Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2022 i Country Living

Spring may be a season of change, but for my household it comes with a few certainties: I will eat too many malted candy eggs, my dad will call to check in on the bulbs he planted, and a butterfly-growing kit will arrive in the mail. (Thank you to my in-laws, Paul and Susan, for this delightful tradition.) Over a period of roughly three weeks, my wide-eyed children will marvel at the miraculous metamorphosis taking place in the pop-up mesh habitat as I, fun mom that I am, repeatedly plead: “Do not touch the [anything! caterpillars!].” Once we’ve sufficiently cared for each chrysalis and sugared the water, it’s time for their bittersweet departure, which we mark with ceremonial fanfare in our backyard. The grandparents join us via video from Maryland,…

It’s in the Bag Early electric washing machines were financially out of reach for most Americans, so urban dwellers of the 1930s and ’40s instead flocked to laundromats, with the first opening in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1934. Soiled garments were sometimes corralled and transported to and fro in simple, hand-embroidered laundry bags, which could transform into hanging hampers via a top hanger slit. These days, vintage sacks can be found for $15 to $30, with labeled multi-pocket pieces (top right) providing a retro throwback to wardrobes past. Main Squeeze One of the most important developments in turn-of-the-century clothing care, the mechanical laundry wringer is credited to housekeeper and government clerk Ellen Elgin. Her ingenious labor-saving tool used rollers to squeeze water from garments, thus easing the physical burden of…

Get Crackin' From sips to sides, here are three ways to enjoy the contents of your carton. Recipes, pg. 96…

Around the Table: Michiel, husband Fred, their two sons, and often a friend or two who happen to stop by their Walterboro, South Carolina, backyard Sunday Best: “Easter is the big holiday for Gullah families,” says Michiel. “Folks come home from all over to attend service at our family church (Mt. Pisgah AME in Ridgeville). I remember uncles getting the property ready the week before. Then we’d spend Saturday cooking up the feast to have right after services. Whether we gather outside the church or eat in a smaller group, dinner starts with a prayer, then we enjoy the sounds of Lowcountry crickets and frogs.” Catch o’ the Day: “Gullah cuisine includes lots of seafood such as Baked Deviled Crab, which I think of almost like cornbread, and Salmon Patties…

“Explore byways and back roads filled with bluebonnets…” …and 17 more one-of-a-kind ways to two-step into spring. Eat Dessert First: You’re on vacation, right? Start the day with coffee and a four-inch Cutie Pie from Royers Pie Haven (previous page), where the flavors include strawberry-rhubarb and butterscotch. Shop Around: Vintage cowboy boots are the main draw at Townsend Provisions, while the new Courtney Barton boutique in Round Top Village is a patterned pillow heaven. At Junk Gypsy, sisters Amie Sikes and Jolie Sikes-Smith offer cheeky home goods—such as the teacup at bottom left—infused with their signature cowgirl-boho flair. Brake for Blooms: Highway 237 is a prime stretch for taking in an only-in-Texas spring vista: longhorns lazily wandering through fields of wild bluebonnets. Savor a Bite: Come lunch, the chicken salad…

Find Your Fabric From graphic gingham to ditsy florals, your print options are as endless as your design dreams. For easy and effortless gathering, go lightweight. For maximum durability, consider indoor-outdoor options. (You can also boost linen longevity with Scotchgard.) Fabrics from top: “Farmhouse Stripe” by Kravet, calicocorners.com; “Petite Fleur,” sisterparishdesign.com; “Elton Cotton Check,” fschumacher.com; “Mayfields,” sisterparishdesign.com; “Kandilli” by Anna Spiro, studiofournyc.com. Perfect the Placement Overmount or undermount? Here, Virginia-based designer Lizzie Cox installed the skirt behind the cabinet apron. “The end result is more tailored,” she says. You can create a similar look with well-placed Velcro strips and a bit of DIY ingenuity. Others opt to hang the skirt atop cabinetry, courtesy of a small rod mounted to the cabinet exterior. Tip: The “Outside Mount Cafe Rod Set” from…

Salt-Cured Egg Yolks over Steamed Asparagus These egg yolks are also delicious grated or sliced on top of pasta or toast or tossed in a soup. WORKING TIME 15 minutes TOTAL TIME 6 days 45 minutes (includes curing time) MAKES 4 to 6 servings 1 cup granulated sugar1 cup kosher salt4 large egg yolks Cooking spray 1 pound fresh asparagus, steamed2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Freshly ground black pepper 1. Whisk together sugar and salt in a bowl. Spread ¾ of sugar mixture in the bottom of an 8-by 8-inch baking dish. Make four divots in sugar mixture, and carefully place 1 egg yolk in each divot. Cover with remaining sugar mixture. Wrap dish in plastic wrap and refrigerate 5 to 6 days. 2. Preheat oven to 170°F. Fit a wire rack in…

