Best Commercial of 2010

Something tells me that this commercial got pulled. Maybe one person out there objected to the gratuitous use of oil in the commerial? My son and I would crack up every time it came on. Bring it back!!!

Victorian Christmas

Hello,

First off, welcome to Stacey and also Ashley of Ashley's World. You are my latest followers. Thanks for your jolly joy.

Next, I wanted to thank everyone who left a comment on my last post regarding candle making. It seems that those who love to buy thrifted goods, also love to making things with their hands. I'm inspired!

I just finished watching a rerun of the BBC's Victorian Farm Christmas. Again, I'm left in awe of Victorians as well as the people who took on the roles of Victorians and lived the part for a year. I strive to be as practical and hard-working as Ruth Goodman. Do I seem a little obsessed? Ruth Goodman reminds me of Frances Conroy, who played Ruth Fisher on Six Feet Under. Both women have that ethereal Pre-Raphaelite look that's so beautiful compared to the processed look of youth. Don't you think?

Ruth Goodman (above)

Frances Conroy (above)

Anyway, if you click HERE, you'll find a great selection of Victorian crafts from the show. These crafts will make your home more Christmasy. You'll find everything from marbled gift wrap, to keepsake boxes and recipes. Enjoy.

Erin

Candle Question & More Flair

Look what I found at Value Village today:

Four matching side plates to go with my six English "Flair" dinner plates! There were six side plates there, but two were in such grim condition that I left them behind. I don't have a "no plate left behind" policy. Tee hee. I paid $2.49 for the four plates. Sweet!

Here's a question for my crafty friends out there. Can you melt down old candles to make new candle wax? I'm kicking off our "Early Settlers in Upper Canada Unit" with some Christmas pioneer crafts. I was hoping to let the kids dip candle wicks into the liquid wax to make hand dipped candles, like I did at Pioneer Village when I was a kid. I bought the wicks at an art supply store today, but the wax was way more expensive than I'd bargained for. They had a huge slab for $34.00 and a smaller slab for $19.99. I was thinking of asking the kids to bring in old candles from home and I'll melt them down in a double boiler.

What do you think? We're also going to make pomanders, write on tea-stained paper with feather quills, and make ginger cookies. I want our learning to be as hands-on as possible. Cheers,

Erin

Homemade Home Book and One Gerbil Left

Sadly, six of Rosie's litter have died. They survived two days, so I thought we were out of the woods. One seems to be hanging on. We'll see what happens. I won't let anymore gerbil breeding happen. I guess if you're a farmer, you get used to animal mortality.

On a happier note, I noticed that Thrifted Treasure (one of my favourite blogs), recently posted a selection of awesome books on her bedside table. I was blown away to learn that Kirstie Allsopp has a book out. I guess it went along with the Homemade Home show that I've raved about. You can order it from The Book Depository UK. It retails for $25.28 Canadian and the shipping for this hardcover book is FREE! Why not buy yourself a Christmas present?

All the best,

Erin

Who Should Play Julian Assange?

This morning, I discovered a bottle of perfume a lovely girl named Uzma gave me as a Christmas present, my first year teaching. It's called Julian, For Women. I've never used it. I guess it's four years old now.

It got me thinking about WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is currently in the UK, jailed for rape charges in Sweden. According to reports, the complaints may have more to do with contraceptive malfunctions than rape. Who knows? I'm just astonished that between being an international computer hacker and sensitive government document revealer, Julian still had time "for women."
There were two stories about Assange in today's Toronto Star. I must admit, I've been following this story closely for a few months now. Here are my reasons why I'm intrigued by Assange:

1. This story is the stuff of a John Le Carré novel. Alright, the Cold War is over, so we'll take what we can get.

2. I'm the same age as Assange, so I'm kind of impressed by his accomplishments - even those deemed dubious by some. I suspect he's not such a great person to have as a friend. He's betrayed several WikiLeaks associates who now have nothing good to say about him. I support WikiLeaks. Maybe governments should keep their hands cleaner if they don't want the nasty bits revealed to the world.

3. Assange is Australian and my dad is an Aussie, so I'm always excited by any Australians who make headlines - except Nicole Kidman and her country singer husband.

4. Assange had an incredible life even before he started hacking computers in his late teens. He was raised by a single mother who had an abusive musician boyfriend and Julian and mother spent years on the run from this man. It would be easy to psycho-analyze Assange's natural tendency to live a life on the run. I'm sure a book and movie are in the works.
This got me thinking: Who should play Assange? He's pasty-faced and almost cool looking. He looks like he could be a bass player with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.

Here's my short list. Feel free to contribute:

1. Guy Pierce. He's an obvious choice as an Australian and bears a ballpark resemblance.

2. Gary Oldman. Alright, he's long in the tooth, but with a little Botox, he could pull if off.

3. Johnny Depp, because he can do anything.

4. Russell Crow. Another Aussie with acting chops. He's got the enfant terrible thing down too.

Well, in support of Assange, I gave myself a squirt of Julian For Women and put on Julian Cope's 1987 masterpiece Saint Julian. Julian Assange: good cop or bad seed? You decide.

Kathie Winkle Plates, Vintage Cups and More Gerbil Pups

Rosie the gerbil just gave birth to another litter. This time it's a much bigger litter (5-6 pups). Yes, I know that Bob Barker would be telling me to get those gerbils fixed. I've remedied the situation by putting Diesel (who's like the K-Fed of the rodent world) in a separate cage. I'm not sure if the pups will survive, but I hope most of them do. Then I'll have to beg my students to beg their parents to let them keep one. If I'm able to get a picture of these tiny, pink critters I will. They're very cute.

On a different note, I had a good haul at the Value Village near my school. I found six of these stunning vintage plates.
The back stamp says "Flair A Louis Gordon Production Made in England." If anyone knows anything before I go Googling, that would be most helpful.
I also found genuine Kathie Winkle plates. I was only able to get two of the large plates, but I found four of the small ones (below). The lady charged me .99 a plate for the big ones and $2.99 for the four small plates.
I forgot to take a picture of the back of the plate, but it says "Broadhurst Made in England Ironstone a Kathie Winkle Design Handpainted Underglaze Detergent Proof Complies With Safety Standards Capri. I guess this pattern is Capri. It's so whimsical.
A Kate Bush interlude...

I found these vintage duck glasses for .99 each. The gold paint was in perfect condition.
These two milky glass Fire King mugs were .49 each. Someone had used them as candle holders and I spent a bit of time scraping the wax out of them.

Also for .49, I bought this vintage Centennial glass.

It's all sixties Canadian cool. Dig.

I can't believe I hauled all this stuff home on the bus, picked up junior, and still managed to schlep it a few blocks home. No pieces were damaged. The things you do for thrift love.