Shopkeepers Blog

2/8/10 We are currently featuring a new local craftperson at The Rusty Bucket. Bill Crofton has been a woodworker from a very early age. He made his first candle lantern in 1984 for his wife, patterning it after a 100 year old antique and has been making them ever since. Bill and his lanterns were featured in the September 2002 issue of "Country Home" magazine and his lantern plays a prominate role in the pilot of "Rusty Bucket Kids Club" tv show. Check out some of the handcrafted products that he's done - the detail on some of these is incredible!

2/5/10 What's up with all this winter weather? We had our snow last week, that was our winter and now I'm ready for SPRING. It's been pouring rain here all day and the temp is right at 34. Thank goodness, its not any colder or we would be having all the 2'+ of snow that's hitting the northeast. I guess I'm just not a winter person.

A lady was in the shop today and she kept on and on about how ridiculous we are here in the south about not having school when there is snow on the ground. She moved here last year to retire from Pennsylvania. Obviously, she hasn't been on the side roads of Wake County to see how slick they still were - even yesterday. (Or our back alley, where Mack fell royally on some black ice and busted his "bee-hind" (and elbow and shoulder)!!) :)

As much as we don't want the kids missing school, the last place we want them is in a bus on an icy part of the road. I tried to explain to her that we had a snow last year but prior to that it had been about 3 years since the last measurable one and it's not worth the investment in the equipment that rarely gets used. (Just a side note: I heard on the news this week that - with the exception of Texas - NC has the MOST state roads of any of the other states .)

One of the first things you have to learn when you move to the south is to learn to RELAX and ENJOY the time we spend at home when it snows. It doesn't happen often and you're supposed to stay home with your family and appreciate it. (Don't mess it up for us - we have a good thing going here!!!)

Now that I appreciated it all last weekend, I'm ready for some good ole warm spring-like days...

Friday evening about 6 PM, it started snowing out of Twin Gables. We got about 5" of powder and then the sleet started and continued most of the night. Fortunately, no freezing rain to bring down trees or power lines. In spite of missing the weekend at the shop, it was nice to have some down time. I did get the "Gathering Room" painted (after several years of being indecisive about what to do about it) but also enjoyed the couch time and watching the birds outside the kitchen window.

In the country where we are, there aren't many others around that feed the birds so our house become the buffet line for most of them. We now have TEN PAIR of cardinals that stay in and around our yard - plus the usual wrens, titmouses, bluejays, chickadees, etc.

I'm not sure how well you can tell from this photo, but Mack caught seven of the male cardinals at the feeder at one time. The problem with getting a good photo is that they move SO FAST!

1/26/10 Several people have asked about the recipe for the slaw I had this weekend for CJ's party. It's an Asian Coleslaw that doesn't use mayonaise so it keeps well - and actually gets better the next day. I was given this recipe by a former co-worker's wife out of Chicago many years ago and it has become a family favorite. Hope you try it and enjoy:

1 package slaw/cabbage mix
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 pack beef flavored Raman noodles (set aside flavoring packet and crush noodles)
1 cup sesame seed nuts
1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
flavoring from Raman noodles

Either mix in a blender or put in a container with a tight fitting lid and shake very well. Pour over cabbage mixture and chill for at least 8 hours.

1/25/10 I'm tired today. We had a great weekend. We had a celebration dinner party last night for my youngest son that graduated from NC State in December with an engineering degree. Best part of the story: he has a job starting in February!!

Last night, we had him and his room-mates, my other son and his wife, some of their mutual friends and "adult couples" (meaning 'old like me') that have been friends throughout their lives. It was great to get them all together for the evening.

However, for Mack and I - having 'company' means we have to clean the house. How can two people that spend the majority of their time at a store, four cats and a dog make such a mess (I think the animals have something to do with it)?? We are always amazed at just how much TRASH he and I can accumulate. I try to be conscious of what I throw away and recyle but I'm still astonished at the number of trash bags we go thru.

Anyway, that being said - we spent the weekend getting things put away, cooking and preparing for the dinner. We decided that we need to do this about once a month in order to keep things orderly - and I LOVE having guests over to Twin Gables. Maybe that should have been our New Years Resolution: have a party once a month in order to keep the house clean.....

