The Second Half

The occasion of one's birth at the half century mark can be traumatic. However, after all the very real and traumatic incidents of 2013, I decided that my birthday will be more than just proverbially happy this year. I decided to buy myself something substantial. Something I always wanted but never owned. Something I would use (which put the diamond tiara out of the running).

Sterling

I'd always felt Towle's Grand Duchess was my pattern. When I married, my Godmother gave us a Grand Duchess tea set. It's absolutely gorgeous. I went in search of the flatware to match and it was even more gorgeous! But it was also terribly expensive. So sterling was put on the back burner for "someday."

Towle's Grand Duchess Tea Set

Towle's Grand Duchess Sterling Flatware

Grand Duchess is still extraordinarily expensive. And anyone reading this blog knows I never pay retail. For anything. Ever. So the search was on for gently used Grand Duchess place settings. And they were still too expensive. Almost ready to give up, I decided to look at other patterns at a slightly lower price point. I really didn't want to settle for something lightweight or less ornate. Fortunately, I found King Richard, also by Towle. 

So I guess "someday" is now. Here's to the second half century.

Towle's King Richard Sterling Flatware

Proper Shoes

My husband's grandmother used to say, "If your feet are dressed, you are dressed." Wise woman, Grandma.

Lately I've been on a shoe buying spree. It doesn't happen often but a new job demands it. Black was pretty much already taken care of as well as navy and buff/taupe/neutral/tan. What I'm really missing is dark brown and dijon yellow.  So, out come all the rules about shoes for the office.

• Closed toe
• Leather upper
• Leather sole (if possible)
• Rounded toe (flat toe shoes can lead to ingrown nails)
• Higher vamp (better for your feet and doesn't show toe cleavage)
• Reasonable heel height.
• Comfortable

Granted, these are my rules, but they have never let me down. The first six are all geared toward the last one. Work days can mean being in a pair of heels for up to 14 hours so I'm willing to spend a little more on them in order to protect my feet and maintain my energy level.

My favorite brands for work include Anne Klein, Circa Joan & David, Ralph Lauren (the Zabrina pump is fantastic), Ivanka Trump, and Steve Madden. Donald J. Pliner shoes are worth a mention here. Although they are usually better suited to out-of-office wear due to their casual style, they are consistently the most comfortable shoes I own.

Shoes I steer clear of: Bandolino (these actually damage my feet), crocs (just too ugly for words), and sandals (not office appropriate).

Other considerations:

• Cole Haan tends to run narrow so I don't buy them unless I am in the store and have tried them on.
• Nine West is a win most, lose a few, gamble. I stick to their leather shoes that meet the above criteria.
• Comfort brands are great but often look clunky.

So what did I buy so far? A few pics are worth a few thousand words.
              

For Love of Books

“I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.”
―Jorge Luis Borges

I have a passion for books. Not just a passion for reading but for the books themselves. Every room in my house has at least one book in it. Downstairs alone has about 70 feet of linear book space. And, odd as it may sound, some of my friends have even more linear feet in less space. We love to discuss libraries and which books we collect for ourselves. A friendship between book lovers ensures you always have something new to discuss. Books tend to bind people as well as pages.

“In a good bookroom you feel in some mysterious way that you are absorbing the wisdom contained in all the books through your skin, without even opening them.”
―Mark Twain

Books are compact, portable, repositories of knowledge. While there are plenty of television shows which leave me feeling short several IQ points, there are very few books I feel that way about (cough *Thomas Hardy* cough). As much as I read, I still look forward to the knowledge that lies inside a new book. Sometimes knowledge can be scary; however, that makes it more valuable. Inside Cyber Warfare is an excellent example of such a book. I read it in small increments as one might a Stephen King novel. But, as disturbing as it is, the insight is invaluable when working with computers and security on a daily basis. Yes, books give more information about the world of computers than the machines themselves ever will.

“When I have a little money, I buy books; and if I have any left,

I buy food and clothes.”
―Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus

Books are art. An artist may starve but books will feed the soul in more ways than one. On occasion I am struck with the sheer beauty of a book. The smell of a leather book is a heady one. I find leather covers intoxicating not only for their smell but for what they promise. Like a good meal, a beautiful book begins with just the scent. Placed in front of you, the book reveals what wonders lie behind the cover. Bindings sewn by hand and silk moiré end papers come together between carefully stamped gold embossing. Delicious.

When restoring books of historical significance, hiring a true craftsman is essential. Fred Shihadeh was one such craftsman. Needing some books repaired, Fred met an old bookbinder while staying in Bremerhaven in 1960. A voracious reader, Fred took a six month apprenticeship with the old bookbinder who was in desperate need of shop help. Fred learned everything he could from the man and afterward, travelled Europe to learn more.

