Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Puttering around the House



Tomatoes are ripening fast these days. Yesterday I spent a few hours turning part of the harvest into ...
 

Tomato Jam! I was inspired by my eldest daughter who made some Tomato Basil Jam and gifted us a jar. Yummy with cheese and bread. I didn't have her recipe but went online and found this Tomato Jam. It's a little spicy and also very yummy with cheese and bread. Or crackers.
 

While on the site for Tomato Jam (Food In Jars), I came across a recipe for Zucchini Butter - a savory spread. The zucchini glut continues so I made up a batch and pronounce it just fine! I froze it in small amounts for later. Four litres of peeled, sliced peaches went into the freezer as well, great in cobblers, sauces and smoothies.
 

The house smells of citrus today. Yesterday the carpet cleaners came with their equipment and did a great job on the carpets. The gentleman noticed how grimy our rocking chair was looking and offered that he could clean that, too. It looks so much better now. 

The chair is a Lazy Boy from the 70s. It was a wedding gift from my in-laws. Its good condition is very likely due to getting little use during the years we were in Ecuador. It sat in my parents' basement. I've been thinking of moving it somewhere else and getting a new chair, but the modern recliners are puffy monstrosities. Does anyone make a more tailored recliner with a built in foot rest that really reclines and rocks, too? I'd love to know.
 

After the carpets dried, I put the living/dining room back together. The hydrangeas are changing colour - all the blooms above came from the same bush.
 

A softly rumpled linen runner for the dining room table topped with single stems of garden blooms - dahlias, hydrangea, buddleia.  The vases are empty food containers of various sizes - a fun change from crystal or silver.
 

The same grouping taken from another angle. A change of perspective can reveal different qualities. Good to remember in life. 

I love the satisfying feeling of a tidy room/house, finished with flowers, plants or some other bits of nature.

Do you enjoy house puttering?  

31 comments:

  1. Lovely post Lorrie, those tomatoes look a amazing,:)

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  2. Lorrie, like you I am working hard processing tomatoes. I have never made tomato jam though.
    I make a roast tomato soup which is very delicious!

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  3. How fun to see your chair. We are just now getting rid of a big, clunky recliner. It just didn't fit in the room. Last year I made tomato jam, delicious with fish too. Hadn't heard of zucchini spread. Loved seeing your flowers in bottles on your table. I think nearing fall we may be ready to do a little fluffing of the nest.

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  4. You have been busy Lorrie. I suppose you'll be back to school next week as the teachers here will be too. It's nice to have a fresh start to a new season. I would imagine that Lazy-Boy makes that type of recliner still. You might be able to have it reupholstered for less than a new chair. I like your bottle and 'flower' arrangement on the table a lot. The light makes it very pretty. I'm ready to start some decor changes but not fall yet. :)

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  5. Yes, house puttering is one of my favorite pastimes. In fact, I am mesmerized by reading about your house puttering too. I feel a great sense of satisfaction to get the house in order and looking clean and pretty.
    I would be tempted to hang onto your recliner. It looks like new and the color is gorgeous!

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  6. Hydrangeas are my favorite flower. I love the variations of color and they are very pretty dried for Fall arrangements, too. Your tomatoes look very yummy! Save me some! Hugs, Diane

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  7. Yes I do enjoy changing things around to suit the seasons. A tidy house makes one feel ready for company and if the doorbell rings and a friendly face appears it's so nice to open the door wide and say "Come in...you're just in time for tea!" You are busy inthe kitchen as always and those recipes sound very good.

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  8. Your home looks beautiful and I can just about taste those fresh tomatoes and the jam! Brilliant. What you call puttering, by the way, I would call accomplishing a wonderful days work! We are doing some furniture shopping these days and it is so true that much of the new stuff is huge and ungainly! I don't know who is buying that stuff. But obviously somebody is.

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  9. I love puttering. My brain keeps thinking about work-related stuff but then I have to remind myself that I quit in June and don't have to go back. Ha! My heart is very happy. Love the bottles lined up on the table with flowers. Great to reuse items rather than going out to buy something new. I think your chair is just fine. Certainly doesn't look old and grimy. Nice blue color. We have a leather monstrosity that doesn't rock but does recline -- wish it was more streamlined. The tomato jam looks fantastic. A friend just mentioned zucchini butter to me. I will have to look into it. Now that I am home, I want to make a whole bunch of stuff I never had much time for before. :) Have a great day!

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  10. We have a similar recliner in emerald green that I am sure could use a good hosing, but it is small and comfortable and rocks so nicely. It was a hand-me-down that I have very much enjoyed. My daughter just bought a new diminutive recliner, but it doesn't rock. That's a good question!

    Your home looks perfectly delightful and the flowers all in a row are very attractive. Am noticing that you like items in a row...the milk glass is another example.

    Are you going to school September 1 or have you already started?

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  11. I've never had tomato jam before. It sounds like it would be good though as I do love tomatoes.

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  12. Anonymous8:38 PM

    I do enjoy house puttering. It's fun to finally change things up and to get a new perspective. I'm going to click over to your zucchini recipe and see if it's something I can tackle with the huge zucchini's my son sent our way from his garden...

