Biz part II

That lace is beautiful, you should have lots of fun playing with it. And the CUT WORK dresser scarf??? SCORE! Well done.

All the lace and the scarf are now beautiful! Now get in your playhouse(sewing room) and make some treasures. Emily

The scarf (and the lace) is in really good condition! Over the years, I've picked up such pieces as I came across them, and I got quite a bit that my mother had, but most things had worn spots, broken threads, etc., so finding all this in such good condition (even if yellowed) was quite a break. Now, enjoy them all!

It's lovely! What a find! But please tell me the photos on those wretched cardboards are "before"... the acids from the cardboard are probably the cause of most of the yellowing.

Kay

Oh, I'm so envious. So much lace and textile treasures! (BTW, what is a dresser scarf?) The lace did come out really nice. Did you try the ancient method? Put in a clean place on your premises, sprinkle with water and let the sun do what it can do best - bleach things out. I had an old bolt of linen which was full of reddish spots. One turn in the washing machine with normal detergent and a few days in the sun with regular waterings made it as good as new. Of course the linen was of a much coarser quality than your fine lace, that's why I dared to put it in the machine.

Anyway, you can now make all the nighties and hippie dresses you want. Lovely! ;-)

U.

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Thank you muchly!!!!

There are actually two dresser scarves. But for some reason, I didn't get a before picture of the other one. It has a pretty crewel pattern on it and crocheted lace at the edge. I'm using them on our nightstands. We are both pretty big on having a cup of coffee in bed on a weekend morning. So I've been looking for something to protect the nightstands for a while. None of the dresser scarves from DH's grandmother are the right size. These are just small enough to be perfect. (about the size of a tea towel.) They were $2 each and not family pieces, so if they catch a spill now and again, I won't be too sad.

Today is a Kitchen Day. The garden is doing Very well this year. So I am cooking for the freezer today. lol Already did a double batch of Baingan ka Shahi Bhartha (creamy mashed eggplant with peas, one of our favorite Indian dishes.) Used eggplants, tomatoes and peppers from my garden. Getting ready to start on a large batch of ratatouille. Eggplant, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, basil, and oregano from the garden. After that a batch of pesto from the garden. All those will go in the freezer. Also starting another batch of sweet pickles. (going to slice these ones thin for use on burgers. mmm) And will round out the day with peach jam.

While I'm working on all that, when my mind has a minute to wander, I'm planning uses for the laces. LOL

I feel all June Cleaver today...... Where are my pearls and my crinoline?? LOL

Sharon

Thank you. Yes, Ma'am. I'm working on getting there. ;)

Sharon

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Thanks. I think they were stored fairly well. Several of them were folded in tissue paper. I'm guessing it must have been acid free tissue paper. The lace had a rougher go of it since they were wound on cardboard cards. I'm still at the petting them as I go by stage. ;)

Sharon

Yes, absolutely those were the before pictures. Right now, the lace pieces are wound onto plastic plates. It's what I had that was handy. lol I will figure out something better ( i.e. see if I can score an empty plastic bolt at WM or something) if it looks like I will need to store long term. :)

Sharon

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A dresser scarf is just a pretty piece of fabric that you put on the top of your dresser or vanity. It's meant to protect the wood surface. It keeps dust and other stuff off the wood. They were pretty common up through the early 1900's. Not so much any more, but they are still pretty. Since I have (and love) antique bedroom furniture that came to me through my family, I thought they would work well in there. Sometimes, you see linen ones that are embroidered, or have cut work (like the one in the picture) or crocheted lace edgings. Sometimes the whole thing is crocheted or tatted. (like doilies are.) But like doilies and tablecloths, the main use for dresser scarves is to protect the wood of the furniture. And if you can do that and make it pretty at the same time, why not? ;)

The lace did come out really nice. Did you try the ancient

Yep, that can work really well. Since these were pretty delicate, I just stuck with soaking in Biz. It's a very mild enzyme detergent. It won't damage the fibers the way bleach can. I've heard of hanging things out in the sun to remove odors too. And you spritz with something........is it lemon juice?? Then hang out in the sun. I did toss most of these in the washer for a quick rinse. I have a "hand wash" setting on the washer. So I threw the dresser scarves in on that with no soap. Just wanted to rinse out all the Biz really well.

