The Vintage Tablecloth Dress

I found a really cute vintage tablecloth dress this past weekend at a vintage shop in Easton, PA. I have never heard of a tablecloth dress before, so this was all new info for me. I love learning new things! The owner said she had just got the dress in the shop and it came from an 85 year old woman who made the dress by hand in the 1930's from an old tablecloth. This is a bit confusing to me as I would guess date this dress from the late 40's/ early 50's. The dress has no zipper in it, but instead closes with hook and eyes in the back. I'm thinking about modifying the dress a bit to add a back zipper to it. I prefer a bit more security when I'm wearing something strapless! :)

With a cute matching sleeveless top.


A very full skirt.

What's your guess about this dress, when do you think it might have been made? Have you ever heard of dresses being made out of old tablecloths?

Vintage Shabby Glider

Things I love:
Metal gliders
Vintage bark cloth fabric
Throw pillows
A good Summer read
Homemade iced tea

Project 1,753:
Repaint the metal glider!


(right after I take a nap!)

Summer Projects

Some Summer projects we are working on around The Simple Acre. I had a pond at DeluxeVille that was filled with fish, frogs, and pond plants. I moved everything with me to NJ and that also included the pond items. Sgt spent a week digging a 3 foot deep hole by however wide for the new fish pond next to the patio. It's a project for sure and all the rock-scaping still needs to be completed but the fish sure are happy! It's also awful nice to have the sound of a waterfall next to the patio as we sit out there. The Summer is just beginning so I'm sure this will look completely different in three months!

The garden is looking amazing and has already given us lettuce, peas, basil, and green beans. We just planted potatoes, sweet potatoes, and more green beans. I have to get some cucumbers planted soon and lima beans too. Our tomato harvest will be huge this Summer and I foresee a lot of canning in our future! How are your gardens growing???

I am still unpacking things inside the house and try to divide my time between inside and outside projects. I really need to work on getting my craft room set up so I can get to sewing some curtains and such. I found some very cool fabric at a local antique shop a few weeks ago that I've been dying to turn into something. The floral barkcloth fabric use to be cushions that someone ripped apart on the one side. I think they can be salvaged and turned back into cushions...they will fit perfect on my little two seater glider. The atomic cotton feed sack fabric I have to think about? I think it would be an adorable fabric for a dress and I would have enough yardage for one. I'm just not a professional dress maker, if you know what I mean..hahaha ..I wouldn't want to waste the fabric on a really bad creation made by me. :-)

Everything around here is a project right now. I have a to do list longer than my arm! I should really sit down and sort things into short term goals versus long term goals, so I can stop feeling so overwhelmed ;-). Does anybody else have big Summer/Winter projects they are working on? I can't be the only one out there that has big hopes, schemes, and dreams for their living environment?

Out and About an Outfit Post

Out and about on the streets of Newton NJ, enjoying the last days of Spring! I hope you're out and about enjoying the last days of your season where ever you live too! Oh how I love me a cute, cotton Summer dress...and this one has been added to my top 10 favorite Summer dresses. Yes, I have a top 10 of favorite Summer dresses.....don't you??? Well, you should!! Go make one.

I'm wearing:

• That awesome vintage peasant style bow dress I found at an auction a few weeks back.
• My favorite red 1940's sling back peep toe heels with bows
• A lucite purse
• Some bakelite bangles
  
• And a vintage pair of cats eye shades

Yup, hate me cause I've got tiny little size 6 feet!

The Court House Wedding

A few wedding pictures. If you look closely you will see the uneven hem of my dress. I picked the dress up from the dry cleaners and when I put it on, discovered they shrank the top layer of my dress. BOO!!! Oh well what can a gal do but wear the dress anyway! No time to fix it, no use cryin over spilled milk, on with the show!!! And what a show we gave the tiny town of Belvidere! An easy, quick ceremony on the Belvidere Court House steps, turned into people watching out the court house windows and slowing down as they walked by us. If you want to visit a tiny town that has amazingly huge Victorian houses and cute small town charm...well, Belvidere NJ is just the town for you. We impressed the court house staff with our vintage style and easy going attitude. Most people they see come in to get married wearing jeans and a t-shirt, so we were a nice change of pace for them. Really?! Just because you're having a court house ceremony doesn't mean you still shouldn't look nice! Oh well, gone are the days of people actually dressing up to leave their house. These are probably the people who go grocery shopping in their PJ's or with the word juicy printed on their ass. To each their own I guess!