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  13. That is a great chair - I'm glad you are keeping it. I also can't bear the "puffy monstrosities", and my husband and I found that La-Z-boy still has a good selection of more traditional and non-puffy furniture items.

    I don't know if I have made jam ever, but I want to try some of that tomato jam, so I will put it on the list for next summer when I hope to have a good crop of tomatoes again. Thanks for sharing!

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  14. I love to putter, Lorrie! And after a good carpet cleaning everything looks so fresh. Hang on to that chair---comfort is everything. Trends come and go.

    Love your pretty flowers and I sure wish I had enough tomatoes to make something besides a small salad!! :)

    Jane x

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  15. It all looks beautiful! That chair is so inviting I just wanted to sit in it with my book!

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  16. Anonymous4:09 AM

    I like puttering inside and outside. :-) Jam looks delicious and there is nothing like pulling a jar out in the middle of the winter. We have owned Lazy Boys for too many years to tell. LOL We tried Lane and ended up giving them away. Then I tried a small Lazy Boy and found the leg rest doesn't go up as far as the larger ones. Having had back surgery, the height of the foot rest is important. Probably more than you wanted to know. :-) Have a great day puttering because I will too.

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  17. Oh Lorrie, you've been busy with all your puttering!! The tomato jam looks fabulous, and the zucchini butter sounds intriguing. Your hydrangeas are simply stunning!! I have two shrubs and have had only one blossom the whole summer. I do love your parade of flowers down your table, too.
    Yes, I love puttering about my home. I guess we all want to create a little piece of heaven in our homes.
    I'm like you, and would love to find a more tailored rocker recliner. If you find one, let me know!!

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  18. Oh Yes, we love house puttering. And we enjoyed the vist to your citrusy smelling house today. Can imagine how lovely your kitchen smells making the tomato jam. YYum!

    Like you, I believe flowers are a necessary part of a puttering afternoon. They set the tone, create the ambiance, and give delight for all the senses. I love running out into the garden for a little posy to put here and there. A delightful display on your dining table

    wishing you a beautiful day, Lorrie!
    Brenda xox

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  19. Lorrie, your produce is making my mouth water...you sure have been busy!!!

    I had that exact same Lazy Boy chair & could KICK myself for ever selling it when we moved to FL, as the color didn't "go" with my new house down there. I have looked & looked to try to replace it, to no avail. I just bought two new chairs in pale creamy-ivory & the idiots who delivered them had filthy dirty hands, bumped up against my purple hanging plant, scraped them along the door jam AND had somehow dragged the one rocker's footstool area across the dirty truck floor!!!! I sent them right back to the store & am going out today to try to pick out new ones. I WISH I could find a duplicate for "our" rocker recliners!!!! :(

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  20. I occasionally enjoy puttering but I'm not as domestically diligent or talented as you are, judging by your lovely photos.

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  21. I love puttering around in my house! Some of my best ideas and design changes happen when I putter!

    Love your flowers on the table runner and the hydrangea! That's a reason why they are my favorites!

    Deanna

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  22. Ahh yes...the classic La-Z-Boy chair...had a gold one very similar! The fabric wears out before the chair itself, many times. Yours still looks good, and you are right about those new ones...most of them UGH-ly! Love the pics of the glorious tomatoes! The tomato jam sound wonderful, as well as the zucchini...good stuff!

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  23. The carpet really does look clean and fresh. Having a little catch up scrolling. I have hated not visiting but life has just taken over these last few months and I am looking forward to things settling down and getting to post and visit more. Hope you are well Lorrie.

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  24. Yes, I enjoy house puttering too! A clean carpet is a great feeling and can be good motivation to spruce up the room. I've never had tomato jam, but I can well imagine it to go well with cheese as I like any jam with cheese.

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  25. I love to putter. Your chair looks like new; its amazing how well it was probably made compared to today' s furniture. I know it is tempting to update to keep up with trends but your chair looks good to me and will probably outlast anything new!

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  26. Oh, I do love to putter! Those are such satisfying days.

    I have never had tomato jam, but I can imagine that it is quite good with cheese and crackers. Maybe I'll add that to my small but growing repertoire of canning projects.

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  27. Well, I've never heard of tomato jam before! Lovely blooms too Lorrie, so pretty how the light catches them on your table!

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  28. It sounds as though you are going to have lots of delicious food stored up for winter! xx

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  29. FOOD IN JARS! I have one of her books...love her recipes :) I make several jams from her recipes; my favorite is the stone fruit one.

    I canned lots of tomatoes over the years until my son and 5 grandkids moved down the street last summer. LOL ..now those little kids are eating the tomatoes faster than the plants can produce :)

    Lovely post..lovely home, food, and blooms :)

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  30. Lazy Boy claims they carry small reclining rockers. You could try there.
    Are you getting excited about school starting?

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  31. So satisfying to putter around the home and garden, in fact for me, it is one of great joy as well. My Mother was exactly the same way. I have missed having a home and garden, although I have walked miles and miles this Summer as a way to occupy myself and embrace nature.
    Lovely post.
    Jemma

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