The golden era of Halloween to my mind, was in the 20's and 30's. Elaborate costume balls, crepe paper costumes, turbins of silk and feather, fortune tellers, pierrots and of course candy! Candy corn, Smarties, Tootsie pops, gummy bears, Necco wafers, Cracker jacks, Hershey bars and likely your favorite candy too, was born of this era. For a peek into the history of the costumes and the goodies of the 20's & 30's, treat yourself to these fabulous posts from The Painted Woman and The Depression Era Kitchen.
Summer hasn't had it's last days but it already feels like yesterday. Fall is crowding my mind with thoughts of things to do in a hurry to prepare my son for school. Tippy top of the list, in front of school clothes shopping and other practical matters, is the need to create a back to school cone or Shultuete.
A Shultuete is a large decorated cone filled with sweets and treats. It is a German tradition that dates back to 1810. Legend has it that a special tree grows in the yard of each teacher. When a child is born a blossom appears on the teachers tree. As the child grows, the blossom matures to eventually become a cone. When it is a child's time to enter first grade the teacher welcomes the child by plucking the ripe cone from the special tree and presenting it to the new student. It is a right of passage and a charming beginning for children entering the 1st grade.
In Germany, to this day the tradition continues. The first day of school is a celebration and welcome. The Shultuete either purchased or prepared by parents are handed out at the end of the day to each new student. The children parade home with the magnificent cones and then enjoy the goodies.
I first discovered the idea of the school cone many years ago. Well before my child's "blossom appeared on the teacher's tree". Almost magically all those years have flown by and now the gift fairy whispers: "It is time!" The proverbial cone is ripe and so it is now time for me to craft a school cone for my kindergarden child as he transitions to the first grade.
If it is your time too, all you need to create a school cone are a pair of scissors, tape, poster board, gift wrap. crepe or tissue, and a ribbon. Glue or tape gift wrap or colored paper to poster board. Roll the board into a cone and tape closed. Cut top to create a neat circle. Glue or tape crepe or tissue to interior of the cone about an inch or two below the top. Fill your cone with school supplies, tiny treasures and treats and then securely close with a ribbon around the tissue or crepe top. Personalize with a name, embellish with stars or stickers to create a memorable back to school gift.
CHORAL READING
Welcome
by Amy Tevelthuis
Welcome children, I'm glad you're here.
We're all going to have a wonderful year!
We'll draw and we'll write,
We'll sing and we'll play,
We'll paint and we'll build,
And learn new things each day!
From Shultuete and the First Day of School Pdf here .
Vintage scrapbook images soon available at Bon Fortune Party Shop.
Yeah, I know. Martha, Martha, Martha. But you have to admit., the stars on the sticks are brilliant. If you are soaking up the last fair eves of summer and celebrating under the stars by a campfire then it is prerequisite to have along marshmallows, grahams, and chocolate for S'mores. National S'mores Day was August 10th but since it landed on Wednesday and you may not be able to get out to celebrate until the weekend I extended it (unofficially) to National S'mores Week.
About S'mores. Who came up with this idea anyhow? It is not clearly documented. From what I gather, the first printed recipe appeared in a Girl Scout booklet in 1927 and was titled "Some Mores" . My guess is that it is no coincidence that the Moon Pie, invented in 1919, likely influenced the homemade camp style version of the chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallow layer treat.
For more on the history of the Moon Pie click here.
A couple of S'more tips ala Martha
1) Soak the sticks 2) Plan ahead and bring chocolate dipped grahams. 3) Make your own marshmallows click here for a recipe.
No, Bon Fortune will not carry Moon Pies. But we do love em along with their very close relative the S'more.
What is a petit four? A petit four is a term, rather than a recipe, for a small fancy cake, biscuit, or sweet. The baby of the cake family is of French origin. Petit four literally means a small oven, and relates to the method of baking little cakes and biscuits a petit four, or in a low temperature oven. So, really there is no precise original recipe. There are many variations and most do not require the baking of the icing in low temp as was once the method for producing the hardened , glossy finish. What we think of today as a petit four involves fondant. Preferably, poured.
My friend Christine made poured fondant petit fours for me once. She also hosts sit down dinners for 30 and designs fabulous kitchens. No problem.
I am not sure how ambitious you are in the kitchen but if you really want to challenge yourself to create something truly divine, here you go.