1/23/10 We acquired a treasure today. Earlier this week, a gentleman came in the store and in talking with him we found out that he was with an old african-american country church in a small community outside of Sanford. His church was getting a new piano and they had an old upright that was dated 1905 that they were going 'to take to the dump if no one wanted it'. Of course, you know me - I gasped "you can't take something like that to the dump!" So fast forward to Saturday morning, and a trailer shows up at our house along with three cars filled with ten very large strong men. It took every one of them to move this extremely heavy, large upright piano off their truck and into our storage building. So, yes - its a little on the worn side.....but its 105 years old!!!! Can you imagine the stories this piano could tell about life in this community over the past hundred years? So, with a little time and a small amount of effort - one day we may get it restored and.....well, I don't know what exactly we'll do with it. But I couldn't let it go to the dump - some things are too important to just throw away.

1/21/10 Cute Story: Sharon came in yesterday with her two grand-daughters. The last time the girls were in the store was right before Christmas to see Santa and Reagan had a great time visiting with him but 4 year old Raleigh was terrified and left crying. So coming back to the store, Reagan ran in and Raleigh hung by the door until she was sure that Santa was not here. Shortly after they got in, Mack came around the corner and the look on Raleigh's face was pure terror until we said "it's not Santa - it's Mack". Then she ran over to him and gave him a hug and all was well.

Sharon called as they were on the way home and said the girls had figured it all out: Mack was REALLY Santa and he was hiding at The Rusty Bucket. Reagan said she figured it out by his laugh and the 'twinkle in his eye'. Raleigh was so cute - she told her grandma "I hugged him and I didn't even cry!!" So, now you know the truth -- Santa is hiding at The Rusty Bucket.

1/19/10 I promised you a couple more photos from Walt and Lynn's beautiful home. This is the other side of their remodeled basement. It's all furnished with beautiful primitive antiques from the time they lived in New England. Once we get the "Country Style" section of our website complete, you'll be able to see lots more of this wonderful home.

Walt said when he was small he always wanted a bear. Now that he's grown, he has a collection of antique bears - a few of which are quite at home in a beautiful old cart.

1/15/10 Customers, Walter and Lynn, were once New England antique dealers and when they moved to NC bought a traditional house. One of the first things Lynn did was have the marble fireplace taken out and rebuilt with old bricks. Their basement was a big open unfinished space. Having a great eye for what was possible, they turned this big open space into a Williamsburg style Tavern Room. Covering the walls with wood paneling, putting in a fireplace and a cage bar they worked miracles. Here are a few shots of one of the basement rooms. Others will follow next week:

1/14/10 I promised you more photos to give you a sneek peek of homes we plan on featuring in the new "COUNTRY STYLE" section. I know you are going to love Ray and Barbara's house when you see the rest of it. Just check out these cozy corners of their kitchen and bathroom. Their log home was recently featured in the 2009 holiday issue of "Country Sampler" magazine.

1/12/10 We've had a link on our website for a year or so now called "Country Style" that has set empty. We knew what we wanted on there but pulling all the information together and getting the inspiration to get started has taken some time. This week, out of the blue, Mack got major motivated. He pulled out all his research and it fills a 5" binder (plus 14 books and countless website references). This section is finally going to be happening (either that or he's writing a reference book).

Expect to see articles about decorating and what you all like most - PHOTOS!!! Over the past couple years, we've visited six customer homes and taken pictures of how each decorate and have some great shots to share with you. Several of these we've gone back for multiple seasonal photo shoots.

Over the holidays, we went to Deborah's home. She lives in a house built around 1900 and has filled it with great 'finds' and a unique decorating style. I love how she takes items that many people would overlook (like an old screen door) and uses it on her wall for a great accent. And just wait until you see her extensive santa and bear collection!!!

I think you're going to love this section when it finally comes out. Mack is meeting with the webmaster this week to get things going and you should be hearing from me soon that it is ready for your inspection.

This section will be on-going as articles and photos will constantly be added. To give you a feel for some of the photos you'll be seeing, I'll be adding more here on the blog this week. There are some great houses that I know you will LOVE.

