Old Southern Garden

Dispatches From The Garden

2011-08-25T08:35:00.002-05:00

Oh, but we are busy in the garden these days.

A good way to predict a season’s upcoming weather is to watch both your newly planted vegetables (tomato and pepper plants are good for this) and herbs (basil is good for this).

If a vegetable plant shoots up quite fast, or if your basil flowers soon after planting, it is likely you are in for a hot, dry season.

All my roses have done so well with this awful heat. Even though we have had our typical wet-wool-blanket humidity, the high temperatures have prevented disease.

The heat turned away any tomato pests, too. I had such a crop, I canned and canned all spring. Please come get some of these tomatoes.

As soon as my many Lady Banks roses ceased blooming, I quickly cut them back (a bit) in mid-spring, as I wanted the warm summer months to promote excessive branch growth.

Lady Banks makes an excellent, and lovely, shading element in the garden, and cutting it back as soon as the blooming season ends is an excellent growth strategy.

My lilies have survived this dreadful heat, and seem to be thriving.

My magnolias have stopped blooming, but I anticipate those creamy lemon-vanilla lovelies with the first series of cooler days.

My hydrangeas have threatened to pack up their belongings and move to a more charitable climate.

My azaleas, jasmines, and gardenias are doing just fine, but the gardenias have needed extra care. They have fewer but larger blooms this year.

My camellias (both spring- and fall-blooming) are fine, but they are also very old and more heat tolerant. They are mostly shaded and heavily mulched. I use pine needle mulch to keep the acidity levels right.

I have quite a bit of English box, and it is not happy with this heat. I have tried everything short of cool compresses, church fans, and hourly tall glasses of mint tea to keep them in good stead.

My Boston ferns and English ivy are indoor pets now.

Lavender can be quite difficult to grow, but I do have a few strategies to share that may improve your chances. Usually, planting lavender in the summer is best for zones 8-10. Water it in when you first plant it, but after the first week or two, simply water the plants around it. The most common cause of lavender’s demise is root rot, so do not over-water. Do not mix compost into lavender beds, and do not mulch lavender. It will respond well to that Gallic indifference…

Oh, but my thyme (French, English, Lemon, Orange) are doing rather poorly, and I have moved them all three times this season. They are in residing in full shade and northern exposure now.

My lemon verbena is in partial shade and doing very well. They became quite leggy at summer’s start, but they are filling in quite nicely.

My mints (orange, chocolate, peppermint, spearmint) lingered and lingered. I moved them to partial shade and they are fluffing up nicely.

I have a few basil varieties, and they now reside in full shade.

I suppose I’ll stop listing my herbs and just say that all of my herbs are in full shade.

My citrus trees (potted) are residing in full shade, too.

My sweet olive, dogwood, and magnolia are deep-drip watered for two hours at a time.

I’ve put in Clemson and Emerald okra, four or five varieties of heat-setting tomatoes, black beauty zucchini, bush beans, eggplant, and black eyed peas.

I will eat my body weight in okra gumbo all fall. Last year, my okra produced well into December, and we had okra gumbo with almost every Sunday dinner.

I have started okra, zucchini, bush beans, and eggplant seedlings for family, friends, neighbors, and, well, anyone who needs to get a vegetable garden started.

Scent Of The Southern Garden

2011-08-16T15:42:00.000-05:00

Oh, there is nothing that evokes the southern garden like the scent of gardenia. The surreal creamy, velvety bloom amidst the glossy blue green foliage is as deep and secretive and lovely as southern beauty itself.

But just as the delicate flower is an elusive prize, hard-won and easily lost, so too is the fine gardenia perfume.

While there are many gardenia perfumes, few capture the virtue and the ethereal complexity of the gardenia.

Estee Lauder Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia

does capture the lovely nature of the gardenia by playing on the nuances of the tuberose to draw it out without becoming too sultry, too hothouse flowery and suffocating.

It is not sweet and cloying, nor is it powdery or synthetic. It is a sophisticated and truly, truly lovely perfume.

The addition of the tuberose manages to offer a true soliflore perfume, not a bouquet.

Tuberose Gardenia captures the gardenia at its pristine best. It is a carefully wrought perfume, and it is clearly one of superior ingredients.

