Lost and Found - Part 7

Here at last is my final found treasure. It’s a small booklet that I found hidden between two books at an antique store. I am amazed that after 88 years, such a small, ephemeral item still survives, and in quite good condition.

 

This is an example of a time-honored tradition, the church cookbook. In 1925, the Phoenix Central Christian Church Women put together this booklet and sold it at 25 cents each for the church.

There are several pages of household hints, many of which were new to me.

 

Imagine using crystallized cyanide for ant control! And putting your ostrich plumes in the oven to get them to curl. (But watch carefully so they don’t burn!)

 

 

The advertisements are short, simple, and appealing.

Check out the gorgeous typeface for JC Penneys. And the illustration for Pilcher Optical could fit right in to Dr. Eckleburg’s billboard in The Great Gatsby.

On another page is a barber shop that offers marcelling for $1 and permanent waves for $15.

 

Finally we come to the recipes, and there are a lot of them. It looks as though the editor wisely decided that every submission should be included, rather than trying to select one or two from each category.

Thus there are five recipes for Gingerbread, eight for Devil’s Food Cake (!), and other similar multiples throughout the book.

It’s interesting that many recipes omit the actual cooking or baking instructions. Also, there are no oven temperatures.  A slow, moderate, or quick oven were the options, if any guidance was provided.

A recipe that no church cookbook should be without is, of course, the Bible Cake.

  

Another special find was inserted between the pages – a map of Phoenix dated April 1924. I find it utterly amazing to see the entire city squeezed into a tiny space that we consider a small part of the downtown area today.

 

The quaint charm of this map will probably be more apparent when you see the difference between Phoenix of the 1920s and Phoenix today:

The tiny black spot on the map on the left corresponds to the 1924 map above.

 

This amazing piece of history is the last of my found treasures, for the time being.

Have you discovered any treasures recently?

 

Katrina

Lost and Found – Part 6

Did you think that you'd have to look at those poor wet dogs for the rest of the year? Yes, I shirked my blogging duties for quite a while.

I do have a few new things to share, but while I get organized, I will finish up my Lost and Found Series.

I have a weakness for old books – have you noticed? Children’s books and picture books are especially hard to resist.

Here are two books that I recently found. One is a grade school songbook, quite the worse for wear.

Published in 1947, it clearly belonged to Elizabeth and was very well-loved.

end papers

 

The best thing is that each song has little drawings with it.

 

[You can try click-to-enlarge, but I don't know if it will work. Picasa is being a pain right now.]

 

 

Today's other treasure is a 1952 edition of the Girl Scout Guide.

 

I love the illustrations that accompany the enthusiastic instructions for being a healthy person and a contributing member of society.

Pristine uniforms

No TV or computer!



So many ways to serve the community

Year-round activities

 

 

There’s not much in common between the two books, except for a certain charm and wholesomeness in the illustrations. This was still a pre-television generation - only 9% of U.S. households had them in 1950 (www. tvhistory.tv).

 

I wonder what a modern-day kid would do if faced with the entertainment choices from the 1940s or 50s?!

 

 

 

 

Katrina

Lost and Found – Part 3

Today’s treasure is a simple thing – a cookbook.

Published in 1956, it is Chinese Cooking for American Kitchens, by Calvin Lee. Young Mr. Lee took on the task of converting the recipes from his family’s restaurant to a practical cookbook for Americans. Not only that, the book contains a short history of the early introduction of Chinese food and the beginning of America’s acceptance of authentic Chinese dishes instead of bland glop like chop suey. There is even a description and definition of the Chinese name of each utensil and cooking method.

The recipes look quite good, but I probably won’t try any of them. When we cook "Chinese" food at home we usually just toss vegetables and spices in hot oil – no recipe required. But more importantly, every recipe in this book contains monosodium glutamate. If you were around in the 50s and 60s, you will recall that this was something you could buy in the grocery store under various brand names (ours was "Accent"), and it was simply a flavor enhancer. MSG was in every can of soup, every box of rice mix, every bottle of sauce. No one thought much about it when this book was written.

But back to the book – the main reason I bought it was for the pictures. Some tiny, some taking up the entire page, they are by Mabel Wong Lilienstein and they are beautiful. Each chapter has a descriptive sketch at the beginning, and then there are tiny pictures dotted throughout.

I think these little scenes are lovely, and they transform a nice cookbook into a real gem.

Katrina

A Crafty Collection

Pic-heavy post today; I just couldn't resist sharing some of these beauties. It’s another of my collections: Golden Hands magazines from the 1970s.

click on photos to see larger

I bought one of these in a used bookstore just a few years ago, not knowing there was an entire collection to be had. After finding a few more in a magazine bin at a thrift, I realized there must be a whole series. I tried to resist, but it was futile.

I’ve picked them up here and there when I could find them for $1 or less (some are going for $10!). I’ve actually been pretty lucky, and my collection is now close to 60 of the total 70+ magazines issued. I’m not picky about condition, as long as they have all their pages and nothing has been spilled on them.

