Sunday, April 26, 2020

Longaberger Spring Cleaning and Liner Laundering

Another good thing to do: Spring-clean your Longaberger baskets, liners, and protectors

Did you have a favorite Longaberger fabric?  Many collectors designed entire rooms around longtime prints like Fruit Medley or Botanical Fields, and also enjoyed the nubby solids and  woven plaids along the way.  Longaberger always combined quality fabrics and unique liner styles.  Remember the bedding?  Beautiful stuff--I had a Grand Botanical/Botanical Fields bedroom and a Sentimental Rose/Garden Splendor guestroom.  From comforters to curtains to cute accent pillows, we had it.  Fitted fabric liners were offered for many years, beginning with the muslin liners trimmed with lace.

Longaberger Baskets, whether working hard or sitting there looking pretty, accumulate dust, grime, scuffs, or other problems.  Fabric liners and plastic protectors can gather pet hair and lint that sneak up on you.  While you have a little more time for spring cleaning, see if you need to clean some fabric liners.

Liners can be machine washed cold, and then it's best to stretch each over its own upside-down plastic protector to dry.  If it's an over-the-edge liner with a band that needs to hang below the protector's edge, elevate your protector on a taller item.  You may need to iron your liner, and ironing them while just slightly damp saves you steam and gives a nice flatness.

Plastic protectors stain and get old and brittle. You may need to repair a crack at the top of one with wide clear tape up and over the edge and back down. If the protector is too far gone, Dresden's Baskets and More, one of the fun shops in Dresden OH, can be found online and has replacement protectors that you can't tell from the Longaberger ones.  I hope they can continue to provide those!  Since you'll be paying shipping anyway, be sure to check your baskets for other protectors you need.

Baskets benefit from brisk dusting with a paintbrush all over, with special attention inside corners. I am on my second paintbrush dedicated to basket cleaning--it's hard on them. Some spots or scuffs on basket splints can be erased away with an eraser.  Those scratchy erasers on some old ink pens can be gently used.  We used to smooth rough new wooden basket handles by rubbing them with folded brown paper bags, kinder than sandpaper but still helpful.  

We also learned long ago to fold a fabric liner's zip bag and store it in the bottom of the basket under the liner, and that has paid off for me.  Beautiful as the fabric liners are, very few of the baskets in my home have liners in them. The liners are back in their bags and stored in my office closet.  I like my baskets bare, with a plastic protector inside.  St. Pat's and Christmas Baskets are two exceptions that still sport fabric liners here, as well as the cute Blue Ribbon Baskets' Plaid. 

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Thank You! Have you written it lately?

Another good thing to do: brighten someone's day with a handwritten note recognizing their efforts.

Receiving a handwritten note these days is a big deal, and I end up squirreling them away in my desk somewhere after reading and displaying them for a week or so. 

With the extra time we have at home right now, this would be a great time to write a note or two.  I have a Medium Gathering Basket full of notecards I used to send to congratulate my Longaberger team members.  Now I need to send them to others.

I have an older friend who is unable to leave home and only sees her grumpy son.  I try to call her occasionally, but I need to send her a note.  One of my former students is now writing for the local newspaper and doing it well.  I need to send him a note.  There are a few politicians I should thank. I need to send them a note. Of course, this could all be done with an email, but it's kind of fun to get something personal delivered by the US Postal Service.  Especially if you already have notecards you need to use. As this box of thank-you notes suggested, "Stay Connected; Make Someone's Day; Give Thanks."


The 1986 Medium Gathering Basket above is signed by Dave Longaberger and his daughter Tami and is one of the few stationary-handle baskets I own.  I had not even heard of Longaberger in 1986.  I love the Medium Gathering Basket and have at least 7, most offered as limited-time feature baskets with different stain and weave variations.  You need at least one of this truly versatile basket.  

Saturday, April 11, 2020

Family Puzzle Fun--It's Art!

Another good thing to do: Put a puzzle together, then turn it into art!

If you and your family haven't put together a big jigsaw puzzle together for a while, this is a great time. It's always surprising to find who does and doesn't enjoy putting together puzzles, but most will still sit and visit even if not working on the puzzle. 


My husband doesn't enjoy puzzling, so I do it mostly alone.  I like unusual and shaped puzzles, and when they are completed, I have been gluing them together, backing them with foamcore, and decorating with them. Puzzle glue is painted over the top of the finished puzzle, a layer or more, and allowed to dry well. This puzzle about Life (left) was painful to complete, but good to have on the wall for reflection. One of my favorites is a big shaped Santa puzzle, shown many pages back next to a Santa Belly Christmas tree (click Older Posts at the bottom of the page several times).

