From Mama's Kitchen
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...for those who savor the look and flavors of yesterday's kitchen... |
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July 2006
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Mama's Kitchen is a free newsletter about kitchen collectibles. This newsletter is designed to be entertaining and educational, but also a dialogue among those who have a fondness for kitchen items of all kinds. I hope you'll join us for a few memories, giggles, laughs and some useful information about kitchen collectibles. I am not an expert in any field, but I have been buying and selling kitchen items for over 9 years and loving them for a lifetime. Remember collecting anything should be fun. This is especially true when you can use your collection on a daily basis. Please let me know if there is a particular item you would like featured in upcoming issues. |
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Do you remember Dime Stores? The places we would spend hours dreaming over glassware, jewelry and movie magazines ? I have been taking a nostalgic trip back to my Woolworth and Ben Franklin Days when I aspired to be a Dime Store Clerk. I didn’t think anyone could have a more glamorous job. I am fascinated by trivia that is related to the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s era, and especially the kitchen. I thought I would share a few of my most recently learned facts about the history of Dime Store Glass. All of these great facts can be found in the book, “Depression Era Dime Store Glass”, Schiffer Publications, 1999, by C.L. Miller.
...in 1880, the five-and-ten cent stores had a reputation as being the poor person’s department store. ...At Kresge’s, the policy of “Nothing Over 10 cents In Store” prevailed until World War I, when inflation finally forced prices up. ...It was estimated that between 75 to 95 percent of the business was with women, and a location distasteful to women hindered sales. ...Proximity to a pool room, barber shop, or places where men congregated....detracted from the value of a location. ...the best type of “Salesgirls” were girls who lived at home and were not altogether dependent on employment for their financial existence. ...”Moonstone” was a line of expensive looking glassware in the Early American Hobnail pattern made by the Anchor Hocking Glass Company of Lancaster, Ohio....advertising noted that “Dime store counters were not complete unless they included “Moonstone.” ...Fire King Tulip, Red Dot and Black Dot nesting bowl sets sold for $2.95. ...a ten piece Blue Sapphire Ovenware set consisting of one 1 1/2 quart casserole, two 8 3/8” pie plates, and six 6 oz. individual bakers sold for $1.00. ... In 1942 Kontanerettes sold by Indiana Glass came in four sizes of jars with a revolving, ball-bearing tray. 3 jar set $.85; 4 jar set $1.00; 5 jar set $2.50; 6 jar set $3.50. ...In 1941 a 17 piece Home Baker set of Pyrex Bakeware sold for $2.95. ...In 1954 Pyrex bakeware was made in colors to match the dinnerware. the four colors were Flamingo, Lime, Turquoise, and Dove Gray. ...Matched crystal stemware was shipped from facilities in West Virginia. No company trademark was provided. this stemware was a fine quality, clear, thin-blown crystal.....beautifully cut and smartly styled.
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Save your wood ash, strain or sift it and place it in an ash hopper and hang it outside until it rains. What is left is lye. You have to drain the ash with the rainwater so your soap will be pretty and white. This is called leaching wood ashes. After the draining, strain the left over product one more time. When you have enough lye to make a batch of soap (this would be the same as a box of Merrywar Lye that you buy in the supermarket) get the fire going under the kettle. Use old skins and fats to cook out about five pounds of grease. When it is all cooked out, strain the grease away and throw out the skins and cooked out fat pieces. Put your lye and grease in the wash kettle and cook over the fire stirring with the same paddle we rendered lard with in the hog killing. This soap when finished cooking will be snow white. The more modern way is to use five pounds of grease (regular bacon grease as long as it isn’t burnt works just fine) and a box of store bought Merrywar Lye. Put this is the wash kettle over a just right temperature fire and the finished product is lye soap. |
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Carol Dietrich from Ridley Park, Pennsylvania sent this recipe to share. I tried these and Carol was right. My grandchildren devoured them and screamed for more.
Recipe for:
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Open Face Sandwiches |
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| Put ketchup on white bread, lightly fry some bacon. Put American cheese on ketchup bread then 3 slices of bacon. Put under the broiler for a few minutes. |
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The Clothesline Winder 
Before the days of permanent clotheslines in the backyard, you used rope and two trees. The line was often supported by an old tree branch with a fork in it. After you were through, you would wind your rope for storage on a contraption such as the one pictured. The handles turned making it easy to store your rope in an untangled neat way ready to use on the next washday. I’ve never found a book value on these but I’ve seen them priced anywhere from $10.00 to $35.00. Do you have an odd piece of kitchenalia that you'd care to share or ask others to help you identify? Just e-mail a picture and your thoughts to mamas@tias.com and we'll post it and any responses here. |
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Washday Blues - Laundry Memorabilia There are a large group of collectors out there who hunt for anything that is laundry related. Laundry rooms are often hidden away in basements or little rooms that are disguised as closets. I guess most people wouldn’t think of decorating them. I’ve noticed a new enthusiasm for this kind of decorating lately. There’s a wide market to choose from and most of it is very affordable. The most common is the one pictured first which is the everyday washboard. The second is a laundry fork which was used to stir or agitate your laundry when doing it in an old wash kettle before there were machines.
