Showing posts with label homemaking tips. Show all posts

9.13.2021

Fall Homemaking: Cook, Clean, and Decorate with Me

The Daily Connoisseur 6:46 AM 6 Comments

Autumn Slumber

By Jennifer L. Scott

Autumn slumber

Awakens dreams

Of misty meadows

And winding streams

Mundane is bland

The season stirs

Cozy abundance

Harvest prefers

Prepare the home

Pumpkin custard

Spode Woodland beauty

Steak with mustard

Cozy mysteries

Folding clothes

Guessing whodunnit

I think I know

Maple candle

Cardamom dream

Fall is in the air

Topped with whipped cream

Welcome back to The Daily Connoisseur. Fall is in the air and even though it is still warm outside, I can sense the air shifting. There is a crispness in it. I like to mark the change in season in various ways… in the way I dress, in the way I cook, in the way I decorate… and, of course, in the china cabinet.

Spode is one of my favorite brands of china. Their Woodland line was first created in the 1980s and features a wide variety of woodland creatures.

I was doing some research on the world’s most collectible china and Spode Woodland comes in at number 4, right behind Spode Blue Italian… Interesting… I truly enjoy styling this china cabinet and I know… when the china changes… the season is officially celebrated in our home.

Grey Jeans by Mott & Bow JLS10 for 10% off, blouse by Rungolee DailyC for free silk face mask, Sweater by Lands' End, Velvet bow from Amazon

I bought some purple mums at the garden center for our outdoor table. But first, I need to wipe that table down. I love spending time out here and will take any excuse to come and sit on the patio. We’ve been regularly stocking our bird feeders. Word has gotten around in the neighborhood and the most marvelous little (and sometimes big) birds come to call. I like to make hummingbird nectar from sugar and water too and oh, how they love it. Now that the table is wiped, it’s time to place down the mums. Are mums the official flowers of fall? If not, they should be.

I wanted to show you my Carl Larsson windowsill, which is coming along beautifully. I modeled this after Larsson’s famous painting, Flowers on the Windowsill, from 1894. I have a geranium, various cacti, some chives, and even a Venus fly trap. This cozy ledge brings me so much joy.

I love burning fall candles too. This one is Cardamom Milk by Otherland. It’s a subtle, fall scent, that is reminiscent of chai tea.

Time to change the tablecloth and sweep the floor. What I like most about the blue cabinets in our kitchen is that they transition with all the seasons beautifully. Fall and Winter colors look equally good with spring and summer ones. This tablecloth has taupe and woodland colors.

It’s a new day and I’m going to make a pumpkin custard. Here is the printable recipe card for your convenience:

Pumpkin Custard

Ingredients

Custard

1 15 oz can pureed pumpkin
2 eggs
1 cup half and half
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt

Topping

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans
2 Tbs butter, melted

Garnish

Whipped cream
Cinnamon
Extra chopped pecans

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In your mixer bowl, combine all of the custard ingredients and beat until well-blended. Pour the custard into greased individual oven-proof dessert ramekins. Place the ramekins in a larger 13 x 9 baking pan. Fill the pan with hot water, one inch high.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, assemble the topping. Mix the brown sugar, pecans, and melted butter together. After the custard has baked for 20 minutes, add the pecan topping on each serving. Place back in the oven and bake another 40 minutes, or until the custard is fully cooked through.
Please note: if you bake this in one large dish like I did, the bake time will be much longer. It totaled nearly 1 1/2 hours for me.
Serve warm or chilled. Top with whipped cream, a dash of cinnamon and extra pecans. Enjoy!

Time to cook up some dinner to go with our special dessert. I have two large steaks I’m going to sear on the Le Creuset grill and then finish off in the oven. If you watched my What’s for Dinner? Video last week, you saw the parsley caper compound butter I made. I’m going to use that here on these steaks and also on our baked potatoes… or jacket potatoes as Ben calls them. Served with some streamed vegetable and topping the potatoes with chives… this is a hearty fall supper.