Formal Fridays

2011-08-12T07:07:00.009-05:00

Litany?
flip flops
yoga pants
sweats
tissue tee
logos
skinny jeans
mom jeans
boyfriend jeans
sneakers
pastry-scented perfumes
micro minis
androgyny
spaghetti straps
muted colors
smoky eye
cage shoes
gladiator sandals
maxi dress

Or Lovely?

Birthday

2011-08-10T11:33:00.011-05:00

Mother often opens her home to extend her hospitality, and at the end of May, she hosted a birthday dinner for the spring-born ladies.
So fitting.
These gentle southern flowers, of course, had been born in the balmy throes of late spring.
And, oh, what a vision to behold.
This bouquet of dear, tender delicacy.
So fragile in their silvered age,
just as any gardenia would be.
Miss Charlotte was the tiniest, brightest one of all.
It was Miss Charlotte’s 96th birthday and our very first meeting.
She was born in the Piedmont.
And she delights in telling of her Royalty:
She was brought up on King James.
As a little girl, she heard her mother recall the passing of Queen Victoria.
And King Edward.
She heard her grandmothers recall The War.
And Reconstruction.
She was born in the shadow of the Great War, and lost her father to it.
It was a Piedmont without the Roaring Twenties.
Or flappers.
Or the decadence of the Lost Generation.
Or monkey trials.
And certainly no Great Depression, what could crash?
She told of when the War To End All Wars became known as the First.
And she spoke of her little ones,
The ones she raised,

the ones she buried.
And she spoke of grandbabies, and their babies, and their babies…
And she told me about the wild strawberries.
And the old hound
that took a shine to her
and was always by her side
as she hunted and hunted for them.
She was raised in passed-down calico. Never knew a new dress.
That little calico girl loved to read and read.
She told of the first time she ever tasted coconut.
It was such a revelation to her
that she recalled that moment,
nearly fifty years later.
That little girl lived many withouts.
That little girl lived without the little white dresses
of the Low Country.
Without a delicate little parapluie.
And
Without one more thing…
In her letter of thanks,
she confessed
she had never had
a birthday party
given in her honor.This had been her first.
Mother came to my door yesterday for the cloves.Miss Charlotte passed way in her sleep this weekend,
and my mother was preparing the Comfort Apple for her family.

But I made Miss Charlotte the prettiest coconut birthday cake you ever did see.
Oh, the dream of every little southern girl.
And I layered it so high, it looked like a regal, lace-dressed lady.
I respectfully placed it among the many dishes,
the offerings of nourishment,
and comfort,
and care,
I paid my respects
and quietly left.
And I thank the Lord for those strawberries that delighted her so.
And her sweet, young heart’s love of books.
And I thought of that little girl in calico,
the tiniest, brightest of them all,
up in the Piedmont.

Southern Child

2011-08-09T08:44:00.005-05:00

Dignified + Modest + Innocent

Coral + Ivory + Ginger + Cream

2011-08-05T11:21:00.010-05:00

Feminine Fall Palette Polished.

Pretty.

Formal and lovely.

Every task.

Every occasion.

This Very Evenin'

2011-08-03T17:41:00.003-05:00

Summer Cover

2011-08-02T12:17:00.003-05:00

Classic Southern Skin Care

2011-08-01T11:23:00.001-05:00

Beauty From The Garden
I come from keepers of the old southern traditions. Their old gardens grew the foods to enrich, herbs to enliven, and flowers to beautify. We still use their old garden methods today.

Southern ladies of today are beholden to those gentle ladies who turn to the garden to find ways to pamper their skin and soothe their senses.
Summer Skin Care
I always use moisturizers which contain oils, even in the summer. The best (and only) ingredients a good moisturizer needs are oil, water, and beeswax. Oh, I could go on and on about the inferior fillers added to moisturizers to cut costs and then sold to us as improvements, but I will simply say all skin types need oils.
I apply fresh cream to my face, decollete, and hands before I draw my evening bath. This will help keep freckling at bay and it exfoliates and softens the skin.
Skin Brightening Scrub

Pour a tablespoon of powdered milk and a small amount of sea salt into the palm of you hand and add one drop of water or oil at a time to achieve a thin paste. For troubled skin, you may add a small amount of kaolin or French clay powder to thicken the paste and draw out impurities. Apply paste to decollete, neck and face and work into skin. Rinse well.

