It's almost 2010!

How is it possible that another year has nearly come and gone? It's always fun to look back on a year and see which product was our best-seller. I recently took a look at our 2009 shipping report and fully expected to find either our dragonfly spoons and cups or our fleur de lys spoons and cups at the top of the list. But who would have guessed? Our two top-sellers in 2009 were our "Rosella" tooth fairy kit and our Dragonfly Coffee Scoop! That makes me kind of proud. Here we are, the Pewter Measuring Spoon and Cup company and yet we have two other products that topped our standard best-sellers.

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone who proudly ordered a made-in-America product from us this year! We are no longer shipping for Christmas arrival. Our next ship day is Monday, December 28th.

Happy Holidays!

isn't this just the best time of year? Even though we are at our busiest, it seems that it is also the time of year when we pause and think of all the people who are special to us. I am reminded of former employees who worked so hard during past Christmas seasons...I am grateful for my wonderful baristas at Full City Coffee...I appreciate the waiters at our local pub....I am thankful for my wonderful neighbors - especially the lovely Wong children who were in our photo shoots...and on and on it goes.
I miss my precious grandson and his wonderful parents so far away in Africa but I rejoice that we are going to have a new son-in-law next year!
Happy Holidays to all!

Paula Deen Videos

We are pretty excited at the new addition to our web site!
We now have some short clips of Paula Deen using our measuring cups on her show.

We are so busy!

(Knock on wood!)
What was I thinking - taking last week-end off?
We are crazy busy! We are so proud to be offering an America product that is both functional and beautiful.
It seems that more and more people are realizing the joy in offering something that is made by American artisans.
Thank you for supporting our work!

Food from the 60's and 70's

I spent last week-end at my mom's condo in Ojai, CA. I woke up early each morning because the place is like a museum.
There are things like family photos and diairies dating back into the late 1800's. However, this time I stumbled upon something equally fascinating....a scrapbook that my grandmother had put together in the 60's and 70's - full of recipes that she either had planned to try or had tried and added comments on. Thank goodness American food habits have changed. I just can't imagine eating most of the things in there. Here are a few that especially "frightened" me:

-Clam Cheese Dunk
-Barbecued Limas
-Polynesian Sweet-Sour Salmon
-Spinach Ring Souffle
-Avocado Deviled Ham
-California Persimmon Pudding
-Prune Pudding
-Honey-Orange Beef Sandwich

If the names aren't enough to scare you, the ingredients lists surely would. Unfortunately, there isn't room here for all of those details. You might just have to google them!

Azu - Ojai, CA

I was in Ojai, CA this past week-end working on wedding plans for our 25 year old daughter.
After lots of appointments with photographers and wedding coordinators and such, we were exhausted.
We didn't have time to stop for dinner until after 8pm. Ojai is a pretty sleepy little town once the sun goes down.
We were worried that nothing would be open. Our worries were unfounded. We stumbled upon a fabulous place called AZU, right on the main street. We had great margaritas, fabulous appetizers, and an amazing chocolate dessert. It's definitely worth a drive if you are in Southern California!

Uncommon Goods

If you are like me, your in box is probably getting stuffed with catalogues. We are proud to be in some of the finest of these. One of our absolute favorites is Uncommon Goods. However, their website is even more fun than their catalogue. It's definitely worth checking out!

Falling Spoons

Socks get lost in the dryer. Earrings sometimes disappear. Eyeglasses wander away. Sometimes pewter measuring spoons fall into the sink. The next thing you know, you've turned on the disposal - and - oh! no! the spoon has been munched. NOT to worry. Replacement spoons are always available. Our spoon patterns come and go. We're always creating a new one and discontinuing an older one. But, we always make replacements. Socks get lost. Pewter spoons can get munched. We can help.

Divine Desserts Winner

Who would believe it? The secret ingredient in this cake is a can of Campbell's Cheddar Cheese soup. I found this recipe in the latest issue of Cooking with Paula Deen (November/December 2009). I made it for our office manager's birthday (Happy Birthday Nancy! You're the best!) and it was amazing. I definitely suggest that you make it for your next function and bring a prize if anyone can guess the secret ingredient. (I bet you'll be taking home the prize because there won't be a winner. Ha!)

