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Please check out our new blog under the "Blog" heading! January 27 2016

Please check out our new blog under the "Blog" heading!

Christophe Pourny Furniture Care May 09 2014

We have always sourced great cleaning products at Weekend Kitchen.  With all natural, hard working and nice smelling products from Murchison Hume, Common Good and Caldrea- it seemed a natural fit to bring in Christophe Pourny Furniture Care products as well.  

These wonderful products are made by hand in small batches (our favorite kind of product) in Brooklyn NY.  For wood furniture there is the furniture tonic and a color reviver.

The Furniture Tonic nurtures wood as it restores the luster and shine that time and sun can diminish. The tonic is made from natural, non-toxic ingredients that are friendly to the environment and sourced in North America. Organic Linseed and Walnut Oils are natural cures for wood worn by time. Essential oils and beeswax are added to every bottle, as well as a natural cleanser and drying agent.

The Color Reviver adds a boost to furniture finish.  Reviving aged and worn finishes - or enhancing new items - the reviver will refresh dark wood finishes. Going one step further than CP classic furniture tonic, CP Color Reviver will HIDE NICKS & SCRATCHES with one application. All natural ingredients are as kind to the environment as they are to your furniture. Organic and virgin oils, sourced from North American seeds go into every batch, mixed by hand. Essential oils of Lavender and Rosemary give every bottle a scent of provence. A natural drying agent derived from trees ensures a lasting finish.

Do you have a leather chair, shoes or handbag that is thirsty for moisture?  The leather creme is just what they need. It will clean,moisturize, and shine leather with added benefit of protecting from stains and water.

Made from pure Beeswax, Organic carnauba wax and natural Essential oils.   Leaves a desirable scent and avoids the "shoe polish smell"  on sophisticated items like leather bags, furniture, or articles of clothing.  Apply evenly with a clean rag. Allow product to penetrate before buffing back to a light shine.  To achieve a matte finish, do not buff.  Sold in 2.0 oz Glass Jars. 


Miss Pearl and Marie Antoinette..... February 04 2014

Last weekend brought some new additions to the letterpress studio.  Miss Pearl- a 1913 Golding Pearl floor press and a huge guillotine paper cutter- let's call her Marie Antoinette (we all know her fate).  Both of which are still on the ground level of our barn.  The first order of business is to do a little restoration project on the press.  She needs to be taken apart, cleaned, painted and gotten upstairs in pieces.  There is less to do with the paper cutter but she also needs to be taken apart for the climb upstairs.

I had been searching for a Golding Pearl for a while.  I love the Golding presses, they have a certain flair about them.  They are also not nearly as huge and as the Chandler and Price presses a lot of people have.  They certainly would not make it to the second floor.  The Pearl is a dainty 600 pounds compared to the 1200+ pound C&P floor presses. 

Then I need to learn how to use them!  The press has a motor which is a little daunting but I am sure that I can just spin the fly wheel until I get some experience with how to use the press.


Updates from Green Grape Press.... January 22 2014

I've had a busy fall/winter with my letterpress business Green Grape Press.  I did a lot of custom work for the holidays which was so much fun!  I've also started doing a line of dog cards which have been very popular.  It's funny a friend who was sending them out as part of her dog care business was actually getting cards back to say what great cards!  Recently, my husband gave me two whale illustrations that he had done.  I was able to scan them and have dies cut of the images which arrived yesterday.  I rushed over to the studio to try them out and we are very pleased with the results.  I hope that there will be more illustrations being turned into cards in the near future.

Here is a picture of Goldie- my Golding Official No. 4 press.  She really is doing a great job with the cards and invitations.

 

More to come!  If you like my letterpress cards- you can see all my printing on our Facebook page.


Instagram September 16 2013

I have been becoming a fan of Instagram.  At first I didn't really get why people love this app but I soon learned that is is pretty darn cool.  It is a place for people who love to take pictures with their phones can post their work.  There are a number of different options for changing the look of the picture and putting boarders around.  This is what I really love and have fun getting an old timey feel to the picture.  You can also easily share these photos on Facebook and Twitter.