When my son was little, we completed a Peanuts puzzle together that had smaller pieces for adults on one end and larger pieces for kids on the other. We also enjoyed some 3-d puzzles that went with books he was reading, like a castle from Lord of the Rings

The butterfly puzzle hanging in one bathroom matches the framed butterflies well and adds a big pop of color.  That puzzle has shaped pieces, including several butterflies, within it, and was fun to complete. 

There are many helpful places to get puzzles, and I have so many puzzles already that I could shelter in place for months and months. Many of my favorite puzzles came from Current (currentcatalog.com)and Bits & Pieces (bitsandpieces.com), both of whom have specials right now. I always end up checking the puzzle section when shopping at Barnes & Noble, back when we could go there. I have a puzzle keeper so I can sort pieces and also can put a puzzle away if we need the dining room table. Otherwise, I enjoy having a puzzle there where I can change seats and move around it. 

Really creative folk could embellish the puzzle afterward, such as gluing on shells gathered at the ocean after completing an ocean puzzle, or adding touches of glitter or paint.  Let your creativity flow, and make art after the fun of completing the puzzle itself.

I hide the box cover away and put the puzzle together by color and shape.  I still put together the outside edges first and fill in from there, but many choose to find inner parts to complete and work their way out. Either way, putting puzzles together is good for us and especially for children as it makes great brain connections. Happy puzzling!   

By the way, that Longaberger 2004 Hostess Hat Box Basket in the top photo, as well as the two Bushel Baskets from 2005, are beautiful ones.  The Hat Box Basket has unique handles and a divided stacked protector that could be really useful . . . but mine just sits there and looks good.  That old black trunk really has travel stickers on it.  It was a great flea market find years ago.

Thursday, April 9, 2020

Try a New Recipe: Italian Stuffed Shells

Another good thing to do: Try a different recipe

Have you ever wanted to use those big jumbo pasta shells? This yummy recipe is a great "basic", one to try and then add some of your own delicious touches.  It is best baked in a Longaberger Woven Traditions 9" x 13" Baking Dish, of course.

Italian 3-Cheese Stuffed Shells
1 lb. ground chuck
1 c. onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 c. hot water
12-oz. can tomato paste
1 T instant beef bouillon granules
1 1/2 t. dried oregano
16-oz. container cottage cheese
8-oz. pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
24 jumbo pasta shells, cooked



Cook beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet until browned;  drain. Stir in water, tomato paste, bouillon granules, and oregano; simmer over medium heat about 30 minutes.


Stir together cottage cheese, one cup mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, and egg; mix well.  Stuff cooked shells with cheese mixture; arrange in a greased 9" x 13" baking dish.  


Pour beef mixture over shells.  Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  Uncover and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.  Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese melts.  Serves 6-8.

We had this a month ago, and I froze some smaller portions.  I got one of those out to have for supper tonight, and it tasted as good as ever.  Filling those shells was fun!  I may try a mild sausage next time instead of the ground beef.  I hope you'll enjoy it too.

from Gooseberry Patch Family Favorite Recipes (2008)
recipe submitted by M. McNew from Missouri

Monday, April 6, 2020

Turning in Your Census Info: Good Thing to Do

Another good thing to be doing: Turn in Your Census Information 

There is a reason the US Census has been running those cute commercials the last few days--we need an accurate count of people in the USA.  Since you might have a few more moments right now than usual, why not fill out your Census form, either on paper, online, or on the phone?  I was amazed how quick it was to complete.  You'll be helping your state with an accurate count and saving some Census worker some time later.

I was just finishing training and starting to work for the Census when everything was suspended on March 18.  Workers will have lots to do when restrictions ever are eased, and you could help by turning in your information.  The questions are pretty impersonal and not much is asked on the form we had.

Sunday, April 5, 2020

Longaberger Toilet Paper Basket: Handier than Ever

Who would've thought we would appreciate a Longaberger Basket full of toilet paper as much as we have?  From somewhat-decorative to very necessary, this basket has been handy!

Coronavirus has quickly gone from a scary phenomenon somewhere else to a pandemic reaching the shores of the US.  Life has been completely disrupted, and we are left to make the best of this strange new situation.  Wonderful stories of Americans showing support for and helping others abound.  

Living in southwest Missouri has been a blessing, as always.  We have mourned the deaths as we empathized with the family and friends who will miss each person lost, and we celebrate those who manage to overcome this illness.  Thanks to the media for sharing those successful recovery numbers too.

We expected 2020 to be a year to remember, and hopefully we will be left remembering talented scientists and everyday Americans all rising to the occasion.  

Check my Older Posts for recipes and possible activities that might be helpful during this strange new time.  They go back several years.  You can also click on a label at the bottom to find other posts with that label.