Time for this week’s Thursday Things:
1. I found this silver-plated copper serving tray from the turn of the century, approximately 1890-1900, at a local San Diego antique shop. Complete with feet, handles, and gorgeous scrollwork, and I’m in tarnished surface heaven.
The store was having a 50% off sale and at half off, the tray was already a very good buy. I’ve bought things there in the past and knew that the owner wheels and deals and asked him if that was the best he could do on the price and he replied, “Well, since my time to polish that thing is worth something, I’ll take off another $50 bucks off for you. How’s that sound?” Sounded perfect. Sold. The irony is that I wouldn’t have wanted it polished anyway because food does not photograph well on super shiny surfaces from all the glare.
This thing must weigh 50 pounds. It’s heavier than Skylar and she’s about 45 pounds. Pound for pound, the copper alone could be sold at a scrap metal yard for more than I paid for it but that’s out of the question.
2. In addition to the old wood board I bought recently, which has already appeared in so many food shoots, and I’ve only had it a couple weeks, my new metal tray is going to be a nice balance to the wood.
The Spiced Apple and Banana Bundt Cake with Vanilla Caramel Glaze is on the old wood board I’m referring to, and I actually got the silver spatula and the fork in the photo from the same antique dealer that I bought the tray from. He’s got great silver pieces.
3. Sandwich Sacks, $8.99 each from The Container Store. Being eco-friendly and reusing just got cuter.
I have something like this that I bought from Etsy years ago but have moved too many times and don’t know what box I stashed them in and have boxes stashed in storage lockers. If you sew, I bet these are a snap to make.
4. Little trays in the shape of movie tickets, memo pads, and dry cleaning tickets from Fishs Eddy.
I have the pink ‘While You Were Out‘ and it cracks me up every time I use it.
5. The Kitchn featured my Peanut Butter and Jelly Blondies and reminded me that I need to make them again.
So many things to make, so little time.
6. Rectangular Teak Cutting Board with Feet, 24 x 18 for $99 from Gilt – I think this is a very fair price for a board this big that’s teak, but I need to stop. No more trays and wood. Not this week any way.
“Teak is much easier on knives than other woods, and contains resins that actually repel moisture—helping avert the sad “warped cutting board” scenario. ‘Edge grains,’ wood cut with the grain of its growth rings, lend a gorgeous yet simply pattern to the finished product and help boards self-heal after cuts. We love Proteak in particular for its commitment to quality and because all wood is harvested under ethical, sustainable conditions from the Pacific Coast of Mexico—unlike much southeast Asian teak. This sleek board is great for everyday knife work, and in a pinch can serve as an ad hoc serving platter.”
7. I must have been living under a rock because I did not know that laundry detergent is now sold in little packs.
I have a tendency to use way too much detergent because I’m of the mindset that more is better, more is cleaner, and never use just one capful. I never use just a teaspoon of cinnamon or vanilla, either. I guess I’m universally heavy-handed when it comes to pouring. Can I make you a drink?
Normally products like this are more expensive, ounce for ounce, than the original version of the product but in my case, these will actually save me money because I will actually get 24 loads from the package, without the possibility of heavy-handed pouring. They were on also an in-store club card sale and became ridiculously cheap and will make for the cheapest 24 loads I’ve ever done.
8. Facebook is charging for Fan Page posts and 84% of your posts are not being seen by your fans unless you pay for them.
“Facebook revealed the average post has only an estimated 16% reach to your Facebook fans. So on average 84% of your Facebook fans are not seeing your posts. Facebook uses an algorithm formula called EdgeRank to decide what users will see in their news feed. In order to gain more reach to your Facebook fans, Facebook is now offering promoted posts in which companies will have to pay to have more visibility to their fans. “Like” it or not, Facebook has announced that many more changes are on the way for business owners.”
Feedburner is shutting down in October and there’s no comparable free service like it. Millions of bloggers and tens of millions of readers depend on Feedburner to push feeds out into Google Reader or similar viewing platforms. This is huge and I have no idea what I am going to do, or what any of us will do, if it really happens. I’m not pushing the panic buttons yet.
Dianne wrote a post on both of these matters
9. Cider Bourbon Roasting Glaze, intended for meat, but I want to use it with tofu. Cider bourbon tofu sounds pretty fabulous to me.
Use it similarly to the barbeque sauce in Barbeque Tofu with Pineapple and Mango (vegan, GF)
10. Printed iPhone Case from Free People, $28 – I’d rather have my phone less protected in a cuter case than more protected in the ugly white industrial strength plastic case that I have on it now. Fashion before function.
What are your Thursday Things?
Do you have a tendency to gravitate toward buying certain things for your house or home?
For me, it’s dishes of any kind, but serving bowls, plates, and trays are a weakness. There’s always something cute and pretty that’s just calling my name. But I don’t have the storage space and my wallet hates me, so I frequently have to tell myself, no more. Sometimes that works better than other times.
If you’ve made anything, done, seen, or bought anything fabulous recently, feel free to link it up in the comments.
I love that tray, and those sandwich holders are super cute! I gravitate toward antique looking stuff, or weird things (like the ceramic hands at Fish’s Eddy, or a phrenology head).
The tray is beautiful, but the bundt cake looks out of this world!!! Yummy!!
LOVE your Thursday things series — great finds!
Thank you for the info on Feedburner. I had my readers telling me that they don’t get my updates anymore. Now I know why. Feedblitz? Love the tray by the way!
what you’re talking about is common, with or without the feedburner changes. Google it and there’s a way to have feeds get refreshed to fix your issue…I’ve known lots of bloggers over the years who’ve had this happen and who’ve successfully fixed their feed!
