We are Sunshine-Makers

“Go out more, keep cheerful as well as busy,

for you are the sunshine-maker of the family, 

and if you get dismal there is no fair weather.”

Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

Dear keeper at home,

you are the sunshine-maker of the family.

You see the weather forecast of the day and you brighten it as best as you can.

Like a group of candles burning together makes a peaceful glow, so does the light that you spread in your home in all your nurturing ways.

You see a "storm" coming... 

It is a troubled face... and as it walks through the door,  you are the first to offer a kiss, an embrace, an ear, a shoulder and an encouraging word.

You see a "weather-beaten" man (your husband ☺️)...

You know he has had a rough, long day... you make an extra special supper. In the winter you would add another log to the fire. In the summer, you might turn down the air-conditioner one more degree to offer him refreshment from the exhausting heat. 

You see your child is going through some "windy" days...

You bake something special to cheer the family... You are there waiting to listen to their story.

You manage the house so that all have clean towels, tidy rooms and tasty meals. 

But most of all, you are managing the ambiance in the life of the home.

You are the sunshine-maker bringing brightness to the dark days.

"But the path of the just is as the shining light, 

that shineth more and more unto the perfect day."

~ Proverbs 4:18

"The Lord make His face shine upon you..."

~ Numbers 6:26

and THROUGH you!

May we all be a window of His love and light to our family.

Happy winter…

Love, JES

P.S. Thank you to all who have encouraged and commented in my absence.

It was very touching to be remembered.

A "Real Life" ~ Snippets

May I never forget the “real life” I was raised with so that I can daily live with a grateful heart…

I grew up in a two-bedroom home sharing a room with my two younger brothers until I was ten. This was normal. In our home, there was never money for remodeling or redecorating. We wore hammy-down clothing and then continued to pass them down to others in the family. We ate what food was put on our plates, never wasting as we were taught to be thankful for the food we had. There was no individual catering of menus to each of our desires. And yet this was all normal.

Somehow along the way, our culture has begun to accept the wealthy lifestyle as one of normal. And when it isn’t your own, you begin to feel discontent and ungrateful because it seems everyone else lives it but you. You begin to accumulate debt to satisfy your desire to keep up with the Joneses. But none of these things will ever satisfy as there is always something better, newer and more luxurious. And sadly, none of this is normal. 

It is living within your means which brings true prosperity. You don’t have the anxiety of endless bills to cripple your joy each month. We should view our hardworking husband as wealth and our children as riches. Our faith in God gives great contentment and peace. This concept, once comprehended, is true earthly treasure.

This lifestyle is “normal” (or once was 😞).

So what does one do to appreciate their humble, normal life?

“I make myself rich by making my wants few.”

~ Henry David Thoreau

“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

~ Philippians 4:11-13

Pictured: Our little farmhouse (in which we raised our little family) with all its imperfections made the most glorious of memories. Bittersweet as they often were with its challenges to survive but, you guessed it, it was all quite normal.

Great and Noble Tasks ~ Snippets

“I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker."

~ Helen Keller

Dear reader, this delicately describes the gentle life of a homemaker. Through daily rituals of love and care, we are sending people into the world who are well-adjusted, who will shine a light in dark places, who will be peculiarly holy because you took the time to make this example in the home. You took the time to show what beautiful is, what noble is, what truth is.

Just as a “little leaven leavens the whole lump” in a negative way (Galatians 5:9), imagine what a “lot of love” can leaven in a positive way. Please don’t underestimate your sacred influence.

“If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”

~ Mother Teresa

You are not “just” making a home but maintaining a ministry.

🕯🧺🥀 

Pictured: apple turnovers made with the apple pie filling I canned last autumn…

January 2022 Homemaking Newsletter

“A true home should be the container for reviving real hospitality, true culture and conviviality, real fun, solid comfort, and above all, real civilization. And the most creative thing that anybody can do in this world is to make a real home. Indeed, the homemaker is as important as the house, and being a “housewife” is the most creative, most important job on Earth.”

~ John Seymour, The Self Sufficient Life and How to Live It 

"The wise woman builds her house,

But the foolish pulls it down with her hands."