The magazines were published by Marshall Cavendish in the early to mid-70s. People in the UK probably know the magazine better than we do, but it was also popular here in the US. Viewed today, the aesthetic veers between timeless classics (above) and outfits that are so dated they are almost back in style (below).

The amount of information packed into each issue was incredible. 

Beautifully intricate embroidery patterns



Monthly home decor projects too

Usually it was a combination of knitting, crochet, applique, embroidery, lace, quilting, and sewing projects, with patterns. Plus there would be examples of museum pieces of quilts, carpets, or embroidery, articles about fitting, patternmaking, fabric care, and styling. The idea was to collect all the magazines and have a complete “beautifully illustrated needlecraft encyclopedia.”

One thing I love about pre-digital magazine photography is that the lovely models have their blemishes and body hair intact. Isn’t it refreshing to see a human woman on a magazine?

 

The male models were also handsome but realistic.

I could overlook the sideburns and, uh, ascot(?) but I'd have to banish the cigarillo.

The illustrators are the unsung heroes of each issue, as far as I’m concerned. J. Rankin was a regular contributor, although I was not able to find out anything about her in a quick internet search.

Look at the incredible detail in these drawings by J. Rankin.

My other favorite illustrator is B. Firth. Her name shows up on technical drawings of patterns, stitches, and techniques, as well as fashion drawing.

excerpt of instructions and illustration by B. Firth



From an article on shirt dresses - I think this is so pretty you could frame it



I was able to track down a B. Firth – I think she is Barbara Firth:

When she was three, she began drawing plants and animals, and when she was eleven years old, her family moved to the country, enabling her to spend even more time sketching the flora and fauna around her.

After leaving school she studied pattern cutting at the London College of Fashion. She was offered a job in the Marks and Spencer design department, but turned it down in favour of a job on Vogue knitting books, producing step-by-step illustrations of knitting, crocheting and dressmaking. It was with Walker Books, however, that Barbara was able to do illustration work in her favourite field – natural history – and has gone on to illustrate many award-winning books. She now lives in Harrow, England.

 “I have always been biased toward illustrating natural history, so it was a joy to be able to draw pages and pages of bears,” Barbara Firth says of her collaboration with Martin Waddell on Can’t You Sleep, Little Bear?, the first of their classic Big and Little Bear series.

Doesn't that sound like a wonderful career!

I hope you enjoyed these amazing images (and your internet connection didn’t time out). I use the magazine more for inspiration than reference, but I would agree that Golden Hands creates a complete if somewhat disorganized "beautifully illustrated needlecraft encyclopedia."

Did you (or your mom) get issues of Golden Hands in the 1970s? Do you remember making anything from its pages?

Katrina

Finally, Some Good News Here

I am usually so discouraged by the local news that when I see something positive I like to grab onto it with both hands and dance around a little.

Two years ago, the Phoenix library system was experiencing severe budget cuts, along with everyone else, and they reduced their hours so much that you could barely find an open library.

Burton Barr Central Library, very retro-looking but built in the 90s. photo source

I felt badly for the librarians whose hours were cut and whose jobs were consolidated. In the age of instant access to information from any location, I think the role of the archivists and information experts has become even more important. Let’s not put any more librarians out of jobs, nor discourage any more students from becoming librarians!

interior, source

But it was the customers who were really hit hard by the library closures, even if it was only a matter of shorter hours. We have thousands of jobless and/or homeless people who use the library for daytime shelter from the heat, while spending their time constructively in online job searches, studying for classes, or just getting lost in a good book for a short while. We have thousands of immigrants who use the library services to learn English, contact family members, find jobs, or involve their children in reading groups. We have thousands of old-school (pun intended) students, like me, who want to pull every book on a subject, spread them out all over a table, and spend an entire day in research.

waiting for the doors to open, source

Phoenix needs its libraries!!!

Anyway, my little snippet of good news appeared last week, in a small article on an inside page of the paper. The libraries are expanding their hours again! Only a few of them, and only by six hours. Still, it’s extremely good news. The main library will open its doors earlier in the morning, while others will stay open later.

Here’s a bit of the article:

Bookworms and Internet users have residents and a faith-based organization to thank for the longer hours. Earlier this year, Valley Interfaith Project and several residents who support the libraries told the Phoenix City Council they were disappointed to see the city's budget proposal lacked additional funds to restore after-school programs and lengthen hours for swimming pools and libraries.

The city had reduced those services during the recession.

In response to the residents and advocates, city officials amended their proposed budget to spend $6 million more on public services, including $500,000 to extend hours for some of the libraries. The City Council supported the increase.

So it turns out that citizens actually can do something to improve their community! Maybe I should stop sitting in my room and whining. Maybe I should go talk to the City Council next time I have an issue.

Maybe.

Katrina

It Seems Like Forever

Wow! I was only away from blogotopia for ten days? It seemed like a month, at least.