Sun Stressed Skin

Apply arnica infused oil to under eye area. The oil will soften the skin and the arnica will ease sun-frowns.

Make a strong, strong calendula tea and allow to cool. Apply to clean skin, and moisturize as usual.
Skin Restoring Summer Baths

I mix special ablutions for my evening bath. During the summer I will always have a salt-based bath, always with a little milk, rose, and often with either chamomile, rosemary and verbena, lavender, or calendula.

If you have had a rather physically taxing day, create an Epsom-based bath. Mix Epsom salt, sea salt, powdered milk, and lavender (essential oil is simplest) into a warm bath.
To brighten skin, mix 1 c lemon juice, 2 c Epsom salt, and fresh rosemary sprigs with a warm bath. Put the rosemary in first and allow to steep before adding lemon juice and salt.
Exfoliating Bath Soak And Scrub

For the Bath: Add 1 c powdered milk to warm bath. Relax in milk bath for ten minutes. Drain tub.

For the Scrub: Mix 1/2 c base oil, 1/2 c sea salt, and 1 tablespoon clay in a bowl. Apply to shoulders, decollete, arms, and legs and scrub skin in small circular motions. Rinse well.
Apply a mild soap or cleanser and gently loofah previously scrubbed skin. Rinse well. Skin will be pink baby soft. Apply a gentle moisturizer to skin.
For The Hair

Apply a colorless aloe vera gel to freshly washed, damp hair. Aloe vera will supply a bit of texture and only minor, minor hold to the hair, but it will help shield the hair from sun exposure and provide a bit of moisture.
Brew a very strong chamomile tea and allow to cool. Transfer to a spray bottle and apply to hair while working out-of-doors. The chamomile will brighten naturally occurring highlights.
To Cool Summer Skin
Mix water (or vinegar if you have a sunburn) and aloe vera juice in a spray bottle and leave in the ice box. This will soothe sun and wind-burned skin.

Brew a very strong mint tea and leave to cool to room temperature. Pour into a spray bottle and leave in the ice box. Nothing will cool fevered skin like it.

Ingredient List
Base Oil
Grapeseed oil
Apricot oil
Aloe Vera juice
Oil Infusions
(avoid herbs infused in soy, corn, peanut, canola, vegetable oils)
Arnica oil
Calendula oil
Dried Herbs
Spearmint
Chamomile
Lemon Balm
Verbena
Salts
Epsom
Sea salt
Powdered Ingredients
Powdered milk
Powdered French clay
Dried Flowers
Calendula
Chamomile
Rose
Lavender
Materials
Muslin: add dried or fresh flowers and herbs to little muslin sachets for herb baths
Loofah

The Fragrant Ladies

2011-07-30T07:05:00.001-05:00

Developing a child’s palate is not limited to cuisine. The scented world of childhood carries a profundity of meaning, context, even self-identification. That foundation is the reference point. What comes after is always based on, compared to, and filtered through those first scents. It is no wonder. Our olfactory cortex is directly linked to the memory center of the brain, the hippocampus. Sent becomes memory. Memory is scent. Developing a discerning palate in our children is a kindness and gift we can bestow.
Raising a child in the rich experiences of real scent, those elements of our natural world that give us such great delight, will serve them well. Our children will be better armed against the artificiality of a chemical-laden consumer world divorced from nature.
A child raised on the flavors of real food, the out-of-doors, and in a home environment of real scent will have built an olfactory foundation which makes the artificiality unpalatable.
In order to help a child to develop a sophisticated approach to considering what is, and what is not, of value (in any category) one must recognize that one’s own discernment will have lasting influence on a child’s cultural tastes and expectations.
The tawny scent of honey.
The sweet, bright scent of cold butter.
The sharp, resin-greeniness of rosemary, sun-warmed and driving bees mad with desire.
The prim, camphor-sweet of lavender, dressed in her silvered-gray, just as Miss Havisham would be.
French bread baking.
Orris root powder. Oh, the scent of dear, sweet scent of The Old South.
The summer tangle of limes, tomatoes, garlic, onions, cilantro, jalapeno.
Sun-warmed earth.
The mineraly scent of a tomato leaf.
Thyme-grown pathways.
The vanilla-lemon of a magnolia in bloom.
The stately, delicate oblate leaves of the tender Lemon Verbena, the fragrant ladies, as my mother named them.
Night-blooming jasmine. The reward for surviving yet another southern summer day.
Cold-water scent of watermelon, which mommas send children deep into the yard to eat. (No dripping on this clean floor.)
Grape-sweet wisteria.
Sun-kissed skin.
Sun-brewed tea.
Bar-be-cue.
Ladies in old perfumes.
Bridle leather.
Hay.
Floral waters.
Fried chicken. Upon which one’s worth (or goodness, or might) may be judged.
Biscuits cooked in a gas oven.
Hot cast iron.
White gravy.
Linen water. Smooths the wrinkles out of the heat.
Verdant-sharp grape flowers.
Tart scent of our fig trees.
Mulberry ice cream.
Summer rainstorm. Yes, please!
Roses.
Gardenias.
Lemon blossom.
Jungles of basil.
Carpets of oregano. Smells like old cast iron pencil sharpeners to me.
Pert, uncharted forests of mint.
Honey-sweet beeswax polish, warmed and fragrant from the sun shining onto a sideboard.
Mossy green of swimming in the stock tank.
Summer suppers.
Pie.
Oh, but this is childhood.