Thinking about making a run for it....

been caught thinking about making a run for it.

The Sgt

On the steps of the Belvidere Court House...yup three tiny little steps it had!! :-) Actually there's a sign in front of the court house stating that back in the day, they use to hang people right on that spot. What a great spot to get married on. Hope it brings us luck!

Yup

MaryDeluxe & The Sgt

Thank you for all your comments of congratulations! As many of you know, I've waited a long time and had the not so nice pleasure of riding on a lot of bad bus routes before finding my golden ticket. The Sgt has also had his own share of bad bus riders. We consider ourselves very lucky that by some twist of fate, our paths happened to cross and we found each other. We both look forward to our future together and all the fun projects we have waiting for us around the simple acre! What can I really say other then....On with the show!

Wedding Cake for Two

Strawberry Shortcake Cake Prep Time 1Minute
Cook Time 45 Minutes Servings 10 Difficulty Easy
Ingredients

* Cake
* 1-½ cup Flour
* 3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
* ½ teaspoons Salt
* 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
* 9 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Softened
* 1-½ cup Sugar
* 3 whole Large Eggs
* ½ cups Sour Cream, Room Temperature
* 1 teaspoon Vanilla
* _____
* Icing
* ½ pounds Cream Cheese, Room Temperature
* 2 sticks Unsalted Butter
* 1-½ pound Powdered Sugar, Sifted
* 1 teaspoon Vanilla
* 1 pound Strawberries

Preparation Instructions
IMPORTANT: Be sure to use a cake pan that’s at least 2 inches deep! Before baking, the batter should not fill the pan more than halfway.

Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, and corn starch.
Cream 9 tablespoons butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well each time. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined. Add sifted dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just barely combined.

Pour into greased and floured 8-inch cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes, or until no longer jiggly like my bottom. Remove from cake pan as soon as you pull it out of the oven, and place on a cooling rack and allow it to cool completely.

Stem strawberries and slice them in half from bottom to top. Place into a bowl and sprinkle with 3 tablespoons sugar. Stir together and let sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, mash the strawberries in two batches. Sprinkle each half with 1 tablespoons sugar and allow to sit for another 30 minutes.

Make icing: combine cream cheese, 2 sticks butter, sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, and dash of salt in a mixing bowl. Mix until very light and fluffy.

Slice cake in half through the middle. Spread strawberries evenly over each half (cut side up), pouring on all the juices. Place cake halves into the freezer for five minutes, just to make icing easier.

Remove from freezer. Use a little less than 1/3 of the icing to spread over the top of the strawberries on the bottom layer. Place the second layer on top. Add half of the remaining icing to the top spreading evenly, then spread the remaining 1/3 cup around the sides.

Leave plain OR garnish with strawberry halves.

IMPORTANT: Cake is best when served slightly cool. The butter content in the icing will cause it to soften at room temperature. For best results, store in the fridge!

This recipe was found here: Source

OMG this cake is soooooo yummy and easy to make! The perfect wedding cake for two. I just snipped some flowers from the garden to embellish around the 1950's cake topper. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! Wedding pictures to follow so stay tuned!

The Tale of The Lock-Ness-Labrador

It was a hot, humid, hazy day. Our heroine thought it would be a perfect day for a dip in the local lake. But this wasn't just any local tranquil lake that MaryDeluxe picked for a quick afternoon swim. Oh no, this was the lake that happened to be the home of the Lock-Ness-Labrador.

What was that?? Did you hear a splash???

Did you see something over there in the water??? I thought I saw something???

Poor MaryDeluxe....unaware of the creature that lurks behind her!!!!
Dun...Dun dun...Dun dun...Dun dun dun.....

Attack of the Lock-Ness-Labrador!!!! Oh NOOooooooooo!!! Run MaryDeluxe run!!!!

MaryDeluxe tried to charm the lake beast into letting her live but this lake beast wanted none of her promises of jars filled with peanut butter biscuits.

Down went poor MaryDeluxe into the waiting jaws of the Lock-Ness-Labrador. Poor, poor MaryDeluxe.

Edit....scenes to graphic to display!!
Yum!!! said the Lock-Ness-Monster, she made a perfect afternoon snack!

So now you know.....Beware of the Lock-Ness-Labrador or you too could end up like poor MaryDeluxe!

THE END!

A Work in Progress....The Dining Room...