~ Proverbs 14:1

I can't believe it is 2022 but here we are! And this time, I will try to keep up on my monthly newsletter a bit better! This is a place in which we chat about homemaking happenings and any other ponderings which do not fit into its own post. It is simply some old fashioned, womanly, Titus-2 chit-chat... would you like to join in?

My daughter made her favorite festive combination of black and white cookies for the New Year. The chocolate cookie has a marshmallow melted atop which is smothered in chocolate frosting. The sour cream “vanilla” cookies are enjoying a buttery frosting along with a sprinkling of toasted, sliced almonds. Although I am always a chocolate girl, I must say I prefer the sour cream cookies in this bake off. They are absolutely amazing! The recipe for the chocolate surprise cookies can be found here. The recipe for the sour cream vanilla cookies will be found here. Though the recipe is called "Buttermilk Cookies", we call them "Sour Cream Cookies" as we substitute sour cream for the buttermilk in the recipe. 

And yet again, more cookies (this time Oatmeal, peanut butter and chocolate chip)! Our little home often feels like a cookie factory… a beautiful place of mouthwatering production! In fact, sometimes I pretend just that. That my home is a place of “professional” industry. Today I’m a bakery (with cooling racks set nice and neatly on the table), tomorrow I may be a pharmacist concocting herbal medicinals (with glass jars all lined up and ready) and the next day I might be a nurse caring for a loved one (with the tea kettle going and the chicken soup stirring). You never know what your day brings as homemaker but it’s always exciting and important if you decide it is.

“The kind of vision that brings the special out of the ordinary has long been a part of the American tradition. Even in the tiniest frontier cabin, pioneer women found ways to express their creative urges and to add touches of loveliness to their environment.”

~ Emilie Barnes

I've also repurposed some thrifted flannel fabric into a set of “winter prairie” un-paper towels. 

I think these reusable paper towels are a modern day testimony to that way of life. Every time we add little touches with our two loving hands, we are following in that beautiful tradition of making do in little ways, saving money and being resourceful with a feminine spirit (because floral fabric makes everything lovely). 

I had made seasonal sets for autumn and summer and was asked if I would do winter. The answer was an immediate “yes” when I saw this remnant fabric at the thrift store a few months ago.

These un-paper towels are very absorbent as they are “double-ply” flannel and wash extremely well. You can keep a stack in a basket under or on the kitchen sink for easy access. 

It’s a pretty money saving project that our pioneering ancestors would definitely have approved of… I haven’t purchased paper towels in 10 years and I can’t tell you how much it affected our grocery bill in a positive way!

A step-by-step tutorial is shared here. And of course, you are always welcome to just cut up a stack of absorbable fabric into squares and use them in the same way without sewing anything.

I've also been making more medicine!

I’ve been treating my family with our in-house apothecary for over 20 years… I used to buy the natural products but eventually began making many of them as it was much more economical and satisfying.

Here is another instance where the homemaker functions as the country doctor, herbalist and/or apothecary (despite the modern day perception of homemakers, we know the Proverbs 31-inspired homemaker is a well rounded storehouse of knowledge and skill and this is one way she can “look well to the ways of her household”).

What I love about herbal medicinals is that they work to build up the immune system instead of masking the symptoms and breaking down the body with an overload of foreign chemicals. They nourish and heal instead of simply drugging you.

That is my “layman’s terms” explanation at least!

With just a handful of herbs, you can make a multitude of medicinal tinctures, syrups and salves.

For our household, the most versatile herbs we utilize are calendula, rose-hips, elderberry, lavender and chamomile.

I also keep fresh ginger in the freezer as a part of my apothecary and use fresh garlic for fevers (just rub it 3 times a day on the bottom of the feet of the fevering patient as it’s a natural antibiotic).

Citrus is in season right when we need that extra dose of vitamin c and we use it in many of our winter medicinals as well.

With this handful of herbs, you can treat colds and flus, stomach issues, skin ailments and insomnia.

I share my favorite recipes HERE (along with some “how to begin” information) that even your children may enjoy making. 

Teaching your children to heal with God’s pharmacy is a beautiful gift to pass down and one that may turn into a lifelong hobby and blessing. Plus, it’s one more way to keep a sustainable household in these uncertain times. The women of the great castles in Tudor times were responsible to keep medicinals for those in their village and I personally see the wisdom in local healing in our present circumstances.

