Thursday, December 21, 2023

Holiday Hand Crafted Clay Gingerbread Village and a few added pieces 2023


AD-FREE BLOG

I've had a few inquiries about my old village posts, so I tried another round of photos and a shaky, but cute video. I only put up the village when we don't host Christmas Eve or Day..as I need the buffet for serving. So this is an UP year, enjoy!



Now I will do a few closeups---and explanations. I started building the gingerbread houses from terra cotta clay in the early 1980's. They were all cut out from slabs, dried and decorated with 'icing' which was a 'snow' glaze I added my own colorants to. The houses were assembled with tub caulk--supported by canned goods on my kitchen table. I would do maybe 10 houses at a time. 

Buildings I made not in my own collection include: Farm buildings, silo, school, post office, various stores and a lot of custom houses (from photos of people's homes). Each building was then decorated with greens, wreaths, minis and yellow plastic glued into the windows. The homes were all lit by a bulb and cord with a turn switch. I can't tell you how many I made in the 25 years or so I made them. 

I currently safely plug my own village into two breaker boxes.
Sometimes the stories are more interesting than the photos.  I'll try and follow the path of the video.

oldnewgreenredo


The flower shop was added in the early 2000's.  My first job outside of the family business was a flower shop---throughout my art career I often worked in flower shops or ran flower departments in big box stores. 

Sometimes it's a bit like a Christmas Movie with all the stories hidden in the buildings and the people inhabiting buildings surround by the snow covered grounds.

oldnewgreenredo
Inside, I'm working late into the night on a special order---definitely something that happened more often than not.

oldnewgreenredo

This is from a very early memory ---on a relative's farm on Christmas Eve were were taken on a hay ride around the farm...it was cold but magical with a full moon sparkling on the snow! 

oldnewgreenredo

My parents had a cottage, as did my husband's parents. Rural Wisconsin can be very beautiful in the winter... I loved this little piece for the back corner of my buffet.
My sister-in-laws property is very much like this----with a lovely little 'crick' as we called it on their acres and acres of land.

In the video you go past the Sports shop---made for my boys in their youth to celebrate their sports.
oldnewgreenredo

At the end of the street are these three buildings---the Sports shop made for my boys. The Bakery---and the Mercantile. The only new addition to the village this year is the Ooompah-pah band---in honor of Hubby's Great-Great-Grandfather who played coronet in the Municipal Band in Prague. You can just imagine them strolling through the city/village and filling the air with music!


oldnewgreenredo

This is adorable and the uniforms are spot on from the photographs we have found.

 Across from the flower shop---is another commercial piece I couldn't resist the Fishmarket. My family's fresh Fish market was started in 1922 here in the USA, but in Denmark they fished back at least five generations.

oldnewgreenredo

I even see some family resemblance ---the one on the left, looks like my grandfather in his youth, the guy on the right is a dead ringer for my great-great grandfather. 

oldnewgreenredo

Next to the Fish Market of course is a Bait shop---made for my husband, an avid sport fisherman. Oddly this guy looks exactly like my great-grandfather, who fished the North Sea as well as Lake Michigan commercially.

oldnewgreenredo

By the Bait shop aren these two old Codgers ice fishing, it's my husband and his buddy Bob. The pond represents the small lake that is two blocks from our home. Lots of great fishing there!

oldnewgreenredo

Up on the street is the Mercantile---that little store in the neighborhood that was like today's 7/11's with a little bit of everything. 

Behind that is the Chicken Coop Produce building. I had a ChickenCoop art studio as a teen on my parent's vacation property. I cleaned it out, installed screens on the coop doors, and glazed all the windows, and put new tar paper on the roof. Painted all the walls with 3 coats of white-wash and bought a grass rug for the cement floor.  It was my refuge---so I couldn't pass up this Coop to add to our collection.

Back behind all these buildings are sledders, kids doing what they do---playing in the snow! We had a huge hill one block from our house where sledding was a career for all of the kids who lived in the valley!

oldnewgreenredo

Back down to the pond---is my Sailor representing my oldest son who was a NUKE. 


oldnewgreenredo

The pond represents the Zoo pond in my home town where we skated, and met nour friends. Just saw the stray water pump---lol...it needs to go to the farm store!

oldnewgreenredo

Next to the pond is the park---playground---and the band shell. Our hometown had bandshell concerts every Sunday afternoon in the summer time. My boyfriend played in the band, so I was there most weekends. We live not far from Woodstock Illinois where the bandshell in the square was the one from the movie, 'Groundhogs' Day', really the epitome of the town square type town.