On that note - if you know of a home that you'd like for us to see and photograph, please let us know. Don't let that intimidate you -- its not about a whole house theme and everything does not have to be perfect. Its about what you are proud of in your country decor or an area that people always comment on. We'd love to come visit!!!!

1/8/10 OK, I hate cold weather - for some reason it's just hard for me to warm up once I get cold. Mack, on the other hand, loves it - but even he has complained a bit this week about how cold it is. I have a friend in Iowa that laughed at me the other day on Facebook when I was complaining about windchills in the teens. Its been sub-zero there with -30 degree wind chills. But, we're in North Carolina. It's not supposed to be this cold in the south!!!

So, we've had a fire going every day this week at the store. A pot of hot coffee is on and I've even had a pot or two of soup simmering on the stove. "The Bucket" is a warm and cozy place right now so come on down and spend some time with us.

New items have been coming in about every day this week. Valentines items should be starting to come in next week. We've got some great new lighting - and a SALE going on now thru January 14 on lighting - 20 - 60% off. If you have a dark corner now in your home after taking down the Christmas tree, its a perfect time to pick up a new lamp to brighten it up.

Well, we got thru the holidays. What a hectic time of year it was. It was nice to have a few days downtime over New Years and finally find time to post some pictures. We hope you and your's had a wonderful holiday!!!

This 'big box' in the hallway was a secret gift for my son and his wife.....
(Mack (Santa) had a great time making a box and wrapping it)

Santa came to see ME Christmas morning and left all these great treasures. All are
antiques except for the wooden cart (which Mack had shipped from South Dakota)

The secret gift!!! Yep, we're going to be grandparents next summer and could not be happier.

12/21/09 Oh My Goodness!!! I can't believe it's been over a month since I've been on here. I can not tell you how BUSY we've been. So much has been going on and happening here in our lives. There's the usual holiday events like Thanksgiving, Christmas on Salem Street, Raleigh and Apex Christmas Parades, Apex Historical Society Holiday Home Tours and annual family reunion with my mom's family outside of Charlotte. Then, on top of that we had two major events - my oldest son Tony got married Thanksgiving weekend and my youngest son, CJ, just graduated this past weekend from NC State. He's so lucky - he has a job waiting for him after the first of the year. We have all been so blessed and are so grateful.

11/14/09 THANKS to all of you that came out for our Holiday Open House last weekend. It was one of the best we've had in a long time and I thank you for your continued loyalty. I wanted to share some of the photos Mack took right before we opened. We had so many handmade items this year and many things sold out the first night. However, we still have LOTS of great items left - some are being reordered: candy-stripe battery operated tapers, holiday wax candle sleeves, holiday hangers for black arrows. Be on the lookout and I will post as they come in. In the meantime, enjoy the photos:

You can't tell by the photo, but snow was falling in the window behind
santa's suit.

These are the new locally made food products we premiered at our Holiday Open House.

A 'Raggedy Ann' tree

10/17/09 WHERE does the time go??? I just saw that I haven't been on here in over a week. We've just got way too much going on....did I mention that my son is engaged and getting married Thanksgiving weekend? There was an engagement party for them last night in the gardens at the Harwood House - a beautiful 200 years old house in downtown Raleigh. It was absolutely breath-taking. They had dozens of candles hanging from magnolia trees and white twinkle lights and bowls overflowing with beautiful coral roses on the tables. I am so blessed that Tony is marrying such a sweet girl and happy to see them together.

10/6/09 You've got to check out the November issue of COUNTRY SAMPLER magazine. You'll see the home of some friends and very good customers of ours that I know you will love. Actually, you may have seen it already - if you've looked at the video's on our website and seen "Log Cabin Christmas" you will have seen Ray and Barbara's beautifully decorated log cabin. This home is featured this month in the magazine. Here's a photo of the cover and the first page of the article. You'll love it! (and if you want to see more rooms than what's in the article, look for the link on our website for lots more photos!!!)

In 144 pages, over 300 color photographs capture the homes of many collectors including that of a collector in Ohio who has one of the finest Shaker collections ever photographed.