Here are just a few of the pictures I took this weekend.  

Pictures of the Connecticut River in Essex CT.

And some printing related pictures- Rubine Red was the color of the weekend!

Don't forget you can follow us on Facebook and Instagram by clicking the icons on the bottom of the page!


The printing studio.... July 25 2013

I have yet to really tell you about my letterpress business called Green Grape Press.  I've grown up surrounded by letterpress- I mean literally- my mom was a avid printer.  She printed from the time she was 8 years old until 3 weeks before she died.  She was the best at setting type and making linoleum cuts.  I have a children's book that she wrote, illustrated with her lino cuts, set all the type for the text and printed in multiple colors.  It's amazing and I will share a picture sometime.  She also made a lot of business cards, stationery, wedding invitation etc.  Pretty much anything anyone wanted.  When mom was sick she gave me some printing lessons which were invaluable to my new found hobby as a printer.  She commented that "had she known I would be such a good student she would have taught me years ago".  I hope that she would be proud of my efforts thus far!

It did take me quite a few years to get set up (like 4!).  I had all the presses, printing blocks (called cuts or dies) in storage awaiting the day when I could have a studio.  Well, now I have the studio and the presses are all set up, inks and cuts sorted, nice paper and I'm really going to town cranking out cards, bags, coasters and cocktail napkins.  I did buy myself a new tabletop press- a Golding Official No. 4, which is just perfect for high quality but small scale printing.  It's just perfect for what I need.  I put the old press in the shop window so I could better explain the process of letterpress.  It's far more complicated than rubber stamping, which was the comment I was getting quite often.  Not that rubber stamps are bad but there is more to letterpress.....

From the pictures you can see the cuts/dies locked into the chase that use for the cards.  Then a picture of the printed card. 

 

 

I was lent a wonderful old Typewriter to make labels for my packaging.  Eventually I will have a plate made with Green Grape Press but until then I like the quirky hand made editions.

Recently, I've made some coasters with anchors.  These paper coasters are really great and can be used over and over again!

I am also able to do custom work should anyone be interested!

- N


Sky... June 18 2013

Words are not needed for a sky so beautiful- Enjoy!


The latest in Green Cleaning Products... June 09 2013

While I really do not like to clean and frankly I'm not very good at it (just ask my husband)- I do like cleaning products.  Not any cleaning product will cross my threshold though.  They have to be all natural and smell really yummy to make me want to clean.  A little olfactory tease to get me motivated to drag out that sponge!  I'd been seeing two such lines lately that were green, natural and not tested on animals.  Great packaging is also a plus!  Common Good and Murchison-Hume are the two lines we now add to Caldrea (also great by the way).

Common Good soaps are made in Brooklyn NY and are biodegradable, chemical free and use pure essential oils to fragrance their line.  We chose to bring in the lavender scent to start in the plastic bottles. Lavender is always a popular scent and this one is pure lavender not jazzed up with any other scent.  The packaging is also great- the fact that the owners are former stylists shows in their quirky cool designs.

 The other line that we have is Murchison-Hume.  A very sophisticated line of cleaning products.  Murchison-Hume is also plant based and all natural.  They use a colloidal technology that is very cool and speaks to the scientist in me.  Here, micelles (which are little lipid sphere's) encapsulate dirt and allow it to be cleaned away.  It's the same technology that they use to clean oil spills in the ocean (but a smaller scale of course).

The fig scent was so addictive that I had to have it! The Boys Bathroom Cleaner was a thrill to find since I hate the way bathroom cleaners smell and this one not only worked but smelled great!  I rushed it right home and cleaned the bathroom!  We also have the superlative hand soap, and soon heirloom dishwashing liquid and counter cleaner

I love the packaging of the Murchison-Hume soaps too.  Very different than the Common Good line but remind me of old apothecary bottles.  