(note: It's not very complicated even though the directions look long.)
Caramel Apple Nut Pound Cake
Makes 1 (10 inch) fluted cake
by Linda Rizzo
Trevor, Wisconsin
• 1 cup peeled, cored, and diced Granny Smith apple (about 1 large)
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 3 1?4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 6 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package instant butterscotch-flavored pudding mix
• 1 (10.75-ounce) can Campbell’s® Cheddar cheese soup
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1?2 cup butter
• 2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325°. Spray a 15-cup fluted pan with nonstick baking spray with flour.
2. In a medium bowl, combine apples, walnuts, and 1?4 cup flour.
3. In a large bowl, beat 2 cups butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Reduce speed to low. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to high, and add 1 teaspoon vanilla; beat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until mixture is fluffy. Reduce speed to low, and add pudding mix and soup; beat for 1 minute. Increase speed to medium, and beat for 1 minute longer.
4. In a medium bowl, sift remaining 3 cups flour and baking powder together. Gradually add to butter mixture, and beat until mixture is well combined, about 2 to 3 minutes. Fold in apple mixture.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan. Drop pan lightly on counter to release any air bubbles. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and cool completely on a wire rack. Place wire rack over a large piece of aluminum foil.

coco sala

Last week I was in Washington DC where we had a booth at the Metropolitan Cooking and Entertainment Show.
One night, I met a college friend and his wife for dinner at coco sala. (Turn down the volume on your computer before you click on this link.) Next time you are anywhere near this part of the country, you must check out this restaurant. Everything on the menu - whether it is a salad, an appetizer, a dessert - whatever! - has coffee or chocolate in it. The food was delicious and the presentation was fabulous.

Lake Champlain Chocolates

My last post was about Stowe Craft. As soon as I finished it, I kept thinking about Vermont. That led me to recall another special thing about Vermont. I am really a terrible chocolate snob. My favorite imported chocolate is Cote d'Or from Belgium. However, I do think that Lake Champlain Chocolates - located in Burlington, Vermont - is just possibly the best chocolatier in America. I know, I know, that's saying a lot. But you will just have to check them out yourself at lakechamplainchocolates.com. And, while you are there, check out their blog. I always enjoy it.

Stowe Craft

We are having the most amazing fall foliage here in Eugene. Although I have been living in Oregon for nearly 30 years, I still think of fall as belonging to New England (where I grew up). Ten years ago I had the most wonderful trip back there with a friend who was turning 50. We took almost a week, meandering the back roads of Vermont. It was really a great time. One of the most special days was the one we spent in Stowe. Stowe is famous for being the place where the Von Trapp Family settled - after they escaped from Austria. (You might already know this if you are a Sound of Music fan, like I am.) It is also the home of Stowe Craft - one of the most beautiful American craft galleries I have ever visited. If you are planning a trip to New England this fall, be sure to stop in and say hi for me. I don't have a fall picture of Stowe Craft - but here they are in the winter, buried in snow.

Boulder

The college search has begun for our youngest daughter, Rosella. On this subject, a friend recently tossed out this advice -
Be sure she picks a school in a part of the country that you want to visit often! Although he was joking, we can't help but feel that University of Colorado at Boulder might not be a great fit for Rosella. After all, we sure would like an excuse to visit Boulder and drop in on one of our favorite retailers, Boulder Arts and Crafts!.

Vintage Measuring Cups and great French cuisine!

Back in 1981, when I was a grad student at the U of O, I met Catherine Vignaux, a fellow student from Poitiers, France. Her English was terrible - mostly because everyone in the French Department just wanted to practice their French on her. So, one day, I put my foot down - no more French! Here we are, years later....her English is great and my French is pretty shaky. But two things have remained constant - our friendship and her amazing cooking! We like to pretend that it has something to do with her awesome measuring cups! She and her husband, Craig, own one of the original sets that we made. They must be at least 20 years old. Thanks for another great meal, guys!
You are the best.

Paula's Picks

We have just heard that Paula has picked us again! This time, our Christmas Reindeer will be featured in the next edition of Paula's Holiday magazine. The set includes Rudy, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer and Vixen. Oh, Happy Day!

Maple Corn Bread

I have lived in Oregon for nearly 30 years but sometimes, I have to admit, I'm still kind of a New England girl. Crisp October mornings remind me of a New England autumn...and then I get to feeling nostalgic about such things as maple trees, sap on snow, and maple syrup, of course.

Here is a favorite recipe of mine, which makes great use of maple syrup.

Maple Corn Bread

2 1/3 cups yellow cornmeal

1 cup all purpose flour

4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter - cut into 1/2" pieces

1 1/3 cups buttermilk

4 large eggs

3/4 cup pure maple syrup

-Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 9 X 9 X 2 inch metal baking pan.

-Combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt in a food processor. Blend 5 seconds.

-Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal.

-Whisk buttermilk, eggs, and maple syrup in large bowl.

-Add cornmeal mixture. Stir just until evenly moistened (do not overblend). Transfer to prepared pan.

-Bake until golden and cracked on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

-Cool bread in pan on rack.

