such a price, unheard of! Now, I just have to find somewhere to store them as my linens will soon need a room of their own; maybe if I write her, Martha Stewart will take pity on me and build a linen room for my house. I also procured a tiled tray from the 1960’s, several ramekins for a future dinner party, and a Forest Green Vase.
As you can tell, the shopping at the “Poet” is addictive and easy. A special service unique to the poet is the roving staff. Yes, most antique stores have someone walking around with a sour look on their face waiting for you to drop a piece Fenton; not the staff at The Sleepy Poet, they are there for you. As you pile your treasures in your arms and begin to struggle with them as you walk around the store, a friendly face often pops up to say, “Can take this up front to start of stack for you while you finish shopping? “ What a welcomed relief, as I am extremely clumsy and have single handedly destroyed a display in the local Stein Mart while walking around. I swear I did not touch it ;my sister disputes this statement to this day… If the guys and gals of the “Poet” will walk my finds to the front of the store, who am I to complain? It is just less risk of me dropping something or being accused of such.
Did I mention the clothes? So, Vintage dressing fits you like a pair of strappy sandals fits Carrie Bradshaw? You can’t beat the “Poet.” I will admit, several winter coats in my closet were adopted at The Sleepy Poet. I would recommend shopping here for those readers who attend Retro-Fest in Spartanburg each year. You will out shine everyone.
I encourage you to walk around The Sleepy Poet soon. As you explore the store, be sure to ask for a map, yes you may get lost, but if you are as Obsessive-Compulsive as I am, then you need have a plan of attack for the shop. The map helps in this plan. As you enter listen to the music, I don’t know whose playlist this is, but it is the best music of any antique store I’ve ever entered; Vanilla Ice, to the Beatles, The Eagles to ABBA. In fact I would love to get many of the songs for myself. There are so many different items, I feel like every little treasure I find was personally put there for me; kind of like an Island of Misfit Toys for a Adults, but even better no misfits here it’s an Island of Antique Finds!



Island of Antique Finds…to the tune of Island of Misfit Toys…Just for Fun!



We're at the Sleepy Poet
Here we’re on display
We want to travel with you today
In your car far away!

A pack full of silver
Means a fun time to polish
For millions of girls
And for millions of boys
When you buy something here
The most wonderful day of the year.

A Fenton Compote waits for collectors to shout
"Wake up! Don't you know that it's time to take me out!"
When you buy something here
The most wonderful day of the year.



Finds galore, Greet you at the door
There's no room for more
And it's the cause of joyful calls.

A rocker for Jimmy
A dolly for Sue
The kind that will even say, "How do you do?"
When buy something here
The most wonderful day of the year.

--(this part is spoken)--
How would you like to find a Depression glass bowl?
Or a Vintage bowtie with polka dots and stripes?
Or a punch bowl that still has glasses?
They're all antiques!
How would you like to find a crystal vase? It’s Waterford!
Or a carnival glass flower frog?
Or a gravy boat that’s Sterling Silver?
They're all antiques.

If we're at The Sleepy Poet
We'll miss all the fun with the girls and the boys
When you decorate your house
The most wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful day of the year!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Flashback Party

As summer is getting into full swing, entertainment is flourishing. Backyard cookouts are the order of the day, but how do you make your gathering stand out? BBQ Chicken or maybe corn roasted on the grill would set your party apart. So what do you do? Here are two ideas to help make you shine in front of your guest.
Plan One- Simple enough, have a television themed party. I know what you are thinking, cook and watch television, where is the fun in that? Actually, you make it retro. Use an online movie service to rent a classic television show. You will want to theme the menu for the event around the television show. For example, you could watch Barnaby Jones, the first episode in season one, shows that the great detective loves milk and ribs. So serve up some ribs with milk and homemade cookies for dessert. You could also create a great meal based on Wonder Woman, with Paradise Island Fruit Salad (a nod to Diana Prince’s homeland)…. However you decide to do it, it is an extraordinary opportunity to flashback to the great by gone days of television, image The Facts of Life with Toottie Fruiti desert and Polniaczek Pierogies (for those fans of Jo).
Plan Two- You can have Drive-In Movie night to entertain the masses. This is a great theme idea that is sure to please. First acquire a movie projector. I found mine at a local department store for less than $75. Use the sde of the house, a fence panel, or even a whit sheet hanging from the clothesline. Decide on a movie which is family friendly, remember you are turning the backyard into a movie theatre, don’t have a movie with a lot of swearing, as the neighbors will not approve. Theme the meal to coordinate with a drive in menu, hamburgers, hotdogs, chips, even an assortment of candy bars and other candies for dessert. Don’t forget the popcorn for an appetizer.
Below are some ideas for television shows and movies… Share your ideas and menus with others when you host your flashback party.