Been working on the dining room or as I like to call it, the dirtiest room in the house. Use to be the "dog room" but I'm taking it back as the dining room!! Been painting the walls..... Beautiful color right???!! The color is Persimmon Red from the Martha Stewart line at Home Depot.

What's MaryDeluxe hiding??....hahaha why the rest of the messy room! Not even close to being finished. Lots of trim painting yet to do, furniture placement, etc...etc! But that first picture keeps me motivated to get it all done.

Here's what happens when a naked, hot and sweaty, confused Sgt walks into your shoot! He had been working outside on building a fishpond and had no idea I was taking photos...but I love the look on my face and his confusion. Thankfully I was shooting a horizontal composition!

No work today it's a stinker out there...Hot, Humid, Hazy in the high 90's. My room will have to wait till tomorrow to get finished. All work and no play makes MaryDeluxe dull, so it's off to jump in the lake to cool down and have some fun!

Are You Ready For Marriage 1950's Style

I ran across this in the nick of time! Actually, Sgt sent it to me and we had a good laugh. I know some of you out there are engaged or planning a wedding and here's the perfect little 1950's test just to make sure you're seriously ready! Take heed and do the test before you go through with your "I Dos" and signed documentation. Maybe you'll discover that your cooking skills just aren't up to par yet with where they should be for a marriage or perhaps deep down inside, you're just not the type of gal ready to put up with all his stag parties. Good Luck!

The “Correct” Answers

“What is your score? If you had the correct answer 8 times out of 10, you don't have to worry, you'll be the kind of a wonderful wife a man needs! From 6 to 8, watch out! You'll really have to make an effort if you want to hold your husband! And for any score under 6, you'd better grow up! Steer clear of marriage until you've learned to share, to trust, to love!”

A Reader Question

DeluxeVille reader Rebecca recently sent me an email asking a question about cleaning a vintage dress her daughter recently found. She also had a question in regards to the maker of the dress....

Hi there, My daughter is starting to get her own little style thing going on and just bought an adorable Lucy style dress. It has one label in it "Miss Jahara". No cleaning instructions or size. It fits her like a dream and she loves it, but it definitely smells, well, vintage. Any ideas on where to find more info on this dress and how to clean it?
Thanks,
Rebecca

My best advice for cleaning vintage clothing is to give the item a 24 hour soak in a mixture of laundry detergent and one of these laundry boosters for extra cleaning power......biz (people swear by biz) /borax washing soda /oxy clean /arm and hammer washing soda. Then hang outside in the sun shine to dry. I use this method with all my vintage clothing that have that musty vintage smell to them and it works every time. Just make sure your fabric is color fast before soaking and that you also have an idea of what type of fabric your dress is made of. Some fabrics will shrink when washed.
Also have a look at this site for more vintage cleaning advice...
Vintagevixen.com
Fedora Lounge
Ebay

I have never heard of the label "Miss Jahara" so my guess is that this was probably a dress that might have been purchased from an individual dress maker who owned a dress shop in a small town. I'm also giving an educated guess that this dress is probably what I would refer to as a "junior" or "teenage" dress....due to the use of the word "Miss". Perhaps a reader might be able to help with information on the label name "Miss Jahara"? Does anyone else out there own a "Miss Jahara" dress?

At This Moment....

I have a heavy cat draped across my lap....

A half drank, no ice, glass of ice tea.....

And an old friend wrinkling my freshly made bed....

Not bad for a Wednesday!
Edit....Fuck it's only Tuesday....I can't figure out what day of the week it is anymore! All my days are just blurring together to form a mountain of cardboard boxes filled with all my crap!

My Life In A 20ft Uhaul....

See what I did this past Memorial day weekend. I can't believe it all fit in there! My life fit into a 20ft Uhaul. Now that I know this, it's official, I could go just about anywhere! But really, I don't want to move again for another 50 years, thanks! After my three day move, I then had the pleasure of going back to work for two days to finish up my contracted school year. I am now on Summer vacation or you could also say unemployed with pay. Perfect timing as currently I am living in chaos and have plenty of reorganizing to do around here. Just trying right now to get back into the swing of things.

Yup, the Sgt and I loaded and unloaded that truck. Hard work that we are still both recovering from. Oh did I also happen to mention it was a hot humid 90 degrees weekend too! We've decided the next time we move, we're hiring people to do it for us!

I figure it's going to take me months to find where I packed everything! I think it will end up being just like Christmas and could save me a lot of money. When ever I feel like spending a little money, I'll just go out to the garage and unpack a box to find things I forgot I ever had. Fun times!!!