Growing up, my family owned a small business: a hardware store. It was a multi-generationally owned Home Hardware in a small Kawartha village. My grandparents, parents, brother, me, and even my husband, all worked there over the span of decades.
I didn’t realize it at the time but I learned a lot of valuable things during my time at the hardware. My grandparents and parents believed in working hard, and passed that down to us. There are some skills I’ll never forget. I still know how to cut down a box with a jack knife lickety-split. I can mix paint, and cut a key, measure rope, identify what type of screwdriver you need, find you an ‘o’ ring, and on and on.
It only seems fitting that on our adventures antiquing I am always on the look out for a yardstick with my family store’s logo on it. We still have one of the wooden yardsticks that we used at the hardware, and it is attached to a table that we restored and now use as a desk. But it would be such a treat to find another one, out there in the world.
Last weekend, my husband and I were antiquing and the shop we were in had a barrel of wooden yardsticks. They were all from different companies and stores. Each one was just a little bit different. Some were thick, some thin, some so well worn from use and others in mint condition. As my eyes quickly scanned over the yardsticks I spotted a vintage home hardware one! And then to my surprise, another one, in the same bin! How could this be? It wasn’t from our family’s exact store, but it was still Home Hardware.
I’m so excited. I’m going to keep one for myself (it’s going to live in my craft room), and the other I’m going to give to my Dad.
What does he plan on doing with this treasure? Well, as of late he’s having a challenging time putting on his shoes. He finds that a wooden yardstick is the perfect tool to slip his foot into his shoe without bending (like a shoe horn). Now, he can use a familiar tool for this daily task. And hopefully it puts a smile on his face and brings back some happy memories of squeaky floors and days gone by.
P.S. The logos are slightly different, and I think my Dad will probably be able to identify how old the yard sticks are according to the style of the logo. I’ll keep you posted with what he says.
Update: So, automatically, my Dad said that the yardstick without the outline is the older of the two yard sticks (I knew he would know right away). He also shared with me that they would often give wooden yardsticks away for free. They would order 100 of them and when they were running low they would order more. It was a great way to advertise on something that would still be useful to the customer. So happy I’m still always finding ways to learn from my family.
We always make my Grama’s famous buns when family is going to be home. They are a special treat and the smell brings me right back to my childhood. We always do a knot for these buns. But I thought it would be fun to change it up and try something new for Spring.
There were a couple of different “styles” of bunny buns that were circulating throughout Pinterest that caught my eye. One type simply rolled the dough into a ball. Then you snipped two ears in the top of the bun. This was done with some scissors and the you added two eyes with skewers.
The other method was rolling the dough into a long strip and then folding it over itself and then twisting to make the ears, and adding a little ball of dough for the tail.
We decided to go with the roll and twist for our bunny buns this time. It took a little time to get into the swing of things and get the shape just right. It proved a little trickier than we thought. Needless to say, some of the bunny buns were beautiful and perfectly smooth bunnies and others were well bumpy, lumpy, lopsided bunnies!
At the end of the day, the house was filled with the wonderful scent of homemade buns and even though some were not perfect looking they all tasted delicious!
Last year we made our new pollinator garden using a variety of West Coast Seeds. The results last summer were stunning. We had great success with all of the seed varieties in the seed packets.
In a previous blog post I wrote about the importance of keeping old growth in place. Keeping old stems and dried flower heads intact over the winter helps overwintering insects. This method offers protection for bees and insects to “winter” over, creating a safe place to stay during the colder months.
The other day I thought I noticed some spots of green among the old growth. Today, I began removing the woody stems, dried flower heads, and crumpled up leaves in the garden. I happily found lots of new growth had already started.
The wonderful thing about perennials is that they come back year after year. I am most looking forward to seeing the poppies bloom. In my childhood home we had poppies, and we could never get them to grow at our past houses (until now). I just love the delicate petals and the way they sway in the breeze.
The first step in Spring is to remove all the debris and old growth from the garden. Then, when the daytime temperatures start to get a little warmer, you till up the soil around the existing plants with a trowel. This loosens the soil and removes the areas where it’s been compacted over the winter. I also add in some fresh compost and a top layer of new soil. This step adds richness and nutrients back into the flowerbed for the growing season ahead.
I am looking forward to seeing what the garden has to hold for us this Summer. Let’s get growing!
After a closer look at these photos, I discovered that I need to give my gardening pruners a spa day!
The season of Spring represents new beginnings and growth. It is a time of new buds, raindrops, and flowers blooming. I always find that Spring is an opportunity to get excited about warmer weather and getting to see nature start to green up after the long winter.
I love adding Spring decor items to our home. A vase of fresh tulips on the table, new greenery and florals on the mantle, and a tiered tray to display Spring themed things in the kitchen.
