We're your source for unique rustic home furnishings, accessories and nostalgia. Volume I, Issue 2 ~ September 2007
Our goal is to provide you with information and resources to maximize your creation of a simpler life.
Welcome to the Autumn Edition of "Nook News" ~
In this 'Back to School' Autumn Edition of Nook News you'll find two new columns that we're sure your going to look for in forthcoming issues of Nook News. "Miss Matilda Says..." is packed with helpful hints and tips to simplify your rustic lifestyle. "Wilbur's Wonders"- will astonish and entertain you with stories of amazing feats and other oddities. Nook News contains fabulous rustic decorating ideas for inside and out, tasty country recipes, handy hints and tips, rustic travel ideas, coffee breaks, a few chuckles and everything in between! OH - and don't forget to look for the new promotions/coupons section of this edition of Nook News. Although our site is still a work in progress, we encourage you to look around and visit some of our affiliate sites. As we continuously scout for new information to share with you, we will be developing new columns and we welcome your ideas for a column. Who knows? You may find yourself being a guest columnist! So, please, continue reading Nook Newsand be sure to visit us at www.northcountrynook.com as many times as you like and be sure to recommend us to your entire address book!
♦ You don't have to invest lots of time and money to help re-create a rooms decor:
►Here are a few affordable decorating ideas to freshen up a room over a weekend, check these out:
If you don't use coasters on your wood tables and you have those pesky water rings on the wood try this handy hint: • Spread baking soda over the stain and buff it with a damp cloth going with the grain of the wood. Wipe up the baking soda residue with a fresh clean cloth and apply a lemon oil furniture treatment...bye bye water rings.
1. Rearrange Your Furniture- pull the furniture away from the walls. Try positioning it at interesting angles: such as- a sofa arranged diagonally across a narrow living room will make the room look wider.
2. Paint A Wall- by painting one wall a contrasting color you can make it a focal point. Try hanging interesting art there and put a nice piece of furniture there. Hey--when you choose the color, make sure it is shared by other pieces in the room... if your living room is primarily green... keep it real don't paint the wall sky blue unless there are other accents in the room that have sky blue in/on them!
3. Bring The Outdoors In! Live Plants always adds a breath of fresh air to a room and if you feel like you can't even keep a cactus alive... try using silk plants and trees. Have you even looked at silk greenery lately? They are so realistic now that you can hardly tell the difference (until you dust them that is!) 4. How about An Area Rug?- An area rug can really pull a conversation area together. Find one that complements your room and it colors and textures.Try angling it beneath your coffee table. 5. Hang Pictures or a Mirror- You'll find lots of rustic pictures and conversational items through www.northcountrynook.com. Try pictures with stick frames or something a bit more ornate. If your gonna hang a mirror, try hanging it so that it reflects a nice view or maybe some neat collectibles in the room. Oh hey... speaking of collectibles....
6. Show Off Your Collectibles- are your favorite collectibles packed away? Pull them out and display them proudly. Show off your personality. Find a display area and group related objects together, in sets of three or five. Try varying the shapes.
7. Got Pillows?- Check it out ~ decorative pillows are a quick an easy way to add textures and patterns to a room. AND- you can change them any time you want to add drama or character to a room. Why not make pillow cases for every season and holiday? 8. Lamp Lights Lacking?- Are your table lamps older than you? Don't think others will notice? Wrong-O! Lamps are probably the one thing in your home that will give others a clue that your room is not retro but yuck-o. There are lots of rustic lighting options available to uh- 'brighten' up a room. 9. Toss A Throw Or Knit an Afghan- Just like decorative pillows, afghans and throws add affordable character, color and texture to your room. Discover a new way to add color and style by tossing your favorite throw onto the sofa or love seat or your resident couch potato! 10. Just Say NO to Clutter- "...if your done with it, put it away." How many time have we heard that growing up? Now we know why, clutter has a way of kill the mood in any room. Be proactive and dedicate storage space to all the clutter and tuck it away until you need it.