 

Either line would make a good addition to your cleaning regimen!


Peter Hofmeister Jewelry... June 05 2013

Peter Hofmeister Jewelry

At the NY Gift show I fell in love with Peter Hofmeister's jewelry. I've looked at it at several shows and pondered bringing it into the shop.  Was it appropriate for us?  Well, I decided that I would have to take a chance on it- I just had to.  His work is so wonderfully hand crafted and you can see and feel his uniqueness.  He has been producing his distinctive jewelry for the past 15 years out of his atelier in SoHo. 

Here are some other examples of his work.  These pieces I do not have in the shop but could be ordered. 

Pretty aren't they?

-N


A certain Moodiness.... June 02 2013

What a wonderful picture from Pinterest.  The picture evokes a moodiness.  

Possibly France- definitely Europe.

Wine, cheese and distant classical music?

Can you feel it?

-N


Book Press... June 02 2013

I've been looking for a book press for quite sometime now.  My mom had one that was pretty neat, but unfortunately she left it in her car park at her condo, and someone helped themselves to it.  I've lamented it's loss ever since.  On my quest to have one of my own I was thwarted by their price.  I didn't realize how collectible they were until I saw them pop up in decorating magazines and just this morning saw that Restoration Hardware had knocked one off for sale in their catalog!  

This lovely press was purchased at an outdoor antiques show in CT.  It was love at first sight with it's green paint and the ease with which you can turn the crank to move the plates up and down.  While I have no idea how to do book binding- yet- but I am eager to learn.  Until then, it will sit in my studio for me to admire and to use for small tasks in my card making.

It does look pretty good in my garden too!  

-N


Knife Skills Class... May 30 2013

Last evening we had a knife skill class which was a lot of fun.  The goal of the dinner was to use the knife as much as possible to slice, dice, chop and julienne our way to a great meal.  Chef Cushman chose the menu based on the knife wheeling potential in the dish.  The menu consisted of Gazpacho, Baby Lamb Chops with Garlic, Carrot and jicama Salad, Potatoes Persillade and Seasonal Fruit Melange (mango and kiwi).

I bet you are all thinking why a knife skills class?  I manage to chop my way through great dinners for years.  Why change things now?  Well, because you will be a better and more efficient cook- that's why.  Good knife skills are the basis from which all the other parts of cooking are based.  Once you have mastered the knife you are well on your way to being a fabulous cook!

Here are some more photos from the class.  And by the way, all the students had a great time, learned a ton and of course the dinner was fantastic!


Letterpress- A New Window Display... May 29 2013

Since I have started to sell my cards in the shop (and online) I have realized that many people do not know what letterpress is all about.  I decided that I would bring down my spare press, a 5 x 8 Kelsey, and put it into the window.  That way when people ask if my cards are done with rubber stamps, I can show them the small press and describe the centuries old way of printing.  Much easier than the iPhone picture and me flapping around trying to be a platen press!

-N


Perfection in a Cheese Plate.... May 28 2013

I love this picture I found on Pinterest.  

It has all the components of the perfect cheese plate.  

A nice old cheese board, silver cheese knife, a nifty little vessel to hold what ever that is in there, linen, waterwheel crackers and raw almonds.

What's your idea of the perfect cheese plate?

-N 


New Site....New Blog.... May 24 2013

 

Welcome to the new Weekend Kitchen Blog.  Since I was never very good about updating the last blog from the old site I thought I would give the Blog a new incarnation here on the new site....  I am trying to decide what form I'd like the blog to take- purely Weekend Kitchen product focus? Recipes and cooking tips?  Decorating ideas?  Eye candy from other blogs?  Since the shop is a mixture of a lot of things- I think so too for the blog. What ever strikes my fancy for the day.  Be it a pretty picture from Pinterest, a lovely recipe from a cooking class or a picture from the class, a card or pictures of the letterpress printing process or just a photo of one of our chickens or turkeys.  The sky is the limit here- right? So welcome to my world... lets see where it takes us!

-N