"The Lord hath created medicines out of the earth;

and he that is wise will not abhor them." 

~ Ecclesiasticus 38:4

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”

~ Hippocrates

I also received a basket of homegrown, organic kumquats! For those of you who have never seen one, a kumquat is like a mini oval orange (though not as sweet, quite tart and with seeds inside like a lemon). 

It’s an odd little fruit and was quite fun to preserve! I almost had nothing to put up in January for my seasonal shelf and this little bag of free local fruit saved the day! I used this recipe (from Taste of Home) and reduced the sugar to 5 cups and it was still plenty sweet. 

I've also done some refreshing in our pantry, some closet re-organization (which I'll share in it's own post) as well as a little project regarding the sewing/craft world (in which I will also share in it's own post shortly). It's been an enjoyable time getting the house in order for spring.

I'd like to share one more thought regarding our homemade pantry... Ever since we had to move from our 25 acre farm (for personal family reasons), I wondered if I would need to retire from the homestead life.

Though it certainly would have been easier, a part of me didn’t want to let go. After 20 years spent developing those skills, I didn’t want to get rusty. Plus, with current events as they are, I didn’t want to get lazy.

The old ways is what kept the Depression Era women able to provide for their families during hardship. Because many had grown up on farms in that time, they had much knowledge to glean and lean on in their dire circumstances. In addition, an extra food supply is always prudent and a homegrown one is also healthier and more economical. Plus, I just simply adore stocked pantries! 

I was surprised to see what we were able to preserve with what little resources we have available to us right now. By growing vegetables in every nook and cranny, we have kept up a decent supply of food storage! With every friend and neighbor sharing excess fruit, we were able to add little by little to our larder by canning, freezing, fermenting and dehydrating.

Don’t let your background hinder you! I was a suburban born girl with zero skills at marriage and was able to learn and do these things. 

Skills can be acquired at any age and is something you can pass down to your daughters to make a lovely Proverbs 31 legacy no matter where you live. It’s a beautiful generational gift to leave behind. We may not be millionaires but there are special things we can pass down that doesn’t require money. And in the future, “know-how” may prove a more valuable commodity to our children than paper dollars.

“A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”

~ Proverbs 13:22

As far as books go, I just finished reading Jane Eyre and am still recovering. Ms. Bronte is an excellent writer and you can feel the emotions and struggles of Jane so keenly through her words. My daughter and I read it simultaneously and had much enjoyment discussing everything chapter by chapter. We hope to watch some of the film versions soon. Regarding movies, I really can't recommend any. It seems to be harder and harder to find "clean" entertainment.

With that being said, what about you dear reader? What wholesome and lovely things have you been reading, watching and/or working on? As always, recommendations are much appreciated as hearing about your homemaking endeavors always inspires me!

Happily homemaking,

♡ JES

(Some of the links in this post are affiliate links which help support this blog. Thank you!)

“Ma was heavy, but not fat; thick with child-bearing and work. She wore a loose Mother Hubbard... The dress came down to her ankles... Her thin, steel-gray hair was gathered... Strong, freckled arms were bare to the elbow and her hands were chubby and delicate... She looked out into the sunshine. Her full face was not soft; it was controlled, kindly. Her hazel eyes seemed to have experienced all possible tragedy and to have mounted pain and suffering like steps into a high calm and a superhuman understanding. She seemed to know, to accept, to welcome her position... the children could not know hurt or fear unless she acknowledged hurt and fear, she had practiced denying them in herself. And since, when a joyful thing happened, they looked to see whether joy was on her, it was her habit to build up laughter out of inadequate materials. But better than joy was calm. Imperturbability could be depended upon. And from her great and humble position in the family she had taken dignity and a clean calm beauty. From her position as healer, her hands had grown sure & quiet; from her position as arbiter she had become as remote and faultless in judgment as a goddess. She seemed to know that if she swayed the family shook and if she ever really deeply wavered… the family would fall, the family will to function would be gone.” 

~ John Steinbeck, Grapes of Wrath

A mother of faith is the glorious glue in the family. In these unprecedented times, it is vital to be strong for your loved ones. They feed off your feelings. If they perceive you are falling apart, they too will folllow suit. If you feel some days are more than you can bear, cry out to God for wisdom and strength. But don’t give up as that is exactly what the adversary desires.

