Sale at Farmhouse Wares

REDISCOVER THE EASY CHARM OF COUNTRY LIVING

WITH FARMHOUSE WARES.

TAKE 15% OFF ANY PURCHASE.

JUST ENTER THE CODE "charm" UPON CHECKOUT.

Offer valid now through October 31st.

Discount applies to our Flea Market section as well.

Not valid on previous orders. While supplies last.

Get Your Garden Ready for Sping

Many garden centers are running sales on their perennials right now, so it’s a great time to do some last-minute gardening. One plant that I highly recommend sticking in the ground now is lungwort. This is a spring charmer. If you’re like me, and you can’t wait for some color to start popping in the garden then this is the plant for you. One of the first plants to bloom, lungwort is packed with gorgeous little flowers that range from pink to lavender. The silvery spotted foliage lends interest to the garden for the remainder of the season. It grows vigorously and is very easy to transplant, so one little plant will eventually fill many gardens.

Exposure: Shade to part shade (will tolerate some sun if kept moist)

Height: 12-13 inches (low grower--perfect for borders)

Zone: 4-9

Latin name: Pulmonaria

You can buy one here.

Boston You're My Home

Heading to Boston for some chowdah and some cultchah. Click here to get a little taste. Go Red Sox. See you Monday.

Antiqued Mercury Glass Hurricanes

I spotted our Antiqued Mercury Glass Hurricanes in the November 2008 issue of Country Living. They used the large one as a vase. Gorgeous! So perfect for a holiday setting.

All the better to kiss you with

Get ready to care for your lips this winter. We're offering free shipping on our new organic lip balm gift set. All the better to kiss you with includes three certified organic lip balms in vintage tins: Pepperminty, Lavender Vanilla and Chai Mandarin--so yummy and healthy. Offer ends October 19th or while supplies last.

Discover

Just imagine the things you could discover this weekend. See you Tuesday!

Photo from wikipedia.

I heart this handmade pillow

I love this pillow made by artist Mary Beth. She scours the tag sales and flea markets for vintage materials--hankies, linens, doilies, buttons, you name it. One could say her pillows are made from the fabric of our lives. Certainly, they're recycling at its best.

Trick or Treat

All Halloween items are on sale now at Farmhouse Wares.

Halloween Lanterns

My daughter keeps me on my toes trying to come up with Halloween craft projects. I didn't have any new craft materials to play with, but luckily the house always seems well-stocked with construction paper, glitter pens and markers. You can do a lot with just those tools. We added the glitter pipe cleaners as handles to make them look more like lanterns; however, I wouldn't think of lighting a match near these cuties. Try those little battery operated tea lights instead. They work great.

Fit for a Queen

My newest addiction is this Royal Jelly Body Butter by the Savannah Bee Company. I fell in love with their Blackberry Honey Hand Soap, and this cream, with its subtle blackberry scent, complements the soap perfectly.

Savannah Bee Company, makers of luxurious honey products, says, "The most precious product of the hive, Royal Jelly is a 'Cinderella' substance that turns a worker bee into a Queen...and allows her to live 40 times longer than the average bee as a result. Replete with a multitude of vitamins, proteins, lipids and sugars, this amazing natural substance is known for its nourishing and deep moisturizing properties--as well as its ability to promote skin's elasticity and a smooth appearance."

This is one worker bee who enjoys being Queen--not to mention all the benefits my skin has been enjoying. It is beautifully packaged too, which makes it a great gift, fit for a Queen (of course).

spice things up with tsp spices

If you like to cook or bake then you must check out our tsp spices. These organic spices come individually wrapped in teaspoon-sized packages. The benefit behind this clever concept is that herbs and spices stay fresher for longer. Ground spices can lose their potency over time, but tsp spices are perfectly measured and freshly sealed in convenient single use packages for longer-lasting freshness. Each spice tin contains 12 one-teaspoon packets.

The other great thing is tsp spices are organic. The makers, Katie Luber and Sara Engram support organic agriculture because it limits the use of potentially harmful chemicals. Organic crops are better for our health and the health of our kids and their kids and so on. Organic crops are also safer for farm workers to handle and easier on the land. Organic supports sustainable and healthier farming practices. TSP Spices proudly displays their organic certification to assure you that their products are high quality and free of the additives or fillers that are often found in spices.

tsp spices Sweet Basics Collection: contains one tin each of organic allspice, organic anise seed, organic cardamom, organic Korintje cinnamon, organic cloves and organic nutmeg. For baking sweets or blending chai, reach for tsp spices' Sweet Basics. This set offers the perfect combination for all your sweetly spicy needs.

tsp spices Green Basics Collection: contains one tin each of organic basil, organic dill, organic oregano, organic rosemary, organic tarragon and organic thyme.

Featured in this month’s Cottage Living.