The video below is a lovely and simplistic overview of the process. It will trick you into thinking you can make these.
Bon Fortune will help you out with all the decorative flourishes, the confection cups, and maybe a pretty display plate. The rest is entirely up to you. My recommendation is to find a friend like Christine, buy her all the goodies and let her make them for you. Or, visit a patisserie with a little oven...in France.
If you have ever read or seen an I Spy, or Can You See What I See? book, you will know how extraordinary the photographs and scenes are. The genius behind the book and the lens is Walter Wick.
On this particular day Mr Wick's creative work, Balancing Act, seems a lot like life. Maybe there is a lesson here on finding joy in the process, having fun, and every now and again, just letting it all go? To see what I mean, watch the "gravity defying" video of the experiment click here.
For more on Walter Wick and his latest creative endeavors click here or visit his Facebook page.
What does this have to do with Bon Fortune? Maybe nothing. We just love to celebrate a good thing we when we see it.
Last weekend my neighbor came over with an old tackle box with a name in black marker on the front. The box belonged to her daughter, the school marble champion. This was the prize collection. The daughter now all grown-up, married with a serious occupation at the CDC, no longer had room in her life for marbles. There was no longer room in her Mom's (my neighbor) garage to store them. The garage was about to get a makeover and my 6 year old son, Jack, was the chosen recipient of yesterday's treasured collection.
Inside the box there were lots of different kinds of marbles. There were aggies, catseyes, peeries, steelys and boulders. I can just imagine the glee at winning one of these marbles during recess on the playground. I can also imagine the misery of the loss of a favorite shooter. If you played marbles when you were a kid, you know what I am talking about. If you didn't play, you missed out.
Even though I had not given much thought to marbles since I was a kid I could immediately appreciate how hard earned this collection was. I was an okay marble player. I once had a collection myself. Sadly, I lost my marbles long ago. No pun intended.
I am positive that I was way more excited about this gift than my 6 year old. Right away I put the marbles in a big glass candy jar so that I could admire them. Then, I put them on a dresser way up high and I went online to refresh my memory on marble games. I thought I should teach Jack how to play and get him to appreciate how fun they are before he could get to them and transform them into slingshot ammo.
Here are a couple great things that I found. The first a segment from Made in America about marbles and
the Ohio factory that still makes them. Did you know that factory marbles are created from 90% post consumer recycled glass? Click the marbles below to watch the process.
To appreciate the artistry involved in the creation of a handmade glass marble take a look at this video below.
A note to my neighbor: If your daughter is ever feeling sentimental about the loss of her marbles, let her know that Jack did not take them for keepsies. Your daughter can always have the marbles back. After all, getting a collection like this, all at once, is sorta fudging. She earned them fair and square and they are still hers if she decides one day she wants them. Pinky promise.
How to play marbles...
Bon Fortune will carry marbles for the kids. We will also carry some really amazing handmade collector marbles for the kid in you (and me).
In fashion, art, and media, everything old is new... again. Turn on the TV and notice the ads for fall programming. PAN AM for example is a heavy bet on the ABC fall line up.
Now, I hate to be trendy but from a business perspective this trend towards nostalgia puts Bon Fortune squarely in the zeitgeist. From a personal perspective, I wonder why are we all looking back?
If PAN AM ends up a hit, does this mean we get to dress up again when we board an airplane? Does this mean we return to an era of grace and good service? Will ladies regularly begin to wear lipstick and gloves? Will we all start to mind our manners once again? Probably not, but if so, count me in.
When things around us seem to be tarnishing, instead of employing elbow grease we tend to look about for what is shiny. What can possibly be more golden than childhood? Remember when you could meet the pilot in the cockpit and get a special pin with wings? So simple yet so endearing.
I do not for a minute recommend that you abandon your tasks and the hard work before you. I simply believe it is perfectly excusable to escape for a tiny shining moment into the vault of your childhood memories to remember. If you can remember something good then hold onto it. If your memories hold unfulfilled expectations, indulge them now.
You may no longer be able to visit the cockpit of an airplane (without serious repercussions) but you can
opt to eat ice cream first, buy the most expensive toy in the toy shop, and have the birthday party of your dreams. If you cannot justify doing this for yourself, do it for your children, at least once. Enjoy the indulgence, the extravagance or just the sweetness of thoughtful simplicity with the knowledge that, one day, your children will remember too.