And now time for that delectable pumpkin custard. I am spooning out the custard into individual dessert bowls, topping with whipped cream, a few more chopped pecans, and cinnamon. Completely delicious This would make a great dinner party dessert as you could make it ahead of time and keep it in the fridge before serving. I hope you enjoyed today’s fall homemaking video and that it got you in the mood for the cozy fall days ahead.

Pajamas by Lilysilk and scrunchie bow tie from Amazon.

Before we close, thank you to Acorn TV for bringing us today’s video. Get 30 days for free by going to acorn.tv and using my code dailyconnoisseur (code is case sensitive). I've been enjoying The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and The Agatha Christie Hour.

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Comment of the Week

Virginia writes, "Great advice. I do journaling and have written my autobiography, however not published. I’m guilty though of waiting for inspiration for doing my oil painting,lol. I constantly make lists and have been doing this for years. I have already started my lists for Christmas. It is very satisfying to cross off items on my lists. I’m 82, and time is so very valuable. 👍👍👍🇨🇦"

Virginia, I think it's wonderful that you've written your autobiography. Everyone should do this to, if nothing else, hand down to their family to preserve the family history. I wish you much success with your book!

Thank you for watching today's video. I would love to hear about your seasonal homemaking. Let us know and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog.

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# clean with me # cook with me

6.10.2021

10 Life-Changing Homemaking Secrets from Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management

The Daily Connoisseur 5:49 AM 2 Comments

My homemaking series continues today as I share ten life-changing homemaking secrets from Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management.

Mrs. Isabella Beeton’s 1861 guide on household management remains one of the must referenced and popular guides to managing a home over 160 years later. Here are my ten observations from her book that could provide life-changing homemaking inspiration for you.

Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management

⚜️The “mistress of the house” or in our case “homemaker”, is like the "commander of an army. Her spirit will be seen through the whole establishment" (p. 1). If that is the case, what spirit do you see when you look at your home?

⚜️The members of the household are “perpetually dependent” on the homemaker for the happiness, comfort, and well-being of the family (p.1). While that may seem daunting, it should give you a sense of purpose and raison d’être.

⚜️"Early rising is one of the most essential qualities which enter into good household management" (p. 2). Getting up early is the “parent of health”. If the mistress of the house gets up early it is “almost certain that her house will be orderly and well-managed”. (It also says that if she gets up late, her servants will also become “sluggards”.) Most of us do not have live-in servants so maybe we can attribute this tip to the rest of our family.

⚜️ Frugality and Economy are home virtues. Mrs. Beeton quotes a Dr. Johnson, who says, “Frugality may be termed the daughter of Prudence, the sister of Temperance, and the parent of Liberty. He that is extravagant will quickly become poor, and poverty will enforce dependence and invite corruption.” Mrs. Beeton believed that whether you are rich or poor, practicing frugality is a necessity.

⚜️Good temper should be cultivated by the homemaker. The welfare of the household rests on the homemaker’s good temper. “Her influence can hardly be over-estimated, as it has the effect of moulding the characters of those around her, and of acting most beneficially on the happiness of the domestic circle. Every head of a household should strive to be cheerful.” (p.5). This one convicted me.

⚜️The dress of the homemaker should always be adapted to her circumstances. Ok, in Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management she’s literally talking about changing outfits for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We can’t relate to this Downton Abbey-esque wardrobe change life, but let’s look closer here at what she’s saying. She’s saying dress for the day, but dress appropriately. So, does that mean wear yoga pants all day long since you’ll be cleaning? Not necessarily. You can get dressed for the day in your cute day clothes that express your true style and still get a majority of your cleaning done if you wear an apron and gloves. If you’re going out in the garden to weed, for example, you probably won’t want to wear your nice clothing. Change your clothes for that.

⚜️Keep a housekeeping account book (p. 9). Mrs. Beeton suggests that you write down every single expense you have throughout the day. This will be very helpful for those of us who are prone to overspending or who are trying to stay on a budget. This way “one month’s expenses may be contrasted with another”. Judge Haliburton said, “No man is rich whose expenditure exceeds his means, and no one is poor whose incomings exceed his outgoings.”