The Real Revolution

2011-07-15T10:03:00.005-05:00

Marble Ruin From My Ancestral Home
In stark contrast to the many celebrations of all things French-like, I should like to give you a true glimpse into the French Revolution.
When the Huguenots were forced to flee France, my ascendants came to the deep south. However, my relatives eventually returned to our ancestral home in France not long before the Revolution began.
The French Revolution
My ancestral home was looted. Some things of value were taken, but most things of value were destroyed. Books were burned. Art was torn to shreds. Marble was crushed. The grounds, food, and flower gardens were trampled. Their food was taken.

Results of the French Revolution

While the wealth of most noble families was taken from them, more French citizenry starved after the Revolution than before. The nation’s wealth was taken from the nobility and kept by the government. All homes were searched, and any food stores were taken to prevent hoarding. The new French regime focused on “internal enemies,” French citizens who were critical of the government were hunted.
The destruction of the Christian church was governmental policy. Christians were under attack. Churches were destroyed, and religious iconography was looted. The Christian calendar was replaced. Half of the Revolution’s executions were of the middle class, and 38% of the Revolution’s executions were of the clergy.

Et tu, Clinique?

2011-07-13T10:51:00.004-05:00

REFORMULATED...

Beauty Tonics

2011-07-12T10:36:00.003-05:00

A Garden of Beauty
It has long been the habit of southern ladies to fill their gardens with the finest herbs and fruits suitable every facet of her day. Our dear ancestors knew the curative, culinary, and cosmetic secrets of her garden, and each part of the plant was of benefit.
The southern lady knew the joy of a plump, perfumed strawberry, and she knew the use of the raspberry leaf.

She knew that old southern mint scented winter sachets and rosemary brightened her skin. No corner of the southern home was without the benefit of her garden's bounty.
Those fragrant rows of verbena, lovely fluffs of mint, or prim lines of lavender provided the southern lady with the sweet scents for her home, the flavorful blends for her kitchen, and the fragrant melange for her old fashioned beauty rituals.
Old Southern Beauty
Few things will set-to-straights like a healthful beauty tonic. These lovely southern tonics were passed from mother to daughter for hundreds of years. A beauty tonic will help tone and purify the skin while and make wonderful alcohol-free aperitifs or digestifs. There are many lovely vinegar compounds and infusions available, but these recipes may be tailored to suit your concerns. We have as many tonic recipes as there are afflictions.
Lovely Elixir

It is a rather endearing habit among the ladies in my family to refer to an especial favorite as a lovely elixir. I quite like that. I use the Berries and Herbs Tonic exclusively, but I will make the savory tonic for others. These are wonderfully versatile, and effective.

Whether one wishes to improve the complexion’s clarity or restore vitality, these old fashioned tonics are a fitting addition to a day’s ablutions. Indeed, beauty tonics will improve the efficacy of our skin care regimen.