A Fall Garden Favorite

The Limelight Hydrangea is the plant that keeps on giving. In mid summer she explodes with cool greenish white flowers. As the blooms mature they turn creamy white, and they put on quite a show. But the real show is in early autumn. The flowers age to pink and red. When everything else in the garden is pretty much spent, this hydrangea gives you her best performance. The blooms are so reliable every year. She never disappoints me. Another bonus is the flowers make gorgeous bouquets or they can be dried for winter arrangements. She even looks good in the winter--her faded, wheat-colored blooms look pretty against the white snow.

Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Height: 6-8' tall and 6-8' wide
Hardy to: -40C
Zone: 3
Latin name: Hydrangea paniculata

You can buy a Limelight Hydrangea here.

The Good Envelope Party

Have you heard of the Good Envelope Party? Thanks to my daily dose of Daily Candy, I'm now loop. Clever and caring, The Good Envelope Party is a bi-monthly women's collective in Silver Lake, California. They make handmade recycled stationery from salvaged books and magazines, with love, for the good of others and the earth. These unique envelopes and recycled card inserts are voluntarily made for the purpose of donating their profits. Proceeds are directly donated to non-profit organizations, underfunded schools, and local families struggling to fulfill their basic needs. You go girls!

A Tomato Tip

The following entry is from my adorable hubby. He's really the cook in the family. Enjoy!

The last tomatoes of the season sit on my kitchen windowsill. The sun has ripened them to near perfection. They’ll be just right by Saturday, when I’ll put them up for the winter.

I tried for years to store fresh tomatoes by following the standard recipe for freezing tomatoes: clean them, peel them (optional), quarter them, (add garlic and other seasoning, if desired) and simmer them with a little water until reduced by about half. Then freeze them in Tupperware or plastic bags.

I followed the simple directions, and was happy with initial outcome. The simple reduction was fresh and tasty when it came out of the pot. But come winter, when I pulled out a container to add a splash of summer to a meal, I found the tomatoes covered in frost and freezer-burned.

Then a friend gave me a simple tip that lets me keep fresh tomatoes year round. All you to do, I learned, is make sure to fill the container ALL the way to the top, almost to overflowing. The key to freezing is to make sure to get ALL the air out of the container. That’s it. So simple, but it makes ALL the difference.Another great thing about freezing—and a reason to consider freezing throughout the summer months—is that you can use vegetables that you might hesitate to use in a salad or side dish because they’re bruised or checked. It’s a way to get great value from your garden or by purchasing the vegetables that grocers and farm stands often set aside on a discount shelf.

Blissful Images

I can't stop drooling over the gorgeous images available at blissful images new etsy shop. There's something so gentle and soothing about them. You must check them out or visit her blissful blog.

Hazel the Owl

My husband's grandma was all about owls. She had a bathroom filled with owl pictures that we used to call "the room with a thousand eyes". I love this owl photo from blissful images, found via design*sponge.

Fall Celebration Sale at Farmhouse Wares

CELEBRATE FALL WITH A SALE FROM FARMHOUSE WARES.
SAVE 15% OFF ANY ORDER NOW THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30th.

ENTER CODE "fall08" UPON CHECKOUT.

(offer good while supplies last. not valid on previous purchases.)

Blue Corn Pancake Mix

Try something new for breakfast. Blue corn, a staple of Southwest native foods, has a hearty texture and nutlike flavor and is appreciated for its nutrional value. Our Kenyon's Blue Corn Pancake Mix makes a healthy way to start your day.

Try this ideal bite

Read Theresa's ideal bite blog entry today, then come back and try our McEvoy Ranch Organic Olive Oil.

Pumpkin Carving

My daughter woke up early on Saturday and declared it pumpkin carving day. We had fun going to the farm stands and seeing the loads of pumpkins just in--fresh from the fields. When we got home she was ready to start carving. While she was all about the traditional Jack-O'-Lantern, I thought I'd carve our house numbers because we're in the process of painting the front door and we had to take the numbers down. Here's how I did it:

Using Word, I created a template by selecting a type style and making the text size 650. I printed and trimmed them into rectangles. I taped them into place and used a sharp tool, such as a toothpick, to poke small holes, creating an outline around the numbers. Then I just carved away.

Keep on the Sunny Side

Have a cozy weekend everyone. Keep on the sunny side.

Watch the video. It will make you happy.

Poison Ivy Relief

Poison Ivy is so sneaky and vicious this time of year. Everything is so overgrown that it makes it harder to spot. I was working in the garden like a mad woman, pulling weeds and cleaning out. I was on a roll, when suddenly I realized I had just pulled a clump of the wicked weed. I also noticed a batch of it had sprouted up in a walkway that the kids go barefoot on. My husband fell in poison ivy while mountain biking. You’d think he was Meryl Streep in Silkwood the way he scrubbed his body down.

Listening to him complain about itching is not one of my strong points, so I handed over our bottle of Poison Ivy Relief, as I knew it would bring relief on many levels.