It all started when I made a very stupid mistake with one of my medications. I miscalculated my remaining doses, ran out completely, and had to wait more than a week for delivery of more pills. Has this ever happened to you? With hindsight it appears that I am a moron, an idiot, the stupidest person in the world – pick your description – but at the time I was sure that my prescription service would deliver in a day or two, based on past experience. Well, not any more. It took nine business days.

Of all things, I had to pick an anti-anxiety medication to learn this lesson on. Ironically, I wasn’t even taking it for anxiety, but if you ever want anxiety, try undergoing the sudden withdrawal symptoms. This is an experience like nothing else. I was dizzy, twitchy, irritable and weepy. I hallucinated big black shadows moving around and loud crashing noises right next to me. Electric currents buzzed through my head (this is so common it even has a name: “brain zaps”). Five pounds of my body weight mysteriously disappeared. Don’t worry, they came right back. J

Seriously, do not run out of your prescription medication. It is not fun, plus it can be dangerous. I monitored my symptoms and made sure I didn’t experience anything that was actually life-threatening. (Also the Piemaker was hovering constantly, which was mostly aggravating but did result in a delicious sweet-onion quiche and a new twist on Grasshopper pie. Pics later.)  I did finally receive the medication, restarted my daily dosage and am feeling pretty “normal.”

So with all of that, the beginning of my non-blogging week was a bit dull since my vision and my coordination were way off. I stayed far away from sharp objects and heavy equipment, but read some books and watched lots of TV.

I finished a fun series of books by David Rosenfelt about a defense attorney who gets involved in solving murders.   

(first in the series)

The main character is very funny, the writing is clever, and there are several nice dogs who feature prominently in the stories.

I also read an amazing book called Tales of an African Vet by Dr. Roy Aronson.  

Aronson worked in clinics, zoos, and in the field in South Africa and other countries for twenty-five years, and you get the sense that the stories he shares in this book are just a small fraction of his amazing experiences. Great book, worth reading just for the bit on the rhino that knocked its horn off.

A few of my favorite series are back on television, but they’re not making me too happy right now. First, there’s True Blood, which I simply adored in its first season, loved in the second season, and since then have just been waiting for it to return to its former glory.

source

I admire Alan Ball’s genius and the way he recreates our world in TB, but either his writers have lost their spark or I’m getting jaded or both. I just haven’t felt very inspired by either the existing characters’ storylines (completely different from the originals in the Sookie Stackhouse books) or the endless parade of new characters in the last couple of seasons. Still, Anna Paquin remains my greatest girl crush of all time so I will keep watching this program for as long as it is on.

Next is The Closer, and I swear my heart rate actually goes up whenever I see one of those “THREE. SHOWS. LEFT.” commercials on TNT. (Only two after tonight!)

source

I know it’s silly to get stressed out over a television program, but I am scared for Assistant Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson of the LAPD.

I don’t know whether she is headed for some sort of breakdown, or if she is putting on one of her performances in order to take down a serial murderer, but the whole thing is freaking me out. And obviously we know that in three weeks she will be gone, so something momentous is going to happen.

One of the things that viewers of The Closer will miss forever and ever is the magnificent vintage wardrobe, brought to us courtesy of Greg LaVoi. The man has a historian’s love of clothing, an insider’s knowledge of where to get the best of everything old and new in LA, and on this show, he fully utilizes his opportunity to see magnificent vintage suits and dresses in action on the gorgeous Kyra Sedgwick.


A sample of the vintage delights, source

Mr. LaVoi blogged the wardrobe planning for each episode. There are fascinating insights into how the storyline feeds into his costuming decisions, and how the clothes in turn help the actors develop their characters.

Finally, there is Breaking Bad. 



source

This is another program that had me enthralled during the first couple of seasons. The cinematography (does anyone still use that word?) was incredible, with shots so long you had to look away from the discomfort of the actors, cuts so fast you could barely follow the action, scenes composed with the balance and light of a Renaissance painting, and stark, angry shots of sheer ugliness.

The story was like an ongoing ethics argument – what would you do or not do to protect yourself or your family in dire circumstances? The characters and their actions were believable, and you could understand their “bad” behavior even while disagreeing with it.

Then at some point the tone shifted, and now the characters seem to be bad for no good reason, and I can’t identify or sympathize with anyone. I know, that’s the whole plan of creator Vince Gilligan, and I’m sure he’s going somewhere with this. Still, it is a curse of my personality type that I always need to know why, why, WHY people do things. Even if they are only TV characters.

That was quite a lot of entertainment, so when the freakish drug withdrawal symptoms dissipated somewhat, I ventured back into my creative space and decided to catch up on a few things. I did some pattern archiving, had a conniption fit at the vegetable garden and pulled out the mostly dead plants, and worked through a couple of sewing remakes and repairs. I’ll share all that in some of my upcoming posts!

In the meantime, I’m going to start catching up with all of you, and see what’s been happening out there.

Katrina