Mixing old and new curiosities is a great way to add details to these arrangements. I have collected quite a few different tiered trays over the years from both antique markets and home decor stores, and like how their height shows off my arrangements. I have a few cupboards that I keep my seasonal collections in (well, maybe more than a few, if you ask my husband). These cupboards are my go-to when I am creating a seasonally themed display.
I have collected many vintage items over the years for all the seasons, but some of my favourites are for Spring. I found a vintage mini watering can ornament at an antique market last year, as well as an old wire egg basket, to add to my collection.
I usually always make my decor trays different from the year before. It is a pretty organic process, where I start selecting items and then just play around with placement and adding items here and there. I am super pleased with how this year’s Spring tray turned out. Whenever I look at it, I’m reminded for a wonderful moment of happy Spring things.
Last year I wrote a blog post about updating my front door wreath for Spring, and this year I’m looking to change it up again. I’m using a more expensive green wreath as a neutral base so that I can update and change it in many different ways.
Last year I chose to use yellow flowers and yellow and white faux spring buds, but this year I decided to go in a different direction. On a trip to Micheal’s I was looking up and down the aisles for something that would catch my eye. Low and behold I spotted a lovely basket filled with faux oranges and greenery. The mini oranges looked like mandarins and looked good enough to eat.
I chose three sprigs to add to my wreath and then thought it needed one more simple step. I ended up finding a beautiful open weave orange ribbon that was just delicate enough for a bow.
So, in two simple steps I created an entirely new look for this Spring!
I am so excited to announce my Etsy shop launch! Introducing to you made by mum market, a place to find handmade creations made with intention by me!
Just over a year ago, with lots of family support I began my blog – made by mum. I have loved writing blog posts and creating content that I am proud of. The etsy shop just seemed like the next natural step in this adventure.
As with anything new, there are always worries about how it will go, will it be successful, what if I fail? But as we always tell our kids – you need to try. I am surrounded by so much support and love and no matter how this little shop turns out, I am proud of myself for trying something that I never thought I would have the courage to do.
So if you want to go and check out my little market at made by mum market on etsy that would be wonderful.
What do you do with a bunch of stale croissants that you couldn’t eat fast enough? Well of course, you look up on Pinterest what to make. I was quite surprised to find that there are actually several things you can do with them. Bread puddings, croutons, French toast, and the list goes on.
We decided on French toast. I landed on Dinner then Dessert’s recipe called Croissant French Toast Bake. This was an easy to follow recipe and I had all the ingredients that I needed on hand. I altered the recipe slightly by adding in some frozen mixed berries.
This smelled delicious while it cooked in the oven and made the perfect weekend lunch with a dusting of icing sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup! Yum!
Both my parents have had milestone birthdays in the last 6 months. My Dad turned 80 in November and my Mom is turning 75 this week! When I look at them both I don’t really see them as older. They walk everyday, do their own groceries, love taking Milo for walks, and are both in good health.
I wanted to get my Mom a card to mark this birthday but was having trouble finding one that I liked, so I decided to make my own.
I have played around with watercolours before but I am so happy with how this turned out! I outlined 75 and then started filling in the white space with watercolour flowers and leaves. I let the flowers dry in between adding more layers and this definitely helped to give it a little more depth.
The final step is to outline the numbers with a permanent marker. I was going to erase the pencil line, but I think that I could mess up the line. I don’t want to take any chances.
So the next time you are searching for the perfect card, maybe you should just make your own!
Over the holidays I had the opportunity to visit one of my favourite local coffee shops, Roam Coffee in downtown Bowmanville. I had a selection from their seasonal Winter Menu: the Salted Honey Bourbon Latte. It was so delicious! My husband and I opted to have our warm drinks at a table rather than our usual to-go cups.
There really is nothing like a warm drink in a fabulous cup. If you get the chance I highly recommend visiting Roam. Try and sample their wonderful drink menu, and their amazing homemade treats.
A little glimpse of our Christmas cookie baking and decorating. A few years ago my daughter and I went to a cookie decorating evening with my work. My co-workers’ mom had her own cookie business and she ran a little evening workshop. We learned tips and techniques to create the perfect cookie.
I am usually pretty good at trying new things and on my first attempts I did not do very well. This is so much harder than it looks. You need a steady hand and a lot of patience. I honestly don’t know how these small business’ crank out hundreds of intricately decorated cookies.
As a family we decided to try cookie decorating at home. My adult kids loved it so much that we now do it as a yearly Christmas activity. Our skill levels are all over, and sometimes one cookie turns out amazing and the next is a flop. We continue have our yearly cookie decorating evening and there are always lots of laughs.
Also as an insider tip – sprinkles fix everything!