This cream is amazing. Traditional herbs are combined to stop the gnawing itch brought on by poison ivy. St. John’swort and burdock root calm the irritation while soothing the skin. Relief at last! Its peppermint scent is great too--uplifting and clean.

Stop by Farmhouse Wares for your Poison Ivy Relief today. It’s a must-have for your first-aid kit.

Housekeeping Olympics and the Dishwasher Inspector

Dishwasher Inspector

Believe it or not, I just learned that there is an event called the Housekeeping Olympics. Apparently these go on all over the country. The participants are dedicated to fluffing and primping and being the ultimate clean machine. The competitions include bed making (move over Martha), three-legged vacuum races, and the Johnny mop toss (or something like that). But they don't have a dishwasher loading competition. Gasp! That's like not having gymnastics at the summer Olympics. I must tell you, I am the dishwasher loading diva. I can load faster and more efficient than anyone in the land. My friend Tony thinks he's the best, but we've yet to compete. All I can say to Tony is, "Bring it"! We'll let the Dishwasher Inspector decide who is best.

Photo from flickr

Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival

Farmhouse Wares is proud to play a small role in the first ever Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival presented by Food and Wine magazine. The event benefits two important charities, the Food Bank For New York City, fighting hunger in New York, and Share Our Strength, one of the nation's leading hunger relief organizations working to end childhood hunger in America.

The event, which runs October 9-12 in New York’s fashionable Meatpacking District, features Rachael Ray, Paula Deen, Giada De Laurentiis, Tyler Florence, Alton Brown, Masaharu Morimoto, Guy Fieri, Bobby Flay, Ferran Adria, Alain Ducasse, Gordon Ramsey and Nigella Lawson to name a few. Click here to learn more.

To help raise funds, the The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival is hosting an on-line auction from September 15- Oct 15, 2008, featuring unique selections of rare wine, gourmet dinners, extravagant getaways and other luxury items at http://www.nycwffauction.cmarket.com/. To support this effort, Farmhouse Wares has donated a set of four Recycled Glass Willow Goblets. These Recycled Glass Willow Goblets are made from recycled Napa Valley wine bottles, which we think are pretty perfect for this wine-loving crowd. They are offered as part of a set called Accessorize Your Wine. The auction opens today, so scamper off, and start your bidding.

An Apple a Day

We all know an apple a day helps keep the doctor away. This is the time of year to put that old adage to work. Our apple trees are brimming with fruit. There are only so many pies one can eat, so I find myself looking for other ways to put my apples to good use.

Of course, every kitchen needs a bowl (click here for the yellowware bowl shown above) full of apples. Having them right out on the table makes it easier for my daughter to choose a healthy snack. Another quick and easy idea is to make apple votive holders. Simply carve out the center and add your candle. Put several together on our eco-friendly wood compote for a friendly fall centerpiece.

You can also bring the scent of fresh baked apples into your home without all the work of actually baking—just try our best-selling Baked Apples and Cream soy candle by Sweet Grass Farm.

A Cup of Jo and a Bowl and Spoon

Be sure to visit Joanna Goddard's blog, A Cup of Jo, today for a chance to win our Bowl and Spoon Set. Her blog is packed with great finds, so you'll be glad you stopped by.

Honey symbolizes the sweet life

This September, Celebrate The Sweet Tradition of Rosh Hashanah With Farm Fresh Honey!

Honey is integral to the Rosh Hashanah traditions of wishing for the New Year to be a sweet one.

There's nothing sweeter than supporting two small businesses that strive to help our planet. Farmhouse Wares' Black Cat Raw Honey from New England Wildflowers is a best-seller. It's packaged in old-fashioned "muth" jars and is packed with healthy enzymes, minerals and antioxidants. If you like variety, try our Artisanal Honey Sampler by the Savannah Bee Company.

Give the gift of honey with all its sweetness and health benefits. The sweetest thing of all is that with each purchase you're supporting the bee farmers.

Set Your Harvest Table With Our New Wheat Pitcher

There's something graceful and inviting about wheat, and our new Wheat Pitcher captures those qualities perfectly. I think this handsome creamy white ceramic pitcher is a must have for any harvest table. Available now at Farmhouse Wares.

Top Photo from Free Picture Click

See what's new at the Farmhouse Wares Flea Market

THE FARMHOUSE WARES FLEA MARKET IS BRIMMING WITH NEW ITEMS

UP TO 50% OFF.
Quantities are limited, so stop by today.

Support NieNie

On Saturday, August 16, 2008, Stephanie Nielson, a popular blogger at The NieNie Dialogues, was in a plane crash with her husband, Christian Nielson. Christian & Stephanie were badly burned and remain in critical condition at Maricopa Burn Center. To support the family the blogging community is spreading the word: to lend your support please click the "donate" button below. To learn more click the Nie recovery button above.