Ritual

These lovely elixirs have been taken for centuries to purify the liver and balance pH. Taking a vinegar tonic before each meal will also help moderate blood sugar and keep off excess weight.
It is the old tradition to take two teaspoons before each meal or to serve as a cooling drink by mixing two teaspoons to one cup mineral water and serving over ice.
Since each will last for six weeks, you may vary the ingredients to meet your personal requirements. Southern ladies would ensure that their gardens were filled with the many herbs and fruits which would best serve her requirements. Many of the old southern gardens still hold testament to the lovely rituals and ablutions.
As we approach the heat of deep summer adding mineral-rich southern molasses to your tonics will be especially fine. A wonderfully effective addition to the savory tonics is hot chili peppers. Not only will the capsaicin actually create a cooling effect, it will add a pretty glow to the skin.

Adding chamomile or basil to a summer tonic will revive the skin and brighten the hair.

Old Southern Garden

Savory-Sweet Beauty Tonic

1 c water
1 c vinegar (I use rice wine vinegar)
1 c molasses
1 c diced fresh tomatoes (I often substitute grapes and omit half of the molasses)
Enough chopped fresh herbs to pack a 32 oz fruit jar (I use rosemary, French thyme, and oregano)
1 fresh jalapeno, diced and deseeded (optional)
Mash tomatoes (and jalapeno) and add vinegar, push through a strainer. Seal in a fruit jar and allow to macerate for three days. On the third day, add vinegar mixture, water and molasses to a pot and gently simmer for twenty minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly. Pack fruit jar with herbs, tamp down. Add cooled mixture to fruit jar. Seal and refrigerate. Use within six weeks.

Old Southern Garden
Berries and Herbs Tonic

1 c vinegar
6 c fresh berries (I use mulberries, blueberries, or raspberries, but strawberries are most common)
sugar or honey to taste (I do not use any)
Enough chopped tarragon, lavender, rosemary, mint, or verbena to pack a 32 oz fruit jar
Mash berries and add vinegar (if you are using blackberries or raspberries, push mix through a strainer). Seal in a fruit jar and allow to macerate for three days. On the third day, add vinegar mixture and sugar to a pot and gently simmer for fifteen minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly. Pack fruit jar with herbs, tamp down. Add cooled mixture to fruit jar. Seal and refrigerate. Use within six weeks.

What you have not taken within six weeks may be mixed with enough white vinegar to dilute the color and used as a skin or hair toner.

Secrets For Beautiful Skin

2011-06-21T07:47:00.004-05:00

Wild-caught Atlantic Salmon
Good, healthful food improves the mind, the body, and the skin. I will be sharing many of my culinary secrets to beautiful skin this week.
Beauty Treatment
I eat wild-caught salmon for an extended time as a beauty treatment. This is a miracle for your skin. You WILL see the difference in your skin within a week.
Simple Is Best
It is often rather difficult to find fresh, wild-caught salmon, and I must rely on a previously-frozen version. I simply add a bit of sea salt to it before baking, and that is it. I usually bake a large portion, and then eat four ounces each day.
If you do not care for fish, it is perfectly fine to add fresh garden herbs to it. Fresh rosemary or dill will complement salmon beautifully, and both improve skin, too.
Pretty In A Can
When I am unable to find a nice piece of salmon, I do rely on a very good canned version.
I buy Honey Boy Skinless Boneless Red Salmon, 6 oz (it has a black lid), and I buy it in bulk. If you must choose only one food to add to your diet, this is the one. Your skin will improve eating salmon.
If you are unable to find this brand, do please choose one which CLEARLY STATES: Wild-caught Atlantic salmon, boneless and skinless.

Formal Fridays

2011-06-17T07:54:00.006-05:00

To The Lawns!

There are few lovelier events than formal lawn functions. Our sweet, breezy southern lawn parties allow a glimpse into a simple and pretty time.

Charming folks in fine summer whites dress the out of doors. Delicate straw hats adorn prim summer bobs and fetching chignons. Visions of smiling ladies sitting under gauzy Spanish moss draped upon ancient oaks cheer the day.

It is the tradition to choose a drop waist dress in gauzy silk voile, cotton lawn, or linen muslin, and it is in perfect keeping with propriety. It is perfectly fitting and appropriate to choose a lovely sandal for the occasion. A fine little kitten heel d'Orsay is the utmost in charm and decorum.