And, of course, it will taste better if the ingredients are measured out with Tin Woodsman Measuring Spoons and Cups! :)

Julia Child

I convinced my 16 year old daughter to go to Julie, Julia the other night. She knows all about Paula Deen - how could she not? - but I wanted her to know about Julia Child. After all, I was just a big older than her when my mother gave me my - still beloved - copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1.

Although I enjoy epicurious.com for a fun, new recipe, I still turn to Julia for the classics (like crepes and cream puffs) and for techniques (like making sauces).Noticing the tiny Fleur de Lys that cover my cookbook, we like to think that, if she were alive and cooking today, Julia Child might enjoy using our Fleur de Lys Measuring Spoons and Cups!

Halfway around the World

I have just returned from halfway around the world - or what felt like that, anyway. I was in Niamey, Niger (West Africa) visiting my oldest daughter, son-in-law, and grandson. Before they left earlier this year they asked for a set of measuring spoons and measuring cups to take with them. As it turns out, they don't have much time for baking. However, I was pleased to see that they use our Dragonfly Measuring Cups as serving pieces at the dinner table! It's always fun to see the ways in which people - even our own family - use our spoons and cups.

Paula Deen

Many people ask us which style of our measuring cups does Paula use? The truth is that she owns ALL of them! However, when I am watching her shows, I see the hearts and the dragonfly cups the most often.

This past summer, we designed measuring spoons and cups just for her. I haven't seen them on her shows, yet - but they are available for purchase exclusively from her online store. They feature her favorite signature - "Best Dishes!" and her skillet logo. Note: If you can't find them in her store, it means she is sold out - and will have more soon.

Babies and Pewter

Here is ten month old Nolan, who used to come to work here everyday along with his wonderful parents, Dan and Cortney. I caught him playing around with a Fleur de Lys teaspoon while he was waiting for his breakfast. Since American pewter has been LEAD-FREE and FOOD-SAFE for over 200 years, we are happy for him to play with our spoons.

However, we certainly would NOT want him playing with this vintage (circa 1700's?) pewter baby bottle. Antique pewter is NOT food-safe for babies or their parents.

If you are looking for a decorative piece of pewter to place on your mantle, you can choose antique or new.

If you are looking for pewter which is LEAD-FREE and FOOD-SAFE, you have found the right company right here!

Metropolitan Food and Entertainment Show

If you live within driving distance of our nation's capital, you might want to put November 7th and 8th on your calendar!

We are getting ready to ship our booth and lots of Measuring Spoons, Measuring Cups, and lots more, off to Washingington D.C. for this year's Metropolitan Food and Entertainment Show.

The biggest Food Network stars will be there - yes, that includes Paula! - along with lots of great booths selling food and gifts.

This will be a great opportunity for holiday shopping.

Brownies

I collect brownie recipes. It's not just because I love brownies - which, of course, I do! But I'm also fascinated by how many different ways there are to make them. I have to admit that I once made an Excel SpreadSheet of recipes to compare the different ratios of chocolate to butter to sugar, etc.

When I was in high school I used to run home, make a batch of brownies, and be back at school in under an hour. You can imagine that I had that little recipe memorized. The only chocolate it required was 2 squares of unsweetened chocolate. The recipe below is NOT that type of brownie.

This recipe is when you want to make the richest, most amazing ones ever! Check out the amount of butter. Paula Deen would approve of this recipe!

REALLY RICH BROWNIES

3 sticks unsalted butter

12 oz. fine-quality bittersweet (NOT semi-sweet, NOT unsweetened) chocolate

6 large eggs

1 1/4 cups flour

1 cup PLUS 2 T. unsweetened fine-quality cocoa powder (NOT Dutch process, not Nestles, not cocoa mix)

3 cups sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 13 X 9 X 2 baking pan, knocking out excess flour.

*Break eggs into a small bowl and blend well. Set aside.

*Mix flour, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

*Melt butter with chocolate in large saucepan over low heat - stirring until smooth.

*Remove butter and chocolate from heat. Add eggs slowly, while whisking quickly.

*Add dry ingredients.

*Pour batter into pan and bake in middle of oven until top is firm and a tester inserted into center comes out clean. (40 - 45 minutes)

*Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate briefly to make cutting easier.

Petite Salt Pot Giveaway

Salt seems to be our new favorite word. Our Regular Salt Pots have been so popular that we decided to introduce a line of Petite Salt Pots. We recommend our regular Salt Pots for kosher, salt, and table salts. Our new Petite Pots are for those spendier, imported salts - like Himalayan Pink Salt, Black Lava Salt, and Hawaiian Pink Salt (to name a few).

