One Room Schoolhouse/Beechwood Town Hall (*P*S*C* #50)

One of my favorite book series (and TV show) is based upon the life and experiences of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
The "Little House" series captured a life of long ago where kids went to school in a one room schoolhouse, parents were hard-working, and life was tough at times.  But, oh for those calico dresses and bonnets!

When we were reminded that there was going to be a special event at the old  Beechwood schoolhouse - a BBQ and "tour" - Wes and I decided to go have a look at the place where his Grandfather attended school. The school was built in 1914.  After the Chicago and Northwestern Transportation Company made a railroad stop in Beechwood in 1888, a post office soon followed in 1889.  The next building project was Bethany Lutheran Church, built in 1912. (More on that later.)

By 1934, the school was no longer used as a school.  It was the Town Hall.  Currently, the Beechwood Historical Society is using the building and working on needed repairs.  Come along
now for a little tour with me!

You might ask where the building's bell tower is? Rumor has it that it was "borrowed" after the school closed, and it ended up in a nearby museum. Soon, it is going to be returned.  The historical rendering, below, shows the bell in its tower.  Meaning the tower will have to be rebuilt as well.

Once you walk up the steps, you can see two bathrooms side by side to the left. The
tour guide pointed out the unusual toilets and explained why they were unique.
Becuase this area gets so cold in the winter, the cylindrical water tank holds no water to freeze. What happens? The user sits on the "throne" causing the seat to have pressure as the weight of the user touches down (see the gap between toilet and seat?) causing the cylinder to fill up with water and allow flushing. Cool, huh?  Sure beats "going" ouside to an outhouse!

To the right of the entry is a small room, now a vintage kitchen. Originally, the room
was for the teacher's use. A cut-out was made to open up to the main room years later.

And now we get to the main room where all the learning took place nearly 100 years ago!
It is set up with tables for the Open House, but you can get the idea quite well as to
the room plan. The chalkboard and flag are original.

Isn't it interesting to think about the songs being played on this piano back in the day?

Many original one room schoolhouses can be found throughout our country, but
somehow knowing there is one in our cabin "neighborhood" is very special indeed.

Coming to this blog next: The Old Church

Tea and Garden Stroll With the Queen

How does one celebrate
the Queen's
6oth anniversary
of her reign?

Across the pond, there
are many options:

*Garden Party for thousands
at Buckingham Palace (last
week)

*Epsom Derby horse racing
last Saturday

*Thames Diamond Jubilee
Pageant for 1000 ships
yesterday

* Concert tomorrow night
with Paul McCartney and
other famous musicians




Alas, here we are stateside and no invitations have been issued to
join the Queen in the celebrations. We must jolly well get on with
making our own festivities right here, right now.

Today, my friend and I joined the Queen for tea.  She was attired in a lovely
shade of blue, white gloves, sensible black shoes, her ever-present black
(solar powered) handbag, and unfortunately, sans hat. (That will be remedied later.)
Due to the bright, sunny day the Queen waved her hand throughout tea and the
garden stroll, thanks to the solar power nature of her handbag "receiver." 

My friend and I wore these two hats as we sat with the Queen,
but only for a brief spell as we attracted far too much attention. 
Because I respect Marti too much, I will not publish the head adorning.













Strolling through the garden
(store property at Pasquesi's
in Lake Forest), the Queen
posed for photo opportunities,
such as next to the
Purple Queen Bougainvillea,
in the English Ivy and
below the English Rose. 
True to form, she remained smiling
and gracious as one might expect.













































Ah, here we are: two floral fascinators from which
the Queen might choose in petals of yellow or pink!
Much better.


























Long live the Queen!

"Happy Days" Jukebox (P*S*C* #48)

 Ii

Take a look at the lovely woman on the left: she's the daughter

of an inventor who changed the way a jukebox worked!

She is shown here in front one of the Seeburg jukeboxes at the

50's Grill restaurant near Golden Valley, Minnesota.

She is Wes's mother and here she stands in front of a Seeburg

 "Classic M100 C Model" jukebox. 

Her father, Carl Gunnar Johnson came from Sweden to America

from Trensum, Blekinge in 1910 as a 17 year old young man. 

Eventually he worked at the JP Seeberg Corporation in Chicago.

By the late1940s, Seeburg manufactured its popular

"trashcan-shaped" series of jukeboxes - and you have seen these

via the opening scene in the popular TV series HAPPY DAYS

in which the Fonzie made Henry Winkler very popular and Richie

Cunningham warmed the hearts of young nerds everywhere.!

The invention of CG Johnson involved the record-cleaning brushes that would swish
over the record and clean the grooves in it before returning the record to the holder.
Look closely and
you can see the little brushes in
black. You can also see the Seeburg
brand label to the right. 

Why is it that we love to return to the music and memories of the 1950s?
Is it because it was the decade we were born in?  Is it the songs?  Is it the
icons such James Dean and Elvis Presley?  Is it the burgers, fries, milkshakes,
and malts?  Is it the fashions....the poodle skirts?

