WiseArts

Kimono modeled by my very patient and loving husband...

My husband and I went to one of our favorite thrift stores after work on a Tuesday (25% off day!), as we are prone to doing from time to time. Usually, one of the first things I do is check out the glass cases where they keep “the good stuff”. I was bent over the glass counter, not finding anything exciting that day, and as I stood up, something caught my eye! Long sleeves and a flash of red. NO WAY! A furisode kimono. Even better, it is beautifully embroidered, with cranes! A vintage wedding kimono! Even better, it had a tag on it for $39.95! And it was %25 off day! SCORE! This thing should be like $200! I almost freaked out, and had a lady behind the counter pull it down off the wall for me immediately.

It has a few small spots and one little hole at the bottom, but it’s in quite good shape. So pretty.

As with most things I buy second-hand, I wonder how it came to be sold. I always make up a little story in my head. For some reason, this one calls up a sad story. In my mind, it seems strange that someone would give something like this away to charity. But hopefully this lovely kimono has brought long life and happiness to whomever wore it before it came into my hands.

EDIT - 1/18/09: Jane, a talented artist in traditional Japanese embroidery, commented that she thought this design to be phoenix in pines, and I am certain she’s right! It didn’t quite look like the crane to me, but I just could not find the right bird to tag it with… Thanks Jane.

I was feeling ambitious this morning, so I decided to make something “fancy” for breakfast. I have been thinking about pannekoeken (Dutch pancakes) lately, and decided to attempt one of those!

I found the recipe at cooks.com:

I used an iron pan instead of a dutch oven. I was a little concerned because the batter seemed rather thin, but it baked up just fine. Light and fluffy. In addition to the apple slices, my pannekoeken had some frozen strawberries. It didn’t slide right out of the pan—not the way you’d think it should for having half a stick of butter—but it was coaxed out fairly easily with a spatula. I think I’ll try a different type of “grease” next time and see if that helps. Although, the butter does impart a nice crispness and flavor on the edges of the pancake…

I will definitely try making this again. Simple to make, and the options for fruity inclusions are limitless! I’m thinking bananas and carmel next time. Serve it with some whipped cream on top or a scoop of vanilla ice cream… yeah.

I bought this coloring book at the thrift store on half-off day. Thus, it was only 20 cents! I love cats and cat-related junk of all sorts, so the cute cover illustration of this book caught my eye straight away. The book is a bit yellowed by age and has 2 little scribbles in it, but I still love it. Gotta love that retro style. Here are a few choice pages. My favorite is the mama cat saying, “You naughty kittens! You shall have no pie.” Love the raised paw and that stern cat look on her face. No pie for you!

Click, print and color!