10/04/09 We went out to Common Grounds coffee shop last night to hear GW Pearce and "The Rusty Bucket Band". I have to tell you that I was blown away. GW is a very talented country music artist that is in the process of recording his own CD in addition to doing the music for RBKC. This is not "kids songs" but great music that so many people that heard this weekend fell in love with. This is going to be a great TV show that they whole family will love and, believe me, the music is a blast! You'll be hearing more soon.

10/01/09 GW Pierce will be performing the original music for Rusty Bucket Kids Club TV Show LIVE this Saturday in downtown Apex. at 3:45 PM until 4:15 PM in front of the Train Depot and then from 7 until 9 PM at Common Grounds Coffeehouse. Some of the stars from the show will be on hand - come on down and get a glimpse of what's coming!!!!!

8/29/09 As I realized in the post from yesterday, I had neglected to post photos of our new old doors. We got these from a friend of my mom's in Kannapolis (near Charlotte). They came out of an old farmhouse that was built in the 1800s. These door each weigh about 50 pounds - they are over 8' tall and we absolutely love them. I love the red color too - I'm thinking when we actually get them up, we may have to paint the shutters the same color red.....and maybe the inside trim.....and maybe the brick on the parlor fireplace.....(see how things snowball!!!)

8/28/09 Mack and I just enjoyed a great weekend OFF. It was wonderful and relaxing. We ended up going to the fleamarket at the NC State Fairgrounds for their closing weekend prior to the State Fair and we found TREASURES! It's funny how we both love old things that have a story to them. We found an old corn sheller from the late 1800s that was in great shape. The same guy also had a very primitive stool with pegged legs - so we got both of those. We also popped in to visit Blondie in her booth and found what she said was an old sugar cane cutter. We loved the red color since it's the same shade of red as the 100 year old plus doors we found to put on our house (Oh my - I just realized I never showed you a picture of those!!! - I'll do that in a day or two!). I also stumbled on a very old basket that I loved to go with the 50+ I already have (but who's counting???). Check out the photos of our front porch decorated with our new finds!

An old prim rabbit (I know 'wrong season' but she likes getting out of the house) sits inside my new old basket along side the old bench we picked up.

Just to make it clear that the witch lives down the road - NOT in Twin Gables!!!! :)

8/15/09 I'm still trying to catch up after our big Fall Open House weekend! We were so busy getting ready for it - long days into nights unpacking boxes, rearranging and decorating. Mack and I had to laugh at ourselves - we were both so sore that we could hardly move for a day or two!

Then a great crowd of some of our favorite "Bucket Heads" were waiting in line when we opened the door at 5:00 PM Friday evening. What a great evening we had! There were people in the store until almost 9:30 that night. Saturday and Sunday were both busy days also. If you weren't able to make it, there are still some great fall items remaining (after all, Fall doesn't officially get here until a week from today!!) However, we don't reorder seasonal items, so when it's gone - it won't be back until next year (and as I told several people this weekend that were looking for something I had last year - I usually don't do the same thing two years in a row.)

Also, there is building excitement around THE RUSTY BUCKET KIDS CLUB tv show that will be filmed in our shop. A crew was at the store first thing this morning getting footage to add to the music video they have produced. This is going to be so much fun!!!!

8/10/09 THE SECRET IS OUT!!! In today's Apex paper (front page), there is a large article about your favorite country store....beginning is October, The Rusty Bucket will be the location for filming a new kids TV show called....."The Rusty Bucket Kids Club"!!!! It will be based on two kids in a small town that find a way to travel back in time to visit with historical figures that are still in their youth. It will be a fun story and allow kids to get a history lesson too!!! If you're in town, be sure to pick up an Apex paper - they got the exclusive on the first press release.

I'll try to get it scanned and posted or emailed out soon.....right now, I have to get back to getting ready for open house tomorrow night!!! You are coming to see us this weekend, aren't you????

8/9/09 The store it totally torn apart and we are starting to unbox some amazing fall items. It's a total mess right now but it's going to look so good (if we can live thru the redo - I'm already beat and still have two long days of hard labor in front of me to get this done!!). YOU'RE GOING TO LOVE IT THOUGH!!!!