Keep America Beautiful

2011-06-16T07:52:00.005-05:00

(Top to Bottom: Butterick 5557, 5519, 4386, 5605, Laura Ashley for McCalls 5972)

'80's Hair Not Included

The Land of Evening Lingerings

2011-06-15T08:56:00.005-05:00

As he hurried along, eagerly anticipating the moment when he would be at home again among the things he knew and liked, the Mole saw clearly that he was an animal of tilled field and hedgerow, linked to the ploughed furrow, the frequented pasture, the lane of evening lingerings, the cultivated garden-plot. For others the asperities, the stubborn endurance, or the clash of actual conflict, that went with Nature in the rough; he must be wise, must keep to the pleasant places in which his lines were laid and which held adventure enough, in their way, to last for a lifetime.

Culture And Cuisine

2011-06-13T09:42:00.002-05:00

Food and Identity
Upbringing so greatly influences the foods and ways we eat that any discussion about culinary habits is also a discussion about identity, culture and family history. Food culture is such a prime and primal part of us, that our eating habits reveal so much about our experiences, our geographic regions, our communities, and ancestry.
Care And Community
Belief systems are often revealed in our food choices. We assign certain favored foods to our daily events and occasions. We feed the ones we love, we feast in celebrations, and we nourish others in times of illness and loss. From the foods we choose for celebrations to the types of foods we feed our families we reveal what is important to us and for us.
Behavior Reveals Character
Manners and education are often revealed in food relationships, too. Decency and thoughtful regard for others is often expressed through meal sharing, and it is at the table where our manners and mores are most closely in view.
I am ever mindful of my grandmother’s many edicts on gracious and dignified behavior and its connection to the gift of food. It has always been through food that we give of ourselves, so the food we share represents who we are. It is an extension of us and says a lot about us, just as behavior reveals our character.
Culinary Biography
Perhaps this is a purely southern phenomenon, but I believe I come to know most about another person through food. I am interested in the different ways in which others live and eat, and I always enjoy learning about them. I am as interested in culinary heritage as I am biography.
Old Garden Culture
I am the product of my upbringing, and my own culinary habits reflect the beliefs and traditions of my ancestors. Our food traditions were established long ago, I believe I can most accurately describe our dining habits as Anglo-French/Southern Agrarian. We eat small amounts of meat a few times per week, we eat many, many herbs and vegetables, a variety of fruits, quite a bit of cultured dairy, very few grains (mostly rice), and very little bread. However, I am the product of my upbringing, and I bake. I happily uphold this very old and very dear tradition. I bake for others, and I delight in it. I like to bring others to my table.
Southern Agrarian
The reason we do not eat many grains or breads is as much due to geography as it is to culture. My family comes from three distinct agrarian traditions: English, French, and Southern. Having come from distinctly fertile regions with long-standing, varied, and rich agriculture, a reliance on grain-based products has not been necessary. My ancestors have always lived with a great variety of fruits, vegetables, meat, and dairy.
From The Garden
My ancestors were avid beekeepers and horticulturists. For centuries they collected and grew grapevines, fruit trees, flowers and herbs to greater and greater refinement to the tastes of their bees (I must remember to write about the structures they built for their bees). My family has produced many botanists, naturalists, horticulturist, gentlemen farmers, and lady rosarians, floriculturists, garden historians, heirloom gardeners, cuttings keepers, cuttings sharers, and on and on.
To this day we grow the flowers we love and the foods we eat.
To this day we bring others to our table in joy and in fellowship.
To this day we live and dine in the old garden culture.

My Secret Weapon

2011-06-11T09:14:00.001-05:00

Rosewater
I come from a long line of ladies who make their own floral and herbal essences and waters. Our family is still in possession of that very old still used solely for those distillations. Since it has never been used to distill alcohol it is in excellent usable condition and is a treasure. We make our own flower essences in small batches to avoid oxidation or the need for any preservatives. It is pure, simple, organic, rosewater and nothing else.
We do this for many flowers: roses, orange blossoms, lavender, but, with the exception of roses, these flowers are only seasonally available, even in the south. So, there are times when I must rely on prepared flower waters.
Prepared Flowerwaters

I am always, always on the hunt floral waters that are pure flower and water, organic, and culinary grade, but I have yet to find one which will straightforwardly and clearly state on its label any of these things. The labels at best seem to suggest certain merits.
My Recommendation
If you do not have access to locally made floral waters, I recommend Heritage Products Rosewater. This southern made rosewater is light and wonderfully scented. It is not perfumy, sweet or powdery. The scent does not linger, nor will it “turn” on the skin.

