Stormy (not Julie) and Julia

Long before the movie Julie and Julia, I loved Julia Childs. She was on my list of people I most wanted to meet, along with Frank Sinatra, Jackie Kennedy and Mikail Barishnikov. I can’t even tell you when that began, I’m certain it was before my ‘tween years, when I would watch her on television and wonder how this - not model perfect, Donna Reed, Father’s Knows Best Mom with perfect hair crinoline under her skirt, perfect wave in her hair - woman was on television in her own show, cooking and making me love her with each new segment in her show. Dropping a chicken, flubbing an omelet, that not so melodic voice, I loved it all!

I am 5’10” and have never enjoyed that perfect weight, and here was this woman who carried herself in such a way that you thought about her grace, but you didn’t think about her physical appearance at all, you just thought about this great woman and what she was saying.

Then came the movie, and even with a Hollywood spin, I was enamored with her even more – and Meryl Streep’s performance was so on the money. I love that Julia’s husband loved her like he did, and that everyone who knew them, knew they we so in love with each other.

So why do I bring this up? Because I love to cook, I love to put on an apron and bustle around the kitchen and create new things, bake, and good old fashioned farm fare is my passion, and yet somewhere over these past few years, I have lost my passion, my bliss.

I have dozens and dozens of cookbooks, tucked in cupboards and stacked in piles and on shelves. I can just sit a read a cookbook like others pick up a magazine. The favorite thing about my kitchen is the small corner fireplace and comfy chair. Perfect to sit and read and peruse recipes for my next creation.

I really love old cookbooks, and really get a chuckle from the illustrations and “helpful hints” these vintage gems contain.

My passion for cookbooks began when I received my first cookbook when I was about 8 or 9, and I received Betty Crocker’s Cookbook for Girls and Boys. I still have it to this day.

Second to the wonderful contents of old cookbooks is the comfort of an apron. Tying on an apron somehow makes you feel like the queen of the kitchen, of the home. Perhaps it’s those old family television shows when every mom wore an apron and pearls, and that was reinforced for me by the apron and pearls worn by Julia when I stumbled upon her show one afternoon after school.

The concept of the movie, the blogging her way through Julia Child’s recipes, life, and passions opened a passion in Julie…………………….and in me. Watching the movie for my fifth or sixth time, I am consumed by Julie’s words as she blogs, and how the blog changes her life.

So where is this rambling blog going? Well, I am challenging myself, much like Julie did, and rather than working my way through someone’s cookbook, I am going to do something that I have wanted to do for years. I am going to write my own cookbook.

So I have gotten down my recipe box, laid out several spiral notebooks and pens (I work better that way than I do on a computer), picked out five fabulous vintage aprons, and put my string of pearls next to my favorite tea cup.

Six months from today, I will have 50 recipes created, tested, and ready to share in my first ebook, ready for any of you that are interested. From my fabulous stuffed meatloaf to my mixed “bumble” berry cobbler, a taste of good old fashioned farm cooking will be on-line and ready. Let the clock begin!

Bon Apetite!

Stormy

A Farmgirl Sews

Farmgirls are strong, hardworking, fun-loving, friendly, and creative. We are passionate, compassionate, and we have an intensely romantic side. Whether we wear overalls and a cotton shirt, or long skirts with pantaloons, there is romance in how we live and all we do and how we live our lives.

Recently I came across a bounty of old sewing patterns and I had so much fun sorting through the bags and bags of envelopes while deciding how I would use them.

Many ended up as tissue paper to wrap treasures purchased at our Cottage Sale this past weekend, and the instruction pages were pulled to use for craft paper and fun gift wrap paper. Empty envelopes were saved for scrapbooking and tag making.

However, nearly two dozen spoke to my Farmgirl heart. Patterns of jumpers, shirts, dresses, overalls, and even nightwear - all from decades past and present - ended up in a pile that I just couldn’t bear to take apart. There are long and short skirted, jumpers that can be adapted in length or embellished, a variety of dress styles, blouses and more. There is even a fabulous Wedding dress pattern that you can just surely envision a Farmgirl Bride marrying the man of her dreams and celebrating in the best barn party ever!

Here are some of the favorites, and you’ll find them all ready for you to purchase at www.farmgirlsisters.com at our on-line Cottage store.

One or two I will keep so that I can make them up and sell the finished products for you buy and wear! I only wish I could copy the patterns so more and more of you could enjoy them, however, remember Farmgirl Sisters respect copyright laws! But I promise to search them out where ever I go, and will keep adding them to our store.

To see them all, visit our website at www.farmgirlsisters.com, they will all be posted in our on-line Cottage Store over the next few days.

Happy sewing…………..