On October 1st, we will be giving away 3 Petite Salt Pots. To enter your name in this giveaway, send us an e-mail with "Blog Giveaway" in the subject line.

Best Vinaigrette

Jim and I are huge salad fans. We're not very talented in the Barbecue Department. We love the smells of ribs and burgers that waft over from our neighbors' yards. We envy their talents. But, at the same time, we're pretty happy with our salads.

One of the most important parts of a salad for me is the dressing.  A lot of people think that it is a lot of work to make a good salad dressing. It certainly takes longer than opening a bottle of prepared dressing. But, all it really takes is 5 or 10 minutes to make a big batch of vinaigrette and then you're set for the week.

Here is my recipe. Give it a try. I hope you'll love it as much as we do.

There are a few options so you can mix it up, week to week.

Moss Street Vinaigrette

Whisk together:

-1/4 cup red wine vinegar OR 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (which will, of course, really change the flavor of the dressing)

-2 T. Dijon mustard

-2 T. chopped shallots OR 4 cloves finely chopped garlic

-1/2 tsp. cumin AND 1 T. crushed oregano  OR, instead of these two herbs, you can use 2 T. crushed dried parsley

Make sure all of this is nicely whisked together.

Then, GRADUALLY, pour in 1 cup plus 2 T. olive oil.

(It's helpful to whisk like crazy while, at the same time, pouring in the olive oil in a thin stream. This will blend it nicely.)

-Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Then, divide into small tupper wares and refrigerate. When your salad is ready, simply take out a tupper ware and set it in

a bowl of hot water so that the dressing can be poured onto the salad. (It will solidify in the refrigerator.)

Enjoy!

Former Employees

For years, we were located just a few blocks from the University of Oregon. This was great for students who wanted to sandwich a work shift in between their classes. And it was great for us because we got to meet all kinds of wonderful young people. Even better, many of them have kept in touch and I still get to see them, from time to time (never as often as I would like).

One of these speical people is Naomi, who now lives in Seattle. Although she has a myriad talents, she earns a living at Jamie Joseph Jewelry. I just checked out their website and, if you click on "Our Story", you get a real cool little video clip of everyone running around making jewelry.

The owners apparently are obsessed with stones. They search out fabulous stones and then combine them with gold, silver, platinum and diamonds to make wearable treasures. You should take a look at their work!

After hours, Naomi runs her own little business called Laurel Tea. Naomi is a certified Naturopath, having graduated a few years back fromBastyr University. Her teas are handcrafted medicinal botanical blends of organically grown and selectively wild-crafted roots, leaves, fruits, flowers, barks and branches. We are not talking Earl Grey here!


Naomi makes custom blends for all kinds of occasions. I was at a wedding last year and the favors were Naomi's teas. Pretty cool and a lot more meaningful than another bottle of wedding bubbles.

So, if you are looking for something that is from the Northwest and will do you a world of good, look no further!

At the Fair!

So what do we do on a really hot day? Well, sometimes we leave those pots of hot, molten pewter and head over to the Lane County Fair - especially if three of our own are on stage there!  Let me present - in concert - COLDFIRE!

When you exclaim over how beautifully your Tin Woodsman order has been packed and shipped, you have Derrik to thank. When you are amazed at the fabulous welding seams on your Measuring Cup Post, you have Adam to thank.  Dan is one of our speediest casters and sanders. You can feel grateful to him for moving your order right along!

It was a great afternoon. (Don't worry....they shifted into 5th gear the next day to get caught back up! That's just how they roll.)

Snowflake Bentley

Earlier this summer, a friend suggested that we make a holiday Cookie Jar. We thought it was a great idea and we immediately thought that a Snowflake would be a great motif for the front of it.

A few years ago I was in Vermont and had the good fortune to visit the Snowflake Bentley Museum in Jericho. William Bentley, who was born in 1865, had a passion for Snowflakes and dedicated his life to the study of them. He wrote: "The average dairy farmer gets up at dawn because he has to go to work in the cow yard. I get up a dawn, too.  (The People) will get their daily quart of milk. Other farmers will attend to that. But I think I am giving them something which is just as important."
His passion was snowflakes. Ours is pewter. We hope you will like how we have brought these two passions together.

Summer Employees

I recently read in the New York Times that college kids are having an especially tough time finding work this summer. Well, out here in Oregon, we are doing our best to put our college kids to work. We feel lucky to have found two wonderful young men who are eager to learn about pewter smithing and are doing a great job of helping us get our orders out promptly!



Here is Ian, who will be a 4th year Architecture student at the University of Oregon this fall. Ian is from the beautiful Oregon Coast. He thinks it's pretty cool that he has learned to cast this summer. I can't help but think that that will come up in some job interview someday - "So, tell me, Ian - you know how to cast pewter?!" Even if it never relates exactly to what we wants to do when he graduates, we're sure it's going to serve him well, at some point.