I do not use it in food, but it does seem to suggest that is culinary grade. It is available in two sizes. The price ranges from three to five dollars for the four ounce size and five to eight dollars for the eight ounce size.

Formal Fridays

2011-06-10T08:02:00.001-05:00

537

Crystal

Stocking step through the entry door.

Appropriate for every occasion.

Appropriate for every day.

On Personal Appearance

2011-06-09T08:46:00.022-05:00

Grooming and Outlook
Personal refinement and attention to detail, however small, is telling of the way in which one wishes and chooses to move through life. Gracing our days with the ritual of care lends an air of serenity and charm.
Lovely Effect
A lady who exudes a subtle and prettily refined beauty seems to move about as if set apart, as if wonderfully removed from the noise and harsh light of our frenzied modern world, and we wish to step into her quiet, more refined and lovely one. Beautifully maintained appearance, wonderfully kept and flattering hair, and feminine and attractive dress remind us of the gracious days.

Taking Care

Caring for and pampering your skin and hair is time well spent, as it works to improve one's overall well-being. The attention we give to our grooming rituals work toward improve physical appearance and our quality of life. The emotionally therapeutic value of these habits should not be overlooked, as they lend themselves to creating a healthy perspective, too.
Old Southern Ways
Taking time to draw a milk bath perfumed with rose and fortified with healing salts restores and improves us. Tending to our skin with nutrient-rich salves, balms, and creams reduces stress, increases circulation, and soothes us. Adorning our hair with lovely floral scents comforts us and pleases our senses.
The very best products are old fashioned in their simplicity and wonderfully charming. I rely solely on the old recipes drawn from old family journals. The lovely treatments are soothing, lovely, and effective.

A Fitting Season

I do believe more and more southern ladies wish to make a return to the cultured refinement. A gentle regard for the ritual of care refresh the skin and help return the bloom to visage and life, alike. The lovely, gracious notion of beauty is the reward for those who wish to present themselves as the rare, well-cared-for examples of classic feminine beauty.

Perfumed Brioche

2011-06-08T12:38:00.011-05:00

Along the muted, cool reaches of an upstairs hall hangs the very old portrait of an ancestor, a fair-haired girl whose deep blue eyes of gamine seriousness show themselves in the family to this very day.

Delicate hands are set to best advantage, and a lively intelligence plays on the prettily serene visage of this girl entering her seventeenth year, nearly 400 years ago.

This recipe was passed to her then. It had already been a tradition in her family for hundreds of years.

This tender bread is an austere variation of a perfumed brioche, as is in keeping with solemnity of the mourning period. It is light, subtly sweet, and very nicely soft. It is scented with orange flower water, however Grand Marnier was a proper substitute by the late 1800’s, as it is made from the same bitter orange. The true recipe maintains its symbolism when made only with the flower water.

Orange flower water, the symbol of purity, delicacy, and restraint, was brought back to France during the Crusades.
It is present at the births of our children, at our weddings, at Christmas and Easter, and during periods of mourning.
It is also the old custom that many ladies would choose the orange blossom as her signature fragrance. It is a gentle, constant companion to our most cherished events.

Old Southern Kitchen

Pogne aromatisee a l’eau de fleur d’oranger

1 c warm water (90 degrees)

8 g dry active yeast (one envelope)

¼ c sugar

4 1/2 c flour (measure and sift into a separate bowl, as this will save you from tedious calculations later)

¼ c flour for working

2 eggs at room temperature (jumbo eggs are preferable)

¼ c melted butter, cooled

1 tablespoon orange flower water (I use Malandel)

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon grape seed oil (or any light oil)

1 egg white, lightly beaten

Blend warm water, yeast and one tablespoon of sugar until dissolved and allow to sit for five minutes. Then, measure out and re-sift 1 ½ c flour (from your already-measured bowl of flour) and add it to the yeast mixture.

Whisk flour and yeast mixture until smooth (do not over whisk), cover with plastic wrap and then a kitchen linen, and set in a warm place for 30 minutes.