Classic Television Ideas (In no particular order)
1. Wonder Woman
2. Barnaby Jones
3. Hawaii Five-O (which returns to television this fall)
4. I Love Lucy
5. My Three Sons
6. Mister Ed
7. Mary Tyler Moore Show
8. The Munsters
9. Gilligan’s Island
10. Charlie’s Angels
Movie Ideas (Friendly for all ages- In no particular order)
1. Watcher in the Woods
2. North Avenue Irregulars
3. The Trouble with Angles
4. The Ghost and Minster Chicken
5. The Great Muppet Caper
6. Desk Set
7. Bell, Book, and Candle
8. Seems Like Old Times
9. Arsenic and Old Lace
10. Harvey

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Weed Eaters

As I sit typing, I realize that today, just 20 minutes ago to be exact is the first day of summer. As the days once again the course of shrinking into oblivion, One may question how to proceed with the yard. We see our neighbors’ yards bright and green, appearing as if a little slice of Augusta National was placed in your area simply to make your yard look bad. You look out the front window of your house and see weeds smiling back at you. Where is the justice in this story? Why have you been stricken? What did you do to deserve this curse?
Weeds in the lawn are one thing; We can generally take care of them by simply adding some commercial granules to the turf. One friend of mine has even reported, “I just cut the grass real low, then nobody can tell weed from Bermuda.” This may be true for a day, maybe even two, but slowly the pesky purple headed catmints begin to spring up on his lawn like lost relatives on an episode of Jerry Springer. Another friend insists on burning weedy spots in the yard. I always drive by his house and wonder if he had a clover problem or if a UFO landed and scorched the grass. It is like his special form of crop circles. The point is everyone has an approach to weeding. If it works for you, great! I even toyed around with a new method of clover control this summer.
Weeds in the lawn are not the ones we need to worry about, it is the stealth weed. Are you familiar with it? I bet it is closer than you think. Imagine a beautiful lane. White picket fences, immaculately manicured lawns and 2.36 children play in each yard. You have the picture. You leave the house at 7 to drop the kids off at day camp, run some errands, even lunch with friends. You pause to admire your freshly power-washed concrete. As you return home, you feel a rift in the force…the lane is not at piece, 4 kids play in each yard, pink flamingos have perched in the neighbors trees, and suddenly you see it, you yard is the culprit. At five o’clock, you discover the terrible truth. At first you wonder, “Did the kids spill green paint on the driveway? “ No, they didn’t. Somehow in the last ten hours, four dandelions, 7 stalks of catmint, and an inestimable of crabgrass has clogged those small cracks and creases in the drive? “NOOOOOO!” you scream, but it is ultimately too late, the stealth weeds have come at you with a vengeance.
There are two easy methods to deal with this problem, I warn you they are not for the faint at heart as death and agony will occur; to the weeds not you. Both solutions involve NaCl, regular good old sodium chloride, Salt! Method One- this is the easier of the two; sprinkle salt in the cracks. This is best used before the first green blades appear. However, if the blades have appeared, you may need something stronger. I don’t know about you, but I personally like to punish my weeds, make them uncomfortable, make them pay for their crimes. So, if you are feeling like a home and garden vigilantly, this is the method for you. First bring a nice pot of water to a boil. Add salt to this rolling pot of angry steam, not a pinch or a dash, add salt; make it your own personally boiling ocean. Next take care not to burn yourself (oven mitts, close toed shoes, and long pants). Walk the boiling pot to the offending area. Release the salt--- blast it upon anything green showing in the cracks. The plants will immediately die and the salt prevents their return.
Harsh? Yes. Effective? Beyond belief. Weed free drive, walk, and patio – priceless.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Santa Fe for a Day

Easy is always a must whether you are cooking in the summer or winter, for one or twenty-one. When it's hot outside, I hate to cook a huge meal and make the kitchen hot. Who actually wants to get hot, even break a sweat, and then try to eat a meal? I am not keen on the idea, and I know you aren't either. So how does one prepare a great meal, with a minimum of effort and still not heat up the kitchen? I will say for some friends scared of cooking, they would simply say, "Well there is that quote about heat and staying out of the kitchen." I like to keep it cool in the kitchen, but who wants to eat the same thing over and over again? Spaghetti is a simple meal. I hate spaghetti. Those of you who know me are laughing at this point as I complain about spaghetti frequently. However, I have a better use of noodles….