It is time to follow in the footsteps of the brave Biblical women before us - to be courageous like Esther, faithful like Ruth and have the gentle strength of Mary when she said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.”

For now is not the time to lose heart but to gain victory, don your apron and keep the home!

“Be strong and of good courage,

do not fear nor be afraid of them;

for the Lord your God,

He is the One who goes with you.

He will not leave you nor forsake you."

~ Deuteronomy 31:6

The Real-Life Dangers of a Screen-Free Childhood

It all starts at a very young age when you choose not to introduce your children to the world of fancy, flashing electronics. You end up with a life of little schemes and threatened home security. A screen-free childhood can be VERY dangerous. Books are at risk, household odors develop, first aid is required, sleepless nights, added expenses and unauthorized uses of axes are all menacing situations you may encounter!

I remember when our child was just about five. Her showers seemed incredibly long. I began to suspect some foul play was involved but every time I interrogated her, I received no answers. Finally, after feeling the time had been extremely excessive, I crept into the bathroom, peeked through the curtain and behold! I see a child showering and a book held high away from the streaming water.

Those poor Bobbsey Twins were inches from their demise. No wonder she took so long in there, she was catching up on her reading!!! Those poor books didn't stand a chance.

Let's fast forward to the age of nine. Her bedroom began to develop the most horrendous odor. Finally my husband and I maintained that this was no average farm aroma and began some investigating. And what did he find lurking suspiciously in a corner but a rotting jar of some kind of bubbling, fermented liquid! When we confronted our daughter on the subject, she exclaimed, "Carla Emory said the smell will last just a little while but eventually the juice will turn into vinegar".

She had transformed her bedroom into some kind of medieval laboratory! Can a child reading homestead books be safe? Perhaps a video game would keep her out of trouble because the unfortunate part of all that reading is that she wanted to start actually DOING.

As we were studying England, she decided she was going to make a four-course dinner in honor of menus she had seen of those fabulous feasts. She wanted to do it all by herself (she was 10 but was becoming quite an accomplished chef with all this screen-free living). Apparently some fried potato item was on the menu and she got a bit too close to that splattering oil and received an unfortunate burn on her little arm. She didn't say anything until after the meal because she was enjoying herself too much. She had self-treated it in the meantime with a bottle of lavender which explained the heavy fragrance in the air (the audacity to administer her own first aid!).

While I did have to tone down her elaborate meal making schemes and create more ground rules (i.e., report any accidents immediately to headquarters), I must admit that she sure can cook right now! Anything she sees she can make or bake but imagine the chaotic kitchen at the time... Imagine Cal/OCIA!

By the age of 11, the requests started coming in. She would like a book on making her own paint (who thinks of these things?). She would like some crochet thread and a hook and perhaps even some knitting needles. She would like to make a drop spindle (I didn't even know what this was). But how can this be when I didn't even know how to do these things? But there it was, the answer was presented to me with her chubby little fingers, The Complete Guide to Needlework was explaining everything (It wasn't an exciting book by any means but it was quite comprehensive!). "You simply follow the instructions mom!"

As a homeschooling teacher, I felt compelled to feed these hobbies but I'm sure some may think I should have just kept a television going to keep her occupied and the expenses down?

Then at the age of 13, I notice the sleeping habits became topsy-turvey. During the day she would be so tired (is this due to growing pains?). But no, apparently the issue was that she snuck into the library at night, removed the unabridged copy of Oliver Twist from the shelf and couldn't sleep until Dickens had told his complete tale! And this would happen with each new novel on the shelf. Teen rebellion at its finest. 

Maybe a big dose of social media would keep her more lethargic and sleepy? A love of books was certainly a problem in this household. After all, books were the norm many moons ago, perhaps this old fashioned childhood with "nothing exciting" to keep you busy was way too archaic? 