At the 30 minute mark, mix melted (but cooled) butter, sugar, salt, and orange flour water with room-temperature eggs until smooth. Please ensure that your butter is cool, as you do not want to scramble your eggs.

Add this mixture to your flour and yeast mixture. Mix through and then begin adding in the remaining flour, one cup at a time. You may not need all of the remaining flour, the goal is to get a dough that just holds together and is still rather sticky. Stir in one direction until the dough reaches that consistency.

Lightly flour your work surface, turn out the dough, and knead for 10 minutes or until the dough is springy and smooth. Shape dough to a ball.

Clean out your mixing bowl with warm water and dry thoroughly. Coat the bowl in grape seed oil. Gently roll the dough ball in the bowl until covered in oil, and place the dough into the bowl, seam side down.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and then a kitchen linen. Set in a warm spot to rise for two hours.

Once the dough has roughly doubled in size punch it down and gently scrape it out onto a floured surface. Shape the dough into a ball and roll out in a round of about 1 ½ inch thickness.

Lightly oil a baking sheet and transfer the round to it. Cover with a damp kitchen linen and set in a warm spot to rise for one hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

At the one hour mark brush the beaten egg white over the round. Bake for 30 minutes until golden.

Allow to cool on a rack.

Memory and Nourishment

2011-06-06T08:25:00.002-05:00

We were called home, twice.
Once, back to the land that stood so warm and solid beneath our childhood. We had long awaited this call, and the blessing was in the knowing.
And once, back to a land in which dwelt those whose own blood now courses through my veins. Not the land of my birth, it is the land of my beginnings.
We had not expected it, but the blessing was in not knowing.
As is the way, each of us was called back to our little selves, too. Back to those older roles of baby sisters, and fine young boys, and dear girls. I was back, too. The smiling girl.
The sweet time for those with faith. Even with an ache pulling at a heart it is lifted by the certainty of everlasting life. Sweet, dear, familiar voices recalling old stories, smiling and reminiscing and all the while holding fast to the ceremony of reverence. We are schooled in the gentle art of grace, which tempers the pang of loss and the value of remembrance.
Holding to form.
Shaping this moment.
Living this season in the dignified quiet it so richly deserves.
Back to the kitchen. The ancient stone, velvety in timeworn softness. The smell of old copper and dried herbs exerts the primal pull on each of us.
And I bake.
I bake that delicate, perfumed round, that ancient bread known to my ancestors before this land became our home. It is the nourishment for this season of our lives.
That old familiar taste, it is the companion to our Christmas bread. With one we honor the birth of our Lord, with one we honor a loved one. Both symbolic of a cherished time.
This tender offering to the nourishment of others. Hand wrought, the warmth of my own beating heart brings form. The strength of my own hands shapes it. The very process so symbolic of family.
It is an old, old custom to present it in linen we have so painstakingly embroidered for this very occasion. And as we work these delicate linens we are ever mindful of the old mortality, that this is only a fleeting time. These dear, golden days have their season. The seasons change, and the garden grows quiet.
So, we return to this old, familiar comfort. It is a happy one, when there is faith. And the longings we feel are nourished by the sweet memories, and succor can to be found in home, and family, and the humble offering of bread.
This old bloodline runs through me, right through me, and on, now.
If you wish, I will give you this recipe, my sweet friends. Let the subtle flower scent become familiar, it is a gentle reminder of the sweet fragrance of life lived gently. Let the warmth of your own hands and the strength of your loving heart bring shape to the nourishment of those you hold dear. It is a recipe of celebration, and remembrance.

In The Garden

2011-06-05T09:07:00.004-05:00

In the great goodness of God's tender mercies, we are sometimes made aware of an ending. In our limited, human ways we provide the meager comfort and care we can as we face with tender hearts the change and the inevitable winter of life. We prepare for loss, and we are thankful for the knowing.

In the great goodness of God's tender mercies, we rarely know of the many lasts we will experience. A loss unexpected is tempered by the grace of not knowing the many, many finalities, indeed.

My family has endured loss, and we have required a drawing in and a period of privacy.

I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of kindness and concern. I simply did not know. Thank you for all of your prayers and loving support. I have cared for and missed you all. I have thought of you often, and I hope we may become reacquainted.