oldnewgreenredo

Across the pond is the Church. Churches were the first buildings I made. I made a Danish Kirke (Church) for my gramma  and this one for my mother. Gramma's is currently still packed somewhere from the damage we had last Spring. This one is reminiscent of our family church in my hometown. I think of the Pastor as my second cousin Pastor Peter. The Caroler is me---I sang in two choirs as teen, though I never solo'd, but often sang in duets for services.

oldnewgreenredo

The church sits on an rise, not far from the river....and the bridge---just like in my hometown.

oldnewgreenredo

The water supply for the pond is an ode to my childhood favorite place...the Root River and it's little 'crick' tributaries. Even in the center of city we had wildlife since we were a couple of blocks from the river.

oldnewgreenredo

Where we live now, well we are allowed to live at the will of the squirrels, chippies, foxes, geese, hawks,  woodchucks, wandering deer and even a few coyotes are spotted regularly. Once we discovered a possum under decking we were repairing, he was quite perturbed at my husband ripping up his 'roof'. 

oldnewgreenredo

The building to the right is the candy shop---reminiscent of the one across from my grade school. Remember Mary Jane's were 2 cents...and dots on a paper were a penny---!! this was my most popular shop to sell. Over the years the candies have disappeared, I will have to make some new ones and add them.

oldnewgreenredo

The Farm Market is reminiscent of all the wonderful farm markets we have visited, and all the produce we grow ourselves. In front, are our USA Service persons : Army, Nurses(2 of my Aunts) and my cousins in the Navy.

oldnewgreenredo

The big fancy house very close to our first home---yes, a three story stone Victorian with a porch and a turret infested with pigeons. It had three apartments and sat on a 1/4 of a city block. OMG...we were insane. We bought it on land contract---fresh out of college--and it was a money pit...eventually we moved from N. Wisconsin to Chicagoland, but I still have dreams of what the house 'could have been' if we could have afforded to finish restoring it. Fifty-four windows and thirteen 
were stained- glass....oh,  it was the Munsters' Nightmare.
In the back of the property which was a carriage house, the upstairs became my clay studio for 10 years.

oldnewgreenredo

More hills and more sledders! Yes, that is an outhouse! 

oldnewgreenredo

Little paths to follow---out into the oblivion of miniature land...of course I wish the buffet was even longer!


oldnewgreenredo

Across the street is a small house...the old guy lives there alone, but he has toys he made on his roof, so he is a kid at heart (as was my Dad a proficient toymaker). 

oldnewgreenredo

Our house is a bit cramped, here---made to match the house as it was in 1984. Updated with the two old farts kissing on the walk.(US)

oldnewgreenredo

I can't duplicate all the stuff we have in the front lawn now--but a nutcracker, snowman and the bird feeder with of course a bunny underneath...lol.

So welcome to our nvillage in 2023. It was with mixed feelings I put this up this year, recognizing my age and limitations. How time has flown since 1980! Our boys have grown up with families of their own,  parents and grandparents no longer with us. 

Also, thoughts of the customers for whom I built so many houses for, where are they now? Are they treasured and full of memories like ours?

Have a Merry Christmas and
Bring Joy into all you do 
and experience this year! 

If you enjoyed this post please follow this blog by blogger or 
FOLLOW IT which you will find in the upper right hand corner of this page. 

Thanks always for visiting. 
I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.

I will be sharing at these fine Parties!


The photos in thisblog are my own or have permission to using them from family.
I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or any products shown. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog 
without my permission. 
Thank you for your cooperation, 

Sandi

























Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Fun Night Walk at the Chicago Botanic Gardens Lightscape

Ad-Free Blog

We've been members of the Botanic Gardens for quite a few years, but we haven't been able to ever attend their "Lightscape" that has grown over the years.

The Gardens are in Glencoe, just north of Chicago proper by a few miles. The property stradles the Edens Highway to Wisconsin. Once upon a time the road was old Hwy. 41 before the Interstate system. It has matured over the years and is definitely my favorite place to go in any season.


Described as a winding walk of 1.8 miles of lights, music and stunning vistas after dusk. I'm including a link to the Gardens description...it's not an advertisement as very few of my reader's are from this area. 

oldnewgreenredo

This was one of the first things we walked through---- a city block of stars...so pretty! 

oldnewgreenredo

These photos are from three different cameras and people. We all have a different way of looking at things. I was fascinated with the colored spots on the bare trees.

oldnewgreenredo

Here the lights from the tree are adequate for interesting lighting on my cohorts!


oldnewgreenredo

These are polyester covered lights you walked through...was very---Avatar like! And safe---the upside of this 'walk' was the amount of children in strollers and seniors in wheel chairs.

oldnewgreenredo

 Entire families were enjoying the entire thing...the temp was about 35...so not unbearable! Yea, that's me, acting like a 10-year old!

oldnewgreenredo

Still photos don't do this walkway justice, with pulsating music and a light show all the way along!

oldnewgreenredo

Huge trees with the super spots on them that faded from one color to the next!

oldnewgreenredo

These were huge and shimmered and changed slowly with colors to the music.