And then there was the day I remember quite well. My husband and I had gone into town for supplies and our daughter (now 14 or 15) was to stay back, finish her homeschool work as well as have lunch ready for us when we returned. I remember coming home quite famished and was elated when I saw the meal. It was nice and hot chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy! We began to enjoy the hearty fare when I realized WAIT, we didn't HAVE any chicken in the freezer! Where in the world did this come from as our home is far from any store? And then she proceeded to tell us that she had butchered the chicken this morning. And yes, de-feathered and de-gutted it and all. Yes, she did indeed use an axe when no one was home to monitor her safety. I couldn't believe my ears! 

This screen-free childhood could be treacherous!

So, if you would like to refrain from any mischievous adventures, experiences and actual “extreme” learning in your home, then I suggest you make sure your child owns an IPAD, has 24 hour access to a television and can be tapping on a cell phone any time in between it all. Clearly, you can see where such thinking with books as their best friends and the great outdoors can lead. 

As a side note, I remember growing up in the suberbs with my two brothers. We would climb trees, build forts, make fruit stands from our avocados, rally the neighborhood children to play basketball and baseball games. It was a beautiful childhood and it breaks my heart that so many children are growing up with artificial memories in front of screens. What kind of memories will they have to look upon when they are adults?

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

~ John 10:10

I know this poem is a bit nerdy but I think it shares the concept of this subject that has been so dear to my heart. As I see more and more of this "modern childhood" experience, I feel the need to share about old fashioned childhoods - the ones that dreams are made of.

THE GIFT OF A CHILDHOOD III

Each parent gets to decide....

A "Little House on the Prairie" life running across the lawn...

or a screen-filled life, boredom, yawn?

Shall I inspired a "Green Gables" imagination fulls of capers, plans and dreams...

or give them one more thing to robotically watch and stream?

Will I encourage a "Caddie Woodlawn" childhood full of family and fresh air...

or teach them to touch a screen as if no one is there?

We can give our children the beauty of these beloved classics in a real life home.

We can give them a "Secret Garden" or "Swiss family Robinson" abode.

Do you remember wishing you could live that life when you were a child?

That storybook life?

We can give that gift to our children.

We can give our children more than the flashing screens that this culture offers.

We can give them laughter, jumping, running, building, climbing, making, crafting, playing, creating, pretending, resourcefulness... pinecones, feathers, tents, paints, leaves, trees, forts, art, dress up, and old fashioned play.

We can give them a true childhood

We can give them the gift of memories.

"Preserve your memories. Keep them well.

What you forget you can never retell." 

~ Louisa May Alcott

You May Also Be Interested in:

The Gift of a Childhood (Playtime without Toys and Electronics - Creating a Home Library)

The Gift of a Childhood II

The Biblical Cure for Bored Children

DIY Projects Based on Books

The "Art" of Home-Making Mondays ~ Inspiration #12

 

"Women sigh for fame. They would be sculptors, and chisel out of the cold stone forms of beauty to fill the world with admiration of their skill. Or they would be poets, to write songs to thrill a nation and to be sung around the world. But is any work in marble so great as her who has an immortal life laid in her hands to shape for its destiny?"

~ J. R. Miller

"He grants the barren woman a home,

Like a joyful mother of children. Praise the LORD!"

~ Psalm 113:9

Sacred Suppers ~ Snippets

 

Dearest homemaker,

Let us not underestimate the powers of love and spiritual growth that a home cooked meal served side-by-side provides for the family. There is nothing like a satisfied taste bud to bring about joy. There is beauty in this time around the table, when hands are clasped and a prayer of gratitude is given. This valuable age-old tradition, is a sacred part of the “old paths” of the New Testament believers who also gathered in one accord. The “fruit” that came forth from that fellowship was nothing less than amazing… Which blessings will be bestowed on your family when you take the time to serve a meal around the kitchen table?

🍞 🧺 🕯 

“And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers…. and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.”

 ~Acts 2:42-43b

A True Home ~ Snippets

A true home...

built with prayers, sweat and tears,

a place to alleviate life's trials and fears.

“And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.”

~ Matthew 7:25

🤎

Dearest homemaker, continue to quietly build up your home, your efforts are never in vain. It takes guts, strength and determination but with His help you shall triumph through the bad weather.

Pictured: Savory spinach “parable”  pie 🥧

September 2021 Homemaking Newsletter (Autumn Nesting)

“I was brought up to believe in the modern myth that housekeeping is only drudgery, and the housewife is a downtrodden martyr. I thought that any seemingly contented housewives were only ‘making the best of it.’ When I first began housekeeping in my own home, I felt that I had entered the ranks of the mistreated.