GROWING UP IN OMAHA, NEBRASKA, in the ’80s and ’90s, my sister, Becca, and I didn’t appreciate my mom’s entertaining skills as much as we do now. Hosting a large Thanksgiving feast or Passover Seder seemingly didn’t faze her. She relished in family traditions and rituals. We’d do our part by setting the tables for company. Becca and I would delight in our mom’s vintage Lenox china, a rare combination of the Autumn and Westchester patterns made between 1918 and 1930. We’d handle the gold-rimmed plates carefully, trailing our fingers over the raised fruit and playfully joking that, someday, the plates would be one of ours. A healthy sibling rivalry. Our mom, Ann Goldstein, died in 2011. When we cleaned out our parents’ house, we decided that the embattled china…

1 Lazy Sundays spent tinkering in a backyard retreat 2 Old-fashioned egg hunts with speckled, pastel-dyed eggs 3 The distinctly country sound of April showers on a metal roof 4 Spring chickens frolicking among dandelions 5 The inaugural trip to the farmers’ market for the first tastes of spring 6 Cascades of purple flowers drape beautifully from twining wisteria vines 7 Breezy curtains courtesy of cracked-open windows 8 Wicker picnic baskets and the return of feasting alfresco 9 The fresh-start optimism that comes with spring cleaning 10 Pick-your-own adventures to flower fields and fruit farms…

Object Lesson Double-Hung History: The Dutch may have mastered dreamy oil paintings and the tulip trade, but to us their greatest achievement is a simple two-piece door. A Flemish-Dutch invention known as the boerendeur, which translates to “farmer’s door,” these doors were popularized in America after Dutch colonists swung stateside in the 1600s. Country Cred: Holland’s milkmaids loved Dutch doors because they could keep the bottoms closed to ensure kids stayed in and the cattle out, while also getting fresh country air and morning light through the open tops. Style Statement: A range of design options brings quaint country charm to homes, no matter the zip code. Divided-lite tops are perfect for gazing out over rolling fields or backyard gardens, while solid doors provide more privacy. X-brace embellishments (below) bring…

VINTAGE FIND Fabric Scraps NEW TWIST Carrot Garland Transform green and orange fabric scraps (or even flannel shirts) into seasonal swag. Trace templates (countryliving.com/carrot-template) onto fabric, cut out, and sew together as instructed on template. Wrap twine around the neck of the carrots and hang from a buffet or mantel. VINTAGE FIND Easter Basket NEW TWIST Frilly Flair Give a tired Easter basket the Sunday-best treatment by adding a trio of fabric ruffles (libertylondon.com). VINTAGE FIND Fancy China NEW TWIST Candy Stands Serve seasonal candy and cookies on DIY pedestals. Set decorative plates or shallow bowls on overturned (or upright) footed dishes, candlesticks, or sugar bowls. Use museum wax to hold the pieces together. VINTAGE FIND Colorful Buttons NEW TWIST Decorated Eggs Start by dying eggs the same colors as…

TRUE TO HER NAME, fashion designer Lela Rose (lelarose.com) has long been known for her love of flowers. Floral prints are a signature motif of the Texas native (see her dress; pg. 44), and in 2020, she even skipped the traditional runway show and instead created a pop-up flower market—Lela Rose’s Flower Shoppe—to debut her collection in New York City. Honestly, you’d be hard-pressed to find the entertaining enthusiast hosting any gathering sans stems, but every now and then she’s inspired to go full petal-to-the-metal, as she did with this ode to spring wildflowers, including daisies, chamomile, and ranunculus. With shipping pallet tables, a light menu, and loose, organic arrangements, the floral fanfare is minimal on fuss. “That’s the great thing about entertaining outdoors,” says Lela. “All of the beauty…

If gardening teaches us anything, it’s that living in the present does not come at the expense of beautiful things down the road. Rather, it sows them. Or, as a famous Chinese philosopher once said: “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” That’s why you can leave it to a gardener to find peace in the process, not just the progress. The most experienced gardeners know that a garden is never truly “done,” which is the reason their potting tables and garden sheds feel intentionally untidy—and thus perfectly primed for puttering. You see, one can’t properly putter without a little clutter—tools for tinkering, twine for untwirling, seeds for sorting—so the ideal gardener’s work space is teeming with ways to while away an afternoon at a happily unhurried pace. This…

