restoring the roost

North Carolina Country Living and Farmhouse Style

North Carolina Country Living and Farmhouse Style
since 2010

Antique Side Table

· antiques and collectibles

I received a beautiful ca. 1840s cherry side table table recently for my birthday (Thanks, Mom and Dad!). It has such a pretty time-worn patina to it and I just had to give it a little feature here on my blog.

The table has turned legs, a small drawer and a solid board top that is pegged. We desperately needed another little table we could use as a night stand. Our bedroom has so many doors and windows with little solid wall space that we might have to rearrange the furniture to be able to fit a night stand and this table on either side of the bed. Oh well!
the drawer is joined by a wide dovetail crafted by hand
notice how the bottom of the drawer is beveled on either side.

you can see and feel the hand planing work used to create the beveled
edges of the underside of the drawer 

the top is constructed from one solid piece of wood; notice the pegs on each side.
I love the patina of the top despite the scratch marks.
Here it is shown in our bedroom. I kind of like it in this spot even though it will be more functional as a bedside table. Do you have a favorite little table in your home? Or do you have any creative ideas for unconventional bedside tables? In my guest room I use a wooden filing cabinet as a night stand and I’ve stacked decorative boxes before as well to serve the same purpose.  But now I’m happy to have a wonderful antique bedside table to call my own.

Linking to:

Summer Garden Update and a Cold Frame

· gardening, Homesteading

Hello from the Roost! Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Truth be told, I can’t wait for fall even though I enjoy the harvests from the summer garden. We have been very busy this summer, but here is a quick peek at what’s been going on around our little homestead:

we are letting the lettuce seedlings dry out so that we can save them for next year
produce from the garden: heirloom Cherokee Purple tomatoes,
yellow crookneck squash and a red pepper

A wonderful couple that goes to our church made this amazing cold frame for us with some old windows and leftover scrap wood. We are so grateful to be able to start seeds in the late winter or very early spring next year!

Our new cold frame
Our southern peas exploded despite the chickens helping themselves to bites out of the leaves.  We
 have enjoyed these peas cooked with green beans, onion, bacon and seasonings in the crock pot. 

We planted heirloom pie pumpkins for the first time this year!

This is a random HUGE mushroom BJ found growing in the yard.
Anyone know if it’s edible? 
I hope all is well around your homestead and that you are enjoying the late summer’s harvest. We are so grateful for blessings this time of year.  Coming soon- I received a pressure canner for my birthday along with the book Canning and Preserving with Ashley English. Stay tuned for a post on canning vegetables from the Roost!

Linking to:

Summer Garden Update and a Cold Frame

· gardening, Homesteading

Hello from the Roost! Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Truth be told, I can’t wait for fall even though I enjoy the harvests from the summer garden. We have been very busy this summer, but here is a quick peek at what’s been going on around our little homestead:

we are letting the lettuce seedlings dry out so that we can save them for next year
produce from the garden: heirloom Cherokee Purple tomatoes,
yellow crookneck squash and a red pepper

A wonderful couple that goes to our church made this amazing cold frame for us with some old windows and leftover scrap wood. We are so grateful to be able to start seeds in the late winter or very early spring next year!

Our new cold frame
Our southern peas exploded despite the chickens helping themselves to bites out of the leaves.  We
 have enjoyed these peas cooked with green beans, onion, bacon and seasonings in the crock pot. 

We planted heirloom pie pumpkins for the first time this year!

This is a random HUGE mushroom BJ found growing in the yard.
Anyone know if it’s edible? 
I hope all is well around your homestead and that you are enjoying the late summer’s harvest. We are so grateful for blessings this time of year.  Coming soon- I received a pressure canner for my birthday along with the book Canning and Preserving with Ashley English. Stay tuned for a post on canning vegetables from the Roost!

Linking to:

Cherry Pie

· Homesteading, recipes

Today I made my very first from-scratch cherry pie. It’s not the most beautiful pie, but it sure tastes good!  Next time I make a pie I’m going to try a more stylized crust- perhaps with lattice work or pretty heart cut-outs. We’ll see.

To me, fruit-filled pies and cobblers like this one are one of the sweetest parts of summer. I prefer a piece of pie over cake any day. Soon I hope to make a blackberry cobbler with locally picked berries- yum!

I got the recipe for this cherry pie from The Farm Chicks cookbook. It is a wonderful resource with classic country kitchen design tips, family recipes, and good stories. This particular pie has a crumb topping instead of a crust.

Well, I’m going to enjoy my piece of pie now. Have a great weekend!

Cherry Pie

· Homesteading, recipes

Today I made my very first from-scratch cherry pie. It’s not the most beautiful pie, but it sure tastes good!  Next time I make a pie I’m going to try a more stylized crust- perhaps with lattice work or pretty heart cut-outs. We’ll see.

To me, fruit-filled pies and cobblers like this one are one of the sweetest parts of summer. I prefer a piece of pie over cake any day. Soon I hope to make a blackberry cobbler with locally picked berries- yum!

I got the recipe for this cherry pie from The Farm Chicks cookbook. It is a wonderful resource with classic country kitchen design tips, family recipes, and good stories. This particular pie has a crumb topping instead of a crust.

Well, I’m going to enjoy my piece of pie now. Have a great weekend!