After returning to the United States he and his wife, Elka, started a custom bookbindery and repair business. His beautiful work and knowledge of an almost lost art led them to commissions of historical significance including the repair of an original two-volume set of the Federalist Papers. The work of Fred and Elka Shihadeh continues to this day in their custom leather restorative FredElka Formula (now called Accessible Preservatives). It is used by book lovers and libraries around the globe.

“Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend.

Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.”
―Groucho Marx

Books are companions. To the traveler, they are a piece of home, away from home. To the homebound they are a new adventure outside the walls of the sickroom. They are not offended when put aside for a moment. Like a good friend, they understand the frailties of the reader and are happy to pick up right where you left off. We grow attached to their characters to the point of laughing, crying, and even sharing their antics with others. Beware the avid reader in the middle of a good book. They are prone to both shushing and sharing. Grandmothers may seem annoying when sharing baby pictures but a reader enjoying a good book will practically hold you against your will until they’ve shared a particularly good paragraph. Never mind that you have no clue what the plot is or who these characters are; this is important and you will listen.

Some of the best characters I've ever met are the ones who work inside the world of books. Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next novels are about one such character. Thursday Next is a literary detective. Her job is working inside books to manage misdemeanor misspellings,solve the mysteries of out of character antics (I imagine Hermione has been thoroughly grilled), and save the hanging participles from their precarious perches. Perhaps I identify with Thursday a little too well.

“Books are the perfect entertainment: no commercials,
no batteries, hours of enjoyment for each dollar spent.”
―Stephen King

Books are real. They are not subject to power outages, battery shortages or internet failures. Hard copies of books are worth their weight in platinum when marooned on a desert island or the Duluth airport in the dead of winter. Amazon cannot snatch the book back from you when a lawsuit threatens their profits. This actually happened to Kindle users. From NPR’s story in 2009:

More people are getting used to reading e-books on devices like the Sony Reader or the Amazon Kindle. Recently Kindle owners who had purchased George Orwell's 1984 or Animal Farm had their books snatched back by Amazon when a rights issue arose. The buyers were credited their $9.99, but such a recall could never have happened with actual books.

This story plays into my worst fears for Western civilization. I have nightmares that something horrible will happen to the Library of Congress and it will be Alexandria all over again. If an electronic book can be deleted, it can also be modified, and without a hard copy, could you prove it?

Finally, I leave you with this: If you still doubt their value, you should know they make wonderful bullet stoppers when stacked in a window during a zombie apocalypse. Please don't ask me how I know this.

The Second Amendment - Under Siege

This letter is worth re-posting in its entirety. Oorah Corporal!


Senator Dianne Feinstein,

I will not register my weapons should this bill be passed, as I do not believe it is the government’s right to know what I own. Nor do I think it prudent to tell you what I own so that it may be taken from me by a group of people who enjoy armed protection yet decry me having the same a crime.
You ma’am have overstepped a line that is not your domain. I am a Marine Corps Veteran of 8 years, and I will not have some woman who proclaims the evil of an inanimate object, yet carries one, tell me I may not have one.

I am not your subject. I am the man who keeps you free. I am not your servant. I am the person whom you serve. I am not your peasant. I am the flesh and blood of America.

I am the man who fought for my country. I am the man who learned. I am an American. You will not tell me that I must register my semi-automatic AR-15 because of the actions of some evil man.

I will not be disarmed to suit the fear that has been established by the media and your misinformation campaign against the American public.

We, the people, deserve better than you.

Respectfully Submitted,
Joshua Boston
Cpl, United States Marine Corps
2004-2012

Education of a Knight 1

Knights of the 21st century must be at the top of the education level about world affairs. I do not mean an upper level, postgraduate type of education. I mean knowing and understanding the facts of a situation. An uneducated man with a sword is called a thug. It was true in the 11th century and it is true now. Education is absolutely essential to informed decision making. Knights must be able to discern the difference between what is dangerous and what is merely an annoyance. To this end, I urge every citizen of the United States to arm themselves with knowledge regarding world events. I will not give my opinion. I will only provide resource material that is truthful. It comes from a western perspective and I admit that completely, but it is not inaccurate. I also will refrain from bombarding you with too much information at once. This will be the first reference in a series regarding world events, history, and putting chivalry into perspective.

"The Real History of the Crusades"
by Thomas F. Madden, historian
Snip:
Many historians had been trying for some time to set the record straight on the Crusades — misconceptions are all too common. These historians are not revisionists, but mainstream scholars offering the fruit of several decades of very careful, very serious scholarship. For them, current interest is a “teaching moment,” an opportunity to explain the Crusades while people are actually listening. It won’t last long, so here goes.