8/28/09 I'M STUNNED......I don't usually do this but I can't let this one go by. I have the news on in the store and CNN just released a tape from a Baptist Preacher stating, in a sermon from the pulpit, in no uncertain terms that our president needs to be assassinated. THIS IS A PREACHER!!! I understand that people have different opinions and ideals but to hear this coming from someone that is supposed to be a man of God (and so obviously not) is one of the worst things I've heard in a very long time and deeply disturbing. Why can't we just get along??

I have a new, very cool, OLD cabinet. It's been sitting out in our 'barn' for a few months now because it was so big, Mack and I didn't think we could get it up the steps and into the house by ourselves. Living in an old house, there is never enough cabinets or closet space and I really needed this cabinet for storage. So, Saturday evening, we got the hand cart and lugged it into the house.

It's hard to tell from the photo, but it's well over 8' tall and almost 5' across. Our ceiling in most of the house are 10' and I had a hard time finding something small enough to fit on the top once we got it in place. But, oh I love it!!! I was able to clean out the laundry area shelves and another cabinet and STILL have space available inside for more STUFF!! Yipee!

8/22/09 Want a sneak peek at something that will part of our Fall Open House? They're not fall related but we're saving them for the "big day" - if you like primitive annies, you'll LOVE these...they are 3-4' tall and all locally made. How can you not SMILE when you see them???

8/18/09 You know you're in trouble when the Fed-Ex guy shows up and says that he's had to rent a truck just for our delivery! We got a HUGE shipment in today - mostly fall and, believe it or not - Christmas. Boxes are stacked literally to the ceiling in the backroom and I have a LOT of work waiting on me!!!

I can't wait for you to see what I've found!! I was poking around this weekend at a few places and stumbled across a set of six small OLD bow-back children's chairs. They are the perfect place for our new large Annies to sit!! If you have at least one doll in your home and she doesn't have her own special chair, you'll really want to look at these - they're pretty special (and there are only six!) See how cute they are?

NEWS FROM DOWNTOWN: We're getting a couple new neighbors. The space next to us that the real estate office used to be in will soon be occupied by 'All Booked Up' - used book store. If you haven't seen this space already downtown, its a very cute bookstore and we are excited about their expanding and moving next door to us. Also, we are hearing rumors that the space where Piggyback Market was has been leased out to a large-size specialty women's clothing store. This will be a great complement to Nativa which will be right next door. Did you see the review in the N&O about Anna's Pizzeria? Very good write up and they have been PACKED ever since. Yury, the owner, tells me he is working on opening the upstairs which will give him about 45 additional (and quieter) seating. Good things continue to be happening in Apex. Come see us!

8/17/09 Our Rusty Bucket brand of NC food products are in!! We're so excited to finally be getting these. I can't wait for you to see our kitchen area - now known as the "Carolina Country Cupboard" and try some of the new products we've added. There are jams, jellies, apple and sweet potato butter, pickles and non-alcoholic muscadine wine. These also make great last minute gifts to pick up next time you're in the shop.

8/16/09 A wedding is in the works! I had the pleasure this weekend to do two things: go with my son, his fiance and her mother to visit St. Mary's Chapel (future wedding site) and then go to the Southern Bridal show with them. Man!! Who knew???? It can be pretty overwhelming to see all the options available for the bridal couple -makes me want to reconsider my choice of business.........nah, maybe not.

8/11/09 I LOVE the smells of Fall.....and it smells heavenly in here right now. Two boxes of fall potpourri, p'kin pods and wax dipped items are in and have the backroom smelling so GOOD. They're being stored away until our FALL OPEN HOUSE next month - you better have it on your calendar! I've got some really great one-of-a-kind handmades and when they're gone - there's no reordering!!!

Fall Harvest at The Rusty Bucket
Friday evening, September 11 5 PM - 9 PM
Saturday, September 11 10 AM - 6 PM
Sunday, September 12 12 NOON - 3 PM

What a fun weekend we had - my oldest son Tony "popped the question" Friday evening to his wonderful girlfriend, Leigh. He gave her an absolutely gorgeous ring and we are all so excited. They are so sweet together and so in love. It's going to be a fun year with a wedding in the works.