Here is Evan, who will be a freshman at the University of Oregon this fall. Go Ducks! The other day Evan commented that he thinks it's cool how pewter goes from a solid to a liquid (when we're melting it and preparing to cast) and then back to a solid (when the melting pots are turned off and we're headed home). I'd never even thought of that! That's awesome that Evan has got me thinking about pewter in a new way.

Hot Molten Metal!

Last week the temperature was in the 100's! It was too hot even to sit by the pool.

So how about standing over a pot of molten metal?

Hmmm...that is definitely a bit challenging - especially when you get to work at 8am and it's already in the 80's!



Hats off to our casters, who keep that metal flowing, whether it's 30 or 100!

Thanks, guys - you're the best!

Carol brings us Good Luck!

Look at this amazing dragonfly that Carol found!



Ok, ok, she didn't actually find it next to our new Dragonfly Salt Cellar. (It was outside her home in the country.)

Since dragonflies are one of our best-selling motifs, we were all pretty excited when Carol found a real, live dragonfly! You may have seen one, darting around. But have you ever actually held one?! Many people say that dragonflies bring Good Luck. It seems that this just might be true. Soon after Carol found this special bug, she closed the deal on our biggest order of the year. Go, Carol!

She is one heck of a sales manager. If you would like a custom product made for you, your family, your company, or - whomever?! - Carol is your go-to person. There are a lot of details when you order something designed and made just for you. But Carol can simplify the process - and find a way to make it affordable!  If you shoot her an e-mail, you'll see what I mean!

Another Great Show!

Nancy and Malina have returned from Americasmart in Atlanta. There was little - if any - talk about the economy. Buyers were upbeat, enthusiastic, and eager to place orders. Malina and Nancy were both so touched by how kind everyone was in Atlanta.

Best-sellers at the show were:

-our new Salt Cellars

-Fleur de Lys Measuring Spoons and Cups

-Dragonfly Measuring Spoons and Cups

-our new Saint Nick Santa's Key

Salt Cellars

Our Salt Cellars are now ready to ship! We're pretty much obsessed with them and hope you will be, too. What is there about tiny things that makes them so fun?! The spoons hold about a pinch of salt - just enough to dust the top of your dinner.

Baking Christmas cookies in July

There I was in the last week of June..rolling out cookie dough and cutting it up into trees and stars and other Christmas shapes. My friends (who are not in business) are always surprised when they hear me talking about Christmas in July. But that's how far ahead you have to plan if you want to have new products available for stores to sell at Christmas. And, if you want to have Christmas cookies at your photo shoot in June, you've got to make them yourself! The photo shoot had an added element of fun when Nancy, our office manager, brought her son, Oliver to the photo studio. I had wanted to ask her to dress him up like an elf but I wasn't sure she had time to pull that together. 

These great holiday pieces are available on our website now with special Christmas in July prices!

The power of a pewter switch plate

I really do think that a small thing like a special switch plate can start your day off right. Every morning when I head downstairs, I turn on the light at the top of the stairs. As I do that, I look at the Home switch plate there. It matches the silver frame of the picture that is hanging right next to it. I just think it's the greatest and it reminds me of how grateful I am to be a pewtersmith.

Salt Cellars

As soon as we introduced our Crosby & Taylor salt pots last year, they were an immediate hit. That led us to realize that we needed to learn more about salt! The more we studied it, the more fascinated we became. The next thing we knew, I had started designing salt cellars. We are only days away from having them up in our store! Until then, here is a sneak preview. We hope you will come back next week when they will be available for immediate shipment.

Our Employees' Favorites

Who knows our products better than my own staff ? They make everything, package it, take orders for it, and ship it out! Here is a sampling of their answers when I asked them which product they would like to give as a gift:

Derrik (shipping) - Dragonfly Cups on Pewter Strip - for Mom

Matt (production/inventory) - Canister Set - for a wedding gift

Tim (new products) - Fleur de Lys Super Post Set - for Mom

Kira (stoneware/packaging/Babyland) - Dragonfly Salad Servers - for Mom  

Adam (production) - Dragonfly Super Post Set - for Dad

Nancy (office) - Salt Pot - for Daddy (so he can use it as a sugar bowl at teatime)

Myself (chief bottle washer) - Single Home Switchplate - new neighbor

Nice People!

One of the most satisfying parts of being in business is interacting with nice people!

Nancy, our office manager, recently had one of those interactions.



