Treasure Trove at Grandma's House

Recently, I've had the task of helping my family clean out my grandmother's home. She's in a care facility now, and space is limited. But she has a lifetime of treasures (and let's be honest, junk!) left in her old home. She was kind enough to tell us that, with the exception of a few items that she wants, we can have whatever we want. Thanks, Grandma. That's way cool of you. :)

Most of the things in Grandma's house don't really interest me. But there are a few things that have caught my eye. One is a collection of teapots. As an avid tea drinker, I am interested in all things tea, and I was thrilled to receive Grandma's teapots. It's even better that Grandma is happy that I got them. :)

But I think what I love the most from Grandma's house is her collection of handmade linens. Oh my goodness. My jaw hit the floor when I realized how many goodies Grandma had hidden away in the nooks and crannies of her home. Hand embroidered pillowcases and tablecloths, vintage hankies with delicate embellishments, and crocheted doilies and table runners are now in my possession, waiting to be laundered and hung on the clothesline. But that's not even the best part.

The best part is the stash of handmade aprons I found. Oh!! Having recently read The Kitchen Linens Book and The Apron Book (both by EllynAnne Geisel), I am obsessed with the cloths and everyday items that our grandmothers and great-grandmothers used. I was sure I was going to have to scour the flea markets and antique shops if I wanted to amass a collection of these items. So to say I was pleased to acquire my grandma's (and possibly my great-grandma's!) aprons is an understatement.

Like the towels and tablecloths, the aprons are still waiting to be washed. (My plan is to do it Wednesday morning. Keep your fingers crossed that I can get it done.) So when I made cookies the other day, I didn't don one of the cheerful cover-ups. Instead, I used it as a photo prop. 'Cause you know, that's part of the fun of having cool old things. :)



Hey, do you see that recipe card in the pic? It's from one of my FAVORITE Etsy sellers, Mollie of Wild Olive. If you've ever read my other blog, then you know how much I love her embroidery patterns. I've been interested in her printables for a while, but without a color printer, they weren't of much use to me. Now, however, thanks to my awesome in-laws who bought me one for Christmas, I have a color printer, and I was able to get some of Mollie's super cute recipe cards. They are really cool 'cause you have the option of just printing them out as is, or typing in your recipe first and then printing.



Isn't that just the cutest little bag of chocolate chips you've ever seen? If only all ingredients were so chipper. (Bad pun. Sorry!)

Well, I've rambled on longer than I'd anticipated. I still have several things I'd like to accomplish before I hit the sack tonight, but seeing that bedtime is only about 90 minutes away, I doubt I will get much done. Oh well. There's always tomorrow, right? :)