8/7/09 I'm in love with my newest crafter, Elaine. She showed up AGAIN this morning with two crates full of the most adorable prim black dolls and other handmade items.

Once again - there are also amazing Fall items that you're going to have to WAIT till Open House to see - and yes, it's killing me not to put them out!!! But, these below are so cute and, like her other items, I'm sure won't last. Take a look at these (they are even better in person!!!)

8/2/09 We have a new line of barbecue sauces (locally made, of course). Just got this from a customer:

We tried the Fryar's original sweet barbeque sauce from The Rusty Bucket last night and it was terrific! Put it on some pork strips hot off the grill and it was really good. It has a nice, creamy consistency and the sweet taste made it stand out from run-of-the-mill BBQ sauce.

Glad you recommended it and made it available in your store!
--
John P

7/31/09 I'm up to my ears in new stuff!!! Mack got photos of the new handmade items that Elaine and Mary Ann brought in the morning. I'm posting just a few to give you an idea of what's here. I've got to get them tagged and out (one sold before I could get her checked in) PLUS there are boxes from UPS that I need to get to. I'm trying to get as much out as I can for the weekend.

We had to take this little girl out of th customer's hand to get a picture of her
before she got away!

Yes, I know it's hard to see it all - but there are so many wonderful new one-of-a-kind handmade items that those two talented women brought in. Last week, almost everything they brought in sold over the weekend. We've got another big Anniversary Celebration tomorrow - don't get left out!

Still in boxes in the back are candle rings, towels, stitcheries, penny mats, wool hooked rugs....got to go unpack it and see what else I can find!!!

7/27/09 What a great Anniversary weekend we had here at The Rusty Bucket. It was the best overall weekend we've had in a couple years. Thanks to all of you that continue to come out and support us.

New items are continuing to come up with increasing frequency. Fall items are also coming in and we are storing them away for our big Fall Open House on September 11 & 12. Be sure to mark your calendar now. There will be lots of one-of-a-kind handmade items that disappear fast so you'll want to be here when the doors open at 5:00 PM Friday evening.

In the meantime, we are now fully stocked with NC wines and food products - great gift for visiting family and friends or when you need a quick hostess gift. Don't forget, Chef William from Duplin Winery will be here next Saturday doing a food tasting in our kitchen. He has some new food products that we already have in stock that he will be cooking with.

7/23/09 I LOVE to find treasures - especially handmade primitive ones. Yesterday, two wonderful women walked into the shop with the arms loaded (crates actually) of wonderful hand made items. One, Mary Anne, I've known and bought from personally for years. She has a wonderful ability to find old interesting pieces and add her special handpainted touch.

The other was her friend, Elaine. I got so excited about all she brought with her. (You Raggedy Ann collectors are going to be happy.) I'm going to show you part of it but the rest you're going to have to WAIT TO SEE because it's all FALL (and our Open House is September 11 & 12 so it won't go out until then!!!)

On the left is an old smudge pot used to light warning fires roadside - the other is an old oil can.

And then, there's a special story about this little doll. She was made by 6-year old Alice - the youngest daughter of one of our favorite crafters - Jennifer. They start early in her family as Friday evenings are family craft night. Ten year old Natalie has actually made and sold several of her dolls at our store and seven year old Gordon has a pig he made in the shop now. This is the first doll Alice has ever made and she wanted to continue the family tradition and "sell it at The Rusty Bucket". Go to our "Home Page" and check out more about Jennifer as she is our new "Featured Artisan".

7/20/09 I made the best thing this weekend. We have so many tomatoes and fresh herbs from the garden and, even though I'll never get tired of fresh tomato sandwiches, I'm always looking for a new way to enjoy them. THIS was even better than I anticipated. Take a look at this Tomato Tart:

Oh my goodness, it is SO GOOD!!! You have to try it and let me know what you think.

1/2 (15 oz) package refrigerated pie crust
2 cups shredded mozzerella cheese
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (divided)
3 medium ripe tomatoes (peeled and cut into 1/2" slices)
1-1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper

Fit piecrust into a 10" tart pan according to package directions. (If you don't have a tart pan, you can do it in a pie plate.) Generously prick bottom and sides of pan with a fork. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle cheese evenly into pie shell and top with 2 tablespoons basil. Arrange tomato slices on top and brush with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on baking sheet and put on lower rack of oven.