Throughout the years, we have changed the look of our products. We are always updating

things and freshening our look. Nancy was recently contacted by one of our customers, who needed

us to repair one of her measuring cups. Nancy promptly took care of it. But when this lovely woman

received her new cup, it didn't quite match the other pieces in her set. So, Nancy got right to it and

took the necessary steps to make it all just right. (Yay! for Nancy, I say!) Anyway, our customer was

so thrilled with Nancy's excellent customer service, that she sent Nancy a gift of two lovely doilies,



which she had crocheted herself.  Nancy will be taking them home and my suspicion is that they will

be displayed proudly on her mother's antique dining room hutch. Nancy has been with us just over 8 years.

She is a wonderfully calm, steady person who does an amazing job of keeping track of everything around here. She can even decipher my handwriting - when I cannot!

I know Nancy enjoys coming to work but  interactions like this one with Susan make her work that much more special.

Thank you, Susan!

We're Spinning Again!

We are frequently asked to explain how we actually make our products. Although there are many steps along the way, we find that, when friends and family pop in to visit, they are the most captivated by our casting machines. Even though it has been nearly 25 years since I first learned to cast, I still find it pretty fascinating, myself!

Here is how we cast:

The lid of the centrifugal machine is opened and a mold is placed inside. The lid is shut, thus triggering the mold inside to spin around and around. The hot, molten pewter is ladled into the top of the machine. It flows down into the mold, filling all the nooks and crannies with pewter.

Unfortunately, nothing is 100% perfect and bits of pewter tend to fly out through the edges of the mold and onto the sides of the machine. In fact, at one time, we had a machine  whose lid didn't close quite right. Fortunately, I wore a work apron because, at the end of the day, there would be a ridge of pewter flashings across my front!

Here is a picture of our old casting machine - covered with pewter flashings.



 

 

It's been on its last legs for quite awhile.

 

Recently, a giant truck pulled up and out came a big box.

Recently, a giant truck pulled up and out came a big box.
Of course we had to grab Oliver, who is just over two years old.

(You may have spoken with his Mom, Nancy, on the phone

or received an order, put together by his Dad, Matt.)

 

We knew there was a photo opportunity here.  We took the first photo before we realized that - yikes! - he didn't have his safety gear on. I think he looks like he is going to faint from the excitement of it all.

 


Note to OSHA:

This machine was not installed or plugged in.

Safety First!

Giveaway

We are honored that our new Fleur de Lys measuring spoons are featured on a wonderful blog called An Herbal Bedfellow.  Jane Marie blogs about all kinds of fascinating things and has lots of fun giveaways. If you visit her blog and post a comment about our spoons, you will be entered in her drawing for a free set of our spoons! We definitely recommend that you check out her blog and consider becoming a subscriber.

On the Big Screen!

You will soon be able to see us on the Big Screen! (Or....maybe the Small Screen - depending on how large your computer screen is.) Last month, we had a couple of videographers follow us around all day. The results of their filming will soon be available on our site. It was a fun day and we hope that when you visit our site next month, you will enjoy seeing us "in action".

Unfortunately, two of our staff members - and their little guy, Nolan, were out of town. So, since you won't be able to see them on the screen, I better tell you about them right here.



 

 

Dan is one of three Trent boys that works here. His twin brother and his older brother started first. I was a little leery of Dan. I had seen him at local fast food joints - working so fast it made me dizzy. You might ask how that could be a bad thing? Well, I was just worried about all that speed and energy around molten metal. What a fool I was. Dan is one of the best production assistants we have ever had. He is upbeat and dedicated. He is always a hard worker. I regret the years that passed before he got started here. 

Now, his little boy, Nolan, is spending his days with us here in Babyland.

It gets even better...Nolan's mom, Cortney, is helping Nancy out in the office. If you call us, you may get Cortney. She will take care of all of your pewter-related questions and needs. She's awesome, too! 

I guess you can kind of tell that we're all about family around here.

The perfect Alaska souvenir!

We are often asked if we do custom products. The answer is - Of course! We do! So, if you need wedding favors, a gift for your company party, or a special giveaway for your family reunion - just let us know. We recently just finished up a fun custom project - a pair of bear and moose hooks for Caribou Crossings, one of our favorite stores in Alaska. We have low design fees and low minimums. Carol is the special person here at TWPewter/Crosby&Taylor who can help take your project from idea to finished product. Just send your thoughts to her at carol@tinwoodsman.com and she'll get you started.