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The third is a box of Duz detergent. Old detergent boxes have become very sought after for their visual appeal when decorating. The last is a Ransburg soap dispenser which was used to hold laundry soap. These are great accent pieces for the laundry or kitchen. |
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Kitchens used to be the gathering place for most of the everyday activity. They were used not only for cooking, but it was where children did their homework, card games were played, mom often did her sewing or mending, ironing was done and every Monday was washday. Whole days were devoted to doing the laundry on Monday and the ironing on Tuesday. In the days before everyone had a washer and dryer and no one had thought of a Laundromat, we would gather to do laundry with my grandmother who was the proud owner of a Maytag wringer washer. This came to her later in life and it was more important to her than any amount of money you could have given her. It meant no more hand scrubbing the clothes in her kitchen sink, or doing bed linens in a wash kettle outside. My mother and I would sit with her while she watched each load agitate. I would get to feed the clothes through the wringer as she turned the handle. I thought it was better than a carnival ride and now that I think about it, this was probably my first introduction to a modern gadget. Hanging the clothes out to dry and bringing them in was a chore. After all this was done, you got to sprinkle everything with water again, roll it up, and tote it home so it would be ready for ironing on Tuesday which would also take all day. It took me years to break the habit of washing on Monday and I admit the day that blessed person invented Permanent Press, I gave up ironing for good. Terri Schrott wrote:
…. Your story about your grandmother’s meringue made me remember all the things my mother could make with just a simple fork. My mama had a very “old timey” kitchen with very few gadgets, no fancy equipment and hardly any counter space; but she could turn out some wonderful, huge meals for our family of seven….. How she made the smooth, brown Southern gravy (that started with a roux) with only a fork, I’ll never know. I have a hard time with a whisk. Chickens….reminded me so much of my Daddy….His mama raised chickens and turkeys when he was a boy in middle Georgia in the early 20s. He too had the job of catchin’, killin’, and pluckin’ hens and turkeys and it gave him a life-long aversion to what he called “foul fowl”. He never ate chicken or turkey after he left home and married my mom. If any of us had chicken we ordered it on the few occasions we went out to eat or we ate it at my grandmother’s house who served fried chicken or chicken and dumplings every Sunday. On Thanksgiving my mom did roast a turkey and my daddy would find something to do outside in the yard or his garage workshop all day so he didn’t have to smell it cooking. He always claimed he was allergic to chicken but we knew better!
Diane wrote:
My grandma used to make Johnny Cakes for my brother and me! It was the same thing except she had a couple of tiny child sized pans that she made them in….they sure were good!
Rhonda Spencer wrote:
I think it had to do with biorhythms or something, because I too am piecrust impaired. I simply can’t make it decently, no way, no how…I can’t get super glue to actually work either. I wonder if there is a connection.
Thank you all for writing to me and I’m so happy to know that I’m not alone with the super glue thing.
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To remove oil stains, rub the area with a piece of lime dipped in salt, and then wash with soap. Evelyn McCarthy passed along this tip for us to try:
Brillo pads get rusty very quickly. I tried placing them in a clay flower pot saucer….I can use them for a very long time or until the soap is used up.
Have you got a great kitchen tip or question, please send it along to mamas@tias.com |
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The home page of Mama's Treasures has been revamped to make it easier for you to find your favorite collectibles. I've also added a new category called the "Half Price Table." Any item ordered from this category will be discounted 50% after the order is placed. Joining my mailing list also makes you eligible for promotional coupons and advance notice of sales. 20% Off orders of $50.00 or more starting July 1st. See store for details and exclusions. New items added includeHazel Atlas Refrigerator Jars; Kitchen Gadgets from the 60s &70s; Maid Of Honor Aqua Utensils; Federal & Hazel Atlas Glasses; Green Bakelite Utensils; Anchor Chip N Dip In Original Box; Tipp City Flower Spice Set; Green Stripe Barrel Range Shakers; Kromex Pink Spice Set, Canister Set & S&P Set; Kromex Aluminum Range and Spice Set; Androck Bakelite Bullet Utensils; West Bend Canister Set; Federal Dot Bowls; Libby Orange Juice Glasses; Ransburg Canister Sets; Tomato Juice Glasses; Texasware and Brookpark Bowls; Vintage Aprons; Cookbooks & Potholders; Pyrex Primary Color and Pink Bowls; Wesson Oil Mayonnaise Beater Jar; Pyrex Flameware Teapots, Coffeepots, & Double Boilers; Vintage Sewing & Hankies; Primitives and much more. Drop by and visit at www.tias.com/stores/mamas I love to chat, answer questions and we always consider reasonable offers. |
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- What's it worth? Try Kovels' free online price guide to over 300,000 antiques and collectibles. It can be found online at http://www.kovels.com
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Thank you for reading! Thanks for reading! Feel free to forward this to a friend. |
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