After a time I began to realize, to my amazement, that I didn’t feel at all downtrodden, and that I was thoroughly enjoying myself. I began to look at other domestic ‘martyrs’ from a new angle, and I have learned many things.

I have found that there is romance in housework: and charm in it; and whimsy and humor without end. I have found that the housewife works hard, of course–but likes it. Most people who amount to anything do work hard, at whatever their job happens to be. The housewife’s job is home-making, and she is, in fact, ‘making the best of it’; making the best of it by bringing patience and loving care to her work; sympathy and understanding to her family; making the best of it by seeing all the fun in the day’s incidents and human relationships.

The housewife realizes that home-making is an investment in happiness. It pays everyone enormous dividends. There are huge compensations for the actual labor involved…

There are unhappy housewives, of course. But there are unhappy stenographers and editresses and concert singers. The housewife whose songs I sing as I go about my work, is the one who likes her job.”

~ Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might…”

~ Ecclesiastes 9:10a

Greetings gentle reader! I've been homemaking with all my heart because He said to. Do you join me in the Titus 2 forces? If so, perhaps you would care to read along in another monthly update in which we chat about books read, things watched, homemaking projects and any other ponderings which do not fit into its own post. It is simply an old-fashioned homemaking newsletter. 

As we enter fall, we did our final preserving of "meat in the summer”...

I’ve processed 14 pints of freshly-caught-by-husband, bluefin-tuna. I pressure canned it with homegrown jalapeños, Himalayan pink salt, freshly ground pepper and topped the jars with olive oil. I can’t wait to open that first lid… HERE is the instructions for pressure canning the tuna that I used.

"There be four things which are little upon the earth

but they are exceeding wise:

The ants are a people not strong,

yet they prepare their meat in the summer…"

~ Proverbs 30:24-25

Sometimes a quiet morning spent measuring, pouring and packaging is tender therapy for all the loud things of this world. When you infuse this time with prayer, it can be powerful therapy. 

I’ve made these botanical perfumes as gifts for some lovely women in our church. I call them "relaxing rose perfumes". 

To prepare this all-natural essential oil blend, place 3 tiny dried rose buds inside a 10 ml glass roll-on bottle. Add 2 tsp. almond oil (or carrier oil of choice), 3 drops of geranium essential oil, 2 drops of Peru balsam essential oil, 1 drop of lavender (or frankincense) essential oil and 1 drop of sandalwood (or patchouli) essential oil. Top off the bottle with more carrier oil if necessary. Put on roller cap/lid and shake well. Your “relaxing rose” perfume is ready to use!

And now, you have also successfully bottled up some lovely aroma-therapy!

I've also begun infusing some of my favorite flowers in olive oil to make a lovely, floral, feminine salve. Here is the tutorial. These too, make lovely gifts!

As you can see, as the garden dwindled down, I became involved in many herbal homemaking projects. These prairie candles were so enjoyable to make and I shared the tutorial HERE in case you are interested. 

I've also been enjoying some autumn nesting… There are many methods to embracing the change of seasons in the home. It is probably one of the most enjoyable of the homemaking arts! My preference is in embellishing with everyday “replacements”. I’ve been a little squirrel packing away fall treasures in anticipation of my favorite season. Here is how I’m infusing autumn into our home:

- I’ll be replacing my every day dishes with this thrift-store “curated” collection of plates in browns, yellows & oranges. There are four different designs but I think they “match” beautifully.

- The cottage printed plate will replace a summery rose plate I have hanging on the wall. This will bring “warmth“ into the kitchen (shown in action on second-to-last picture on this post).

- I’ve collected a few secondhand baking dishes at thrift stores in browns. I will be using these to serve our meals. One is a vintage Pyrex & the other is a brown glass dish which came in a sweet custom-sized wicker serving basket!

- I have brought out my beeswax tapers & brass candlestick holders to enjoy once again.

- I’ve saved our butternut squash harvest to make our favorite soup come October. In the meantime, they are a lovely seasonal centerpiece.

- I will now be using the autumn inspired no-sew “prairie napkins” I made (shared below). It’s always fun to introduce new linens into the fold.