Jefferson Monticello

Dana Turrell - a wonderful person, friend, and vice president of Cawood - came over to dinner a couple of weeks ago. She wanted help with planning a trip back East. We talked about all kinds of great places to visit. But one place that I definitely thought she should include in her itinerary is Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson - outside of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Back in the late 70's I was a student at the University of Virginia, which was also designed by Thomas Jefferson. Since I am a huge fan of anything historic, I just loved the buildings at UVA and Monticello. You can't even imagine how proud I was when we were contacted last year by a buyer at Monticello, who inquired about us making a custom piece for their gift shop and catalogue. We recently heard that the coffee canister which we made for them - complete with a pewter faceplate featuring one of Jefferson's quotes - has been a top-seller in their catalogue.

 



 

Here is their catalogue description:

Store your favorite coffee beans or ground coffee in this handy stoneware canister. Hand- glazed by an American potter, it has a pewter plaque bearing Jefferson’s quotation, “Coffee, the favorite drink of the civilized world.” The pewter scoop has a Chinese fretwork pattern on the handle. Food safe; hand washing recommended. 11 1/4"h, 5" dia. Handmade in the U.S.A.

Although it's great to visit their lovely web site, I would also suggest that you request one of their catalogues.They really do have a lovely collection of products - many of which you may not have seen elsewhere.

Circle of Life

I met Jim in grad school at the University of Oregon in 1981. He balanced his time between parenting two young kids, being a student, and earning a living as a woodworker. On the week-ends, he usually headed up to Portland to sell his wooden lamps at the Portland Saturday Market. One Saturday I decided to tag along. I was a pretty serious graduate student, immersed in French literature (and probably a bit full of myself). I thought that setting up a booth at a street fair was kind of a curious way to make a living. In fact, I thought the best part of the day was when we headed to a local bar for some post-market food and drink. I can't remember much about the bar except that I met a couple of potters that night - a husband and wife, who were the same age as Jim and myself. 

Now, here we are, 28 years later...and that same potter, Carl Warne, is about to move his pottery next to our pewter studio. He is the talented potter whose great skill can be seen in each piece of our American stoneware. We can't wait for him to be right next door to us. We're going to have a big old pizza party the day he moves in. The crazy thing about the pizza party is that we are paying for it with proceeds from the sale of some of Jim's oldest woodworking tools. It's our own little Circle of Life, I guess!

Out of the Blue

Last month I had a few hours of free time before my flight left from Atlanta. I jumped in to my rental car and headed north to visit historic Blue Ridge, Georgia. I just had to see what Out of the Blue was all about. I had met Sarah Auman, the owner, at Americasmart a few years ago. She came into our booth, took a look around, and commented, "I don't buy anything from anyone who isn't fun. Y'all look fun! Let's write an order!"

Since then, she has become one of our regular - and favorite! - buyers. In fact, if a new buyer comes into our booth and is kind of on the fence about carrying our line, Sarah will jump right in and do the convincing for me. She is awesome!

So, how do you describe her store? Her website claims that:  More of an experience than a store, Out of the Blue is your destination for extraordinary gift giving and bountiful living.






I couldn't agree more. Anyone who wonders about the future of the independent retailer needs to take a lesson from Sarah. She knows something about every single product she carries. She makes shopping SO FUN you just feel happy being there. And...as if she wasn't enough of a show, her assistant, BT, might just come flying up to help you - on his roller skates!  

Next time you're up for a road trip, make sure you head up their way.

Cooking with Kids

It's so cool how kids are fascinated by cooking! My grandson was at our house this past week-end to celebrate his 3rd birthday. Although he didn't help make his birthday cake, we did make pancakes together in the morning. I let him stand on a chair by the kitchen counter. He just loved mixing up the batter and then scooping it with his (Tin Woodsman, of course!) measuring cup into the pan. I know, I know, he doesn't look full of joy here. But that's because this photo was taken when we were at the tricky part. Karim was completely focused on trying to drop the batter in to the pan- without touching the hot edges at all.  







Karim has been great at going to photo shoots with me. He and his little friend, Presley, are naturals at demonstrating what to do with our baby products!





Karim and his parents left yesterday to spend two to three years in Niger. My son-in-law works for Mercy Corps and decided it would be a good time to spend some time in their office in Niamey. Mercy Corps is an amazing non-profit organization that helps people both at home and overseas. If you have a moment, I encourage you to visit their website: MercyCorps.org. We will miss them so much but at least we know they are helping others.

Hans Rueffert

At the recent Metropolitan Cooking and Entertainment Show in Atlanta, Elaine and I not only got to meet Paula Deen - but also a wonderful person named Hans Rueffert.



Hans has recently put out a cookbook called, Eat Like There's No Tomorrow. This book is perhaps one of the most beautiful cookbooks that I have ever read. Not only is it visually spectacular, it is full of Hans' muses on life and food. I ordered a copy for myself a couple of months ago, sat down on the couch, and pretty much read it, cover to cover. It's that fabulous! I urge you to get a copy for yourself and for anyone else you feel like offering a gift to. Hans is a stomach cancer survivor and I cannot even imagine the stack of medical bills that he must have. He has about 

5,000 books to sell. Buy one or maybe a dozen - you'll be so glad you did.