Read the rest of the article here: http://www.crisismagazine.com/2011/the-real-history-of-the-crusades

Never Pay Retail for... Furniture

I get a lot of people asking me how I manage never to pay retail prices for anything. This isn't a casual question asked in polite conversation mind. This is more of an intense interview after backing me into a corner type of question. So, in order to reduce the number of creative escapes I must make each month, I thought I would post some of my best tips for not spending money, right here. The short answer is research. But the details are so much more complicated. I can't do it in a single post so we'll categorize.

I thought I'd start with one of my favorite subjects; furniture. I am a furniture lunatic. I admit it. And I refuse to seek therapy. The following rules have some of my favorite finds interspersed. You'll see why therapy for my furniture obsession would only cost me much more money in the long run. Only a woman obsessed would go to such lengths to find her caviar tastes for sale at pizza prices.

New puppy whose nickname is now "Satan."

Rule #1: If it isn't on sale, don't buy it. Period. Just don't. OK, so the new puppy just ate a hole in your leather sofa. You liked that sofa. It was comfy. It was part of your football watching routine. So, you check the Sunday circulars. New leather sofas are $1000. DO NOT buy one. Instead, decide which style you like. Fashions change and furniture fashions are no exception. You may or may not want one just like the previous one. All you need to do for now is decide what the replacement should look like and what quality it should be.

Rule #2: Sales are good. Clearance is better. So maybe you can find some leather sofas on sale for $800. Do you really want to pay $800? Many furniture stores have clearance sections that they do not advertise. RC Willey has an undecorated warehouse-like room in the back of its stores. This is the clearance section and it is your friend. Yes, you will have to actually visit the store to see what is there but it is sooooo worth it. (They also have some limited items online at rcwilley.com/Outlet.) You may find a reasonable match for that sofa for $400. Much better, yes?

I fell in love with this silk sofa at first sight. It was nowhere near my budget range.
By chance, I found it in the clearance room months later. It is now the reading sofa in my bedroom.
Satan has a restraining order against him regarding this sofa. He's not allowed within 10 feet of it.

Rule #3: Discount stores are the bomb. Steinmart, Tuesday Morning, Home Goods, Marshall's, Big Lots; all these are chains that carry quality items below retail. Some have furniture, some don't. Also, the stock varies and many of the items may be one of a kind depending on what the closeout item at the retail store was. Know where they are, what they carry, and how they are laid out in order to spend the least amount of time and money in them.



Rule #4: Know Thy Comparables. I'm not going to use the word "knockoffs" because these are not knockoffs. The fact is there are many "designer" brands out there that are made by the same manufacturers who also sell to lower end clients. For all intents and purposes, these lower end stores' versions are exactly the same as the designer version, minus some detail (or sometimes plus details). A good example is Pottery Barn and Target. I love the Pottery Barn catalog! But, many times I find the same item at Target or http://target.com for much less. And of course, I don't ever pay retail at Target. I wait for a sale and use my Target Visa and get another 5% back on the purchase. Which brings us to...


Rule #5: Use a card that pays you back. This one is getting easier as so many will offer you a percentage of your money back either in cash, money off your purchase, or points to be used toward gift cards. Discover gives cash back which they build in your account. You can either take the cash value or you can use it toward gift certificates for less than the face value of the certificate, i.e. $40 cash gets you a $50 gift card. Guess which one I choose.

My children are responsible for my reputation as a bargain hunter extraordinaire.
This "purchase" is one of my most famous.

Rule #6: Craigslist. That $1,000 leather sofa? Found, brand new, on Craigslist for $195. No, I am not joking. They bought it on sale and could not return it. The wife hated it. I paid them $200 even. Now that's therapy.

I Promised You Tiaras

I now have two tiaras for sale on Etsy. Both are hand made and both have been somewhat inspired by the Swedish tiaras. The most recent one was completed and listed today. It is an amethyst tiara and is shown below left. The tiara at right is the Swedish tiara as worn by Crown Princess Victoria.

I have wanted to create an amethyst tiara for a very long time as my oldest son was born in February. This one incorporates both boys' birthstones as my younger son was born in June and there are plenty of freshwater pearls worked into the design.

The tiara I listed prior to the amethyst tiara was a glass cameo style. I must say I was more interested in the glass idea than the cameo element. After researching various possibilities for a glass tiara, I went with a cameo setting of intaglio glass as a safe style that would outlast other possibilities. It was very important for the tiaras I make to be able to stand the test of time. The glass cameo tiara is shown below followed by the Swedish Cameo tiara as worn by Crown Princess Victoria on her wedding day.