⚜️Method and order are the keys for good housekeeping. On p. 27, it reads: “Order, again, is indispensable; for by it we wish to be understood that “there should be a place for everything, and everything in its place.” Method, too, is most necessary; for when the work is properly contrived, and each part arranged in regular succession, it will be done more quickly and more effectually.

⚜️The daily duties of a housekeeper are regulated by the extent of the establishment she superintends (p. 29). In this instance, Mrs. Beeton is now discussing a paid housekeeper position, but we homemakers can apply this to ourselves. We should base our daily duties on what our home (our establishment) needs. Do you live in a large house that needs regular sweeping and vacuuming? Do you live in a small house that needs constant reevaluations of clutter and storage? What does your establishment need?

⚜️Prepare in the evening for the next day’s duties (p. 31). A good homemaker “will often busy herself with the necessary preparations for the next day’s duties. Numberless small, but still important arrangements, will have to be made, so that everything may move smoothly.

⚜️ What I'm Wearing

Rungolee Louise blouse DailyC for free silk face mask

Lulu's Sebastian Trouser (these shrink, order a size up)

Earrings SKYE Theodora Jennifer20 for 20% off

Bracelet SKYE Laure Jennifer20 for 20% off

Spanish Sandal Co. black slide JEN10 for 10% off

Lipstick Besame dusty rose

Nail polish Londontown Dragonfruit JenniferS for 25% off

Eyeshadow by Tarte

I hope you enjoy today's video.

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Comment of the Week

Amber writes, "My heart leapt for joy when you said you're going on the Homemaker Chic podcast again! 🥰 Shaye and Angela are my absolute favorite podcasters and I regularly listen while cleaning around the house. You also happen to be my favorite guest on their podcast so I am excited to hear all three of you chat it up again! Listening to you on their podcast is actually what helped me discover your channel so cheers to that as well! Hope you have a great virtual visit with them again and thanks for all your wonderful content!"

Thank you, Amber! Our episode has already aired and you can find it here: Wait, This Job Needs a Uniform?

I hope you enjoyed today's life-changing homemaking secrets video. Let us know your favorite insights in the comments and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog.

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# cleaning tips # Daily Connoisseur homemaking

11.19.2020

13 Life-Changing Homemaking Secrets from The Secret Garden

The Daily Connoisseur 7:06 AM 6 Comments

My homemaking series continues as we uncover the thirteen life-changing homemaking secrets from Frances Hodgson Burnett's, The Secret Garden.

The following are the thirteen homemaking secrets I derived from The Secret Garden:

An excellent home life can be lived on any budget. Being wealthy doesn’t necessarily equal an excellent home life. Home life is more about comfort than it is about luxury. In chapter 6, “There Was Some One Crying”, Martha talks of the moorland cottage she grew up in with 14 people who lived in four little rooms and never had quite enough to eat. Even though Mary grew up in the lap of luxury, she was attracted to comfort, which was something her parents tried to buy her, but were not successful at providing.

We should actively cultivate the characteristics of a successful homemaker. Martha describes her mother as sensible, hard-working, good-natured and clean. No one could help liking her whether they’d seen her or not (p.58). When Martha is going home to her on her day off, she can’t help jumping for joy when she crosses the moor. As a mother and homemaker, we want to have these characteristics. Everyone in the town, rich or poor, admired Susan Sowerby because of her great character. These are not necessarily the attributes our society appreciates. Think of the “Real Housewives” series, which honors beauty, fame, and wealth. The counter-culture values of Susan Sowerby are great characteristics of a successful homemaker.

When you are feeling like complaining as a homemaker, ask yourself this question: “How do you like yourself?” (p. 59 ) This is something we can ask ourselves when we feel irritated with the other people in our household.

Homemaking is joy and wellness. Martha went away in high spirits as soon as she had given Mary her breakfast. (p. 59) She was going to walk five miles across the moor to the cottage, and she was going to help her mother with the washing and do the week’s baking and enjoy herself thoroughly. Even though Martha was a maid by profession, she still enjoyed cleaning and homemaking. She takes this time to enjoy visiting with her family and serving them. When we view our homemaking as joy and wellness, it will become more enjoyable.