Finally meeting Paula Deen!

I finally met Paula Deen and her husband, Michael, in person! A couple of weeks ago, my good friend, Elaine Weiss, and I set up a booth at the Metropolitan Cooking and Entertainment Show in Atlanta. We had hundreds of excited Paula fans come by our both and many purchased our measuring spoons and cups. It was all very high energy and we had a lot of fun. Then, we joined 148 other lucky people for a supper and book-signing with Paula. Elaine got her Paula cookbooks signed but I gave her a 1 cup - in the vineyard pattern - to sign.

 



Paula saw it on the table in front of her and immediately waved it in the air, asking "Who brought this?" When I replied that I had and that I was the maker of the cups that she uses, she exclaimed, "I love my cups! I keep them right by my choppin' board". And Michael chimed in, "We do love those cups!"

Although I just posted about our new Fleur de Lys products last week, it seems that there is so much more to say about them! We had thought about using the Fleur de Lys motif for some time. However, it wasn't until we put it on our American Stoneware last year, that we realized just how widespread its popularity really is.  People sometimes ask us what it actually means. It literally means Lily Flower and, although, it is the symbol of the French Monarchy, it has shown up throughout history on many other royal coats of arms and flags.

There is not just one fleur de lys. Many different versions can be found and new ones pop up all the time. We chose four different versions on our new measuring spoons and cups. This is the first time that we have made measuring sets with all four spoons being different from each other. We're pretty excited about this new concept!

  We have just finished our measuring spoon sets, cup sets, coffee scoop, and spoon rest. They  will start appearing in stores just any day now.

Fleur de Lys

It’s amazing how life seems to come circle. When I was a teenager in a really small rural town in northern New York, all I wanted was to be French. There was a study abroad club in my high school.
I applied and was accepted. We all worked together to raise money to study overseas. We anxiously awaited our placements. Everyone had always gone to a Spanish speaking country – either Mexico or somewhere in South America. I insisted that I just HAD to go to a French speaking country. I thought I had died and gone to heaven when I was given a placement in the French-speaking part of Belgium.
For the next five years, I was sure I was going to become French. I spoke French, I cooked French food, I read only French novels, I went to French movies….and then – while in graduate school studying French Literature – of course! -  I met an American and fell in love. Now, how many years later…here I am, the proud owner of a very American pewter company. And yet, at the same time, here I am – poised to introduce our newest design in measuring spoons and cups – the Fleur de Lys pattern! The fleur de lys is the symbol of the French monarchy – and all things French. After almost 25 years in business and thousands of original pewter products later, I have to say that these are surely my all-time favorites. Who knows, maybe some of that "love for all things French" is still there!

Stoneware

This has been a very exciting winter at Tin Woodsman Pewter/Crosby & Taylor. Last year, when we introduced our new Stoneware Collection, we had no idea where it would take us. Now, only 8 months later, we are absolutely overwhelmed with the response to this new product line. Our normal shipping time has always been 1 – 2 weeks. For the first time ever, we are having to tell people that orders are taking up to 4 weeks to ship! We are working on a plan to increase production for this rapidly growing division of our company. We are so thrilled – and so proud – knowing that we are the only company in America producing a line of 100% American stoneware and pewter.

Southern Poundcakes

I am safely home from Americasmart. It was a crazy, busy time in our booth. It's always great to connect with our regular buyers - and to meet new ones. Additonally, we meet with potential accounts. One of these is a fabulous company called Southern Poundcakes.Kathy and her husband bake and ship out the most amazing pound cakes I have ever had in my life! They were gracious enough to send us a free gift bag of them, which arrived just yesterday. We devoured them immediately. (Except for the ones that I hid to bring home to my family, of course.) If you are looking for a great mail-order food-gift, you should definitely check them out! -Deborah

Hurrah for Americasmart!

I can’t believe it is already time to head back to Atlanta for Americasmart. I have exhibited at perhaps 100 trade shows! (from San Francisco to Miami to Boston and how many places in between?). Nothing can compare to Americasmart. I truly think it must be the center of the commercial universe (in America, that is!).
This place consists of three skyscrapers! We are in building 3 and I am obsessed with our booth space. It is surely one of the best.

If you own a shop or gallery and haven’t yet been to Americasmart, I would recommend that you start making plans now! I realize it may be too late for you to add a trip to Atlanta to your January, 2009 schedule. But we will be there again in July!

Hope to see you in January next week (or in July)!       -Deborah