 

Santa Fe Pasta

I package of Angel hair pasta

2 jars Alfredo sauce

8 chicken breast halved (skinless/boneless)

2 tbs. cumin

2 tsp. red pepper

2 tsp. garlic

1 can black beans

Shredded Monterrey jack cheese

Tortilla chips


 

Sauté chicken until cooked completely and liquid runs clear. While chicken is cooking, boil angel hair pasta for 8 to 10 minutes and drain. Heat Alfredo sauce and combine with cumin, red pepper, and garlic. When chicken in cooked, dice and combine with drained noodles and Alfredo sauce. Let mixture simmer over low heat. Warm black beans.

TO SERVE: Place noodle mixture on dinner plate. Top with black beans and shredded cheese. Garnish with tortilla chip.

  • Variation for this recipe include using shrimp instead of chicken.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Mushroom Pate - - - No chickens died in the making of this dish!

It's a warm summer day, a friend calls and invites you and the family over for a cookout tonight, how charming you think and accept the invitation. However, you realize you should probably take something for the meal. You hate to cook; in fact after 17 years of marriage, you still have the pots and pans you received from Aunt Gert as a wedding gift sitting in the box buried in the hallway closet. So what is a simple recipe that you can enjoy? Mushroom Pate!
Sounds Odd, yes, looks even odder, of course, but it is out of this world!
This is a recipe that a friend gave me many years ago. I have added and deleted items; yet, it always turns out incredible. So here's the plan.
Start with mushrooms, you know the ones in the produce section, little white button style. Wash them and lightly pat dry. Then slice them. As you slice, put a skillet on the stove and let it begin to warm with 2 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add mushrooms to the skillet as you slice them and let them sautee. Next, dice the onion, and you guessed it, add to the mushrooms. These should simmer together for 5 minutes. Open a can of black olives. Drain out 1/2 of the brine, add the rest along with the olives to the mushroom and onion mixture. Let the liquid begin to reduce and then put in 1/3 cup white wine. Add a few dashes of basil, parsley, and garlic. Cook until liquid is reduced. I know, difficult so far. Transfer medley to a blender or food processors to puree. This is the hardest part if you use a blender. Once blended you have a gray colored dip. Simply add to a mold and turn out to display elegantly or you can top with freshly shredded Smoked Swiss and place under the broiler until browned. Serve with toast points, crackers, or your favorite crunchy snack!

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

School is out for the summer. The heat is unbearable....the kids yell for the pool...you've squeezed every single doctor’s appointment into a small window to work for the kids. When you arrive home, after a great day of “vacation,” you are alarmed to hear the simple statement, “I’m hungry.” You try to ignore it for five maybe ten minutes. Maybe it will be like the casserole you left in the frig from Christmas; if you ignore it then it will go away (or at least relocate to the back of the refrigerator). However, the question soon follows the statement, “what are we gonna eat tonight?” You begin to think, “hmmm, take out, no.” You run for the frig and discover that old Mother Hubbard had more stockpiled than you. You really do not want to run out and get something to cook, but you have salad dressing, some frozen chicken and some crumbs. Suddenly, the clouds part, light radiates upon you, a chorus of voice sing in unison, Ranch chicken.

Ranch Chicken
2 lbs. Boneless/skinless chicken breast strips
1 bottle ranch dressing
Bread crumbs
¼ stick butter

Clean chicken breast strips. Place ranch dressing in a bowl. In a separate bowl, place ½ container of bread crumbs. Dip the chicken in the ranch dressing until well coated. Dredge coated chicken in bread crumbs. Place in buttered baking dish. Make a single layer of chicken in the baking dish. Top chicken with remaining bread crumbs and butter and cover with aluminum foil. Place dish in a 350 degree oven and bake 45 to 50 minutes. Uncover for last 10 minutes.
• Variation for this recipe can use French dressing instead of Ranch Dressing.