April Hope Chest Addition

The hope chest addition for April is a quilted, patchwork table runner.

Just right for a country kitchen.

Charlotte

Bringing Out Memories of My First Dishes

These were the first dishes I had as a new bride in 1960; Fire King Jadite restaurant ware. They were a shower gift from my Aunt Hazel, and I'm pretty sure she took these from her own kitchen.

This line of dinnerware was produced by the Anchor Hocking Company and was used sometimes as a promotional item at gas stations, grocery stores, and small pieces were included in boxes of oatmeal, etc. They carry the mark of Oven Ware on the back.

The pieces were also used in schools and restaurants because of their durability. My plates are called grill plates because of the division in them. They measure 9 1/2 inches across, small in comparison to most plates today (used back in the day before food had to be served in super-sized portions). The mugs are short and heavy; I have all six of them, in perfect condition. The plates have some crazing in the large area. Three were broken, since these were used every day for some years, but I found two in a flea market and paid $2.00 for each since they weren't in perfect condition either.

So, I'll leave out a couple of place settings just for their beauty to be enjoyed, and to remember that they held the first ever-so-humble meals I prepared as a new bride.

Do you have pieces of Fire King dinnerware? Or maybe you might have other dinnerware you had as a new bride? Please share it with us.

I wanted to provide more information on this line of glassware, but Wikipedia is blacked out today. If you're interested perhaps you can find something else on Google.
Charlotte

Kitchen Art

There are some things, stained as they may be, that just belong in the farm kitchen, hanging on the wall. This old flour sack was found among a 92 year old woman's things, after she passed away, and we helped place her possessions in new places. I know, it looks dirty and faded, but it has found a new home in my kitchen.

This collection of antique egg beaters has also found a place on the wall in my kitchen. (This is about one half of them.) The collection started with a beater from Mama, then one from a great aunt, and it grew from there, with many purchased on eBay. Several were beaters I had never seen, such as the ones made to fit over bowls. I was never lucky enough to buy one with its bowl.

While adding to collections, I have learned one shouldn't buy something, regardless of its condition, just because it's available; wait until an article that is in good condition becomes available. You'll be happier with it.

Smiles, Charlotte

Making New Like the Old

This little green cabinet belonged to my husband's grandmother. We called it a Hooiser cabinet although it was not an original Hooiser. The term "Hoosier" referred to free-standing kitchen cabinets with porcelain work tops, roll doors, and built-in floor sifters. Many also had tin bread drawers, sugar jars, spice jars, pull out bread boards, and could store cooking utensils, dishes, and most staple items found in kitchens. In other words, the Hoosier was the kitchen cabinet.

For years I had wanted a Hoosier; we had looked at ads for farm auctions in Kansas where there would almost always be cabinets for sale. As I have mentioned before, not many good items can be found in our area; this was simply a part of the country where people were mostly too poor to have much of anything that would have lasted throughout the day-to-day use of big families. So, my husband took paper and pencil in hand, measured the little green cabinet, and made one for me one cold winter.

It is made from oak, harvested from our farm. Not every detail is the same as the original; it has no rolling door, and no flour sifter. He had purchased a used flour sifter but we decided the extra storage space was more important. My spices go behind the upper door and drinking glasses behind the lower door. The counter has a Formica top, and pulls out for a perfect place to roll out pie crusts. The lower portion of the cabinet holds cookware, measuring cups, etc., and storage containers. The glass in the upper doors of the green cabinet were etched, but mine have been left plain for now. I sorta like the looks of a calico print hanging behind them.

To the left of the cabinet is my cook stove, and "yes" I do cook on it, for if you look closely you can tell it is electric. This is another new thing, made to look old; an authentic replica of the old fashioned kitchen range. It is made of cast iron from patterns of old wood-burning stoves. They are (were, at least; I've had mine since 1998) manufactured by The House of Webster, in Rogers, AR. Now I have to admit, I don't use the oven very often; it's pretty small so I have a standard size range also to bake in. Just ignore the wooden blocks it's sitting on; they were supposed to be replaced with a tiled platform, but you know how "honey-do" lists get shoved aside. The floor is pine, which is a soft wood, and since the stove is so heavy we figured it would make dents in the floor. I guess it really wouldn't matter since the stove is not going anywhere. They've darkened over time and don't show up as much now. Well, that's a partial peek at my country kitchen which is outfitted with free-standing cabinets, much like an old kitchen would have been.

Oh, by the way, the little green cabinet has been refinished, and now sits in the beautiful new home of my sister-in-law and her husband.