Everything from Opera, to Josh Groban, to Rock, Blues and even some Hip-hop...not to mention Carols, and kid's song---even Gene Autrey and Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer.

oldnewgreenredo

Many sections were sponsered by organizations or companies. This was Bright IDEA and all the trees were plugged in to light bulb type lighting.

oldnewgreenredo

The normally gorgeous lagoons were iced over with wonderful huge 'water lilies'...that morphed in all the colors of the rainbow! 



oldnewgreenredo

A huge field of lights pulsated with music, this was about a half a football field. 


  Gorgeous plaza display!

oldnewgreenredo

More Branches, this was some sort of willow and the long branches hung almost to the ground.


The Cathedral was amazing and was quite long, surrounded by trees! 



I think this was the most popular photo place! 


oldnewgreenredo


I loved our normal favorite Grape Arbor, covered in a woven pattern of rainbow lights! We got so many ideas for our own displays. Can't wait until next year!

oldnewgreenredo

There were tons of photo ops...but this is just two old duffers that made it through the over hour walk...now to trek a quarter mile to the car...LOL. Bundled up---but gosh I was sweating in all those clothes. 

Have Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to ALL!  I used this photo for our Christmas Card...so Enjoy!
Sandi 


Chicago Botanic Gardens Lightscape  Here is the Gardens info on the show...it's worth a peek just for fun! 

We will definitely be going again next year, or for as many years we can!

If you enjoyed this post please follow this blog by blogger or 
FOLLOW IT which you will find in the upper right hand corner of this page. 

Thanks always for visiting. 
I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.

I will be sharing at these fine Parties!

The photos in thisblog are my own or have permission to using them from family.
I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or any products shown. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog 
without my permission. 
Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle

Sandi






Monday, December 11, 2023

Cookie Day 2023 and my two antique Recipes!

AD-FREE BLOG

Cookie Day was yesterday(Sunday), and flour was flying, laughter was ringing, and carols were humming in the background. We were only six this year...but maybe more fun than having 13 or so...LOL. And we made proportionally less cookies, which helped.

oldnewgreenredo

If I look tired, it wasn't 
because I did all these cookies alone.

oldnewgreenredo

Our stash of cutters got a work out -----
these are the newer Christmas ones...My husband is THE cookie cutter hoarder! 

oldnewgreenredo

 I set up everything in the middle of our huge kitchen table. Sprinkles are put on the Lazy-Susan. 

This is the last year I will buy pre-packaged cookie icing. I will invest in more tips and bags and mix the icing myself with powder sugar. cream of tartar, and vanilla. Sure works better than the prepackaged icing, tastes better too.

oldnewgreenredo

We went basic with the gingerbread this year and just white homemade icing, which sets up quickly.

oldnewgreenredo

Cooling racks are a must when you are making tons of cookies. The guys rolled out, and the gals decorated.
I've used this recipe for 50 years or so.


I was so happy to find Brer Rabbit molasses this year, that has such a super taste. 

oldnewgreenredo

These are my hubby's THICK Cookies---it's his grandmother's recipe so very OLD. We had the fifth generation making her cookies, yesterday! The recipe is probably older than that, too.

oldnewgreenredo

Really cute decorating the girls did, we all cut back on icing---lol, I know you can't tell. 

Alvina's OLD RECIPE for Form Cookies.
I use unbleached flour and have substituted Crisco for half the lard...but the consistency changes. Upside these are delicious, hold well, and  are perfect for decorating or just sprinkling sugar on. 

You can leave out the egg white and the icing is fine and dries nicely with just water 
added with the cream of tartar.

old newgreenredo

What's left to do this week---Klejner, Finksbro, Vaniller Kranse, Pound Cake, Pumpkin bread baked into gingerbread house forms-for gifts,  Peppernuts...and chocolate crinkles and coconut wreaths...I better get cracking, no elves to help with these! 

If you enjoyed this post please follow this blog by blogger or 
FOLLOW IT which you will find in the upper right hand corner of this page. 

Thanks always for visiting. 
I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.

I will be sharing at these fine Parties!


All the opinions and photographs in this blog are my own, I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or any products shown. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle

Sandi