- I’ll be removing the white summer linen sheets and bedding and replacing them with a darker print sheet set and heavier down duvet.

- And lastly, I placed all my autumn inspired (thrifted) fabrics in a basket in order to prepare some projects for the home (this is written for accountability 😉). I had recently done a deep cleaning with some reorganizing. When I went through my closet, I saw all the secondhand sheets & flannels I found for great prices. But it isn’t great when it becomes clutter! Therefore, this will be my seasonal sewing basket (now you are my witnesses). I must produce!

What are your cozy home plans?

I repurposed another thrifted vintage fitted sheet into a set of “autumn prairie” napkins (without sewing)... I’m in love with this “snip-and-rip” process! I had made a set for spring and have used them constantly. I can’t wait to bring in the “new” fall collection. It’s so enjoyable to prepare handcrafted items for your home each season (especially when it costs next to nothing).

When I had purchased the secondhand sheet set, I really only wanted the flat sheet (I’ll share that project once finished) but since the fitted sheet came with it, I was obligated to put it to use (it’s in my frugal OCD nature 😉).

This set of napkins took me five minutes to measure and rip-to-size along with a slow evening spent pulling off excess threads. 

A step-by-step tutorial is shared HERE if you are interested.

These simple napkins give me such pleasure! To turn something obsolete into something useful plain gives me the happy homemaking chills ✨ have you felt that thrill I’m speaking of? when you repurpose little items to embellish your home life?

When purchasing something brand new and mass-produced, there is truly no comparison to the joy one gets from creating something from a castaway nothing.

“…it was not what one had that was important,

but what one made.” 

~ Elizabeth Goudge

I have also been baking up a storm. It seems like the moment the seasons change is the moment that oven becomes alive again after the heat of summer. I always double the recipe for my cookies and freeze the extra for impromptu company. It comes in so handy! 

“It is true that all men are created in the image of God, but Christians are supposed to be conscious of that fact, and being conscious of it should recognize the importance of living artistically, aesthetically, and creatively, as creative creatures of the Creator. If we have been created in the image of an Artist, then we should look for expressions of artistry, and be sensitive to beauty, responsive to what has been created for us.” 

~ Edith Schaeffer

Perhaps this explains my love for pretty plates, lace curtains and dainty linens. It is a practical form of homemaking art that we can adorn our homes with. Why limit beauty to just paintings and portraits on the walls? Some of us like to sprinkle it into all our little tasks and rituals as a daily act of love. With the existence of thrift stores, it is possible to be a domestic artist in even the leanest of household budgets.

“He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much…”

~ Luke 16:10

Pictured: freshly baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (another work of homemaking art ☺️).

As far as books and movies go, my daughter and I have been on a fall frenzy and cozied up with popcorn and rented a Hallmark film called "Autumn Dreams". It was sweet and everything you expect in a Hallmark movie. We've also been reading lots of old home decoration books that we have found thrifting. It truly is a time for nesting. 

P.S. I added some new labels in our Etsy shop this month! These dainty calico printed labels are 2.5 inches (and are waterproof and removable) and could be used in so many ways: pantry labels, canning labels, homemade product labels, crafting labels, etc. Just wanted to share!

Pictured below: "Autumn nesting"... the replacement of that one “cottage” plate on the wall turns summer into cozy fall… 

Dearest homemaker, 

Now more than ever, the home needs to be a place of peace. Perhaps even a place of Aw and wonder as we face such ugliness in the world. The home should feel safe, comforting and most importantly, sacred. That each person who enters knows they have entered a refuge from the current reality. It is the way to show our children that THIS is what is “normal” and good. That there is so much difference in these walls from the world’s that their souls will instinctively know that God resides here and they will have a strong desire to be here also.

"My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation,

In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places..."

~ Isaiah 32:18

With that being said, what about you dear reader? What wholesome and lovely things have you been reading, watching and/or working on? As always, recommendations are much appreciated as hearing about your homemaking endeavors always inspires me! Also, I have been having trouble with my links. If you decide to click on any of them, would you mind letting me know if they are proper (in other words, do you find you end up where you expect to)? I am trying to troubleshoot this... but in the meantime I'm...

Happily homemaking,

♡ JES

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