Congrats on having your recipe on The Kitchn! I love that site.
I am working all weekend, so my Thursday thing is treating myself to a drink, perhaps this one:
Happy Thursday night!
Thought I’d give you the low down on my homemade vanilla. It sat for 8 weeks and is a little lighter in color than commercial extract. I still catch a good whiff of vodka, so I don’t think I’d use it liberally in non baked items (ok–well that would depend on the circumstance and my mood at the time!!). Anyway, it is nice in baked goods but I used more than normal (almost 1 1/2 times my usual amount). I may just add another vanilla bean and see what happens in a few more weeks. I don’t dislike it, but I want to play around more to see if I end up loving it! Your new tray looks so good on that table–what a great find!
What a wealth of information! I especially loved looking at the Tofu–what an innovative way to prepare one of my favorite foods!
Did I tell you that I love your Thursday things (or Weekend Things when you are in Aruba)? I think I did, but here is one more time: I love it! I may not comment on it each time, but I do read it fanatically. :) Love the tray, beautiful scrollwork, I agree. The good thing about it being heavy is that it’s not easy to knock it off the table…
Congratulations on being featured on The Kitchn, well done, my friend! (another happy dance for you!).
Both boards look fabulous, love the colors. I would love to have one of the old baker’s boards. Some day. I guess I have to put on hold all my “wants” as we are getting really close to move to another state – in nine months my husband expected to graduate from his medical residency program. Can’t wait… I can see a Space Needle! :)
That WS roasting glaze looks intriguing. Next time I am in the WS area, I’ll try it.
Now, the Face book… I don’t know how to react to this news as I am not a FB person. I know, it helps to market your blog, etc but it also takes too much time, all the social media actually. Some of my friends became so addictive to FB, changing status constantly, responding to whatever while completely ignoring person in front of them… I don’t get it. I don’t even answer the phone when I am with another person… Maybe I’ll change my mind some day but at this time I’d rather spend more time with my family, or with my friends, or in my kitchen, or reading a good book, or traveling… :)
glad you love these posts! and congrats on your hubs getting closer to being done!
as for the FBook thing..I dont read FB anymore either but I have my feed set up to push my content to it so that my friends, both real life and online, and readers who just read FB but don’t click over to blogs, I have my feed set up to just push my content out to that, I dont have to ‘do’ anything, and then I reach a whole group of people who I wouldnt and it’s a win for me and win for them since they’re into FB.
There’s just so many things here that I want to talk about!
Okay first, the tray – absolutely gorgeous! And those sandwichs are just too darn cute. I want to buy a couple for my niece – she would absolutely love it. And I totally need to get my hands on that roasting glaze!
I am a consumer, through and through. But I’m also a cheapskate thrifty shopper, so I think it balances out in the end. I spend more on my kitchen stuff (food and appliances) than anywhere else, but I’ve been known to drop a benjamin or two a craft/fabric store also. ;)
I’m just glad I don’t have a shoe or jewelry obsession.
That glaze…I’m writing the ingredients down and going to try my hand at it. Looks easy enough and so delicious!
congrats on the kitchn feature girl! pbj is always a winner. ok, i need a dark wodden cutting board/photography board. something that will contrast pleasantly with my lighter foods and not wash them out. I’ve tried ebay, but i’d rather see it in person you know? you ALWAYS have the best photography extras – they do NOT go unnoticed by us readers, just so ya know! I love that antic tray. AND your living room is spotless. Please come over and help me decorate mine and make it look as cozy and cool???? :)
So glad you notice them! I mean, before I was into photography, I didn’t ‘notice’ things per se. I just noticed if the photo looked ‘good’ or not. And now I know what goes into make a photo ‘good’…all the little details!
I’d rather you come over here and we can decorate here. The weather’s better here :)
I can see why those PB&J blondies were featured; they look more and more delicious every time I see them :) I’m shocked by that Facebook info. Just another thing to frustrate my blog traffic obsessed brain. I agree with you that sometimes more is better, but that’s not the case with laundry detergent. I am a serious germaphobe, but excess detergent tends to just leave more residue on your clothes than making them cleaner. I tend to use the hottest water possible for each load so the clothes get clean from that as well as the detergent.
I wash in cold, exclusively. Better for the environment and the longevity of clothes!
Hi Averie. I have those sandwich bags but I actually use them as snack bags for the kids. I put an ice pack in there and a yogurt or cheese stick. They are a great size and clean so easily. I just throw them in the washing machine each week and air-dry them. I would highly recommend them, as they are a great alternative to plastic bags.
Those little trays are ADORABLE! I just have to pick one up. They would be great for holding jewelry. Fun for a kid’s room.
OK, you have me all stressed out about facebook and feedburner. Why do they make it so hard for us bloggers to blog? I bet Wordpress and Blogger will be next to start changing fees to have a blog. How sad ☹ I really need to read up on that article as I am confused what it all entails. Thanks for keeping us “in the dark bloggers” on top of all this info!
Have a great day girl!
Jackie
That’s awesome that you use those bags and can vouch for them. The material and the waterproofing they use would be key to their longevity and how well they work – or don’t work. Glad to hear they’re a hit.
And nothing would surprise me about fees, blogging, etc. All these companies are all about…capitalizing on whatever they can it seems!
Holy smokes, you are a wealth of information today! It’s going to take me hours to soak all this info up ;)
These are so fun! Great things girl!
I think Facebook charging people is insane. It just proves the fact that “There’s no such thing as a free lunch anymore.”
isn’t that the truth!