Bake at 400 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven; sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon basil. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. (8 servings)

7/14/09 I have a new local dollmaker that brought in the most adorable handcrafted prairie doll today. The dolls name is "Donna Mae" and there is so much detail to her. It's hard to see the face up close in the photo but she's precious. The tatting on the sleeves and crochet are handmade from the doll makers mother and grandmother and the buttons are from the late 1880s. If you're a prim doll lover, you are going to want to fight me for "Donna Mae" - she's a hard one not to add to my personal collection.

A peek "up her frock" at her striped stocking and pantiloons - and a look at the back of her hair.

7/11/09 I had a rude awakening last night. I realized that I'm actually a year OLDER than I thought I was. How sad is that?? I just had a birthday back in May but, I guess, I either just forgot about it (oh no - is that a sign that I'm REALLY getting old???) or the fact that the anniversary of my birth actually adds another year to the total somehow skipped my mind (oh no - its another sign for sure!!!) - either way, I was totally shocked to realize I had aged just in that instance in remembering. I've never been one to worry about the "Big 4-O" or the "Big 5-O" but somehow, suddenly realizing that you're a year older than you thought you were is a bit weird and disturbing at the same time. (OK, funny too!!)

The gardens are overflowing with their seasonal goodies and I'm always looking for a new way to have fresh tomatoes (even though I could easily enjoy a sloppy fresh-from-the-garden tomato sandwich every day of my life). One of our new family favorites is Okra Salad. Not only is it great as part of a meal but a lot of nights when we get home from work, it makes a nice meal just by itself.

1-2 tomatoes - chopped
1/2 green pepper - chopped
1 bunch green onions - chopped
6 slices bacon - fried and chopped

While okra is frying, combine 1/4 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup sugar and warm until sugar dissolves.

7/6/09 The boxes are unpacked and there is SO MUCH new stuff in the store. I can't post all the pictures here but I've got a few to give you an idea of what I've been busy unpacking. There are new signs, frames, 3' tall willow trees, dolls, decorative milk bottles plus so many new locally handmade items. Pop over to "What's New" (from the home page) and check them out.

I posted lots of photos from this year's 4th of July event in historic downtown Apex on The Rusty Bucket Facebook page. Here are two that will give you an idea of what the day looked like.

The crowd in front of TRB waiting for the parade to start. There were HUNDREDS of kids on bikes, strollers and wagons.

Mack walked up just as I was somewhat overwhelmed by the boxes that the UPS guy dropped off. LOTS of new things.....I've just got to get off here now and get them unboxed and out so you can see what's in them!!!

My mom was here visiting for a few weeks - what a nice treat. Her health is not that good anymore so she doesn't get up to visit like she once did. She spent a few afternoons in the store while she was here but what she enjoyed most was sitting on the front porch -sometimes we'd sit out there and rock and talk until long after dark.

As if I didn't have enough from my own garden, my neighbor called and told me someone had given her a 'toe-sack' full of cucumbers that she was going to throw out because she didn't want to deal with them - so, of course, there was no way I could let her do that! Fortunately, I have a great recipe for 14-day pickles so I can drag out the process. Last night, we starting cutting up the cucumbers and filled up a large lemonade crock and started the '14-day process'.

Afterwards, we did several jars of dill pickles to go with the squash relish and banana pepper and okra pickles we did earlier in the week. These are going to be SO GOOD this winter.....

We just got in these stretchy silver bead bracelets - I love them. They're really pretty and, best of all, inexpensive, so you can have more than one and not feel guilty (who doesn't love that???)

6/16/09 Doris and Jennifer have been busy! Look at some of the items they've brought in this week.

Every once in a while we get emails and photos from customers. We love to see how you're decorating with the items you purchase from us. This is an email we recently received:

Well Pam, Here are our new chairs and I just love them! They are so comfortable and I love
their look. Notice the sign above our door? Our daughter sent that to me before we moved
to NC.

A satisfied customer,

Pat and David Carnie