OBJECT LESSON: Griffith Laboratories Spice Jar Sets WHAT TO KNOW: Chicago-based Griffith Laboratories was founded in 1919 by Enoch Luther Griffith and son Carroll Ladd Griffith as a manufacturer of high-quality food ingredients. By 1939, Griffith began selling their spices in Art Deco-style milk glass jars, a nod to the popular design trend of the time. The jars came in sets of eight to 24 and featured airtight metal caps in colors such as red (the most popular), yellow, pink, blue, and green. Originally, paper labels were adhered to the jars after the molding process, but post-WWII, the company switched to printed labeling. The sets were also sold with a rack, initially made of plastic but later available in wood and metal. Beyond the basic spices like black pepper and…

It’s springtime on Washington’s Bainbridge Island, and Misha Gillingham is up with the sun to tend the flower-filled acres of her home, Evergreen Acres Farm. “April is one of my favorite months because color is everywhere,” says Misha, beloved by bloom enthusiasts for her petal-powered Instagram feed (@farmluxe) and the farm tours and how-to tips shared on her show, Farm to Cable (farmluxe.tv). She’s especially passionate about creating content geared toward beginners because, “just a few years ago, I knew zero about gardening myself.” Until 2018, Misha and her family lived in L.A., where she was a travel blogger frequently away on assignment. But a cancer diagnosis led her and husband Tom to reevaluate their fast-paced lifestyle, and they decided to move to Washington, where Tom’s work was based. “We…

HOW CLEVER IS THAT? DIY Pallet Sofa For the back patio, Rebecca’s husband, Jamie, built a corner sofa from old shipping pallets that Rebecca then topped with bench cushions and a mix of grain sack and gingham pillows. COTTAGE CLASSIC Slipcovered Sofas To offset the sitting room’s rugged walls, Rebecca selected slipcovered sofas and thick floral draperies backed with striped fabric. The latter helps to stave off drafts from windows and hallways. “I like to embrace the quirks of an older home; it’s part of the charm,” she says. “It’s kind of like falling in love with someone—you accept that they talk in their sleep and that’s what makes you love them even more.” The oversize wicker basket turned coffee table stows the family’s games and toys. Before Rebecca and…

IN SEASON Ranunculus Pour on the charm with a spot of these blooms nestled in a copper kettle. Here, delicate green and cream Butterfly varieties (which continue to open after cutting) pair perfectly with traditional pink ranunculus and fluffy white scabiosa. STYLE COMPASS Watering Cans for Every Sort Grow your love for gardening with these pretty plant sprinklers. WIT AND WISDOM “Painting the ceiling the same color as the walls actually makes a room look taller because your eye doesn’t stop at the paint line.”—DESIGNER EMILY HENDERSON, THE NEW DESIGN RULES KNOW-HOW All-Natural Egg Dyes You can forego food coloring in favor of a few kitchen staples to produce a rainbow of beautiful hues. To create a homemade dye, boil 1 quart water with 2 tablespoons white vinegar and your…

Country Classic PAGE 17 TOP Designer Steven Gambrel; srgambrel.com. BOTTOM LEFT Designer Heidi Caillier; heidicaillierdesign.com. PAGE 18 Designer Lori Clarke; loriclarkedesign.com. In With The Old PAGE 27 Laundry basket; millstreamhome.com. PAGE 28 Clothespins: Blarney House, ebay.com/str/blarneyhouse. Wringer: Maus and Figge, mausandfigge.etsy.com. PAGE 29 Washboards: Pole Barn and a Passion, facebook.com/kurtsantiques andfurniture; Retrieve Vintage, retrievevintage.etsy.com; Two Be Continued, twobecontinued.etsy.com; KarensChicNShabby, karens chicnshabby.etsy.com; The Little House Finch, thelittlehousefinch.etsy.com; The Lititz Carriage House, lititzcarriagehouse.etsy.com; Vintage Atmosphere, vintageatmosphere.etsy.com. PAGE 30 Clothesline reels: Humboldt Hoarder, humboldt hoarder.etsy.com; Do You Remember When, doyourememberwhen.etsy.com; Luna’s Attic, lunasattic.etsy.com; Past Classics, pastclassics.etsy.com; Sleeping Porch Vintage, sleepingporchvintage.etsy.com. Clothespins: Vintage Atmosphere; vintageatmosphere.etsy.com. PAGE 31 Sprinklers: Back Around Vintage, backaroundvintage.etsy.com; Judi Jumble, judijumble.etsy.com; Cathy’s Catch All, cathyscatchall.etsy.com; MariSol’s Emporium, marisols emporium.etsy.com; Here and Now Treasures, hereandnowtreasures.etsy.com; Memories to Restore, memoriestorestore.etsy.com. What is it? What…