The week’s baking was done once a week. Martha's family did the baking once a week (p. 59). It’s a good idea to designate one day a week to do the baking. I burn-out on baking bread because the thought of doing it everyday is tiresome for me. But I could rally around a “baking day”, especially if the children help me and we have fun doing it.

Boredom awakens children’s imaginations. Page 63 reads, "Living as it were, all by herself in a house with a hundred mysteriously closed rooms and having nothing whatever to do to amuse herself, had set her inactive brain to working and was actually awakening her imagination”. This tip relates to parenting. We are a culture that is afraid of boredom. Our children are placed in front of screens to quell this boredom. They are not allowed to feel bored. This kills creativity. It was boredom that “awakened" Mary’s imagination.

A cozy home full of nice smells from cooking and baking is good enough for a king. Martha reports back from her weekly outing home, helping her mother with the washing and baking (p. 65). She describes her home life as “delightful”. "And the cottage all smelt of nice, clean hot baking and there was a good fire, and they just shouted for joy. Our Dickon he said our cottage was good enough for a king." Even though the family was living in reduced circumstances, they felt their life at home was good enough for a king because of the atmosphere created by their mother.

Children were taught the value of tidiness. When Mary meets Mr. Craven for the first time, she is expected to tidy up her appearance (p. 106). Children should be able to run around and get messy, but it is important for children to understand when to look tidy and respectful and to know when that is appropriate. If they do this as children, they will do this as adults.

Children need liberty to cultivate their imagination. This parenting philosophy is in contrast to the helicopter parenting technique that is popular today. On p. 110 Susan Sowerby’s advice to Mr. Craven was: “Give her simple, healthy food. Let her run wild in the garden. Don’t look after her too much. She needs liberty and fresh air and romping about.” Susan Sowerby is described as “sensible and good-hearted” by Mrs. Medlock and she and Mr. Craven agree that she knows what she is talking about.

They drank “beef tea” to calm down and feel better. On page 165, beef tea was served to Colin and Mary to promote calmness and well-being after all of the excitement from Colin’s tantrum. I like looking at drinks from the past, such as the Cambric Tea in Little House on the Prairie. I did some research on beef tea and found that it was traditionally made from rump meat.

A homemaker wakes up early to be truly inspired. On page 196 in the chapter, “Ben Weatherstaff”, the glory and inspiration of waking up early is described. Successful homemakers tend to wake up early and take inspiration from the new day.

Successful homemakers are problem solvers. On page 230, Dickon praises his mother and says she always sees "a way out of things". Good homemakers are problem solvers and enjoy finding solutions to problems.

Care about what your children care about. Mrs. Sowerby’s care and attention to their secret garden gave them a warm, supported feeling (p. 254). The children were delighted in her presence. She went out of her way to make the children feel special and to convey that she cared about what they cared about. We must remind ourselves of this as both parents and homemakers.

⚜️Featured in the video

Mer Sea Lisbon Travel Sweater

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If you enjoyed this post, check out my Little House on the Prairie homemaking videos. You can find them here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.

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Comment of the Week

Unknown writes:

These are my absolute favorite kinds of videos that you make. I know that they must take a lot of time and effort on your part, so I want to let you know that it is much appreciated! Also, you've inspired me to make the pumpkin bars. They look so good!

Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed making the pumpkin bars. And I appreciate your kind words about my videos.

I hope you enjoyed today's homemaking video. What did you love about The Secret Garden? Let us know the insights you gained from reading this book.

*NEW* Join The Chic Society on YouTube and become a member of The Daily Connoisseur.

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# Daily Connoisseur # homemaking

9.13.2021

Fall Homemaking: Cook, Clean, and Decorate with Me

Pumpkin Custard

Ingredients

Instructions

6.10.2021

10 Life-Changing Homemaking Secrets from Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management

11.19.2020

13 Life-Changing Homemaking Secrets from The Secret Garden

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