Here are some of our favorite sites to shop and play at ⇒
'Tails' of the strange and other intriguing facts about this world we live in... Strange Doughnut Facts --Doughnuts originated in 16th-century Holland. They were cooked in oil, and were so greasy that the Dutch called them olykoeks, or "oily cakes." The Pilgrims, who'd lived in Holland, bought the cakes with them when they came to America. Their version: a round doughy ball about the size of a nut - a doughnut. The origin of the hole in the doughnut: Captain Hanson Gregory, a 19th-century Maine sea captain, was eating a doughnut while sailing through a storm. Suddenly the ship rocked violently and threw him against the ship's wheel impaling his cake on one of its spokes. Seeing how well the spoke held his cake, Gregory began ordering all of his cakes with holes in them. Doughnuts were popularized in the U.S. after the Salvation Army fed doughnuts - cooked in garbage pails and served on bayonets to troops during World War I. Soldiers got so hooked on them that they were called "doughboys." The French have a doughnut they call pet de nonne, or "Nun's Fart." According to legend, a nun living in the abbey of Marmoutier was preparing food when she farted, and the other nuns laughed at her. She was so embarrassed that she dropped the spoonful of dough she was holding into a pot of boiling water - accidentally making a doughnut. Doughnut-dunking was first popularized at the Roseland Ballroom in the '20s, when actress Mae Murray slipped and accidentally thrust a doughnut into a cup of coffee. The glazed doughnut is almost three times as popular as any other type of doughnut.
THE CANNING OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES BY THE OPEN KETTLE METHOD (Used principally for fruits).
Directions
FRUIT for canning should be fresh, firm, of good quality, and not over-ripe; if over-ripe, some of the spores may survive the boiling, then fermentation will take place in a short time.
For canning fruit, allow one-third its weight in sugar, and two and one-half to three cups water to each pound of sugar. Boil sugar and water ten minutes to make a thin syrup; then cook a small quantity of the fruit at a time in the syrup; by so doing, fruit may be kept in perfect shape. Hard fruits, like pineapple and quince, are cooked in boiling water until nearly soft, then put in syrup to finish cooking. Sterilized jars are then filled with fruit, and enough syrup added to overflow jars. If there is not sufficient syrup, add boiling water, as jars must be filled to overflow. Introduce a spoon between fruit and jar, that air bubbles may rise to the top and break; then quickly put on rubbers and screw on sterilized covers. Let stand until cold, again screw covers, being sure this time that jars are air-tight. While filling jars, place them on a cloth wrung out of hot water.
To Sterilize Jars
Wash jars and fill with cold water. Set in a kettle on a trivet, and surround with cold water. Heat gradually to boiling-point, remove from water, empty, and fill while hot. Put covers in hot water and let stand five minutes. Dip rubber bands in hot water, but do not allow them to stand. New rubbers should be used each season, and care must be taken that rims of covers are not bent, as jars cannot then be hermetically sealed.
Fanny Farmer's Strawberry Preserves
Pick over, wash, drain, and hull strawberries; then weigh. Fill glass jars with berries. Make a syrup by boiling three-fourths their weight in sugar with water, allowing one cup to each pound of sugar. As soon as syrup reaches boiling-point, skim, and add strawberries, a few at a time, that fruit may better keep in shape during cooking. Cook the syrup fifteen minutes. Add syrup to overflow jars; let stand fifteen minutes, when fruit will have shrunk, and more fruit must be added to fill jars. Screw on covers, put on a trivet in a kettle of cold water, heat water to boiling-point, and keep just below boiling-point one hour.
Raspberries may be preserved in the same way.
Elementary, My Dear Watson
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson go on a camping trip, set up their tent, and fall asleep. Some hours later, Holmes wakes his faithful friend.
"Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see."
Watson replies, "I see millions of stars."
"What does that tell you?"
Watson ponders for a minute. "Astronomically speaking, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, it tells me that Saturn is in Leo. Timewise, it appears to be approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, it's evident the Lord is all-powerful and we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, it seems we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What does it tell you?"
Holmes is silent for a moment, then speaks. "Watson, you idiot, someone has stolen our tent."
Sweet Potato Pie
Ingredients
3 c. sweet potato
3/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
2 eggs
2 c. milk
Directions
To the sweet potatoes add the dry ingredients and the unbeaten eggs, and then beat the mixture thoroughly. Pour in the milk and stir well. Turn into a partly baked pie crust, place in a moderate oven, and bake until the filling is set.
CS Laroche Elite Enterprises, Inc.
Alexandria, NH 03222
'Tails' of the strange and other intriguing facts about this world we live in...
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