Whatever it is, I like the 50s memories!

Chocolate malt, anyone?

Now About that Dala... (P*S*C* #48)

Chances are good that if you come from Swedish "stock" you will know what a Dala Horse is.

These wooden horses have a long history.  Around 400 years ago in the Dalerna Province in 

Sweden, woodcarvers fashioned these horses as toys for their children.  In January this year,

Luther College students gathered to take a class in Scandinavian arts and learn the craft of

carving.  Their horses have been on dispay in the American Swedish Institute in Minneapolis,

ending their "run" shortly.  (As in today!)  Joining in the exhibit were others who had carved
horses independently or with their fellow woodcarvers --- not sure how that worked exactly.

Here you can see some of the carved horses.  Note the THING ONE and THING TWO

on the top left.

Grade schoolers also got into the Dala decorating!  The yellow one (left) done by Cindy used

a lot of trimmings and rick rack - a girl after my heart for sure!

Humor was apparent in many of the Dala renditions.  There was an Elvis Presley-ish horse that was titled "You Ain't Nothing But a Hound Dala" and a Dala Llama. Here we see the Dala Parton horse

complete with ample "bosombas."  Yes, they were carved right into the Dala!

Wes and his Dad enjoyed the exhibit.  Perhaps they, too, should take up the craft of woodcarving?  Some of our friends have:  Bill, Don and Kass and Mary to name a few.

Together they stand behind the huge carved Dala horse that was meant to be signed by names of visitors to the exhibit, as well as those who contributed their carvings to the show.

There was no room left for us to pen our names here.
Surely that means this exhibit has been a smashing success?

In all, there were well over 100 entries from all over --- near and far. Young artists, college students, grandparents, famous and not-so-famous, all had something to say with their pieces.

I especially liked this yellow Dala in an original carving rendition called "Nobel

Peace Prize Horse" and personally signed by former president

Jimmy Carter.

Let's hear it for the Dala Horse and the universal language of art!

Thumb's UP for this Performer (And his Blog,too.)

See this man with Miss E? He the one. The only. Mr. Jim Gill!

He's a child-development specialist, singin', banjo pickin' wonder! And Ellie loves his music, especially Alabama, Mississippi. So when I heard he was giving a 'concert' nearby (sponsored by the Vernon Area library at Stevenson High School), I knew E. and I had to go see him.

She clapped, bounced, stamped, circled, tapped, watched, listened and

was beside herself when he actually performed Alabama, Mississippi just for her

personal pleasure.

For you out there in blogland, might I highly recommend going to your local library to grab one of his CD's and sharing it

with a little loved one in your life? Or ordering online?

You might wish to check out his blog link below as well.

http://jimgillswordsonplay.blogspot.com/

Not only are his music games delightful for the young ones, but his words/thoughts/observations about early learning hit a bulls eye with this MeMo!

Barbie/Project Runway #4

When I realized Project Runway episode #4 was going to have designers designing for a client who "knows a lot about fashion" I gulped - and gulped even more when that person turned out to be judge Nina Garcia. She has a no-nonsense approach to fashion: classic, yet fresh silhouettes with streamlining, clean, no-print tendencies. Whimsical? Never!

(Whimsical seems to be my middle name.)

She gave directives such as: (see me furiously writing these down as she dictates)

"I don't want boring."

"No pleats. Muted tones."

"I don't want a runway all in gray."

"I don't like mousy"

"I need punch." (Not the liquid reference, of course.)

"I like the combination of hard and soft."

"I hate cowls."

"Don't make it too short."

"I don't like plunging necklines."

Keeping all these requirements in mind for my "client" I headed out to find fabric. Seeing as there is no MOOD fabric store in my city neighborhood, I went to the closest place to look for fabrics - the Village Discount thrift store. Rows and rows of pre-worn garments called out for an audition, but nothing appealed to me until I found this halter top. It was olive green in color with little gold dots in linear formation. The lining could be used as well, because I decided to make a fully lined wrap dress for my client.

Here's my finished outfit for Barbie/Nina. Please note that I styled her hair just as Nina wears hers - long and straight. I made the belt out of flat beads and the buckle is a flat "black pearl" disc. The wrap dress closures are also beads of "black pearl" and echo the hues in the dotted circles of the dress fabric.

Here you can see the side closure of the wrap dress.

There's a hint of a peek-a-boo pleat on the dress side as well with a view of the coordinating lining fabric. Kind of alluring, yet tasteful. Not too much leg, but just enough.

This is what the wrap dress looks like without a Barbie body in it. The hem was cut directly from the halter, so it is nicely rolled and finished. If you look closely, you can see the bead buttons and the little loops that join the sides together.