Thank you, m'dear! :) That's the plan I'm working with. lol

Sharon

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Maybe you'll find them in the drawer with the rose-scented sachet and your white cotton gloves? ;-P

Oh, I've got a couple of those from my grandma still. I think she embroidered them herself. It's not white on white but more colourful flowers on white in simple stitches, and the fabric is probably from worn out bedcovers. I kept them partly because I can't throw anything away that contains a substantial amount of hand work and partly because I also have the piece of furniture some of them were made for (which currently adorns the basement room I use for storing food supplies and camping articles).

I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't express myself very well; the method I meant is the really ancient one, used by country folks all over Europe. Homemade linen was bleached that way, and many streets or lanes in German cities or villages have names relating to this process. I guess the area used for this was common land and had to be kept very well, that's why it was named. Place piece of fabric flatly (for maximum exposure) on nice clean lawn, water with hose or watering can and leave in the sun. Wet again from time to time and turn, too. No chemicals, just UV rays. Don't you have a heat wave now?

U. - If heaven sends lemons, make lemonade; if heaven sends heat wave, bleach your linens. ;-)

My version is, If life gives you lemons, make margaritas.

But they are better with limes... and salt...

No more salt-on-the-rim for me, though :-(

LOL Yes, we are in the middle of a heat wave!! I could have the whitest sheets in town!! ;)

What a great way to look at things. :) I keep reminding myself that the garden is growing very well in all the heat. (I water a lot.) Some plants like eggplant don't do terribly well till it's warm outside. When it heats up, they produce like crazy. I have a dozen of the plants........want some eggplant??? lol

Sharon

I'd love to, especially since I haven't tried the India recipe you sent me yet. I fear, though, that we might raise suspicion with the customs folks. I remember that I had ordered swatches of dupioni from India and one card came through finely while the other took a couple of days longer since it got opened by German customs. I didn't know that fabric collecting had become an illegal addiction. ;-)

Anyway, we've had our heat wave in May or so, and there are still some regions that haven't gotten enough water yet although we have mixed weather with some heavy rain now since St Swithin's Day. I got terribly envious when I read your account on what you froze so far. I didn't get round to planting anything this year. I bought two zucchini plants but failed to plant them in the raised bed in front our door but put them together with a rosebush on top a flowerpot with old earth. During the dry days they all suffered terribly and the rose was almost dead. I still hope...

I guess I'll get round to a couple of things now that the hospital and birthday season is over. DD was in hospital with adenoids and tonsils to be removed/minimized and DH and DD celebrated this weekend together since we were away in hospital on the day. I made two no-bake cakes for Sunday, plus a salad and rubbed all kinds of meats for the BBQ. Then I had to make more cake for today's birthday celebration in Kindergarten. I made chocolate muffins with cream cheese filling, but I hadn't made enough so I had make more this morning. Anyway, I made a Philadelphia cake and a Lucullus cake and both were a great success.

U. - and I don't know how to get rid of the extra pounds from those beauties. ;-)

I live near Philadelphia and have never heard of this. What is Philadelphia cake?

Oh, and I thought the Lucullus cake would raise curiosity. ;-) Of course the cake has nothing to do with the City of Philadelphia; its name comes from the Kraft Foods cream cheese which goes here in Germany by the said name. I suspect it started out as one of the recipes you can find on the backs of product packs to promote the article, but it became a huge success here in Germany. The bottom is made from crumbled ladyfingers (an Italian cookie specialty called Savoiardi di Persiceto) and butter, the topping consists of cream cheese, whipped cream and lemon Jell-O.

As for the Lucullus cake - it's also sometimes called 'dog's snout' or 'cold snout', in German 'Kalte Schnauze', and consists of a certain type of butter cookies (

) and a cream of eggs, baking cocoa, and coconut fat. I suspect that this recipe comes from the Wirtschaftwunder years when 'the more the better' was the motto when it came to calories. One slice is enough per meal. ;-) I hope I could help you; if anybody is interested in the recipes, I'm glad to post them. Only give me some time, it might take a while to write them down in English.

U.

I would love to have the Lucullus cake recipe. My DGD married a young man of German descent, and she enjoys finding recipes to surprise his maternal grandparents with a German dish once in a while. But, before I pass it on, I will make one for me.

Emily