Barbie...er Nina, can wear this to work and transition to an evening function by simply changing the handbag to a clutch, and adding dangling earrings to her lobes. I would like to call this look

Barbie Wraps Up Yet Another Exciting Day in Glamourland on a Shoestring Budget

Barbie + Project Runway = My Kind of Fun (#1)

Three things have inspired me lately:

1. A new season of Project Runway (Thursday nights) currently underway.

2. The exciting "find" of vintage Barbie patterns at St. Vincent's

for 25 cents each. I bought each and every one.

3. The purchase of two Barbie dolls, also at St. Vinnie's, at $2.00 each. I bought the only two that actually had non-chopped hair.Before going any further here, I should explain the premise of Project Runway to those of you who might not be followers. Heidi Klum is the host, Tim Gunn is the designer's mentor, and a panel of three judges presides over the weekly competition. Budding designers are given a weekly challenge to create a fashion outfit or ensemble using certain given items, themes or such. The first week - actually two weeks ago today - designers were awakened by Tim Gunn in the wee hours of the morning and told to not change out of their pajamas, and grab a sheet and out they went to their designing studio in New Your City!

Once there, the designers were told their outfit could use only the fabrics from their own p.j.'s and the sheet. They were allowed to use trims or dyes provided and then they were off to stitch a garment for a provided model, later to walk down a runway and be judged by the panel. One designer would be sent home. The next week, a new challenge is issued and so it goes until there is only one designer - the winner - left!

I decided to follow along with the show designers and do the challenges for Barbie. I'll follow the rules as they do, but here's the good news: I CAN NOT BE ELIMINATED! Since my blonde Barbie is the model for this week's challenge (keep in mind I'm two weeks behind schedule due to summer), I had to pretend the outfit to the left was her

pajamas. The "sheet" to the right I altered by tie-dyeing with Sharpee markers and spraying with rubbing alcohol to allow the markers to "bleed" and run.

Sometimes the designers are asked exactly who will be wearing the outfit and for what function, so I have decided to call this ensemble "Barbie Goes Barefoot in Central Park Feeling Groovy."Her hair is braided with a long, side braid and she's carefree as can be!

Her tunic is trimmed with braided vintage lace. As are her bell-bottom pants. The p.j fabric can be found in her jaunty neck scarf as well as a little peek from the bodice of the tunic for modesty sake. I cut off only the sleeves of her p.j. top so that she also has the option to wear the sleeveless top underneath the tunic for that popular layered look. And, how could a tunic NOT have bell sleeves as well when Barbie is feeling so, so groovy?

There you have it: the week #1 challenge. Done. Seeing as I have some catching up to do, come back again real soon to see how Barbie looks in an outfit made from pet supplies for week #2!

What a Party!!!!!! (Pink Suitcase Chronicles #40)

When my sis and her husband were invited to a very BIG birthday party in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and he couldn't go I got to be her "stand in" date! And what an amazing party this turned out to be. We loaded up Pink (and her Blue) in the trunk and off we went. Due to privacy of the birthday individual, I won't mention his name, but here you can see his house (mansion) and the lovely party invitation. The theme of the party was

MUSIC IN THE AIR.

In usual "sister style" we had both brought nearly the same dresses (black) to wear to the party with shawl wraps the same color (cream) as well - luckily I had also packed another choice to wear so we didn't look like twins at the party...but here you can see our shoe choices we selected beforehand. Isn't it uncanny that we can shop separately and still come to choose clothes nearly identical? (However, you can still easily distinguish who's who based upon one who tans and one who doesn't.)

Here we are enjoying our specialty blue beverages that were very very delicious. And here with are with "Elton John" in his younger life. "Wolfgang" was in an especially happy mood. No REQUIEM feelings for him tonight, that's for sure!

As one who enjoys a barbershop quartet.

these four certainly sang harmoniously.

(It's the house in the background that is miniature-sized, not the singers.)

"Tina" and "Cher" were looking groovy.

"Lady Gaga" was outrageous as usual.

But enough talk about famous people...let's eat!

Tents and tables were set up all over the grounds of the mansion. Each area featured "picnic" food which far surpassed any picnic I've ever attended! Flowers in each area were spectacular.

The food - oh the food.

At dusk,we entered a specially-created concert pavilion for a night of music by Chicago music newcomers and legends. Ever hear of the MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET? They were the headline entertainers and they gave an a.m.a.z.i.n.g concert.

Can you feel the magic in the air?

Following the concert, the crowd sang "Happy Birthday " to our host. He's the one in white in the middle of this picture.

By now it is about 11:00 PM and we are escorted to the waterfront for fireworks

and desserts in this tent.

Again, a.m.a.z.i.n.g. And the first "pie bar" I've ever encountered.

See those horizontal lights in the background? They were boats in the lake enjoying the

fireworks from the other side - hello, Darilyn!

All too soon the party was over. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, to be sure. Now I know just a little bit what it would like to be royalty. Perfect for a night. However, the glass slipper still fits this working girl just as fine today when I am back in "real life."